Adventure comic book page

While comic books are visual, they are still a partnership between a writer and an artist. For this snippet, you will need to describe a page of action and dialogue. If, sometime later, an artist (maybe you) draws your page, brilliant!  

The page we’re looking at is full of action, and action pages in comics have rules. The example is a fast-moving chase that ends with the hero being thrown off a car. They’re still pictures, so how do you make a comic page feel like that?

  • Keep the dialogue light. Your eyes slow down when you have to read, so an action page stays visual to keep your eyes and brain moving quickly.
  • Add sound effects. Sometimes done with words over the action (POW! BLAM! SMASH!). This example uses dialogue as sound effects (BRRRR--!, --GNNH--).
  • (Almost) every panel is a BIG action. Hawkeye hits the car! Windscreen smashes! (Pause to show electro-arrow) Henchman electrocuted! Jumps cars! Struggles! Smashes! Hits ground! Black. The story rockets along and you’ve got to keep up.

Here is the snippet as you would see it in a comic:

Here is a way to describe this page in words:

PAGE 17

Panels 1-2: HAWKEYE jumps from KATE BISHOP’s car to the HENCHMAN’s car. He’s holding an arrow. The HENCHMAN’S windscreen cracks.

HAWKEYE: FFFHHUWWWAH 

Panels 3-4: Close up of the arrow. HAWKEYE zaps the HENCHMAN with it. 

Label: ELECTRO-ARROW
HENCHMAN: BRRRR--!

Panels 5-6: HENCHMAN leaps to KATE’s car. They struggle.

KATE: --GNNH--

Panel 7: HAWKEYE realises that he is now sitting on top of an out of control car. 

HAWKEYE: OH MAN--

Panels 8-9: The two cars collide. HAWKEYE is thrown off and hits the ground hard.

HAWKEYE (narration): Okay so that was the second biggest dumb thing.

Panel 10: Everything goes black.

PAGE 10

Panels 1-2: DIVER DANI is dwarfed by a gigantic STATUE on the ocean floor. She swoops closer, talking on her radio.

DANI: Woah… you seeing this??

Panels 3-4: We focus on the STATUE’S dark face as DANI swims behind it, searching. ANNA responds.

SFX: KCHH!
ANNA (voiceover): Yes! The tomb! Found an entrance? 
DANI: Not yet. 

Panels 5-7: DANI swims very close this time. Suddenly, the STATUE grows dark, its eyes glow with an unearthly light and a sudden rush of water pushes her away. 

SFX: WHOOOOSH!
SFX: HMMMMMMMMMMMM
STATUE: NONE... SHALL... PASS....

Panel 8: DANI looks shocked.

DANI (narration): Okay. Wasn’t expecting THAT.

Write an action page for a comic book using the photo as the starting point. Keep the dialogue small, add effects and describe big action in the panels!