Episode 23: Comic Studies-301: Course Syllabus

When everyone knows that you are a comics geek, it turns out people ask you quite often “so what should I be reading?” When your job is literally “be a comics geek” or moreover “teach other people to be a comics geek” then you get this question pretty much constantly. Since Wayne and Mav are both currently teaching college level comics classes (that are quite different from each other) we thought it would be neat to design a comics course for the show. But, so many of our listeners are already comic that it doesn’t make sense to just do a comics “Intro” class… so why not make a more advanced course? On this super-sized show, we are joined by a Who’s Who of the Official Guide to the Comics Educators (Deluxe Edition) from around the country including, Chris Gavaler, Joseph Darowski, A. David Lewis, and a returning Nicole Freim as we debate the books that you should be reading to further your well-rounded comics education. Which have you read? Do you agree with our picks? Why or why not? Let us know. And let us know if you end up picking up one of these on our recommendation and what you think. Citations and Links: * This episode’s Call for Comments * Course Prerequisites (Comics Studies-201): * Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons * Maus by Art Spiegelman * Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi * Fun Home by Alison Bechdel * Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud * Required Texts (Comic Studies-301): * One! Hundred! Demons! by Lynda Barry * Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth by Chris Ware * American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang * Blankets by Craig Thompson * Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli * Death: The High Cost of Living by Neil Gaiman and Chris Bachlo * Ms. Marvel vol. 1: No Normal by G. Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona, and Sara Pichelli * Batman: Arkham Asylum by Grant Morrison and Dave McKean * Black Hole by Charles Burns * Amelia Rules: The Whole World’s Crazy by Jimmy Gownley * The Vision: Little Worse Than a Man, Little Better Than a Beast by Tom King and Gabriel Hernandez Walta * (yes, your professors realize that’s eleven, not ten as we said in the episode… we teach literature, not math, and we made a mistake) * Extra Credit Reading/Independent Study Projects: * Kingdom Come by Mark Waid and Alex Ross *