Aaron Robinson Posted June 7, 2009 Report Share Posted June 7, 2009 Okay, what's the technique called in manga where sharp lines are used to highlight the significance of an action? A quick look on Google came back with about a billion different possibilities (action lines, focus lines, flash lines, effect lines, etc.) and I’m wondering if there’s a more accepted term for what they are? I've always referred to lines like that as speed lines, but that doesn't seem right if there's no movement actually happening. In case people have no idea what I'm blathering on about, I'm talking about things like this: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Robinson Posted June 8, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dread Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 Don't be sad. As I understand it, it's just symbolia for astonishment or surprise. And it's not exclusive to manga. It's called emanata. Symbolia is like a lightbulb for an idea or lines following a static image of someone to show they're running. Below is a bad but illustrative example: The lines around the head showing surprise or shock, is emanata. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron Robinson Posted June 8, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 Thanks man. I’ve seen plenty of examples of emanate in comics before, but having a whole panel covered in sharp lines focusing on a focal point seems distinctly Japanese to me. I don’t know, maybe I’m just crazy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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