When actors write better comics than writers

The comic book business loves getting in celebrity names in to write their funny books, even if those famous faces have limited actual experience with the medium. It's always been a part of the industry, but there have now been so many comics written - or ghost written - by some big marquee names, there is room to see what works and what doesn't, and it's a little surprising to see that actors generally do better than novelists.

Some novelists have made the transition to comics with ease, but most of them tend to fall short, especially if it's a huge name in regular publishing circles, who are less likely to listen to editorial direction.

I'm not going to name any particular writers here, partly because I'm a coward who doesn't want to hurt anybody's feelings, but also because it's more of a vibe from the dozens of novelists who have had the crack at high-faluting graphic novels. And the vibe I always get is that the writer doesn't have the full faith in the art that a true collaboration needs, and tends to overwrite the hell out of everything. 

You only have to look at the dense caption boxes that always come with these kind of projects, and even if some of them don't come across as overtly serious and ponderous, they betray their own anxieties about a new medium, by assuming that they've been hired on the strength of their words, so loads of words is what you are going to get.

This also happens when actors take a stab at writing comics, something that usually happens when the actor from a Star Trek or Buffy franchise gets involved with the licensed works. There are plenty of those that are thoroughly mediocre comics.

But actors can also prove particularly adept, they spend their professional lives playing certain people, it stands to reason they're going to know more about those characters than anybody else. And actors also appreciate the visual aspect a lot more, and I've read several in recent years where the star writer was secure enough to let the pictures do a lot of the talking (a recent Sgt Rock v zombies comic by Bruce Campbell was particularly good at this aspect).

Like I say, there is no scientific data to back up this analysis, just my own anecdotal experience. But those experiences tell me s story, one that inspires me to trust actors more than novelists when they have a crack at this comic business.