simon-roy:turbofanatic:Inks are now done for this page!The...

simon-roy:

turbofanatic:

Inks are now done for this page!

The more I think about it the more surprised I am that comics aren’t chock full of hard sci-fi? I mean, really hard sci-fi, like The Martian hard.

A lot of complaints about hard sci-fi writing disappear in the comic format. Boring infodumps? Just diagram your lovingly designed spacetrain or whatever in a panel and the reader will skim or linger as is their preference. Issues with explaining hard concepts? Again, comics can use both words and pictures. Bad characterization? Well, comics can’t help you there but given how popular superhero comics are you should be just fine.

It feels like comics were made for hard sci-fi. There’s certainly a lot of sci-fi, which is great!* But I think there’s a real opportunity for harder sci-fi comics and that’s what I’m aiming for in Aphelion.

*I feel the need to point out that “soft” sci-fi and fantasy are also awesome, because there are too many jerks who think that if you didn’t do enough math your story is automatically bad. Those jerks are wrong but that’s a whole ‘nother discussion.

I think it’s because most comic writers and artists have traditionally been such huge comic fans, and mainly produce work that reflects that. I remember hearing of Miyazaki complaining similarly - “Anime’s problem is that it’s full of anime fans.” 

It’s when you start trying to bring the content you love from other mediums, like prose sci-fi and literary fiction, that comics get really good (at least, in my opinion). 

I am a snob, though.