Portal:Comics

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

Introduction

Comics are a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically takes the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate dialogue, narration, sound effects, or other information. There is no consensus among theorists and historians on a definition of comics; some emphasize the combination of images and text, some sequentiality or other image relations, and others historical aspects such as mass reproduction or the use of recurring characters. Cartooning and other forms of illustration are the most common image-making means in comics; Photo comics is a form that uses photographic images. Common forms include comic strips, editorial and gag cartoons, and comic books. Since the late 20th century, bound volumes such as graphic novels, comic albums, and tankōbon have become increasingly common, along with webcomics as well as scientific/medical comics.

The English term comics is used as a singular noun when it refers to the medium itself (e.g. "Comics is a visual art form."), but becomes plural when referring to works collectively (e.g. "Comics are popular reading material."). (Full article...)

Show new selections below (purge)

edit

Selected article

Thrud the Barbarian is a comics character created by Carl Critchlow in 1981. Although Thrud himself is a parody of Conan the Barbarian, particularly as depicted in the Arnold Schwarzenegger films, inspiration for the character's adventures and adversaries has been drawn from several fantasy sources. During the 1980s, a Thrud comic strip was a regular and popular feature in the roleplay and wargame magazine White Dwarf with Thrud's grotesque and comic antics forming a memorable part of the magazine's golden age. In 2002, continued interest in the character from role-playing enthusiasts and a desire to be free to experiment with a new artistic style prompted Critchlow to self-publish a series of award-winning full-length Thrud the Barbarian comics. Since October 2002, Critchlow has continued to develop his new artistic style in several different 2000 AD stories, contributing to the success of Lobster Random in particular. While Critchlow's use of muted palettes has been criticised, his style has received praise for being highly recognisable and unique.

More selected articles

Read more

edit

Anniversaries for May 11

1911: birth of Ed Furness, Canadian comic book artist associated with the "Canadian Whites"
1953: birth of Mike Curtis, American writer known for scripting the Dick Tracy comic strip
1955: birth of Matt Feazell, American cartoonist, primarily known for working in minicomics
1962: birth of Sandy Carruthers, Canadian artist known for his work on the original Men in Black comic book series
1972: birth of John J. Hill, American comic book letterer.
1985: death of Chester Gould, American comic book artist and writer, creator of Dick Tracy
1991: last weekly edition of the British comic Mandy is published
2006: death of Ferdinando Tacconi, Italian comics artist
2012: death of Tony DeZuniga, Filipino comics artist, co-creator of Deadman and Black Orchid

More May anniversaries / All Anniversaries...

General images

The following are images from various comics-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The French comic Les Pieds Nickelés (1954 book cover): an early 20th-century forerunner of the modern Franco-Belgian comic (from Bande dessinée)
Image 2Hokusai Manga (early 19th century) (from History of manga)
Image 3Comic Con crowds in 2011 as seen from a helicopter (from San Diego Comic-Con)
Image 4Close Hergé collaborator and magazine contributor Bob de Moor (from Bande dessinée)
Image 5Phoenix Fan Fusion's 2017 convention in Phoenix, Arizona (from Comic book convention)
Image 6A page by Rodolphe Töpffer, whose work is considered influential in shaping the comics form. (from History of comics)
Image 7Cover of Illustrated Chips in 1896 featuring the first appearance of the long-running comic strip of the tramps Weary Willie and Tired Tim. (from British comics)
Image 8Chōjū-giga (12th century), traditionally attributed to a monk-artist Kakuyū (Toba Sōjo) (from History of manga)
Image 9During panels at comic book conventions, the audience is sometimes invited to line up and ask questions using a dedicated microphone. (from Comic book convention)
Image 10The San Diego Convention Center during Comic-Con in 2013 (from San Diego Comic-Con)
Image 11Image of bathers from the Hokusai manga (from History of manga)
Image 12Convention crowd outside of Golden Hall in 1982 (from San Diego Comic-Con)
Image 13Japanese wood block illustration from 19th century (from History of manga)
Image 14Cover to 27 December 1884 edition of Ally Sloper's Half Holiday. (from British comics)
Image 15
Comics artist Mœbius (2008), who achieved international renown through Métal Hurlant
(from Bande dessinée)
Image 16Sequential depictions on Trajan's Column in Rome, Italy (from History of comics)
Image 17A Fallout Cosplayer photographed at a Comic Con in a Fallout Themed area (from Comic book convention)
Image 18Comic-Con crowd inside the second floor of the convention center in 2011 waiting for the exhibition hall to open (from San Diego Comic-Con)

Did you know (auto-generated) - load new batch

... that the writer of the 2022 comic book miniseries Poison Ivy, starring the eponymous Batman villain, described it as a "love story" that features "plant-based body horror"?
... that the robotic enemies in the video game The Incredible Hulk were influenced by Marvel Comics' objection to the Hulk killing humanoid characters?
... that the USC Trojans team that won the 2022 NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship had been compared to the Marvel Comics' Avengers?
... that open depictions of sexual acts were a defining trait of early works of josei manga ('women's comics')?
... that Fabrizio Dori wants his comic book Il dio vagabondo to bring attention to an ancient Greek view of death?
... that the 1992 comic book storyline "Man and Wolf", in which Captain America is transformed into a werewolf, has been described as "one of the most bizarre moments of the core Marvel Universe"?
... that John Romita Sr. has been credited with introducing romance comic themes to Spider-Man comic books?
... that according to one source, The Embroidered Couch is "most likely China's earliest vernacular pornographic novel"?

edit

Selected picture

Credit: Fawcett Comics

Superhero comics is a form of American comic books. The form rose to prominence in the 1930s and 1940s and has remained the dominant form of comic book in North America since the 1960s. Superhero comics feature stories about superheroes and the universes these characters inhabit.

More selected pictures

Read more

edit

More did you know...

...that Milt Gross, (pictured) writer of comics that used Yiddish-inflected English, also wrote a 1930 "silent" graphic novel He Done Her Wrong: The Great American Novel and Not a Word in It — No Music, Too?

...that the DC comic book Batman: The Last Arkham drew on the influences of psychology and biology books such as "Superstition in the Common Pigeon"?

...that the Young Justice episode "Independence Day" introduces a younger version of the DC Universe?

More did you know facts

edit

Selected quote

Bob Kane had an idea for a character called "Batman", and he'd like me to see the drawings. I went over to Kane's, and he had drawn a character who looked very much like Superman with kind of ... reddish tights, I believe, with boots ... no gloves, no gauntlets ... with a small domino mask, swinging on a rope. He had two stiff wings that were sticking out, looking like bat wings. And under it was a big sign ... BATMAN.

— Bill Finger

More selected quotes

More from Wikiquote

edit

Topics

edit

Featured content

This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Comics}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.