Ethereal

You project yourself

Without knowing it

You reach out and

I grab at you

But you escape my

Grasp like smoke through

My fingers

I can no more hold

Onto you

Touch you

Than I can touch

The air.

The Demise of the Thought Bubble

Many people would argue that we are currently living a renaissance for the comic book as there are more interesting, exciting and innovative comic books on the market today then there ever has been. This is mainly due to fans becoming creators and, as with film, when this becomes the case more mature, ground-breaking and barrier-smashing work is produced. But at what price?

As with all progress, there has been a casualty. There has been something which has disappeared from my most loved of mediums. The thought bubble. What has happened to this delightful convention?

Perversely, it seems that when comic book readers started to sit up and take notice of the writers over the artists, that the thought bubble began to fade from the public comic book consciousness. The chief champions and agents of this change, in my opinion, were Alan Moore and Frank Miller. They did not kill the thought bubble but rather forced its evolution into the narrative box. The thought bubble became less about what the character was thinking at that stage and more like a diary entry – the “handwritten” narrative boxes of Miller's Batman :Year one being such an example. The boxes seem to be afterthoughts rather than the character's real-time thoughts. Now, it is without doubt that Miller and Moore are among the best writers of comic books and this could be due in part to their reluctance to use the thought bubble. But it is also indicative of a watershed within the comic book form. Thought bubbles seem frivolous and comedic and the use of a narrative box with it's sharp edges, is more mature and dignified. But could this mean we are in danger of taking our loved art-form too seriously?

Whilst this evolution from bubble to box undoubtedly proved popular with the older audience, it seems a shame that this evolution lead to an eradication of the thought bubble. One of the most disturbing side effects of this eradication seems to be less text and more artwork in comic books. Which, contrary to the origin of the demise of the thought bubble, is leading to a re-emergence of the importance of the artist. This in itself is not a bad thing, the artwork in comic books today is stunning. However, it has led to comic books that read more like story boards for film productions, rather than a stand alone medium. (Also meaning that the comic book you wait for all month is finished in about ten minutes, rather than a satisfying twenty minutes.)

It could be argued that the thought bubble disappeared as it no longer resonates with a more mature and sophisticated readership. It lays bare too much; the educated reader likes to draw his own conclusions. This results in more close-up panels of character's faces while we try to fathom out what they are thinking, rather than actually reading their thoughts. However, is this just writer's being lazy, leaving the reader to pick up the slack? Wouldn't it be better to actually read the words of the your favourite character's thoughts, to step inside their mind?

I miss this insight into the thinkings of my favourite characters and I miss the aesthetic pleasure of the thought bubble. It simply looks like a comic book. And this draws me back to this question that keeps playing on my mind: if our comic books are losing what makes them comic books and becoming more like films – then what is the point of the comic book? What place does the comic book have in the future of our media saturated world? Will they all become just trailers for upcoming films? Prequels to TV series? Storyboards?

Bring back the thought bubble!

Tight

Tight people,
packed into their
tight lives,
wearing their
tight clothes,
flaunting their
tight bodies,
flashing their
tight glances,
smiling with their
tight teeth.

So tight, so neat,
Bursting at the seams.

Twilight

Emotions run high
and fast
as twilight approaches.

The bed becomes
hot and flustered
as twilight approaches.

The ethereal becomes visceral
under the full moon,
as twilight approaches.

The beautiful becomes guttural
in the silence,
as twilight approaches.

Silence

There are a dozen wild horses at the gate,
I can not let them out.
The bolt is stuck.
They will destroy all that is inside.
They must be let out!
Outside is much bigger.
They will lose themselves,
Calm themselves.
But they can't be freed,
The bolt is stuck.

Stardust

Look at you
Sat there,
Apart from me,
But the same as me.

We are stardust,
You are nothing
As am I.
We mean nothing.

All your money
All my mind
Will melt away
In time.

We will stand together
In our oblivion
Unaware we were once
Apart.

Why you need to read: The Boys V.1 The Name of the Game

Do you like comic books which are expressly not for kids?
Do you like violence?
Do you like seeing superheroes getting their butts whooped?
Do you like seeing all the gory details of all the bone crunching fights?
If you have answered yes to one or more of the above questions, I prescribe 1 healthy dose of The Boys Vol 1: The Name of the Game by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson three times a day before meals.
Seriously, though, The Boys is one rip roaring ride of mayhem; a veritable feast of no holds-barred sex, violence and general moral depravity. The Boys is exactly what we have come to expect from Garth Ennis and those of you familiar with his previous works will not be disappointed by this series. It centres around Wee Hughie’s induction into a CIA-run, covert group known only as The Boys (even though one is female), that keep the status quo and stop the superheroes getting out of line or forgetting their place. Now that probably sounds really boring, but the fact that this is not a Marvel or DC comic means that the creative team of Ennis and Robertson can really let loose on were they take this.
If you like your comics to answer the big what if questions: What if all superheroes were arrogant, selfish celebrity types? What if there was a special force tasked to keep them in line? What if you had super-strength and punched someone in the stomach? You know, those questions we lay awake at night thinking about, then this book is for you (you very, very strange person!).
I prefer to describe The Boys as a spoof of the comic book universes of Marvel and DC. There are plentiful veiled references to the mainstays of these universes which will make the seasoned comic book reader smugly chortle to himself. I suppose this book is mainly aimed at those that have read a lot of comic books and are a bit world-weary of the perfect superhero image. But there is plenty
in the book to entertain the new reader; seeing a bulldog deflower a shitzu being one of the more memorable images – yes, this book is that depraved.
However, the one thing that might niggle at the reader is Darick Robertson’s choice to use Simon Pegg as his model for the main character of Wee Hughie. I love Simon Pegg and have done ever since Spaced and Big Train, but I would have preferred a nobody, an original face to be the main character, as the use of a well known actor/comedian/writer jars with the reader’s ability to create their own perception of Wee Hughie. Saying this, I am sure those of you that read TV spin-off comic books will have no such trouble.
Vol 1: is the first of many and as a result it is mainly an introduction of the colourful psychotic characters and setting, so don’t expect a huge amount of superhero bashing. However, do expect plenty of laughs, grimaces and guilty sniggers.
As far as fun, entertaining and crazy books go, this is near the top. I dare you to buy this book and not laugh out loud at least once. I’m off to buy the second volume!