History
One of the first and most famous Polish comics was Koziołek Matołek (Matołek the Billy-Goat), created by Kornel Makuszyński (story) and Marian Walentynowicz (art) in 1933. It became a cult classic, still popular today, and is an important part of the canon of Polish children's literature.
In the People's Republic of Poland the term comic (komiks) was discouraged as a "demoralising Western influence," and the terms "graphic stories" (historyjki obrazkowe) or "color books" (kolorowe zeszyty) were preferred instead; they were actually illegal and forbidden from 1947 to 1957. In modern Poland those terms have largely been forgotten, and the formerly discouraged English loanword "comics" (Polish "komiks") is now the main term for the medium.
One of the most notable series created in 1957 (and concluded in 2009) was Tytus, Romek i A'Tomek (eng. Tytus, Romek, and A'Tomek), which became the longest-published and one of the most popular Polish comic book series. Created by Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski (aka Papcio Chmiel), it centers on Romek and A'Tomek, two Boy Scouts, and Tytus de Zoo, a chimpanzee with the ability of human speech.
Over the past few years, the market for comics in Poland has grown rapidly; there is an increasing number of Polish comic books and magazines. Japanese manga has been introduced, and the first Polish manga-style publications have appeared. As throughout the world, webcomics have also become increasingly popular.
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and written narrative, usually, dialogue contained in word balloons emblematic of the comics art form.
Comics is a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically takes the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate dialogue, narration, sound effects, or other information. There is no consensus among theorists and historians on a definition of comics; some emphasize the combination of images and text, some sequentiality or other image relations, and others historical aspects such as mass reproduction or the use of recurring characters. Cartooning and other forms of illustration are the most common image-making means in comics; fumetti is a form that uses photographic images. Common forms include comic strips, editorial and gag cartoons, and comic books. Since the late 20th century, bound volumes such as graphic novels, comic albums, and tankōbon have become increasingly common, while online webcomics have proliferated in the 21st century.
Grzegorz Rosiński is a Polish comic book artist, illustrator and painter. He is best known for providing the artwork for the series Thorgal. His other notable work includes art drawn in the Hans and Chninkel series of comic books.
Tankōbon is the Japanese term for a book that is not part of an anthology or corpus. The term is also used in reference to individual volumes of a manga series: most series first appear as individual chapters in a weekly or monthly manga anthology with other works before being published as tankōbon volumes containing several chapters each.
Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski, also known under his pseudonym Papcio Chmiel, was a Polish comic book artist and journalist.
Funky Koval is a Polish science fiction/detective story/political fiction genre comic book series published in Poland from the 1980s, collected in four volumes. The story was written by Jacek Rodek and Maciej Parowski, with art drawn by Bogusław Polch. The resulting science fiction comic gained a cult following in Poland and is recognized as one of the best Polish comics. It debuted in 1982 in Fantastyka, a Polish sci-fi magazine, and was later released in color albums. The final instalment was published in 2010.
Children's comics are comics intended primarily for children.
Comics in the Philippines have been widespread and popular throughout the country from the 1920s to the present. Komiks were partially inspired by American mainstream comic strips and comic books during the early 20th century. The medium first became widely popular after World War II. Its mainstream appeal subsided somewhat during the latter part of the 20th century with the advent of other mass-media forms such as telenovelas, but experienced a renaissance in the mid-2010s with the increasing popularity of artists such as Gerry Alanguilan, Arnold Arre, Budjette Tan, Kajo Baldisimo, and the rise of fan communities through comic book conventions such as komikon. Webcomics produced by independent Filipino web-based artists have caught the attention of local and foreign readers.
Science fiction and fantasy in Poland dates to the late 18th century. During the latter years of the People's Republic of Poland, a very popular genre of science fiction was social science fiction. Later, many other genres gained prominence.
Koziołek Matołek is a fictional character created by Kornel Makuszyński (story) and Marian Walentynowicz (art) in one of the first and most famous Polish comics back in 1933. It became a cult classic, popular since its creation till today, and becoming an important part of the canon of Polish children's literature.
Tomasz Kołodziejczak is a Polish science fiction and fantasy writer, screenwriter, publisher and editor of books, comics and role-playing games.
Świat Młodych was a youth magazine in Poland, published from 1949 to 1993. Part of the magazine was dedicated to scouting, but it is most remembered for its last page comics, where many leading Polish comic books artists and titles debuted or significants parts of them were published there.
Pacanów, sometimes referred to as the European Capital of Fable, is a town in Busko County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship in south-central Poland. It is the seat of Gmina Pacanów. It had a population of 1137 in 2003. In modern times the village is partly noted for its connection to the fictional character Koziołek Matołek. It lies in historic Lesser Poland, approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) east of Busko-Zdrój and 62 km (39 mi) south-east of the regional capital Kielce.
Captain Boom is a Filipino comic book character who fights crime that was created by Mars Ravelo and illustrated by his son Ric Ravelo. Captain Boom first appeared in United Komiks of PSG Publishing House in 1966. When the character was first introduced in television, his character is renamed to Kapitan Boom. Kapitan is a Tagalog word for "captain."
Tytus, Romek i A'Tomek is the longest-published and one of the most popular Polish comic book series, created by Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski in 1957 and concluded in 2009. It centers on Romek and A'Tomek, two Boy Scouts, and Tytus de Zoo, a chimpanzee with the ability of human speech.
Marian Walentynowicz was a Polish graphic artist, architect, teacher, writer and a precursor to the comic book in Poland.
Bogusław Polch act. Połch was a Polish comic book artist. His most notable works include the series The Gods from Outer Space, Funky Koval and Wiedźmin. He also illustrated the covers of the first editions of most of Sapkowski's books in The Witcher series.
The Gods from Outer Space is a science fiction comic book series, published in the years 1978–1982 by German publishing house Bastei Verlag, written and drawn by Polish artists. The authors of the script Arnold Mostowicz and Alfred Górny, and the drawings were made by Bogusław Polch. The story was based on the views of Erich von Däniken, a proponent of the fringe theory that in ancient times the Earth was visited by ancient astronauts – representatives of an extraterrestrial civilization.
