In this article we argue that the comics grid, the array of panels, can be understood as a specific technology of ‘revealing’ through ‘enframing’ and as such is the key element in comics technology. We propose Martin Heidegger’s conceptual framework (Gestell: literally, ‘the framework’), primarily discussed in his 1954 essay ‘The Question Concer…[Read more]

An overview of proposed categories for the growing graphic medicine genre of cancer comics (i.e. cancer narratives in comic book form) and an initial theory on the significant linkage between this illness and particular medium.

The term ‘musicalization’ comes from Werner Wolf’s study of intermediality between music and fiction, The Musicalization of Fiction (1999), which proposes the musicalized text as one that has an intentional and sustained connection to music and musical form that moves beyond the purely diegetic or incidental. In this article I draw on Wolf’…[Read more]

Review of LISSA: A STORY ABOUT MEDICAL PROMISE, FRIENDSHIP, AND REVOLUTION (University of Toronto Press) by Sherine Hamdy, Coleman Nye, Sarula Bao, and Caroline Brewer

Anhand der Science-Fiction Animes “Captain Future”, “Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs” und “Cowboy Bebop” wird eine bestimmtes Narrativ innerhalb des Genres des Science-Fiction Anime stichprobenartig über drei Jahrzehnte hinweg betrachtet und die vorzufindenden Geschlechterkonstruktionen beleuchtet: Jede dieser Erzählungen handelt von den A…[Read more]

A comic about the power of sharing: a collaboration between figshare, Symbola Comics and La Grúa Estudio.

Concept and story by Francisco De La Mora & Ernesto Priego

Art by Cristina Durán La Grúa Estudio

Design by Daniela Rocha

Originally published as

de la Mora, Francisco et al.. “The Power of Sharing”. figshare, 21 Mar. 2018.…[Read more]

And interview between Julian Darius and A. David Lewis in LAZARUS, THE FOREVER MAN #0 (Martian Lit).

Parables of Care presents true stories of creative responses to dementia care, told by carers, taken from a group of over 100 case studies available at http://carenshare.city.ac.uk/. Creativity, emotional intelligence and common sense are amply shown in these 14 touching and informative stories. Drawn by Dr Simon Grennan with Christopher…[Read more]

Superheroes with Islamic backgrounds are nothing new, but their critical study is. The recently released Muslim Superheroes: Comics, Religion, and Representation proposes how best to deploy such analysis pedagogically, politically, pluralistically, pervasively, and persuasively. This roundtable considers the book’s contents through its political c…[Read more]

In the documentary, Comic Book City, Portland, Oregon USA, I construct a representation of the city as a place for comics creation. In this paper, I distill key insights from my interviews with writers, artists, and publishers regarding the decision to live and work in Portland. My documentary research suggests that creators are attracted by…[Read more]

Digital technology is enabling a reconceptualization of film and cinema. The pliability of digital media opens up, particularly, the theory and practice of montage to revision. This pliability allows for cheap and easy copying and combining of images, and, relatedly, the transition from film frame to digital screen provides a less precious and…[Read more]

Parables of Care: Instrumentality, Aesthetics and Utility in Devising a Comic for Dementia Caregivers. PDF file.

Presented at the 2017 Comics & Medicine Conference: Access Points Seattle. Public Library Central Branch, 15th – 17th June 2017. Seattle, USA.

This set of slides was modified slightly from its original version for online s…[Read more]

Kismet may not be the first Muslim superhero, but he may be the first worthy of that title. Some buffoonish characters preceded him, and other orientalist caricatures appeared on earlier comics pages, but without either superpowers or other key elements of the genre. This month (March 2014), on the seventieth anniversary of his first appearance,…[Read more]

The claim that superhero comics culture is a modern religious and/ or mythopoeic expression has been repeated so often by academic observers of pop culture over the years, it has assumed the dimensions of a modern myth in its own right. Critically evaluating this claim that superhero comics culture is in effect a modern religious or mythopoeic…[Read more]

The call for papers Brilliant Corners: Approaches to Jazz and Comics was published on 30 July 2015. In it, the editors made a public invitation for scholarship that proposed meeting points between the disciplines of jazz studies and comics studies. This editorial discusses the motivations for the collection, the editorial methodology, and the…[Read more]