Charlie Brown

Charlie Brown was an insightful read. Charles Shultz has created a timeless classic that appeals to all ages. There is nothing disrespectful in it so anyone can read it. This aspect allows many interpretations of the comic to be made on different levels. While a child would see it as ordinary children living ordinary lives. I as an adult view it as a insightful study of the ordinary child living an ordinary life. I can relate to the actions that Charlie Brown and his friends take. This relation with the characters actions allows me to delve deep into the character’s mind and lets me see what there motivations are for them. Charlie’s mood for the most part is depressed he tends to let the little things in life get him down. This aspect of the comic can be a bit of a downer at times, but Charlie always has his friends particularly his best friend Snoopy. Snoopy is a very lighthearted character that expresses lots of emotions that often result in extravagant actions that lead him on various adventures to fulfill wild dreams. The brief adventures usually end with a lesson that left me with a warm feeling or small chuckle. After spending some time with Charlie Brown I felt I was really delving into Charles Shultz’s childhood and his imagination at the same time. The expressions used, clearly define the character’s emotions and reactions. These expressions are very authentic and can only be reiterated based on first hand experience as inspiration. This leads me to wonder what Charles Shultz’s life has been like, and what has inspired him to create such memorable characters. His childhood must have been very influential to his inspiration for his character design. I think that whenever I return to read Charlie Brown I will always walk away with something gained from it. This monumental achievement in story telling through comics rarely comes along and is a marvel to see when it does.

Underground Comics

Reading various Underground Comics took me on a wild ride. Amongst the crazy character designs often complete rip offs of legitimate Disney characters. These primitive designs lack any of the life (movements) that the characters they are based off of. These scary, surreal characters are expressed with abstract vocabulary and wild actions that left me in disgust afterwards. While reading underground comics for the most part I tended to lose interest mainly because of the insanity and blatant disregard for any consistent character proportions from panel to panel. I think the biggest folly in Underground Comics in general is the lack of character development. These comics rely to heavily on lollygags and crude humor and don’t give any real insight to the characters motives.

But to critique the positive aspects of Underground comics they give a new rebellious perspective on what a comic can be. I never really new what was around the corner while I was reading so in that aspect there was something in it that kept it fresh and unique. I enjoyed the application of the squash and stretch principles and how the characters followed some of the principles of animation when they had a thought, performed and action and then they had a reaction, which was over the top. The characters are very anima table they have odd proportions that allow them to perform the extreme antics that are shown seem possible for any given character. When I first read Underground comics I think I was only reading into the surface value, but now that I have explored the world more I understand more of what is being explored and I think I will use them as reference for animation ideas for my characters.

So to sum up my experience reading Underground Comics I think overall I was repelled by them, but with all of the vulgarity and insanity I managed to salvage a weird inspiration source, that I don’t know if I will ever really understand or ever really want too.

Blankets/ The Spirit

As I picked up and Blankets for the first time, I delved into it with high expectations, and as I began to read it I was not disappointed. From the first page I was engaged with Crain and Phil’s interactions with one another. They seemed natural and because of that it conveyed a light at the end of the tunnel for the two boys who seem to be living on the bare minimum and not much going for them. The drawings possessed a unique ebb and flow that strung the panels together in an engaging way. I can’t recall moving through a piece of sequential art so quickly and so clearly. It was enlightening to read. The drawings and composition of each panel relate to the emotions they are portraying with stunning clarity, it is as if they have delved into my mind and drawn depression anger or happiness and put it on paper. This aspect of Blankets is what keeps me thinking about it long after I put it down. This story of growing up and falling in love is one that I won’t forget for a long time.

The Spirit

I am really fond of The Spirit as a character, I saw the movie before I read the comic so I came into it unsure of what to expect. The wacky humor falls flat for me and only has surface value. I felt that he was interacting with characters that weren’t very memorable or interesting.

But the gestures of The Spirit really helped to keep me interested in the characters actions so I would almost prefer 50 pages of the Spirit beating up the average robber.

I think a darker version of the Spirit would interest me …I guess I can always turn Batman for that if I wanted a darker detective story. So with this it seems that The Spirit is a more light hearted Batman. I have to say that Will Eisner has created a classic character and comic that I am sure will inspire the comic crowd for generations to come.

Tin Tin in Tibet/ The Moon

This week I chose to read Tin Tin. The thing I enjoyed most about reading it was getting to explore our world and beyond it. To Tin Tin the world was his oyster. He seems to love exploring with his dog. To keep the story going, Tin Tin constantly has cases of bad luck but in the end he usually ends up on top. The text fits in really well with the drawing style. The text resembles scripts from the Far East which helps reinforce the setting and even the events that take place. Another Tin Tin I read they went to the Moon! and the text had a digital clock typeface, which reinforced the technology, they were using in their adventures. Something that bothered me is that Tin Tin hardly changes clothes. Whether he is trekking through the desert or freezing in the mountains he is always wearing his polo shirt and Capri pants.

I will just assume for now that it is easier to print or draw when creating the strip.

An aspect I enjoyed was the consistently clear placement of the characters in the scene. It was consistently clear and interesting from panel to panel, and I felt like I was along for the ride with Tin Tin.

Tin Tin in Space was really long so I decided to skim through it. The story seemed to stay pretty strong through out. The same color palette and props were used, which the only drawback for me.

Occasionally they would bring in a new character. But for the most part they would keep the same four characters in a given adventure. I enjoyed this aspect for the most part, because it gave deeper insight to the character but out of that the characters would have similar reactions to completely different events.

In the end the quirkiness grew on me throughout the story was fun and there were some really well written parts that helped me connect with Tin Tin and added to my enjoyment of the comic as a whole.