Adding to the tone as well is the use of 'gutters' in the comic. Scott McCloud, in his "Understanding Comics" explains gutters as being the space in between panels, in which different amounts of time can exist. This page of the comic is a perfect example of that. The big squares of black note the conscious state of the commissioner as time passes through the actions of Batman.
The black panels again note Batman's helplessness/unconsciousness:
Details like this are personal, which is another aspect of Batman Year One that sets it apart from the earlier comics we've been reading. Batman is very human, unlike The Spirit, who, in his origin story, instantly gives up his life to become the ultimate detective, or The Shadow who miraculously solves crimes off screen, or senses danger through superhuman, yet unexplained skills. Miller shows Batman failing, and learning how to become the vigilantly icon he is today. He explains to the audience how Batman manages to achieve what he does. This exposition of his strengths and weaknesses makes Batman more human, more relate-able.
Chloe,
ReplyDeleteYou were the only student who commented on the completely "black panels" and McCloud's use of "gutter." Good spot! I appreciated that you included the page and panels you referenced.
In the 2nd panel of the page you cited (p. 44 in my book), I believe the black panel is a visual pun -- the COMMISSIONER blacked out, then he begins to regain consciousness in the 3rd panel. In the 7th panel on that same page, the black panel reflects the COMMISSIONER's thoughts as he tries to regain consciousness and control of his body ("fingers don't work").
It is interesting to note that the COMMISSIONER's "thought boxes" are YELLOW, while BATMAN's "thought boxes" are WHITE. But both of the thought boxes are the same shape, like they were torn off a piece of paper.
The other page you cited (page 14 in my book), the black panels represent BATMAN as he looses consciousness. And, both his thoughts and the policemen's dialog are included in these black panels.
THE SHADOW's skills come from magician-like qualities (the author was a magician) or being a "mentalist." Later THE SHADOW is shown to be able to hypnotize people.
Good summary of characters.
Cynthia
Nice catch on the distinction in the use of gutters. I also saw myself comparing this Batman not only to The Shadow and The Spirit, but to other Batman and Moore comics I've read. Having read Moore's other Batman stuff as well as Watchman and V For Vendetta, I was very pleased with the storytelling. As Cynthia noted, the different color thought boxes represent separate characters, but fonts do as well. Moore finds interesting ways to distinguish his characters from one another.
ReplyDeleteWow, I didn't notice the gutter different at all, good job!
ReplyDeleteFor what you said about Gotham, I always kind of saw Gotham city as a sort of hell metaphor. I mean, the villains regularly break out of the asylum and start running the place, it doesn't get much more hellish than that. I think a lot of the character questions that come with Batman are whether he's part of the hell beasts or if he's somehow different from all the other fools playing around late at night.