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Post by MDG on Apr 9, 2015 13:23:09 GMT -5
Isn't this only an issue because coloring is pretty much the only aspect of a comic that can be easily updated? Remember, the original artists, and especially inkers--the best ones, anyway--created artwork knowing the requirement/limitations of the coloring and printing process.
What would be the reaction toward replacing hand-lettered balloons with computer typefaces? How about replacing ham-handed or offensive dialogue from older books? Or to fit current continuity? Maybe someone can re-draw Ebony in Spirit reprints so his appearance isn't as offensive to modern eyes?
I see a lot of recoloring as "we can, so we will."
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Post by Deleted on Apr 9, 2015 14:11:10 GMT -5
For me it comes down to this-what is the purpose of the thing? Is it being released as a historical artifact or "museum replica" kind of product? Then by all means preserve it as it was released to be such. Is it being released to be the most enjoyable, best possible product it can be to please the contemporary audience that is buying it and sell the most copies the can to produce as much revenue as possible? Then do what you need to do to make it the best possible product. It's a commodity in that case, and the market will decide if the changes (if any) made were pleasing and providing customer satisfaction. Customers who are fine with it, will buy it those who are not, don't have to and can still get the original as needed. Somehow though, when Dark Horse recolored the same material for their omnibus collections and resized the material to fit the format, I don't remember any brouhaha over it, no one complained they were violating the historical integrity of the product or any such uproar of complaints. Marvel does it and suddenly they've pissed in everyone's Cheerios. To me it's more about people being upset with Marvel and Disney than the actual changes to the product.
-M
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Post by crazyoldhermit on Apr 10, 2015 3:01:41 GMT -5
Isn't this only an issue because coloring is pretty much the only aspect of a comic that can be easily updated? Remember, the original artists, and especially inkers--the best ones, anyway--created artwork knowing the requirement/limitations of the coloring and printing process. What would be the reaction toward replacing hand-lettered balloons with computer typefaces? How about replacing ham-handed or offensive dialogue from older books? Or to fit current continuity? Maybe someone can re-draw Ebony in Spirit reprints so his appearance isn't as offensive to modern eyes? I see a lot of recoloring as "we can, so we will." I think it's an issue because coloring is the area that has moved forward so dramatically in the digital age. The classic four-color look immediately labels the product as being from a bygone era and a lot of people are apprehensive about things that are old. It's a pretty direct analog to black and white films, which many people refuse to watch on principle. Lettering has also come forward quite a bit thanks to computers but unlike colors there is a lot of contention over the quality of digital letters. Yes they look slick and yes it's fast but there is a real character to old school hand lettering that doesn't seem achievable digitally. The problem is a lot of old comics are recolored really badly. Gradients and soft edges are used even when they don't benefit the art and the default palette seems to be "desaturated literal." One of the worst recolors I've seen is the EC Archives. The bright, poppy gadrients clash badly with the atmospheric artwork. But I don't like the original colors either, they look like the same awfulness at a lesser degree. So I bypass the issue entirely by going with Fantagraphics' black and white reprints. The art may have been designed for color but it looks better without it. |
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Post by rom on Sept 19, 2016 12:50:33 GMT -5
Glad I never picked up the reprint of Marvel's Star Wars #1 (1977) with the recolored art - it looks awful. And, I was fairly disappointed by the art in Star Wars #1 to begin with anyway - so recoloring this doesn't make it look any better.
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