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What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

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Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#161

Post by thorin »

ceejayoz wrote: post #124
perakojotgenije wrote: post #81

I've never understood Americans' obsession with superhero comics. When I was a kid I was reading Asterix[1], Gaston Lagaffe[2], Spirou et Fantasio[3], Lucky Luke[4], Prince Valiant[5], The Phantom[6] and similar stuff. Of course, I've read Superman, Batman and Spiderman also but at least I've had a choice. I can't understand why they don't exist in US, why are the only comic books Americans know superhero comics? [1]…

I grew up on Asterix and Tintin. How is Asterix not a superhero, though?

Asterix isn't a superhero - he's just a normal guy till he has his potion. I guess you could argue Obelix is, since it had a permanent effect on him. Neither of them dress up (any more that the rest of the characters).

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#162

Post by dragonwriter »

cauterized wrote: post #159
xienze wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, for the past 10 to 20 years kids have been reading comics less and less because they have TV and the Internet. Kids don't even go outside as much as they used to. Things change, and the comic book companies are adapting as best they can.

Kids have had TV for 60 years.

> Kids have had TV for 60 years.

Most haven't had TV with on-demand 24-hour access to child-targetted programming for nearly that long, however.

And even less time have they had portable, go-anywhere screens with the same thing.

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#163

Post by aomurphy »

thristian wrote: post #91
perakojotgenije wrote: post #81

I've never understood Americans' obsession with superhero comics. When I was a kid I was reading Asterix[1], Gaston Lagaffe[2], Spirou et Fantasio[3], Lucky Luke[4], Prince Valiant[5], The Phantom[6] and similar stuff. Of course, I've read Superman, Batman and Spiderman also but at least I've had a choice. I can't understand why they don't exist in US, why are the only comic books Americans know superhero comics? [1]…

Read up on the history of the Comics Code Authority[1]; I suspect that after the Comics Code was introduced, the remaining comic publishers were over-eager to prove their products were the exact opposite of the content prohibited by the Code, setting the thematic pendulum forever swinging toward and away from that content, instead of exploring broader themes. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comics_Code_Authority

Yes, this exactly. The CCA grew out of a widespread moral panic about comic book content, and its effects on youth. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seduction_of_the_Innocent. Basically, after this, the once thriving comics industry in the USA was reduced to just superheroes as all other genres like romance, horror, detectives (there's a reason Batman was published in detective comics), science fiction, were considered too "dangerous." It's quite unfortunate.

There's other reasons of course as well - notably the rise of the collectors market, but the USA today is still overwhelmingly dominated by superheroes in the comics market.

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#164

Post by tptacek »

fenomas wrote: post #154
michael_h wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. America has non-superhero comics, of course - the Sandman series, Y: The Last Man, Preacher, The Walking Dead, American Vampire, etc. ...but Marvel Comics is superheros. Marvel is owned by Disney, and Disney has a huge marketing budget. DC Comics is superheros...owned by Warner Brothers. EDIT: yeah...none of those that I mentioned are remotely for kids. Hmmm.

Allow me to add Elfquest, Cerebus the Aardvark, TMNT, Love and Rockets, and R. Crumb! Not sure if all of those are American or not, but a few of the non-superhero books I (as an American) grew up with. Of course none of them was ever that widely known (apart from TMNT after it stopped being a comic), so the original point about the US and superheroes certainly remains. I imagine it's partly due to the legacy of the C…

I think Cerebus is not a very good answer to the concerns brought up in this piece.

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#165

Post by rayiner »

vidarh wrote: post #152
rayiner wrote: post #65

As the father of a daughter, and someone who normally gets worked up about this sort of thing, I don't see the big deal. I've always viewed comics as equivalent to daytime soap operas made more pornographic to suit teenage male tastes. What value is there in trying to capture this bit of culture for girls? Is it going to lead to higher paying jobs or more equal gender roles in the home? Is it going to lead to greater…

Consider that your impression of comics is coloured by apparently (based on your description) mostly having been shown a single, very limited segment (US-style superhero segments). Comics are no more limited to that, than TV are limited to daytime soap operas. The value isn't in trying to get girls to read US-style male-focused superhero stories, but in pointing out that the current comics most widely distributed in…

My comment was really directed at Marvel/DC comics. My mom grew up reading Tintin (in Bangladesh!) but when an American talks about "comicbooks" that's not really what they're thinking of. I think those sorts of comics are so different you're talking about a different industry almost.

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#166

Post by kbart »

Why comics? There are plenty of good books (even with pictures) for the girls of that age. Comics were never supposed to be educational or have any non-entertainment value and primary tarted at hormones soaked male teens. Take her to the books store instead. You don't complain that nobody does piano recital during pop concerts -- either go there or not. Actually, I find annoying the trend of complaining about anything that does not suite somebody's needs or attitudes.

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#167

Post by danielweber »

xienze wrote: post #83
Vivtek wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Back then, comics were ten cents. Now they're twenty bucks. Kids don't read stuff that costs twenty bucks.

Twenty bucks? Show me the regular run issue that costs that much. And it's not about the price, kids would much rather play with a tablet than read a comic (or go outside, even).

The price still adds up. When I had tens of dollars a week of paper route money, it was easy to get a pile of 75 cent comics every month.

I might just be an old grump, though.

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#168

Post by scott_s »

kbart wrote: post #166

Why comics? There are plenty of good books (even with pictures) for the girls of that age. Comics were never supposed to be educational or have any non-entertainment value and primary tarted at hormones soaked male teens. Take her to the books store instead. You don't complain that nobody does piano recital during pop concerts -- either go there or not. Actually, I find annoying the trend of complaining about anythin…

Because his kids were enthused about going to a comic book store. Notice that his little boy found plenty of material for him. The point is, his daughter clearly got it: that stuff is not for her. An entire comic book store, and none of it for her. That doesn't feel good.

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#169

Post by normloman »

xienze wrote: post #130
normloman wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Japan there are entire genres of comics targeted towards women. Now whether they are any good, or any less sexist than male comics is debatable. Am I supposed to believe that women love stories told with words, but are incapable of appreciating stories told with pictures?

In Japan there's entire genres of comics about tentacle rape. People are different in other countries. Comics for women have been tried here. Over and over. They haven't worked. American women just aren't drawn to them. Sometimes it just is what it is!

Agreed. Expecting cultures to change and adapt is for suckers!

Re: What taking my daughter to a comic book store taught me

#170

Post by ceejayoz »

thorin wrote: post #161
ceejayoz wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I grew up on Asterix and Tintin. How is Asterix not a superhero, though?

Asterix isn't a superhero - he's just a normal guy till he has his potion. I guess you could argue Obelix is, since it had a permanent effect on him. Neither of them dress up (any more that the rest of the characters).

Batman is just a normal guy with a lot of money, and still considered a superhero.
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