Understanding Comics

Scott McCloud's

Understanding Comics

I knew from the start of this book that it would be very entertaining, and not to mention pretty educational. I never realized how broad comics were.. there's a comic for every single person on the planet to enjoy if they just looked. Also, how comics come in so many different ways today- the materials and the way they are presented are endless. Web Comics, for example, are becoming all the rage today. There are also the traditional ways, like inking and printing, which are still around as well. Another point I found fascinating is how long comics have been around for- the examples he gave, like hieroglyphs, I didn't even think of as being comics! This really opened my eyes to how sequential art is literally everywhere. This book made me think in ways that I would have never thought of- example, the icon. I mean, when I see a picture of a planet, I automatically say "That's a planet!' but in reality it's just a drawing of a planet or etc. 

"When we abstract an image through cartooning, we're not so much eliminating details as we are focusing on specific details. By stripping down an image to its essential meaning, an artist can amplify that meaning in a way that realistic art can't. - This line really stood out to me, I found this to be so very true when it comes to cartoons.

The parts about how we are such a self centered race was highly interesting, the way we see faces in everything and how when we interact with each other we are always thinking about how we look to them. Even when we look at a simplistic cartoon we see ourselves, no wonder why we are so attracted and engulfed in them. It is also very important to make sure that your audience can identify with the characters- this causes them to care about them and to become wrapped up in the story.

"The Gutter" - It's surprising how much our minds can do- being able to fill in the spacing of a comic with our own life experiences. I didn't know that there was different categories for transitions in comics, like "moment to moment or action to action". The way that our minds work in terms of making one panel into a series of panels is very cool. The process of making comics seems so simple, but after reading this it is quite complex. 

Overall, I found this book to be so helpful when introducing comics. Especially, since I'm honestly not a comic book reader- I found that comics are way more than what I thought they were. They are a very special form of art that has survived for generations and continues to enthrall and entertain people of all ages today.

Transitions

- Moment to Moment: Nothing has changed much between panels

- Action to Action: There is parts to fill in between the panels in the gutter.

- Subject to Subject: Still in the same scene, but there is a development in the scene. Action within the same scene.

- Scene to Scene: Found in films a lot, and mostly found in dialog. Can be quite a bit of change between panels.

- Aspect to Aspect: You start with the scene, and then focus on certain aspects in the scene.

- Non-Sequitur: Not a clear logic from one panel to the other.