health – Deconstructing Comics

Sequential Potential and Minamata

Comics, of course, are not just for entertainment. They’re a great medium for educating. This week we feature two examples:

Sequential Potential is a company which helps academics get their points across in comics form. Co-founders Darick and Emily Ritter walk us through the process of conversion from dry, boring text to eye-catching comics.

The town of Minamata is one of several well-known examples of industrial waste leading to a massive tragedy visited on a community in mid-20th century Japan. That is, well-known in Japan. Sean Michael Wilson and Akiko Shimojima have set out to draw more attention from English speakers to the human cost of the Minamata mass mercury poisoning, with their new book The Minamata Story: An Eco Tragedy. Tim and Adam review.

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COVID comics

There have been plenty of comics made about the current COVID-19 pandemic, both instructional and autobiographical ones. In this episode Tim talks about about some of these with graphic medicine expert Alice Jaggers, a contributor to graphicmedicine.org, as well as other comics on health issues… one of which is none other than Fullmetal Alchemist!

The Graphic Medicine Database

The Lancet on COVID-19 and comics

COVID comics by NPR staff

Then, a talk with comics journalist Josh Neufeld, who recently did a piece called A Tale of Two Pandemics, exploring the myth that black people are immune to many illnesses. This idea popped up during both the 1918 flu pandemic and the current pandemic. Josh also talks about his comics journalism career and the experience of working with Harvey Pekar!

Josh’s story Supply Chain Superhero

We first met Josh at MOCCA 2016!

Help Tim move away from the apartment he’s allergic to

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