Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art

Understanding Comics is a comic book that is somewhat difficult to understand as it concerns the theoretical principles of comics. It is essentially antithetical to comics, which are almost universally perceived as simplistic and intellectually undemanding. Why did McCloud create a comic book that is as difficult to grasp as some textbooks?

McCloud repeatedly says comics are undervalued as they have an inherent power that most readers do not grasp. What does he mean by this? Is this power unrealized, in the way some cultures do not understand they can get hydroelectric power from a flowing river? Or, is this power already present and in play but not recognized via the way some are manipulated on social media?

When discussing the differences between American and Japanese comics, McCloud points out that Japanese artists often picture many different aspects of a given setting and as such, use more panels than American artists do. He attributes this to Japanese society’s tendency to be less hectic than that of America. What do American comics reveal about American society? What might foreign readers assume about American culture in reading American comics?