Comics fans: A few questions from someone who isn't (yet?)

[Allyn Gibson]

Oh, and I recall being extremely surprised that someone called David Mack was writing one of the stories inside. I quickly concluded this couldn't be the same David Mack, as no one died.

There's a comics artist named David Mack who did work on Kabuki and Daredevil. He also did the cover art for Star Trek's David Mack's Wolverine novel, Road of Bones.

Which, by the way, I wholeheartedly recommend. I don't give a frapping toss for Wolverine ordinarily, and I honestly wouldn't have picked it up -- were it not for Dave talking to me about it for a good fifteen minutes at Shore Leave before it came out. And he got me so excited for it that I just had to buy it. It's Wolverine as James Bond, basically.

 

[Andrew Harris]

That's partly due to the decompressed nature of comics storytelling today, where a story that might've been done as a one-and-done (or even a two- or three-part story) fifteen, even ten years ago is now stretched out to six issues with the trade collection in mind, which results in flaccid storytelling.

I can see your point, although I think it's not really a consequence of authors writing-for-the-trade. The "decompressed" storytelling that's developed over the past few years is less a question of plot and more a question of style, in which writers have brought a more cinematic quality to their scripts. (So, maybe it's more accurate to say that they're "writing for the screen", as it were.)

In fact, go back and read some of the classic stories from the 80s, and even 90s, and you'll see that some of them would be unreadable by today's standards--panels packed to overflowing with word balloons, exposition handled through thought bubbles, etc. ("Rogue--I hope she's all right! I never had a chance to tell her that I love her! But... will she love me back once she learns my terrible secret?")

Nowadays, thought balloons are virtually nonexistent, and scenes usually tackle only a single narrative goal (or maybe one + subtext), and the art itself is given a lot more room to breathe--again, telling the story more cinematically. The consequence is that it takes longer to tell the stories, but there's no question in my mind that it's more effective...although, of course, that's a question of tast, so YMMV.

the Alien Spotlight's in particular, have had some great done in one stories. Check out the Borg spotlight...very good done in one story.

Oh, hey! Thanks!

I don't think I have quite the brain power to understand that one. I've read it four times, and I'm still puzzling out pieces of it.

Oh, hey! Um, sorry...!

---

Oh, yeah, and one other thought... the right brain/left brain thing that I mentioned wasn't so much to suggest that people with one side dominant will like comics and people with the other side won't; it's that comics reading requires both sides of the brain to be used at the same time--which some people are accustomed to doing and some people aren't.

 

[Astraea]

Oh, yeah, and one other thought... the right brain/left brain thing that I mentioned wasn't so much to suggest that people with one side dominant will like comics and people with the other side won't; it's that comics reading requires both sides of the brain to be used at the same time--which some people are accustomed to doing and some people aren't.

I understood that that was what you were trying to say; however, what I was trying to say is that I don't seem to be a comics fan, yet have to use the same technique of pictures/words at the same time in order to learn certain concepts while studying.

I suppose, though, that being able to do something doesn't mean I have to like having to do it.

 

[neogothboy74]

I just read New Frontier: Double Time, my first foray into Trek comics, and I wasn't very impressed; it seemed short, undeveloped, and with a few nice pieces of artwork but mostly bad interpretations of the ship and crew.

So, I'm asking, what is Double Time like compared with some other big name Trek comics? If I didn't like this, should I stop here? What are some other collections that I could maybe check out, if they'd be way better than this? And how does Double Time's length relate to the length of most comic stories?

Seems like a huge thing that I've been missing, and I want to know more about it, but based on this one, it may not be for me. What do you all think?

It's interesting, but I'm basically the polar opposite of you. I read and LOVED 'Double Time'. It felt like a neat treat for the fans of the series; finally seeing all these facets of the books for the first time - and I liked all the stuff he packed in there; the in-jokes; everything. It was sheer bliss. And that love of 'Double Time' only increased when I read "Stone & Anvil", which tied into it very nicely.

I enjoyed the most recent New Frontier grahic novel slightly less as there were some continuity flaws (or what I thought were flaws - I need to reread it) but it was still fun to collect all the issues. But beyond those stories I don't have any interest in reading the broader spectrum of Trek comics. I liked these volumes because they seemed integrel to the larger story being told. And I don't feel that way about the other comics - but perhaps I'm missing something as well?

 

[Therin of Andor]

And that love of 'Double Time' only increased when I read "Stone & Anvil", which tied into it very nicely.

Totally agree.

 

[neogothboy74]

And that love of 'Double Time' only increased when I read "Stone & Anvil", which tied into it very nicely.

Totally agree.

I actually, excited in the most geeky of ways, went running to my bookshelf to confirm the linkage. lol. Then I had to show my roomie and explain how cool it was. That was a fun morning.

And see - if the comics (and maybe they do?) had that kind of give and take with the novels more often, I'd be more prone to read them. If there are other examples of this kind of inclusive interplay, I'd love to hear about them!

 

[Therin of Andor]

I actually, excited in the most geeky of ways, went running to my bookshelf to confirm the linkage. lol. Then I had to show my roomie and explain how cool it was. That was a fun morning.

So did you also notice that Janos made a cameo in "Double Time"?

There's a wonderful link between Moron/Bernie and the Cognoscenti storylines (DC Comics TOS Series I) and Kobry the Klingon in Peter David's novel, "TNG: Strike Force". (Not to mention a Selelvian as well.)

 

[SicOne]

Guys, if you wanna take a second and pop over to the Coming Next From IDW Comics thread, see if there's anything you can add to the list of IDW's Trek comics, including upcoming projects.

Also, has the Alien Spotlight:Klingons been released yet?

 

[Daddy Todd]

Also, has the Alien Spotlight:Klingons been released yet?

Not yet, but it's out this month, according to this POST in KRAD's LiveJournal.

 

[SicOne]

Cool! Or, should I say, KRADical!