"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated July 12, 1925:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (OCTOBER 16, 2021):
Ol' McNemo had a farm… ee I ee I o! And on that farm he had giants pigs… and chickens… and donkeys… and cows… ee I ee I o! - 1/18
I mean, look. This strip is really a blend of simplistic, mundane, waking world experiences with a bit of a twist. Giant farmers and giant animals is fine and dandy, but there just isn't anything that stands out here. - 2/18
I really wish this had been a farm of some of McCay's more creative creatures! Where are the buzzelthups and the frizzlepups (I made those names up)? - 3/18
Honestly, seeing this giant farm made me long for the days when McCay routinely flexed his creative muscles as he imagined new and interesting creatures. The hunting sequence from 1909 immediately springs to mind: - 4/18
That said, I'm sure there were many young readers who found this interesting; especially those readers in the Big City who couldn't relate with the experiences of farm life. - 5/18
Two big observations from this strip for me. First, to do with Impie's treatment and the second with Flip. - 6/18
Starting in panel 4, Impie seems quite fearful of the giant farm animals. Not so much of the chickens, but the pigs, donkeys, and cows seem to cause a reaction in him. - 7/18
Rather than comfort him, Slivvers and Flip go for approach more like stern chastising… in panel 4 Slivvers seems to snap at him about the pigs not harming them and Flip is only concerned about getting the cows riled up in panel 6. - 8/18
Yet… he's immediately forgotten in the next tier and, as such, climbs into the buckt of milk and tips it over without anyone doing or saying anything about it. - 9/18
It struck me in this strip that Flip and Slivvers seem to police Impie at times when he requires comfort and ignore him completely when he is about to cause mischief (intentional or mistaken). - 10/18
I recognize that this might just work for McCay's narrative (a way to accomplish the gag), but it's also quite frustrating and likely contributes to the feeling we get in regards to Impie's mistreatment. - 11/18
I wish he were shown a little more compassion in moments of crisis and a little more support when he might be getting into trouble (rather then the cycle of frustration and verbal/physical abuse). - 12/18
My next observation is about Flip and his fluctuating age. I'm no longer convinced Flip isn't a child. - 13/18
We've spoken about and questioned how he goes from kid to 23 to kid to 29 over and over again and (I think at least) we've always sort of chalked it up to "dreamscape and dream character; fluidity is ok". - 14/18
I'm not contesting that idea at all here, but what I am suggesting is that I think I've come to my own personal reading that Flip is and always has been a kid that just likes to be hyperbolic about things. - 15/18
I've been tentative with outright stating that because I think it's only one of a handful of possibilities here, but Flip is just such an unreliable narrative (and 470+ strips in I think we've got a good grip on his behaviour) that I think I like this reading best. - 16/18
Mileage may vary, of course, so I'm really interested to hear what others think! - 17/18
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland" #472. What's yours? - 18/18
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