Maus

Maus was a very interesting and engaging novel to read! I do not usually read stories or comics of a historical sense, but as I kept reading Maus, I found myself gradually getting sucked into all of the different stories within the plot. That, in particular, was a large part of why I enjoyed this comic so thoroughly. Maus has the ability to switch between multiple situations and various point of views, but still manages to flow very well. Typically, a book has multiple chapters, which are, for the most part, relatively short. Maus had about 5 or 6 "chapters" or parts and the entire book is split into two parts. I get the feeling that it was done intentionally though, because, as a viewer, it made my experience that much more exciting and interesting, which is ultimately what the artist wants. I enjoyed how the layout of the comic was simple, just alternating between two points of view. Either you're being engaged into present tense with Art Spiegelman trying to record Vladlek, his fathers', history as a graphic novel. On the other hand, they also show his fathers story as he's describing it. The imagery was so descriptive on its own, that it really wasn't necessary to constantly add a lot of text. This graphic novel was very well put together, because I usually find that the text and visuals, the two main elements, tend to compete, but are equally balanced throughout Maus.
After reading the last final panel and page, I instantly felt a sense of relief, or just satisfaction that the story had an end. As if it was not over until it's over type of thing. I had to know if he found Anja in the end or not. The actual story itself was very personal and depressing, even if you do not have a strong opinion about the issue at hand. The art style was also incredibly pleasing to my eye. I thought it was extremely clever when the style would change to show whether they were referencing to a past or present memory, along with other important indications for viewers to notice. It was a little strange, maybe just because it was very blunt and a true story, but the racist remarks and details of being in the camps were very forward ways of conveying how it was, in a realistic sense.

There seemed to be a lot of tension between the characters in the present tense after the entire war, but then they would go back to how it was and my emotions, as a viewer, would be all over the place. Finally, when I got to the last page, although I was relieved, it was still very sad how the novel ended. The tomb stone was saddening, yet throughout the book, they tend to imply that he will die when he gets older, yet it still seemed to shock me. I am very glad I read this book, it is definitely not something I would have read on my own, only because I don't usually seek that type of read. Maus was not only a first in that sense, but because it's someone who was involved, it's a very detailed story involving history and personal lives.

Gay Comix

For the underground comics, I read Gay Comix, and it was definitely a very open and blunt comic. I enjoyed how it touched upon numerous issues within the gay community, that many people can relate to, even if they are single, bi, or whichever. It was also refreshing to see different art styles for the comics, the art itself was well done, definitely blunt in exaggerating specific parts of a frame so that the viewers will see it. I feel this way about these comics, but perhaps it's just a trend throughout comics in general, but statements seemed to be quite exaggerated. For instance, "Oh what will I do if anyone finds out I'm gay! My family will KILL ME!" Phrases like that seem to be amplified, for a reason obviously, but it makes it less of a fill it in yourself, and more of a here is what is happening.

Will Eisner

Dropsie Avenue

I really enjoyed reading this comic, although it took me a while to get in the rhythm of how fast pace it was. I don't think it was the story or plot itself that was fast, that seemed to be easy to stay with, but I think it may have been that every page involved a different person(s) involving the Dutch, Irish, Jewish, and Italians, along with their situation. After getting used to it, it seemed to flow very well. I really enjoyed the art style and that it kind of fit with what the comics theme/ feel. It was refreshing watching the video of Eisner and Stan Lee, because it clears up any thoughts or questions about the comics art, plot, characters, or intentions, so I definitely feel more respectful towards him as an artist. Dropsie Avenue was not bad by any means, but the kind of story is not something I would usually read on my own time. I am definitely glad I read it though.

Blankets

Reading Blankets was an awesome experience. I could not help but get really into it and read it all in one sitting, but the style also allowed me to do so. I'm not the quickest reader, but I felt like I couldn't slow down, because there wasn't a massive amount of text on the pages, but a lot of visuals which can infer what they're saying. The story was really easy to become emotionally involved, being able to relate it to past experiences made it so personal, but I really enjoyed this book. I really want to read more comics of that style. I'm a very sympathetic person and I think because I grew up being able to believe in whatever I wanted. Of course I was baptized and went to church when I was with my grandparents, but only when I was younger, eventually they let me choose. So I sympathize that he has to deal with having it reinforced upon him continuously and that he was ostracised at camp, which I also never experienced. Perhaps, it was very exciting because it was both familiar and a new experience at the same time.

Plastic Man

I enjoyed reading the plastic man comic so much! For being a comic, it felt very animated or just a good amount of implied motion. The longer comics were very easy to get sucked into, but I really enjoy the overall plot and message of plastic man being the superhero stopping crime, but there were a few times where I kind of double taked on what they said, because I couldn't believe it. I can't completely remember, I'll have to go back and look it up but it was something you could definitely not get away with nowadays. The only issue I probably had, and this is mostly my reading skills, but sometimes I'd start reading the page as though both pages went together and would get a tad confused, just because there's so much going on in each frame, but obviously once I got the order correct it was fine, such a good read!

Little Nemo

Reading Little Nemo was very fun, although a little confusing, it all seemed to come together nicely. I kept forgetting there was an actual plot to the story, because it wasn't a continuous comic, but I really enjoyed him waking up every time. It would become very intense and I would almost forget there was anything else going on in the story and all of a sudden he wakes up...
The art of the comic was great as well, not as detailed as some of the other ones we've looked at, but still fairly detailed and the characters are very old school, almost stereotypical, with the clowns and the king and his daughter being wealthy royalty, etc. My favourite character overall would have to be Little Nemo.

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud was a wonderful book to read. I thought it was neat that this book about comics explaining them to you is done in a comic strip style, very nifty. Before reading this book, I hardly acknowledged the effort that gets put into creating them, or the fact that EVERYTHING is done on purpose, every little detail. I think what I found the most interesting part of reading this was probably the Six Steps, in which the artist takes to create the comic. The steps include Idea/Purpose, Form, Idiom, Structure, Craft, and Surface. And not only that, but Scott furthermore discusses that these artists usually fall within two categories, depending on which step, out of the first two, they decide to take. If you usually begin with Idea and purpose, then you would be considered a great storyteller. On the other hand, if you choose Form first, then you are considered an artist who likes to shake things up, also considered pioneers or revolutionaries. So although the entire book was fascinating, that had to probably be the most interesting part for me.