Breaking into Comic Books

This is the one you show a teacher who says you can’t read a comic for class. An autobiography of U.S. Congressman John Lewis, focusing on his leadership during the civil rights movement during the early 1960′s. The trilogy documents important and heartbreaking moments, like the freedom riders bus boycott, the Birmingham Church Bombing and Bloody Sunday, when police attacked nonviolent protestors for refusing to disperse. The events remain poignant and disappointingly relevant as we continue to see violent police reaction to groups fighting the same discrimination Lewis fought against 60 years ago. 

A reimagining of a story from the 1940′s radio show in which Superman takes on the KKK, Superman Smashes the Klan is both a reminder that before becoming preservers of the status quo, superheroes fought for social justice for everyone. It is also a reminder that Superman, created by two Jewish nerds during the Great Depression, had a tremendous impact on American culture, opinion of the declined significantly among young people after the original radio show aired, for decades. It is also a reminder that some villains are never truly defeated and it’s up to us to continue the fight.

Joel Christian Gill’s graphic memoir about how violence shaped his upbringing features a cartoonish art style but the narrative is very much grounded in reality as it deals with domestic abuse, sexual assault, racism, and gang violence. Gill develops a visual symbolism that convey to the reader how it feels to be trapped by anger and overcome with aggression that is not possible outside of comics. While Fights is the story of boy traumatized and hardened by the abuse he experiences, recreating a cycle of violence throughout his childhood, the book ends on with hope, recognizing how pain causes people to lash out with anger. 

It may seem like a strange combination at first, but comic books and Hip Hop, two American art forms full over the top outfits and driven by collaboration between outsized personalities make them a perfect fit for one another. Ed Piskor is one of the best cartoonists working today and his encyclopedic history of the early years of hip hop, is essential for fans of contemporary and old school hip hop to understand how the genre evolved into a dominating force in American culture. 

Drawing Words and Writing Pictures can be a little textbook-y, but readers who follow along will come away understanding the process of making a comic book from start to finish. Filled with tips, shortcuts and professional secrets, even if your art and writing aren’t great you’ll still be able to create dynamic stories that people can actually read. Keep practicing, with these lessons in mind, and you’ll create comics people actually want to read. 

Moving past the usual struggles of coming out and self doubt of so many queer leads in a YA romance, Laura Dean focuses on the complicated and toxic relationships in which teens, queer or not, find themselves. Freddy fixates on Laura, cutting herself off from the world and trapping her in the relationship with her emotionally manipulative girlfriend. Laura Dean Keeps Breaking up with Me manages to affirms queer identities with maintaining a critical eye toward relationship dynamics, offering a queer experience more complex than most YA fiction. The manga influenced art, black and white except for a pale pink drawing the eye toward certain details, carefully renders small character details and movements that turn simple interactions into emotionally charged moments. 

A fan favorite webcomic and Kickstarter success story, now collected in two books, Check, Please! is a coming of age story with one part queer romance and one part sports story. Eric Bittle, former figure skating champion, vlogger and college freshman, joins the school’s hockey team and must learn the game while navigating his feelings for team captain, Jack.  

Have you ever looked at a comic book and thought, “How do I read this?” Have you ever looked at a comic book and thought, “How do I make this?” McCloud breaks down the relationship between word and picture and the art of combining them to tell a story. Understanding Comics is practically the bible when it comes to figuring out the fundamentals of comics. If you’ve got even the slightest interest in making comics, or you’re just wondering why you liked that comic so much, you need to read it. 

This YouTube channel, dedicated to deep dives into a wide range of comics and graphic novels, might not be the best intro for casual comic fans. But the hosts, two professional comic creators with an unparalleled knowledge of the craft, love for all types of comics is infectious as they analyze what makes a certain comic a masterpiece and what makes a comic downright cool. There’s plenty of focus on peak 90′s superhero art but the majority of episodes examine underground comix (both “famous” and obscure), outlaw comics (the ones made by eccentric, weirdos that you’d hide from your parents so they didn’t take it away and yell at the adult who sold it to you) and other hidden gems for readers moving away from the safety of YA comics and just don’t get the hype about superheroes. 

www.xplainthexmen.com

Operating in its own little corner of the Marvel Universe without getting bogged down in crossover events, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl is the perfect primer for superhero comics. MCU fans can appreciate cameos from familiar faces while being introduced to more obscure characters and for anyone who rolls their eyes when they hear the words “Infinity Stones” there’s plenty of action and even more laughs. (Seriously, there’s jokes written in the margins of each page.)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/aubreysitterson/beef-bros/description