Superheroes: The Endgame - Review of Superhero Movies

Comic book movies can’t decide whether superheroes are human or posthuman, but either way they have reached a dead end.

30 años de La Crónica de Leodegundo: aproximación a la gran saga de la historieta histórica española

RESUMEN: En 1991 vio la fecha de venta al público el inicio de una de las más importantes sagas de la historieta histórica española. Marcada por una palpable consulta de estudios y fuentes históricas, convirtió en su autor, Gaspar Meana, en uno de los mejores y más prolíficos autores de tebeos del género en España. Originalmente, una serie de desatinos a la hora de su comercialización le hizo difícil su difusión en la mayoría del público lector de historieta español que ahora ve una segunda oportunidad gracias a la reedición por una universidad española, garante de la soberbia calidad del título. Pese a que los amantes del género conocen o saben de su existencia, los estudios sobre cómic no han podido sino hacer aproximaciones ligeras a la obra precisamente por su gran extensión. Nuestro estudio pretende recopilar comentarios de la crítica de cómic acerca La Crónica de Leodegundo en el 30.º aniversario de su publicación y profundizar en ella mediante una aproximación al estudio de sus páginas como un documento desde la óptica de la corriente de la Historia de la Cultura Escrita. ABSTRACT: In 1991 the release date to the public saw the beginning of one of the most important sagas of the Spanish historical comic strip. Distinguished by an obvious consultation of studies and historical sources, its author, Gaspar Meana, became one of the best and the most prolific author of comics of the genre in Spain. Originally, a series of mistakes at the time of its commercialization made it difficult for it to be known among the majority of the Spanish comic reading public. Nowadays it sees a second chance thanks to the reprinting by a Spanish university, guarantor of the superb quality of the title. Despite the fact that lovers of the genre know or they are aware of its existence, studies on comics have only been able to make light approaches to the work precisely because of its great extension. Our study aims to compile commentary from comic book critics about La Crónica de Leodegundo on the 30th anniversary of its publication and to deepen it through an approach to the study of its pages as a document from the perspective of the current of the History of Written Culture

Polska klasyfikacja rodzajów i typów stylizacji językowej jako narzędzie opisu wybranych zagadnień stylistyki japońskiej

Celem niniejszego artykułu jest odniesienie polskiej klasyfikacji stylizacji językowej przeprowadzonej przez Dubisza (1996: 17-20) do pewnych ustaleń z zakresu badań nad stylistyką języka japońskiego. Wspomniany wyżej polski podział stylizacji językowych zastosowano w celu opisu stylistyki języka mówionego, który został utrwalony w tekście jako zapis rozmów oraz dialogów postaci literackich i komiksowych. Dwie spośród pięciu klas stylizacji wydzielonych przez Dubisza zostały wykorzystane w celu rozpatrzenia wyników badań nad stylistyką japońskich gatunków multimodalnych (Kinsui, Yamakido 2015). Japońskie stylizacje językowe rozważono pod kątem wpływu cech indywidualnych postaci na style językowe oraz multimodalnego charakteru komiksu i powieści ilustrowanej. Podjęcie tej próby umożliwiło wydzielenie pewnych innowacji w obrębie istniejącej polskiej klasyfikacji stylizacji językowej. Polish classification of the varieties and types of speech stylization as a tool for addressing selected areas of Japanese stylistics Summary: The aim of this study is to apply the classification of speech stylization proposed by Dubisz (1996: 17-20) to some findings reported on in studies on Japanese stylistics. The classification was utilized to describe the stylistics of spoken language, transcribed into text as a record of the utterances of fictional characters in Japanese literature and comic books. Two out of five classes of stylizations defined by Dubisz were used as reference points for reviewing the results of studies on the stylistics of Japanese multimodal genres (Kinsui, Yamakido 2015). Japanese speech stylizations were evaluated with regard to the impact of individual traits of characters on their speech styles and to the multimodal nature of genres such as comic book and illustrated book. This attempt has led to the proposal of some innovations in the Polish classification of speech stylizations.

Posthumanizm i „syntezoidalny mimetyzm” w komiksie „Vision” Toma Kinga i Gabriela Hernandeza Walty

Cultural texts on the subject of posthuman can be found long before the post-anthropocentric turn in humanistic research. Literary explanations of posthumanism have entered the conventional canon not only in terms of the science-fiction classics. However, a different line follows the tradition of presenting posthumanist existence in the comic book medium. Scott Jeffrey accurately notes that most comic superheroes are post- or trans-human. Therefore, the transgression of human existence into a posthumanoid being is presented. However, in the case of the less culturally recognizable character of Vision, a synthezoid from the Marvel’s Avengers team, combining the body of the android and human consciousness, the vector of transgression is reversed. This article is an attempt to analyze the way the humanization process of this hero is narrative in the Vision series of screenwriter Tom King and cartoonist Gabriel Hernandez Walta. On the one hand, King mimetic reproduces the sociological panorama of American suburbs, showing the process of adaptation of the synthesoid family to the realities of full-time work and neighborly intercourse, on the other, he emphasizes the robotic limits of Vision humanization. Ultimately, the narrative line follows the cracks between these two plans, allowing King to present, with the help of inhuman heroes, one of the most human stories in the Marvel superhero universe.

Korozja władzy. Dystopijna zapowiedź przyszłości w komiksie „Sędzia Dredd. Ameryka” (1990) Johna Wagnera i Colina MacNeila

The article draws out the parallels between the story presented in Judge Dredd: America (1990) and the contemporary events taking place on the streets of the United States. The comic book itself takes place in the dystopian setting of Mega City One which deprives its citizens of freedom, self-determination, and takes away their hope for a better tomorrow. The immigrants, presented in the comic book, who are dreaming of realizing their American Dream, instead, fi nd themselves living an American nightmare. The similarities between the comic book and the previously published V for Vendetta are noted, as both novels have had a strong influence on the deheroisation of the protagonist of a superhero comic book, particularly in relation to the European comic book (1985–1990). Here, the morally ambiguous figure of Judge Dredd is relegated to the background, and the plot itself, as well as further research discussion, focuses on the characters of America Jara and her friend, Bennett Beeny. Their friendship significantly affects the story and the ultimate fate of America. Both of them are harmed by the system based on the superiority of the Judges, whose attitude is often reminiscent of the current actions of the American police, which is particularly interesting in the context of contemporary movements like Black Lives Matter. The authors of Judge Dredd: America provoke their readers to ask questions about the meaning of freedom, the place of an individual in a society whose actions are normalized and restricted by law, and even to rebellion against an oppressive authority. The article concludes by considering the meaning of democracy in modern socjety.

Aspiration and the Violence of Gentrification in Marvel’s Luke Cage

This article analyzes the cultural politics of gentrification as they are deployed in the Netflix series Marvel’s Luke Cage. Based on the comic book character, Luke Cage, who was created in response to the popularity of the 1970s blaxploitation films, and the Black Power movement, the television series portrays a Black superhero who defends contemporary Harlem and its people from crime and exploitation. Critically recognized and widely watched during its first airing from 2016 to 2018, Luke Cage was a breakthrough television series that not only centered a Black superhero but directed itself to Black experience and public dialogue during the time of Black Life Matters. The Harlem portrayed in Luke Cage is both a specific community, and a virtual invocation of Black community aspiration, and the structural violence of gentrification. The violent emotions and displacement of gentrification that are presented in the series represent a form of intramural dialogue between the Black creatives working on the show and the broader Black public that is engaging with the long-time debates around the meaning and future of Harlem.

Competing Fantasies and Alternative Realities: Salman Rushdie's The Golden House

This article examines one of the earliest novels of the Trump era, Salman Rushdie's The Golden House (2017), as part of a literary corpus that felt compelled to respond to the derealization of political culture by producing fictions commensurate to the new “American reality.” Spanning the years from the first inauguration of Obama to the election of Trump, the novel depicts a nation that has “left reality behind and entered the comic-book universe,” a turn to fantasy that precedes the final irruption of a wealthy vulgarian who calls himself the Joker, and who subverts any previous sense of identity and of what is “real.” Drawing from the notion of national fantasy as argued by Lauren Berlant (1991), Jacqueline Rose (1996), and Donald Pease (2009), the article suggests that Rushdie's novel performs and invites a rare self-examination in the context of early literary responses to the rise of Trumpism.

A parameter guide for developing webcomics focused on small screen reading

There is a noticeable gap in academic studies between comic books and hypermedia. On the one hand, are found several publications on both printed and digital comic books. On the other hand, are publications aimed at media and technologies for content usability for small screen devices. Therefore, this study focuses on the development of comic books for small screen device reading. A parameter guide for the so-called Webtoons was developed, based on theoretical foundation, observation of webcomics in this style on content platforms, and 3 phases of qualitative field research. The research included interviews with comic artists, comic book professionals, and, seeking successive refinement, the guide's presentation to students as educational material.