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Comic books are created by artists and writers who are well aware that they are working within a medium that is considered to be outsider art and marginal. I suppose that there is an aura of coolness one might effect as a result of being left of center, or even an aura of superiority that may come from feeling like you *get* something that other people just don’t *get*, and maybe you label those people *uncool* and yourself *cool*. I don’t know. I don’t get that from the majority of the books, I read. They’re just people wanting to tell a story with words and pictures. There are certainly contain cool elements, and some are even about being cool, I think it’s an element of the subject matter, and not just a bunch of “fanboys” getting each other off. Many of the writers and artists are actually intellectuals. Some are in it just to entertain. Not so different from the average painter, writer, and so forth, I’d imagine. Without doubt, some of the most daring fiction comes out of this medium, as a result of being marginalized, particularly the writing. There are certainly comic books I'm not a huge fan of, and certain genres within the medium I prefer over others, but to say "I've read comic books that didn't seem to terribly pleased with their own coolness" is to imply that most do, and that's just not the case. Frankly, I don't think you've read enough of them to make such a generalization. I realize I sound defensive, but I think comic books are an exceptional art form, and with all works of art, there's some good, some bad. You’re also approaching them with an air of condescension in this post that’s been absent during in person conversations we’ve had, so I’m a bit thrown.
Your opinion of the movie is completely valid. Or finding it puzzling because you're not familiar with the source material is also a very valid criticism. I don't know how I would have felt about the movie if I wasn't familiar with the source material, though I'm guessing I would still have liked it for a variety of reasons. The movie’s not for you. The movie’s for me. Whaddeva.
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