Shawn Gilmore
LightNews LightNews
banner
gipperfish.bsky.social
Shawn Gilmore
@gipperfish.bsky.social
3.7K followers 4.8K following 2.8K posts
Teaching Assistant Professor at UIUC, Editor of the @vaultofculture.bsky.social (https://www.vaultofculture.com/), Executive Secretary of the Comics Studies Society, NTFC Local #6546 steward, comics scholar, and a ton of other stuff. Views own.
Posts Replies Media Videos
gipperfish.bsky.social
Picturesque meal at the place that is often crowded when all the undergrads are on campus
Stewed pork over rice with egg and bok choy
January 12, 2026 at 6:35 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Periodic update from the Marvelman/Miracleman project: Marvelman Family #1 (1956), Marvelman Special #1 (1984), Miracleman #1 (1985), Miracleman #1 (2014). #Marvelman
Marvelman Family #1 (1956) Marvelman Special #1 (1984) Miracleman #1 (1985) Miracleman #1 (2014)
January 9, 2026 at 5:46 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
But in The Division 2, not only are the buildings of DC locations for instanced missions of violent confrontation, but the fidelity of the game and its building architecture map the real-world locations as spaces to be fought through, merging imagined violence with real. As we saw 5 years ago…
The Division 2 map January 6 paths through US Capitol
January 6, 2026 at 2:43 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Or the paired White House Down (2013) and Olympus Has Fallen (2013), which portray weak Democratic presidents who must be saved by plucky (White) agents and ultimately take up violence themselves to save themselves, their presidencies, and their White Houses.
White House Down (2013) poster Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
January 6, 2026 at 2:43 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
After storming up the Capitol steps, players fight through eerie hallways, the Rotunda, and enthrall the House chamber, up to the roof of the Capitol itself, ultimately “restoring” the building and its power over the government to the supposedly proper political actors.
The Division 2 (2018) January 6, House chamber January 6, House chamber The Division 2 (2018)
January 6, 2026 at 2:43 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Starting in earnest on the Marvelman/Miracleman project: Marvelman Family #1 (1956), Marvelman Special #1 (1984), Miracleman #1 (1985), Miracleman #1 (2014), Miracleman Omnibus (2022). #Marvelman
Marvelman Family #1 (1956), Marvelman Special #1 (1984), Miracleman #1 (1985), Miracleman #1 (2014), Miracleman Omnibus (2022
January 5, 2026 at 9:20 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Final Fantasy VI (1994)
Multi-screen boss from Final Fantasy VI (1994)
January 4, 2026 at 11:54 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Comics studies folks—the submission window for the Comics Studies Society prizes is now open! See below for prize categories and submission details here: comicsstudies.org/prizes/
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS The Comics Studies Society 2026 Prizes For more information, visit: https://comicsstudies.org/prizes/. Submit by Friday, January 30! CHARLES HATFIELD BOOK PRIZE recognizes high-quality, research-oriented monographs from the previous year that significantly advance the field of Comics Studies. FREDERICK LUIS ALDAMA EMERGING BIPOC COMICS STUDIES LEADERSHIP AWARD recognizes an outstanding emerging BIPOC comics scholar who has demonstrated extraordinary service to the study of comics in academia and community-led initiatives. GILBERT SELDES PRIZE FOR PUBLIC SCHOLARSHIP recognizes written or comics work in essay, article, or blogpost form and audio/visual work, such as podcast or video works. HILLARY CHUTE AWARD FOR BEST GRADUATE STUDENT PAPER recognizes outstanding graduate student scholarship in Comics Studies in the previous year. The author must be a graduate student during the awards cycle or have been one the year before the awards cycle. CSS ARTICLE PRIZE recognizes scholarly journal articles and essays or chapters in edited volumes from the previous year that significantly advance the field of Comics Studies. CSS EDITED BOOK PRIZE recognizes high-quality, research-oriented, and multi-authored edited collections from the previous year that significantly advance the field of Comics Studies. CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS The CSS Dissertation Prize CSS will award one prize for an exceptional dissertation in the field of Comics Studies defended in the past three calendar years. The 2026 CSS Prize cycle will therefore evaluate theses and dissertations defended between January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2025. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES • The deadline for nomination, which must include a report from the nominating program, is Friday, January 30. • The thesis or dissertation must have two or more chapters focusing on comics studies themes. • A thesis or dissertation may only be submitted once for the CSS Dissertation Prize. WHAT TO SUBMIT & WHERE The complete dissertation with one chapter highlighted as exemplifying the character and quality of the whole project. A statement from the Chair of the Dissertation Committee or Graduate Advisor detailing those elements of the thesis or dissertation which make it exceptional Submit Here: https://comicsstudies.org/prizes/.
January 4, 2026 at 10:18 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
“Don't teach your grandmother to suck eggs”: An amazing saying, discovered by hunting down a colleague’s inquiry about whether anyone has ever said this. From the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs:
Don't TEACH your grandmother to suck eggs A caution against offering advice to someone wiser and more experienced than oneself. The metaphorical phrase to teach one's grandmother (to suck eggs) is also found. • 1707 J. STEVENS tr. Quevedo's Comical Works IV. 403 You would have me teach my Grandame to suck Eggs. 1738 SWIFT Polite Conversation I. 57 'TII mend it, Miss.' ...'You mend it! go, Teach your Grannam to suck Eggs./ 1882 BLACKMORE Christowell I. ili. A... twinkle, which might have been interpreted-'instruct your grandfather in the suction of gallinaceous products'. 1967 RIDOUT & WITTINg English Proverbs Explained 48 Don't teach your grandmother to suck eggs. 2000 s. BOOTH Black Dog xxvii. 433 Hitchens was really warming up now. "Teaching your grandmother to suck eggs' was an expression that sprang to the DCI's mind. • advice
January 3, 2026 at 3:19 AM
gipperfish.bsky.social
A dominant condition of our time is hunger (for food, control, power). The key avatars of this hunger as Galactus and Kirby. In this essay, I will…
Galactus: “COME TO BE... OF ALL THE CREATURES IN THE VASTNESS OF THE UNIVERSE, THERE IS NONE LIKE ME. I WAS PRESENT AT THE BIRTH OF THE UNIVERSE, AND I SHALL BE THERE AT ITS END. THOUGH I RAVAGE NORLDS TO LIVE, I BEAR NO MALICE TOWARD ANY LIVING THING. I SIMPLY DO WHAT I MUST TO SURVIVE• AND WHY MUST GALACTUS SURVIVE?” Pink Kirby about to eat a dessert
January 2, 2026 at 2:25 AM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Mothgirl Chronicles recording from Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
(@dontnod.bsky.social, 2025), which rules.
Mothgirl Chronicles recording from Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (2025)
December 27, 2025 at 9:46 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Spurred by a post by @calamityjon.bsky.social, I read through Marvel Two-in-One #3 (1974). What a comic! (Technically, these are mind-controlled actors in an “avatar garden pro-patriotism play.”)
NEIN, SWINE! SPEAK FOR AMERICA! I MADE HER WHAT . SHE IS TODAY! you!! From Marvel Two-in-One #3 (1974)
December 24, 2025 at 2:46 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
We are all doing our best these days, including my neighbor’s Dunkin’ Skelly
Dunkin’ Skelly
December 23, 2025 at 7:44 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Important (Minish Cap) life update
Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap: “You defeated vaati... You were so brave!” Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap: The power of Princess Zelda herself has restored the light to Hyrule.
December 23, 2025 at 3:55 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
And another student fully captured the tone and norms of romance comics, in which a new love interest is revealed to be an alien posing as a handsome suitor: "They went on to make a multitude of alien-human babies, which disappointed Jenny's mother very much." 👽 #comicsteaching
Student comic, parodying romance comics, which concludes "They went on to make a multitude of alien-human babies, which disappointed Jenny's mother very much." 👽
December 22, 2025 at 5:30 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
And, students submitted great creative projects, ranging from collages (the FF and nuclear anxiety/propaganda), to zines (FF bodies), to conference presentations (adapting the Inhumans), to comics (The Watchdogs, "The Ombudsmen of Today!"). #comicsteaching
Student collage on nuclear anxiety and propaganda, along with Fantastic Four comics Student zine page: "Invisible Girl" Student conference presentation on the Inhumans Student comics cover for The Watchdogs, "Ombudsmen of Today!"
December 22, 2025 at 5:30 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
A handful of students curated comics collections (as full digital files with covers, prefatory prose, comics selections). One incredible submission, from one of my graduate students, emulated the structure and tone of the recent Penguin Classics Marvel collections. #comicsteaching
Cover, Kirby's Gods: Old and New (student comics collection) Table of contents, Kirby's Gods: Old and New (student comics collection) Example introduction, Kirby's Gods: Old and New (student comics collection) Example introduction, Kirby's Gods: Old and New (student comics collection)
December 22, 2025 at 5:30 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
I got multiple great course proposals (a couple from education majors), but one that really stood out was an elaborate proposal for a "Superheroes and Trauma" course. #comicsteaching
ENGL 368: Superheroes and Trauma Syllabus Credits: 3 Hours Meeting Time: Tuesdays and Thursdays | 10:00-11:30am Location: Davenport Hall | Room 336 Instructor: Office: English Building | Room 584 Email: Office Hours: Mondays, Wednesdays, & Fridays | 1:00-3:30pm Course Overview In this course, we will be exploring what it means for superheroes to engage in activities beyond human capacity and delve into how these activities display various psychological experiences for these heroes. The course will primarily focus on comics such as Captain America, The Fantastic Four, and The Hulk alongside many other comics and span various experiences including the wartime hero, family dynamics, and development. The course will also look at different historical and social lenses, such as World War II and the Space Race alongside race and gender, considering how these intersections are unified or differentiated in the experience of trauma within the superhero genre. Learning Objectives • Analyze the artistic choices, narrative beats, and critical themes presented in the comic book format. • Describe visual patterns using learned vocabulary, considering how these visual patterns serve to develop plot points and interpretations. • Discuss historical contexts, social issues, and personal perspectives surrounding ongoing and shifting themes within comic books. • Evaluate the implications of presenting trauma in a visual and narrative mode by developing written skills and practicing critical thinking techniques. • Create written and visual analyses that reflect the course objectives and themes explored throughout the semester. Textbooks The texts listed below are required for the class. Additional reading materials will be provided by the instructor. The required physical readings are: • Captain America by Jack Kirby et al. (Penguin Classics, 2022) • Fantastic Four by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby (Penguin Classics, 2023) • X-Men by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby (Penguin Classics, 2023) • Hand of Fire by Charles Hatfield (2012) All online and secondary readings will be available on Canvas. Learning Resources Course Materials • Canvas • CDisplayEx • Textbooks (listed above) • Secondary Readings (provided on Canvas) Supplementary Readings • “Amazing Fantasies: Trauma, Affect, and Superheroes” by Philip Sandifer (English Language Notes, 2008) • “Captain America and World War II: Drawn Together” by Arie Kaplan (2019) • “Captain America: The Search for Belonging” by Parker T. Shaw and Tonya R. Hammer (2016) • “Closure, trauma and the graphical imagination” by Angus Nurse (Law and Humanities, 2023) • “Comics and Trauma: A Postmortem and a New Inquiry” by Christopher Pizzino (2021) • “Excessive Embodiment and Monstrous Containment in Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s The Fantastic Four” by Anna F. Peppard (2022) • How to Study Comics & Graphic Novels: A Graphic Introduction to Comic Studies by Enrique Del Rey Cabero, Michael Goodrum & Josean Morlesin Mellado • Selections from The Trauma Graphic Novel by Andrés Romero-Jódar (Routledge Research in Cultural and Media Studies, 2017) Study Tips • Split up longer readings into multiple days to avoid burning out. • Annotate key points to have a clear idea of what you want your discussions and points to be centered on. • Keep a journal or notebook where you can jot down anything that stands out to you in the comics you read. This will save you time on your discussions and written analysis assignments. • For papers, write multiple drafts to refine your ideas. It may also be helpful to read each paragraph and come up with a single sentence to summarize what you discussed. This can help you edit anything that does not match your claim or thesis. • For questions, try to attend office hours or send an email to clarify any assignment questions or content inquiries. Assignments 10% Discussion Board Posts (~14 posts): You will write a weekly discussion post for 14 out of the 16-week class period. You may write about the visual style, broader themes, or sociohistorical contexts that stood out to you from the readings for that week. Include a panel that resonates with you and explain how it connects to your discussion. 10% Class Participation: You will participate in small group discussions combined with large group debriefs of the content being addressed in class lectures and readings. Participation includes active listening and/or engaging in discussions with peers. This section is also open to accommodation. 20% Comic Page (2 pages): During the course, you will create two comic pages commenting or responding to a specific theme (e.g., technology, mental health, romance, etc.) that is brought up in relation to trauma and the superhero genre. The page should include elements of a comic, such as panels, layouts, and inking. These assignments will be graded on effort over artistic ability. Both digital and physical copies are acceptable. 20% Mini Papers (3 papers): You will write 3 papers 4-5 pages total that combines a secondary reading to a close reading of one of the comics explored in class. These papers should consider the narrative beats, themes, and continuities/changes surrounding traumatic experiences within the superhero genre. Consider how these elements reframe discussions of traumatic experiences and are supported or rejected by critical articles. Grading The assignment breakdown for this class is located below: Assignment Weight Due Date Discussion Posts (14/16) 10% 12/04/2025 Class Participation 10% 12/12/2025 Comic Page #1 10% 09/16/2025 Comic Page #2 10% 10/17/2025 Mini Paper #1 ~7% 10/07/2025 Mini Paper #2 ~7% 11/07/2025 Mini Paper #3 ~7% 11/21/2025 Final Paper 40% 12/12/2025 The grading breakdown for this class is located below: 99-100% - A+ 87-89% – B + 77-79% - C+ 67-69% - D+ >60% - F 94-98% - A 83-86% – B 73-76% - C 63-66% - D 90-93% - A- 80-82% - B- 70-72% - C- 60-62% - D- Weekly Schedule Week 1 – Syllabus Day & Setting the Stage • August 26th | Syllabus Day o Read for class:  ENGL 368 Syllabus o In-class review of syllabus o Assigned: Readings for August 28th • August 28th | Setting the Stage o Read for class:  How to Study Comics & Graphic Novels: A Graphic Introduction to Comic Studies by Enrique Del Rey Cabero, Michael Goodrum & Josean Morlesin Mellado [Canvas]  “Street Code” by Jack Kirby from Argosy [Canvas]  “Introduction” from Hatfield’s Hand of Fire [Book] o Presentation of key features of comics and graphic novels, small group annotation of a panel, and large group discussion of Jack Kirby’s background and how this may have influenced his comics. o Assigned: Readings for September 2nd Week 2 – World War II Trauma & the Symbolic Hero • September 2nd | World War II Trauma
December 22, 2025 at 5:30 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Topic criticism is harder to share, but a great example is this student paper, "Imagining Freedom, Managing Power: Wakanda and the Limits of Afrofuturism." #comicsteaching
"narratives that render Africa as technologically and culturally deficient” (627). Kirby’s Wakanda insists that Africa is not a site of lack but of surplus: scientific, political, and symbolic. Yet Kirby’s Wakanda is also shaped by the limits of a white American imagination operating within Cold War liberalism. Posada notes that early Black Panther comics “celebrate Black sovereignty and African futurity” while remaining “tethered to Western heroic frameworks that privilege monarchy, militarized order, and benevolent authority” (630). Wakanda resists colonial domination, but its resistance is visualized through the grammar of empire: monumental architecture, centralized rule, and overwhelming force—forms of power legible, and often reassuring, to a predominantly white readership trained to equate order with legitimacy. This tension is visible in Black Panther #1 (1977), pages 2 and 3, where T’Challa bursts into the scene in a full-page splash. Kirby exaggerates musculature and momentum, equating Black power with mythic masculinity and physical dominance. The shattered environment " "“Africa” as powerful while flattening distinct cultures into a single mythic aesthetic that reads as legible fantasy for Western spectators. This flattening aligns with the comic’s broader strategy: cultural depth is implied, but interpretive access is withheld. Wakandan apparel “authenticates” sovereignty while keeping it distant. As Posada notes, early narratives often render African culture as “impressive and unknowable, designed to be admired rather than engaged on its own terms” (632). Clothing becomes part of a politics of distance: Wakanda is affirmed as non-Western, yet visually mediated to maintain outsider control of meaning. Coogler’s film reorients this logic by treating costuming as an assertion of cultural authorship rather than exotic display. The challenge-day ritual (00:20:22–00:27:53) introduces Wakanda’s tribes through distinct textiles, palettes, hairstyles, and adornment. Each group’s dress signals lineage and political position; Wakanda appears internally plural rather than monolithic. The Dora Milaje are especially significant: their red garments combine ceremonial symbolism with tactical design, "
December 22, 2025 at 5:30 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Comics of Kirby and Lee: Critical Project addendum. I allowed four big categories for the course: topic criticism, course proposal, comics collection, and creative criticism. Below are some of the exceptional submissions that came in. #comicsteaching
Comics of Kirby and Lee critical project overview: Topic criticism: Stake out a firm claim about how some elements of the work(s) at hand appear and why the work is concerned with the issues it presents, along with what cultural or social meaning attaches to them (likely with historical or political context). To do this, you will need to employ a clear and direct thesis and your claim should be critical, meaning you must support it with specific evidence (analysis), engaged with other arguments about these works (criticism). Course proposal: Propose a course similar to ours and involving some of the comics we've read this semester, but with a different focus: superheroes of the 1960s, romance and sex in comics, origins and later iterations of characters, commercial vs. underground comix, and so on. Your proposal should include a draft syllabus with an overview of the proposed course, key comics, any secondary works (theory, criticism), key assignments, and a draft schedule, at least broken down by weeks (though you can ignore course policies). Kirby and/or Lee comics collection: Create a digital comics collection, composed of selections from various points in the semester, organized by a theme, character, period, or other organizational logic of your choosing. Ideally, such a collection would contain 6-12 issues (which cannot just be a sequence from one title), which you would need to preface via an editorial essay at the front of the collection, smaller prefatory writing before each issue, and any closing material at the end of the collection. Creative criticism: Substantively engage with one or more of our major works via a creative project of your choice (comics, prose, video, audio, games, zines, anything is fair game).
December 22, 2025 at 5:30 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Update!
Dear Professor Gilmore, Thank you for being gracious enough to accept my apology and for understanding my circumstances. I hope you realize my words were only intended to offend you and have no basis in reality. Nonetheless, I am sorry for being cruel and hateful. I wrote another review today, which hopefully, dissuades anyone from believing anything said in the other post. I am ashamed at how I acted in the class. I only wish I could take the course again to get the most out of it. Sincerely, QUALITY 5.0 ENG301 Dec 15th, 2025 For Credit: Yes Attendance: Mandatory Would Take Again: Yes Grade: A- Textbook: Yes DIFFICULTY 5.0 This is responding to a post I made May 14th, 2024 when I was disgruntled with Professor Gilmore. Reflecting, Professor Gilmore shares an abundance of his knowledge with his students. I took this for granted instead of using his knowledge to my advantage. The comics taught are relevant for showing different visual styles in the comic medium. -Shane AMAZING LECTURES GIVES GOOD FEEDBACK SO MANY PAPERS
December 15, 2025 at 6:50 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
Update from the teaching mines. Like I would ever check rate my professor 😎
Dear Professor Gilmore, I was in your comic book class for ENGL 350 in Spring 2024. I wrote a very rude, mean review of your course on ratemyprofessor. I wanted to say I am very sorry. I am ashamed and embarrassed to admit I wrote this review of your course. I did not even feel this way about the texts. I enjoyed the texts in the class specifically From Hell by Alan Moore and A Soldier's Heart by Carol Taylor. I truly wanted to be as rude as possible to insult you because I was bitter for getting an A-. There is no excuse for my words or actions. QUALITY 1.0 FFICULTY 1.0 ENG301 May 14th, 2024 Attendance: Not Mandatory Grade: A- Textbook: N/A Nothing in this class matters and you will learn nothing except about his personal opinions. For some reason he taught highly specific texts(long comic books) which no one cares about or likes. Some of them were fun, but they aren't important or interesting. Helpful do Wo In Review I flagged the review so hopefully it gets taken down. Nonetheless, 1 am incredibly sorry for writing this review. I hope you know it is untrue and does not reflect reality in anyway. Sincerely,
December 14, 2025 at 11:40 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
This Fall, I taught a 400-level comics course at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, under our Major Authors rubric, on the comics Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. I posted a recap of each week using #comicteaching. This thread contains all of those posts, as well as a link to our syllabus.
Stan Lee & Jack Kirby, Fantastic Four #51 (1966): "I've done it!! I'm drifting into a world of limitless dimensions!! It's the crossroads of infinity--the junction to everywhere!"
December 12, 2025 at 4:39 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
We also considered how Kirby's work is being extended, particularly via the setup issues of @tomking.bsky.social & @mitchgerads.bsky.social's Mister Miracle and @therightram.bsky.social & Evan Cagle's current New Gods, which combine elements we have seen with newer comics aesthetics. #comicsteaching
Tom King & Mitch Gerads, Mister Miracle #1 (2017) Tom King & Mitch Gerads, Mister Miracle #1 (2017) Ram V & Evan Cagle, The New Gods #2 (2025) Ram V & Evan Cagle, The New Gods #2 (2025)
December 12, 2025 at 4:17 PM
gipperfish.bsky.social
We looked at the figure of Kirby across some interesting uses: as God (Fantastic Four #511), as source of cosmic heroes (Kirby: Genesis), as a style that can be emulated (Gødland), and as a mortal man (James Romberger, For Real #1). #comicsteaching
Kirby as God in Fantastic Four #511 (2004) Kirby in Kirby: Genesis #0 (2011) Kirby's cosmic style in Gødland #1 (2005) James Romberger, For Real #1 (2019)
December 12, 2025 at 4:17 PM