Mother London | SFTW | The Culture of Comics Issue

The Culture of Comics Issue

28.06.2012

Guest
Editor

By superhero expert Charles Olafare

We all have a favourite superhero, and we’ve all read a comic book or at least seen Superman on the TV. So whilst we have a glorious summer of superhero movies ahead, we invited our go-too superhero expert and comic book geek, Charles Olafare, to tell us a bit more about the culture of comics and superheroes. He talks new digital formats; Kickstarter models; and how Marvel is causing social and political debate in America, with the first ever superhero gay marriage. Power!!

Comics at the movies

Between the record-breaking success of Joss Whedon’s cinematic adaptation of The Avengers, Andrew Garfield’s forthcoming stint as Peter Parker in The Amazing Spiderman, and Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises, it looks like superheroes will have box office cornered this summer.

Though the jury might still be out on which of these three will come out on top in ticket sales, whichever way things go it’s bound

to be an enjoyable Summer for mainstream cinema goers and diehard superhero fans – not to mention a very lucrative season for the film studios responsible for each of these adaptations!

But what of the superheroes themselves, how are comic book publishers like Marvel and DC Comics faring in light of the triumph of their cinematic counter-parts? Very well apparently! According to figures from comic distributor Diamond Comics,

This May’s sales of single issues and graphic novels were 40% higher than they were in 2011 and around 30% higher than just the month before.

I don’t know if comics are becoming ‘cool’, but they’re certainly becoming more relevant and so I’m here today to let you in on a few things I find particularly interesting about the strange and exciting world of comic books.

Comics that really speak

Comics have been around for a long time and in order to ensure they’re here for a bit longer publishers have begun to make a transition in to the age of eBook readers, iPads and even augmented reality.

I first saw comics using AR technology back in February, when Valiant Comics released a special first issue of XO – Manowar. I was surprised (and slightly disappointed) it was not a crossover issue in which the cast of teen drama Gossip Girl and the 80s metal band Manowar fought to the death, but the world’s first talking comic book.

As shown in the video, the book ‘talks’ when the reader scans a QR Code on the front page with their iPhone and holds it above it. Admittedly, it’s a very, very, very corny gimmick that only a comic book would ever try to pull off but it’s an interesting example of how a traditionally print based medium like comic books is beginning to integrate itself in to the digital age.

Marvel Comics have been making a similar, but much more immersive and rewarding use of QR codes and Augmented Reality technology through their ReEvolution app, that hopes to bridge the gap between print and digital by providing users with downloadable content that improves the overall comic book experience.

In terms of practicality and ease of use, perhaps the most significant way the industry is embracing and integrating new media and technology is through digital comics.

Comixology is essentially the iTunes of digital comics; it’s a multiplatform application that functions as both a store front and a reading tool that allows users to sign up and purchase and read digital comics. Its jam packed with all kind of old and new content from a range of publishers, from read before you die classics like Watchmen to lesser known independent comics like Box Office Poison and Any Empire.

The cool thing about digital comics and applications like Comixology is that they make things a lot more accessible for comic new comers. Where once we had to trawl whole bunch of issues at the click of a button.

Comic book stores (which to a new-be might seem pretty intimidating), now they can access a whole bunch of issues at the click of a button.

Kickstarted zombies?!?

The comic book industry is definitely in a state of flux at the moment - as well as changes in the way comics are bought and read, there are changes the very way comic books are produced. It would seem that more and more comic book professionals are looking toward crowd funding utilities like Kickstarter and IndieGoGo as a means of having their books published without the support of publishers or distributors.

The most recent success story in the world of Kickstarter funded comics is Sullivans Sluggers – a pretty bizarre (in the best possible way) looking graphic novel about a baseball team that get into a bit of a messy situation with a group of rival players who just happen to be flesh eating horrors.

Written by Mark Andrew Smith and drawn by James Stokoe, the project made a total of $97,626 in pledges during the month that the project ran for $40,000 of which was raised in just under a week!

Aside from its runaway success, what made Sullivan’s Sluggers unique from a lot of other Kickstarter funded comics was that it was only available through Kickstarter and would not be released through a publisher or any other regular channels once funding had finished.

For the creators this meant that more of the money could go spent on actually printing as opposed to covering overheads costs to distributors and publishers and those savings were passed on to fans in the form of all kinds of wicked cool extras like iPad cases, signed art and a spiffy gatefold hardcover edition.I think Kickstarter is great for comics because it puts more power in the hands of creators and fans as well as allowing for a wider range of

comics to be produced – you wouldn’t find publishers like Marvel or DC Comics putting out a sports related horror comic, that’s for sure.

If like me you’re totally gutted that you missed out on something as rad as Sullivan’s Sluggers, head over to the comics’ category on Kickstarter.com and have a look see if anything takes your fancy!

The real unsung hero

Through cameo appearances in movies, video games and not to mention a (thankfully) short-lived reality TV show – Stan Lee has become something close to the public face of super hero comics; but have you ever noticed how there aren’t many other wizened old comics pros goofing off on film sets or lending their names to poorly conceived adult cartoons?

Likeable though he is, it’s a massive shame that Stan Lee enjoys such the degree of celebrity and wealth that he does whilst there are equally as important creators who’ll never receive the same treatment. One such unsung hero is Jack Kirby, the man responsible for giving form to several of Marvel and DC’s most famous and exciting characters. Namely Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Nick Fury, who all featured in The Avengers this year.

Jack Kirby is considered by many fans to be the true King of American comic books and his bombastic illustrations and out of this world ideas provided the template for the Silver Age Comics of the 60s and 70s. Unfortunately, he passed away in 1994 without recognition many believe he deserves – in fact, anyone wanting to see his name mentioned anywhere in The Avengers movie will have to wait till the end of the credits, whereas Stan Lee practically gets top billing.

All that aside, I’ve gotta say that my all time favourite thing about Jack Kirby and his out of this world vision is that in 1979, the FBI used some of his abandoned concept art for an abandoned film project as part of an elaborate ruse to rescue six American hostages who had been kidnapped at the Iranian Embassy by fooling the government that they were location scouts and that the hostages were part of the film crew.

Ben Affleck has made actually just made a film about the whole situation, so I guess in a roundabout way Jack Kirby ended up being a hero after all!

The Marvel gay marriage!

This month’s issue of Astonishing X Men, a flagship Marvel Comics title, depicts an event that will be a milestone in the history of Marvel comics – the marriage of two characters that happen to both be male! The grooms to be are X Men member Northstar, (one of the first openly gay characters in comics) and his non-super powered lover, Kyle Jinadu.

The issue will be especially poignant to American fans in light of North Carolina’s recent vote against same sex marriage and to all those who, unlike these two fictional characters, may yet not have been afforded the right to within their gender.

Though this issue will mark the first instance of a gay marriage in Marvel comics,it is not the first time issues surrounding sexuality have been brought up in either mainstream or independent comics.

In 2002 two Appollo and Midnighter, two characters apparently intended as analogues of Superman and Batman, tied the knot; and just this March two same sex characters from Archie Comics, one of Americas most enduring and popular comic book series, also exchanged their vows – much to the chagrin of fundamentalist group One Million Moms, who unsuccessfully lobbied to have the comic banned in the states.

It might seem strange for comic books to be host to such a forward thinking and sometimes polarizing storylines, but one of the things that make comic books so great is their ability to champion and celebrate the things that make people different.

About the Author

Charles Olafare was raised on a gluttonous diet of pop culture, the internet and comic books. When not sat in the dark in front of his laptop, he sits in the dark working on bad horror stories or re-watching Gremlins for the 900^th time. When it’s not dark, he blogs with his pals at www.dvrg.co.uk

Credits

Lead Image. Superheroes Via GeekTyrant; Story 1. From CinemaBlend.com. Copyright marvel comics, image on several blogs; Story 2. XO Manowar AR & Marvel AR via comicbook.com; Story 3 Image. Via Kickstarter by James Stokoe; Story 4. Jack Kirby comic book via Bleedingcool.com forum; Story 5. Kevin Keller and husband, via Archie Comics & Astonishing Xmen 51 via Marvel Comics