Week 15 Development

Monday
I had my meeting with Brian today to discuss my current progress on my dissertation. He was quite happy with the current draft but he suggested that I modify the table of contents including the merging of certain areas and customised titles. He was kind enough to look though my introduction and make some suitable changes to to it. Some required rewording.The other issue I spoke to him was about my PDF printing process as well as my concern about some PDF publish issue featuring a white border. I feel that throughout this project I have been overzealous about my case studies. In my proposal I said I would study a large range of studies featuring films and comics. However with required reduction of words in my discussion as well as my time management, I have only analysed at least 3. Nevertheless I will include these in this blog as well as in the dissertation appendix.

Tuesday

I am hoping to do to:

• Visit Dundee Printing service and ask about proofreading the pdf before printing or asking for a test print to make sure it turns out as expected. 
• Attending meeting with Stephanie to look over current draft of dissertation 
• Polish up the visual documents for the assets featured within the comic. 
• Submit a draft of Honours Portfolio to Blackboard. 

Even if the final comic has errors in it. I can still modify changes to the final portfolio. It's not long now until the submissions but I believe I will complete everything before hand in next week.

This afternoon, I went along to Dundee University to speak to them about my PDF order. The price of the printed comic was not as expensive as I thought. I was able to clarify a few things before they processed my order. I asked them to make it A4 size and with no borders.

Wednesday
I spent most of today, looking on my blogs. and providing a consistent style. I was able to get through 60% of my blogs. However I have noticed that few posts about certain elements such the environment and characters were not included. Therefore I'll be including these soon.

Thursday
I went into Dundee to pick up the printed copy of my comic. It turned out really well. I had my meeting with Brian and I discussed with him my current state of the project such as business cards, dissertation and final submission work.

I spoke to him about my current progress with the dissertation and I was at a stage were I wanted to get this dissertation completed. Although he previously asked me to cut it down to 7,000 words, he was happy with its current state. He looked through my introduction and picked out a few areas that needed changed. However those didn't take too long.

Friday
I spent my day at home looking over my assertion and making sure the figures and case studies were up to date. I decided to include three case studies I made on Goon, The far side Gallery and The Quest by Rich Werner. I took some time to overlook the figures and prepared for Monday, which I plan to send to the copy shop.

Visual Cues in Animation

I was looking at a scene from Wallace and Gromit: The Wrong Trousers, where Feathers McGraw is controlling Wallace as he goes through a museum. During the animated film, I thought; why did the penguin move around like a normal person and why no one else seem to notice? There was an exhibit featuring tribal penguins.This could suggest that in this universe, penguins developed in a similar way to humans. I found this to be an effective example of a visual cue that conveyed an idea. The foreground was blurred so that the focus was still on Wallace.

Wallace in Museum Vido Clip

Sound Effects in Comics

I have had some thoughts about including sound in the comic, especially in the scene where the monster merges. Some of my thoughts were to apply the text in a form where it looks it it is part of the environment in a similar to this panel from the Flash and of Will Esiner's work.

The Flash #1 features a title where the inside of the text features panels of the Flash fighting.The layout of the panels are placed in a circular composition all looking like slices. The gutters all direct towards the Flash in the centre which helps with the overall composition. The colours of the panels behind the Flash are coloured blue which helps make it look further way whereas the panels in the form of the Flash feature warm colours benefiting the depth and perspective of the picture.

I also discovered a blog by Zainab Akhtar that discusses the ways that sound effects are implemented into the comic illustration. He talks about an artist called Frankie Quietly who has deployed sound effects in the illustrations. Akhtar (2015) states that integrated SFX in comics often harmonies with its environment and its context whereas traditional SFX that stands out has more visual impact when elements such as shapes, colour and composition are considered. He also discusses about James Stokoe ,the artist who illustrated Godzilla:The Half-Century War (2013). Within the comic there, minimum sound effects. In one page where Godzilla roars, the sound effect is represented by a distorted, sharp and large illustration with a warm colour scheme. The mixture of these elements help provide an insight of how it would be heard if audible. It also connects with the idea of how the original Gozilla roar was produced through the use of a violin and a rubber glove (Rolfe 2008).

Here is a test I did where I took page 14 and applied sound effects to it.

Page 14

The text produced a curved which helps lead onto the protagonist and it also adds to the impact the splashing water. The chosen text font was "Super Weird". I think it would look better if the text was white like the foam of the waves, making it appear more integrated in the image. 

References

• Rolfe, J. 2008. Godzillathon #1 Godzilla (1954). [video] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Avc4AS3AvcA [Accessed 1 Apr. 2016].
• Stokoe, J. 2013. Godzilla:The Half- Century War. San Diego, Calif.: IDW.
• Akhtar, Z. 2015. Snapshot thoughts on comics sfx: Quitely does it. [Blog] Comics and Cola. Available at: http://www.comicsandcola.com/2015/06/snapshot-thoughts-on-comics-sfx-quitely.html [Accessed 1 Apr. 2016].
• Manapul, F. 2011 Flash #1. [image] Available at: http://comicsalliance.com/files/2011/09/flash01.jpg [Accessed 1 Apr. 2016].
• Manapul, F. 2011. Flash #1. [image] Available at: http://comicsalliance.com/files/2011/09/flash04.jpg [Accessed 1 Apr. 2016].

Case Study: Rich Werner's The Quest

Rich Werner is the artist behind Plants vs Zombies, the award winning multi-platform computer games. He left Popcap Games in 2012 to set up his own studio and they in turn made a series of indie games as a self employed artist.
In connection with sequential art with little to no dialogue. He has worked on a comic entry for an anthology called Monsterpedia 2014. Whirl it is mainly wordless, There is the exception of captions for sound effects and even writing text such as the lettering on the text. However. This is limited. There are only three out of forty nine panels with the written text. I think this can still be be helpful as text are Static images themselves.

“The Quest” is a nine page silent comic, illustrated by Rich Werner as part of an entry for a 2014 collection of short comics called Monsterpedia.
The main story is about a boy who finds a note about a kidnapped princess who is being held in a fortified castle. He dashes off to rescue her. He encounters a creature which turns out to be his friend and they continue on their quest. They arrive at a site where he obtains a sword and shield. They arrive at a cave and discover a dragon. He holds up his sword and the dragon becomes friendly and obedient. On the back of the dragon, our heroes fly towards the castle, evading its defenses. They break into the dungeon and slay the villain only to discover that the princess being held was in fact a trickster in disguise. They defeat the beast only to find another letter attached to an arrow pointing out that their damsel is in another castle.

Figure 1. The Quest Page 1 (Werner 2014)

Figure 2. The Quest Page 2 (Werner 2014)

Figure 3. The Quest Page 4 (Werner 2014)

Figure 4. The Quest Page 6 (Werner 2014)

Figure 5. The Quest Page 7 (Werner 2014)

Figure 6. The Quest Page 9 (Werner 2014)

Words and picture Combinations.

The words and picture combinations were kept to a minimum, making it into a silent comic. There was a speech bubble which was used to imply that the protagonist was whistling. The way the wording and sound effects are applied makes the story feel like a montage combination. They appear as integrated elements of the picture rather than an additional element overlaying the page. The idea of pictorial words being used in this way is still an area that is needing to be explored (McCloud 2006). Some of them exist with 3D on the page which helps illusion. In figure 4, one sound affects appears behind the villain but in the front of the hero. The words follow the same direction as the action and one example merges into the borders and assists with the flow of a page.
Words are present in this comic but are kept at a minimum level. The words on the scroll suggest the end of the story but also suggest that it may continue.
The pictorial text of the creature’s roar is black just like the gutter, making it feel like part of the illustration itself rather than text being placed over it.
Based on the story, it can be suggested the creature that was defeated was not the princess but an imposter and the real princess is somewhere else. Also the line “Your princess is in another castle” can be implied to be a reference to ““Thank You Mario, But Our Princess is in Another Castle” from Super Mario Bros (1985). The other reference made, “you’re my only hope” is a reference to Star Wars (1977). The last page, figure 6 features additional minimum text including a caption in a square box suggesting if the story will continue or just end. Here it is left undecided and ambiguous insuring the story is left open with the potential to continue.

Shapes and Lines
Throughout the story, the main visual consists of a strong use of light and silhouettes. The protagonist of this short comic is a nameless figure who shares the head proportions of three to four heads. The character is drawn in a suitable style to appeal to a younger audience. The main characters have no facial features except his eyes. The protagonist’s simple featureless appearance actually allows him to be relatable to the audience enabling them to project themselves onto him. Speed lines help suggest the movement of objects through the space of the comic panels (McCloud 1994).The gutters are coloured black, not straight but they do connect with the childish style and tone. The black silhouettes of the characters stand out strongly. The backgrounds are painted and have a sense of depth and distance to them. The silhouettes are not restricted to the characters. They are also used for props e.g. the words are highlighted black. They also appear to merge with the gutters. The presence of highlights help make the characters stand out and help distinguish each character whenever they overlap. Implied lines are present in this comic depending on how the characters and objects are staged. There is a strong use of arcs and curves especially in the dragon’s anatomy which helps make it look dynamic and suggest agile movement as it flies. In the first panel of figure 6, we see an implied line from the protagonist, his friend, the sword, the dragon and the sword again. Their eyes help direct us to the sword which represents the point of interest.

Body Language

The characters show a strong use of body language and use of expression to an exaggerated standard. In figure 2, we see the two characters fist bump each other which helps indicate that they share a friendship. The boy communicates to his friend through hand gestures. Through closure, it is implied that he is communicating about the message he received and that he’s embarking on a journey. The two head off together suggesting that the hero was inviting his friend to come and help him rescue the princess. Although the creature in figure 2 is large and bigger than the protagonist, he is not hostile towards him and appears gentle even though he possesses horns. In terms of hand gesture the princess, before we see her as an imposter, stretches her hand to grab on the protagonist’s. However, her palm is facing down which could imply and foreshadow her betrayal of the protagonists’ trust.

Comic Layout
Each page has a varied arrangement of panels but each page balances out appropriately with space and colour. The panels are varying sizes for effect but also suggest length and duration depending on the type of shots used. Each page acts as a story beat. In figure 3, the long panel can suggest the duration of the dragons roar. The lighting works well as it helps clearly convey where the light source is positioned in this comic. The use of scale and elevation is also used. The creature takes up two thirds of the panel whereas the boy and his friend take up only a small fraction. The action in this comic is short and simple.

Colours
The antagonist has a red glow emitting from his eyes and mouth. The mixture of red and black suggests a menacing character which reflects his menacing and devious personality (Scott-Kemmis 2009). In figure 4, the onomatopoeia featured on the page presents a sense of depth. This is implied through staging, as it appears to be obstructed by the antagonist, and also the desaturated colour, which helps make it look a bit distant. The white helps with focal points such as the female character who glows brightly and provides a framework around certain elements such as the boy, his friend and the dragon. However, in connection with the twist that is revealed, it can also suggest caution.

Pink suggests a sense of love, which in this case ITV can suggest the love from the princess. However, the reddish hints can reflect the aggressive and resentful mood established when the princess is discovered to be a fraud. The red eyes and mouth also help make the antagonist appear closer than he already is. Purple is used when the two characters encounter a dragon. This colour is beneficial as purple reflects the fantasy element in the story but also creates a sense of mystery. The use of yellow helps suggest the necessity for reassurance. Since they have defeated the fake princess, they wonder what has happened to the real princess. They are not sure what has happened to the princess. The inclusion of yellow in the first and last panel emphasises the introduction of new ideas such as the desire to go and rescue the princess (Scott-Kemmis 2009). When they learn the princess is in another castle, this introduces a new goal for them.

In figure 5, when the princess turns into a monster, her white colour is still present to help show this connection. In the previous panel, the boy is holding onto her and in the next panel we see a huge monster attacking him.

Environment

The environments of this story are minimalist, hand painting with one or two colour overlay and the environment keeps changing in every page. The establishing shot in figure 1, featuring the protagonist outside his home with a pitchfork, gave the impression that although he is a boy, he could be a home owner. The buildings materials suggest that he is a figure who lacks currency to live at a certain standard or could be someone who is environmentally efficient. Some panels feature no background detail and instead a coloured gradient to allow us to focus on the character and their actions.

Conclusion

In summary, the quest is a simple “hero rescues princess” concept with a twist. The minimum colours used along with the high value and lighting help establish a unique style. The character’s body language and actions are clear and you can understand what’s happening in each panel. This comic included strong silhouettes with readable body language. The protagonist’s eyes also suggest facial expressions and emotions. curves and line work used in this comic flow across the page.
There are moments where we see strong expression in body language such as the scene with the false princess revealing her true form. The emotion is conveyed through his gestures and actions. It is not visually confirmed that there is a princess all that is shown is a message stating that a princess is being captured. The artwork and style manages to convey complex emotions and suspense with minimal words and expressions. This illustrates the power of images to tell a story clearly and appeal to an audience.

References

• McCloud, S. 1994. Understanding comics. New York: HarperPerennial. 
• Scott-Kemmis, J. 2009. The Color Purple and The Color Violet. [online] Available at: http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-purple.html [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016]. 
• Scott-Kemmis, J. 2009. The Color Yellow. [online] Available at: http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-yellow.html [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016]. 
• Scott-Kemmis, J. 2009. The Color White. [online] Empowered By Color. Available at: http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-white.html [Accessed 29 Mar. 2016]. 
• Scott-Kemmis, J. 2009. The Color Red. [online] Empowered By Color. Available at: http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-red.html [Accessed 29 Mar. 2016]. 
• Scott-Kemmis, J. 2009. The Color Black. [online] Empowered By Color. Available at: http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-black.html [Accessed 29 Mar. 2016]. 
• Star Wars. 1977. [film]. Directed by George Lucas. San Francisco: Lucasfilm 
• Super Mario Bros. 1985. [computer game]. NES. Nintendo. 
• Werner, R. 2014. Rich_01. [image] Available at: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5688444d1c1210fead013295/568a0491a128e63c0adf2084/569010251c12105f19190af0/1452281939510/Rich_01.jpg?format=1000w [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016]. 
• Werner, R. 2014. Rich_02. [image] Available at: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5688444d1c1210fead013295/568a0491a128e63c0adf2084/569010259cadb6feaa167c6f/1452281919473/Rich_02.jpg?format=500w [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016]. 
• Werner, R. 2014. Rich_04. [image] Available at: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5688444d1c1210fead013295/568a0491a128e63c0adf2084/5690104d9cadb6feaa167e39/1452281958305/Rich_04.jpg?format=500w [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016]. 
• Werner, R. 2014. Rich_06. [image] Available at: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5688444d1c1210fead013295/568a0491a128e63c0adf2084/5690105d9cadb6feaa167ef3/1452281989491/Rich_06.jpg?format=500w [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016]. 
• Werner, R. 2014. Rich_07. [image] Available at: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5688444d1c1210fead013295/568a0491a128e63c0adf2084/569010661c12105f19190e02/1452281992080/Rich_07.jpg?format=500w [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016]. 
• Werner, R. 2014. Rich_09. [image] Available at: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5688444d1c1210fead013295/568a0491a128e63c0adf2084/569010851c12105f19190f61/1452282011811/Rich_09.jpg?format=500w [Accessed 28 Mar. 2016].

Stan Lee's How to Draw Comics.

I began to read a segment from Stan Lee's how to draw comics. Stan Lee talked about the clarity flaws in the comic page examples. He points out that it shares a flawed layout as we have no idea who the characters are.

Here is a sequence of the character making a leap then making a  controlled landing but sadly the comic doesn't read this confirmation appropriately. Furthermore she is also meant to be firing arrows as it is suggested by the quiver of arrows on her back. However the action shown is her releasing the the arrows is ambiguous. There is no clarity in what projectiles were being used.

In the second page, panel one and two has a very thin gutter making it loo like its a single panel
We also get the impression that the characters are in close proximity of each other.
There is lack of clarity about what sharpshooter does in panel 5 and a lack of identity to who holds the hammer.
This analysis's  Stan Lee makes is to emphasis how important clarity is. I found this extract to be quite helpful in understanding how clear you need to be to your reader in order to tell your story.
In short, He highlighted some examples of how comic illustration were not clear at convey certain information.I believe that I should be aware of as I develop my comic project.

Reference

Lee, S. 2010. Stan Lee's How to Draw Comics. New York: Watson-Guptill Publication. pp. 128-129.

Morphine Side Effects

Since the main charter is using morphine as a way to ease this pain that he is suffering from after his experience in the pacific, I wanted to make sure that I represented the effects of Morphine appropriately.
Morphine can occasionally create hallucinations. The patient can feel drowsy if he is overdosing.

According to drugs.com (2016), there are several side effects that occur when taking morphine;

• Abdominal or stomach pain 
• blurred vision 
• bulging soft spot on the head of an infant 
• burning, crawling, itching, numbness, prickling, "pins and needles", or tingling feelings 
• change in the ability to see colors, especially blue or yellow 
• chest pain or discomfort 
• confusion 
• cough 
• decreased urination 
• dizziness, faintness, or lightheadedness when getting up suddenly from a lying or sitting position 
• fainting 
• fast, pounding, or irregular heartbeat or pulse 
• headache 
• hives, itching, or skin rash 
• increased sweating 
• loss of appetite 
• nausea or vomiting 
• nervousness 
• pounding in the ears 
• puffiness or swelling of the eyelids or around the eyes, face, lips, or tongue 
• severe constipation 
• severe vomiting 
• shakiness in the legs, arms, hands, or feet 
• shortness of breath 
• slow heartbeat 
• sweating or chills 
• wheezing 
• cold, clammy skin 
• flushing or redness of the skin, especially on the face and neck 
• irregular, fast or slow, or shallow breathing 
• lightheadedness 
• loss of consciousness 
• low blood pressure or pulse 
• pale or blue lips, fingernails, or skin 
• pale skin 
• pinpoint red spots on the skin 
• pounding in the ears 
• shakiness and unsteady walk 
• unsteadiness, trembling, or other problems with muscle control or coordination 
• unusual bleeding or bruising 
• very slow heartbeat

I had elements of these symptoms in my mind when I was designing protagonist's morphine endosed appearance.

At the moment, I'm needing to revisit this design as he only partially shows  some symptoms of morphine side effects.
 I think it would be appropriate to suggest that he could be making overdoses.
With that in mind I found these additional symptoms that occur when he is overdoing on morphine,

• Constricted, pinpoint, or small pupils (black part of the eye) 
• decreased awareness or responsiveness 
• extreme drowsiness 
• fever 
• increased blood pressure 
• increased thirst 
• lower back or side pain 
• muscle cramps or spasms 
• muscle pain or stiffness 
• no muscle tone or movement 
• severe sleepiness 
• swelling of the face, fingers, or lower legs 
• weight gain

In the final comic, I was panning on including a section where the main protagonist takes the drug and we see that the effects cause these haunting shadows to disappear while he is surrounded by faint cloud of multiple saturated colours to show that he is defended by a barrier.
In the Dagon comic adaption featured in  Lockwood's The Lovecraft Anthology (2011) ,there is a use of saturated water colors that give the impression of the ways hat morphine can alter your vision to see certain colours. To help connect it with madness the imagery does show chaotic elements like how some ink blots drip down into the next panel.

Images from the Lovecraft Anthology Volume 1

Here is a scene form my comic which will be the protagonist taking morphine to allow him to be free of haunting imagery.

Comic Page Sketch

Refined Comic Page

References

Drugs.com, 2016. Morphine Side Effects in Detail - Drugs.com. [online] Available at: http://www.drugs.com/sfx/morphine-side-effects.html [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

Kaye, P. n.d. Hospice World. [online] Hospiceworld.org. Available at: https://www.hospiceworld.org/book/hallucinations.htm [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

Lockwood, D. 2011. The Lovecraft anthology. London: SelfMadeHero.

Artists and their styles: Grant Gould

Today, I was looking through an art magazine which was about Star Wars inspired work by artists. One of these artists was Grant Gould, who is a freelance comic artist who has worked for Lucasfilm, Topps and the Klutz books.He has also made his own comic, Wolves of Odin and RPG, Blade Raiders. His art style appealed to me because I like the comic styled artwork that he has produced.

Star Wars Illustrated ESB: LUKE SKYWALKER (Gould, 2015)

Star Wars Illustrated ESB: YODA (Gould 2015)

Wolves of Odin BOOK 2 NEWS (Gould 2011)

Elven Druid Character (Gould, 2007)

BLADE RAIDERS: EXODUS Fantasy Novel (Gould, 2013)

 STAR WARS REBELS: Sabine (Gould, 2014)

Style Traits

They way he draws people are in a semi realistic proportions. however the use of colours are used simply and the lighting is minimalist. The shading especially is soft and simple. However his art style can vary as is shown in an picture he did of a Elven Druid.

His latest Star Wars art pieces involve overlaying colour such as that of the character's light sabers or blaster projectiles. This overlaying colouring also affects the linework by giving it a faint hue and can help suggest depth within the picture. In the comic cover of his comic Blade Riders (2013), he has the protagonist highlighted in a warm colour while the other characters on the cover are covered in a cool green hue. The cover itself also has a textured overlaying the artwork. Based on the feature of melee weapons and armour it would be safe to assume that this is a fantasy comic. When he is drawing characters that are from the Clone Wars TV show, he preserves their unique art style. 

Star Wars Illustrated ESB: HAN SOLO (Gould 2015)

Composition

While many of his single print works consist of a single character with a background, he has various types of pictures such as head shots of certain characters from popular culture and. He also has examples of work where he has more than two characters and these pictures often contain a story or situation. He also has used a tilted camera angle for effect. He includes additional visual effects when needed.

Subject of work

His artwork based on his Deviantart Profile consists of fan art work form popular culture such as Star wars, Lord of the Rings, Saturday morning cartoons and DC comics. He has also done work for comics such as the Wolves of Odin. http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/Wolves-of-Odin-BOOK-2-NEWS-217597771#

Please note that this information is based on my observation of his works through the links I has supplied.

References

Gould, G. 2007. Elven Druid Character. [image] Available at: http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/Elven-Druid-Character-64151587 [Accessed 13 Oct. 2015].

Gould, G. 2013. BLADE RAIDERS: EXODUS Fantasy Novel. [image] Available at: http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/BLADE-RAIDERS-EXODUS-Fantasy-Novel-414006037 [Accessed 13 Oct. 2015].

Gould, G. 2014. STAR WARS REBELS: Sabine. [image] Available at: http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/STAR-WARS-REBELS-Sabine-436440464 [Accessed 13 Oct. 2015].

Gould, G. 2015. Star Wars Illustrated ESB: HAN SOLO. [image] Available at: http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/Star-Wars-Illustrated-ESB-HAN-SOLO-530364802 [Accessed 13 Oct. 2015].

Gould, G. 2011. Wolves of Odin BOOK 2 NEWS. [image] Available at: http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/Wolves-of-Odin-BOOK-2-NEWS-217597771# [Accessed 13 Oct. 2015].

Gould, G. 2015. Star Wars Illustrated ESB: YODA. [image] Available at: http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/Star-Wars-Illustrated-ESB-YODA-530365571 [Accessed 13 Oct. 2015].

Gould, G. 2015. Star Wars Illustrated ESB: LUKE SKYWALKER. [image] Available at: http://grantgoboom.deviantart.com/art/Star-Wars-Illustrated-ESB-LUKE-SKYWALKER-530365285 [Accessed 13 Oct. 2015].

Scott McCloud Quotations

The following Quotes are from Scott McCloud's novels about Comics. I may use these for my Dissertation.

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud (1994)
"the invisible world of senses and emotions can also be portrayed either between or within panels" (McCloud 2006 p.121)

"just as pictures and the intervals between them create the illusion of time through closure, words introduce time by representing that which can only exist in time - sound." (McCloud 2006 p.95)

"our eyes have been well trained by the photograph and by representational art to see any single continuous image as a single instant in time. " (McCloud 2006 p. 96)

" The panel acts as a sort of general indicator that time or space is being divided" (McCloud 2006 p.99)

Scott talks about how a panel if I bleeds into the edges of the page it can give the scene a timeless atmosphere as it established s the location. (McCloud 2006 p.103)

"Now if pictures can, through their rendering represent invisible concerns such as emotions and the other senses"

"then the distinction between pictures and other types of comic like language which specialize in the invisible may seem a bit blurry."(McCloud 2006 p.127)

" one represents a visible phenomenon, smoke while the other represents an invisible one, our sense of smell. (McCloud 2006 p. 128)

Scott McCloud discuss that a visible indication for an emotion can develop from their context into a invisible meaning such as a sweat bead.(McCloud 2006 p.130)

Making Comics by Scott McCloud (2006)
" We want two things from our audience. we want them to understand what we want to to tell them -- and we want them to care enough to stick around 'til we're done." (McCloud 2006 p.8)

" and to achieve that first goal, you'll need to learn the principles of communicating with clarity--"

"-- and to achieve the second goal,you'll need to learn which elements of a work can persuade your audience to stay with you."(McCloud 2006 p.9)

Dr Seuss Evaluation of Movie Adaptions and word/picture combination notes

Although I am not doing a video project, I did observe some adaptations of existing stories. Although, there are always changes in adaptations sometimes they are extended to fit their medium length. Examples of this are the adaptations of the Dr Seuss storybooks, Although there are full feature length films which had little connection to the originals stories, there were animations back during the 60s and 70s which were more connected the original stories. The reason for why was that the creator himself was involved in the writing for the Lorax TV special in 1974.

Nostalgia Critic:Cat in the Hat

Nostalgia Critic: The Lorax

Doug Walker of Channel Awesome (2014) discusses this approach in his satirical review of the 2012 movie adaptation of Dr Seuss’s The Lorax. He address certain elements about the original that the film adaptation fails to achieve” although there are some humorous elements in the film, it does lack the original spirit of the source material. He even agrees that adaptions are expected to have changes however he goes on to say that “it should be changes that make sense”. He backs this up with showing clips of the film where they make references to popular culture such as the theme of Mission Impossible. In another review about another Dr Seuss movie adaptation (2013), Doug Walker even addressed that the problem of popular culture references in movies can make them outdated. This makes sense if you return to a film or medium many years later. This information is beneficial to anyone who wishes to adapt a story while keeping true to its intent.

Word and Picture Combinations

Sometimes a mix of test and images can work well especially to emphasise a scene. McCloud (1994) addressed many examples of word and pictures combinations such as montage, interdependent and duo specific. In The Goon in Chinatown and the mystery of Mr. Wicker (Powell 2010), Goon is on the verge of leaving his thug lifestyle and is preparing to have a new life a new life with his lover. However she leaves him for unexplained reasons just as he planned to move on with his life with her. The scene building up to this is told with the speech bubbles. After she leaves and the Goon looks at himself in the mirror. Another thing that is quite effective is the gradual increase in size of the panels. They start out small and intimate to reflect the close conversation and the personal space between the two characters but over the pages they gradually increase in size until a single panels covers an entire page. The next few page are one paneled pages of the goon’s head shot showing him gradually and slowly breaking down. This scene is heart breaking and the visuals clearly convey that without any word of dialogue. This will be further analysed in a case study.

The Killing Joke: The Ambiguous Ending

In Kevin Smith’s Podcast, Fatman on Batman (2013), Grant Morrison appears as a special guest and he provides his own interpretation of the ending of Batman: The Killing Joke (1988). In the Killing Joke, written by Allan Moore, the ending of the comics features the Joker telling Batman a joke about two inmates escaping an asylum. Joker laughs at the punchline and the Batman begins laughing as well, they continue to laugh as we hear police sirens appearing the laughing stops but the police sirens continue. Grant Morrison says that the comic was made to be “The ultimate Batman story” and that the ending was intentionally meant to be unclear so that people were uncertain that it was actually the ending. The thing about that ending according to the podcast, it is discovered that the Batman kills the Joker which is why the comic was called the Killing Joke. What is effective is how subtle the evidence but it was so vague it became left for interpretation. It’s because of this ambiguity that the reader is encouraged to come up with their own thoughts about the comic and its story and to provide his or her other interpretation of what the ending means.

Reference

Channel Awesome. 2014. Nostalgia Critic: The Lorax. [video] Available at: http://channelawesome.com/nostalgia-critic-the-lorax/ [Accessed 22 Sep. 2015].

Channel Awesome. 2013. Nostalgia Critic: The Cat in the Hat. [online]. Available at: http://channelawesome.com/nostalgia-critic-the-cat-in-the-hat/ [Accessed 11 Nov. 2015].

McCloud, S. 1994. Understanding Comics. New York: HarperPerennial.

Moore, A. 1988. Batman The Killing Joke. London: Titans Books.

Powell, E. 2010. The Goon in Chinatown and the mystery of Mr Wicker. Milwaukie, Or.: Dark Horse Books, pp.79-88.

The Definitive Batman Resource: Legions of Gotham. 2013. Grant Morrison on The Killing Joke Ending Fatman on Batman Podcast. [video] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OPUsWxYz2U [Accessed 6 Nov. 2015].

Case Study: The Goon in Chinatown and the Mystery of Mr. Wicker.

Case Study 1: The Goon in Chinatown and the Mystery of Mr. Wicker

The Goon is a comedy, horror and violent comic series where the main character is a goon who works for a gangster who fights off against supernatural enemies such as the undead, ghouls and vampires. It takes place in a fictional depression-era American town and it merges genres like horror and noir quite well.

Words and Picture Combinations

Although the comic’s narrative includes dialogue, there are occasions where there were scenes where the story was told through the visuals.
The story was compelling and the characters were really interesting and it felt like a nice spin on the noir genre. The comic had a strong visual style inspired by noir films such as the sepia toned elements which mirrored the black and white visual style and cinematography of those particular films. While the comic series has focus on comedy, this issue takes more of a serious tone as it focuses on an important turning point for the goon's character. Throughout the comics prior to this issue, there is a reference to "Chinatown". Apparently it was a time when the goon could have had a better life. He is reunited by his lover Isabella who works for Xiang Yao. She comes to the goon for help and they spend a lot of time together. While the goon drifts out of touch with his old life, he leaves his friends and hopes to start a new life with his lover. However things fall apart as his lover leaves him for an unknown reason.
The scene that follows shows Goon looking at himself in a mirror and the next few pages is a sequence of him having an emotional and mental breakdown. It starts with a dull face but as the pages go along he begins to show more and more expressions and exaggeration. When I read this, I found this to be very effective as the sequence took up all the pages and it marked a key point in the Goon's life. It is a very heart-breaking sequence as he was very certain that with Isabella at his side, he would have a future free of crime ahead of him. It was a powerful scene because his face and gestures helped express what was going on with his head. As he breaks down, his confidence is damaged severely.
This sequence is told in a flashback. Visually this can be indicated by the way the panels are laid out and the main character has not received his trademark scar which he has in the story that is occurring during the present.
Powell felt that he did a good job as he said “I put my heart and soul into this book". (Dooley 2007). This is evident based on the content and the heart-breaking story which helps explain why the Goon is the way he is.
In figure 1, there is a montage of the Goon and Isabella spending time together while Frankie, the Goons best friend has to defend the streets himself. The first panel shows the silhouette of the goon and Isabella on a Chinese themed balcony with Chinese styled buildings in the back. There is a romantic atmosphere with the silhouettes of blossom flowing across the panel. There is also an arch which helps frame the moment. Although the background is not so detailed the silhouettes are strong and you understand that they are in love.

Figure 1. Goon Pages 50, 51 and 52 (Powell 2011)

The use of symbols represented here are some props such as the candle and wineglass. These are used to help suggest that this is a romantic dinner between the two lovers. In panel 2 on page 51, Frankie is hiding behind a crate as two gangster approach wielding guns, unaware of Frankie's location. Although they are equally spaced out, Frankie’s outnumbered by the two gangsters. Here I can see while the panel is balanced, if the goon was there this would be an even fight. However without him in the picture we can see how much Frankie needs the Goons assistance. In page 52, we see Isabella and the Goon smiling which is something he does not do very often. Meanwhile three of the panels consist of Frankie trying to fight Goon’s enemies by himself. We see the self determination on his face as he drives and shoots at the same time. We get the impression of this through the context of him trying to hold onto the territory that he and the Goon own. In panels 2 and 3 we get a moment transition (McCloud 1994) as Frankie gets punched by some gangster. This is suggested through the visual establishment of the gangsters shown in the previous page. The panels in this montage share no borders but some have a faded out white borders that makes the sequence more nostalgic and fragmented though memories. This is appropriate because these visual occur during a flashback. Furthermore the montage of the Goon having romantic moments with Isabella works really well in contrast to Frankie's moments of action. These moments show how much that the Goon is needed and that Frankie needs his friend to watch his back like they used to.

Panels

Although the use of words can help emphasise moments, some cases such as the Goon, do not work.
The way the panels are arranged in this sequence are effective. In the comic it starts off like a normal comic would have where the panels are juxtaposition to each other. After Isabella leaves, the panels get bigger until the scene where the Goon breaks down. The reader sees the Goons reflection in his perspective. Some of the flashback comic panels have no borders similar to the panels that occur in the present (Dawe 2014).

Colours
The colours used in this comic's flashback sequences are very minimal, washed out and sepia toned. (PublishersWeekly.com 2007)

Figure 2. Goon page 79 (Powell 2011)

 Figure 3. Goon page 80 (Powell 2011)

Goon’s posture is now in a lower position to show that he has no control of what is happening here.

Lighting

Figure 4. Goon page 81 (Powell 2011)

The composition in the above comic page is effective as there is a strong contrast with the light. The way shadows cast over half of the Goons face is reminiscent to the lighting effects in the noir genre but it also suggests that the character is undergoing emotional stress. Here the Goon appears stable after Isabelle leaves, assuming that he has handled it well. His body language appears stable as he has both hands on the armrests of the chair and is sitting upright. In the second panel the door's framework acts as a frame surrounding the main focus. The negative space in panel 2 allows for a strong contrast and for Goon to act as a focal point on the panel.

Figure 5. Goon page 82 (Powell 2011)

The next page takes place in his bathroom. There are a few props to suggest this. The transition is momentarily and shifts close to Goon which then leads onto the next page.

Body language

The following five panels are portraits of the goon's face which fill the page. The first panel shows the goon just staring at the mirror which in turn we see the reflection. The white border helps the Goons silhouette stand out and the grayscale shading helps contrasts well with the browning sepia toned background. Furthermore the emphasis of the facial expression is not only a breakdown of himself, he also realises that he is unable to move on. Although Isabella's reasoning for leaving him is vague but to him he's convinced that no woman would ever fall in love with him again (Dawe 2014).

Figure 6. Goon page 83 (Powell 2011)

Figure 7. Goon page 84 (Powell 2011)

Here he begins to show sadness as his eyes begin to become watery. His hand covers his mouth and he’s trying to hide his expression and true thoughts of what’s happened. The wrinkle on his head begin to appear more clearly. It looks like he's trying his best to keep himself under control but he's showing weakness.

Figure 8. Goon Page 85 (Powell 2011)

This panel continues his gradual breakdown. This time his left hand reinforces the right hand as he tries to keep himself emotionally under control.

Figure 9. Goon Page 86 (Powell 2010)

His two hands now rest on his temple the fingers close together showing that there is some attempts to keep himself under control. His eyes have grown smaller and his tears are now halfway down his face.

Figure 10. Goon Page 87 (Powell 2010)

In this page of this sequence, the Goons body language and gestures illustrate his frustration and the peak of his breakdown. The hands are outstretched and clutching his face desperately causing several wrinkles in his skin. Tears are now dripping down his face in multiple streams. The eyes have gotten smaller and this emphasize the expression. Dark rings are present around Goon's eyes this helps focus on his eyes. The exaggerated facial expression adds to the thought that are flowing through his head at this moment, his mouth is wider and nearly open and you can nearly see his individual teeth. Closure allows us to perceive as if it were an animated sequence.

Background

The background has lost its colour and has darkened to emphasis that he has descended into darkness where he believes there is no return. His hair is now quite mess and unkept. The best thing about this scene is that words are not necessary for this sequence. What is more important is that it was statement that the goon will never be happy. Overall, you feel very sympathetic for the Goon in this sequence and this makes it a tragic moment in the comic's series. The background lacks in detail but it allows for the reader to focus on Goon's face. The sequence takes place in the bathroom and as these rooms are a place of privacy and secrecy this is an appropriate place for him to express how he is feeling visually.

In Conclusion, The flashback visual style is appealing and the transition of bordered to border less panels in figure 1, helped reflect this. The visual language of the expression and hand gestures helped convey Goons's emotional breakdown. The panel layouts helped make the scene stand out.

Reference

Dawe, I. 2014. Comic Con Discoveries Part 1: The Goon and The Guns of Shadow Valley. [online] Sequart Organization. Available at: http://sequart.org/magazine/48739/comic-con-discoveries-part-1-the-goon-and-the-guns-of-shadow-valley/ [Accessed 17 Jan. 2016].

Dooley, C. 2007. Eric Powell’s Legacy Continues With ‘The Goon: Chinatown’. [online] Comics Alliance. Available at: http://comicsalliance.com/eric-powell-s-legacy-continues-with-the-goon-chinatown/ [Accessed 17 Jan. 2016].

Mahmoud, M. and Robinson, P. 2011. Interpreting hand-over-face gestures. 1st ed. [ebook] Cambridge: University of Cambridge. Available at: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mmam3/pub/ACII2011-Doctoral-2011.pdf [Accessed 29 Mar. 2016].

Mateu-Mestre, M. 2010. Framed Ink: Drawing and composition for visual storytellers. Culver City: Design Studio Press.

McCloud, S. (1994). Understanding comics. New York: HarperPerennial.Sims, C. 2011. The 13 Greatest Hits (and Stabbings, and Gunshots...) of THE GOON. [online] Comics Alliance. Available at: http://comicsalliance.com/the-goon-comic-best/ [Accessed 14 Feb. 2016].

Powell, E. and Stewart, D. 2010. The Goon in Chinatown and the mystery of Mr. Wicker. Milwaukie, Or.: Dark Horse Books.

PublishersWeekly.com, 2007. Fiction Book Review: The Goon: Chinatown and the Mystery of Mr. Wicker by Eric Powell, Author, Eric Powell, Illustrator . Dark Horse $19.95 (128p) ISBN 978-1-59307-833-1. [online] Available at: http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-59307-833-1 [Accessed 17 Jan. 2016].

Week 11 - Meeting with Simone and Alex Graham

My meeting with Simone has been cancelled due to her unavailability. However I have managed to send her my essay and I will hopefully receive feedback from her on Tuesday evening.

On the friday, Alex Graham came into Abertay to discuss what it is like to create realistic 3D work. Based on what she showed us, she specialized in 3D environments for AAA games. She gave us interesting feedback and I got the opportunity  to ask her to review my portfolio. She liked my 2D work of the antagonist character I made for a third year module. She suggested that I could provide further evidence on its function and purpose. However she did like my development process for the character. Here I took the 2D work I made in semester 1 and used it as reference material when making the 3D version of the character. Alex suggested that I could try the high poly to low poly approach.
In her talk, She discussed how she tackled the visual test that the Chinese room had given her as part of her interview process. She began researching what looked like authentic props from a certain era based on the brief, she also considered how it was used and what type of person used it in a way to suggest storytelling.

While most of her advice was aimed at those students who focused on 3D, it was interesting to see the tips she had given such as using bevel effects to remove the jagged edges on models you see in AAA games.

The following are links to research material related to visual storytelling.

• http://www.researchgate.net/publication/220366670_Enhancing_the_Accessibility_for_All_of_Digital_Comic_Books
• http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1055&context=englishdiss
• http://screencrush.com/comics-changing-movie-adaptations/
• http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk/project/7850EFB1-F20B-4E5A-A695-3DA2BB229C99
• http://samples.sainsburysebooks.co.uk/9781136884740_sample_862021.pdf
• https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=S3oH_VdH3BcC&pg=PA135&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false
• http://dsq-sds.org/article/view/1067/1255

I managed  to speak to Simone the next day on the Wednesday afternoon talk about the comments she gave me. Her guidance was helpful.

Research Notes

Here are some notes I took about a series of essays about H.P.Lovecraft.

Donald r. Burleson ,on Lovecraft's theme touching the glass

http://www.graphics.com/article-old/writing-visual-thinkers-narrative-structures

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=e-aWWTZeergC&pg=PA61&lpg=PA61&dq=comics+simplify+complex+stories&source=bl&ots=agWevNnkr9&sig=irh3b-80dGQIJtW3Iuo4e2WnUJQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CEAQ6AEwBWoVChMImp31mfWcyQIVBEYPCh2JQQN-#v=onepage&q=comics%20simplify%20complex%20stories&f=false

http://www.slideshare.net/DanielaMolnar/narrative-image-the-how-and-why-of-visual-storytelling

http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1009&context=sane

He wrote a large variety of stories for magazines through his lifetime, some of which include The Call of Cthulhu (1928), The Shadow Out of Time (1936), The Dunwich Horror (1929) and Dagon (1917). However this sub-genre shares similar themes related to cosmic horror. 
The term Lovecraftian Horror was used “as a catch-all for those tales of Cosmic Horror that parallel the Cthulhu Mythos” (Rawlik, 2013) since they shared similarities. 
Some films and games have also been inspired by the works of Lovecraft. Call of Cthulu: Dark Corners of the Earth (2005) and Dagon (2001) both retold the story “The Shadow Over Innsmouth” (1936) despite bearing different titles.

For example, Ian Edington’s comic adaptation of H.G Well’s War of the Worlds (2006) showed a visual depiction of how the Martians, the fighting machine and the setting were represented while following the novel’s story.

“Wordless picture books allow readers to construct diverse interpretations.” This can be positive the reader , but it can also distance them from the original intention of the work.

http://www.readingrockets.org/article/exploring-wordless-picture-books

Although they can be very descriptive, comics may have difficulty communicating the narrative especially translated are in another language that one may not understand. Therefore it should be just as important for a comic to understand how to tell a story with or without dialogue, especially if the reader’s native language is not represented in the narrative, understanding is hindered.