Comic Dyslexia?

So I can read just fine, no problem there
But recently I tried reading a comic for the first time, and shit was weird
I struggled to keep track of where I was, it was difficult for me to move from one panel to the next without getting them mixed up and ultimately I had to stop because my eyes and head were hurting
Is this a thing? Or am I just being retarded?

Which comic was it?

I had the similar problem minus head and eys hurting when I tried my first comic. Granted it was at the age of six but I think it IS a universal thing for the first timers.

Watchmen

Don't worry, it actually takes a little bit of getting used to. Especially some of the more crazy panelling in some comics. When I first started I had a nasty habit of jumping ahead in the page to read word balloons, or just getting them out of order (I still find I do it on some crappy 90s lettering).

Just slow down a bit and you'll catch on

Tell me about it!

Watchmen, both in form and subject, is meant for people familiar with superhero comics.

If you want to learn how to read comics, start with some kids' books or stuff that doesn't rely heavily on panel composition, like Prince Valiant.

Try reading compilations of news strips, like Calvin & Hobbes. This will get you familiar enough to move into other stuff.

kek, what's that from?

My friend has this problem. I think you're just not used to them. Some comics also have really confusing layouts made by hacks

Easiest way to think about it is that every page should have a flow to it. It's usually defined by text bubbles, and those are usually layered on a page likenin Photoshop, the oldest stuff (therefor the first stuff to read) is closest to the top left and is the furthest back, other bubbles would overlap this first bubble.
Tl;dr read some weeklies or recent trades to git gud

Still better than Dresden Codak

That's because Dresden Codak is garbage made by someone that doesn't know the first thing about paneling. That, on the other hand, is made by one of the greatest comic artists to ever live.

A classic JH Williams III full spreader from Promethea.

I can't imagine having trouble with such a simple grid. Can you read Peanuts or is anything more complicated than Family Circus a struggle?

>plot twist: OP is a weeb who grew up reading manga and keeps trying to read western comics backwards

I read a decent mix of both and I still have that problem sometimes if a comic is in black and white. Or if manga is colored.

my brain gets really confused sometimes when I try to read either and sometimes I try reading them backwards or second-guessing myself and starting over from the other direction, sometimes multiple times a page

it was probably a bad comic-
c'mon son

What the others said. Also, how much attention do you pay to the art? I've seen some newbies try to read comics like books, i.e. only read the speech bubbles without processing the art (body language of the characters, setting changes, panel size, color clues if applicable, etc).

This used to happen to me when I was a noob. I also didn't know how to read thought boxes.

Crazy how easy it is for me to read comics now.

Should a person read Understanding Comics to become a better comic reader?

Understanding Comics is pretty good, I'd recommend it, but it's not a bible. Think for yourself. Not a bad place to start, however.

It's more for the mechanics used by creators and defining abstract concepts, but it can't hurt.

Like how a Writing 101 textbook won't make reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar easier, but it will help you identify how repetition is used in the book to make the subversion towards the end surprising.

You will immediately start to hate half the comics you try to read.

what if I already do?

You may change your mind, or you may understand why you hate them
or maybe you're just an idiot asshole