Week 3: Little Nemo and more

This week I had the pleasure of reading some Little Nemo comics, by Winsor Mckay, focus around a boy, and his adventures in slumberland. Mckay's art style really makes the world of slumberland what it is. I was first exposed to Winsor Mckay’s work when I first watched Gertie the dinosaur years ago. I am still impressed that this simple cartoon has paved the way for many forms of entertainment that we know and love today. His work has inspired many people in the entertainment industry throughout history. While one would think the adventures in slumberland would be a collection of happy adventures by this little child, Little Nemo consisted of a lot of underlying theme at times dark, violent, and surreal. This instantly reminded me of Walt Disney and his methods of story telling. They both used a medium that was aimed for children but by adding more mature themes allowed them to be universally enjoyed by everyone.

In addition to Little Nemo I also read some Peanuts comics. I enjoyed them a lot. I grew up watching Peanuts animations as a kid but never really had the opportunity to read them in comic strip form. One thing that continues to amaze me about the Peanuts is that they’re still relevant even today. Blue Sky is getting ready to release a new Peanuts movie this winter, and from the looks of it seems to be pity good. One thing I like a lot about peanuts is that there is a whole cast of different characters with different personalities. Charlie brown, for example is constantly fighting a lose battle with low self-esteem and always seems to have the worst of luck. I noticed a big part of the gags in each peanut strip are about playing one character’s personality against another. Which makes the strip so relatable. I think the reliability of the strip is one reason why it has stood the test of time and is still relevant today.