Little Nemo

So this week I read Little Nemo in the Palace of Ice by Winsor McCay. I fell in love with his artistic style, but found his handling of the speech bubbles distracting. Perhaps it was the difference in times between when the comic was created and the time that I'm reading it but the language used was also more irritating than amusing. He incorporates "um" and random words that seem like they should be sounds in the way the characters speak. I thought this tended to make the actual statements difficult to understand or fit in with the rest of the panel. I thought that a lot of the things some of the characters said could be left out to make the point more direct and concise. When you're working with a static image I think it's important to use what little space you have for text effectively and clearly. I just found that McCay left a lot to be desired in this department.

I did, however, like that at the end of each strip there was a small panel showing Nemo being awoken by someone/something to drive the point home that everything in the comic was all part of his elaborate dream. That's something that I thought was very creative and a nice way to break up the story. I'm just jealous that after this kid wakes up from his awesome dreams that he can continually fall back asleep an pick up right where he left off! I can't express how many times I've wished for that ability!

This series is most certainly not something I ever would have picked up to read on my own, but I'm glad that this class has broadened my horizons. Although the subject matter for this particular series isn't something that really piques my interest, what does interest me is the potential that other strips of this era have. Perhaps that's something I'll look further into in the future.

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A note about the movie we watched in class about Prince Achmed, I'd really just like to say that it was a pleasure to watch. Definitely entertaining and very cool to see the difference between such early animation and the present day. I think the craft was beautiful and very clear in conveying the story.

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Anyway, last week I picked up volumes 9 and 10 of The Walking Dead. I've been reading this series for a little over a year now (inconsistently, but I keep up when I spot a new volume I haven't read yet) and I must say that I am in love. If its not something that you've heard of or seen it is certainly a must. It's about the struggle of a group of people after the world has been overrun by zombies. I know it sounds so over done, but what attracts me to this series so strongly is that it's SO. MUCH. MORE! Allow me to quote the writer:

To me, the best zombie movies aren't the splatter fests of gore and violence with goofy characters and tongue in cheek antics. Good zombie movies show us how messed up we are, they make us question our station in society... and our society's station in the world. They show us gore and violence and all that cool stuff too... but there's always an undercurrent of social commentary and thoughtfulness.

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For me the worst part of every zombie movie is the end. I always want to know what happens next. Even when all the characters die at the end... I just want it to keep going.

...

The idea behind The Walking Dead is to stay with the character, in this case, Rick Grimes for as long as is humanly possible. I want The Walking Dead to be a chronicle of Rick's life. We will NEVER wonder what happens to Rick next, we will see it. The Walking Dead will be the zombie movie that never ends. Well... not for a good long time at least.

-Robert Kirkman

Kirkman holds very true to what he's promise in his introduction. Nothing intrigues me more than a good horror story but like I said, it goes way beyond the horror. It's passion, sorrow, hope, and just... life. (that sounded so corny) But believe me, if you pick these books up and are looking for a story, that goes beyond the action and delves deep into our feelings as humans my friends, this is the comic series for you. Everything in the book is in black and white, and while most graphic novels may get boring this one holds strong with expressive line work and beautiful panel composition.

Maybe I'm biased because I love zombies. But never in my time has a story captivated me like this. It keeps me going back and begging for more. I've read books 1-4 twice already, 5-8 once, and have yet to crack the spine on 9 and 10. My intent is to re-read the entire series again to keep it all organized in my mind. It just never gets old!!

Cheers!