How to Explain Comic Books to Others

Comic books are a medium on the rise. Just look at the trilogy of Spider-Man films, the trilogy of movies based on Blade, "Batman Begins," "Superman Returns," the two Fantastic Four films, and even "V For Vendetta." Film fans are becoming more and more interested the comic book story. Video game junkies want to know more about the characters they play on their X-Box 360 or Playstation 3. To tell a non-fan what comic books is hard to do, even in an hours worth of time. This article will explore ways to tell someone who knows nothing of comic books, about the characters, history, and evolution of the art, as well as where to begin.

Just about everyone knows of Batman because he has been in so many films. The same could be said of Spider-Man. But, in explaining comic characters, we should move fans away from the movies and into the real characters. Spider-Man had web shooters; he did not shoot them from his hands. Batman was created after the loss of his family, but there two stories behind that. The first Batman film had the Joker (played well by Jack Nicholson) killing Bruce Wayne's parents. "Batman Begins" had the actual character from the comic do it-and not the Joker. So we must explain these small things so the aspiring fan will not get confused when they pick up a comic of a well known character. The battles between good and evil form the core of a comic. There is the case of the anti-hero like Rorschach in 'Watchmen" and the Punisher. These characters just might surprise those who want to read comics, because they do not act like Spider-Man, Batman, and Superman. The Punisher killed more people in one hour than Batman ever did in over 60 years of comic book storytelling. These anti-heroes bring fans back to the medium, and those new to it should consider.

The history of comic book characters is just as interesting. We should let the aspiring fan go to a comic shop and buy a book like "Marvels" by Les Daniels so they will know where to begin and understand how far the field as come. If there an adult, we can point out there are plenty of adult readers, and plenty of comics intended for grown ups.

The fan should begin with Batman and Spider-Man. These characters have been in countless quality comic book stories. Have the fan pick up a graphic novel of their choice, maybe the Punisher, and a Batman or Spider-Man graphic novel. This will allow them to be entertained both by anti-heroes and regular super heroes.

We can try to explain everything to the fan in short, but reading is the best medicine for the soon-to-be fan. Consider pointing them in the right direction, but allow them to explore. Movies are just the beginning of what is possible with this visual medium.