To be honest, on the whole I'm kind of indifferent about this book. I mean, Collier uses the comic form to pretty effectively deliver several different vignettes, but I guess I've come to expect a long, unified narrative after Blankets, Watchmen, and V for Vendetta. In that sense, this collection reads more like a "comic", I suppose, but I find myself wondering what the draw is here. Blankets may not have had the political significance of Moore's works, but you could see its value as a sort of graphically enhanced autobiography. Portraits offers biographical stories, but the art here does not seem to enhance the stories in the same way that it did in Blankets.
I don't know--maybe I'm missing something here. The panels are very traditional rectangular affairs and offer little in the way of variety. The illustrations seem less stylistic and more realistic in many cases. I suppose this makes sense given the biographical nature of the work, but I find myself wondering just how much is added by the art. Furthermore, I question the overarching purpose and significance of this work. I guess it's supposed to be a compilation of several interesting slices of life represented through a unique medium, but without the fictional storytelling elements present in the other comics we've read thus far, I didn't feel as motivated to keep reading. Like I said, maybe I'm just missing the point, but this has been my least favorite book thus far in this class. I realize I'm coming off as being awfully critical here, but I'm open to debate and my opinion might change after more class discussion.
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