As we
have learned in class, Alan Moore put a significant amount of detail into every
single panel on every single page. Having given Dave Gibbons multiple pages of
instructions on how he wanted one single panel to be, they are all uniquely
presented. One thing that I have found to be particularly interesting in each
of the panels is how the dialogue bubbles are placed. Just the simple placement
of these bubbles has the power to send off completely different vibes. For
instance, as Rorschach was walking through the jail, all of the hollering and
yelling made him think back to what it was like as a child. The dialogue
bubbles were purposely placed on top of each other, sometimes even covering
some of the words that were being said. This created a chaotic sense, and
personally made me feel slightly overwhelmed, as Rorschach obviously would
have. Finally learning the story behind Rorschach was extremely insightful.
Although it was very dark, it made clear why Rorschach has such a harsh view on
the world. He saw his mother getting paid to sleep with another man, was under
constant attack by his peers, and was extremely conscientious of all of the
terror that occurred around him such as the kidnapping and the Kitty Genovese
case. After having read this chapter, not only am I more aware of the
importance of the structural components to this story but also of the deep
thought gone into the creation of each character. Sunday, April 5, 2015
Dialogue Bubbles in Watchmen
As we
have learned in class, Alan Moore put a significant amount of detail into every
single panel on every single page. Having given Dave Gibbons multiple pages of
instructions on how he wanted one single panel to be, they are all uniquely
presented. One thing that I have found to be particularly interesting in each
of the panels is how the dialogue bubbles are placed. Just the simple placement
of these bubbles has the power to send off completely different vibes. For
instance, as Rorschach was walking through the jail, all of the hollering and
yelling made him think back to what it was like as a child. The dialogue
bubbles were purposely placed on top of each other, sometimes even covering
some of the words that were being said. This created a chaotic sense, and
personally made me feel slightly overwhelmed, as Rorschach obviously would
have. Finally learning the story behind Rorschach was extremely insightful.
Although it was very dark, it made clear why Rorschach has such a harsh view on
the world. He saw his mother getting paid to sleep with another man, was under
constant attack by his peers, and was extremely conscientious of all of the
terror that occurred around him such as the kidnapping and the Kitty Genovese
case. After having read this chapter, not only am I more aware of the
importance of the structural components to this story but also of the deep
thought gone into the creation of each character. 
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I absolutely agree. Each aspect of Watchmen is placed there to add something to the story and that definitely includes not only the placement of the conversation bubbles, but also where there are breaks in the conversation. These add to the mood and how these people are meant to come off to the readers. The amount of detail Alan Moore puts into every single detail is insane and brilliant, but it makes it incredibly difficult to replicate the story in any for, but comic books.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the fact that everything in Watchmen is very intricately thought out. All the panels have so much detail in them. The more time you spend looking at them, the more information and context you get from the story. Along with this, Alan Moore often gives us hints in the background of the panels which isn't always obvious at first. For me, this is what makes the story a lot more interesting since the more attention you give to the book, the more you get out of it.
ReplyDeleteI also found it astonishing how much thought and detail went into each and every panel. Especially with the speech and thought bubbles, not only are they positioned differently, but they also look unique depending on the character speaking. This adds another level of immersion to the overall story while also giving each character their own "voice".
ReplyDeleteAfter reading some of Alan Moore's letters to Dave Gibbons, I also found it incredible how much thought Moore put into each minute detail of the panels. In our class, we talked about how Moore made the panels of chapter 5 symmetrical and after examining them myself, it really is crazy how much work went into an element of the comic that is probably overlooked by the average reader.These meticulous details have made Watchmen one of the best books I've ever read.
ReplyDeleteI agree Alex. We heard Moore's description of the first panel of the book he sent to Gibbons and I was absolutely blown away. That amount of detail is what has made me realize how great of a book this is. The fact that that was just one of the panels makes me wonder how much time was put into the creating this masterpiece. It also made me appreciate Gibbon's skills as an artist. Another thing I wonder is who spent more time on Watchmen; Gibbons or Moore?
ReplyDeleteThe structure of Watchman to me is the most interesting thing about the book. Everything that was put into the panels was deliberate. Examples of this would be the "easter eggs" and hidden messages put into the art of the comic. One of my favorite twists about the book was when we find out that Rorschach was the red headed guy on the very first page of the book.
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