Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Tiny Kitten Teeth
Out of the few webcomics I checked out, I liked Tiny Kitten Teeth by Becky and Frank the most. During this whole semester, a big contributing factor to liking a comic has been visuals, and this one is my favorite! On one page I can't decide which character is the cutest and then in another the characters are so gross-looking but fit so well with the style of the previous ones. There are also so many bright, vibrant colors in every panel of the story. The color palettes used are well thought out and bring together the whole story, page by page. Although it changes drastically from happy bright colors to dark... yet still vibrant colors, the reader can see that they belong together in the same comic. The crazy colors also accentuate the crazy story. Like the previous comic I read about super heroes, this one doesn't seem to have a deeper meaning. I am just reading it for fun. Although it is confusing, I would keep reading this story specifically for its illustrations. They are very inspiring and have aspects that I would love to introduce into my own illustrations.
Kingdom Come
I've had rotten luck the past few weeks when it comes to liking my first pick and this week was no different. My first choice was Watchmen. I figure, you know... it's pretty popular, a lot of people like it, I might too! I couldn't make it past the first few minutes of the movie... and unfortunately I didn't make it past the first fifty pages of the comic. It's not that I didn't like it... it just had way too much going on and I had no idea what was happening even a few pages in. So I switched to Kingdom Come.
It took me about two days to read everything but I loved it. I've always watched the superhero movies and as cheesy as some are, I really like them. So I figured, why not read a comic about all those superheroes I love?
So that was what first attracted me to the book. Then I began reading and I was so curious as to why they were in hiding... why was Superman not saving people? I just had to keep reading to find out. Then the artwork totally captivated me. It isn't my usual style but it was so... detailed? Awesome? I can't believe there were over two hundred pages of that style of painting, it must have taken forever! It was beautiful, the colors, the lighting... some of them almost looked like photographs.
I don't believe there was anything deeper in this book other than entertainment (at least not for me). I just considered it to be a fun read and completely enjoyed it.
It took me about two days to read everything but I loved it. I've always watched the superhero movies and as cheesy as some are, I really like them. So I figured, why not read a comic about all those superheroes I love?
So that was what first attracted me to the book. Then I began reading and I was so curious as to why they were in hiding... why was Superman not saving people? I just had to keep reading to find out. Then the artwork totally captivated me. It isn't my usual style but it was so... detailed? Awesome? I can't believe there were over two hundred pages of that style of painting, it must have taken forever! It was beautiful, the colors, the lighting... some of them almost looked like photographs.
I don't believe there was anything deeper in this book other than entertainment (at least not for me). I just considered it to be a fun read and completely enjoyed it.
Donna Barr's Stinz Charger
Unfortunately, this week, I waited until the last moment to choose a book, so I picked up Stinz Charger: The War Stories by Donna Barr. I did not like it at all. The writing frustrated me... switching from english to a few german words. Other people talked in old english, and it was difficult for me to understand what was being said.
The images themselves didn't encourage me to keep reading. Some characterizations worked very well, but many of them were very general or, for example, the women had many manly characteristics. It also seems that in order to fit the drawings into the comic boxes, the anatomy of the horse part of the centaurs were changed. If it looked crammed, then they were smaller and it looked awkward compared to the regular sized other half of the body.
I like the concept of the story though. My interpretation was that the centaurs represented a certain minority in a nation. I connected it with America's history and how African Americans were not allowed certain rights even if they were allowed to fight in a war for their country. However, the clever concept, was not enough to keep me entertained while reading this book.
The images themselves didn't encourage me to keep reading. Some characterizations worked very well, but many of them were very general or, for example, the women had many manly characteristics. It also seems that in order to fit the drawings into the comic boxes, the anatomy of the horse part of the centaurs were changed. If it looked crammed, then they were smaller and it looked awkward compared to the regular sized other half of the body.
I like the concept of the story though. My interpretation was that the centaurs represented a certain minority in a nation. I connected it with America's history and how African Americans were not allowed certain rights even if they were allowed to fight in a war for their country. However, the clever concept, was not enough to keep me entertained while reading this book.
Asterios Polyp
This week I am reading Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli. When I first started reading it, I was really confused but at the same time really captured by the illustrations. The color palette is so calming and quiet that even though his house is burning down, I feel rather relaxed.
I had began reading Swallow Me Whole by Nate Powell, but I didn't quite make it past the first few pages. The illustrations were beautiful but very chaotic, combined with small type. It was really hard to follow. So, jumping from Powell's to Mazzucchelli's novel, was a nice change. In comparison, the images of Asterios Polyp are pretty simple, mostly consisting of flat, light colors. I really loved the sections where either the story changed or it went to the past and then the colors completely changed so that the reader can distinguish it. For example, when he is on the bus with another man and he asks him about the lighter. It flashes back to his dad but those two slides change to a blue color. I also like the slides previous to that, which refer to his student seducing him. The reader can see the change in the letters between Asterios and his seductive student. This suggests a different tone is being used by her.
Although it clearly has aspects I like, Asterios Polyp is rather boring. The only thing that kept me going through the pages were the images. The silk-screened illustrations were gorgeous along with his masterful use of perspective.
I had began reading Swallow Me Whole by Nate Powell, but I didn't quite make it past the first few pages. The illustrations were beautiful but very chaotic, combined with small type. It was really hard to follow. So, jumping from Powell's to Mazzucchelli's novel, was a nice change. In comparison, the images of Asterios Polyp are pretty simple, mostly consisting of flat, light colors. I really loved the sections where either the story changed or it went to the past and then the colors completely changed so that the reader can distinguish it. For example, when he is on the bus with another man and he asks him about the lighter. It flashes back to his dad but those two slides change to a blue color. I also like the slides previous to that, which refer to his student seducing him. The reader can see the change in the letters between Asterios and his seductive student. This suggests a different tone is being used by her.
Although it clearly has aspects I like, Asterios Polyp is rather boring. The only thing that kept me going through the pages were the images. The silk-screened illustrations were gorgeous along with his masterful use of perspective.
Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis
I had come across the name “Persepolis” a few times before hearing it in my literature of comics class. I probably saw it scanning through my Netflix selections online. Because of the picture on the cover, I had no idea what it was about but I didn't really have any desire to watch it. For some reason I chose to read that one this week and I am so happy I did because my ignorance would have stopped me from learning about a subject I care a lot about. I am very invested in learning other cultures and especially what is happening in the Middle East.
I opened the book and I instantly loved the simplicity of it. Everything is quite literally in black and white. There are no gray areas. The drawings look like the sketches of a child and it fits perfectly with the story. The author tells the story of her childhood in Iran in very simple language following the simple illustrations. It was very easy to understand not only the story, but the complex situations happening in a struggling country.
As I've mentioned, the simplicity is my favorite part of this whole book. I felt like I could connect, not to what she was feeling (because I have never been through that) but to what she was thinking. As a child things are very black and white and we can read her thoughts as they change as she grows up. We can see how easily she is influenced by something she reads or hears, like when she wanted to beat Ramin with nails because she heard his father had killed millions. I think the author is subtly teaching us lessons by letting us into her young mind. For example, in the chapter where she wants to beat Ramin up, she learns about forgiveness, which in turn is something we learn.
Overall, this has been my favorite story. I connect better with stories about current or past events rather than fantasy because I am interested in learning about the world.
I opened the book and I instantly loved the simplicity of it. Everything is quite literally in black and white. There are no gray areas. The drawings look like the sketches of a child and it fits perfectly with the story. The author tells the story of her childhood in Iran in very simple language following the simple illustrations. It was very easy to understand not only the story, but the complex situations happening in a struggling country.
As I've mentioned, the simplicity is my favorite part of this whole book. I felt like I could connect, not to what she was feeling (because I have never been through that) but to what she was thinking. As a child things are very black and white and we can read her thoughts as they change as she grows up. We can see how easily she is influenced by something she reads or hears, like when she wanted to beat Ramin with nails because she heard his father had killed millions. I think the author is subtly teaching us lessons by letting us into her young mind. For example, in the chapter where she wants to beat Ramin up, she learns about forgiveness, which in turn is something we learn.
Overall, this has been my favorite story. I connect better with stories about current or past events rather than fantasy because I am interested in learning about the world.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Rumiko Takahashi's Mermaid Forest
I feel that there is a big controversy when it comes to reading Manga. Like either, you are one of those people who love it and always read it or you are one of those who are insulted by the idea of having to look at it. I would say I fell into the category that would probably... never read a Manga. Maybe it is because since I have learned of it, I have been taught that that's not the art we should be making. However, since we had to read one for this class, I chose Mermaid Forest by Rumiko Takahashi... and I really, really liked it. I literally could not put it down until I finished it. It took me a little under an hour to read the whole book. It wasn't so much the drawings that did it for me, but the story. At the moment I am in a very... let's call it a Twilight haze. So any book that I find with a romantic kind of supernatural theme, I'll read it. This one happened to be mermaids (another favorite!).
It was a little frustrating when it changed stories right in the middle of the book... but I found myself loving that second story just as much as the first one. It was a confusing reading both stories and trying to understand which Yuta came first... but by the end of the book, I figured out why that middle story couldn't have the happily ever after. If it did, Mana wouldn't be with Yuta! Apart from the romantic aspects, it had a lot of action and twists that kept me tense at the edge of my seat. Some of the pictures were even a little scary, with those creepy old women wanting to eat Mana's flesh.
This week I was prepared to blog about my distaste for Manga and the fact that I was being forced to read one. But, as you can see, I picked a Manga that really captivated me and totally changed my views of what Manga is. I also learned not to judge a book by it's cover... or my ignorance. Or to judge a genre by other people's stereotypes.
It was a little frustrating when it changed stories right in the middle of the book... but I found myself loving that second story just as much as the first one. It was a confusing reading both stories and trying to understand which Yuta came first... but by the end of the book, I figured out why that middle story couldn't have the happily ever after. If it did, Mana wouldn't be with Yuta! Apart from the romantic aspects, it had a lot of action and twists that kept me tense at the edge of my seat. Some of the pictures were even a little scary, with those creepy old women wanting to eat Mana's flesh.
This week I was prepared to blog about my distaste for Manga and the fact that I was being forced to read one. But, as you can see, I picked a Manga that really captivated me and totally changed my views of what Manga is. I also learned not to judge a book by it's cover... or my ignorance. Or to judge a genre by other people's stereotypes.
Joe Sacco's Palestine
As I read this, President Abbas from Palestine is requesting for Palestine to become its own nation. So I thought it would be appropriate to read Joe Sacco's graphic novel. This issue between Palestine and Israel has been going on for a long time, but it is incredible to see that not much has changed. In the first chapter we see Sacco talking to a man that says "Israel should get out of the Occupied Territories, and there ought to be a Palestinian state... and if it doesn't happen in the next 10 years, it'll be in 20 or 30." As we can still see today, that is still a problem.
I was really interested in reading further into this subject. After reading the first few pages, I was a little confused. It wasn't the wording or the speech, it just took me a few pages to understand his placement of speech bubbles/boxes. There are many pages that have a lot of word boxes right under each other. They each hold a different thought. I also noticed that there were word boxes and word bubbles. After a few pages, I realized that the boxes were his thoughts while the bubbles displayed what people said out loud. The artwork along with the words are very chaotic, which I think reflect the message being sent by his story.
After reading most of the graphic novel, I realized that for a long time Americans had misconstrued opinions on Palestinians. By Sacco telling a story where it portrayed their everyday life, it showed that the Palestinians are more than terrorists or victims, as they are often seen.
In an interview on Aljazeera, Sacco discussed his intentions on writing this graphic novel and that he was not seeking to reconcile the differences between Israel and Palestine. He said he didn't mean to show anything spectacular either. He just showed their everyday life and how they are usually treated. Sacco argued that it is easier for us to relate to the "everyman experience" rather than the harsh treatment of someone who is being humiliated.
I was really interested in reading further into this subject. After reading the first few pages, I was a little confused. It wasn't the wording or the speech, it just took me a few pages to understand his placement of speech bubbles/boxes. There are many pages that have a lot of word boxes right under each other. They each hold a different thought. I also noticed that there were word boxes and word bubbles. After a few pages, I realized that the boxes were his thoughts while the bubbles displayed what people said out loud. The artwork along with the words are very chaotic, which I think reflect the message being sent by his story.
After reading most of the graphic novel, I realized that for a long time Americans had misconstrued opinions on Palestinians. By Sacco telling a story where it portrayed their everyday life, it showed that the Palestinians are more than terrorists or victims, as they are often seen.
In an interview on Aljazeera, Sacco discussed his intentions on writing this graphic novel and that he was not seeking to reconcile the differences between Israel and Palestine. He said he didn't mean to show anything spectacular either. He just showed their everyday life and how they are usually treated. Sacco argued that it is easier for us to relate to the "everyman experience" rather than the harsh treatment of someone who is being humiliated.
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