I’ve been thinking a lot about criticisms as a pursuit. What makes it worthwhile as a thing in itself? Of late my creative drive has been in the pursuit of making criticism, but I often stop and wonder, is this a thing to be proud of? Is the work itself an endeavor of merit, as I do not write the stories that I look at. I do not draw them or bring them to life in any way. The work of art exists, and as an observer I share what I observe.
I write almost exclusively about comic books, a medium with an audience that is, to begin with, quite small. Those who want to dive deeper into that work and discuss its merits and its narrative impact and its artistic value are an even smaller subsection. Even on CBR, ostensibly one of the larger sites, a review I put out is lucky to get 1,000 clicks.
I obviously don’t write for an audience, but for the enjoyment of the act of writing, to deepen my own appreciation of the art form I love and to break down and reassemble the things about the work that speaks to me. If it resonates with someone else, all the better.
Resonate. I’m not sure that’s the right word. Can criticism resonate? Does criticism have the power to move someone? Perhaps that is where I would like to go from here, to find a way to speak a truth about a work that can have a conversation with the reader, to bring them closer to a work and to a better understanding of themselves and the work.
Finding the right avenue to do that is the tricky thing. I do not have a platform to shout from the rooftops and decree my taste to mass audiences. I’ve got this newsletter and my site. The reviews I do at CBR have stringent guidelines, a style to work within. And that’s fine—a review with the goal of straightforward quality analysis has a utilitarian purpose. I appreciate it, and to put those together is often a fun puzzle. But it does not afford the opportunity to pick apart the bones, to lay bare the work and the voice of the artists and writers and myself.
So that’s what I hope to do as a critic, someway, as I move forward over the next year of my site. In the meantime, I think a piece I wrote some time ago that is finally seeing its release this month is a work that accomplishes some of these goals. You can read it in PanelxPanel this month.
I’m grateful to Hass Otsmane-Elhaou for running this piece, as when I pitched it I did not yet have anything published!
Random Comic Panel Of the Week
What I’m Reading
The other day, up late feeding the baby I tried to find something easy to read one handed in an iPhone and decided to finally getting around to reading some comics by Jason, the Norwegian cartoonist. I first encountered his work in college, weirdly, on the cover to Jack Kerouac’s Dharma Bums.
Jason’s work deals with themes of loneliness, the arbitrary nature of existence, and violence, with a great sense of deadpan humor and minimalist style. As introduction to the man’s work, of what I’ve read, I’d suggest I Killed Adolf Hitler and Low Moon.
I’ve also caught up with The Many Deaths of Laila Starr and holy cow people, read this book. Funny, emotional, and beautifully drawn by Filipe Andrade.
As I might have mentioned here previously, I’ve been an expectant father and am now a new father. So I do expect that at some full time work and baby rearing will greatly impact this newsletter and what goes on urbane turtle in general but hopefully less formal posts on the site can mean more informal updates here.
May the Force be with you.
(and with your spirit)