BATMAN: HUSH Volume 1
© 2003 DC Comics

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Comicscape February 16, 2005

Due to the overwhelming number of responses I received about last week's doctoral thesis on comic books, I'm forced to step aside and do nothing but run letters for the next month.

I jest. Actually, I got four responses. If you count my occasional-comic reading wife's (liked it) and my non-comic reading friend's on LiveJournal ("I read it...it's good..."), I got a grand total of six. Unfortunately, I didn't find out that the Comicscape e-mail address was bouncing until a couple of days ago. I also failed to put the link at the bottom of the last column. Regardless, I don't know that it would have made much of a difference. But, in any case, I apologize.

In the future, if the Comicscape e-mail address bounces, you can e-mail me directly here or use comments@cinescape.com

You may recall that I asked people to tell me why they read comic books instead of occupying their time otherwise working on cars, climbing mountains, or whiling away the hours looking at Internet porn, with nary a care in the world except getting caught by your wife or girlfriend. Of the four responses I received, two actually answered my question. The other two were negative and dealt more with the column itself (and me). That's fine I asked everyone to let me know what they thought. I'm going to run the negative two first. Unfortunately, this means I have to write a Comicscape that's partially about the column itself, rather than about comic books. But, it's a reader response week and it's all I had to work with.

Kevin Boury writes, "This column, which used to be a "must read" for me, was so deadly dull today I doubt I will make it through many more. My mind started wandering almost immediately. I just could not make it through to paragraph, what, 15 or so. And if this new author does not want to make jokes about this week's comic releases, that's OK. But the least he could do is research a little bit and give some info on the content of each issue. Maybe throw up a picture or two for god's sake. I am willing to give this column another read (or maybe two), but PLEASE add some life back to this sucker. Thanks."

Kevin, I'll concede that the column could've been more irreverent. By the time I finished writing it, I realized that it was a little dry. But your "mind started wandering almost immediately"? I think that reaction's a bit extreme (though I guess you can't control your attention span). While it could've been funnier, my goal as a writer is to engage and fascinate. I hope people enjoy reading the column, but I want to make people think and discuss. And, I think perspectives such as mine are valuable in a world that still regards comic books as children's literature. I expected some discord over Tony's departure, but I simply can't duplicate his style and I wouldn't I try to. That's not meant as a dig at him, but we have different writing styles. And frankly, I hate even having to take up space with this, but I'm sure this is probably going to come up again.

Dave Pression writes, "Where's the witty banter about the comics coming out this week? The witty banter is the only reason I read the weekly comicscape article. New releases without witty banter is like a peanut butter sandwich without jelly: it'll might satisfy your hunger, but you're less likely to come back for seconds."

This is the second threat to stop reading the column that's been levied at me. Be still my heart. It's also the second complaint about the listings.

Let me tell everyone the long, sad story about the listings. Tony and I both hated the old listings. Even he didn't think his own "witty banter" was funny. And above all, it was time consuming and it made writing the column a pain, rather than a pleasure. When I wrote a guest column in December of last year, my experience was the same. Writing those listings took longer than it did to write the main column itself. Hell, I didn't even like my own jokes. If you really found that section funny, I heard they're tipping over port-o-johns on Fear Factor this week. You might want to look into it. Tony or I would have to look up all the books from the four main companies and force a comedy routine around them. We were both dying to change the format and my superiors agreed to it when I took over the column. Doing individual summaries would be even worse, because that means I have to rewrite summaries I've read elsewhere in a way that doesn't look like I blatantly paraphrased or copied them. I'd also have a lot of blank space, because sometimes the summaries aren't even current on the companies' websites. But, the bottom line is I simply don't have time and neither did Tony. This column isn't a day job. I'm not sitting in an office at Cinescape all day. I do this in my spare time, at home. If one of you wants to do the listings the old way, I'll be more than happy to run it after you've done it for yourself. I am completely serious.

Now, on to my original question the reason people read comics. Tim Agen writes, "When I was just a tot, visiting my grandparents, I would read a few ARCHIE and Disney comics over and over. I think I liked the stories and how they were presented, but I didn't go out looking for my own comics. Well, I had a few collections of some newspaper strips, but nothing I'd call a comic book. I didn't seek out comic books until about [three] years ago. I read a WATCHMEN script review and I had to see the source material. So I started doing research and learned the names Moore and Miller. I bought WATCHMEN, FROM HELL and THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS all in my weeks of comic book reading. It was quite an introduction to the scene."

Tim, you probably did yourself a huge favor by starting out with that stuff. You could've waded through a lot of crap before you got to those books, so good on you for starting with such a high standard.

Tim continued, "I've always been a slow reader, and it's discouraged me from reading too many novels. Those comics gave me something new and exciting. These comics though, they had me participating in the story. I added sound effects and foley. I interpreted the movements between panels. And, it turns out I was blown away by the stories told and the art telling it."

I'm glad you caught on to the interactivity of the whole experience, Tim. I think a lot of people read and enjoy comics without realizing what's going between the page and their minds. However, don't give up on reading regular books, as well as comics. Hell, I gave up a lot of stuff in my life to have time for both.

Tim concluded, "While noting my ignorance of the whole "prose" scene, I found more exciting ideas, characters, images, relationships and stories in my first 3 months of comic book reading than all the years since the Disney Afternoon began to suck.

"Since I am still new to comics, I am still finding new things. I'm still on the beginner's high. And that's my simple answer to 'why comics?'"

There isn't exactly a "prose scene," Tim. Books just are what they are. And I wouldn't give up on them just yet. Don't ever stop trying to read. And, as far as "popular writing" goes, comic writers have been ahead of the game for years now. The output of American comic book companies is consistently better than television and movies, and often better than the trash novels most people pick up. Thanks for your input.

And for my fourth response, Phillip Jones writes, "My only real hobby is collecting comic books, excuse me, 'graphic novels'. When I was growing up in the 1970s, my good friend Derek introduced me to Marvel Comics. He also graciously sold me a bunch of his old comics. I was hooked. I was soon buying THE UNCANNY X-MEN, THE FANTASTIC FOUR, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, THE INCREDIBLE HULK, THE AVENGERS, DAREDEVIL... you name the Marvel comic, and I was into it. The cashiers at the drug store where I bought most of my comics gave me a hard time by teasing me. I didn't care. You see, comic books were an escape for me growing up. I had a difficult home life, marked by alcoholism, fighting, and the constant threat of my parents getting divorced. When things got too stressful, I jumped into the world of Peter Parker, Ben Grimm, Reed and Sue Richards, Bruce Banner, Matt Murdock, etc., and forgot my troubles for a time.

"I am thankful to Marvel Comics for the crutch they provided during those years, and I'm thankful to God for providing them with the talent that kept me so occupied and took my mind of my troubles."

You story is not uncommon by any means, Phillip. I think that because comic books are visual by their very nature, they provide a more accessible and vivid "escape route" when we are young. And in your case and that of other people I've heard from over the years, comic books provided a way out of a world no one would want to be in.

Phillip went on to write, "As an adult, comics now mean something else to me.

"I recently re-read Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee's BATMAN: HUSH. As I finished the last page, it struck me that comics are an art-form entirely unlike any else in our culture.

"Comics require the creative talents of many people in order to produce something of quality. Comics break down into [five] basic things: words, pencils, ink, colors and lettering. When these [five] things come together and are done well, a thing a beauty emerges, something you want to read, look at and treasure."

Phillip, I totally agree with you. My only issue is that the "assembly line" creative approach can be problematic sometimes. Sometimes it works out and everything comes together, and other times you lose something when there are too many hands in the pot.

Phillip: "Those who create the story (words) depend upon those who draw the story (pencils, inks, color and lettering) to bring it to life. BATMAN: HUSH stands as one of those comics where everything came together just right. Had one of those elements been off, it wouldn't be the great comic it is."

Phillip, I don't totally agree with you about BATMAN: HUSH. I thought the build-up was fantastic, but I felt really let down in the end. Teasing Jason Todd's return like that was just unnecessary, and it was really hard for me to care a whole lot about Bruce's friend Tommy, as he'd just been introduced and wasn't a character readers were familiar with prior to the storyline in question. But, I still enjoyed it overall. Jeff Loeb's a great writer and Jim Lee's art was sharp. The book was a pleasure to look at, if nothing else.

Phillip concluded, "Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Wolverine... these are our new mythological creations. It's a shame that we have to use such a trivial words as "comics" to label the medium that gave birth to these legends."

I agree with you here, although I don't think the word "comics" is particularly belittling. Comic books are modern American folklore. We may live in an age that doesn't take mythology literally (well, some of us don't), and those characters may not exist in the same sense that we do. However, they still affect people and, ultimately, make a difference in our lives. There are people that become police officers after reading comic books during childhood. They do it because they're inspired to help mankind in the same way that Batman and Superman do (I know of at least two). As I said in my last guest column in December, superheroes are moral beacons in a world that is awash with ambiguity and uncertainty. The real world may not always be clearly divided between good and evil, but the worlds of comic books often are. Sometimes, we need to be able to look to those worlds for guidance, and I'm glad that we can.

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