It’s easy to be cynical about pop culture references in dialogue. It’s easy, and often enough, it’s fair. I don’t much need to explain why. What I do want to consider is an example of the opposite, when a pop culture reference in a piece of written dialogue becomes intensely concentrated communication, contextually useful and…
Nothing You Can Say Can Tear Me Away From My Guy: Semi-Radical Romance Comics
There’s nothing like a good bit of media to bring to mind a good bit of criticism—to deepen it, to clarify. There’s nothing like freedom to remind you of discipline—how it works, which parts help you grow, which parts curtail. I read a lot of comics made for mean slutty girls, and I had to…