"In the Land of Wonderful Dreams" dated March 24, 1913:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (JUNE 26, 2021):
This strip maintains the 8-panel spatial organization that we saw last time (I might start calling this the Lilliputian Grid, if it keeps up…) and it functions in much the same way. - 1/12
Again, we have a nice juxtaposition between the size of the panel and the size of our characters versus the Lilliputians. I continue to find it effective, as I worried about the Lilliputians vulnerability to Flip's antics. - 2/12
I think panel 2 demonstrates some good will between Flip and Doctor Pill. It would seem as if Pill is conniving to leave Flip behind again, and yet Flip shows that he "knows how to behave" by accepting that this boat is too small. - 3/12
When the boat makes it across (presumably to the island of Lilliput), Flip can be seen celebrating! He's ready for his ride to come back… - 4/12
I'm not so sure that Impie believes the boat will come back for them, though… what other reason would he have to dive into the water? - 5/12
Sadly, the water is only a foot deep and so Impie's dive causes him only pain (enamata stars in panel 6 representing an injured noggin). - 6/12
It's another example of Impie being the used and abused character… one of the few examples of agency provided to Impie (it was his choice to dive in) directly leads to physical pain. McCay's included it for laughs. - 7/12
Why does Flip jump in though? My reading is that he's trying to help prevent the Princess' boat from tipping over from the waves created by Impie's dive… of course, in his haste to be helpful, he's also creating massive waves… - 8/12
While Pill falls on his butt amid the waves and Impie recovers from his headache, Flip and Nemo grab hold of the boat and steady it. - 9/12
I like that it is the Princess who realizes the city is being flooded; she demonstrates her intelligence here and, while Flip would rather celebrate the small victory, recognizes that a larger problem has been caused. - 10/12
Finally, that bedroom panel… AGAIN it's presented in a single colour wash; in this instance, yellow. What possible explanation makes sense here other than laziness? - 11/12
This is my reading of "In the Land of Wonderful Dreams" #376. What's yours? - 12/12
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