Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
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- Create Date：2021-08-31 08:55:08
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Scott McCloud
- ISBN：006097625X
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Summary
Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics is a seminal examination of comics art: its rich history， surprising technical components， and major cultural significance。 Explore the secret world between the panels， through the lines， and within the hidden symbols of a powerful but misunderstood art form。
Reviews
Rob Marney
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Delightful， if a little wordy， romp through art history and why comics can be interesting as an art form。 Is this book trying too hard？ Yes。 Does it matter？ No。
WordsAreMyForte
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This guidebook perfectly articulated everything I could never find the words for about comics/graphic novels: their inner-workings， cultural differences， why they appeal to so many in the first place。 McCloud can sometimes come off as a bit pretentious， but I believe this is absolutely warranted due to the sheer scope and breadth of ideas about comics he exhibits in this book alone。
Gayle Turner
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The comics have grown a lot since I read them in the 60s。 This is an insightful exploration of the art form。
Molly Quinn
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A classic book in understanding comics。 Honestly no one will ever have to write a book like this ever again， as it really covers all the important information in the best way。 The book IS a comic so that lends itself nicely to the form。That all being said， it is very dense and not necessarily something I would have picked up if I didn't already have an interest in the craft。 A classic book in understanding comics。 Honestly no one will ever have to write a book like this ever again， as it really covers all the important information in the best way。 The book IS a comic so that lends itself nicely to the form。That all being said， it is very dense and not necessarily something I would have picked up if I didn't already have an interest in the craft。 。。。more
Aglaé
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Une bande dessinée lourde en théorie sur la bande dessinée！ Très intéressant si l'on s'intéresse à la place de la bande dessinée parmi les autres médias et ses traits de caractère！ Une bande dessinée lourde en théorie sur la bande dessinée！ Très intéressant si l'on s'intéresse à la place de la bande dessinée parmi les autres médias et ses traits de caractère！ 。。。more
Luboš
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S komiksem jsem se setkával už jako dítě v Ábíčku a Čtyřlístku， ale samozřejmě jsem nějak vnímal， že většinově je považován za brakový žánr。 Až v dospělosti jsem se mu začal víc věnovat a dohánět zameškané znalosti například četbou kvalitních kousků jako Svět Edeny， Věčná válka， Muriel a andělé， V jako Vendeta， Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood， Ztracené dívky a další。 Ještě mi toho mnoho zbývá。 Pro pochopení děl mi tato kniha určitě pomůže。 Vůbec to bylo zajímavé čtení。 Není k sehnání， česká S komiksem jsem se setkával už jako dítě v Ábíčku a Čtyřlístku， ale samozřejmě jsem nějak vnímal， že většinově je považován za brakový žánr。 Až v dospělosti jsem se mu začal víc věnovat a dohánět zameškané znalosti například četbou kvalitních kousků jako Svět Edeny， Věčná válka， Muriel a andělé， V jako Vendeta， Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood， Ztracené dívky a další。 Ještě mi toho mnoho zbývá。 Pro pochopení děl mi tato kniha určitě pomůže。 Vůbec to bylo zajímavé čtení。 Není k sehnání， česká reedice se plánuje až na rok 2022， tak leda v knihovně。 Má to další dvě pokračování， ale ty česky zatím nevyšly vůbec。 。。。more
R E
，
I probably shouldn’t use the term tour de force anymore， given the incredible amount of incredibly good books out there， but I think it applies here。 Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics is an indispensable book for anyone wanting to better understand the history， evolution， impact， function， and reward of creating and reading comics。This book fills a big hole by providing a unified vision of what comics are and what they do， a vision which is comprehensive and accessible。 It’s not perfect， as f I probably shouldn’t use the term tour de force anymore， given the incredible amount of incredibly good books out there， but I think it applies here。 Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics is an indispensable book for anyone wanting to better understand the history， evolution， impact， function， and reward of creating and reading comics。This book fills a big hole by providing a unified vision of what comics are and what they do， a vision which is comprehensive and accessible。 It’s not perfect， as few things are， but in many ways， having been written in the early 1990’s， it’s stood the test of time。 It adds fundamentally to the examination of comics as an art form by providing a clear， well considered definition of comics， an extended analysis of the language of comics in terms of the interrelationships between image and text， the role of closure and the transitions between panels in visual storytelling， the significance of line， time， space， motion， and feeling， and the manner in which technologies and economics affect how comics are produced。 Such is McCloud’s comprehensive treatment of the subject that scholars today， such as Neil Cohn， use McCloud’s work as a starting point for their own work。Rather than offering criticisms， perhaps the following comments are better understood as extensions， updates or footnotes。 McCloud contends that we simply see reflections or extension of ourselves when we read/view more abstract， “cartoony” characters in comics。 According to his view， these cartoons lack the representational specificity of， say， a realistic painting of Abe Lincoln， and thus can serve as generalized cartoon characters （e。g。 Ziggy， Little Orphan Annie） that are only empty shells waiting to be filled with our own personal feelings， thoughts and motives。 This idea has been picked up by other scholars， but it baffles me。 Rather than see a cartoony character as an extension of my being， say， the way a pencil becomes an extension of my arm， hand， and thoughts， I’m much more interested in the ways they are different from me。 McCloud was writing this in the early 90’s， before ideas such as Theory of Mind， findings in cognitive neuroscience and neuroaesthetics， including the role of the Default Mode Network in the brain， and much more were well known or even conceived。 Theory of Mind is the idea， important when working with individuals with ASD， that we all possess a theory that tells us how other people work， so that when we see tears we infer they are sad or when they scrunch their brows we infer they are thinking or worried。 Neuroscience， especially the work of Mary-Helen Immordino-Yang， has revealed the ways in which the brain’s Default Mode Network helps us empathize by finding ways to map our experiences on to other people。 It’s also shown that some brain functions develop at different ages。 The brains of kids under 7 years of age or so don’t put down neural markers for time and place the way older kids do， suggesting that the way we interact with comic characters might vary with age。 All of this is to say that declaring cartoon characters are reflections of our own idiosyncratic selves - “mini-me’s” we use to fill up an artist’s character - might be off the mark。 Rather， I think it more likely that we experience them as characters independent of us， with unique traits and thoughts to be discovered over the course of a story， and that research and scholarship since McCloud wrote this book will support this alternate view。 This would mean reconsidering some of McCloud’s other points。Along these lines， considering neuroscientific and other scholarly findings since the 90’s， I’d add a footnote to McCloud’s premise that visual images constitute pure， uninterpreted information passively received by the brain versus linguistic， coded data （such as written words） that we always actively interpret。 Imagery of all kinds is loaded with significance that we actively interpret， sometimes requiring explicit effort。 Further， there are stages or levels that vary across individuals as to their ability to make meaning out of visual imagery， as shown， e。g。 by the research of Abigail Houssen。 Some people understand visual imagery solely by reference to their own personal experience， while others， with more experiencing at making meaning out of imagery， apply categories of genre and style to make meaning out of what they see。 The most experienced viewers see in visual imagery the open-ended potential for a constantly unfolding range of meaning that expands each time they engage with an image。 The point here is that McCloud’s premise about the difference between image and word isn’t as clearcut as it seems in his book。McCloud contends that comics developed in isolation in Japan along a different trajectory than Western comics。 I agree that manga has its own unique attributes， and am grateful for his analysis of panel transitions showing a key difference in visual storytelling between Japan and the West。 He shows that， whereas Western comics have more panel transitions showing action and scene changes， Japanese comics have more variety in panel transitions， including a greater emphasis on “aspect to aspect” transitions: sequences of panels that don’t show action or even go forward in time， but rather zoom in and out of a scene’s details， allowing us to recreate the scene in our heads at a much more intimate， deeper level。 He also describes Japanese comics’ unique take on action lines showing motion， with lines of speed， for instance， radiating out from a motorcycle in a chase scene as if one is riding it。 This visual convention has since been adapted extensively in the West。 But claiming these developments resulted from Japan’s isolation from the West might need some additional consideration。 While some try to map the direct influence of earlier forms of Japanese art onto the development of manga - e。g。 looking back to early scrolls or Hokusai’s drawings - enough scholars have questioned this influence for it to be a debatable issue。 The Meiji restoration， the switch from native feudal society to Western capitalism， conflicts with its neighbors， World War 2， American occupation and an American-influenced modern constitution， and the economic impacts of the return to independence and subsequent technological growth， all point to long， enduring interaction with other cultures during the growth and development of manga。 American and Western comics certainly influenced Japanese comics in the early 20th century。 At the same time， manga’s unique business model， with frequent reader surveys determining which manga survive and which don’t， does point to a unique socioeconomic ecology influencing Japanese comics development - but I’m not sure I’d attribute this model’s existence to cultural isolation。I made a number of other notes， similar to the above in that they reframed or pointed to new considerations in reference to claims made in McCloud’s book。 Overall， though， this is an astonishing， brilliant theory of comics that can be used and built on for years to come。 。。。more
Angela
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Made me think a tremendous amount， and probably will be a book I return to over and over again。
Sarah
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Where was this book back when I couldn't understand what the fuck Marshall McLuhan was going on about？ A great book to present to those who think comics are base and nothing more。 Thanks for the loaner copy， Kevin！ Where was this book back when I couldn't understand what the fuck Marshall McLuhan was going on about？ A great book to present to those who think comics are base and nothing more。 Thanks for the loaner copy， Kevin！ 。。。more
David Davy
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"Understanding comics is serious business。" is not a statement most people are going to take seriously， even if one considers themselves a serious reader of comics， as I certainly did for a long time。 I remember when this book out and （foolishly） thinking "I read enough comics， what's to understand？" A whole lot it turns out。Took me a long time to get through what seems on perusal like a simple comic book， in large part because it wants you to fully recognize what you've been unconsciously intui "Understanding comics is serious business。" is not a statement most people are going to take seriously， even if one considers themselves a serious reader of comics， as I certainly did for a long time。 I remember when this book out and （foolishly） thinking "I read enough comics， what's to understand？" A whole lot it turns out。Took me a long time to get through what seems on perusal like a simple comic book， in large part because it wants you to fully recognize what you've been unconsciously intuiting since you were five。 Words and pictures combine to communicate action， the passage of time and space， emotions， humor。 Any idea that you can fit into your brain， and want to try to fit into someone else's brain， can be transmitted via pen and paper in a way that just words cannot。 Even if you don't like comics or have low opinion that's still an example of how we're all susceptible to art's power。 Comics exploit that susceptibility as well any any form， perhaps better than most， without us realizing what's happening。 。。。more
Narcon 27
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Scott Mccloud's fairly popular graphic-novel about the creation of comics， the history of comics， some opinions on comics as an artform， and the advantages that comics have as an artform。 There're about 60 pages at the beginning that felt just a bit long and stretched out， but after that， the book really picks up。 I think this would be a good companion for Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay， as it does provide a lot of context for the artistic developments and arguments around co Scott Mccloud's fairly popular graphic-novel about the creation of comics， the history of comics， some opinions on comics as an artform， and the advantages that comics have as an artform。 There're about 60 pages at the beginning that felt just a bit long and stretched out， but after that， the book really picks up。 I think this would be a good companion for Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay， as it does provide a lot of context for the artistic developments and arguments around comics。 It's definitely a more engaging read than Eisner's comics & sequential art， another book on my shelf that I'll probably get around to finishing sometime soon。 。。。more
Anindita
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Scott McCloud takes you through the journey of defining “comics”， breaking them down into different ways of story telling and the important role a reader plays。 His chapters on Time and Gutters are engrossing， and according to me， are the best chapters。 The book gives you an insight into many things that happen subconsciously in a reader’s mind。 There is another chapter on what Comics can be， something that applies to several other fields in life。 It also makes a serious case on how Comics shoul Scott McCloud takes you through the journey of defining “comics”， breaking them down into different ways of story telling and the important role a reader plays。 His chapters on Time and Gutters are engrossing， and according to me， are the best chapters。 The book gives you an insight into many things that happen subconsciously in a reader’s mind。 There is another chapter on what Comics can be， something that applies to several other fields in life。 It also makes a serious case on how Comics should be seen as art， because it is！ 。。。more
Joshua Novalis
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A masterpiece， in every sense of the word。 Now excuse me while I go daydream about teaching a course with this as the primary text。
Gaia
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Un genio。Non so che altro dire。
dylan
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cant believe i let this sit on my shelf unread for five years
Autumn Blake
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I was surprised by how much I liked this book！ I think it is important to remember that this book is very much the product of a cis het white man living in the US in the 90s， and it is not gospel truth， but I do really like it。 I think at times， McCloud presents himself as an authority and I chafed against those moments quite a bit， but for the most part I thought the book does a good job of like exploring what comics can be and giving the reader things to consider。 I also think it is very instr I was surprised by how much I liked this book！ I think it is important to remember that this book is very much the product of a cis het white man living in the US in the 90s， and it is not gospel truth， but I do really like it。 I think at times， McCloud presents himself as an authority and I chafed against those moments quite a bit， but for the most part I thought the book does a good job of like exploring what comics can be and giving the reader things to consider。 I also think it is very instructive to see a prominent 90s American comics creator so clearly lay out the sorts of things he was reading and influenced by！ I think that like the stuff he cites--Eisner， Kirby， Tezuka， Barks， Hergé--are probably the sorts of things that a lot of creators at this time were influenced by， so it is interesting to see how that history reverberated into the 80s and 90s indie comics boom。 。。。more
Vy （thelibrocubicularist）
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I've taken art theory/history classes since high school all the way up to uni， and I wish this book had been part of the curriculum。 The question "What is art？" is an overwhelming one， but McCloud does an impressive job of explaining the history， purpose and major directions of art and comics without getting stuck in the weeds。 I learned some new things， and enjoyed the straightforward illustrations。 Entertaining， succinct， and obviously written with a lot of love for the visual medium。 I enjoye I've taken art theory/history classes since high school all the way up to uni， and I wish this book had been part of the curriculum。 The question "What is art？" is an overwhelming one， but McCloud does an impressive job of explaining the history， purpose and major directions of art and comics without getting stuck in the weeds。 I learned some new things， and enjoyed the straightforward illustrations。 Entertaining， succinct， and obviously written with a lot of love for the visual medium。 I enjoyed this very much， and I'm sure it will be one of those books I'll take off the shelf once in a while just to skim through a chapter or two。 I might even recommend it my partner， who always claims he doesn't "understand" art！ 。。。more
Lucas Hubert
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Je m'attendais à lire une petite BD sur l'histoire et la technique des comics。 Mais non， Understanding Comics， c'est beaucoup plus que ça。 J'ai fais des cours de philosophie esthétique à l'université， et les textes moyens que j'y ai lus étaient pour la plupart moins complets， moins exhaustifs et moins analytiques que cela。McCloud y développe une théorie intéressante de l'histoire de l'Art， tant visuel que littéraire， avant même de définir et de développer sur les comics。 Il fait remonter les pre Je m'attendais à lire une petite BD sur l'histoire et la technique des comics。 Mais non， Understanding Comics， c'est beaucoup plus que ça。 J'ai fais des cours de philosophie esthétique à l'université， et les textes moyens que j'y ai lus étaient pour la plupart moins complets， moins exhaustifs et moins analytiques que cela。McCloud y développe une théorie intéressante de l'histoire de l'Art， tant visuel que littéraire， avant même de définir et de développer sur les comics。 Il fait remonter les premières BD à il y a 5 millénaires。 La BD， se définissant comme un art séquentiel， serait donc plus vieille même que l'écriture。Les BD franco-belges et les mangas japonais y sont largement discutés， même si l'auteur est américain。 Mais les principaux défis que le médium doit relever sont américains， car les comics ne sont pas pris au sérieux。 （Le livre date de 1992， la situation a tout de même évolué）。 L'un de ces défis vient du fait que l'histoire de l'art tend à diviser les genres。 Les arts visuels et les littératures ont chacun leurs propres histoires qui ne se croisent que rarement， et le monde de la publicité s'est quasi arrogé le monopole de la rencontre des mots et des images， ternissant l'image des comics。Bref， Understanding Comics est un essai littéraire sous forme de BD， qui devrait être lu par quiconque prend les comics au sérieux。 。。。more
Nik
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But between panels， none of our sense are required at all。Which is why all of our senses are engaged！
Kristian
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Scott McCloud talks directly to the reader， giving a guided tour of comics history， artist techniques and more。 The book presents its information in an incredibly engaging way。The book is well-drawn， the visuals are creative and complement the narrative well。Scott McCloud is a comic lover; the book is an ode to comics。 After you finish the book， you will have a greater awareness of the power of comics， which will probably make you want to revisit comics you already love， seek out new comics or e Scott McCloud talks directly to the reader， giving a guided tour of comics history， artist techniques and more。 The book presents its information in an incredibly engaging way。The book is well-drawn， the visuals are creative and complement the narrative well。Scott McCloud is a comic lover; the book is an ode to comics。 After you finish the book， you will have a greater awareness of the power of comics， which will probably make you want to revisit comics you already love， seek out new comics or even make your own。I found some parts in the middle， gruelling and slow as the author went into excessive detail， but the last two chapters blew me away and made me pause before the end to savour the last moments in fear of the book ending。I find the comparison between western and Japanese comics fascinating。I recommend the book to anyone who has read comics and enjoyed them， the book serves well as a springboard for those considered making comics but also many of the principles apply to other fields of creativity。Favourite quotes“Art， as I see it， is any human activity which doesn’t grow out of either of our species’ two basic instincts: survival and reproduction。”“。。。when you look at a photo or realistic drawing of a face， you see it as the face of another 。 But when you enter the world of the cartoon ， you see yourself。” 。。。more
Jean R。
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McCloud's walk through of comics is an excellent way to introduce comics to everyone。 His book shows the fun， but painstaking labor that is put into each panel frame。 Comics are not just for children， they are a tool to express ideas。I also recommed the "How to Draw Manga" series。 Volume #2 is the screen-tones edition。 Volume #6 is the martial arts， action sceens。 #8 Super Basics is perspectives and layouts。 The Color Special shows how to air brush。 #26 Making Anime。 #30 Pen Techniques。 #37 Macr McCloud's walk through of comics is an excellent way to introduce comics to everyone。 His book shows the fun， but painstaking labor that is put into each panel frame。 Comics are not just for children， they are a tool to express ideas。I also recommed the "How to Draw Manga" series。 Volume #2 is the screen-tones edition。 Volume #6 is the martial arts， action sceens。 #8 Super Basics is perspectives and layouts。 The Color Special shows how to air brush。 #26 Making Anime。 #30 Pen Techniques。 #37 Macromedia Flash。McCloud's best work is "Zot！" I like this one because it set in a parallel future world that should have existed if America hadn't embraced hate。 。。。more
Yan Zhao
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Pretty good meta review of how comics operate。 Sometimes it felt a little overbearing on the "comics are important too" bit， but otherwise had insightful information。 Pretty good meta review of how comics operate。 Sometimes it felt a little overbearing on the "comics are important too" bit， but otherwise had insightful information。 。。。more
Sean
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It was like taking a casual charming little art class。McCloud has created an in-depth （and widely encompassing） definition of what comics are。 He also showed what potential they still have for evolution in the future。 In the process he goes as far back in history as he can to explore the meanings， usage and beginnings of both words and images。 The reader is taken on a tour of the various styles of comics and how they relate to the discoveries of the various eras of art history。I like how McCloud It was like taking a casual charming little art class。McCloud has created an in-depth （and widely encompassing） definition of what comics are。 He also showed what potential they still have for evolution in the future。 In the process he goes as far back in history as he can to explore the meanings， usage and beginnings of both words and images。 The reader is taken on a tour of the various styles of comics and how they relate to the discoveries of the various eras of art history。I like how McCloud could really drill down into the nitty-gritty of the philosophies and the purposes of comics and the other arts in our lives。 。。。more
BookOtheDay
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Gets a little heady and fast towards the end， but full of fascinating ideas。 So glad I heard of this。 Great book。
Cordelia Coen
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Still an excellent primer almost 30 years later on how to get the most out of graphic novels， how to analyze and break down the many elements and overall an inspiring case for the power and beauty of the comics mediumUnfortunately comics themselves are also still undervalued and i appreciated making my way through this for a class and think that i will come back to this in future years of my time with graphic novels
Kasey
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I had to read this for one of my university classes。 While I found the author a tad longwinded in the first third of the book， it was overall an incredibly interesting read！ I loved learning more about the history of comics， as well as their structure and syntax （i。e。 how pictures and gutters combine with words and line work give the stories closure and unique grammar）。Overall， a fun read！
Otto
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A great start when starting to study comics， or more rightly 'sequential art'。 It helped me to see the potential in the medium and read with a more critical eye。 The tone and presentation keeps you entertained while also demonstrating McCloud's points as he goes - a brilliant move to use the medium itself when this could have been written as a cold slab of text。A major thing I've learnt from this book is that realism in art style shouldn't always be the aim - there's power in the straightforward A great start when starting to study comics， or more rightly 'sequential art'。 It helped me to see the potential in the medium and read with a more critical eye。 The tone and presentation keeps you entertained while also demonstrating McCloud's points as he goes - a brilliant move to use the medium itself when this could have been written as a cold slab of text。A major thing I've learnt from this book is that realism in art style shouldn't always be the aim - there's power in the straightforward communication of cartoons。 。。。more
Sam Porozok
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Very informative， really cool visuals
Alina Alvarez
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I know significantly more about comics and am much more interested in comics than before reading this， so I would call that a success。
Ciel
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