All things discworld

[dignan]

I really enjoyed Good Omens, and also Neverwhere.  Coraline was pretty good too.  Couldn't get into American Gods, though.  Good Omens was the first book by either Gaiman or Pratchett that I read.  It was about the time I stopped reading American Gods that I thought, "Maybe I should give that other fella a chance, because this stuff I'm reading now is nothing like Good Omens."  Then I picked up The Hogfather and almost immediately thought, "THIS is what I liked about Good Omens." 

[BathTub]

See if you didn't have a habit of being derogatory to something just because you've decided you don't like it, people might actually take you seriously.

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

Plus, you know, he wrote comic books...

Yeah that's right the universally panned Sandman,... 

lol

Not like there aren't Discworld graphic novels. Sandman is a pretty good read, you will miss out on some good stuff if you don't read 'comic books'.

I tried reading it. Despite everyone's praise for it, it was a very simplistic story and not told with much depth.  You can't get around the fact that comic books are simple compared to actual books; they are by nature, because you get 500 words instead of 10,000.  And some funny pictures.

They're funnybooks. Just admit it and move on.

Ever hear the phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words"?

A comic book page, by the arithmetic of metaphor, is worth 5-7 thousand and 50 words on average. Comic books are just a story told with both visuals and narrative text.

The fact of the matter is that the method of delivery is less important than the content conveyed. Comic books, film, literature, are all essentially mediums, ways to tell a story, and to assume that all stories conveyed in a given medium are of mediocrity equal to that with which the medium is broadly associated is the height of willful ignorance.

[Tyrant]

Plus, you know, he wrote comic books...

Yeah that's right the universally panned Sandman,... 

lol

Not like there aren't Discworld graphic novels. Sandman is a pretty good read, you will miss out on some good stuff if you don't read 'comic books'.

I tried reading it. Despite everyone's praise for it, it was a very simplistic story and not told with much depth.  You can't get around the fact that comic books are simple compared to actual books; they are by nature, because you get 500 words instead of 10,000.  And some funny pictures.

They're funnybooks. Just admit it and move on.

  Hmmm....I hope you're not serious. Comicbooks cover a far wider array of genres than they used to and require just about as much writing skill as any novel these days (I've read a lot of comics that are better written than some novels). The artistic skills required to draw them is also quite intensive and, if properly rendered, must "jive" with the writing seamlessly. It's a hard balance to aquire and, once aquired, maintain. Comicbooks aren't just funnybooks anymore. They're works of art of both visuals and written word.

   

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

no matter how complex or adult--is comparable to even a moderately written novel.  It's just not the case.

that sentence is redundantly silly. 


No matter how intelligent or adult or artistic or verbose or witty or well written or thought out or intriging a comic book is it just cant compare with the least of novels including space aliens ate my homework. 

[BathTub]

Besides Sandman is on the order of ~2500 pages, I would put that up against a novel.

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

Sure. But I can't believe you're actually arguing that a comic book--no matter how complex or adult--is comparable to even a moderately written novel.  It's just not the case.

Well, there's a reason why. Because it being complex and adult is what makes it comparable to literature. It tells a story, and your argument seems to rest soley on your own argument. You are just trying to justify your irrational disdain for comic books, and doing a pretty sore job of it at that.

[chinton]

I've been thinking of trying Patchet. I absolutely adored American Gods, Neverwhere, and Good Omens. maybe I'll try Patchett.

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

its all lighthearted comedic fun.  the way life should be   I recomend gaurds guards

[Edward J Grug III]

Sure. But I can't believe you're actually arguing that a comic book--no matter how complex or adult--is comparable to even a moderately written novel.  It's just not the case.

You are a complete moron.




Meanwhile, Small Gods is my favourite Pratchett book, I don't really have a favourite character, though I always look forward to the Death cameos, and I once played Death in an adaptation of Mort, for which I saved off every hair on my head and painted it white.

[Edward J Grug III]

Sure. But I can't believe you're actually arguing that a comic book--no matter how complex or adult--is comparable to even a moderately written novel.  It's just not the case.

You are a complete moron.

Well-argued. Why don't you draw a picture of a guy in tights demolishing a city to express your feelings? :p

And why don't you write a gossip column for a teen magazine.

There are intelligent examples and unintelligent examples in any medium. Just like are an unintelligent example of a human.

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

Comic books are the ultimate form of expression, not only in words but in pictures.

way to use sarcasm to mask the fact you are missing the main point here.  We are saying SOME comics can be adult and intelligent and that what medium you use is not the same as something good or bad.

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

And I'm saying that the most intelligent comic in the world never really gets beyond the level of a children's book in terms of its complexity, by its very nature.

Well if we agree you missed the point that we disagree with you then what are we arguing about. 

[Pak-Man]

May I cut in?

I can see what you're saying about silly childrens story type comics and we're not saying they exist, but there are a number of comic book writers who have decided to take the comic book to a mature and more artistic level. I'd reccomend the works of Alan Moore for some great alegories on the human condition that can only be expressed via superhero story. You'll find rape, pedophilia, condemnation of society and government, anarchists, and darned good writing.

See, saying that ALL comic books, by definition, are silly superhero stories with no point is the same as saying that EVERY love story ever told is on par with Harlequinn Romances, or that EVERY Sci-Fi story is on par with Battlefield Earth, or that EVERY Drama is on par with Days of our Lives. It's a medium with which people can do whatever they want. Granted there are a number of people who go the silly superhero route, but there are a few hidden gems who've submitted some fine additions to the world of literature that just happened to be illustrated in a panel by panel fashion.

[sarcasm_made_Easy]

Well, let's wait to see if the other guy wants to randomly drop by, offer a few insults, and leave. Otherwise, I'm ready to return to the topic at hand.

I think you missed the sarcasm there, you havent really bothered to explain HOW or WHY medium is directly related to intellectual level of content.  Your point is very odd and vague.  As to on topic, pratchet wrote "The Last Hero"  a full novel but used pictures on every page, in effect a comic book,  is that particular novel any less of a decent novel becuase the pictures were present?  or even more vague what about any of Lewis carrols works.  Tenniel always had woodcut drawings in his books, yes he often wrote childrens novels, but the first place i was really introduced to carrol was in my philosophy class.  He hid all sorts of adult philisophical debates in his childrens novels, which should be expected for a professor of one of englands most important colleges.  I fail to understand your argument about comics being forced to be childish.