Smithsonian Collection of Newspaper Comics (4 points)

 The Smithsonian Collection of Newspaper Comics was an interesting artifact to read through, to say the least. There were so many different comics to read through and take in. Personally, I was not excited by any of the comics I read through. I wasn't very entertained and this could be personal preference, but when I read a comic or graphic novel, I do it usually to escape from reality. I enjoy more fantastical storylines. But I noticed that the Smithsonian Collection was rather boring. The subject matter was mostly serious and based on politics and every day working class issues between families. Along with these subjects came offensive stereotypes of women working as house wives and unflattering exaggerations on people or characters of different races giving them animal like features and a dumbed down way of speaking. I understand that the times were different then, I just didn't find those things or any of the humor used in general as funny or entertaining. Maybe if the stories had less words, my attention would have been caught for longer. I also noticed that the closest that these comics got to fantasy was a surrealistic dream like journey such as Nemo and Gasoline Alley that were mainly abstract. I had a hard time becoming engaged with those adventures unless there was a child involved to make it more innocent and fun. But even then, most of the children portrayed in these comics act like little adults. This took me back to reality and made me feel like these comics were meant to entertain grownups more than anyone else. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Octopus Pie (5 points)

This comic made me see some reoccurring trends in comics by women. It seems to be a pattern, in my experience, that the characters' reactions to things are over-exaggerated. this kind of brings me out of the story because I can't relate to the unrealistic way they communicate with each other. I'm not saying this is bad necessarily, but I think a great level of sophistication is simply wiped out in these stories because I felt like I was just reading about the character's life day by day. The topics of the day by day pacing of the story, almost always include something about being gay or something sexual. These moments were squeezed into the story where they didn't really belong. It was nice and silly to see those things happening but I didn't see a true purpose for so many of those moments. I didn't really see a strong plot in these comics. At some points, it seemed a little bit random but in a way that wasn't so exciting. For example, The Sandman is a n...
Read more

Carl Barks (2 points)

 Carl Barks was the "Duck Man" and considered one of the few comic giants of the time. He illustrated the Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck Comics. I thought these comics were a lot of fun. I know they were meant for children because they were appropriate and easy to read. I followed along easily with the story and the illustrations are super clear in terms of their emotions. The artist didn't worry too much about detail, but there was enough information to get the point across in a simplified style. The characters are cute and the personalities are quite obvious to each of the ducks. Donald Duck has always been one of my favorite Disney characters because he is so expressive and silly. His triplet nephews were always fun to watch too! I've always liked the Uncle Scrooge stories. There is something fun about a grumpy rich old man getting fed up with funny little kids, and there's always a gag or a lesson at the end of the stories which makes for a go...
Read more

Pretty in Ink (5 points)

 I really love the artist and the work in this book. One of my favorite artists is Nell Brinkley. So many others love her work too and it's hard to ignore that she has done something unique in the illustration I just love the way she draws women with such attitude through wild golden curly locks of hair and graceful expressions. I think there is a lot of movement in her brushstrokes. She uses ink often in her drawings and the line quality she achieves is beautiful. The images are very clear but they are really designed in a nice way by leaving certain spots on her figures a more simplified value and adding more detail in the area of the focal points. the images almost give me a sense that she completed them quickly and with a free way of thinking because some linework I've seen before is always very structured and perfect. In Brinkley's work, we get the opposite. It's so nicely done that we don't worry about any messy lines in the picture because we become more inte...
Read more