A
comic book or
comicbook, also called
comic magazine or simply
comic, is a publication that consists of
comic art in the form of sequential juxtaposed
panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by brief descriptive prose and written narrative, usually dialog contained in
word balloons emblematic of the comics art form. Although comic books have some origins in 18th century Japan and 1830s Europe, comic books were first popularized in the United States during the 1930s. The first modern comic book,
Famous Funnies, was released in the United States in 1933 and was a reprinting of earlier newspaper humor
comic strips, which had established many of the story-telling devices used in comics. The term
comic book derives from
American comic books once being a compilation of comic strips of a humorous tone; however, this practice was replaced by featuring stories of all genres, usually not humorous in tone.