Can we please discuss Blankets? It's been years since I've read it - actually when it came out - but still to this very day it is bothering me. The art work is amazing. Artwise it's great - 10/10. The story and writing is god awful 4/10 and I don't care that it's an autobiography because that doesn't change the fact that Craig Thompson is an idiot. First of all he is a religios nutjob and there are so many things that should convince him that his religion is silly yet the ONE thing that changes his mind is the dumbest thing ever. Also it's hardly a love story. Did she even really care about him? Also why did he have to tell us all about the retarded sister his girl had? I mean I know those things HAPPENED but maybe the family also had a dog or a father who loved chili. It doesn't add much to the story / ruins the story / feels pointless the way it was presented here. So can we rip the story apart or can you defend it? I want to discuss this beast.
Blankets is drawn well but the story sucks
Art 10/10
Story 3/10
he should stick to art
>06008▶
>Art 10/10
>Story 3/10
>he should stick to art
amen
No indie lovers in here? Just main stream stuff and Steven Universe all over the place?
Apparently you gotta be pretty WASP to get it.
Is there sex in it?
Just recently bought but haven't gotten to reading it yet.
Still trying to finish the one with the islam and the /ss/
Habibi. I think that one might be better. There is a rape scene in it, right?
Yes. Prostitute/concubine stories often have that.
>the ONE thing that changes his mind is the dumbest thing ever.
I can't remember what that ONE thing was, but I thought it was a combination of everything that had happened in the book. He questions religion throughout the book, he was just taught christianity from a young age so it's obviously hard to break away from. I don't see how he's a "religious nutjob"
>it's hardly a love story. Did she even really care about him?
Maybe that's the point? Real life relationships are complicated and young people's first relationships aren't going to be the perfect little love story they hoped for, or really think they're having at the time. Not that she didn't care for him, they were just different and grew apart.
>why did he have to tell us all about the retarded sister his girl had? I mean I know those things HAPPENED
It helps explain her personality and outlook and how she treats people. It also introduces Craig to different family dynamics that couldn't exist in his fucked up family.
I know people who know their shit about comics love Blankets.
I'd need to read it first.
Kek
Ask people around wether they read Asterios Polyp. Nothing but crickets.
But they can talk to you for HOURS about stupid fucking Green Lanter comics, that's for sure!
It's a Christian book, of course not. Not even a single titty.
tell them to post here
I read Blankets a couple days ago, I really liked it. People complain about the plot, but really there wasn't one. It was an autobiography - lives don't have stories, there's no hero's journey bullshit.
Blankets is about characters, their growth, and interactions with each other. Really, at the end of the book, nothing really happens. He leaves home, isn't Christian but pretends to his parents that he is, and his brother (who disappeared for most of the book) is now married.
But the vignettes of his life are compelling and interesting, plus the art is pretty, so I give it an 8/10. Low re-read value though.
I feel like he's kind of uneven in general. Didn't like Blankets but Goodbye, Chunky Rice made me cry bitch tears. Habibi was "I have some complicated ideas and feelings about Islam and its art and history, and I'm going to try and roll all that up into a big confused allegory which at least looks really pretty". He's done a goofy sci-fi comic for kids and that seems okay for what it is. Basically I agree, I'm just being more long-winded and horseshitty about it.
Blankets never did anything for me. Read it years and years ago and was pretty disappointed. It's always strange to see it in college book stores or taught in classes. I guess it's just an accessible comic that's not about people punching each other but it's a pretty lame comic.
Also just not a fan of the indie autobio craze that it was at the forefront of but that's not really a mark against it.
What? There is literally sex and nudity in it. Its a coming of age story about the author's journey to adulthood and away from the ideals of his parents and home.
i haven't read this, but there seems to be a few indi comic threads up today. a lot more than usual
>indie autobio craze
You mean the indie autobio craze that has been going on since the inception of American Splendor (you know, that old comic by Harvey Pekar)? And before that?
Autobio comics are an integral part of indie comics and always have been.
That said, Blankets isn't that good, story-wise, but it's just an autobiography. He didn't have a particularly spectacular life. But he's a great artist who knows how to convey emotion. Personally, I like Carnet de Voyage best, it's just a series of graphical notes and journal entries about the travels he made in preparation for Habibi.
It goes in waves. Yeah you had Pekar and Crumb and everyone else but Blankets started something a lot different from that. Every boring white boy was getting graphic novel deals to tell everyone about the first time they masturbated. Really it couldn't even be called alternative any more.
>Asterios Polyp
Don't get all smug about reading indie comics
It's very hard to navigate the field and too many indie comics are just "this is a piece of my life, brought to you in a really pretentious format"
There aren't nearly enough non-semi-autobiographical comics that are also good for things that aren't pretentious storytelling to take a huge endeavor into the world of indie comics
Honestly, I'll just stick to reading European comics if I don't want American capeshit-esque stories
that and manga