Broken Frontier

Sequart Research & Literary Organization, a nonprofit, nonfiction publisher dedicated to scholarly analysis and criticism of the comics medium, has released their latest book, Minutes to Midnight: Twelve Essays on Watchmen.

From Sequart’s website:

“Minutes to Midnight: Twelve Essays on Watchmen examines Watchmen from a variety of perspectives to uncover surprising answers to many questions. What does it reveal about the history of scientific theory? How is the atom bombing of Hiroshima refracted through its pages? Does Watchmen’s murder mystery measure up to the standards of Raymond Chandler? Is the depiction of Rorschach an unfair caricature of the philosophy of Steve Ditko? Where are the secrets of Captain Metropolis and the Minutemen revealed? Was the Comedian right all along? Who shouldn’t read Watchmen? What are the limits of Watchmen and do they extend beyond a major motion picture?”

Also from Sequart’s site, here is the organization’s mission statement:

“Sequart Research & Literary Organization is a non-profit organization devoted to promoting comic books as a legitimate art form.

Our mission is twofold. First, we promote research into comics-related topics, publishing books and other materials that encourage comics scholarship. Second, we promote comics literacy by promoting the medium itself and encouraging others to experience the unique art form known as comic books.

The term ‘sequart’ is an abbreviation of ‘sequential art’ and is used as a term for the medium itself, independent of any particulars of genre or medium. Therefore, comic books, graphic novels, children's picture books, and the stations of the cross are all ‘sequart.’”

What and interesting and honorable pursuit, considering comics themselves are still a niche medium, and genuine comics analysis and criticism is an unfortunate rarity.

In addition to books, Sequart has also expanded successfully into the realm of cinematography with their documentary, Grant Morrison: Talking with Gods, which I’ve heard nothing but positive buzz about.

Sequart was founded and is currently headed by Julian Darius, with Mike Phillips serving as the editor-in-chief and Kevin Thurman the marketing director.

For more information on sequart and their products, please visit the organization’s official website.