Understanding Scott McCloud's "Understanding Comics"

This is some quality stuff, I've got to say. Concise, clear, and humorous as well; that's pretty much all I could ask for in an explanation, and especially so in one that's over a hundred pages long (though that might at first appear to go against "concise"). I don't mind the length, though, when the subject matter is interesting or the narrative is appealing. I'm not too sure if you can really call what I'm reading a narrative, but sure as hell I want to see what the main character does next in a long sequence of events, so it's close enough for me.

One thing that I really appreciate in McCloud's work is something that I'm sure has been said by literally everyone who's read "Understanding Comics" -- his use of the comic to explain the comic is phenomenal. The juxtaposition of film's use of time to comics' use of space, the effect of simplification on the viewer, and the idea of contrasting a simple character against a detailed background to more easily relate to the character are all explained superbly with visual aides and written word. Never once did I have to think "wait, I must've missed something..." and turn back a page to try to re-process something McCloud told me, which I must admit I tend to do frequently when reading a textbook, novel, or even watching a tutorial on youtube.

Just the way that McCloud is able to convey what one would initially think are complex scientific processes in a page covered with a few lines is beyond me. I wouldn't have ever thought that the reason for the human brain being able to relate to simplified figures better than realistic ones would be that the mind thinks of the body's own face in abstraction. Not only is that downright fascinating, but it really changes the way I think about using the tool of simplification. As a game artist, it really reminds me of the environments in Jonathan Blow's new game, 'The Witness'. Apparently the art team is really focused on stripping away any unnecessary details in the landscapes and textures, giving the viewers only color, silhouette, lighting information, and the occasional bold addition like a fissure or fold. Even though you're actually looking at less than you'd see in your standard AAA game title, the environments feel like they're teeming with life and positively exploding with realistic beauty.

I bet McCloud would be proud (assuming he even cares about games).

-Will Avery