2008 Woodie Awards
Graphic novels: Comic books with a dust jacket
Tim Elliott
Issue date: 4/27/07 Section: Entertainment
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Classification
When someone says "graphic novel," they're usually looking for a high-brow way of saying comic book without actually dropping the c-bomb. Part of the problem with introducing the genre is the confusion about what constitutes a graphic novel. No one seems to agree on what to call the diverse entries thrown on the graphic novel shelf at the local Borders.
The short resolution to this conflict is to state that graphic novels, in the narrowest use of the word, are comic books written in a self-contained form. There may be sequels to these books, but each book contains a cohesive narrative. A graphic novel tells a complete story within its pages. Graphic novels function much like a conventional movie or novel; you watch it and then you're done.
In contrast to these more self-contained books, trade paperbacks, or trades, in comic geek short-hand, collect portions of a large ongoing series in smaller increments. To extend the metaphor from the last paragraph, trades function much like a TV show, with events progressing chronologically as each story builds on the previous one to create an atmosphere and characters that are best appreciated by the series faithful. Like any TV show, comic book series will run for as long as they are commercially viable. Just as TV shows are chronicled on DVD as they are produced, so too are titles of comic books produced and then released incrementally, with markings to indicate their place within the series as a whole. For example, a DVD collection titled The Gilmore Girls Season 3 is comparable to a trade titled Ultimate Spider-man Volume 2. Similarly, just as TV shows are shown individually and then collected, individual issues that tell a portion of the story come out first, and are subsequently collected for trade release.
The confusion that comes from glancing at a graphic novel shelf is completely understandable. Many graphic novels star characters who are usually main characters in the ongoing series chronicled in trades, such as Batman: The Long Halloween, a graphic novel starring everyone's favorite Dark Knight, who also appears monthly in the Batman and Detective Comics series. To heighten the confusion, several graphic novels are released in a piecemeal fashion as individual comics, with the entirety being collected at the conclusion of the run, much like a trade, but the self-contained nature of the story makes it a graphic novel.
When someone says "graphic novel," they're usually looking for a high-brow way of saying comic book without actually dropping the c-bomb. Part of the problem with introducing the genre is the confusion about what constitutes a graphic novel. No one seems to agree on what to call the diverse entries thrown on the graphic novel shelf at the local Borders.
The short resolution to this conflict is to state that graphic novels, in the narrowest use of the word, are comic books written in a self-contained form. There may be sequels to these books, but each book contains a cohesive narrative. A graphic novel tells a complete story within its pages. Graphic novels function much like a conventional movie or novel; you watch it and then you're done.
In contrast to these more self-contained books, trade paperbacks, or trades, in comic geek short-hand, collect portions of a large ongoing series in smaller increments. To extend the metaphor from the last paragraph, trades function much like a TV show, with events progressing chronologically as each story builds on the previous one to create an atmosphere and characters that are best appreciated by the series faithful. Like any TV show, comic book series will run for as long as they are commercially viable. Just as TV shows are chronicled on DVD as they are produced, so too are titles of comic books produced and then released incrementally, with markings to indicate their place within the series as a whole. For example, a DVD collection titled The Gilmore Girls Season 3 is comparable to a trade titled Ultimate Spider-man Volume 2. Similarly, just as TV shows are shown individually and then collected, individual issues that tell a portion of the story come out first, and are subsequently collected for trade release.
The confusion that comes from glancing at a graphic novel shelf is completely understandable. Many graphic novels star characters who are usually main characters in the ongoing series chronicled in trades, such as Batman: The Long Halloween, a graphic novel starring everyone's favorite Dark Knight, who also appears monthly in the Batman and Detective Comics series. To heighten the confusion, several graphic novels are released in a piecemeal fashion as individual comics, with the entirety being collected at the conclusion of the run, much like a trade, but the self-contained nature of the story makes it a graphic novel.
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