"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated July 08, 1906:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (JULY 5, 2020):
We have been waiting so long for this moment! 39 strips… 39 weeks… 39 days for us/273 days for McCay's contemporary readers… but it is finally here! The first official meeting of the Princess and her new playmate! - 1/24
Boy, this strip does not disappoint! It's wonderful from beginning to end! - 2/24
First, the top tier is very ambiguous, which works in it's narrative favour tremendously! - 3/24
The Princess pines that she'll never have a playmate, while the Slumberlandian in the background confusedly admits he doesn't know what to do. This gives the impression that Nemo has, again, failed to reach the Princess. - 4/24
King Morpheus, though, is hopeful. He says that things "look quite encouraging" to him. Why wouldn't they? He knows that though Nemo and the Princess weren't able to be together for long before Nemo awakens, at least he has reached her! - 5/24
That said, aside from the possibility that the reader has pre-witnessed the moment through iconic solidarity (much easier to do when reading in print than digitally), we are yet unaware of Nemo's arrival, which plays into the ambiguity that a reader may feel in this moment. - 6/24
McCay has expertly built up an expectation that this top tier be one that proclaims the failure of our protagonist, but here it is altered slightly and makes for a wonderful realization when we see why Morpheus is encouraged! - 7/24
The second tier is chock-full of theatricality! I can imagine a wonderful musical number composed for this exact scene where the multiple conversations are occurring simultaneously, as Nemo watches helplessly! - 8/24
Candy and Dr. Pill really do a wonderful job, here! They both handle their respective assignments brilliantly! - 9/24
Presumably, Dawn is planning to "tear [Nemo] to pieces", but is prevented by Candy. - 10/24
And, for once, Dr. Pill's medicine does exactly what we need it to: Stop Flip dead in his tracks! - 11/24
This is a wonderful moment in and of itself, but it raises interesting questions, as well… - 12/24
Flip declares that "I have as much right to be here as he has" and I immediately wonder how we should interpret this statement… why does he feel that way? - 13/24
Is it a feeling of ethnic frustration? As an Irish-American caricature, this would certainly fit… maybe this is the most likely scenario, but I'd be eager to hear other readings? - 14/24
The most interesting moment here is when Dr. Pill's medicine works on Flip and he "wakes up" causing one of the Slumberlandians to pick him up and declare him "sound awake". - 15/24
This could certainly be nothing more than a fun play on words, but it also makes me wonder… does Nemo's corporeal form stick around Slumberland when he wakes up to the real world? - 16/24
If Nemo becomes "sound awake" does his body just sort of… slump over and rest where it lies in Slumberland? - 17/24
Obviously, this isn't a question that I'll ever get an answer to, but it fascinates me… I don't know why I never wondered about it before… I guess because I just assumed that he "poofed" back into reality… - 18/24
The penultimate panel of this strip is just absolutely glorious! Gone are the wake-up gags, gone are the laughs, gone are the frustrations! We finally get what we've been waiting so long for and it is wonderful! - 19/24
The Princess just cannot hold back her excitement; her gestural posture leans forward over the stairs in an attempt to be closer to her new playmate! - 20/24
The pomp and circumstance of the guards, Nemo flanked by Dr. Pill and Candy, the Princess' regal presence, and the reader's excitement all combine to create one of the most momentous panels that we've seen so far for the strip! - 21/24
That Nemo wakes up, desperate for more time in Slumberland indicates that he feels it to! There is such an energy in this strip; static energy built up through reading all of Nemo's adventures thus far and it demands release! - 22/24
But, McCay withholds that release, because though Nemo meets the Princess, they do not actually come together as Princess and playmate yet… we must recall the Princess' sadness in tier 1 and remember that thought this is a satisfying moment, there is much more to come! - 23/24
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland" #39. What's yours? - 24/24
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