Before we analyze the term independent, I will limit the meaning of independent or ‘indie’ by asuming that independent is liberation. In Indonesian comic’s words liberation has two meanings, freedom in idea or concept. Freedom in idea is a creative process in comic’s which is free from interferences outside it’s creator/ the artist. While freedom in distribution is about a distribution doesn’t legally bound by a certain contract.

The emerging comic’s studio is dominated by the young generation on the end of 20^th century is an indication of second resurrection of Indonesian comic. In fifties, this resurrection bring out the ‘competion’ instinct against a hail of a imported comics and the spirit to returning to local culture. Things that make it more interesting is that the culture context changed. Those changes clearly seen in the mirror of Indonesian comics on ninties, not only against imported comics but also the reality of industrialization and modernity.

Industrialization is a way of living, even on comics, Say back on 1992, ANIMIK WORLD and QN (Qomik Nusantara) appeared in Bandung and held compaign to promote comic’s industry. As a profit oriented industry, the first step to create comic’s is to look the market, and Indonesian comic’s market found were buyers that already spellbounded by imported comic’s, so those spellbounded market segment were affered comic that presented in almost the same way as the imported ones. The strategy applied by ANIMIK WORLD and QN trapped them on the same situation as in forties, at the time the mainstream was American comic’s, so the Indonesian comic’s such a "Sri Asih, Kapten Bintang & Garuda Putih, Kapten Komet" degraded because is similiarities from American comic’s, The main problem was the fear to it’s ideas (culture content). In the end "Caroq" (by QN) and "Si Jail" (by ANIMIK) repeated the same mistake, only with different process & adaption pattern.

The comic industry in addition to fulfil market demand also estimate products continuity, comic’s are merchandise that have to be on sale all the time with good quality. The caracters is mortal and not only involve on fighting scene but also in pyjamas, pins, hats, t-shirts, posters and every possible goods. To create all that needs a great team consist of people with special talent who will handle research, creative and marketing. Inside a creative team there are writer, penciler, imker and coloring. This kind of industry will meet publishing as a bussiness will calculate the profit and loss possibility with royalty system, copy right purchase or annual contract.

In Indonesia, publisher involvement in creative process is big, much less a comic studio whose carry out industry system, they also can destroy a profesional comic artist aesthetic authority easily, like Hans Jaladara for example. This happened in U.S. too but in different nuance because our industry pattern is indeed adapt U.S. industrial system.

The difficult of this industry are not became a burden to some comic artist, "If they want it that way, be apart of it what else can we do". We could see many comics artist work for Mizan or Gramedia. But for some other comic artist this is hard, so they chose to work independently, and don’t care about the trivial matters on industrial system at all. So that in many ways this young comic artist don’t entrust them self on the system (the industry), but tend to build their own system, their own authority. The comics surrection in ninties pretty much bring out the competition spirit against imported comics, create to fighting arenas that are the industrial way and the independent way.

Comics communities outside the industry walk side by side in distribution (event to event) it is not that they defest the industrial system and imported comics boom. They just didn’t pay attention. These comic artist busy with their own ‘comics world’, the world with finnaly create it’s own particular communities and market segment. Looking for friendship and sell their comics hand to hand.

All indie comics liberate in action but not all liberate on idea, it means we will find the domination of imported comics (the mainstream) influences on indie comics. Such as the artistic style , idiom or even the philosophy. This is a freedom in the act of choosing the style by it’s effect, but still stage of liberation in idea from imported comics influences . The liberation of ideas will never to a very complicated and individualistic area, because it’s a very relative process, even to a nation.

Japan for example, have experienced western style era, since 1877 Japanesse cartoon character (in caricature and strip) technically referred to European cartoon brought an English artist Charles Wirgman and his fellow Frenchman George Bigot. About the year of twenties the Japanesse style turned into the American style which tend to more liberal. Nowdays we can see the Japanesse invention to its own character. A very long process that finally liberate the Japanesse in ideas, as liberate as to identify their characters with big rounded eyes. I assumed that is not only a matter of cartunal deformation but an expression to deflect the physical mockery to slanted eyed Japanesse. No one would deny that this is a character deception.

Liberation of ideas means free from influences on the other hand influences in a process is a certainty, for example RA Kosasih processed with Sri Asih (that taking influence by Wonder Woman) before his famous Wayang comics serial. And so in indie comics some of them have many kinds of influences planted and transformed into dependency which was mentioned by Agus Burhan as a patron determinism. The influence factors are not duplicated without being thought through and eliminated the acculturation process. However it’s better to process the influences not only on it’s material form (visual), but also to look inside it’s visual appereance by understand on it’s philosophy. So the influences selection stage will strictly happen and it could come up with a brand new shape. Being influenced is not the death of ideas which at the time should have create identity.

If we traced down, the patron in some of indie comics are Japanesse or American mainstream style, it’s natural due to these two genres are the closest to Indonesian people, so we could easily find indie comics that similar to both mainstream style. Some of them expressed rebellion themes, influenced by American comics movement, which generally refuse comics as entertainment tools and create comics as pure expression media. (B)

1This Adaption pattern wrote by Rakhmat Darmawan (Tempo:1999), in superhero comic’s case there are differences beetween the adaption on fifties and on ninties. On fifties the imported superheroes faced material reduction (anatomy, costume) and setting reduction (characterization and location) to become local. But on ninties, setting was the only things that being reduced but not the material, an upside down pattern. Before, from foreign to local. Nowdays, from local to foreign.