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Crying Freedom
In this paragraph, I will limit myself to a characteristic trait of the isolated plates, which pertain to the micro-story level. Transformation and instability are not only keywords when page layout is concerned. The graphic style of each individual manga plate is also marked by a high degree of variation. Manga plates can be quite heterogeneous in their stylistic make-up, due to the mixture of different drawing styles. Elements of decor follow a different visual 'logic' than the characters (Groensteen 1991: 47). While story actors might be depicted in a realistic or as more or less caricatures, the story setting is represented in what one may characterize as a 'photographic' style. Story characters seem not to be part of the story universe when judging the seeming incomparability of styles. The depiction of strong sentiments with manga actors also follows a certain logic of transformation. It is perfectly possible for a certain 'realistically' portrayed character to turn 'cartoony' when affected by strong emotions (see ill. 2). Moreover, it seems that story characters lack definite ethnic characteristics. In some cases, it is impossible (and irrelevant) to decide if a manga character is either eastern or western. Despite his Japanese sounding name, Yo Hinomura (alias Crying Freeman) does not strike the reader as 'visually' very Japanese (see ill. 1). His visual identity is rather ambiguous. Crying Freeman could be Asian or even Spanish for that matter, doubtlessly adding to the mystery surrounding the protagonist. Incidentally, Christophe Gans, director of the film version of Crying Freeman, interpreted the protagonist as someone resembling 'une espèce de torero, qu'il ait une gr�ce d'hidalgo espagnol dont les femmes tomberaient instantanément amoureuses'. At other occasions he spoke of 'a mixture of Bruce Lee and Alain Delon'. He eventually chose Mark Dacascos for the leading role. (Martinez 1996: 40-42)
ill. 2 A 'cartoony' explosion of emotion of the protagonist of "Dominion" (Shirow 1996)
ill. 2 A 'cartoony' explosion of emotion of the protagonist of "Dominion" (Shirow 1996)
Sometimes only subtle details such as hair color or clothing mark the difference between characters, making it necessary for the reader to be acquainted with the manga reading code in order to keep up with the story. 'Realistic' artists such as Otomo or Shirato are exceptional and their approach fits more closely within the western paradigm of individual style. Shirow, for instance, works without assistants thus moving closer towards the western ideal of 'authenticity'. In his work, there is no discrepancy between a photographic background and more stylized figures, although caricature does feature in his manga (see ill. 2). The code of representation in manga is highly unstable, this in sharp contrast with Euro-American comics. In Western rhetoric, the 'attachment' to a notion such as 'personal style' condemns such mixture of visual language, as the true ('high') artist is supposed to testify to an individual sensibility through an individual style of imagery.
4. A Case of Cross-over: Pope and Boilet
Manga is a subsystem within the 'ninth art's' polysystem, thereby competing with the subsystems of American and European comics. The dynamics between these results in conversions, which can be catalogued as exchanges of narrative techniques. In this paragraph I will focus on some transformations within the work of Euro-American artists, viz. Frédéric Boilet and Paul Pope. Within the western comics' subsystem, manga represents a peripheral phenomenon exerting pressure on the 'canonical' techniques of European and American art. In the works of Boilet and Pope, some of these 'peripheral' manga elements have influenced their own approach to comics' creation.
In 1997, The One Trick Rip Off was published and in his foreword Pope states that 'two Japanese manga artists . Junichi Nojo and King Gonta . helped me open up my page lay-outs and reconsider how to approach different aspects of image-making within the panels. Gone are the tight, four-tiered 'European' page lay-outs' (1997: 5).
ill. 3Visualisation of sound and cut-foff plates in Paul Pope's "The One Trick Ripp Off" (1997)
ill. 3Visualisation of sound and cut-foff plates in Paul Pope's "The One Trick Ripp Off" (1997)
Indeed, the latest works of Paul Pope testify to an intensification of the visual narrative layer. The page layouts are more dynamic and the techniques of analytical montage feature prominently. Striking is that at certain times the top of the frames is cut off - a place conventionally reserved for captioned texts. Is this a case of symbolic violence to the extradiegetic voice? In any case, due to the discarding of extradiegetic narration, an uninterrupted diegesis is achieved. All textual information is provided in the form of dialogue. Furthermore, the use of English onomatopoeia strikes one as highly visualized. As in manga, these signs are not only verbal in nature, but do also function iconically as they are an integral part of the visual configuration of the micro-story (see ill. 3).
ill. 4 Boilet's "Tokyo est mon jardin": Japanese and French texts combined with a 'European' page lay-out (1997)
ill. 4 Boilet's "Tokyo est mon jardin": Japanese and French texts combined with a 'European' page lay-out (1997)
It is precisely in his use of original Japanese onomatopoeia that gives the work of Boilet a decidedly Japanese look. Not only does he use Japanese sound icons, he also uses Japanese in his text balloons as in Love Hôtel and Tôkyô est mon jardin. More significant is that Boilet also refrains from inserting any extradiegetic voice, thus avoiding the prototypical double enunciation. However, Boilet does use captions, but these serve an intradiegetic function - viz. as dialogue texts without the speaker being depicted in the frame. They really function as balloons. However, Boilet does not make extensive use of analytical montage. His page layouts follow a certain regular pattern and can therefore be termed 'European' (see ill. 4).
Conclusion
The impact of manga on European and American comics' production is on the rise. This increase of influence can be linked to the growing success of manga in France and America especially, where there is a certain tradition with regards to translation, distribution and marketing of this particular art form. The influence on American and European artists manifests itself on the fringe of the comics' system and manifests itself in a more visual and textually less mediated manner of narration.
© by badass girl😎.
ill. 2 A 'cartoony' explosion of emotion of the protagonist of "Dominion" (Shirow 1996)
ill. 2 A 'cartoony' explosion of emotion of the protagonist of "Dominion" (Shirow 1996)
Sometimes only subtle details such as hair color or clothing mark the difference between characters, making it necessary for the reader to be acquainted with the manga reading code in order to keep up with the story. 'Realistic' artists such as Otomo or Shirato are exceptional and their approach fits more closely within the western paradigm of individual style. Shirow, for instance, works without assistants thus moving closer towards the western ideal of 'authenticity'. In his work, there is no discrepancy between a photographic background and more stylized figures, although caricature does feature in his manga (see ill. 2). The code of representation in manga is highly unstable, this in sharp contrast with Euro-American comics. In Western rhetoric, the 'attachment' to a notion such as 'personal style' condemns such mixture of visual language, as the true ('high') artist is supposed to testify to an individual sensibility through an individual style of imagery.
4. A Case of Cross-over: Pope and Boilet
Manga is a subsystem within the 'ninth art's' polysystem, thereby competing with the subsystems of American and European comics. The dynamics between these results in conversions, which can be catalogued as exchanges of narrative techniques. In this paragraph I will focus on some transformations within the work of Euro-American artists, viz. Frédéric Boilet and Paul Pope. Within the western comics' subsystem, manga represents a peripheral phenomenon exerting pressure on the 'canonical' techniques of European and American art. In the works of Boilet and Pope, some of these 'peripheral' manga elements have influenced their own approach to comics' creation.
In 1997, The One Trick Rip Off was published and in his foreword Pope states that 'two Japanese manga artists . Junichi Nojo and King Gonta . helped me open up my page lay-outs and reconsider how to approach different aspects of image-making within the panels. Gone are the tight, four-tiered 'European' page lay-outs' (1997: 5).
ill. 3Visualisation of sound and cut-foff plates in Paul Pope's "The One Trick Ripp Off" (1997)
ill. 3Visualisation of sound and cut-foff plates in Paul Pope's "The One Trick Ripp Off" (1997)
Indeed, the latest works of Paul Pope testify to an intensification of the visual narrative layer. The page layouts are more dynamic and the techniques of analytical montage feature prominently. Striking is that at certain times the top of the frames is cut off - a place conventionally reserved for captioned texts. Is this a case of symbolic violence to the extradiegetic voice? In any case, due to the discarding of extradiegetic narration, an uninterrupted diegesis is achieved. All textual information is provided in the form of dialogue. Furthermore, the use of English onomatopoeia strikes one as highly visualized. As in manga, these signs are not only verbal in nature, but do also function iconically as they are an integral part of the visual configuration of the micro-story (see ill. 3).
ill. 4 Boilet's "Tokyo est mon jardin": Japanese and French texts combined with a 'European' page lay-out (1997)
ill. 4 Boilet's "Tokyo est mon jardin": Japanese and French texts combined with a 'European' page lay-out (1997)
It is precisely in his use of original Japanese onomatopoeia that gives the work of Boilet a decidedly Japanese look. Not only does he use Japanese sound icons, he also uses Japanese in his text balloons as in Love Hôtel and Tôkyô est mon jardin. More significant is that Boilet also refrains from inserting any extradiegetic voice, thus avoiding the prototypical double enunciation. However, Boilet does use captions, but these serve an intradiegetic function - viz. as dialogue texts without the speaker being depicted in the frame. They really function as balloons. However, Boilet does not make extensive use of analytical montage. His page layouts follow a certain regular pattern and can therefore be termed 'European' (see ill. 4).
Conclusion
The impact of manga on European and American comics' production is on the rise. This increase of influence can be linked to the growing success of manga in France and America especially, where there is a certain tradition with regards to translation, distribution and marketing of this particular art form. The influence on American and European artists manifests itself on the fringe of the comics' system and manifests itself in a more visual and textually less mediated manner of narration.
© by badass girl😎.
