Comic books just for kids?

[Snowman37]

I have several young-adult friends who love the comic book scene. I've never read a comic book, but they always striked me as being written and drawn for kids. Am I missing something?

[OrphanPip]

You're living under a fairly outdated viewpoint of the comic form.

There are plenty of comics out there highly inappropriate for children. Comics are merely a medium that combines the written word with graphical representations, it is a medium with a lot of potential in the right hands and a lot of graphic novels have started to gain critical attention in universities and in major popular publications like the New York Times.

I would recommend as a selection, Craig Thompson's Blankets, Art Spiegleman's Maus, Alison Bechdel's Fun Home, Osamu Tezuka's series Buddha, and for an interesting look at Japanese fringe comics from the now defunct Garo magazine: http://www.amazon.com/Comics-Underground-Japan-Anthology/dp/0922233160.

[mortalterror]

Whenever it comes to any massive worldwide phenomenon it's best not to make too many generalities. There is a great deal of variety throughout the comicbook medium. In French/Belgian tradition as well as the Japanese/Chinese one's there's a lengthy history of highly cultured intelligent adult comicbooks. And even in the United States, there has been a massive upsurge in the quality of graphic novels since the 80s.

I suggest reading the works of Alan Moore such as Watchmen, Saga of the Swamp Thing, From Hell, and Top 10. Or try Art Spiegelman's chronicle of the Holocaust Maus volumes I and II. Preacher, Y The Last Man, and Sandman, are all adult tales and compelling reading. Manga like Akira, or Ghost in the Shell are pretty good. Astro City and Fable both won Eisner Awards. Obscure Cities is a French comicbook series that won prizes at the Angoulême International Comics Festival. Then there is the wealth of underground comicbooks published by small presses in the 60s and 70s that defied the Comics Code such as the work of Robert Crumb, or Harvey Pekar's American Splendor. The fifties were also supposed to be a good time for intelligent adult detective fiction, but that's a bit before my time.

[keilj]

The "just for kids" thing was probably more true in the 60's and 70's. I'd say in the 80's, the shift started toward more adult themes and more adult writing (though I'm sure there are a few examples from before the 80's). In the 80's, comics like Watchmen, The Dark Knight Returns, Frank Miller's Elektra Assassin, and other comics, definitely started tackling (and featuring) more adult themes. In the 90's this trend really broke out, with comics like Sin City, Preacher, Sandman (to some extent), From Hell, and many other comics.

Today it really is a diverse medium - and I'd say today, now more than ever, comics are less and less for kids. Even your average super hero book now has adult themes and adult language (though not necessarily good, mature writing, just writers trying to be gritty). But there is some exceptional writing and storytelling being done in comics today (by Garth Ennis, Brian Azzarello, Jason Aaron, others) - and it would be a mistake to overlook it as an important medium for storytelling.


The other posters gave some good suggestions, but I don't know if diving into 50-60 issues of Swamp Thing or Preacher is the best way to start. To dip your toe in the pool, I'd recommend starting with something short like Darnal's Uncle Sam or Brett Lewis' Winter Men or Morrison's We3

[wat??]

I have several young-adult friends who love the comic book scene. I've never read a comic book, but they always striked me as being written and drawn for kids. Am I missing something?

So you say that you've never read a comic book and then ask if you might be missing something?

What do you think?

[togre]

Give 'm a break--he's at least asking if he's missing something.

Anyway, I'm not terribly into comics, but I do know there is a vast range in it. "Comic books" are more of a media, like "movies" than a genre, so you are going to have vast ranges of content and of quality. Poke around a bit, see what you like.


I'd also suggest acquiring a "geek". I mean this with utter seriousness and with respect. The most enjoyment and understanding I have gotten from any comics comes from a friend with much experience and insight in this area. He's able to point me to areas I may enjoy and arguing with him is tons of fun. Also, a good comic store with a good clerk can be a benefit, but some of the stereotypes are a bit accurate--the really intelligent comic people are often...unique and...uh..quirky. Not always a bad thing.

[JCamilo]

How give him a break? He asks if comic books are for children after saying his adults friends read it. You do not need to read any comic or know the story of comics around the world (60-70 is hardly for kids, that was when Moebius Started, Mad started, you still had Tales from the Crypt and similar stuff published, etc), you just need to 1 + 1.

[wat??]

Give 'm a break--he's at least asking if he's missing something.



Even if comic books were written exclusively for children, the fact that he has not (by his own admission) ever read a comic shows that his ideas about the medium are totally unfounded.

[Mr.lucifer]

The average comic book is actually aimed at teens. While superhero comics are entertaining, there are different genres of comics out there. Some independent comics are considered art like the works of greg wares, and robert crumb. Theres some good mainstream comics too like the watchmen and the sandman series.

[Rmort]

"l Kill Giants" by Joe Kelly has some great illustration and the storyline is just amazing. But if you're looking for a more "advanced" graphic novel you should read "Persepolis" and "Persepolis 2"

[wat??]

I recently read and enjoyed both Maus and Maus II.

[Rores28]

Superhero doesn't necessarily mean childish either... still the greatest comic I've ever read is Alan Moore's Run of Miracleman.

Has anyone else read this??

It isn't talked about so much because there were big legal issues regarding who owned the rights to the characters and so you can only get it in the original serial comics which will run you somewhere around 150$ or on the internet which will run you nothing...

[mortalterror]

Miracleman was pretty good for a comicbook. Alan Moore's stuff tends to read like a Robert A. Heinlein science fiction novel. I love how he could come up with such a creative take on previously established titles like this one and Swamp Thing. That Miracleman origin has to be the inspiration for the Wolverine Weapon X story arc. Too bad the art isn't anything special.

[teddybear22]

i love reading manga. im 23 years old i still read manga and fiction books that are supposed to be read by kids. i read some because it makes my mind imagine things beyond normal stuff in our reality. theres no harm in that i think :) (http://stevzjsygr.tumblr.com) this is just my opinion anyway :)