The Emperor Has No Clothes
By Philip Schweier
February 10, 2009 - 15:57
Have you ever been disappointed by someone to point of utter disgust? Maybe someone close to you deceived you in some small but significant way. Maybe your favorite band put out a CD of recording studio rejects and half-finished ideas, because the musicians knew their devoted fans would buy whatever they did, no matter how anemic it might be.
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Or maybe your favorite comic book company published a boatload o’ crap with unbridled enthusiasm, lauding the project with praise and claiming the effects would be felt throughout its pantheon of characters for many years to come.
Perhaps the publisher allowed the writer to turn in drivel that any high school English teacher would have given a failing grade, simply because there was a significant number of fans that had somehow become convinced the writer in question was in some way touched by God.
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Coincidentally, art is seldom regarded as such until much later. A hundred years ago, music we know as jazz was associated with brothels and, as it was known then, the “negro” community. Fortunately, art in its various forms has continued to evolve, and writers who create film and comic book projects often have fairly broad latitudes for experimentation.
But in the here-and-now, as it’s being produced, it’s not art, it’s entertainment. Forget any kind of heavy-handed message or having a lasting impact on the world of fiction, or furthering your own socio-political agenda. The primary goal is to offer a pleasant diversion at a fair price and the best way to do so is simply present a good story in an intelligent, entertaining manner.
In the world of serialized fiction, those who produce and market it often have a plan in mind, which may not be readily apparent. They save the “big payoff” for the end. Will Dr. Kimball catch the one-armed man? Will Maddie and David ever hook up? Will the Galactica find Earth?
We, the audience, will often go along for the ride with an open mind. Whether the payoff is worth the wait is an opinion in the eyes of each and every audience member. As the saying goes, everyone is a critic, and by that I mean EVERYONE. Each film producer and musician and comic book writer has an obligation to try to please his or her audience, both individually and as a whole.
Certainly you can’t please everyone, but there are certain guidelines to follow in an effort to play fair with the people you expect to support your work. I won’t begrudge someone a creative experiment, but it is often the case that an idea will be continually pushed in the belief that it merely needs to find an audience, when it fact it is merely a bad idea, regardless of who came up with it.
Undoubtedly, there are millions of talented writers, musicians, actors and artists in the world who will never achieve any amount of fame or recognition, for whatever reason. And there are many mediocre talents who will achieve world-wide acclaim because someone in authority – an executive, a critic or a publisher – says so.
I can’t help but wonder if some comic book editors and studio executives are told by someone that a particular talent is qualified, and because they are unable or unwilling to find out for themselves, they accept it. As a result, ham actors and hack writers get steady work, while others wityh more talent toil in obscurity.
Perhaps you’re reading this and seeing it as a case of sour grapes. Me, a long-time comic book fan, eager for a chance to have my own material published, is taking a cheap shot at someone whose work I disagree with. I’m not writing this in order to win myself a job. Believe me, I have enough on my plate as it is.
I just want people to think for themselves. Any business demands it of its employees, and every parent hopes their child will grow up to be self-sufficient. A 16-year-old might argue with his or her parents as to why they should be allowed to go to Florida for spring break by saying, “But everybody’s doing it.” And every parent responds with the “if everyone jumped off a cliff” argument.
It’s all about thinking for yourself, instead being told what to think. An elemental way to start is to avoid being chained to the opinions of one’s spouse, or parents, and especially those who have a financial stake in the success of the project being offered. That’s not entertainment; it’s salesmanship.
Sometimes a person might not want to form an opinion for fear of being disagreed with. That only happens when one gives voice to that opinion, which, contrary to popular belief, is not a requirement of forming the opinion. Read the book, watch the movie, and afterward decide for yourself if the project is worthwhile or wasteful.
Whether or not it’s art is something to be decided most likely by people who aren’t even born yet.
Praise and adulation? Scorn and ridicule? E-mail me at philip@comicbookbin.com
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