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Mark Haslett
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 19 April 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 6399
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| Posted: 02 October 2023 at 5:40am | IP Logged | 1
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Funny to hear what others perceive vs. what we see.
I think JB’s storytelling is marked by a constant sense of delight. There
does not seem to be any iota of landscape, inner or outer, potentially or
specifically related to the story which is not brought to bear in order to
entertain and delight. I sense this storyteller holding himself to a high
standard and always working toward the service of what he thinks works
best in comic books— in every aspect he can influence.
Drama, comedy, thrills, twists, tragedy, pathos, galactic pondering, inner
doubt, soaring nobility, crushing selfishness, and mind blowing
inventiveness— all these and more are completely routine in the writing and
storytelling of John Byrne.
You don’t have to like it, I guess, but it seems impossible to assert that it
isn’t there, every time, in healthy portions.
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
Joined: 11 May 2005
Posts: 133226
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| Posted: 02 October 2023 at 4:12pm | IP Logged | 2
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Mark, your post reminds me of a few years back when someone online complained that I “made it look too easy.”Communication skills are often lacking on the interweb, but I still wonder why that was considered a problem!
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Michael Penn
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 12 April 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 12685
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| Posted: 02 October 2023 at 5:13pm | IP Logged | 3
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I'm wondering if because your stories do actually wrap up and often the heroes clearly win the day, maybe that to some readers was "too easy"...?
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
Joined: 11 May 2005
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| Posted: 02 October 2023 at 6:22pm | IP Logged | 4
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The concern was not that it was too easy for the characters.
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Michael Penn
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 12 April 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 12685
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| Posted: 02 October 2023 at 6:45pm | IP Logged | 5
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Ah, then your "problem" is that you were the Fred Astaire of comicbooks!
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Bill Guerra
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 29 March 2012
Location: United States
Posts: 1072
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| Posted: 03 October 2023 at 2:31am | IP Logged | 6
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What I always liked best about JB's storytelling is that I was ALWAYS entertained. I never felt I was being lectured to or beat over the head with "Get it??". The characters always felt as if they spoke correctly.
The subplots! Love 'em! Things always felt like they were moving along and headed somewhere. Things never felt aimless.
I'd say that I would feel far more entertained by whatever JB's least entertaining story was, compared to the best of what is currently being offered at the companies nowadays.
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Robert Bradley
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 20 September 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 4874
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| Posted: 03 October 2023 at 6:43am | IP Logged | 7
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What I liked best is that we got interesting stories and then JB put the toys back in the box for the next guy when he was done.
Too many creators want to "leave their fingerprints" on a character, JB had an ability to strip away are the superfluous crap and return a character to their core concept.
Edited by Robert Bradley on 03 October 2023 at 6:44am
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Craig Earl
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 13 July 2019
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 1361
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| Posted: 03 October 2023 at 6:42pm | IP Logged | 8
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I think JB's ability to tell galaxy spanning epics alongside personal, human tales is what I've most enjoyed.
And credit should be given for the respectful handling of many of comics female characters, putting them at the forefront where lesser writers/artists often leave them in the shadows.
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Mark Haslett
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 19 April 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 6399
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| Posted: 03 October 2023 at 10:53pm | IP Logged | 9
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JB: Mark, your post reminds me of a few years back when someone
online complained that I “made it look too easy.
”Communication skills are often lacking on the interweb, but I still
wonder why that was considered a problem!
**
I don't know how any sane person could possibly make that complaint.
Such a talent could only deserve compliments in my opinion.
I might agree the comment is accurate and caused me frustration in the
regard that I have come to be utterly intolerant of drawn-out page
design, cliches, and all manner of storytelling that does not lean into the
(if I may) classic storytelling values that your work upholds. You make it
"look easy" so I actually feel cheated by comic books that don't seem to
even try!
Edit for clarity.
Edited by Mark Haslett on 04 October 2023 at 11:20pm
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Wallace Sellars
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 01 May 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 17698
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| Posted: 04 October 2023 at 10:54pm | IP Logged | 10
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One of the many things I like about JB’s storytelling is how sometimes at the bottom right of a page, a character will be speaking, and his/her thought is completed as a caption at the top left of the next page introducing a new scene. (I hope I’m saying that right.)
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
Joined: 11 May 2005
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| Posted: 04 October 2023 at 11:05pm | IP Logged | 11
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It would be a compliment in my opinion…••• I would not have called it a complaint if it could have been interpreted your way.
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Mark Haslett
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 19 April 2004
Location: United States
Posts: 6399
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| Posted: 04 October 2023 at 11:16pm | IP Logged | 12
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I understood you. Sorry to seem to dispute that.
Edited by Mark Haslett on 04 October 2023 at 11:24pm
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