Understanding Comics

I have been reading the funnies since I was a little kid but, it wasn't until last year I indulged myself into the works of Alan Moore. I did not think much went into comics besides word and picture. After reading Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics I found out I was as wrong as ever. The psychology that is put into comics is quite ridiculous. I used to be one of those people who judge a comic by its art and was nearly not able to read watchmen, now one of my favorites, because I did not appreciate the art style. Through understanding comics I learned that artists sometimes choose a simpler art style so the reader could take in the content equally. A over detailed and realisitc art style could very easily take away from the message. I also learned simple things like the space inbetween each frame has a purpose and it is left up to the reader to determine and understand that purpose. To better understand Understand Comics McCloud broke the comic into 9 chapter each chapter explored a imprtant meaning.

1). Setting the Record Straight: Discusses a dictionary style definition of what a comic is.
2). The Vocabulary of Comics: Looks at icons in the comic book.
3). Blood in the Gutter: Establishing the different types of transitions between frames of comics.
4). Time Frames: Looks at how time plays a role in comics, and how it effects the overall experience and outcome of the story in the comic.
5). Living in Line: Explores motion and emotion and how it is made visible in comics.
6). Show and Tell: Explains how words and pictures work together in comics, and what combinations work and which combination means what.
7). The Six Steps: Idea/Purpose, Form, Idiom, Structure, Craft, Surface. Explains these six step and how they form the perfect comic.
8). A Word About Color: Shows the effect of color in a comic book.
9). Putting It All Together.

Each of these chapters opened my eyes to something that I have never realized before. There is a real interaction between the comic and the reader. Seeing what put in between each frame, recognizing what simple lines mean, and making the connection from panel to panel. This comic about comics gave me much more than I had expected. I now feel even more prepared to tackle the world of comics now that I have a firm understanding of how they tick.