Manga-inspired word balloon — and why you should rethink them

It's pretty easy to see the influence of manga on comics being produced today. Scrolling through Webtoons, it's evident that an entire generation of young comic creators cut their teeth on comics originally made in Japan. In general, that's tremendous! The creativity, the kinetic energy, the jaw-dropping art — it's all worthy of emulation. But when it comes to word balloons, something's getting lost in the translation.

Cargo Cults

I discussed Cargo Cults on Webcomics Confidential.

In short, Cargo Cult thinking happens like this:

• A person sees someone else doing something enviable

• That person mimics the actions without learning why (or how) those activities produce the outcomes they desire

• Often, these mimicked actions have unintentional consequences

We're all guilty of cargo-cult thinking at different stages of our progression as cartoonists. It's a pretty natural way of learning behavior. However, it's those unintended consequences that cause problems.