Gimme a Beat
Pacing, until recent years, was probably the most underrated and overlooked facet of comics (or any other type) of storytelling. In recent years, certain events have arisen to change that.
Pacing is the speed at which events unfold in a narrative. Like I said earlier, pacing is crucial for any type of storytelling. If a book reads too fast, the reader gets lost and confused. Too slow and the reader falls asleep. A fast paced movie can sacrifice character development and create nasty plot holes. A slow paced movie can create an overabundance of anticipation that can only be relieved by a superior payoff (which is rare in storytelling in general, and Hollywood in particular). The key to pacing (one which I will freely admit I sure as hell ain't mastered) is to either find the happy medium, or to take one of the two extremes and make the absolute most of them. If you're gonna set a quick pace, then inundate the audience and keep their jaw dropping (without overinundating them), and if you're gonna set an absymmally slow pace, then you either need A) a hell of a payoff, or B) some damn fine characters.
I bring this up because pacing has become a problem in comics of late. In the olden days, comics pacing was fast. You bought an old "Tales from the Crypt", and you got three or four short stories all bound together in one book. You scored a copy of "Fantastic Four" , and you knew that The King was gonna rock your socks off with at least one or two pages. Nowadays, most comics have fallen into this pattern: Issue 1-Introduction/Attention getter, Issue 2-Build up, Issue 3-Build up, Issue 4-Payoff. There are two reasons for the development of this slow ass pace in comics nowadays. The first is Hollywood. Comics have become so obsessed with movies that the creators now think that they have to make comics into movies. The second is Japanese Manga. Manga has a fairly slow pace (compared to old school American comics). Since Manga is so successful, many American creators have emulated that in their own comics.
The flaw with the Hollywood approach is obvious. In a movie you get to watch the entire piece in one sitting (not counting continuing sequels of course). Although 24 pages of comic may only be 15 (or fewer) minutes of movie time, the audience is still only getting 24 pages every month. If the reader buys two or three 24 page issues in a row that contain nothing but build up, the audience is eventually going to feel ripped off. Lord knows, I've dropped dozens upon dozens of comics just because I got tired of waiting forever for a payoff that wasn't as good as the build up would signify.
The flaw with the Manga approach is less obvious and has to do with distribution. In America, every month (in most cases) you get an issue of a comic you're reading. That's 24 pages with one story. In Japan, you get a thick ass Manga compilation EVERY WEEK. That's over a hundred pages with anywhere from six to twelve stories. In Japan, a creator can afford to spend two or three issues developing characters or plot, because he knows that there will be other manga stories in the same book that will have something kick ass happening. Then, when the manga story is collected into Trade Paperback, the pacing will feel more natural and less forced, which is what American creators are trying for, as well, but because of the single issue, monthly format, are boring most audiences to tears.
So, Mr. High and Mighty Comic Guy, you've got this long dissertation on pacing, do you present any solutions to this conundrum? Sure, I got some ideas. Personally, although I know it couldn't be done weekly, I think more comics companies should try the manga digest format. Not only would that allow for more experimentation with pacing, it would also allow audiences to be exposed to a greater number of books than they normally would be. Another idea is to find a happy medium between the old school speedy pace, and the Hollywood turtle pace of today. Writers should remember that they've got 24 pages to kick it every month, and they should strive to make sure there's always something to shake the audience up. Oh, and if you're building up for a big confrontation between Daredevil and the Kingpin, make sure the fight is actually a compelling work of kick ass action choreography, and not just a couple of punches.
Pacing is the speed at which events unfold in a narrative. Like I said earlier, pacing is crucial for any type of storytelling. If a book reads too fast, the reader gets lost and confused. Too slow and the reader falls asleep. A fast paced movie can sacrifice character development and create nasty plot holes. A slow paced movie can create an overabundance of anticipation that can only be relieved by a superior payoff (which is rare in storytelling in general, and Hollywood in particular). The key to pacing (one which I will freely admit I sure as hell ain't mastered) is to either find the happy medium, or to take one of the two extremes and make the absolute most of them. If you're gonna set a quick pace, then inundate the audience and keep their jaw dropping (without overinundating them), and if you're gonna set an absymmally slow pace, then you either need A) a hell of a payoff, or B) some damn fine characters.
I bring this up because pacing has become a problem in comics of late. In the olden days, comics pacing was fast. You bought an old "Tales from the Crypt", and you got three or four short stories all bound together in one book. You scored a copy of "Fantastic Four" , and you knew that The King was gonna rock your socks off with at least one or two pages. Nowadays, most comics have fallen into this pattern: Issue 1-Introduction/Attention getter, Issue 2-Build up, Issue 3-Build up, Issue 4-Payoff. There are two reasons for the development of this slow ass pace in comics nowadays. The first is Hollywood. Comics have become so obsessed with movies that the creators now think that they have to make comics into movies. The second is Japanese Manga. Manga has a fairly slow pace (compared to old school American comics). Since Manga is so successful, many American creators have emulated that in their own comics.
The flaw with the Hollywood approach is obvious. In a movie you get to watch the entire piece in one sitting (not counting continuing sequels of course). Although 24 pages of comic may only be 15 (or fewer) minutes of movie time, the audience is still only getting 24 pages every month. If the reader buys two or three 24 page issues in a row that contain nothing but build up, the audience is eventually going to feel ripped off. Lord knows, I've dropped dozens upon dozens of comics just because I got tired of waiting forever for a payoff that wasn't as good as the build up would signify.
The flaw with the Manga approach is less obvious and has to do with distribution. In America, every month (in most cases) you get an issue of a comic you're reading. That's 24 pages with one story. In Japan, you get a thick ass Manga compilation EVERY WEEK. That's over a hundred pages with anywhere from six to twelve stories. In Japan, a creator can afford to spend two or three issues developing characters or plot, because he knows that there will be other manga stories in the same book that will have something kick ass happening. Then, when the manga story is collected into Trade Paperback, the pacing will feel more natural and less forced, which is what American creators are trying for, as well, but because of the single issue, monthly format, are boring most audiences to tears.
So, Mr. High and Mighty Comic Guy, you've got this long dissertation on pacing, do you present any solutions to this conundrum? Sure, I got some ideas. Personally, although I know it couldn't be done weekly, I think more comics companies should try the manga digest format. Not only would that allow for more experimentation with pacing, it would also allow audiences to be exposed to a greater number of books than they normally would be. Another idea is to find a happy medium between the old school speedy pace, and the Hollywood turtle pace of today. Writers should remember that they've got 24 pages to kick it every month, and they should strive to make sure there's always something to shake the audience up. Oh, and if you're building up for a big confrontation between Daredevil and the Kingpin, make sure the fight is actually a compelling work of kick ass action choreography, and not just a couple of punches.
2 Comments:
I think you are definately right on... the reading pace is probably the reason i gave up on most comics (even the revamp of catwoman which i loved) because i'd have to wait for a month to resolve some narrative... not going to the store every month also puts a damper on that cause i ended up missing segments of narrative (kinda like getting up in the middle of Lost Highway and taking a 20 minute dump, hell a short piss even an you're lost)... so i started perusing the TPBs in stores like Barnes and Noble and Borders, because A: they are longer and usually resolve a narrative; B: i almost view them as being more cost efficient (five or six books for two dollars apeice, plus tax versus the whole book for ten or fiften dollars... and the confirmation that you're going to get the whole story... not accidently miss something; C: i feel more fulfilled by reading the larger TPB than a quick read... marathon beast sex versus killing a kitten... as much fun as masterbation is, i would have to go for the marathon... although im reminded of a woodie allen quote in "Annie Hall" (paraphrased) "Don't knock masturbation. It's the only time that I can have sex with somebody that I love."
I suppose that some of the manga we get here mimicking the American monthly format doesn't help the puzzle either. I noticed the other day that Ninja High School is $5 a pop now. More than, say, Spidey, but still the same format...
So, then, is this an indication that TorC Press may some day pioneer the digest format in American comic media?
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