GraphiContent Welcome And Mission Statement

Comic criticism.

That's the beginning and point of GraphiContent. This blog's origins trace back to about a year ago when two guys were sitting around talking online about the lack of serious comic criticism. There are tons of places to find reviews and a few specialty sites that focus on specific books, but beyond that there's nothing. Being a couple of guys from the academic world, they were none too happy with the sad state of the online presence of comics, so they decided to do something about it.

A year or so later, this is what they've come up with. GraphiContent is a blog devoted to comic criticism, commentary, analysis, theory, and discussion. If you're looking for what we think of the new issue of X-Men, if you're looking for the latest news about what DC title has a new creative team, or if you want creators giving hype-filled interviews with little purpose beyond convincing people that their new book is the Best Thing Ever look elsewhere. If we discuss the new issue of X-Men, we will look at how the book works and what it really means underneath it all. If we discuss a news item, it will be to consider how it fits into the overall pattern of behaviour of the comic culture and what it means to the stories being told. If we interview creators, it will be to discuss the hows and whys of their works, to gain a deeper understanding of what they really mean.

Our goal is to take long, hard looks at comics and give insightful and intelligent thoughts upon them. We will not limit ourselves just to so-called "art comics" as others have in the past because we recognise that the mainstream is full of works just as great. We will look at any comics we feel warrant an examination, which will probably include some that you don't. We're not here to lecture or look down upon anything, merely to give a new point of view and maybe get people to think about things a little different. We hope to get people to say "Hey, I never thought about it like that," and maybe see some of their favourite works in a new light.

We will never claim that the views that we present are objectively correct, as we are dealing with art and art is subjective. But by that same token, we won't limit ourselves to what the creators may have intended with their work, as art is also interpretive and exists beyond just the creators' intentions. That means we'll also say a lot of things that will make you think maybe we're reading too much into something, but that's okay.

We also want you to interact with us. While we currently wish to limit contributions to the four of us, we encourage you to respond to us and engage us in the talkback section. The best criticism exists within a dialogue where many voices and ideas are heard. By this token, once the tone of the site's content is firmly established, we will open the door to outside submissions. Something we will also be doing is a book club of sorts in which we'll be choosing a book each month to read, analyse and examine. We encourage you to take part in that discussion.

So, welcome to GraphiContent. We hope you enjoy the ride.

Content comes tomorrow.