SKRONTZ! » Scott McCloud http://www.skrontz.com SKRONTZ! is a blog about graphic novels and their writers, artists and publishers. Tue, 29 Dec 2009 01:42:59 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.2 en hourly 1 Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art http://www.skrontz.com/2009/10/20/understanding-comics-the-invisible-art/ http://www.skrontz.com/2009/10/20/understanding-comics-the-invisible-art/#comments Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:50:58 +0000 Marc http://www.skrontz.com/?p=136 For our last meeting of the Hamilton Graphic Novel Book Club, we discussed a book that caused me to re-write my definition of “graphic novel:”   Understanding Comics:  The Invisible Art, by Scott McCloud.  While it certainly isn’t necessary to read this book in order to enjoy comics, this book is required reading for anyone who [...] Hypothetically related posts:
  1. In The Shadow Of No Towers: A First Impression
  2. McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern #13
  3. The Boys: The Name of the Game
]]> 510544RTYDL._SL160_For our last meeting of the Hamilton Graphic Novel Book Club, we discussed a book that caused me to re-write my definition of “graphic novel:”   Understanding Comics:  The Invisible Art, by Scott McCloud.  While it certainly isn’t necessary to read this book in order to enjoy comics, this book is required reading for anyone who is interested in analyzing or studying comics, or is trying to relate to someone who loves them.In Understanding Comics, McCloud uses the medium of comics to explain comics, a device that works exceptionally well, as it allows him to demonstrate what he is talking about as he is talking about it.  It covers a lot of ground, including: a definition of comics; a brief history of comics; the difference between “cartooning” and “comics” (one is a style of illustration, and one is a type of medium) and “content” vs. “container” more generally; the importance of the “gutter” (that space between one panel and another) (and it’s a LOT more important than you would guess); how time works in comics; how complex ideas like motion and emotion are conveyed;  differences between North American, European and Asian comics;  the relationships between a comic’s words and its pictures; the six steps of the creative process (also useful in criticism); and lots more.

I really liked this book.  I have been reading comics since I was a kid (so, for 30+ years), yet there was lots for me to learn.  The book is very accessible, in terms of both is visuals and its prose.  Having said that, this is a pretty academic book.  If you don’t like getting all philosophical about things, you might not like this book too much.  And, while it didn’t bother me at all, one of the more illustration-focused people in our club remarked that the inclusion of many pieces of illustrative samples made the book seem visually cluttered and hard to read.  So you might want to take that into account too.

Hypothetically related posts:

  1. In The Shadow Of No Towers: A First Impression
  2. McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern #13
  3. The Boys: The Name of the Game

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