Underground Comics - Revision

The allure of underground comics is very understanding. During their development, they represented the ever important evolutionary process of generational liberation in parts of the 60's and 70's.

These have been some of my favorite selections so far. I found the explicit and over the top subject matter interesting for the fact that these were completely rooted in reality.

Being someone who didn't live through these time periods, my perceptions of the way the specific stereotypical lived then has been fed to me form pop culture references from movies and historical images.

This is why these comics are so interesting; they are coming form the source. I mean, I'm not going to lie, it is very over the top, and I sometimes struggled with what amount of people were actually like this. Well, its more of the question of to what degree was the average intensity of it, and how different was it experiencing this without the internet broadcasting it? I feel like there was a lot more emphasis on actually experiencing things, so these comics were a way to communicate that we were all in the same boat.

ADDITION

These hand drawn comics that were actually available in a physical entity yet considered underground just make them seem so unbelievable to me. It is the complete opposite now in todays age, you know you have hit mainstream when it exists and is distributed physically, besides the inkjet printouts you did yourself in your dorm room.

One of the strongest allures about these comics to me, a child of the digital age, is how they now represent an era to me. It also makes me wonder how much of this was , much like when I see people posting crappy film photos of parties online to seem stylish. Is this what our next generation will take out of mine? What legacy are we leaving behind besides photo booth on our macs and tumblr?

I really though enjoyed the honesty in some of the shroom trip scenes through the comparison of what the trip experience was, to what the person looks like in real life. I admire this humor, and it gives me insight to the perceptions of the way this counter culture viewed themselves.

I liked the extreme probability of these trip scenes being inspired by real ones as well.

Webcomics

Comics were not able to avoid the inevitable changes that were in store with the oncoming of the internet. Along with the music industry, magazines, newspapers, and movies, comics took a beating in terms of revenue and threw aspiring comic creators into a new world where circulation is a whole new animal.

Webcomics have been the answer to these new set of digital rules. What I find interesting about them is that the drive for revenue is gone. If you want to succeed in comics, creation comes first and monetary rewards come as a small afterthought.

I feel like this absence of this reward has really created a strong group of artists who really do it purely out of passion. Don't get me wrong, I am completely aware that this was the same for traditional comics. But I feel that there is something very strong behind the ability to instantly update and share a new strip with the world; to see reactions and see your fans take it in first hand.

Tiny Kitten Teeth was one of those web-comics that really hooked me. Yes, there are many web-comics that don't necessarily have an emphasis on artistic vision and embrace this "daily update" feel in the art-form, but this one doesn't skimp out. I get a true sense of graphic narrative and it is a beautiful marriage of what was then and what is now. I love how each post even reads very narratively - some panels are single, while others blend together and contain many ideas.

Its also interesting how the way we process comics as a whole changed with webcomics. Instead of waiting for a volume or book to come out, now we are waiting around every Thursday or so for a new panel. The feed seems to be more chopped up, but the way the artists addresses this, it seems to flow flawlessly.

Watchmen

Upon receiving my copy of Alan Moores Watchmen from Amazon, I knew it was one of those books that I haven't gotten around to reading and my procrastination mixed with its newfound fame from a mainstream movie would make it somewhat difficult to read.

I found there to be too many expectations of how I needed to experience the book, especially since many of my friends have always loved this work. It became one of those "I don't want to step on their turf because I will never understand it like they do" childhood fears. Kind of like when you watched a movie hundreds of times as a kid and felt like you were an expert at it.

I tried to not let those things get to me. I also tried to brush off the fact that I am not that interested in super heroes. I wanted to keep an open mind, I knew this was an amazing work of literature and art and I understand the validity in the work.

But there was something about just having completed many fluid and more contemporary memoir graphic novels that just kept me from really digesting and appreciating the book. The shakiness and darkness never sat well with me. All this having been said, I do think that I will be able to take a better look at it when I am at a different point in my own reading pattern.

But all that put aside, I enjoyed the basic premises of the setting. Taking semi-recent history and altering it slightly to create a world totally different from where we are in now was very intriguing. It seemed to put emphasis on how loosely our world today is put together.

Fun Home

One of the things I enjoyed most about Alison Bechdels Fun Home is how the storyline veered away from the traditional method of storytelling where everything has a set timeline. In this book, events are altered and retold according to more information learned from certain sources.

This brings a sense of intimacy throughout the story, as well as shedding light on the fact that everyone has their own unique world in our head.

There is no standard for what is considered to be the absolute truth; meaning there is no event that will come across in the exact same way in two different minds. Fun Home really hits that point home, especially with the finely presented subject of family relationships and social roles.

I feel it also jumps the same lines as what Blankets did. A small town youth trying to find a connection with their parents and town - basically struggling to find their identity in a world where those resources are not available.

I also really loved the fact that the figures were taken from photographic references that were specially made for the book. Upon learning that, that really added a sense of intimacy and realism to the book, especially since this is a memoir.

European Comics

I picked a book off of the European comics list with the idea that these comics will have something that is beyond our American versions. I always get that sense when anyone recommends anything european, especially when it deals with an independent movie, book, or in this case a graphic novel.

Well what was really refreshing about Posy Simmonds Tamara Drewe, was that I really never felt the impacts of this undertone. I seem to really prefer graphic novels that rely on beautiful illustration and themes that are somewhat obtainable (though we all do enjoy some heavy underlying motifs).

The illustration was beautiful; one that didn't give me a headache. I really have trouble getting into a comic book if I find the lines to be too heavy and sectioned off, especially when I find the drawing style to be too much. Call me a snob, but we all have our preferences, almost like when you find yourself picking up a book for its cover...

But anyway, I did enjoy the contemporary feel to it. It became one of those reads that dove deep into things you never thought mattered when you were really little. Things that you didn't understand why people just brushed it off.

This focus was heightened by our first person perspective and made the complex weaving through networks of friends seem very realistic.

Manga and the Japanese Comics Tradition

Osamu Tezuka was one of the first major Japanese illustrators/animators, and his influence can still be seen today; he is considered by some to be the "Walt Disney" of Japan.

Metropolis, because of its pioneering in the development of Japanese manga, set some standards and examples for other works to follow.

What I really liked about Metropolis was the classic fusion of mechanics and flesh - something that seems to be a very popular reoccurring theme in modern animation/manga.

I grew up watching shows like Gundam Wing, Blue Gender, and Pilot Candidate (sadly this one had a very short run), and although they all are a very different breed when it comes to plot lines and basic formalities, I can see the influence that set the standard in Tezukas work.

Nextworld is a little more innocent, but I can understand that with the era and how it really was sort of the first of its kind. Japan really seems to love the story of a cyborg being trapped in a world where technology has finally turned against us, or at least aided in hurting our every day lives.

I did like the emphasis on how all species eventually end up over exploiting their own intelligence to a point of extension. Japanese manga always seems to go down this path; I would like to think so because it is completely realistic.

Stereotype and the ethics of representation

In Howard Cruses Stuck Rubber Baby, we are thrown into the world of a man who was raised with prejudice and is also struggling with his own homosexual feelings that cast him away from acceptable society.

The main focus of this comic is to show the effects of social prejudice by putting someone in the situation of being hated for who they are, when they do it to someone else as well.

This theme translates well to me with the aid of the heavy cross hatching in the illustration. Though this was created in the 90s when I feel like this was more popular (and brings back memories of posters in my elementary classrooms) I believe the thick weight to each shadow brings about a sense of uncertainly which matches the storyline and mood. Looking at the panel dense pages make me feel somewhat depressed and frustrated; I can really get the sense that ideas don't flow as well as I have seen in other books.

I would also like to point out how although this book puts a lot of emphasis on race and gender, there is not too much of an emphasis on racial features, like there are in other books. I noticed that white characters were drawn with larger lips and flatter noses, and everyone seemed to have sort of a buff metro stance.

I really enjoyed this subtle equality. I felt like it was easier to relate to each situation by giving a sense of balance; yet not too much emphasis was placed on "evening it all out."