a. Goodbrey's The Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021): Translation and Theory

I would like to conduct my own analysis of two webcomics for translation purposes. I will refer to Daniel Merlin Goodbrey’s works, which are not only a timely representation of the webcomic medium, but also show just varied the work of a single author can be. Daniel Merlin Goodbrey is a veteran of webcomics and digital comics alike; he has been an active creator over two decades, creating and collaborating on numerous digital projects and establishing a prominent canon of works. Furthermore, he is active academically, as the cited works show (e.g. Goodbrey, 2013a, 2013b, 2015, 2016, 2017c, 2020). Among other things, he has developed the Tarquin Engine, which was created in an effort to host infinite canvas webcomics with ease, and continues to publish academic research concerning digital comic medium, notably hypercomics, a term that he coined and defined as: “the juxtaposition-based visual language of a comic with the multicursal narrative structure of a hyperfiction” (Goodbrey, 2013a, p. 291). In other words, a hypercomic is choice-based; the reader can select different narrative paths, which often involves choosing one panel or page out of two or more. As Goodbrey (2013a) says “progression comes about as a consequence of intention, deliberate choice or inadvertent action on behalf of the reader” (p. 292).

Furthermore, Goodbrey (2020b) also singles out game comics, which he says are a type of hypercomic “that exhibits some of the key characteristics of a game and uses some of the key characteristics of the form of comics as the basis for its gameplay” (p. 45); an example of this is Goodbrey’s hypercomic titled Icarus Needs (2013), where the reader controls the main character, moving him from panel to panel with the arrows of a keyboard.

Yet while Goodbrey’s hypercomics are of more experimental nature, his recent webcomics are ones that can be easily categorized as non-enhanced. All are serialized and hosted on his website, E-merl; some have finished their run, while others are still being updated. An interesting current title from Goodbrey is Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021), a minimalist fantasy webcomic which takes place in a kingdom where everyone has suddenly died due to a mysterious mistake, becoming ghosts. The webcomic was updated every Tuesday (as of March 2021 it finished its run), and is made up of short pages containing seven to eight panels. Naturally, each page is

posted under a new URL, but the story itself is interconnected; the plot entails the occupants of the kingdom pondering about how the tragedy came about, and offering solutions to the sudden problem. The webcomic is illustrated simply, with little detail but aesthetically pleasing depictions of ghosts and geometrical backgrounds; furthermore, each page has a variation of a reigning color scheme, such as pink, blue, green, and so forth. Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) is humorous and existential in its tone, subtly touching upon such questions as the meaning of life and the existence of other dimensions.

If one were to analyze Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) from the point of view of Groensteen’s theoretical system within the context of translation, the first thing that naturally draws attention is the question of the multiframe. While each page is separate, i.e. they are not portrayed on one infinite canvas, they are most certainly interconnected on a higher level, the multiframe.

There is no mistaking that there is an ongoing plot, which is continued every week- thus, the sum of this webcomics’ multiframe is the sum of all pages published up-to-date, a sum that changes quite dynamically. Unlike a printed or digital comic, which is published as a whole, a webcomic is subjected to dynamic change on a weekly or even day-to-day basis. Naturally, a printed or digital comic can have sequels gradually added to it, but these often occur on a monthly or yearly basis, unlike most serialized webcomics. As is known, serialization defines webcomics; citing Gabriel E.

Romaguera (2010) from his thesis on narrative strategies in webcomics as microserialized works,

“this microserialization [in webcomics] foregrounds the narrative construction of webcomics, which allows for the continuous study of authorial intention and the influences of a highly participatory reading community on the work” (p. 1). Here, Groensteen’s multiframe, along with his concept of iconic solidarity as one of the defining characteristics of any comic, takes on a whole new meaning.

The pages of Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) are separate, but consistently interdependent; a reader does not only perceive the webcomic as a whole through the recurring plot, but also due to the patterns in color, shapes, and characters. Furthermore, the concept of arthrology is beneficial to furthering the understanding of the webcomic.

On the level of general arthrology, which as a translinear concept is connected to the multiframe and includes all pages, panels, sequences and elements of Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021), one can observe that Goodbrey’s webcomic functions coherently on a higher level.

There are, for instance, elements of braiding, such as the clock tower that appears every so often in the background, or the sporadic appearances of such characters as the ghost King, the reverend, and the journalist. It is important to note that recurring characters are differentiated by their head wear-the King has a crown, wear-the journalist has a stereotypical 1950’s vintage hat, and wear-the reverend is wearing a pair of reading glasses. Without these signifiers, it would be hard to differentiate the characters appearing in panels, as each character is draw in exactly the same way. This is not an artistic oversight on Goodbrey’s part; not only is the sameness of the characters a recurring joke, but

also a subtle commentary on how in death, everyone is equal. An example of this is the dialogue between the King and the Minister:

The King: “Tell me Minister. If I took off this crown...would I still be King?”

The Minister: “Of course, Your majesty.”

The King: “But if I took of [sic] the crown...how would you know who I was at all?”

(Goodbrey, 2018b).

Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) justifies Groensteen’s iconic solidarity and presumption that the visual dominates in comics and is an important attribute. Moreover, the recurring character of the King, as one out of many braiding elements, “manifests into consciousness the notion that the panels of a comic constitute a network, and even a system” (Groensteen, 1999/2007, p. 159). This is an especially important notion when it comes to webcomics, which are connected in a non-traditional way, across a series of URLs that make up the whole of the webcomic. Groensteen (1999/2007) also refers to this as telearthrology (p. 159), that is how independent images are revealed to be referring to one another, a form of intratextual reference. This is especially apparent in how, for instance, some featured pages can make up one stand-alone aspect; for example, the webcomic strip titled “9. Relaxing” features two ghost citizens discussing the relaxing benefits of being dead, while the next page, titled “10. Science” features the Journalist asking the Professor if science could have caused the Great Mistake (Goodbrey, 2017a; 2017b). However, there are also topics that carry on through a series of pages, such as the most recent issue of projects that the King is supporting (Goodbrey, 2020a).

On the level of restricted arthrology, Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) features interesting compositional relationships. First of all, the breakdown on each page usually consists of six to eight panels that are can be either square or rectangular in shape. The panels are separated by a classic, white gutter. Furthermore, each page also has its own leading color, be it green, blue, purple and so forth; the characters and backgrounds are all illustrated in different shade of the dominating page color. The only exception are the braiding elements, such as the King’s yellow crown or the reverend’s blue glasses, as well as the dialogue, which is always written in white. The breakdown for Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) is fairly standard; across the panels of a page, the events occur in a linear sequence, any featured dialogue recurring in a logical, linear manner. As was noted, some of the plot lines spread out over the course of a few subsequent pages, while some are confined to just one page. Referring to McCloud’s word-image combinations within a panel, it can be deduced that the predominant relationship between image and text is interdependent- the minimalistic imagery cannot be made sense of without text, especially since that it is through the dialogue that a potential reader can keep track of characters. There are, however, instances of picture specific panels, an example of which is the page titled “25. Out” (Goodbrey, 2018a). The page depicts a series of panels showing ghost citizens being swept away by the wind,

where the only text is featured in a the last panel as a brief conversation between two ghosts about how windy it is.

Taking into consideration Cohn’s VNG as well as the notion of parallel architecture, Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) features clear narrative structure in both the visual and the verbal.

If one were to consider Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) from the point of view of panel sequences, there are rarely pages, or sequences, that can be ascribed to the Autonomous category or the Dominant category; while there may be singular panels that are picture-specific or text-specific, or a sequence of panels which are clearly Vis-Dominant or Vis-Autonomous (like in Goodbrey, 2018a). Therefore, in Goodbrey’s webcomic, most sequences can be seen as assertive; they are sometimes Co-Assertive, where both image and text feature grammatical structure and both carry relevant meaning, but in many cases it can be seen that pages are Verb-Assertive (an example of this being “29. The crown”); this categorization is largely brought on due to the webcomics’

minimalistic art style and fleshed out humorous dialogue. The only exceptions are the occasional Vis-Dominant, Vis-Autonomous and Vis-Assertive sequences, like in “25. Out”. Furthermore, the collected examples as well as quick overview of the webcomic shows that nearly all panels belong to the macro category-they almost always feature a ghost. Naturally, if one were to conduct a detailed analysis for translation purposes, one would consider the webcomic at first holistically, taking into account the webcomics’ parallel architecture, and then discussing select pages from the point of Cohn’s interaction categories.

Finally, one could analyze Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) from the point of view of Genette’s transtextuality. In this case, paratextuality is most relevant, which is demonstrated through a significant number of elements: the comments section, the title for each page, the author commentary and transcript that lingers beneath select webcomic pages, and the entire webpage that the webcomic is hosted on. The rich paratext surrounding Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) is one that is often commonly encountered in webcomics, down to the single links that can be found on the webpage that the webcomic is embedded in. Here, one can’t help but wonder if this is a matter of hypertextuality, or perhaps even intertextuality. After all, the links lead to Goodbrey’s other works (intertextuality), while Goodbrey’s brief subtitles can impact how a reader can interpret a given page (hypertextuality). Regardless, these aspects, along with the ones aforementioned, are important to consider when it comes to given goals, such as translation.

How does this analysis benefit a possible translation? Firstly, it dissects the webcomic from the highest to lowest level, allowing the translator to see in what way the webcomic functions, and how each of its elements are interrelated on a higher, more general level. A continually expanding multiframe demands not only continuous attention on the part of the translator, but also the need to take into account possible future changes. After all, Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) features instances of braiding, and it would be up to the translator (and any other people taking part

in the translation process e.g. publishers, editors, programmers etc.) to preserve these instances.

Such preservation could be e.g. through making sure to consistently translate character names so as to make them easily identifiable. Furthermore and perhaps most importantly, a translator would have to consider incorporating at least part of the paratext; as mentioned, Goodbrey’s subtitles have a paratextual, and perhaps hypertextual relationship to the comic pages, and it would be advised that this be incorporated in a translation, be it on a sister site or in printed form.

The additional components surrounding webcomics often form an integral part, if not simply an enriching, aesthetic one. Citing Henry Jenkins (2006) in his book Convergence Culture, “more and more, storytelling has become the art of world building, as artists create compelling environments that cannot be fully explored or exhausted within a single work or even a single medium” (p. 114). While here Jenkins is specifically discussing The Matrix in the context of transmedia storytelling, that is “a process where integral elements of a fiction get dispersed systematically across multiple delivery channels for the purpose of creating a unified and coordinated entertainment experience” (Jenkins, 2007, par. 1), this process can be very much related to webcomics themselves to a certain degree. Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) is a webcomic confined to one website, but such webcomics as Cope’s Unsounded (2010-current), Butler’s Lackadaisy (2006-current), Siddel’s Gunnerkrigg Court (2005-current) or even Jacobs’

previously mentioned example of A.D.: After The Deluge (2007-2008) go beyond their assigned website. Butler features a number of content in additional comic strips on her Patreon and website that provide lore for her characters, while Cope has released integral content in the printed versions of her webcomic, including an entire write-up of the grammar and syntax of her fantasy language-Tanish. This does not include both authors social media, where they actively explain and discuss content with their readers, providing enlightenment that influences the reception and interpretation of their stories.

Therefore, a translator can use both Genette’s and Groensteen’s theories in order to assess what outside material is linked to the webcomic in question, what elements make up the multiframe, and what panels or panel relations can be counted towards arthology. Further analyzing how a breakdown occurs across the panels, i.e. how action is distributed across panels or finding elements of braiding, or how the gridding of a page is arranged allows for a preliminary assessment of the translation process. Notably, a translator can judge just how challenging a translation can be. One could also add McCloud’s basic, but effective for preliminary judgment, taxonomy of inter-panel relationships. This can be further expanded on using Cohn’s taxonomy and multimodality theory of parallel architecture, adpated from linguistics. Establishing the scope of the webcomic and its cross-medium or cross-work functions can be immensely useful in translating, and moreover- it can be a deciding factor if a translation is worth undertaking in the first place. To demonstrate this, I’ve translated page “9. Relaxing” in full from Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) complete with

back translation (BT) and the author’s note for the page (table 1):

Table 1

Translation of Webcomic Strip from Ghosts of the Great Mistake Translation: “9: Relaxing” Ghosts of the Great Mistake (figure 12) 9. „Relaks”

[Duch 1: Szczerze mówiąc, to wszystko jest nieco relaksujące]

BT: Honestly speaking, this all is somewhat relaxing.

Ghost 1: Death, I mean.

[Duch 1: Znaczy się, śmierć]

BT: Meaning, death.

Ghost 1: It’s really nice to just have all the pressure taken off you for a while, y’know?

[Duch 1: Poprostu fajnie, gdy na jakiś czas cała presja zostaje z ciebie ściągnięta, co nie?]

BT: It’s just nice, when for a time all pressure gets off you taken, know?

Ghost 2: So...the eternity of perpetual nothingness stretching out before us doesn’t bother you at all?

[Duch 2: A więc…w ogóle ci nie przeszkadza nieustanna wieczność nicości, która się przed nami rozciąga?]

BT: So...at all it doesn’t bother you neverending eternity nothingness, which before us stretches?

Ghost 1: I don’t think you realise how long it’s been since I last had a holiday.

[Duch 1: Ty chyba sobie nie zdajesz sprawy, od jak dawna nie miałem wakacji].

BT: You I think yourself don’t realize, from how long I didn’t have vacation.

Author’s note: As a very special Halloween Episode….something with ghosts in it!

[Notatka od autora: Z okazji specjalnego odcinka Halloween…..coś z duchami!]

BT: To celebrate a special episode Halloween….something with ghosts!

One of the first things that can be noticed is the simple yet humorous dialogue. Such black humor is universal, i.e. we can only ever truly rest when we’re dead, or that death frees us from having to work. This characteristic certainly makes it attractive for a potential translation; a translator’s note, or brief, would further reveal that the illustrations are one-color and minimalistic, and the panel distribution is confined to an unorthodox square, but subjected to typical gridding devices such as the existence of the gutter as a way of dividing the panels and creating appropriate pacing. In terms of more detailed information, a translator could note that the dialogue in the panels is a montage, using McCloud’s (1993, pp. 153-155) categorization, and that aside from one panel which is picture specific with no dialogue, the image and dialogue in the panels are in additive relationship. At first, one might think they are interdependent, but the extraction and translation of the pure dialogue

demonstrates that the text is able to independently exist outside of the image. Naturally, without the image, much is lost when it comes to plot, intention, and aesthetic reception, but the dialogue is universal enough to be understood on its own, and is further enhanced by the imagery. Additionally, a translator could note that aside from the surrounding paratext and the remaining pages in the multiframe, there is not much more to consider in terms of additional mediums and texts outside of the main webcomic page that are integral.

Figure 12

Ghosts of the Great Mistake Webomic Strip

Note. Goodbrey’s “9. Relaxing”. Adapted from Ghosts of the Great Mistake, by D. M. Goodbrey, 2017, Retrieved April 20, 2020, from http://e-merl.com/ghosts/9-relaxing

In conclusion, pages/episodes from Ghosts of the Great Mistake (2017-2021) would not pose great difficulty for the translator or potential publisher or editor, due to the lack of relevant hypertextual and intertextual links across other mediums or platforms. To contrast, a translator would not have to go far to realise the immense challenge in translating Cope’s ongoing webcomic Unsounded (2010-current). Using the aforementioned theories and taxonomies, listed below are the potential difficulties that can be encountered:

• From the point of view of general arthrology, the images are connected across a very wide spectrum due to the transmedia storytelling that Unsounded (2010-current) incorporates.

Additional content, some of which is integral to the plot and characters, can be found on the

dedicated wiki page, on the author’s social media accounts, in the printed versions of the webcomic, and on occasion in the comment sections. As Eric Rutgrink (2013) in his paper on transmedia storytelling notes: “Being free from empirical sense data, comics require readers not just to follow a narrative but actively engage in the formation of a new reality or

‘Lore’ –although often an implicated rather than a highly formal one” (p. 7). As a work functioning online, Unsounded (2010-current) adheres to this notion.

• Taking into account the first point, a translator has to question what constitutes the multiframe- indirectly, the multiframe includes anything that is integral to the understanding of the webcomic in question. A simple solution could be that only printed volumes are to be taken into account, or only the pages posted on the main website under the tab titled

“comic”. However, that would force the translator to ignore other integral parts that make up the multiframe. Braiding here does not constitute a larger issue, as this aspect is mostly confined to the main body of the webcomic.

• On the level of restricted arthrology, Unsounded (2010-current) has unique page spreads and inter-panel relations. They tend to widely vary in shape and gridding structure, some of them featuring elaborate hyperframes that adorn or interfere with select pages. The breakdown itself is linear and easy to flow, e.g. action sequences taking place after the other, but the often elaborate and uneven page construction can prove challenging to adapt into a translation. Once again, a printed version exists, but it is far inferior to the online version, which even sometimes includes animated imagery.

• On the level of Genette’s transtextuality, it can be seen that Unsounded (2010-current) features elaborate paratextual, hypertextual, intertextual relationships, ones that spread across platforms and mediums; these would be hard, if not impossible, to reflect in a potential translation. Reviewer Maggie Vicknair (2016) notes that the complexity of Unsounded (2010-current) and its transmedial storytelling creates problems even for English readers, who sometimes tend to have difficulty following story-relevant details.

• Analyzing Unsounded (2010-current) from the point of view of Cohn’s theories and taxonomies could actually greatly benefit an attempted translation; however, this is due to Unsounded’s (2010-current) complexity. Taking into account the concept of VNG, Unsounded (2010-current) is a webcomic that is very heavily grounded in visual narration, with numerous interactions including those that are Autonomous, Dominant, and Assertive, both visually and verbally. As with any webcomic, the two most prominent modalities are the images and the text, but they combine with such elements as sound, animation, and surrounding images that go beyond the panel (the hyperframe). Unsounded (2010-current) has a very rich graphic, conceptual and narrative structure, and if one were to adhere to Cohn’s adapted idea of parallel architecture, certain elements could simply not be ignored,

thus putting a translator in the position to deeply scrutinize Unsounded (2010-current) in order to perform a proper translation action. Given that panels interact in multiple ways, and that there is a variety of panels that range from Macro to Amorphic, the task comes across as overwhelming.

• Finally, a few words should be said about the genre that Unsounded (2010-current) belongs to. Unsounded (2010-current) is a fantasy webcomic that prides itself on complex storyline and intricate lore, including the use of a made-up fantasy language. These factors make for an engaging and interesting plot, but one that demands a specialized translation, preferably by a translator already familiar with the fantasy genre and the webcomic itself.

This is not to say that the translation of a webcomic such as Unsounded (2010-current) is an impossible feat; rather, after applying a multimodal breakdown and analyzing the webcomic at hand with select theories, it is easier for the translator to establish a helpful approach. Often, this would unfortunately involve the elimination of some of the surrounding paratext or intertextual references, indeed risking an incomplete understanding on the part of the target reader. An ambitious translator would try to adapt the most relevant elements that constitute the multiframe, e.g. adding translator notes where applicable, and perhaps writing a foreword to the translation. Of course, such solutions are idealistic, and the matter of fact remains that a work like Unsounded (2010-current) would simply not be translated due to its niche character.

The aforementioned theories pertaining to comics and multimodality, as well as the brief analysis based on those theories, not only confirm the multimodality of webcomics, but they also emphasize the complex relationship between the visual and the verbal that is often encountered in multimodal studies. This leads to the question of how to consider such works from the point of view of translation, given their multimodality. For instance, one might begin to wonder if the idea of a source and target text is appropriate when discussing the translation of webcomics. After all, text is just one part of the webcomic, which is made up of images and other elements. Before beginning a theory-based discussion on the translation of webcomics, it may be wise to consider a new source and target unit when discussing such a digital, dynamic work.