Reading The Right Number by Scott McCloud, I was reminded of a similar experience: reading graphic novels on the Playstation Portable. "The Right Number" was set up as a series of illustrations in a single frame. Each image contained a small version of the next image within the current one, upon clicking (or hitting the up arrow or space bar or wishing real hard) the smaller image will enlarge and fill the frame.
This was a neat little gimmick and it really felt as if it was pulling you further into the story, but I only really see the technique working just this once. Viewing multiple comics in this format would become trying, not to mention sort of restricting since each image would have to be the same size. Hence the word "gimmick" up there.
As for whether or not I feel it's a comic, I still believe that it qualifies. The basic format of frames and word balloons are there and even though some parts are animated, it hardly qualifies it as a different medium. I mentioned the PSP up there because the comic reading software is also animated. They take scans of comics and zoom in on the words in the order of reading and then zoom out to show the whole image of the frame. Some of the fancier comics will even have sound effects where appropriate.
Does it still count as a comic? Hell yeah. See, the heart of the comic is still there. You could print out "The Right Number" and it would unmistakably look like a comic. The only thing that would've changed would be the way in which the comic was presented. The digital comics on the PSP are still comic pages they are only presented in a way that makes sense on a digital medium.
The asian comic, which we will call the Outstanding Horror Story Hiding Incredible Terror, is also a comic that is presented in a different way.
Unlike "The Right Number" OHSHIT, is presented a bit differently from the traditional comics. Their are no frame edges and little word balloons. The style is more similar to an anime than a manga comic, so much so that I thought the images were screen shots. Though it's pretty much set up like a webcomic or one long series of comics, the technology that makes the screen automatically scroll is what gives the comic its bite. OHSHIT sets its own pace and leaves you feeling helpless. A neat trick for a digital comic, but sadly, it still feels like a gimmick.
Works Cited:
http://scottmccloud.com/1-webcomics/trn/index.html
http://comic.naver.com/webtoon/detail.nhn?titleId=350217&no=20&weekday=tue
I absolutely LOVE the way you titled the Korean comic. That's pretty much exactly how I felt about it. O___O
ReplyDeleteI have to say, you really might have changed my opinion a little on this one. I thought the Korean comic was still following the definition, but when you word it as "screen shots"... it does kind of feel more like a movie. Storyboards might be considered comics, but storyboards don't actually start animating themselves and scaring the crap out of me!
I feel like "The Right Number" was a great format, and I explain my feelings on my own blog. The biggest thing I enjoyed about the format is that it keeps you from "pre-reading" what happens next. I always feel like I get distracted while reading comics/graphic novels by looking at the imagery.
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