‘The ‘Stan’ Is a Collection of Short Comics About a Long War
There was a time, around 2013 or so, that I secretly worried that the Afghanistan war might end. Yeah, that’s an odd concern for a political liberal and self-avowed pacifist. One who, to boot, had by that time been a war correspondent for eight long years in conflict zones... Read more
Go to War With a U.S. Army Medic in ‘Machete Squad’
“Though rough around the edges, this episodic tale of military life has a gritty honesty, like a guy at a dive bar with a story to get off his chest.” That’s how Publishers Weekly describes Machete Squad, War Is Boring’s debut graphic novel from writers Brent Dulak, Kevin Knodell... Read more
The Cartoonist, the Historian and Their War
This story first appeared on Dec. 29, 2013. While working on his classic World War I serial It Was the War of the Trenches, celebrated French cartoonist Jacques Tardi was approached by collector and historian Jean-Pierre Verney, who offered to correct some minor errors in War of the Trenches.... Read more
War & Fireworks
When Will Eisner Went to War
This story originally appeared on April 12, 2015. The name Will Eisner is synonymous with good comics. The industry Eisner Award — the comics world’s version of the Oscars—even bears his name. Writers and artists work their whole careers hoping to win an Eisner. Eisner is most famous for... Read more
Meet the Comics Artist Who Draws War in Meticulous Detail
This story originally appeared on March 17, 2015. Wayne Vansant, the son of a World War II veteran, grew up on war stories. As a child, he loved hearing adults talk about the war, reading about it and watching movies about it. As a result, the 65-year-old comics writer... Read more
‘The Lost Fleet: Corsair’ Is ‘Battlestar Galactica’ Meets ‘Captain America’
War Is Boring got a sneak peek at a new graphic novel from best-selling military science fiction writer Jack Campbell. Illustrated by Andre Siregar and Bambang Irawan with colors from Sebastian Cheng, The Lost Fleet: Corsair is like Battlestar Galactica meets Captain America. Check it out. Read more
‘Black Panther’ Is a Meditation on Leadership
This article contains spoilers for Black Panther. Black Panther is a blockbuster. Marvel’s newest film is setting box-office records and smashing ancient Hollywood myths about race and success. It’s touching nerves for all the obvious reasons, but film’s legacy will be its political message. In an era where no... Read more
Netflix’s ‘The Punisher’ Is the Vetsploitation Story America Needs
This story contains spoilers for The Punisher Wetwork like this always happens in a basement. There’s the sound of flesh on flesh and a splash of blood on the concrete. There are blackouts, ghosts of the dead and the street noise of Kandahar. There’s a man business casual covered... Read more
Check Out This Exquisite Art From ‘The Forever War’ Graphic Novel
It’s too neat and tidy to say combat causes post-traumatic stress. There is something to be said for the alienation which ex-soldiers experience in an atomized, individualistic society after leaving a tightly-knit group of warriors — who share deep bonds and loyalties between them borne from shared experiences. Civilian... Read more