I have to admit, I'm a Harry Potter fan. Sorry. I said it. It's so ridiculous but those sort of films are right up my alley. I have read a couple of the books and they're just as entertaining as the movies. After typing this I can't help but feel like punching myself in the kidneys.
But it's TRUE. I like Harry.
And with the impending release of the final volume in the Harry Potter series, parents are up in arms due to a hint that our favorite bespectacled wizard (Sorry Gandolf...yer in second) might not be breathing when all is said and done. I would understand if parents were just upset cause they loved the character. I could get behind the argument that good should conquer evil, even if it's a far cry from reality.
But the fact of the matter is this: Parents are worried it will scar their kids.
SCAR THEIR KIDS?!?!
Look, this all leads me back to my old rants about the lack of real parenting. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and I hope that someone can come up with an argument about this. Not because I think I have an air-tight opinion, but because I think it deserves discussion. I truly believe we are raising our kids to fail. We're raising them to settle. We're raising them to accept mediocrity.
Good example: My kids played on a soccer league one summer. At the end of the league there was a little ceremony and EVERY team got a trophy. Twelve teams and they all got trophies. None of them said FIRST PLACE or THIRD or whatever. They all just said something to the affect of "Thanks for Playing."
Look, I know it's not fun to lose. And I know it's not fun to see your little kid upset because he/she isn't the next Pele' or Venus Williams. But if we award them across the board just for putting their shoes on walking onto the field, where is the incentive to get better? How do we teach sportsmanship without a lose or two?
Okay, I got off track...Harry Potter's possible death vs. Parents fear of emotional scarring. I don't know about you but I grew up watching lovable characters die. Bambi, Fox and the Hound, ET (okay he came back to life but it was still pretty upsetting). Hell, Disney cashed in on blasting characters!
So I say this to JK Rowling: KILL HARRY POTTER. Crash his broomstick into the ground. Light his dreamy hair on fire for all I care as long as THAT is what you planned to do. Don't bend to public opinion and don't assume the role of surrogate parent for these people
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Monday, July 2, 2007
Struggle Of The Ink
Sounds like a Sci-Fi thriller or something, doesn't it? 44 Union Avenue has been running on GoComics now for what...seven months? I believe it's almost that long. And in that short (or long depending on which end of the pen you're on) time I've been on a quest to use the GoComics as a sort of jumping-off platform to bigger and better things. Namely, Print Syndication.
I've had the luck and privilege to talk one-on-one with the editors at most of the syndicates. I won't say ALL but most of the information I've received in my run-ins with them has been priceless.
What have I learned:
- The major syndicates have no clue how to handle comics on the internet. This isn't me taking a jab at them. This is the truth. I believe they're searching for a profit-making venture on the internet to continue where the waning sales of newspapers are leaving off. But the problem I see is this: You're not going to make money off something that folks can get for free. That's the simple condensed answer.
- Comic strips don't necessarily need to be funny to be picked up. Yeah, humor is subjective...we have all heard that before. But it's my opinion that syndicates are looking for unique before they are looking for true humor. As with any product placement, they have demos they're trying to fill and when something comes along that is in that market arena they jump on it...whether it's funny or not. With that being said, there are some very interesting strips coming down the pipe just might cure what ails me regarding the release of strips we've seen lately. Namely: Cul De Sac, Little Dog Lost, What The Duck...Keep your eye out for these strips. They might be the next big hit.
I think every artist comes to the point in their "career" where they have to sort've stand back and ask themselves why they're doing what they do. I sometimes feel like I'm sliding towards that crossroads. There are so many different types of cartoonists out there. I would say that I fall somewhere in between the webcomic and the nerd aspiring for printed syndication. But the more I think about that second venture, I wonder how realistic the odds are.
There's that old saying: Be careful what you wish for...you just might get it. And I wonder if that would be the case in my situation. More to come on this tomorrow. Tune in, kids.
I've had the luck and privilege to talk one-on-one with the editors at most of the syndicates. I won't say ALL but most of the information I've received in my run-ins with them has been priceless.
What have I learned:
- The major syndicates have no clue how to handle comics on the internet. This isn't me taking a jab at them. This is the truth. I believe they're searching for a profit-making venture on the internet to continue where the waning sales of newspapers are leaving off. But the problem I see is this: You're not going to make money off something that folks can get for free. That's the simple condensed answer.
- Comic strips don't necessarily need to be funny to be picked up. Yeah, humor is subjective...we have all heard that before. But it's my opinion that syndicates are looking for unique before they are looking for true humor. As with any product placement, they have demos they're trying to fill and when something comes along that is in that market arena they jump on it...whether it's funny or not. With that being said, there are some very interesting strips coming down the pipe just might cure what ails me regarding the release of strips we've seen lately. Namely: Cul De Sac, Little Dog Lost, What The Duck...Keep your eye out for these strips. They might be the next big hit.
I think every artist comes to the point in their "career" where they have to sort've stand back and ask themselves why they're doing what they do. I sometimes feel like I'm sliding towards that crossroads. There are so many different types of cartoonists out there. I would say that I fall somewhere in between the webcomic and the nerd aspiring for printed syndication. But the more I think about that second venture, I wonder how realistic the odds are.
There's that old saying: Be careful what you wish for...you just might get it. And I wonder if that would be the case in my situation. More to come on this tomorrow. Tune in, kids.
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