- @quirkybird HAH! Now that is just perfect. I miss Nine. Also, Ten, proactively. Sigh. Maybe it won’t be so bad… in reply to quirkybird #
- @quirkybird … I mean, I had my doubts about Sylvester McCoy, and we all know THOSE were unfounded… in reply to quirkybird #
- @douglasnoble HAH! It’s possibly my feelings about the actor rather than his performance as the Doctor which inform my opinion. I’m fond! in reply to douglasnoble #
- Hm, new WordPress is for some reason not processing Twitter posts by default, or Tags properly at all. BAH! Sure it was fine last week… #
- @douglasnoble Dunno, thinking about it. Liked 2nd Coming much more than any other RTD stuff. Also, Our Friends In The North is formative. in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble Like I said, Our Friends In The North defined a lot of my present tastes for me. Daresay it wouldn’t stand up to watching now! in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble HAH! Not exactly… should have clarified. I LIKED 2nd Coming. And HAPPEN TO THINK it is better than any other RTD stuff. in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble Though was quite fond of Bob And Rose – but I reckon I might feel differently about it if gay, as Davies isn’t, very, in it. in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble Hm. Just assumed the gurning was a Northern thing, & accepted it as regional authenticity. You don’t REALLY like the measles? in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble Well, I guess the whole show was about him lacking conviction. I think I’m talking about how convincing his performance was… in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble Neither of those things – slippery slope & racialist – should be a surprise to you by now
I live on the slippery slope, me. in reply to douglasnoble # - @douglasnoble To make him MORE gay? BOY KISSING! I practically demand it. If possible, bottom licking, too. WIthout it, NOT GAY YOUR HONOUR! in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble By the metric of not sleeping with women, I have been gay practically my entire life. in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble … & IN MY PANTS! Hm. Is domestic terrorism something we can joke about yet? I’m never sure about such things. in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble But of course, all joking aside, I suppose you’re right… in reply to douglasnoble #
- @douglasnoble Hah, I still laugh ALL the time… … Course, most of the time I’m not sure what it is I’m laughing at. Heh. Hm. in reply to douglasnoble #
- Good Grud, why am I even awake? Bat For Lashes & soft layer of snow makes it better. Just. #
- Every time the rappers on this The Wire album say Baltimore, I hear Voldermort! It is added awesome! #
- @Bournemouthecho We had a little tiny bit of snow this morning here in Southampton. But it was lame! in reply to Bournemouthecho #
- @Remender Oh, Mr Remender, that is some lovely looking Punisher action. Opena’s art is just beautiful, innit? in reply to Remender #
- @steevbishop Maybe the end of the day? I’m starting to feel it tugging at me already…! in reply to steevbishop #
- @steevbishop I AM MOST ASSUREDLY NOT MASTURBATING AT MY DESK. We’ve discussed this before! in reply to steevbishop #
- @steevbishop I’ve a sneaking suspicion that the “We” I’m referring to was me & everyone else on Twitter. Your memory is sound… in reply to steevbishop #
- Every now & then I forget. Then Regina hits the player, & I remember again. Suppose I never ever met you… Sup… ♫ http://blip.fm/~1fgco #
- So I’ve decided that if it’s still your birthday till you fall asleep, it also wasn’t 2009 till you wake up & go back to work. So it’s 2009! #
- & I’d never heard it before, but this is just bloody perfect for the day – http://is.gd/eAjC – Los Campesinos – My Year In Lists #
- This is a stunningly beautiful New Year’s Treat: http://is.gd/cUZJ #
- It’s been a while, so I thought I’d break out the Saul Bass Star Wars: http://is.gd/eAne – & NOW: Greedo shoots first: http://is.gd/eAnh #
- Tim Minchin really does make me laugh. He’s another one of those brilliant chaps who makes good songs that happ… ♫ http://blip.fm/~1fh2b #
- Pop Quiz: An old roomie claims that you owe them £350 rent from 3 years ago. You’re fairly sure you don’t. Too late for proof either way… #
- … What do you do? #
- @steevbishop Dude, I still think you made the right decision, there… in reply to steevbishop #
-
Found Objects
We need comics. We don’t need the comic mainstream – certainly not as much as it needs us. And we wouldn’t even be having this argument about Watchmen if that book wasn’t part of that industry. It couldn’t have existed without it, it wouldn’t have been relevant without it, and most of us wouldn’t have even had the chance to read it without it.
We don’t have to give a shit about Watchmen, or Before Watchmen. We choose to.
We don’t have to fight about issues that we really have no skin in. We choose to.
We should really grow out of it.
Last Friday I wrote a really long post over at my site about Before Watchmen. It was probably too long, fence-sitting and unstructured to get as much widespread attention as some of the more aggressive pieces out there, but I still feel everything in it.
This is the tiniest part of it - a sentiment that I feel is pretty important - you can read the whole thing here.
I AM IN CONTROL OF MY EMOTIONS!
The Newly Announced Before Watchmen Is a Prime Example of What's Killing Mainstream Comics
“I have no idea whether this project will be any good or not. But it sits as a shining example of the fundamental flaw that exists in the comic industry, especially within DC Comics. They spend most of their time chasing the readers that grew up with their iconic characters rather than attempting to attract new readers who are growing up right now.”
Totally agree with this - though I think DC52, being a company-wide initiative, was more indicative of it, and I said as much at the time.
However, that backward looking trait in comics isn’t unique to publishers. Comic readers - many of whom are also comic retailers, which is a bigger issue - run wild with entitlement on either side of any comic-related debate, and stand ready to jump on anything that they perceive as a deviation or affront to comic texts or characters that they feel shouldn’t be touched. It all adds to the stupidly binary way any comic-related issue is handled.
The huge amount of brilliant work that goes un-discussed, unsupported and unbought in-between those two dominant cultures is the only genuine ongoing tragedy in comics today, I reckon. The rest is just semantics and negotiation of contracts.
Yup, yup, yup…the fact that people are wasting their time arguing about the merits of Before Watchmen while amazing books like The Interactives go largely ignored is, quite frankly, criminal.
Not least because it means that yet again we’re all having a conversation about Watchmen. I came to Watchmen a little bit late - like, a year after publication - and loved it at the time. It encouraged me to go on and read so many more other books, to read them critically, and work out why they work and don’t work etc etc etc. But the more people hold it to this impossible standard in such a hyperbolic and aggressive way, the more I find reasons to chip away at it.
If you love Watchmen that much, write about how good Watchmen is in it’s own right. Don’t use it as a stick to bash everything that’s come since. Don’t use it as a way to try and win an argument about whatever your pet comic issue is that week. I think Alan Moore’s biggest issue is that his book isn’t regarded enough in it’s own right, and it’s an important enough work to be handled without gossip-context and all the other bollocks that passes for adults-who-read-comics-talking-about-comics.
Show Alan Moore and Watchmen a bit of respect, and don’t try and impose your fucking context on it. It’s a work of art. It genuinely can’t be ruined by any art that follows, but it can be ruined by every third word spoken about it being bleaty, entitled shite.
Sorry, you said something? The Interactives? What’s that? I have never heard of it, therefore it must not be worth bothering with.
Yep, I completely agree with you here. As great as Watchmen was it has been a big part of what has utterly ruined comics (and I know that Moore agrees with this himself) as so many people have spent the years since using it as a template for what comic should be. It was a work of satire! It was never intended to be a “How To” guide for aspiring comic creators.
And The Interactives is this - http://theinteractives.com/
Huh. That looks ace, actually.
The Newly Announced Before Watchmen Is a Prime Example of What's Killing Mainstream Comics
“I have no idea whether this project will be any good or not. But it sits as a shining example of the fundamental flaw that exists in the comic industry, especially within DC Comics. They spend most of their time chasing the readers that grew up with their iconic characters rather than attempting to attract new readers who are growing up right now.”
Totally agree with this - though I think DC52, being a company-wide initiative, was more indicative of it, and I said as much at the time.
However, that backward looking trait in comics isn’t unique to publishers. Comic readers - many of whom are also comic retailers, which is a bigger issue - run wild with entitlement on either side of any comic-related debate, and stand ready to jump on anything that they perceive as a deviation or affront to comic texts or characters that they feel shouldn’t be touched. It all adds to the stupidly binary way any comic-related issue is handled.
The huge amount of brilliant work that goes un-discussed, unsupported and unbought in-between those two dominant cultures is the only genuine ongoing tragedy in comics today, I reckon. The rest is just semantics and negotiation of contracts.
Yup, yup, yup…the fact that people are wasting their time arguing about the merits of Before Watchmen while amazing books like The Interactives go largely ignored is, quite frankly, criminal.
Not least because it means that yet again we’re all having a conversation about Watchmen. I came to Watchmen a little bit late - like, a year after publication - and loved it at the time. It encouraged me to go on and read so many more other books, to read them critically, and work out why they work and don’t work etc etc etc. But the more people hold it to this impossible standard in such a hyperbolic and aggressive way, the more I find reasons to chip away at it.
If you love Watchmen that much, write about how good Watchmen is in it’s own right. Don’t use it as a stick to bash everything that’s come since. Don’t use it as a way to try and win an argument about whatever your pet comic issue is that week. I think Alan Moore’s biggest issue is that his book isn’t regarded enough in it’s own right, and it’s an important enough work to be handled without gossip-context and all the other bollocks that passes for adults-who-read-comics-talking-about-comics.
Show Alan Moore and Watchmen a bit of respect, and don’t try and impose your fucking context on it. It’s a work of art. It genuinely can’t be ruined by any art that follows, but it can be ruined by every third word spoken about it being bleaty, entitled shite.
Sorry, you said something? The Interactives? What’s that? I have never heard of it, therefore it must not be worth bothering with.
The Newly Announced Before Watchmen Is a Prime Example of What's Killing Mainstream Comics
“I have no idea whether this project will be any good or not. But it sits as a shining example of the fundamental flaw that exists in the comic industry, especially within DC Comics. They spend most of their time chasing the readers that grew up with their iconic characters rather than attempting to attract new readers who are growing up right now.”
Totally agree with this - though I think DC52, being a company-wide initiative, was more indicative of it, and I said as much at the time.
However, that backward looking trait in comics isn’t unique to publishers. Comic readers - many of whom are also comic retailers, which is a bigger issue - run wild with entitlement on either side of any comic-related debate, and stand ready to jump on anything that they perceive as a deviation or affront to comic texts or characters that they feel shouldn’t be touched. It all adds to the stupidly binary way any comic-related issue is handled.
The huge amount of brilliant work that goes un-discussed, unsupported and unbought in-between those two dominant cultures is the only genuine ongoing tragedy in comics today, I reckon. The rest is just semantics and negotiation of contracts.
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