"Understanding Comics" (Jan 22)

“Understanding Comics”; Scott McCloud

When reading Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics, I really liked his explanation about the power of art styles in comics, as well as transitioning. It explains how comics don’t have to be bonded into a single arts style, open to several, endless styles and interrelation to illustrating a story. I related it to how illustrations of today, whether it be from advertising, from movies or on TV, more simplified arts styles have really taken over and have become its own thing. When McCloud explains both the art style and transitioning, he talks about how looking at how to properly transition those images can help the story move even more. An aspect that McCloud discusses is the art style in some comics. He discusses how simplified drawing styles can be affective. In the story, the narrator, McCloud presumedly, begins by examining and telling the reader what a comic is, and how adding sequence makes the story move. At one point, McCloud talks about lines can be necessary, and how they are still affective, though used less often. I also liked how McCloud exams different drawings techniques. From looking at hyper-realistic, simplified/“cartoonish, anime, and each of them having their own impacts and impressions towards not only viewers, but artists as well. The arts styles are each used to not only enhance the type of stories, but also to create its own transition and pace.
The way McCloud goes into how idea and form is used to outline and create comics. I feel that its the most important aspect and pretty much sums up all of the aspects that he explains in Understanding Comics. Without having the story, and without the form, the comic’s transitions an art styles don’t exist, thus the comic won’t fully go through.


Overall, I feel that McCloud brilliantly and expertly explains the process of creating comics. I felt the aspects of different drawing techniques coupled with transitioning techniques pretty much aesthetically define the comic book medium. It doesn’t have have to be held onto a single technique, but has to use that technique into properly move the story along for the reader.

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