The problem with TV is that those running it think they are important and the subjects of their programmes merely background. The reverse is true. A well produced TV programme's structure should be unobtrusive, letting the subjects speak for themselves.
Last night's programme was the opposite. It essentially consisted of soundbites, few if as long as 10 seconds, strung together with comic book pictures, cut into the smallest possible sections so that it would look like something Roy Lichtenstein had copied. Strung together as much as it had any connecting links, by somebody wearing improbable Clarke Kent's specs to look as geeky as possible.They should just have done straight interviews with the various creators. In half an hour they could have done 4 five minute interviews/speeches in which each could have shared some real opinions about their art or the business.
I have said elsewhere why television would be an ideal vehicle for serious formal political debates but that this would reduce the ability of the on screen talent" to feel self-important and that is exactly what was wrong with this programme.
Also you could see how eager the BBC were to portray comics as Bang Thud as per the Batman TV series. I suspect the Batman TV series, Clark Kent's specs and Roy Lichtenstein is all many Beeboids know of comics. Throughout the panels they chose to magnify and show were very "comic booky". We have in Glasgow one of the world's best artists, Frank Quitely, not only extremely popular but admired technically by other artists who see his remarkable economy of line. If they wanted to show what contemporary comic books look like (well look like at their best) while enhancing the Scottish connection that was the purpose of the programme, they could have used something beautiful like this for their panel shots
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