I decided to swap out the US flag for a background more recognizable as a writer’s background. Also, I swapped out the red-to-blue title gradient for just blue. I think it’s easier to read. What do you think?
ORIGINAL VERSION
NEW VERSION
I think that Lash (the black guy) sticks out much more smoothly than he did before. And the new SUPERHERO NATION title text is significantly cleaner and easier to read. (My grasp of Photoshop has gotten a bit better; can you see that the new version’s title text is a bit more three-dimensional than the original version?) However, I think that Gary (the white guy) sticks out less. Aside from that, I think that the new background is an improvement because it indicates this is a writing website more effectively than the US flag did.
Emily is the first of three prospective colorers that I’m evaluating for my comic book series. What do you think about this page? (Note: if it’s cut off, just right click it and hit “View Image”).
After you’ve written the script for a comic book page, I would recommend doing a rough sketch of the page before you give the script to your artist for pencils. That will help you identify staging problems early. Here are a few examples.
1. Will the panels have enough space to comfortably fit the content? As a rule of thumb, I think it’s especially important to check this if if the page has 7+ low-action panels or 4+ action panels. (Low-action panels, like most dialogue, usually require less space because they don’t need to show as many things happening. For example, a dialogue panel might just have a person’s head, whereas an action shot of two boxers going at it will probably include at least the upper bodies of two men).
2. Will the panel’s perspective portray everything you want to show? For example, if two characters are facing each other, it can be quite tricky to show their expressions, particularly if you’re trying to focus on one. 90 degree side-shots get boring fast and have trouble emphasizing either subject.
In most cases, a comic book writer will have the text describe what is visually shown in the panels. For example, if two characters are speaking, usually the panel will show the characters as they speak. But there are some great reasons you might want to consider using removed narration, where the speakers are out of the panel.
For example, Gotham Central includes a scene where an officer is describing a raid to Internal Affairs off-panel. On-panel, we see the raid happen in a totally different way. That’s effective storytelling because (short-answer) it shows us that the cop is lying about what happened. If we only saw the cop as he talked, it wouldn’t be as clear or as striking as seeing the truth.
Here are some reasons you might want to consider removed narration.
Many first-time comic book writers mistakenly think that it’s okay to give their character bland costumes and let other factors make up for it. While other aspects contribute to the overall success of a superhero, the costume is critical because it’s the first thing a reader sees. Don’t blow your only chance at a first impression by making your hero look like a bum. Here are some tips to design effective and stylish costumes.
1. Keep it functional. When a costume doesn’t feel practical, it will probably make the character seem less realistic and/or competent. For example, if your hero wears a large cape, it’d be hard to believe that he never gets caught on anything. And if it doesn’t, the character may come off as a Mary Sue.
2. Be bold. Don’t be afraid to let your creativity flow when designing a costume. If you have a idea for something that could be interesting try to work it into the costume without compromising functionality. Personally, I prefer to start with an outrageous costume then take away until I find balance. Play with colors, patterns, styles, layers, and accessories until you find the perfect costume exhibiting style and functionality, but…
Randy Stradley, one of Dark Horse’s editors, has some portfolio review tips here.
I’d like to add a few of my own.
1. Include a good mix of regular people, cities, cars, and trees/plants/landscapes. Many artists focus on closeups of superheroes and, frankly, that’s only one part of the art that goes into a superhero comic book.
2. Show that you have a well-rounded grasp of human anatomy. In particular, a lot of artists have trouble with legs and feet. If an artist’s portfolio didn’t include any shots that showed at least a bit of human anatomy from the waist down, I’d assume that the artist wasn’t ready yet. Backshots are also sometimes a problem.
Joe Jusko did his best with a rather strange comic book cover. Please describe what you think is happening in the issue. Take as much space as you need.
In visual media, motion usually makes a scene more interesting. It’s particularly important in a cover because you have to catch the reader’s eye.
For example, let’s say we have two covers that use the world as a soccer ball. (The issue’s title is Americans Don’t Play Soccer, and the issue is about Darfurian genocide and other things very far removed from the typical American’s life. For ideological balance, we might add a thinly veiled Obama vis-a-vis the Iranian democracy movement).
Cover #1: On a soccer field, the villain is standing next to a globe. In the background, the hero is the only thing between him and the net. The villain’s pose would probably look lifeless, like these.
Cover #2: On a soccer field, the villain is doing an insane flip as he punts the world at the hero. The cover would probably look a lot more energetic and stylish. This is particularly important because the cover will probably show the villain from the back. It’s quite hard to strike an immobile pose from behind.
It would probably also help if the hero/goalie had some action. Bracing himself for impact is a little bit banal, so I’d like something that’s striking and makes it clear that this comic isn’t really about soccer. So let’s say the hero is bracing himself behind a transparent SWAT shield.
I found this dangerously amusing. “Ah, excellent. Simmering sexual tension is my specialty.” Please look past the awful production values; they’re part of the humor.
Now we have a tiny favicon to help you keep track of which browser tab belongs to Superhero Nation. Favicons are only 16 pixels by 16 pixels, so they’re very hard to read. Here’s the 64 by 64 version.
I was mulling over a few alternatives, but they were fairly uninspired or unworkable: a book, a cape, something with a pen, etc. I’ll let you know if this significantly affects user-retention rates.
(Picture taken courtesy of The Baltimore Sun; you can read their review here).
This novel has been published by Harper-Collins, so I’m sort of surprised by how unappealing the cover is. It looks like it’s been slapped together for a self-published novel. There’s a typo on the cover. (“a terrific send-up not only superheroes in general” is missing the word “of”).
What do you think? What worked and what didn’t? What would you have changed?
UPDATE: The author of this book has contacted us, saying that the cover is an “uncorrected draft.” Erm, the book has been out for two months. Isn’t it well past time to correct it? Moreover, what were the circumstances that led a publisher to rush out a book that didn’t have a good cover ready?
I’m planning for the contingency that someone beats me in our proofreading contest next month. So I need to design the t-shirt that I might give out. My original plan was to just give out a generic Superhero Nation t-shirt, but I’d like to design a separate “I Beat B. Mac” t-shirt.
On the front, I think it will have something like a Che Guevara-esque drawing of me with the caption “I Beat a Professional Proofreader And and All I Got was This Lousy T-Shirt.” That’s kind of cliche, so hopefully one of you can suggest something more stylish.
There will be text on the back. For example, something like “What are you waiting for? Beat B. Mac and win this shirt on SUPERHERONATION.COM”
I’m very fond of Spiderman Loves Mary Jane, particularly the way it ends its issues. The last page of each issue wraps up the plot of that issue and foreshadows the next issue. The cliffhangers are usually pretty strong and make the reader want to keep going. For example, check out these sample concluding pages.
Suggestion: if you’re going to advertise a bodycare product, please tell your model to do a pose other than “grimacing in pain.” It looks like she’s taking an acid bath.
Thanks, I’d really appreciate it. Right now, the main thing I’m working on is character-design, specifically a mutant alligator that’s pretty much the Hobbes in a Calvin & Hobbes comic duo.
1. The story fails to hook readers in the first three pages.
The easiest way to do this is to show a likable character facing a serious problem. It doesn’t have to be a life-and-death threat, but that helps. Another method is to establish that the writing style is particularly compelling.
2. The plot lacks urgency.
A character walking from his door to his car is not very interesting. Running to his car to make it to work on time is better. Running to his car to avoid gunshots? Even better. To make the plot more urgent, I recommend making giving the characters goals that are time-sensitive and high-stakes. If John doesn’t make it to work in ten minutes, he will be fired. If Captain Carnage can’t find and defuse the bomb in ten minutes, the building will explode. Etc. The goal doesn’t have to be life or death, but it helps.
3. The writers rely too much on exposition (particularly narration and dialogue) to tell the story.
Try not to tell your audience things that they should be able to see in the picture. For example, check out these two versions of one of our panels.
Superhero Nation is slightly eccentric and wacky, so I kind of want an eye-catching cover that conveys that. Here are a few of my latest ideas for our first cover.
1. This cover shows a desk with a careful array of US presidential bobbleheads. (It’s Agent Orange’s desk, so this should look a bit wacky). At the front of the desk would be bobbleheads of Agent Black, Agent Orange and their boss. In the background, we’d place a motivational poster for humorous flavor. (Maybe “Human Resources: Killer Service Every Time.”)
ALTERNATIVE: The desk still has presidential bobbleheads, but the bobbleheads of the cast are gone. Agent Orange is behind the desk in a surly boss pose and Agent Black is staring at him dumbfounded. As before, there’s a motivational poster for humor. (Hat-tip to Brett).
2. Agent Black is getting chewed out in an over-the-top manner by Agent Orange. I’d probably frame it like a scene between Peter Parker and JJ Jameson. I’m relying on the “what the hell?” factor of having a mutant alligator as the boss to make this eye-catching and appealing. I’d probably give Agent Orange a business prop like a wacky chart or graph in lieu of the motivational poster.
3. Agent Black is in a mock Rambo pose, ineptly wielding a machine gun on a firing range. All of his bullets are wildly off his target. (The bulletholes may spell out the Superhero Nation logo). Agent Orange is looking on exasperatedly with a hand on his forehead. He’s shaking his head. This is probably better-suited for the second issue than the first.
The Batman was terrible. If you’re mainly watching this for comedic potential, I’d get as many Spanish-speakers or gringos as you can find, and let’s learn about the difference between “el” and “la” with Batman. –There’s a spectacularly strange scene where Batman tries interrogating Riddler and Riddler bursts into a soprano rendition of Ave Maria. […]
–There’s intense violence but not a lot of feeling here. It’s not a very exciting movie. But it’s functional. It’s frequently tedious but rarely boring. Only the political sermons and Weasel are viciously bad. It’s definitely a huge improvement over the first movie. –Most of what sucked about Suicide Squad 1 was an overfocus on […]
1:30 – 6:55: Cyborg sees his Mother Box acting up. Then Mera sees her Mother box acting up. Then Amazon guards see their Mother Box acting up. Also there’s a Lex Luthor flashback where the computer shows him that Mother Boxes are plot relevant in case you missed that. PS: In the first 8 minutes […]
–Wonder Woman 1984 is not nearly as good at the original. Pluses: the cast is still very charming, and a few of the fight scenes are effective. I did actually like most of the first hour of the movie. –Setting: In the original Wonder Woman, the WWI setting contributes to a hard bleakness which effectively […]
1. I don’t know where to start with Captain Marvel. So many things went so wildly wrong that we’d need a presidential commission to get to the bottom of it. It’s like the Chernobyl of superhero movies. 2. If at any point you feel like your action movie would benefit from a character whose main […]
1. This version of Spider-Man is a useless toolbox who actively avoids doing interesting things, and what he does attempt is usually wimpy and/or incompetent. 2. Unlike most main characters, his choices don’t matter much. For example, he chooses to leave his supersuit at home (but his aunt sneaks it in anyway) and he tries […]
We’re up to 72 superhero movies since 2000 (current as of November 2017). You can download the full data here. Some observations: R movies are making up the quality gap with PG-13 movies. Superhero movies are improving. Over the last 5 years (2013-2017), the average superhero movie is averaging 70% on Rotten Tomatoes, up […]
