Scott McCloud's second exposition into the nature of comics, this work explores the place of comics in the 20th century, as well as their problems, and new directions that comics are going in.
From publication problems, to race, gender, and independent vs. company issues, McCloud gives a very clear overview of what has created the current feelings and conceptions of the world regarding comics, including giving a fairly clear impression of how Japanese comics differ in their nature from Western comics.
In the second half of the book, McCloud discusses how the internet and the World Wide Web are changing the face of comics, and providing new opportunities for creativity.