Features of comic strips

1. Features of comic strips

2. Panels • Each picture is called a “panel”. The comic above has four panels.

3. Close-up • These are often used to show a character’s expression more clearly

4. Extreme close-up • These usually focus on part of the character’s face or another object

5. Long shots • Extreme long shot: often used to show a scene or landscape. • Long shot: Readers can see the characters’ full bodies

6. Speech bubbles • These show what the characters are saying

7. Thought bubbles • These show what the characters are thinking

8. Caption or narratory block • The box usually narrates something that is happening in the scene or something that happened before the scene.

9. Sound effects • Words that indicate a sound • Other examples are: • Whoosh! Something moving very fast • Wham! Bam! Somebody hitting someone/something • Boom! An explosion (eg a bomb going off) • Splat! Someone drops something, or a person falls on the ground • Zoom A car or rocket is moving very fast