An Attempt at Applying Groensteen's Theories to "Paper Girls"

In his book, System of Comics, Thierry Groensteen discusses the use of margins and frames to endow meaning to the narrative. He also explains how the site or position of a panel can affect the narrative. 

While perusing the first issue of Cliff Chiang and Brian K. Vaughan's "Paper Girls," I came across a two-page multiframe (as Groensteen might call it) in which the protagonist, Erin, abruptly wakes up from her nightmare and proceeds to confirm that it is, in fact, just a nightmare by ascertaining that her sister is still alive.

 

Upon initial inspection, a kind of closure occurs because the multiframe contains a stark contrast in colours between the bright, fiery tones of the first page and the calming blue tones of the second page, which indicates a disparity between the diegetic world of the first page and that of the second page. Similarly, the normalcy of the second page compared to the madness of the first page encourages the reader to backtrack to the first page and reevaluate what is happening in the narrative.

Once aware that the first page is a figment of Erin’s imagination, the reader can further scrutinize the first page to see that the panels on the page seem to be enveloped by the frameless panel at the bottom of the page that bleeds out and extends to the margins. In other words, the three enclosed panels all appear to occur within a dream-world, denoted by the merging of the hyperframe and the margin; the margin becomes part of the diegetic world. The reader becomes aware of this through the consistent framing of the first three panels, instilling what Groensteen calls a separative function, which guides the reader through each panel and aids the reader in negotiating narrative meaning throughout the sequence. The panels become progressively narrower as the nightmare reaches its end and bleeds out in the last panel, informing the reader that the nightmare is over. The narrowing of the panels in concert with the lessening text in the word balloons create a rhythm that is disjointed by the last panel because its enlarged bold text and its lack of a frame are inconsistent with the previous frames.

With regard to the concept of the site of a panel, the framed panel at the top left corner of the second page portrays Erin cracking her eyes open as opposed to the close-up panel of Erin covering her eyes in the first page. Instead of being a part of the dream-world, this panel is superimposed on an establishing shot of Erin’s room to show that this is taking place in her room. If this panel were absent or in a different location on the page, the narrative would be less coherent because a jump cut straight to the establishing panel would be more difficult to decipher as Erin waking up from a dream; therefore the panel serves a readerly function because it aids in the reader’s comprehension of the narrative.

The Use of Space in 18 Days: Issue 1

18 Days by Grant Morrison, pg. 2. Copyright 2015.

On the second page in the first issue of 18 Days by Grant Morrison, as demonstrated above, Morrison uses a great deal of space for each panel, particularly the first one, so much so that each panel uses up the entirety of their respective tiers. To understand why Morrison allowed so much layout for each panel, it is necessary to first state that the content of each of these panels on this page display images of outer space, which range from asteroids, to generic planets, and finally to Earth (the latter which is established to be this planet in the context of the rest of the issue). With that said, the mixture of form and content on this page has its roots in  ideas that were expressed by Charles Hatfield in his text "The Art of Tensions."

In "Tensions," Hatfield talked about four kinds of page layouts that are used in comics, those being conventional, rhetorical, decorative, and productive, and each are used for different effects. The page being used above from 18 Days falls into the rhetorical category, in which the page's shape accommodates the comic's narrative so that the meaning of the content presented is more effectively conveyed to the reader; it is used, for instance, in establishing shots in comics. For the page above, the extra space that each panel takes up (again, that being of the entirety of their respective tiers) is used to connote the epic scale and grandeur of outer space, and as I have noted in the first paragraph of this post, this is especially so with the first panel, which is the largest of the page's three. The size of this panel is the largest because, in its reflection of its content, it focuses on a broader range of outer space than the successive two panels. Those last two panels, which are equivalent in size, act as a sort of zooming-in for its subjects, those being the planets, are put into a narrower focus than the field of space in the first panel; hence the space that the last two panels take up in the page layout are reduced for the effect of the content that they more narrowly present.

Despite of the second panel's narrower focus on its subjects, which is similar to the third panel's own intensified focus on Earth, the second panel is more closely linked to the first panel in terms of broad focus by the gutter space between them, which is smaller than the gutter space between the second and third panels; while the planets in the second panel are more closely observed, neither of them are central to the panel's focus, unlike Earth in the third panel. Furthermore, the second panel is the only one on the page not to contain a narrative caption box, which indicates that it acts as an extension of the first panel's activity of focusing so broadly on its subjects.

From this objective view of how the page layout is used, it is evident that Grant Morrison's use of the page's space to depict space is executed in an appropriate format that properly conveys the sheer enormity of the universe in the context of 18 Days's story.

Works Cited

Hatfield, Charles. "The Art of Tensions." Alternative Comics: An Emerging Literature. Jackson, MS: UP of Mississippi, 2005. 36-65.

-posted by Daniel Piatkowski.   

Spider-man or Family-man?

This semester, I have elected to take my very first “Comics Theory” course – or any comic’s course, for that matter! Woo! I have always enjoyed reading my dad’s old comic books; whether it be Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, or any other Marvel comics he has lying around. However, one of my favourites has always been The Amazing Spider-man, which is the monthly comic I have chosen to read. The most recent Amazing Spider-man series is called “Renew Your Vows”, written by Dan Slott and illustrated by Adam Kubert. At first glance at issue #1, we immediately notice the backdrop of a very large Spider-man mask in the shape of a heart, with Spider-man himself (Peter Parker) standing in front of it. Not only is our hero standing next to Mary Jane on the cover, but he is also carrying a child on his shoulders that very much resembles the gorgeous red-headed MJ, which we soon learn is their child. Already, the author is playing on the notion that the reader is aware of the history behind Spider-man and has therefore geared the story towards such audience. On the bottom right corner of the cover, there is a “Secret Wars” logo which is further explained on the following page. Using text only, we are introduced to this new Marvel universe where the heroes of earth have been deemed powerless and all that remains is this Battleworld: a planet composed of the fragments of worlds that no longer exist. Cue issue #1.

 Part 1 “Why We Can’t Have Nice Things” opens in the home of Peter Parker and Mary Jane, which welcomes us, the reader, into their lives. We are quickly introduced to the main theme of this issue, “responsibility”; the responsibility of Peter Parker to his family as well as the responsibility to his city, as Spider-man. There is an important contrast between these two ideas, which we see as a struggle in Parker’s life: does his responsibility as a family man take precedence over his obligation to the public, or does he allow his double life to interfere with family matters? With the mounting number of superhero disappearances and the return of Spider-man’s foe, Venom, Spider-man is sent barreling back to his home, only to find Venom comfortably wedged between MJ and their baby. His two very different lives have now become intertwined and will henceforth be influenced by one another. Meanwhile, we are introduced to an all-new, all-powerful supervillain named Regent, who has the stereotypical villainous desire to take over the world, which he succeeds in doing so by the very last panel of this issue.

There seems to be no real concept of time throughout this issue, no verbal or visual cues of any sort, until the last two pages: “That was the day the Avengers died […] But that was just me. Peter Parker. A dad in a stupid red-and-blue suit.” Not only do these last two pages close the debate on which of his two responsibilities takes precedence over the other, but they connect back to the first panel of the introduction, which reads: “In a perfect world, this was how it was always meant to be.” The issue ends with the caption, “It’s not a perfect world” with a giant billboard of the new ruler, Regent. This technique makes the reader aware of that fact that this story is being told from a futuristic, first person point of view, that recounts the events leading up to the “death” of Spider-man.

This first issue of Renew Your Vows is an excellent introduction to the new Spider-man series: it sets up this new Marvel world and gives us an idea of what is to be expected in the issues that follow. Interesting enough, issue #1 ends with Peter Parker choosing his fatherly responsibilities over the protection of his city; this will pave the way to issue #2 as plain old Peter Parker.

- Brittany Baker

Intertextuality in Fun Home

Intertextuality denotes the relationship or connection between a specific work and other texts. It is a way of discussing direct references to other works.

Fun Home by Alison Bechdel is a text that is absolutely full of references to other works, especially to other magazines and great works of literature. Throughout the story, Bechdel constantly makes reference to magazines like Esquire and GQ how does these affected her life. Through this lens, she explains the change she saw in herself, in her sexuality and preferences, from the time that she was a young girl until she was a grown woman. She also uses her choice in magazines as a representation of how she was different from other girls her age.

In the beginning of the graphic novel, Bechdel compares her family life to that of the family in It's a Wonderful Life. Her family life is the exact opposite of what she seeings in It's a Wonderful Life. At the point of the story when this movie is brought up, the reader does not yet know to what extent the Bechdel family is different from other families. The Addams family is also mentioned.

Most of the book talks about classic novels Bechdel's father spent his time reading. Each time a novel is brought up it is to compare her father or some aspect of her life to what is happening in the story to the characters or the author of the novel. Even the age her father was when he died is compared of that to various authors. Plot pieces in stories are used to parallel Bechdel's father and his actions. Would he have died (Bechdel thinks that it was a suicide) if he had not read Joyce or Proust?

Ever have a read a piece of literature that mentioned this many other pieces. Just about every author of a classic or classic is mentioned at some point in this graphic novel. Fitzgerald, Wilde, Proust, Camus, Joyce, Shepard, Shakespeare, and James are all mentioned in Fun Home.

These references to other texts and popular culture are a huge part of Fun Home. They help to create the time, place, and structure of the world Bechdel lived in while growing up. They explain her family and life. Textual and cultural references make up the world of Fun Home. Without these references the reader would not be able to fully understand how she lived or what she went through. Without them, it would be an entirely different graphic novel altogether...it simply wouldn't be.

-- Kelsey Jaques

PLUTONA- Amplification through Simplification/Panel Relationships

PLUTONA

Submitted by: Mauro Meo Primorac

Plutona by Jeff Lemire, Emi Lenox, and Jordan Bellaire is one I very much enjoyed reading because of the amount of amplification through simplification. Each character’s environmental circumstances allowed me to collect information in terms of who they are as characters and their relationship with what’s around them. In Understanding Comics, McCloud talks about Egyptian hieroglyphics, and that in Egyptian language the words represented an idea rather than a sound. And looking at the image of Teddy’s room, I already formulated that he’s organized, and hungry for information because of the newspaper articles on his wall, as well as his personal logs.
On the next page, Diane is introduced and immediately, by looking at her environmental circumstances, I can easily pick up who she is as a character; messy, disorganized, etc. Panel to panel transitions in Plutona were very moment-to-moment and for me as a reader required little closure. I got an experience that my eyes were moving through time by moving through space, but I wasn't conscious about how much time exactly. I was very much in control because of how the panels were presented. They were neatly organized and allowed me to move freely across the page. The panel shapes in this comic made a difference in my perception of time, and like McCloud said, “the long panel has the feeling of greater length”, and the best example for me was the second panel where we see Ray’s father on the couch with beer cans and bottles all over the table. 

Not only was it the size of the panel that forced me to look at the room, but also it was the diegetic images in the panel; the cracked walls, the cigarettes, and the relationship between Ray and his father, which already elicits a story just with a single panel. Duncan and Smith talked about how reading is additive, which is true, because the more information I add on to what I know from previous panels, the more I add to the story I’m reading. And although it’s natural to read from the bubbles to add information, I also read the images as their own persona, which gave me even more to work with.

Panel Layouts and Images Show Symbolism in "We Stand on Guard"

*WARNING: This post contains spoilers*

Before I begin to discuss Brian K. Vaughan and Steve Skroce’s We Stand on Guard (which I promise is amazing); I figured I’ll introduce myself since this is my first post. I’m Victoria, a fourth year double major for English and Visual Arts. I know what you’re thinking…English and Art…the dynamic duo for the production of comics. Well, before Jacob’s comic class I had never read a comic…actually I had never even looked at a comic. As you can imagine taking a course on comics completely changed my perspective. I realized I had read hundreds of comics because as McCloud states comics are “images in deliberate sequence”. This post is going to cover the first issue of We Stand on Guard. I want to analyse the panel layout along with the images to show how these aspects fit the narrative and affect the plot.

The first issue opens with a full shot panel showing a reflection of little Amber (our main character) in what appears to be a TV screen. She is looking at what is left of the Whitehouse after a fiery explosion. At the bottom of the panel, are the words “breaking news” which run off the page. Since the words are written backwards, it signifies this panel is a reflection. I find panel’s imagery both interesting and informative. Due to the panel saying “breaking news” it tells the reader that this event is happening now. I think this panel can be considered an establishing shot because although it does not give the setting of where Amber is, it informs us that this story is taking place in a time of crisis. The imagery is significant to the plot because from Amber’s face being reflected into the scene of destruction, it gives the sense that she is actually there overlooking the destruction. I think it is also a high contrast between innocence which is Amber and the enemy which is the chaos. By placing her on the same level as the destruction it alludes that she will eventually have to face it firsthand, not just from a reflection.

         In the next couple pages we find out a few important details of the plot from the narrative and visuals. In tier one; panel one, the first bit of narrative the reader gets is a caption stating “Ottawa, Ontario, 2112”. As a reader, I like that these captions are provided throughout the issue because they immediately establish the setting. We now know the where and the when at this point in the plot. Amber’s family is viewing the destruction of the Whitehouse from Canada and are in the not so distant future from us readers. I also found the backgrounds of each panel to be helpful in establishing what 2112 looks like. In the background of each panel it shows areas of their home. We can what the “it” style of décor for this period and that helps the reader become more immersed in the setting. The narrative consists of the family discussing why this horrible event happened when all of a sudden…

We get another full page panel, but this full shot is no reflection, it is a direct attack on Amber’s home-Ottawa, Canada. Although this panel has no words it is an effective narrative because by using a full shot you can take in the whole scene and really feel the utter chaos that is portrayed. The full shot also helps to show that the attack is covering a large area of land. This panel is effective in telling the ‘what’ of the plot. The missiles and explosions perfectly frame the parliament building in the background of the scene, which again shows that the current action is taking place in Ottawa. More importantly, if you look closely at the missiles they read “U.S.A”. This means that the ‘what’ of the plot is America invading Canada! Now we just need the why…

The next page shows two conjoined panels. Since there is no gutter (which suggests a space in time) between the two panels we know that this is an instantaneous moment. The parents try to form a plan of action, but are cut off midsentence and are blown away-literally. The scene comes to a conclusion with the brother and sister’s dying father telling the kids to stay together. The last panel is a close up of Amber with a look of uncertainty and a word balloon reading “whatever happens…you never…leave her side…”-depressing.

So flip the page and the first panel is another close up of Amber…who is older? Oh ya, that handy caption lets us know we have been transported to Yellowknife twelve years after the attack on Ottawa. The next few pages we realize Amber and her brother have been separated and she comes into contact with a group of Canada’s “freedom fighters” and we find out that America invaded Canada for their water, which finally is the ‘why’ of the plot. There are a lot of word balloons that help introduce the new characters and it gives the reader insight into their lives and struggles. I really enjoyed the commentary between Amber and the freedom fighter Booth because he explains that they are just ordinary people fighting for their home. Instead of being a superhero, he actually idolizes them and shows off his Superman tattoo. However, superpowers might have helped Booth…

I found this set of panels particularly important for conveying both time and meaning. I think this comic has a lot of full page panels because it is their way of putting further emphasis on important action. Following McCloud’s transition definitions I think these two panels are considered a moment-to-moment transition. It requires very little closure for the reader. Even without any narrative we can conclude through the images that this moment shows the simultaneous perspective of both characters. We also know that because these panels do not have a gutter, we do not have to fill in the gap, therefore it can be determined this action happened instantly.

         To conclude the drama of issue one, the last panel is yet another full page panel. It is an aerial view of the character’s standing on the face of a defeated robot. Amber is also welcomed into their group “Two-Four”. This panel alludes to how great their fight for Canada will be because the team who symbolizes Canada are just tiny specs compared to the size of the enemy robot which symbolizes America. The panel really depicts how great the issue is and that U.S.A. has the upper hand so far. With that being said, the small Canadian team was able to defeat the U.S.A. robot so there is a sense of optimism present in the panel and for the story to come.    

 This post was more of an overview of issue 1 dealing with the panels, but my next post for issue 4 will focus strictly on the drawing style.

 -Victoria Ghione

Keep Your Eye On the...?

The phrases "keep your eye on the ball" or "keep your eye on the prize" are common, something that you might hear multiple times a week. In comics, paying attention to what you should be look at isn't quite as easy as the phrases suggest. It can complicated at times to follow comics or to ensure that you are looking where the author and/or artist want you to be looking. Naturally, there are techniques that the creators can employ to try to direct your eyes. The October 2015 The Flash is an interesting case if you are looking at how the creators draw attention.

The page previous to this one is comprised of the dark blues and greys with only a small splash of beige. The bottom is completely dark. The action is growing more intense at this point but the reader is unaware of what might come next. Upon turning the page, a natural reaction might be to glance around the page. However, in this case, the bright red of the top left corner just about forces the reader to look there first. From there, the eye follows the bright spots on the page, which means that they follow the speech bubbles down and around the bottom of the page. This "L" motion across the page would finish with the reader having viewed the whole page but in a very specific way, one which the creators likely planned.

On the page above, your eye also catches the single, larger person on the top of the page. Realizing that this is a single individual encourages the readers eyes to move on, to find the next person speaking.

This second example is similar to the page above but is at the end of the comic. This time the reader takes in the page in in a counter-clockwise direction. The eye is drawn immediately to the red on the page. The red on this page is connected not only to the Flash but to the antagonist as well. The red continues to drag your gaze down the page, the speech bubbles following along side the red, until it becomes the muted and pale red/brown in the bottom right corner. At this point, the reader is aware that the Flash is in trouble but the muted colours help to make this point clear. He has been a bright red the whole rest of the comic but on this last page he becomes dull.

The use of colours on these pages along with the placement of the speech bubbles are only a few of the ways that the creators try to force the reader to look in a certain place, at a certain time.

-- Kelsey Jaques