Understanding Comics: 8 key ideas
The core ideas of Understanding Comics, each in under a minute, written in our own words. Want the full depth? Get the book.
- IDEA 1 OF 8
Comics are a serious art form
McCloud, writing in comic form himself, argues that comics are a powerful medium deserving serious study.
He defines them as images placed in deliberate sequence to tell stories or convey information.
- IDEA 2 OF 8
Readers fill the gaps
McCloud explains closure, the way readers imagine what happens between panels.
The space between panels, he argues, is where much of the meaning is created. In his view, the reader's mind connects separate images into a single flowing story.
- IDEA 3 OF 8
Simple faces invite identification
McCloud argues that simple, cartoon faces let readers identify with characters more easily than realistic ones.
In his view, the simpler the face, the more of the reader's own feeling flows into it.
- IDEA 4 OF 8
Styles range across a spectrum
McCloud describes a picture plane, a map of drawing styles from realistic to abstract to iconic.
In his view, this map helps show how an artist's choice of style changes what readers focus on, whether the idea or the look.
- IDEA 5 OF 8
Space represents time
McCloud explains that in comics, time is shown through space.
Panel size and spacing control pace. In his view, a long wide panel can slow a moment down, while a small quick one can speed it up, so layout shapes how time feels.
- IDEA 6 OF 8
Transitions follow patterns
McCloud identifies types of transitions between panels, such as moment to moment and scene to scene.
In his account, the type of jump chosen affects how much the reader must imagine and how fast the story moves.
- IDEA 7 OF 8
Words and pictures combine
McCloud explains the many ways words and images can work together.
In his account, words can repeat what the picture shows or add something the picture cannot, and different mixes create different effects. This interplay is central.
- IDEA 8 OF 8
The medium has great potential
McCloud argues that comics can express any idea and should be taken seriously.
In his view, the combination of images and words has a power that is often underrated. He sees comics as capable of serious work.
Get one idea like this every daySwipe through ideas, go deeper on any of them, and save the ones that matter. Free.
Read Understanding Comics in the app