Comics/graphic novels are at an interesting place, I think.
They're not the same mags I read as a kid. For one thing,
writers like Bendis
(already mentioned) really are turning out compelling work,
with superb storytelling and some wonderful character
development.
That said, comics are now more like movies then they ever
were, a style novelist/comics writer Peter David calls
"decompressed." Gone are the boxes at the top of panels that
explain setting, etc., replaced by dialogue and the art
itself. The result is that the comics are much more like
movies and less like books. More cinematic in nature and less
a narrative.
This makes for a much quicker read, which may or may not be
an okay thing, but it also puts even more emphasis on the
quality of the art, which can vary widely. To me, Saturday
morning cartoonish styles or heaven forbid manga (Japanese
for "crap," in my opinion).
Characters can kill people now. Hero characters can actually
die. Today much of the medium clearly owes at least as much
to crime and noir fiction as the "Make Mine Marvel" days of
the past. At least the ones I've been reading...
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