PVB's take on Pyongyang by Guy Delisle

After reading Pyongyang, I was saddened, angered and a bit bewildered about the isolated culture of North Korea. When I tried to discuss it with anyone else in my age group, I received the typical response:
OMG KIM JONG-IL, TEAM AMERICA, F*CK, YEAH! LOLBBQ!

Well, maybe not with the Barbeque part.

So, if you haven’t already guessed, I hold great disdain for the movie “Team America World Police.” A staple in dorm rooms across the nation, the movie came straight from the masterminds behind South Park and parodies America’s role in world affairs and terrorism using lifelike marionettes. A particularly squat puppet imitating Kim Jong Il is cast as the villain and obscenities and merriment ensues.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I actually like South Park. I think the satire is done very well, and the show and characters and quotes are all pretty much inlayed in the collegiate culture. I take a lot of heat for the fact that I watch South Park with my friends but refuse to watch Team America ever again.

During the time I carried Pyonyang around with me to read it, people asked what it was about. When I answered it was an animator’s graphic memoir about his time spent in North Korea, I had to endure a barrage of Team America quotes. This made me angry. Is the only reason anyone knows anything about North Korea was because of that stupid movie?

Then I remembered that the only reason I knew anything about North Korea was from a comic book.

Which brings me finally to what I want to talk about in this entry. No, I don’t think Pyongyang, like the other graphic memoirs we have read in class, deserves to be called a “comic book.” Or at least, the stigma attached to the term “comic book.”

However, the media and the work itself I think is avant-garde.

Because it is very humorous. It was entertaining to read. The comedic voice percolated through the background of the plot. But at the same time it was edifying, insightful and a good read.

It’s a delicate balance in art and literature to inform, entertain and reach individuals on a universal scale. Art for the mind, the heart and the funny bone. But Pyongyang did all of that for me, in a rather bittersweet, outsider-looking-in way. And like film, I think it's a great way to communicate to a wider audience, if that audience takes the time to find it and appreciate it.

Non-fiction, isolated culture, South Park, art, literature, comic books. Discuss my fellow odd ones out. Discuss.

In Living Color: Photorealism within Waltz

The purpose of graphic novels is to tell a graphic/pictorial representation of a story while riveting dialogue expresses what can't be interpreted visually. According to McCloud a universal truth within the comic world is the more cartoony the face looks, the more people can see themselves within that character, can empathize with that character (pg. 31). However, there are many graphic novelists who do just the opposite to that truth: they illustrate their stories with the intent to give the character its own unique personality, separate from the reader. A great representation of this is Waltz with Bashir. Ari Folman, along with David Polansky, wanted to tell the true story of Ari's days as a soldier, and wanted to have the reader see it from his perspective. To do this they utilized a technique much like rotoscoping (animating over live filmed action) where Adobe Flash cutouts and true animation are put onto transparencies, cut up, and then moved in relation to each to give the visual appearance of movement (wikipedia). The effect that this causes is one that could be described as "photorealistic," or creating an accurate artistic rendition of something. The beauty that lies within the gorgeous hues of the graphic novel are truly mesmerizing, and cause the reader to not only walk along side the soldiers, but then actually distance themselves from Ari and his men. It was a genius way to tell his story, and the photoesque illustrations give his story a documentary feel that simply is perfection.

The following are illustrations from the book, and

their (near) counterpoint photo:

Inside Memory: Waltz with Bashir

So it's been a really loooooooong time since I've blogged, but I'm back! And am technically procrastinating our paper for this class by doing this, but hey! It's all homework, right?

Well I've been thinking a great deal about Waltz with Bashir and how the consequences of a fatal memory can take away a part of ourselves. So often when soldiers come back from war, whether they themselves saw action, or simply clean up after it, the emotional, mental, and psychological scars are immediately apparent. These incredibly strong men and women come back as shells of who they once were, and often with either incredibly vivid memories, or none at all. The ones who can remember everything in absolute detail have the pain of reliving hell every time they close their eyes, while the ones who have forgotten simply can't feel whole anymore. It's hard to even imagine what situation would be worse: to know what is slowly eating you away, or simply realizing that something is eating you away while you remain in the dark as to why.

From the point Ari realizes that he has in fact lost his memory, he becomes determined to get it back. However, as he travels to regain his memory, he forces others to relive the terrible things within their own memories. From Dayag's abandonment to Frenkel's waltz, Ari questions them all to find himself. While this seems like a rambled mess (and it very well could be!) I just can't myself fathom how unforgiveable a lost memory can be. Memories are what make us who we are, and they define who we will become. Seriously giving this some thought, I honestly don't know of anything in my past that was so horrible that I can either replay it out perfectly in my mind, let alone something so terrible that it would take away my memory. Then again, I've never seen war.

In the end, Ari is in fact able to regain the memory that he lost, but to what cost? Does he now live his life like those who remember every terrible detail whenever their eyes are closed? Was that the closure needed for him to truly move on with his life? How long did it take after his witness to the massacre before he blocked out that part of himself? I guess no matter what these questions are superficial to what the story was all about. Waltz with Bashir isn't just about one man reclaiming a lost memory (although that is part of the major story) so much as it's one man reclaiming a part of himself that horrendous circumstances took away.

I've included a link to an interview the Washington Post did with Ari Folman about the movie. The first few questions are the most pertinent as far as my blog (or rambling take your pic!) about his lost memory. Well ta for now! Blog later!!!!!!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/23/AR2009012300838.html

Persepolis

Hey! Sorry it has been so long! My life is trying to run me over, I'm rebelling of course. So I love Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. My younger sister introduced it to me. Marjane reminds me of the women in my family, strong!

While I suggest that everyone goes out and reads both volumes I thought I'd add a link to an interview she did back in 2004. I found it interesting.

http://www.bookslut.com/features/2004_10_003261.php

Waltz With Bashir

I read this one in a couple of hours. I have to say that I was let down by it. I felt like through the whole book I was waiting for something to happen, and it never came. There were some violent scenes of course, but I know veterans. In fact both of my great grand fathers were in WW2 and my Grandfather was in Vietnam. Ive talked to them about the wars, so maybe the book didn't impact me the same way that it would impact people who didn't already hear war horror stories first hand. I also play a lot of War Based video games, such as the call of duty series. I know video games don't come close to the realities of war, but they are still violent enough to make an impression. I suppose what I'm getting at is this: If Waltz with Bashir is your introduction to the horrors of war, then its going to shock you, especially the photos toward the end. However if you've already spoken with veterans or acquainted yourself with warfare in some way, the novel doesn't offer any new information.

Reflection: Waltz With Bashir

I was having a hard time deciding what to write this week pertaining to graphic novel class. I decided to wait and read all of “Waltz With Bashir.” Now that I have, I am at a loss for words, not for lack of direction, but overwhelmed by the impact this work had on me.

I’ll try not to spoil too much for those in class, or those who have wandered in from the internet, who haven’t read the book.

The last four pages without dialogue, and particularly the last page where the graphic novel changes, was so emotionally sharp that in cut with the finest line art has to offer.

The way in which the story was told – weaving the experiences of so many around the central theme of regaining lost memory – was engaging and a very fresh way for me as a reader to piece together the plot. The use of photographic art made the panels seem almost haunted. The documentary-style narrative that offered just enough of a glimpse into each of the character’s thoughts made it feel all the more real, a concept that I’ve had a hard time deciphering thus far in the graphic novels we have looked at. As a writer, I was a bit disappointed to not have closer with some of the sub-plots in the book, but the details were enough to give me a personal feeling which each of the characters, and my speculations on what happened to them satisfied me as a reader.

But the juxtaposition of the last two pages was what really hit me. It wasn’t just the photos – it was the mood set by the rest of the work of art that stood with them that left such an amazing impression.

After all of my psych and lit classes – I never thought I’d have a life view-changing experience in a comic book class. But, I will be reflecting on “Waltz With Bashir” for a very long time.

Superman VS. Batman, my take on the situation.

This will be short and sweet. I think that Superman would beat Batman. Superman stops an atomic warhead with his bare hands. Then he proceeded to beat the crap out of Batman in Batman's novel. Yes he does have a weakness to kryptonite but I just dont see him losing this one. Could Batman beat Superman? In an IQ test yes, in a fight no. It doesnt matter how smart you are, if you get hit by a locomotive you will die. Superman is just too strong.

Batman Vs. Superman

It is the iconic comparison when pitting Batman vs. Superman. Many people who I have met would choose one or the other. Understandably, the leading argument in my dorm suite is that Superman represents brawn and Batman represents brains. My question to you is “Is that a fair assessment?”

Born on the planet Krypton an infant named Kal-El was shipped off to the planet Earth as his planet exploded. Found by farmer Jonathan Kent he and his wife Martha took him in as their own sun. That is the basic beginning of Superman. Over the years, exactly what happens after that has been rewritten many times. The few consistencies used is that eventually Clark Kent (Kal-El) moves to Metropolis, gets a job at the Daily Planet, falls in love with Lois Lane, and becomes the icon Superman. Superman’s two weaknesses are Kryptonite and that he cares for people. That’s about it.

Born to Martha and Thomas Wayne, Bruce Wayne had a life of luxury and security, until his parents were shot down in front him. What Bruce did to cope was incredibly different than what most people do in face of tragedy; Bruce took his anger and pain and turned it to a fight for justice. What makes Batman so different from the normal super hero is that he is human. Incredibly intelligent, Bruce uses his training in various martial arts and his extensive knowledge to fight the bad guy. Eventually he is joined by others. For a super hero that is portrayed as a loner Batman has an extensive team/family. Bruce is eventually joined by Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Barbara Gordon, and many others.

The difference between Batman and Superman goes beyond the obvious, Kryptonian and Human, but rather the Why to be a superhero. Why would anyone complicate their lives so much? Clark does it as a sense of duty; he has the powers he should help. Bruce does it in a sense to protect his parents. Obviously, they are dead; but he is trying to stop crime so it doesn’t happen to anyone else.

The fight in Dark Knight wasn’t unexpected. Here are two guys who are/were friends. It had to come down to them. It had been brewing for too long. I think it is interesting there really isn’t a “winner” in the novel. However, I think Bruce would have won in the end because a brain always outwits brawn.

I know I don’t really answer my question “Is it a fair assessment to compare Batman as the brain and Superman as the brawn. I think that is for an individual interpretation. I’ve presented what I know and MY OPINION is that Bruce should get more credit, because he chooses to help when he doesn’t have to, he could play all his life away and yet he chooses to stand up against evil.

Graphic Novel VS Written Novel: My Thoughts.

I very much prefer the Graphic Novel medium over the traditional literature, and I feel this way for two big reasons

The first reason is that, as anyone who has met me can tell you, I have ADHD or what is now called ADD-impulsive. Thus focusing on written novels is very very difficult for me. Even if I really enjoy what the novel is about, its just hard to sit still and digest a full written novel. The graphic novel on the other hand is much easier because things happen faster, and they have the added stimulation of illustrations. This means that even when I cant just pay attention to one panel, I can still read them because graphic novels encourage roving eyes.
The second reason for my opinion is more universal. I was born in Red Cloud, Nebraska the home of famed novelist Willa Cather. Since she is pretty much the only claim to fame in that town students at that school are introduced to her at a young age, and they read her novels to us a lot, at least one a year. I absolutely detest her works because Cather would spend pages upon pages just describing scenery. I always felt that her books failed to deliver much story or plot, especially when I could look outside the window at the rolling plains of Nebraska whenever I wanted. The Graphic novel forces the author to tell a story and make things happen, because descriptors are drawn.In fact I could do the complete works of Cather in one panel:

http://www.stolaf.edu/academics/naturallands/media/prairie/prairie3.jpg

The End.

Humanity and Art

As a writer, I am always exploring language to find new ways of describing emotion, perception, beauty, tragedy and more often than not, find the details of hope within the crevices of injustice that humans inflict on one another. Many written mediums from novels to poetry offer an unlimited realm of research, composition and enjoyment. And to strengthen my expression in writing, I look at other art forms to infuse passion and heartbreak into my work.

From film to theatre to visual art to music and now graphic novels.

From the visual art side of the graphic novel, one panel can strike a person much like a poem: leaving the reader with one taste, one idea, one feeling that connects to the overall concept. Art Spiegelman’s “Maus” did this to me on the first flip-through of the book. I have no idea what the story holds for me as a reader when we get to it at the end of the semester, but the imagery has already touched my emotions.

As for the language part of it, I believe graphic novels are more universal in the fact that as far as poetics go, the symbolism is etched into the storyline and the characters. There’s not as much sifting through seemingly isolated symbols or digging into meaning of a story that can only be unearthed in a comparative literature discussion. In my opinion, the language of comics comes directly from the characters and they tell it like it is. Or rather, they tell it and the reader relates to each character as a person talking, instead of sifting through superfluous “narrator” voice. (Not that I have anything against the narrator voice -- I'm a prose writer, after all!)

But do graphic novels really “tell it like it is”? Does any art form? Novels, poems, plays, songs, works of art? Certainly the violence, blood and guts in superhero graphic novels are taken with a grain of salt. And social awareness graphic novels have unique artistic licenses that seem to take harsh reality and make it no less harsh, but tint the edges with expression and universality.
I guess what I’m getting at is that all art begins from a very real, human place. Emotionally, psychologically, socially. But infused in these studies of the human condition is a little bit of human control – hope – that lets us show a piece of ourselves, a piece of beauty, a piece of proof that we work for something better.

I think Friedrich Nietzsche said it best: “We have art in order not to die of the truth.”

‘til next time,
-PVB