The Philippine Online Chronicles

The Need for Komix Kriticism

The only accurate measure of the greatness of a work of art is how effectively it changes and clarifies our understanding of Art itself. Art itself is an enterprise founded on creative explorations of subjective truths, thus a comparison of two works of art, if left unchecked, often turns into a comparative analysis of two or more subjective truths, and the politics of comparison implies that one of the two is better than the other – a judgment that is mainly subjective, thus potentially inaccurate if not today then tomorrow, but it is a necessary sin to commit in our efforts to understand not only the work of art but also Art itself, its function and effectivity, the clarity of its message, if only to learn from its failures and successes, if only to stand a chance in securing its future. If we mean for it to grow and survive, we need to understand it, to see it clearer in our minds. Anything less than that is criminal.

If Art is the dialogue Society has with itself, then Criticism is the evaluation of the quality and clarity of that conversation. Any art form worth its salt evaluates itself constantly if it has any desire to thrive and survive. It discards old ideas, builds new ones, repolishes and refurbishes concepts that have grown dull and uninteresting due to overuse. Art’s progress is a cycle of constant discovery and rediscovery. Such is its way to continue to be relevant to the society that shapes it. Anything less than that is criminal.

Komix has always been an Art wanting to mature. Komix has always been an Art wanting to be taken seriously. Only, Komix has always been an Art not wanting to ask itself just what it is for, what it could potentially be about, preferring to remain being mainly a geeky hobbyist fandom thing, a pastime enjoyed behind closed doors, driven by nostalgia, shelved in between custom toy making and cosplay, barely the lifeblood of a budding artform. If Komix hopes to elevate itself overall as Art, as Literature, as a Thing worthy of any shade of acclaim, it must set loftier goals for itself more than mere evocation of a lost childhood, to outgrow its origin as a form with an aesthetic founded on mimicry of foreign iconography. Anything less than that is criminal.

Most discussion about the success and vibrant life of Komix as an art form has relied heavily on purely mercenary concerns – page rates, royalties, ownership, and ultimately, TV and movie rights – when Komix production is less about financial security as drawing is less about accuracy in anatomy: if Komix is indeed Art, it is first and foremost Communication, it is first and foremost an effort to articulate abstract concepts and ideas from one brain to another, giving these abstractions form and shape to make them physically exist outside of one’s own head. Thus any analysis of the success and vibrant life of Komix as an artform should rely heavily on its capacity as a medium of communication, on the clarity of its articulation, on the stability of the form and shape of previously-abstract concepts as they pass on from one brain to another. Anything less than that is criminal.

The forthcoming essays from the essay series Point & Line are directed towards exactly that: a development of analyses of Komix as an artform, a regular stream of hopefully lucid articulations of counterpoints to the pervasive mercenary concerns and the geeky hobbyist fandom chatter monopolizing Komix conversation. The intent is not to discard the economics from the production of Komix – the economics is so absolutely pertinent to its production that it is actually hardwired on the artform’s very aesthetic and form since the beginning – instead, the intent is to offer and explore other – not necessarily new, although there will be those, too – ways to talk about Komix. Anything less than that is criminal.

The future success and vibrant life of Komix as an art form does not lie on professional draftsmanship, or on international acclaim, or on financial success from the cashing in on the TV and movie rights of the property: such assessments are narrow and selfish, points that lead nowhere but to the self. The future success and vibrant life of Komix as an art form lies in conversation, in the discussion it produces, in the analyses it invites. It lies in the dialogue it is having with us, in the dialogue we are having with it. Anything less than that is criminal.