What Are Digital Comics?
Scanned Copies, Webcomics, Motion Comics are All Digital Comic Books
Oct 6, 2009
In recent years, digital comics have emerged as an alternative to conventional comic books. Digital comics can be most narrowly defined as comics which are not only created solely by digital means – that is, using computer software instead of pen-and-ink drawings – but also distributed in the same way.
But defining digital comics is not always simple, as there are a number of types of comics which are considered digital comics – to varying degrees. These can include scanned comics, webcomics, and motion comics.
Digital Comics Scanned From Comic Books
Many digital comics are simply digital versions of regular comic books, scanned so that they can be stored and read on a computer. Scanned digital comics are often illegal copies, though comics publishers have taken to releasing comics in supplemental digital versions as well.
Digital comics are available in common file formats like .pdf, though they can also come in formats, such as .cbr or .cbz, designed for comic book reader applications. More recently, publishers have specifically been reformatting and reissuing comics for the iPhone and other mobile devices.
Webcomics and Other Paperless Comic Books
During the current decline of print media, comic strips and editorial cartoons are finding new life as webcomics. These are comics meant to be read exclusively in a web browser. Yet webcomics need not be purely digital. Much like their comic-book counterparts, many cartoonists still favor conventional media for drawing their comics, preferring only to publish digitally.
Webcomics often have some sort of interactive feature, such as only revealing speech balloons when the reader moves his or her cursor over a panel. Sam and Max: The Big Sleep, by Steve Purcell, is one such webcomic, which went on to win the Eisner Award for Best Digital Comic in 2007.
Motion Comics in the Digital Age
The most technologically sophisticated digital comics are motion comics, which bridge the gap between conventional comic books and cartoons. Motion comics can have voice acting, music, and sound effects, but (like flash games) have limited animation. They're simpler to produce than full animation and, with smaller resulting file sizes, easier to distribute online.
Motion comics are often adapted from conventional comics. Marvel's much-hyped new Spider-Woman series comes in both formats, for instance, though there are some slight content differences between the print issues and motion comics releases.
However, motion comics actually predate digital media. Good examples of what are now called motion comics can be found in the documentary Comic Book Confidential (1988), directed by Ron Mann. The film features a number of semi-animated versions of seminal comics, from Stan Lee voicing the origin of Spider-Man to macabre vignettes by artists Shary Flenniken or Charles Burns.
Digital Comics Serve Different Purposes
Digital comics can encompass a number of different comic book forms. What scans, webcomics, and motion comics all share is that, whatever they may have been adapted from, they are published for viewing on a computer or other digital device.
Ultimately, different kinds of digital comics each serve a unique purpose. Scans are an alternate way to distribute and read conventional comics, webcomics provide a venue for comics which might otherwise not reach a wide audience, and motion comics translate comics directly into a cinematic form.
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