A single vivid memory of a child hiding in the shadows, reading comics lie in my memory. Such memories were not of Archie, Veronica and Betty but of Conan, the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, Spider-man, pages and pages of pictures that told a story of sorts but words which I didn't know how to read yet. It so happened that these were all kept away ina dark, dusty corner like many dark corners that hid books. As a child, once I started reading them, I was stuck there for hours (unsurprisingly, i still end up that way). These were the comics of my childhood.
Douglas Wolk's Reading Comics, a critique on graphic novels, begins with this line,'It's no longer news that comics have grown up'. And for the many readers who grew up reading them, it's about time, too. For the past 30 years, the form of graphic storytelling have matured and changed. While collecting comics have always been and remains an all boys' pastime, girls have been reading their brand of comics for years. They were mostly about an eternally young, cute redhead who couldn't choose between two girlfriends. Then in the late 80's, comics grew up quickly as publishers tried to hold on to readers who were now adults. The advent of 'for mature readers only' comics like Sandman,an epic that entwined mythology, fantasy or with a touch of realism dealt with more sophisticated and mature themes. It was also about the same time when female comic creators like Colleen Doran and JulieDoucet started to surface in underground publishing.
Douglas Wolk's Reading Comics, a critique on graphic novels, begins with this line,'It's no longer news that comics have grown up'. And for the many readers who grew up reading them, it's about time, too. For the past 30 years, the form of graphic storytelling have matured and changed. While collecting comics have always been and remains an all boys' pastime, girls have been reading their brand of comics for years. They were mostly about an eternally young, cute redhead who couldn't choose between two girlfriends. Then in the late 80's, comics grew up quickly as publishers tried to hold on to readers who were now adults. The advent of 'for mature readers only' comics like Sandman,an epic that entwined mythology, fantasy or with a touch of realism dealt with more sophisticated and mature themes. It was also about the same time when female comic creators like Colleen Doran and JulieDoucet started to surface in underground publishing.
Today, graphic storytelling has not only grown up, it has diversified. Small-scale publishing of comics in book form, titles like Persepolis, Blanket and the controversial Fun Home and a tsunami of manga, with staggering numbers of Fruits Basket, Hana Kimi, Negima sold daily, American comic publishers have started to sit up and take notice for the readers of these books are young teenage girls, hitherto a small and untapped market.
The first publisher to launch a new line and not any regurgitated form 'westernised' manga (read Star Trek in manga), is DC Comics with an appropriately named Minx is meant for teens that read fiction and are starting to appreciate manga.
The first publisher to launch a new line and not any regurgitated form 'westernised' manga (read Star Trek in manga), is DC Comics with an appropriately named Minx is meant for teens that read fiction and are starting to appreciate manga.
Its debut book, The Plain Janes is a landmark collaboration of critically-acclaimed, young adult fiction writer Cecil Castellucci and up-coming artist/creator Jim Rugg. Centering on Jane, former IT girl who gets a devastating wake-up call when she is caught in a bomb blast, it doesn't impress at the beginning. Her family, fleeing the event drags her to a small town to start over. But Jane has left two very important things behind – a comatose John Doe that she saved at the bomb scene and her old self. Her first day at the new school reveals her dilemma. She refuses to sit with the in-crowd, choosing instead to lunch with a bunch of odd-balls who are all significantly called Jane, too. Hitting on an idea to start a secret club, Main Jane has her work cut out to persuade the 3 girls to form P.L.A.I.N. (People Loving Art In Neighborhoods) Creating art and havoc in the neighbourhood, will Jane find what she needs? At first glance, it looks like one of those movie tie-in comics where unknown and sometimes not very skilled artists rehash scenes from the movie.
Except Cecil Castellucci has a good story to tell, a little odd, a little unbelievable perhaps, but still a good tale. And she writes well, where the text comes in. You start to like the Janes, plain as they are for their creativity and buoyancy, and grin as they get away with escapade after escapade. And as the reader, you sigh for a good writer is only half as good in comic form. Without a good artist, the story is only ordinary. I wondered why DC chose Jim Rugg among so many talented artists. Until I notice that even though Ruggs' people sometimes look wooden and stiff, his work was detailed and unobtrusive that you forget to pay attention to it; artwork that grows on you. By the third reread, you've has forgotten the existence of Castellucci's words and only read the simple pictures.
And if Jane had issues, wait till you meet Dixie in Minx's second book, Re-gifters. Our butt-kicking (she's a Hapkido expert) heroine is Jen Dik Seong, otherwise known as Dixie. She has such a major crush on fellow Hapkido classmate Adam that she is always floored by him at sparring. If you think she's a wuss, wait till you see the other things she does to get his attention. She even spends the entrance fees to a Hapkido Tournament on a present for him, knowing full well that her parents could ill-afford it in the first place. Watch what happens to the gift and where it ends up! Now, while The Plain Janes is a cross-breed of the young adult novel and a graphic novel, Re-gifters though bordering on teen fiction is a graphic novel through and through. It has all the elements of great illustrative storytelling, amusing script and endearing characters. After all, one does not expect less from the trio of Mike Carey, Sonny Liew and Marc Hempel.
And if Jane had issues, wait till you meet Dixie in Minx's second book, Re-gifters. Our butt-kicking (she's a Hapkido expert) heroine is Jen Dik Seong, otherwise known as Dixie. She has such a major crush on fellow Hapkido classmate Adam that she is always floored by him at sparring. If you think she's a wuss, wait till you see the other things she does to get his attention. She even spends the entrance fees to a Hapkido Tournament on a present for him, knowing full well that her parents could ill-afford it in the first place. Watch what happens to the gift and where it ends up! Now, while The Plain Janes is a cross-breed of the young adult novel and a graphic novel, Re-gifters though bordering on teen fiction is a graphic novel through and through. It has all the elements of great illustrative storytelling, amusing script and endearing characters. After all, one does not expect less from the trio of Mike Carey, Sonny Liew and Marc Hempel.
However, I can envision the path will be difficult for Minx, even witha solid publishing schedule and talents like the who's who of young promising writers/creators. True-blue comic fans still prefer them in full-color, manga fans may think the artwork not pretty enough and the readers who like serious underground would scoff at the lighthearted plots. Who's left then to read Minx? Adventurous readers on the hunt, I hope.
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