1.1 Background

The reputation of comics has undergone many permutations, from trivial child’s play, to dangerous corruptor of society [Hajdu, 2009; Williams and Lyons, 2010; Van Lente and Dunlavey, 2012]. Yet despite its chequered past, the comics medium is slowly being recognised as a legitimate art form as it moves into the cultural mainstream [Fisher and Frey, 2011; Weitkamp and Burnet, 2007; Tatalovic, 2009]—to the point where comics have received literary recognition, with awards like the Pulitzer Prize [Spiegelman, 1992]. As the acceptance and celebration of comics continues to grow, experts are increasingly advocating for their use in education [eg Mayer et al., 1996; Morrison, Bryan and Chilcoat, 2002; Cheesman, 2006; Hosler and Boomer, 2011; Kobayashi, 2011; Ardasheva et al., 2015], healthcare [eg Austin et al., 1995; Houts et al., 2006] and libraries [Meier, 2012].