Portal:Comics

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Introduction

Comics are a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically takes the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate dialogue, narration, sound effects, or other information. There is no consensus among theorists and historians on a definition of comics; some emphasize the combination of images and text, some sequentiality or other image relations, and others historical aspects such as mass reproduction or the use of recurring characters. Cartooning and other forms of illustration are the most common means of image-making in comics. Photo comics is a form that uses photographic images. Common forms include comic strips, editorial and gag cartoons, and comic books. Since the late 20th century, bound volumes such as graphic novels, comic albums, and tankōbon have become increasingly common, along with webcomics as well as scientific/medical comics.

The English term comics is used as a singular noun when it refers to the medium itself (e.g. "Comics is a visual art form."), but becomes plural when referring to works collectively (e.g. "Comics are popular reading material."). (Full article...)

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Self-portrait, 1922

George Joseph Herriman III (August 22, 1880 – April 25, 1944) was an American cartoonist best known for the comic strip Krazy Kat (1913–1944). More influential than popular, Krazy Kat had an appreciative audience among those in the arts. Gilbert Seldes' article "The Krazy Kat Who Walks by Himself" was the earliest example of a critic from the high arts giving serious attention to a comic strip. The Comics Journal placed the strip first on its list of the greatest comics of the 20th century. Herriman's work has been a primary influence on cartoonists such as Elzie C. Segar, Will Eisner, Charles M. Schulz, Robert Crumb, Art Spiegelman, Bill Watterson, and Chris Ware.

Herriman was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, to mixed-race Creole parents, and grew up in Los Angeles. After he graduated from high school in 1897, he worked in the newspaper industry as an illustrator and engraver. He moved on to cartooning and comic strips—a medium then in its infancy—and drew a variety of strips until he introduced his most famous character, Krazy Kat, in his strip The Dingbat Family in 1910. A Krazy Kat daily strip began in 1913, and from 1916 the strip also appeared on Sundays. It was noted for its poetic, dialect-heavy dialogue; its fantastic, shifting backgrounds; and its bold, experimental page layouts.

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Anniversaries for February 7

1914: birth of Ted Udall, American comic book writer and editor
1949: birth of Alan Grant (writer), American comic book writer
1953: first issue of The Topper, a British comic book which ran until 1990, with the debut of the ongoing comic strip Beryl the Peril, created by David Law
1953: birth of Richard Bruning, American graphic designer and comics creator
1955: birth of Miguel Ferrer, American actor and writer, co-creator of Comet Man and Trypto the Acid Dog for Marvel Comics
1956: birth of Bob Camp, American animator, writer, cartoonist, comic book artist, storyboard artist, director, and producer
1958: birth of Kevin Nowlan, American comic book artist
1966: birth of Paul Castiglia, comic book writer and editor known for his work for Archie Comics

General images

The following are images from various comics-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Comic Con crowds in 2011 as seen from a helicopter (from San Diego Comic-Con)
Image 2Comic-Con crowd inside the second floor of the convention center in 2011 waiting for the exhibition hall to open (from San Diego Comic-Con)
Image 3Chōjū-giga (12th century), traditionally attributed to a monk-artist Kakuyū (Toba Sōjo) (from History of manga)
Image 4The San Diego Convention Center during Comic-Con in 2013 (from San Diego Comic-Con)
Image 5BD artist Mœbius (2008), who achieved international renown through Métal Hurlant (from Bande dessinée)
Image 6A page by Rodolphe Töpffer, whose work is considered influential in shaping the comics form. (from History of comics)
Image 7Convention crowd outside of Golden Hall in 1982 (from San Diego Comic-Con)
Image 8The French comic Les Pieds Nickelés (1954 book cover): an early 20th-century forerunner of the modern Franco-Belgian comic (from Bande dessinée)
Image 9Japanese wood block illustration from 19th century (from History of manga)
Image 10A Fallout Cosplayer photographed at a Comic Con in a Fallout Themed area (from Comic book convention)
Image 11Image of bathers from the Hokusai manga (from History of manga)
Image 12Phoenix Fan Fusion's 2017 convention in Phoenix, Arizona (from Comic book convention)
Image 13Hokusai Manga (early 19th century) (from History of manga)
Image 14Cover to 27 December 1884 edition of Ally Sloper's Half Holiday. (from British comics)
Image 15During panels at comic book conventions, the audience is sometimes invited to line up and ask questions using a dedicated microphone. (from Comic book convention)
Image 16Close Hergé collaborator and magazine contributor Bob de Moor (from Bande dessinée)
Image 17Cover of Illustrated Chips in 1896 featuring the first appearance of the long-running comic strip of the tramps Weary Willie and Tired Tim. (from British comics)
Image 18Sequential depictions on Trajan's Column in Rome, Italy (from History of comics)

Did you know (auto-generated) - load new batch

... that John Romita Sr. has been credited with introducing romance comic themes to Spider-Man comic books?
... that a graphic novel for teens was among the 10 most challenged books in the United States in 2023?
... that Pinky & Pepper Forever is a graphic novel that follows two anthropomorphic dog girlfriends through hell?
... that Kamome Shirahama, in addition to writing and illustrating her best-selling Witch Hat Atelier manga series, has created variant covers for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, and the Star Wars franchise?
... that the comic book Nietzsche, se créer liberté tries to express Friedrich Nietzsche's personality visually?
... that a teacher of medieval literature and comic books writes the blog Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle?
... that the author of the comic book Timeless Voyage was the leader of a UFO religion?
... that a 1944 serial film was the first film appearance of Captain America and the first film appearance of any Marvel Comics character?

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A panel is an individual frame, or single drawing, in the multiple-panel sequence of a comic strip or comic book. A panel consists of a single drawing depicting a frozen moment. Newspaper daily strips typically consist of either four panels (Doonesbury, For Better or For Worse) or three panels (Garfield, Dilbert), all of the same size. The horizontal newspaper strip can also employ only a single panel, as sometimes seen in Wiley Miller's Non Sequitur.

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More did you know...

...that Milt Gross, (pictured) writer of comics that used Yiddish-inflected English, also wrote a 1930 "silent" graphic novel He Done Her Wrong: The Great American Novel and Not a Word in It — No Music, Too?

...that the DC comic book Batman: The Last Arkham drew on the influences of psychology and biology books such as "Superstition in the Common Pigeon"?

...that the Young Justice episode "Independence Day" introduces a younger version of the DC Universe?

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This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Comics}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.