Joeanna Steuber's Comics and Graphic Narrative Blog

 Class points: 14(+1 for 1 costume day) No classes missed Reading points: 80 (41 before midterm+ 39 after midterm)

 This comic grew on me. At first, it felt very edgy for edgy's sake. Crude jokes and nasty language was used left and right, and it felt like it was just trying to appeal to a younger audience's shock factor appeal. However, as I learned more about the characters and read more of the comic, the story felt like it was evening out. The jokes felt less crude because it became more about the story rather than about trying to appeal to some certain audience from the get-go. I also was not sure how to feel about the art style at first, but that grew on me as well as I kept reading. The shaped are very simple and really reflect the characters, and the designs of the characters are simple but appealing. The diversity in cast and body types is refreshing after having spent the semester reading comics where there is not much of that. I would say the biggest off-putting this about this comic is how it feels like it does not try to take a stance. It shows the ridiculous in things like vega...

  1. What is your reaction to the text you just read? Well, there were definitely parts that I did not vibe with, but there were also parts I enjoyed. As a whole, I think it does a really good job of story-telling and creating complex characters, as well as the timing for the story was very spot on. However, I had a problem with the major 'lesson'. I'm not sure that lesson is the right choice of word, but I did not like that despite all that the Joker had done just in that night alone, Batman was still willing to help him in a peaceful manner. He traumatized two people who may not be able to walk the world in the same way that they had before this night, yet Batman wants Joker to have a better life. It almost seems like this is for a selfish reason too, since his driving force in his decision is that he could die if he does not help him. 2. What connections did you make with the story? Discuss what elements of the story with which you were able to connect? I'm not sure ...

 Issue 1 I think the first issue is definitely one of the strongest. It really successfully presents this cast of characters. While there are a bunch of characters right away, they are presented in a way that makes me remember each of them. I think part of that has to do with how different each of the characters are, especially down to their nuances in dialogue. You can tell that this issue was really meant to capture the attention of its target audience and make them wanting more. I think another thing this comic did successfully was introduce the overarching plot, where we see a touch of the big mystery but are left on a cliffhanger. I also really appreciated how the girls are not punished for being curious and adventurous or being anything other than a stereotypical 'good girl'. Issue 2 This one, while starting off just a bit slow to show off and reaffirm character traits, has really nice action sequences. The action read very well on the page, and the panels lead my eye fro...

 I read American Born Chinese about two years ago for the Asian and Asian American Diaspora LMST Class, but I did not quite remember everything that happened, so I decided to read it again. While there are seemingly three story lines, they all merge into one at the end, which caught me off guard again the second time reading it. I definitely think this fits into the category of literary comics. Not only does it have great writing, it tells a compelling story that really makes the reader stop to think. While I cannot say that I relate to this story in the same way, I can see how this story could be relatable. I feel like this is an important novel that everyone should take a second and read. I also really enjoyed the pacing of this novel, both in the sense of the three stories coming together as one and in the panel by panel framing of the scenes. The writer understands well how to use blank panels and pages. 

For the week that we read these, we were asked to discuss whether the comics we read should be considered literary or not. My first reaction was to break down what made something 'literary'. I was inclined to say that as long as something had words and was telling a story with some amount of depth, then that was what I considered literary. However, I realized while talking with team members about this question that I had a new consideration of literary comics. I like to think of comics the same way I think about art, and that is that anything can be art. I do not think that we have to tie down the constraints of what is and is not literary because that can put writers who just want to create into a bubble. Whether I used my old definition or my new definition, I think My Favorite Thing is Monsters is definitely a literary comic. It masterfully uses its media to tell a fantastic and relatable story. Everything about the comic felt real and was very engaging, the art felt in sync...