UPPER v. Mixed-case Lettering

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Greg Stephens
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Post by Greg Stephens »

I just read Augie De Blieck's latest Pipeline column at CBR in which he says this:
Finally, special credit goes to Comicraft for using a font unlike ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN's in the issue. The all-caps font helps maintain the serious and mature attitude of the story. It didn't look like an Archie Comic.
He's railed on before about how much he doesn't like the choice of mixed-case lettering for Marvel's Ultimate Spider-Man comic and how he prefers ALL UPPER-CASE lettering to be used in comics he reads. That's a matter of preference, I understand, but how is is more serious and (Gods above!) mature to tell a story using ALL UPPER-CASE lettering? Am I wrong here or has not the majority of Western literature been written in mixed-case fonts for centuries? Does not the fact that comics have been traditionally written in UPPER-CASE letters have more to do with the necessity of being able to very quickly hand-letter many pages which have to be legible even to children? Doesn't it seem to be a sign of maturity for comics that they are now able to adopt lettering and font styles used by their more mature, accepted and respected brethren? Seems to me that it's so.

Now I am not saying that one way is inherently superior to the other or more correct than the other for comics, but I do think it's a mistake to say that using ALL UPPER-CASE letters makes for a mature-seeming comic than using mixed-case lettering.

Here endeth the rant.
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rcar
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Post by rcar »

I COULDN'T TAKE YOUR IMMATURE RANT SERIOUSLY SINCE IT WAS WRITTEN IN INTIAL CAPS....LOL

I agree that seems a strong statement for something subjective. He seems another person condition by what has always been. Intial caps doesn't make anything immature. It's not even an issue.

Randy
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Randy
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Post by Randy »

The font choices that are made should be one to help convey the mood of the story, may that be a script for romance, all caps for SHOUTING, serif, sans serif, modern, funky...etc. Readability is usually of the utmost importance and then style. I personally like the comics that have started to use different fonts, especially ones that don't LOOK like comic fonts. The mainstream reader is used to this, not the ALL CAPS of comics. We need to bring Mohommed (I know that probably isn't spelled right, but I'm too lazy to look it up) to the mountain.

Good typography is what you like.

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Randy
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Jack Masters
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Post by Jack Masters »

I fele that gud speling looks un profeshunul. Pleese rite yor comiks with mor mis speld werds frum naw on.
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Post by Tailsteak »

I think it's a matter of personal preference. My characters all speak in Mixed case with proper punctuation, but that's just because they're relatively eloquent. I feel it adds a certain something to my comic.

If I was to produce a Spiderman-type comic book, I think I'd use all-caps for dialogue and mixed case for narration. Similarly, I'd use casual contractions like "gotta" and "woulda" for speech that I wouldn't put in the text boxes.
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