Heidi, did you ever read Moby Dick? 99% wordsmithery, 1% action.

The thing is, there are, and he’s too lazy to look for them, just like 90% of all american comic book readers with the same complaint. I never expected him to be that ignorant of what the medium has to offer.

Maybe part of the problem of what Pope is addressing is that besides the aforementioned works of Barks (and maybe Frank King, Will Eisner a small handful of others), many comics artists from days gone by simply didn’t have enough time or space to develop a subtle and rich story that would qualify it to be considered literary. Most artists of the past were limited to 1-22 page stories which often featured a corporate character who was strictly controlled by editorial. As the medium has progressed I think we’re seeing a lot more of these types of works, though frankly many of the new works aspiring to be considered literature ring a little false like those films obviously designed to win the Oscar which are hailed by critics one year and all but forgotten a couple years down the road.

While I’m here, I always wanted to let Mr. Pope how much I always wished he’d finish Smoke Navigator! “Clove cigarettes. She smoked clove cigarettes…” Beautiful stuff! And is the Car Crash story (either from DHP or Oni Double Feature, I forget which) going to be collected? I never got all the issues it ran in…

“More stories with better art and better writing, always and forever more. Whether it’s a serious meditation on the private life of a family or a madcap ruckus with kooky talking animals, all I care is that it’s a comic story which is done well and it has lasting impact — that’s the literary quality I want to see in a comic.”

There is a subtle reference to Carl Barks in that passage.

And J trizzo, whoever you are, if you think I am sitting on my ass, you are out of your f’n mind.