The Future of Comics

It is in my opinion that the future of comics is going to be an important one. I think comics are around to stay in a large way, whether people can see it or not.  Comics are important because of their ability to communicate.  Currently I think the effectiveness of web-comics and their different formats are interesting, but I feel the various experimental comic artists are trying way too hard.  The concepts for adding a multimedia experience to a typical comic experience seems contrived, rather than artistic.  I think this is a perfect example of the classical case of: "less is more."

Comics have introduced multiple facets into the area of storytelling and visual representation that are just now infiltrating film and video games. A great example of this is the new film, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World.  This movie introduces really interesting cuts from scene to scene, object to object, etc. that come straight out of a comic book panel.  However, it is important to note the modern day audience member does not get lost in this unique take on editing a movie.  Rather than have a hard time following the action, they become more engaged and walk away with an enhanced experience.  This experience is not all that hard to believe considering another visual medium has been using interesting transitional techniques since the beginning of its existence. This is a great example of the potential comic books have to contribute to other mediums, from an aesthetic perspective alone.  I think this trend to learn from the comics will provide the medium with a sustainability beyond what people might initially think.

Another effective relationship I think that comics will help fuel in the future are video games. I think video games and comics will have a strong relationship because they both have the ability to capture and audience members attention through representative simplified versions of reality. Which have always been extremely important in our history as human beings, as discussed per class.  Video games have a power similar to comics, being they can quickly and effectively communicate ideas, often times more simply and more effective than written words alone.  The video game medium can take a lot of concepts that comic book artists have created and very effectively and very directly incorporate them into their own work.

On the opposite of that equation, I think the comic medium can take a lot away from the current state of storytelling be achieved in film and video games. Every day filmmakers are pushing the bar to increase the amount of immersion experienced by the viewer.  Comics can take this heightened sense of reality and try to incorporate this into their medium. A great example of this is a web comic in production by a team of very talented Zbrush artists, who are implementing the most advanced form of 3d technology into the comic book format. Next Gen Comics

 In conclusion the future of comics is a bright one. The topic could be discussed for hundreds of pages, but the more important idea to relay is that comics will be here to stay. One cannot undermine the potential comic books have for supporting and sustaining themselves as a very relevant medium, whether it be through the use of conceptualization for a game or film, or as a contemporary literary masterpiece.