Comic books are not for kids anymore. They haven’t been for a while now.

In 1978, Will Eisner, a living legend of sequential art, wrote and drew his seminal work A Contract with God. This work not only gave birth to a new format of comic storytelling, the ‘graphic novel,’ it stood as the dawning light of a new era in comic books, an era when beloved characters were redefined, when flawed heroes became the norm and when comic creators stretched and redefined the medium. In short, in the 1980’s comic books grew up.

As the medium developed, so its readership changed. Instead of 8-12 year olds reading Archie, 18-40 year olds read titles like, Hellblazer, The Walking Dead and even The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Though the heroes of yesteryear are still around, a quick flip through the latest issue of Spider-Man or Superman reveals what was once ‘G-rated’ is now at least a ‘PG-13.’

But more than just risqué pictures and increased violence are being portrayed in comic books these days. Comic books are now addressing deeper issues including religion, sex, social justice and politics. These themes reach an increasingly older audience. Add a good helping of Japanese influence through the comic sub-genre, ‘Manga,’ and the comic book market that once read Bugs Bunny now reads the likes of CSI.

With the medium now capable of communicating deeper content its no surprise (and even a blessing) that Christian writers and artists have begun creating comic books that convey the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

In October of 2007, Circle Media Publications will publish three graphic novels based on Ted Dekker’s best-selling series, The Circle Trilogy. Each novel will be 144 pages of full-color comic book story-telling scripted by Dekker and drawn by professional artists. Though only a 32 page teaser is available now, it looks to be as adrenaline-laced as the books.

The story is classic Dekker from start to finish. Fast paced action, sci-fi twists, and spiritual truths are wound tightly together to form a redemptive, but not preachy, story.
‘Good art’ is the other half of a great comic book and The Circle Trilogy leaves nothing to be desired.

Independently published newcomer Dust Press released Dust, a bi-monthly series, featuring biblical stories set tastefully in the comic book medium. Created by Mark Carpenter and drawn by Alan Close, Dust combines the authentic design and story-telling of a mainstream comic book with the depth and accuracy essential to sharing scripture.

Dust is a 25-page, full-color comic book in the traditional size and format. The biblical text is included in each issue with discussion questions and commentary written by a variety of scholars. Commentary for the first issue was provided by Kent Dobson. The second issue, The Blessed Curse is due this August.

Baker Book House in Grand Rapids, MI recently hosted Carpenter and Close for a book signing event.

“We want to further the Kingdom of God.� Carpenter said of Dust’s mission. “Hopefully this will get people thinking about God and get them reading the Bible.�

Zondervan is getting into the market this summer with an entire line of graphic novels in smaller, black and white, Manga-sized format.

Z Graphic Novels consists of six separate series, each with two volumes already in bookstores. They are edited by Bud Rogers and are written and drawn by a variety of industry professionals with previous experience ranging from Disney’s Pixar to the ‘Big Two’ of mainstream comics, DC and Marvel.

The series titles are Son of Sampson, Hand of the Morningstar, Time Flyz, Tomo, Kingdoms: A Biblical Epic and the Manga Bible. The series vary in content from historical fiction, classic super-hero stories and other modern fiction, to retelling stories from scripture.

Because I grew up spending my allowance on comic books, I’m hopeful that God will use this medium to convey truth.

Send This To A Friend