Viewer Template: Comic-Text (Visual Narrative Without Images)
What This Is
The energy of a graphic novel or infographic — but purely in text. Bold, chunky, high-impact. Think: a Vox video script meets an illustrated explainer meets a graphic investigation. Each panel is a FRAME — self-contained, punchy, visually distinct even without images.
The reader scrolls through discrete frames, each delivering one idea with maximum clarity. This is for topics that need to reach the widest audience — making complex systems (law, health, governance, resources) accessible through dramatic framing and visual-text design.
Visual Feel (text-only, no images)
- Panel borders — each section feels like a discrete frame/card
- LARGE bold text for key statements (like comic book narration boxes)
- Impact numbers — single stats displayed huge:
$119 / 90% / 1,444 killed
- Character introductions — entities introduced with name + role like character cards
- Action verbs dominating — "STRIKES" / "COLLAPSES" / "SURGES"
- Color-coded tags in brackets: [ENTITY] [CAUSAL] [DATA] [QUOTE]
- Typography: Bold sans-serif throughout. Dramatic weight variation.
- Density: VARIABLE — some panels are one sentence, some are dense. Rhythm matters.
The Structure (25 panels)
TITLE CARD (Panel 1)
One sentence. Maximum impact. Like the cover of a graphic novel.
THE RESOURCE CURSE
How Oil Built Dictatorships — And Why They're Burning Now
By Carlos Mendez | Sao Paulo | March 2026
No preamble. Title. Subtitle. Author. Done. The reader is already inside.
THE HOOK (Panels 2-3)
Two frames that grab attention through contrast or shock.
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Panel 2: THE BIG NUMBER
One statistic, presented for maximum impact:
$681 BILLION
Saudi Arabia spent on defense, 2010-2023.
That's more than the GDP of 150 countries.
-
Panel 3: THE HUMAN FRAME
One person, one moment, one sentence:
In Khuzestan province, a hospital nurse named Maryam works her 72nd consecutive hour.
There are no more painkillers. The supply truck from Isfahan hasn't come in four days.
She doesn't know it yet, but the pharmaceutical supply chain broke 6,000 km away,
in a boardroom where petrochemical futures are traded in milliseconds.
THE SYSTEM (Panels 4-7)
Explain how things work. One concept per frame.
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Panel 4: INTRODUCING THE PLAYERS
Character card format:
THE PLAYERS
[INSTITUTION] OPEC — 13 oil-producing nations. Controls 40% of global supply.
[ACTOR] MBS (Mohammed bin Salman) — Saudi Crown Prince. Reformer. Authoritarian.
[MECHANISM] Petrodollar — Oil priced in USD since 1974. Forces every nation to hold dollars.
[PLACE] Strait of Hormuz — 21 miles wide. 20.5M barrels/day. Now closed.
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Panel 5-6: HOW IT WORKS — One mechanism per panel, explained in 3-4 sentences max
- Use analogy: "Think of [X] as [everyday thing]"
- Use arrows: "A → causes → B → which triggers → C"
- Bold the key terms on first appearance
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Panel 7: THE CRACK — What was already wrong before the war
THE CRACK IN THE SYSTEM
Before a single missile launched, the system was already fracturing:
→ Dollar reserve share: 72% (1999) → 58.5% (2026)
→ Saudi-China oil talks in yuan: ongoing since 2022
→ BRICS alternative payment system: operational since 2024
The war didn't break it. The war revealed it was already broken.
THE CRISIS (Panels 8-12)
What happened. Action-oriented, present tense.
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Panel 8: THE TRIGGER — One frame, one event
FEBRUARY 28, 2026
Operation Epic Fury begins.
200+ fighter jets. 500 Israeli targets. 12 Iranian military sites.
Supreme Leader Khamenei killed in the opening salvo.
Everything that follows starts here.
-
Panel 9-10: THE CHAIN REACTION — Each link is its own mini-frame
CHAIN REACTION
1. Hormuz closes → 20.5M bbl/day gone
↓
2. Oil: $65 → $119 (+83%)
↓
3. India LPG imports: -90%
↓
4. 300M households affected
↓
5. Ujjwala subsidy bill: ₹800B → ₹1.5T
↓
6. Indian fiscal deficit: +0.8% GDP
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Panel 11-12: THE DATA — Stats presented as impact frames
DAMAGE REPORT: DAY 21
KILLED: 1,444 (Iran) + 1,000+ (Lebanon)
INJURED: 18,551 (Iran) + 200 (US forces)
DISPLACED: estimated 2.1M
OIL DISRUPTED: 20.5M bbl/day
INSURANCE CLAIMS: $3.2B
SHIPPING REROUTED: 60% of Gulf traffic
THE INVESTIGATION (Panels 13-18)
The unique findings. Each panel is a discovery frame.
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Panel 13-14: FINDING frames — Each states one insight dramatically
WHAT NOBODY IS TALKING ABOUT
The oil price isn't the story.
6,000 products are made from petroleum.
Fertilizers. Plastics. Pharmaceuticals. Synthetic rubber.
When oil disrupts, civilization's supply chain disrupts.
This is not an energy crisis. This is an everything crisis.
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Panel 15-16: CONNECTION frames — How this links to other investigations
THE WEB
Dr. Torres traces this through financial markets → gold at $5,300
Prof. Goldstein traces this through legal frameworks → sanctions architecture
Dr. Kraus traces this through insurance → Lloyd's war risk at WWII levels
Same crisis. Different angles. One system breaking.
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Panel 17-18: EVIDENCE frames — Specific data, specific sources
Named institutions, named reports, specific numbers. Even in comic-text style, evidence is precise.
THE FUTURE (Panels 19-22)
What happens next. Scenario frames.
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Panel 19-20: TWO FUTURES — presented as fork in the road
SCENARIO A: WAR ENDS IN 60 DAYS
→ Oil drops to $85. Reconstruction begins.
→ India demand surge: steel, cement, pharma, IT.
→ PROBABILITY: 25%
SCENARIO B: FROZEN CONFLICT (KOREAN MODEL)
→ Oil stabilizes at $95-105. Hormuz partially reopens.
→ New normal: permanent risk premium on Middle East shipping.
→ PROBABILITY: 30%
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Panel 21-22: WHO WINS, WHO LOSES — Character card format
WINNERS LOSERS
Reliance (net long oil) HPCL/BPCL (squeezed margins)
HAL (defense boom) Airlines (ATF +60%)
Gold miners Pakistan (forex collapse)
THE CLOSE (Panels 23-25)
- Panel 23: THE VERDICT — Author's core finding, stated bold
- Panel 24: WATCH FOR — Specific indicators in bullet format
- Panel 25: THE NETWORK — "This investigation connects to..." with author names
Writing Style: Comic-Text
Tone
- Direct. Punchy. No wasted words.
- Present tense for current events. Creates immediacy.
- Dramatic but not sensational. Let facts be dramatic.
- Accessible — a 22-year-old college student and a 55-year-old fund manager both follow.
Techniques
- One idea per frame. Never cram two concepts into one panel.
- Impact numbers standalone. Don't bury $119/bbl in a paragraph. Give it its own line.
- Character cards for introducing entities — name, role, one-line description
- Arrow chains for causation — visual even in text
- Contrast frames — put two things side by side for impact
- Short paragraphs. 1-3 sentences max per block.
Data Presentation
- Big numbers get their own line with context below
- Tables for comparisons
- Arrow chains for causation
- "Before/After" formatting for change
Banned
- Long paragraphs (max 3 sentences per block)
- Academic language ("hegemonic structures", "paradigmatic shift")
- Passive voice (always: who did what)
- Qualifiers that weaken impact ("somewhat", "relatively", "arguably")
Which Users Get This Template
Comic-text suits users covering broad-impact topics that need maximum accessibility:
- 18 (Prof. Rahman — South Asia vulnerability)
- 19 (Prof. Goldstein — international law)
- 21 (Dr. Osei — public health)
- 24 (Carlos Mendez — resources/reconstruction)
- 25 (Dr. Okafor — AI/tech governance)
Quality Gates (Comic-Text-Specific)