"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated July 05, 1908:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (OCTOBER 18, 2020):
Following the parade series is a pretty easy task in my opinion… so much so that even a holiday strip seems to be an upgrade. - 1/20
Though formally uninteresting, there are a few things worth noting in this strip. - 2/20
Let's start with the bad. Panel 1 sees Flip tell Impy that he isn't allowed in the Princesses carriage… in fact, he tells him he'll have to "run behind". Impy looks so dejected here and it is really upsetting. - 3/20
This example of racial segregation is truly awful. It's undoubtedly an act of racism, but that wasn't a widely accepted truth in the early 1900s. Remember, "de jure" racial segregation wouldn't be eliminated for another nearly 50 years… - 4/20
For this reason, I think that it's important to do two things: 1) Address the moment and Flip's comment as an inherently racist one that promoted the continuation of systemic racism and white supremacy, and… - 5/20
…b) Use it as a socio-historic artifact that can demonstrate the casual racism of the early 1900s and how culturally ingrained it was/indoctrinated into children through children's media. I think it can be used to spark necessary conversation today. - 6/20
Now, thankfully we never see this act on the page because Flip's cigar starts blowing out fire crackers. - 7/20
My question is… how does this happen? Did someone rig Flip's cigar to go off like that? Was it Flip himself? Or, is it more likely, that Nemo's unconscious caused it to occur? - 8/20
I think I like the latter idea for a few reasons… first, Flip genuinely seems to have no idea why his cigar is behaving like a fire cracker… how would anyone get his cigar to even rig it like this? It seems farfetched… - 9/20
There's also some signs in the penultimate panel. Not only is Nemo so incredibly happy to remember that it's Fourth of July… but all of a sudden an Uncle Sam is standing there with a big American flag. Where'd he come from? - 10/20
This guy's appearance out of nowhere seems very dreamlike to me… like a free association gone awry. Honestly, if he somehow mid-dream recalled the holiday it very well could explain why it feels like the transition comes out of nowhere. - 11/20
He also jumps right out of bed as if he's going to a big Fourth of July celebration or something in the final panel… this signals to me that the holiday is clearly on his mind. - 12/20
The firefighters don't seem too happy with the fact that the fire they've been called to put out was such a small blaze… though giving them all a good soaking functions as the strips main gag (in my opinion anyway). - 13/20
As is expected, the strip is beautifully drawn… I really love the fireworks. They look like planets… and the cloud, it's own universe of mini-explosions… It really does stand out. - 14/20
It's also worth noting that Nemo is true to his word and immediately let's the Princess know that the $16 billion reward should to go Mary. - 15/20
I don't know if it's the remnant frustration from the parade or not, but the Princess' "we shall go and make her very rich" comment irked me. She's so laissez faire about the whole thing… $16 billion is pocket change for her. - 16/20
I'd like to take this moment to mention that I feel a shift has happened with me and my reception of the Princess as a character. I was really on board with her in the earlier appearances, but lately I've been less enthused. - 17/20
This parade might have been the final straw… I just don't feel the same way about her… I used to think she was a strong and independent person; a leader… now I sort of see her like a brat wielding her silver spoon to get her way. - 18/20
I'm not sure when the shift happened, but more and more I find myself being quite harsh about her behaviour… I wonder if this is a fair response? How do others feel? - 19/20
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland" #143. What's yours? - 20/20
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