We’re back from Cape Cod.
The writing course went better than I could have hoped. Dave Seidman, who’s taught courses on comic book writing, gave me some pointers and direction as to what to do, so that helped a good deal. But what really worked out was the quality of students I had. It wasn’t a huge class–it’s the first time that they’ve had a comic book writing course there–but this was a case of quality versus quantity as story concepts and script ideas were batted around and the students actually helped each other in developing their various scripts. A special guest came by on Friday: Paul Levitz, who happened to be on vacation with his family in Cape Cod. He spoke to the class about the business side of comic books (who better?) and joined in our group discussion about “Watchmen” (which is a terrific work to analyze as part of a class since it’s such a textbook vision of how to do comics right.)
Overall it was a great experience.
PAD
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Ðámņ, Peter David and Paul Levitz? I’d give my right arm to be there.
Well, someone’s, at any rate.
Wow. I know Levitz catches flak for his roles in his executive position, but his LSH run is just one of the best and criminally under-appreciated in the industry. Would’ve loved to have been a fly on the wall for that.
Glad you had a good time. Sounds like a wonderful experience. And now, on to Dragon Con. I understand I’m sharing a panel with you and a few other writers on Sunday. Should be fun.
Bobby
Glad you had a good time. Sounds like a wonderful experience. And now, on to Dragon Con. I understand I’m sharing a panel with you and a few other writers on Sunday. Should be fun.
Bobby
It is good to hear that you’re back safely and that the students were good. I was going to ask what you taught them about research, continuity, and keeping in touch with the other writers if writing in a shared universe because one cannot depend upon one’s editors to clue one in on an upcoming event that would have an impact on one or more of the characters one writes, but they seem rather rude things to ask.
Whoops — my bird clock just sounded the cry of the Tufted Titmouse and my cat knows that means it’s her dinner time.
So will this be a regular gig? And if so how do I go about enrolling?
Id be all over this too is this going to be a regular thing if so how do we sign up??
Dang,as a Bay Staters I wish I had known about this soon enough to sign up. Ah well, I’ve been reading the book lately which certainly has some great pointers.
Watchmen? But– but– I thought you believed the story collapsed at the end…
I changed my mind.
PAD
So? If you do this course again, get an audio recording of every session! (Assuming that you are more auditory than visual while conducting the course.) Then get someone to release it.
As a public library, we would love to have something like that on Audiobook/CD, whether as raw lectures or polished audiobook format. Please do!
I also am glad you had a good time Peter…I wish you all the best… still a fan
Prof. Stuart Moulthrop at the University of Baltimore used to teach “Watchmen” regularly in his Arts & Media courses. He even had, at one time, a particularly cool web page that analyzed each chapter and the symbolism in the most minute detail.
I was there (and there ought to be a t-shirt), and it was way, way, beyond what I expected.
It was classic PAD. We started with a huge plot twist, ran a parallel plot with a ticking clock and finished with a twist and surprise guest.
Simply awesome.
I was there as well and echo Jim’s sentiments. The class was amazing start to finish and 5 days went way to fast. I discovered the class through a newbury comics email, and instantly knew what my vacation was going to be. Thanks again~
PS im still stunned at the fact that the Paul L showed, thats one day ill never forget.
Glad it was a good experience! So, any chance this will be repeated at the next I-CON?
(Also, what changed your mind about the end of WATCHMEN? [SPOILER FOLLOWS] I always felt the “loose end” of the murder of Rorshack [sic]actually showed the moral problem of the “heroes” being forced to kill someone (I wouldn’t exactly call Rorshack [sic] innocent) for the “greater good” of maintaining a lie.)
Peter, I echo Glenn’s questioning of Watchmen as I too recall the BID where you talk about how you thought it fell apart.
I wonder if you’d be willing to write up what has led you to change your mind. (Not that you need to justify it, but I’m curious what influenced you to reevaluate your opinion…or is it as simple as “tastes change over time”?)
Glenn: Watchmen? But– but– I thought you believed the story collapsed at the end…
PAD: I changed my mind.
Flip-flopper!!
I still think it fell apart at the end. The idea that the ‘smartest man in the world’ would ignore the lessons of history and believe his ploy would work just made no sense to me. Yes, the Allies worked with the Soviets in defeating the Nazis in WW II. But they were still plotting against each other all the while. And if I were a paranoid Soviet leader and had learned there were the remains of an extraterrestrial incursion in New York I’d have to ask myself “Do the cursed Capitalists have advanced alien technologies in their grasp now? Will they use it against us? Maybe a pre-emptive strike is in order?” There wre other huge holes in the end but this was the most glaring of all.
A Soviet nuclear strike to preempt what? A rollback to a Dr-Manhattan-era of US dominance is so intolerable they have to render their own environment uninhabitable while rendering the US uninhabitable is still in the realm of possibility? If you’re going to portray the Soviets capable of any irrationality, what’s not to like about the supposed irrationality that unfolded in the story?
Starwolf–the fact that New York was destroyed would, one hope, impress the soviets as to the seriousness of the situation.
The big flaw in Ozy’s plan would be that it would need to have periodic updates or the threat would dissipate. Of course, I expect that if the world truly believed that an alien force was about to kill us all they would probably turn to the World’s Smartest Man to save them; Ozymandias would probably have found himself in a position of considerable power and influence. Maybe that was his plan all along, whether he realized it or not.
One of the reasons the U.S. (and other countries) did tests of atomic weapons wasn’t just to see if they worked, but also to remind the other side that they had them. Dr. Manhattan was shown as being less and less connected to humanity. At some point the Soviets were going to realize he wasn’t in the picture any more.
My reading of the end of Watchmen hinges on the depiction of Nixon when they’re taking him to safety and briefing him. He’s clearly in over his head; the position of superiority he’d become used to has vanished, and he doesn’t want war (and the resulting nuclear destruction of half the world), but can’t see a way out of it. The fake alien attack allows him a way to back down without losing face or displaying obvious weakness. (This is coupled with the fact that he’s dealing with Gorbachev, not Stalin–paranoia not so much the order of the day.)
(Ah, Watchmen…I sometimes think I should start maintaining the Annotated Watchmen again, but since it’s been ten years since I last touched it I’d probably want to re-write it from the ground up. On the other hand, researching it would be much easier in the era of Google…)
Maybe my recall of the story is off, but I took the Nova Express coverage as signaling to the Soviets that Dr Manhattan was no longer in the picture, and I never read anything in the story as anyone bluffing he was still around.
I’ve never heard anyone else say this, but from Viedt’s emphasis on showing Blake up, I’ve since come to interpret his primary drive in saving the world — New York be dámņëd — as an unconscious retaliation against the beating Blake gave him, and the challenge he issued to him at the Crimebusters meeting. Blake’s beating and public challenge were literally Viedt’s only vulnerabilities.
He knew Blake would know what was up from a flyover of the island and casual investigation, and Viedt was free to kill him out of necessity, not out of angst, and yet fully avenged. As underscored by the pirate comic, Ozymandias was f.n. messed up.
Maybe my recall of the story is off, but I took the Nova Express coverage as signaling to the Soviets that Dr Manhattan was no longer in the picture, and I never read anything in the story as anyone bluffing he was still around.
It certainly wasn’t coincidence that the Soviets rolled into Afghanistan shortly after that. (That was another risk Veidt took, because it’s possible someone would have made the connection between the former associates of Dr. M that Veidt had given cancer to before he was ready to have his pawn spring it on him. From the way Dr. Manhattan was behaving by that point, though, it’s unlikely he’d have noticed on his own.)
I think that depends on how difficult it would have been for a guy maintaining an Antarctic stronghold to keep tabs on his cancer victims, and arrange for any reporter who got too nosy an unfortunate accident.