Post by trashcanman on Sept 19, 2011 3:19:22 GMT 2
So I was reading this here article about spoilers in comics:
robot6.comicbookresources.com/2011/09/are-spoilers-spoiling-comics-or-holding-them-to-a-higher-standard/
It says that spoilers actually improve the reading experience by letting you focus on the writing and story. To which I say, "what the fuck else are you focusing on?" Solid writing needs to be a given. Not a bonus. If they are doing it right, you shouldn't have to focus on it; it just blends in naturally with the story and art. And part of great writing is surprising the reader. How can you do that when every major Marvel and DC event is announced in every mainstream outlet months ahead of time? Take our recent discussion on the X-Men. Wouldn't it have been more interesting to actually READ the story and find out who sides with who and why the old-fashioned way, rather than having it served up to you in consolidated image form? Then there is the death of almost every major character ever. Comics drop spoilers in hope that non-fans will pick up issues out of curiosity to see how Cap or Spidey or Superman or Batman die or in hope that the issues surrounding these events will one day be worth big money. But when everyone knows about it, and everyone buys into it, it's not going to be rare or collectible, now is it? All it does is ruin what could have been an exclamation point in a great story. Instead, you get average stories that exist just to serve as filler to lead you to what you paid to see. Not my idea of a transcendent reading experience.
For an example of the inverse, read The Walking Dead. No warnings. You never know who the fuck is going to die next or how. You wouldn't imagine some of the things that have happened in those pages and every one of those character deaths was shocking and traumatic. Not to say that characters die all the time in TWD. There can be long stretches of relative peace, and then BAM! Dead child. Nobody is safe in that book, and that makes the tension a very real thing while reading it. If they put the deaths on the cover or in press releases, that story would suffer greatly. I wouldn't trade those moments I spent staring in disbelief at splash pages filled with abject horror and beloved character death for anything.
So basically, I'm calling bullshit on this dude. He just wants to know everything in advance so he knows what "important" titles to buy. I say fuck all that. If it's good, I will read it. Marvel and DC rely too much on these "events" and I'm sick of it. I want titles that will surprise and entertain me without soulless corporate hooks trying to tell me that this or that comic is a must-buy because something big happens. I don't really care about what happens. I just want it to be good. How much really "happens" in 6 volumes of Scott Pilgrim? Not too much, but I adore those characters and care about their little artistically minimalized asses more than 99% of the Marvel and DC universes put together. That is the power of good writing. An entire issue of nothing but penciled characters talking can smash a cosmically epic tale of universe-saving battles in full color with amazing art if the former is able to connect with the reader and surprise them into giving a shit and wanting more while the latter is just an excuse to kill a big name character in a big sacrificial gesture to get your attention for 5 minutes.
Discuss.
robot6.comicbookresources.com/2011/09/are-spoilers-spoiling-comics-or-holding-them-to-a-higher-standard/
It says that spoilers actually improve the reading experience by letting you focus on the writing and story. To which I say, "what the fuck else are you focusing on?" Solid writing needs to be a given. Not a bonus. If they are doing it right, you shouldn't have to focus on it; it just blends in naturally with the story and art. And part of great writing is surprising the reader. How can you do that when every major Marvel and DC event is announced in every mainstream outlet months ahead of time? Take our recent discussion on the X-Men. Wouldn't it have been more interesting to actually READ the story and find out who sides with who and why the old-fashioned way, rather than having it served up to you in consolidated image form? Then there is the death of almost every major character ever. Comics drop spoilers in hope that non-fans will pick up issues out of curiosity to see how Cap or Spidey or Superman or Batman die or in hope that the issues surrounding these events will one day be worth big money. But when everyone knows about it, and everyone buys into it, it's not going to be rare or collectible, now is it? All it does is ruin what could have been an exclamation point in a great story. Instead, you get average stories that exist just to serve as filler to lead you to what you paid to see. Not my idea of a transcendent reading experience.
For an example of the inverse, read The Walking Dead. No warnings. You never know who the fuck is going to die next or how. You wouldn't imagine some of the things that have happened in those pages and every one of those character deaths was shocking and traumatic. Not to say that characters die all the time in TWD. There can be long stretches of relative peace, and then BAM! Dead child. Nobody is safe in that book, and that makes the tension a very real thing while reading it. If they put the deaths on the cover or in press releases, that story would suffer greatly. I wouldn't trade those moments I spent staring in disbelief at splash pages filled with abject horror and beloved character death for anything.
So basically, I'm calling bullshit on this dude. He just wants to know everything in advance so he knows what "important" titles to buy. I say fuck all that. If it's good, I will read it. Marvel and DC rely too much on these "events" and I'm sick of it. I want titles that will surprise and entertain me without soulless corporate hooks trying to tell me that this or that comic is a must-buy because something big happens. I don't really care about what happens. I just want it to be good. How much really "happens" in 6 volumes of Scott Pilgrim? Not too much, but I adore those characters and care about their little artistically minimalized asses more than 99% of the Marvel and DC universes put together. That is the power of good writing. An entire issue of nothing but penciled characters talking can smash a cosmically epic tale of universe-saving battles in full color with amazing art if the former is able to connect with the reader and surprise them into giving a shit and wanting more while the latter is just an excuse to kill a big name character in a big sacrificial gesture to get your attention for 5 minutes.
Discuss.
