Alternative Visions
Alternative Visions |
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Page 2 of 29  Panel from Aarth! (Mad Love, 1988). Art/script: Steven Appleby. A political anthology protesting against establishment homophobia. Similarly, the alternatives were in a position to capitalize on countercultural trends. Punk, in particular, was an influence. As we have seen, this was a relatively short-lived phenomenon (lasting from about 1976 to 1979), but its impact was long-term, and directed attention away from the old underground hippie obsessions. Thus, the first wave of alternative comics would often exhibit a more confrontational and aggressive writing style, and commonly starred characters who were punks or post-punks rather than hippies, and would sometimes reflect a punk-art aesthetic, as opposed to a psychedelic or fantasy art one: this could mean anything from 'spontaneous' drawing styles to art influenced by punk-inspired 'neo expressionism'. Later comics built on this, and reflected the concerns of more recent subcultures, such as the rave, 'indie' and travelling scenes. This kind of content inevitably meant that the alternatives drew from an entirely different well of creators than the mainstream, and appealed to a different audience. As well as being a 'hipper ' crowd, the most striking contrast was the number of women involved. As we have seen, women first began to create their own comics during the underground era, and this tradition was continued and strengthened in the 1980s and 1990s, with women making a bigger contribution to the medium than ever before. Superheroes may have been a turn-off, but the opportunity to explore other kinds of subject matter was clearly one that many women relished. By the same token, audiences for the new comics tended to be of both sexes; though not, it has to be said, anywhere near equally split.  Mister X (Vortex. 1984). Art: Paul Rivoche. A moody science fiction tale.  Detail from Meat Stuff (Fantagraphics. 1985). Art: Peter Bagge. A comic dealing in less than mature comedy. |