Shatter (digital comic)
Encyclopedia
Shatter is a digital comic created by Peter B. Gillis
and Mike Saenz
, and published by First Comics
. A dystopian science fiction
fantasy somewhat in the mold of Blade Runner
, Shatter was written by Gillis and illustrated on the computer by Saenz.
Shatter was the first commercially published all-digital comic, i.e. a comic for which the art was created entirely on the computer; as opposed to what later became the common method of drawing on board with pencil, pen, and ink and then scanning the black-and-white art into a computer for the application of color. The Shatter artwork was initially drawn on a first-generation Apple Macintosh using a mouse, and printed out on an Apple dot-matrix ImageWriter
. The print-outs were then photographed like a piece of traditionally drawn black-and-white comic art, and the color separations were applied in the traditional manner for comics at the time. (This is almost the reverse of the current method of drawing comics on board and scanning the art into a computer for the application of color in computer graphics programs.)
(IPC Media
, London with Tony Tyler
as editor) and was described as "the world's first comics series entirely drawn on a computer." During this same period, Shatter appeared simultaneously as a one-shot special and as a backup feature in First Comics
’ Jon Sable
title in 1985. Shatter was published in its own 14-issue series from 1985-1988. The book was art-directed by Alex Wald. Collections have been published by First Comics and, more recently, by AiT/Planet Lar
.
Peter B. Gillis
Peter B. Gillis is an American comic book writer best known for his work at Marvel Comics and First Comics in the mid-1980s, including the series Strikeforce: Morituri, and the digitally drawn comic series Shatter.-Biography:...
and Mike Saenz
Mike Saenz
Mike Saenz is a comic book artist and creator of the first digital comic book. He co-created the first comic book produced entirely on the computer, Shatter, as well as an early adult video game, MacPlaymate....
, and published by First Comics
First Comics
First Comics was an American comic-book publisher that was active from 1983–1991, known for titles like American Flagg!, Grimjack, Nexus, Badger, Dreadstar, and Jon Sable...
. A dystopian science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
fantasy somewhat in the mold of Blade Runner
Blade Runner
Blade Runner is a 1982 American science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, and Sean Young. The screenplay, written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, is loosely based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K...
, Shatter was written by Gillis and illustrated on the computer by Saenz.
Shatter was the first commercially published all-digital comic, i.e. a comic for which the art was created entirely on the computer; as opposed to what later became the common method of drawing on board with pencil, pen, and ink and then scanning the black-and-white art into a computer for the application of color. The Shatter artwork was initially drawn on a first-generation Apple Macintosh using a mouse, and printed out on an Apple dot-matrix ImageWriter
ImageWriter
The ImageWriter was a product line of dot matrix printers manufactured by Apple Computer's and designed to be compatible with their entire line of computers...
. The print-outs were then photographed like a piece of traditionally drawn black-and-white comic art, and the color separations were applied in the traditional manner for comics at the time. (This is almost the reverse of the current method of drawing comics on board and scanning the art into a computer for the application of color in computer graphics programs.)
Publication history
The first episode of Shatter appeared in the March 1985 issue (#12) of computer magazine Big KBig K (magazine)
Big K was a multi format magazine published by IPC Magazines Ltd during the 1980s. The design of the magazine was very similar in style to their comic strip publications at the time, Eagle and Roy of the Rovers and seemed to be aimed squarely at the younger computer user.-See also:*Computer and...
(IPC Media
IPC Media
IPC Media , a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Inc., is a consumer magazine and digital publisher in the United Kingdom, with a large portfolio selling over 350 million copies each year.- Origins :...
, London with Tony Tyler
Tony Tyler
James Edward Anthony Tyler was a British writer who authored several books and wrote for the New Musical Express, Macworld, MacUser, PC Pro and Computer Shopper....
as editor) and was described as "the world's first comics series entirely drawn on a computer." During this same period, Shatter appeared simultaneously as a one-shot special and as a backup feature in First Comics
First Comics
First Comics was an American comic-book publisher that was active from 1983–1991, known for titles like American Flagg!, Grimjack, Nexus, Badger, Dreadstar, and Jon Sable...
’ Jon Sable
Jon Sable
Jon Sable Freelance is an American comic book series, one of the first series created for the fledging publisher First Comics in 1983. It was written and drawn by Mike Grell and was a fully creator-owned title...
title in 1985. Shatter was published in its own 14-issue series from 1985-1988. The book was art-directed by Alex Wald. Collections have been published by First Comics and, more recently, by AiT/Planet Lar
AiT/Planet Lar
AiT/Planet Lar is an American comic book publishing company based in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1999 by Larry Young and Mimi Rosenheim...
.
Timeline
- March 1985: the first episode of Shatter, written by Gillis and illustrated by Saenz, appears as a double-page spread in the British computer magazine Big KBig K (magazine)Big K was a multi format magazine published by IPC Magazines Ltd during the 1980s. The design of the magazine was very similar in style to their comic strip publications at the time, Eagle and Roy of the Rovers and seemed to be aimed squarely at the younger computer user.-See also:*Computer and...
, published by IPC Magazines (now IPC Media). - June 1985: Shatter appears as a backup feature in Jon Sable: Freelance #25, and as the Shatter Special one shot, published by First Comics.
- June–November 1985: The series runs as a backup feature in Jon Sable: Freelance from issues #25-30.
- December 1985-April 1988: Shatter continues as a 14-issue series by First Comics.
- 1986: Artist Saenz leaves after two issues. (He went on to create Iron Man: Crash, the first digital graphic novelGraphic novelA graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
, in 1988; and Donna Matrix, a digital graphic novel utilizing 3-D rendering, in 1993.) First Comics continues the title using other artists, including Steve ErwinSteve ErwinSteve Erwin is a comic book artist. During the 1980s and 1990s, he worked primarily for DC Comics, co-creating the titles Checkmate! and Gunfire...
and Bob Dienethal, who draw traditional art on board that is then digitized, while they look for someone to pick up the task of drawing the art directly on a computer. - 1986-1988: Charlie Athanas re-establishes the practice of creating the comic directly on the computer, using a mouse on a Macintosh PlusMacintosh PlusThe Macintosh Plus computer was the third model in the Macintosh line, introduced on January 16, 1986, two years after the original Macintosh and a little more than a year after the Macintosh 512K, with a price tag of US$2599...
computer. Using this method, Athanas draws issues #9-14.
Storyline and characters
The Shatter trade paperback collection describes the plot like this:Sources consulted
- McCloud, Scott. Reinventing Comics, pp. 140, 165, Paradox Press, 2000.
External links
- Harter, Maurice (1997) “Comics”, Lightworks
- Szadkowski, Joseph (July 1, 2000). “Digital Production Comes of Age in the Comic World”, Animation World Magazine
- “Comic ceator: Mike Saenz”, Lambiek Comiclopedia
- “Peter B. Gillis Bibliography”, True Stories
- Athanas, Charlie “Comic Books: Shatter Issues #9-14”, Burning City