“I myself vastly prefer comic books. I like working in that format. There’s something real cozy about it. You can digest a comic in one sitting. It’s easy for an artist to conceptualize it in one piece. I like the more casual feel of the comic book. It’s unpretentious.”
“A graphic novel takes on an air of self-importance. And I hate going through the embarrassment of asking your famous friends to contribute blurbs and pull quotes. All this log-rolling and high-falutin’ self-congratulation. A comic book is like vaudeville as opposed to the graphic novel’s Broadway. If I had my druthers it’s the only thing I would do.”
– Shrinking Alternatives, The Comics Journal #263, Oct/Nov 2004
A quote filled with simple statements rather than the poetry we all enjoy reading, but solid simple statements that only encourage my head into a nod of agreement. Not that I detest the graphic novel format. It’s a fine format, and many artists have accomplished wonderful feats through it. But as Bagge states, the good old, floppy comic book is unpretentious nor self-important. Such a quality reminds me of what comics are all about – artwork that is what it is. Comics books are proud to be comic books.
Of course, Bagge has worked in the graphic novel format since. Vertigo released Other Lives last year. Bagge obviously holds no grudge against the format, but neither has he turned his back on the single issue. Hate Annual #9 dropped in April of this year. 32 pages of comic book.
alec reads comics 