New Monday Topic: Webcomis

Recently, I've been thinking about a film theory class I took in college.  One of my papers was on the writings of early film scholars who had to defend film as legitimate art.  Every time we discover a new medium, artists have to provide the same arguments.  I remember in my paper that I pointed out how today, video game creators are trying to prove that they are a legitimate art form.  I used Grand Theft Auto as an example.  Yes, it's fun, yes it's pretty violet, but it's also a great societal commentary--both the game itself and our reaction to it.

The internet creates the same kinds of problems.  Is blogging a legitimate way to get your views out there?  Or does your opinion only matter if you are a review columnist for the New York Times?  If you're a graphic artist creating stunning websites are you any less brilliant than the graphic artist creating billboards?  And do the vlogbrothers deserve less credit than House or Lost?  Honestly, I prefer Philip DeFranco to the Daily Show.

Lately, graphic novels have come to be accepted as legitimate books instead of just comic books for kids.  (And why wouldn't they be?  How AWESOME does The Umbrella Academy look?)  And I think webcomics are next in line to battle for "legitimacy".  I love webcomics and so I wanted to highlight a few over the next couple weeks.

Unshelved is a webcomic about a library that follows the librarians and patrons.  It's a great place to start if webcomics aren't usually your thing, because they love books as much as you do.

I love watching the librarians interact with bad patrons...

Used with permission.

...and they've got some great library tips:

Used with permission.

Besides their regular posts, Unshelved has book reviews (Book Club) and great comics (and merch) for banned books week every year.