Comics are an interesting medium indeed. There are countless types, from Sunday funnies and superheroes to Japanese manga about school life/vampires/shinigami/ninjas/whatever. As a longtime manga reader, I see quite often how effective the medium can be. Some things are just best expressed on black and white paper. See the example below that I mentioned in class.
http://www.onemanga.com/Bleach/386/18/
The top panel is done so artfully well. The depiction of death (which is quite graphic as a scythe is coming out of his mouth) is very well done. I should also point out that the character being killed has been in the series for seven or more years now. Had this scene been in a movie, I'm not sure it would have been as powerful, as it would've likely had color, music, and backgrounds.
That being said, comics are not the end-all be-all of entertainment media. There are some things comics just can't do. Take The Watchmen for example. Originally a graphic novel released in the 80s, there are certain scenes that I feel are done much better in movie form. The Comedian's funeral is one such scene. I read the scene in the book (after seeing the movie) and I felt really let down.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXNc53rIFe8
Some scenes have been spliced together here, as different flashbacks of the Comedian played during the funeral scene. What makes this better than the book? The music. Simon and Garfunkel's song, The Sound of Silence really adds to the feel of this scene. Yeah you could listen to music while reading the novel but it wouldn't be the same. Fans of Tarantino's movies know just how much music can make a scene. It's a powerful factor that comics will just never have.
At least, until Hollywood makes a film out of it...
~JV
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