Keep the Philippine Comics Industry Alive and Kicking

(for the final requirement/speech in Oralcomm.)

A hundred and twenty years. Old enough to be called a culture. Old enough to greatly affect human lives. Old enough to be praised. But old enough to die? Not yet. No. Never. The Philippine Comics Industry now exists for almost 120 years in our country. Though the continuous success of comics began by the year 1929, when Tony Velasquez published in the Liwayway Magazine the comic strip “Kenkoy”, it was believed that the first comic strip ever in the Philippines is “The Monkey and the Tortoise” created by no less than Dr. Jose Rizal. The industry has already experienced fame, fun and failure. Fame as for these years it had been read all over the Philippines and I’m proud to say that we, Filipinos had adapted this to our culture. Fun because we also consider comics as our entertainer just like those tv dramas and radio programs. But failure for at present, the Philippine Comics Industry is declining. Many chose to stop reading comics because of the rise of other and more interactive forms of entertainment such as televisions and the internet. It is still there. It is still alive but we need to keep it alive and kicking. Let us move to rebuild the Philippine Comics Industry. Contribute, support or promote.

Contribute. We, as future journalists and writers can definitely write comics. Simple one-liners can create comic strips or if you feel like sharing more, you can create comic books such as the ever popular Pugad Baboy of Pol Medina. As for the cartoons, if you have the skills, you can do it alone or if not, you could easily partner-up with someone with the talent and they are everywhere. Here, in our classroom, many have the skill to draw or even in our University, most of them are at the Beato Angelico. Rebuild our comics industry, write and draw comics.

If not contribute, support! If you do not prefer to write comics, I bet you’ll love to read it. I guess almost every one of us here has already read even one comic strip, who would not have? Comic books and comic strips are very accessible. Tabloids, broadsheets, magazines, internet, bookstores or just borrow from your friends. Rebuild our comics industry, read comics.

If not read, watch. Many of our legendary and great comics before are relived today by different television companies. Darna, Captain Barbell, The Spectacular Adventures of Zsa Zsa Saturna are some of these. Movies are also made from old comics, such as Lastikman and Dyesebel. Rebuild our comics industry, watch comics.

If not contribute, neither read nor watch, promote! Encourage others to contribute and support Philippine comics. Rebuild our comics industry, promote comics.

Comics have been a part of the Filipino culture. It is part of our identity. We have it in ourselves. We own it. And we should fight for it. The future of the Philippine comics industry is in our hands, in your hands. Contribute, support and promote; rebuild the Philippine Comics Industry.