This is a page out of Silk. I thought the panel where the background is just a black cracking pattern does a good job of showing how Cindi is feeling at that moment. I also like how this page has wide “gutters” to show the space and distance Cindi feels from Hector in this picture, as opposed to the very thin gutters when Cindi is fighting an enemy and feels very in the moment. 

Here’s a great how-to guide for making comics quickly and efficiently using Photoshop. It might help those who are drawing their final comic for this class.

“Comics lend themselves to inclusion and diversity. They can be and should be for everyone, and that’s why with every book we work on, we hope that message comes across.”

Forbidden Planet is a comic book store on Broadway right next to Strand Bookstore. Tomorrow they will be celebrating Free Comic Book Day! Go snag some comics and bring them in to class on Monday for our comics workshop! 

We’ve spent a lot of time in class talking abut superhero comics because they are most prominent in the public conversation right now considering the onslaught of superhero movies. This comic takes a different approach, taking a look at the way teenage girls interact with celebrities on social media, with a messy artistic style and a young woman’s voice clear in its presentation

The above link gives a great summary of the male gaze with an example from a Frank Miller comic, a written script of a panel that fragments a female character by focusing on her “fine ass.” It’s important to see that the male gaze is not only a part of television and movies, but written and drawn media as well. 

Today in class one of the terms from Denise Mann's Wired TV that we were defining was a "story bible," which outlines the characters, plot, style, and overall essence of a show. This link is the "series bible" for Battlestar Galactica, a popular science fiction show. It is interesting to read their strong need to differentiate Battlestar Galactica from Star Trek in both story and form, because both series are still canonical science fiction shows in American television. 

Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off" outtake videos are an excellent example of what Caldwell defines as a publicly disclosed deep text in "Cultures of Production." It is a series of videos posted on YouTube by Taylor Swift's official Vevo account that all go behind the scenes of her music video for "Shake It Off." Even though it is a "behind the scenes" series, the videos are very carefully polished, with formal interviews with Taylor Swift and footage that didn't make it into the video but is still edited as though it was. These videos give their viewers a feeling of being behind the scenes with Taylor and the dancers, serve as self-promoting content for the "Shake It Off" music video, and boost Taylor Swift's self-representation as the hard-working creative genius who happens to be everyone's best friend.