The Forbidden Planet International Blog Log

The power of the pen has long been established. Mightier than the sword, they say. Well, that’s probably correct – but what about the power of the pencil? So – the dilemma begins.

We all know about Stan Lee and Jack Kirby: but we’re still unsure who did what, when and why. A bit like John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Just who did exactly what within those teams will never be answered because one member of each team is dead and the other says they were the major contributor. Well, most of the time.

(Halo Jones by Ian Gibson, (c) Rebellion)

And anybody can write words – right? (Well, maybe not, but hopefully they can write their own name. Hopefully). But how many people out there can actually draw? Draw those beautiful illustrations that we all look at in our comics and graphic novels. When is the last time you spent an hour looking at a word? Moreover, pictures were around long before words. Those drawings on the caves were put there by some caveman who didn’t know what words were (well, at least written words, they may have had oral language and spoken words – Joe). But he knew how to draw a picture of what he was looking at.

I was recently drooling over part three of the epic Halo Jones saga. A chicken and egg situation formed in my mind. Alan Moore wrote the words, clearly. He may have even come up with the concept. It may have been totally his idea with no input from anyone. But Alan quite rightly passed the illustrative side of the series to unquestionably the best artist for it – Ian Gibson, a 2000 AD stalwart who had previously lent such distinctive visual flair to Robo-Hunter and others.

So, point in question: Ian Gibson’s vision is clear and unique. His is the lingering image in the reader’s mind, even if Alan Moore told him what to draw. The actual dialogue is at best secondary, though I don’t discount their impact (especially when written by Moore).

(more of art droid Gibson’s beautiful artwork for Halo Jones, (c) Rebellion)

What’s that other saying – a picture is worth a thousand words. I’d bet it wasn’t a writer who penned that. My money would be on an artist. So – the pencil is mightier than the pen in my estimation. Writers will, of course, disagree. But think about it: if there were no artists to visualise the writer’s words – we’d have books, not comics. If there were no writers – we’d still have the visuals and therefore a silent ‘movie’ to look at (hmmm, but would those pictures convey a complex narrative tale without a scripter?? – Joe).

But, then again – what are you looking at the moment?

Crikey! issue 6 will be on sale in July and available from your local, friendly, neighbourhood FPI store and via the official Crikey! site. Glenn is currently trying to think of a way he can write a Crikey! column using only pictures and ideograms.