[18.5.2001]

When people think of comics, they usually think of "the funnies". Or things like Disney's Mickey Mouse that is for children. My brothers and I have been reading comics for perhaps about 10 years now. A lot has changed in the American comic industry in those years. Price of comics seemed to have raised up almost two fold, comics having "acid-free" paper instead of newsprint, computer colouring instead of by hand, .. style changes.. etc. Today, we rarely go to a comic store. Except when there is a sale. Before, I remember we used to go to the local comic store once a week. As I skim through contemporary comics, I find how comics, the comic industry, and our society's values have changed.
A regular American comic is 32 pages (yes, that is right!), in all colour, and costs around $2.50. Browsing on the covers gives me an impression on what sort of people, or what sort of audience they seem to capture. From how females seem to be drawn very shapely.. I think that audience are young males.. look at comics like "Witchblade", and see what little "costume" the main character has to "wear".. Comparing them to the old comics gives me an impression on how "immature" comics has become. I know its just comics, or art, but details like these somewhat disturb me and distract me from reading. Of course, society seems to have lots of commercialization these years. Having sexy, ridiculously out-of-proportion females in the majority of the American comics shows how it tries to advertise itself to males. Look at the older comics.. You can probably see the difference.. Females are drawn more naturally, and can still be attractive. In this way, I think that the audience of the past is more mature. Having a good story is good enough, without any need to "advertise" to "attract" readers... .
However, these years, i reread some of our old comics, and found myself reading through a different perspective. The comics i read when i was younger seemed to be very different. I found out that i didn't really read or comprehend the comics very well. Each time i read a comic, i discover something new. I found out that comics can be very similar to novels.. they can carry the same themes and thoughts. Themes such as man versus nature, man versus fate, and about our human society. This was something that i did not see when i was younger.
However, most people do not see comics in this perspective. As one might notice, American comics usually consist of super heroes. Batman, Superman, Spiderman, X-men, etc... I noticed that in X-men, there was a very strong theme of equality for all races.. Similar to our history of discrimination of other races such as blacks or foreigners. Instead of discriminating black people, there is discrimination of "mutants" or people born with an unusual power. "They are dangerous!" "They are a threat to humans!" This same kind of symbolism confronts common issues that persists in our society today. Interestingly enough, another storyline was about a "mutant virus", a virus or disease that only affects "mutants". People were scared of "mutants", and only few symphasized with them with this new disease. This is also very similar to the AIDS virus mentality many years ago. People were afraid of contracting the virus and kept their distance away from inflicted people. People were not aware about the disease and developed stereotypes.
The American comic book seems to always lie in the "super heroes" genre. What does this say about the American society? Justice can never be served through normal means by the government? "Vigilantes" must take matters into their own hands, even though despised by the local police. A good example is the comic "Punisher", where Frank Castle, a normal man who witnessed murder of his whole family takes matters into his own hands to serve justice. Castle doesn't have any superpowers, but only weapons. Costumed superheroes like Spiderman are thought to be "a menace, or a hero?" Do they represent the ideal American? Bold, courageous, sacrificial, clinging on to their values? Today, they seem to have become integrated into a symbol of American pop culture.
here are some more themes that i believe are portrayed in various comics.


[-MAN vs NATURE-]

-Kiseiju ("Parasyte" in US) :
-"Lycanthrope Leo"

[-MAN vs DIVINE/FATE-]

-Berserk by Miura Kentarou
-RG Veda by CLAMP

[-COMMENT on HUMAN SOCIETY-]

-Tokyo Babylon by CLAMP
-Hokuto no Ken (Fist of the North Star)
-Petshop of Horrors
-Black Jack by Osamu Tezuka
[war]
-AREA 88