Close your eyes and let your mind fall back into a pleasant slumber. Do you see the dark robed man standing ahead of you? He goes by many names: King Morpheus, Dream, the Sandman. Yet he has only one creator. Neil Gaiman.
I end this list of creators with a man who stands without a doubt to be one of the greatest storytellers of our generation.
Gaiman was born in England and grew up reading tales from the finest storytellers of the era; wordsmiths such as Lewis, Tolkien, Lovecraft, and Poe. He started his own writing career as a journalist, gradually moving his way into fantasy fiction, and then comics. Gaiman's first foray into comics came writing the critically lauded Marvelman series after contemporary comics mage Alan Moore decided to leave the series.
Yet, why is this writer at the top of this list? What has he done that is so great?
The short answer is "everything." I'm not saying that everything Gaiman has ever written is golden. Nor am I saying that his stories trump all others. To fully explain, let me continue on to the long answer.
Before there was art, there was story. Before there was writing, there was story. Story is such an inherent part of human nature, that it has evolved into other aspects, such as religion and politics. No religion would be anything without the mythological stories that fuel belief, nor would any politician get anywhere without control over what stories hit public ears. In many ways, story can be seen as what makes humans human.Without it, where would the creative spirit be?
So how does this relate to comics? Comics can be strictly an art medium, with people experimenting with form and function to deliver a new experience. Comics can also be a tool for education and information, conveying complex ideas in easy to understand biblio-visual narrative. Regardless of how you use comics, they are still a story-telling medium. Without the story, why would you need the art OR the words?
Neil Gaiman, from my perspective, understands this. To call storyteller a profession may be belittling it, because the role of story in humanity is so much more important to our cognitive and evolutionary development. Without stories, there would be no need for books, or films, or comics, or television. Even journalists and teachers would be out on the streets if story did not exist.Yet Gaiman writes with a mastery that allows you to both see the truth and mask it from you. His mercurial correspondence to the world dances fancily without losing any sincerity. His pen, alongside those of his peers, allows the world to continue its mechanical crawl towards singularity.
With that, let King Morpheus rule over this kingdom. Let the bishops proselytize and the politicians smile for the camera; for if they did not exist, something else would, because story rules us all.
Lesson Learned: Regardless of style or medium, story is king!
Bonus Lesson: Minnesota is just as good a place as any to make comic books.
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