"Little Nemo in Slumberland" dated May 19, 1907:
Transcript of Tweets by @LittleNemo1905 (AUGUST 19, 2020):
I'll be keeping this thread brief today as I don't have too much to discuss here. - 1/14
Thankfully, this strip pulls away a bit from the racial stereotyping of the previous strips. Aside from the Chief's physical appearance as a racialized caricature (which should still be acknowledged as distasteful) there is little else that I see. - 2/14
Instead, this strip focuses primarily on world-building (the jungle is, as has come to be expected, breathtaking and painstakingly detailed) and animal humour by depicting for us the non-human denizens of the island. - 3/14
It's interesting to note that while I could easily see tigers, giraffes, and monkeys all living together somewhere in the African continent… is that a Kangaroo in panel 2? If it is, then one of these animals is not like the others… - 4/14
I actually like the *very* subtle surreality of the Kangaroos inclusion… we're reading about an imaginary island in an imaginary kingdom. Why can't kangaroos hang with tigers, giraffes, and monkeys? - 5/14
The ending of the strip (the monkeys coconut bombing Flip) reminds me of the moments in #TheLegendOfZelda #OcarinaOfTime for N64 when Link would attack the Cucco's and they would gang up on him (see here for reference): - 6/14
This is, of course, the primary gag/humour of the strip. The Chief has warned the trio that they must leave the monkeys alone to avoid the being bombarded, but Flip doesn't listen. - 7/14
By pulling on the monkey's tail in panel 5, he gets the entire troop riled up into defensive mode and becomes the butt of the joke for another straight week as he's attacked. - 8/14
It's actually surprising that Flip would bother with the monkeys, given the luck he's been having so far on Candy Island. He's had his hat and cigar stolen, been tossed into a pot to be cooked, and now been bombarded with coconuts… - 9/14
It just seems like Flip can't resist getting into trouble (admittedly, it's part of his charm), but he also is obviously getting fed up with the situation as we see him threaten the mischievous imp lurking behind the group in panels 1 & 2. - 10/14
For his part in this strip, the Chief gives us some interesting information to help us picture the geography of Slumberland. - 11/14
He says in panel 2: "My palace isn't as fine as the King's palace, but it's pretty fine". How do we read this? Is he referring to Morpheus as "King" just a honorific extended from one to another, or is it a sign of respect for *his* King? - 12/14
This element of Slumberland is so loose and lacks any firm constitution that we could probably read these comments either way and I don't foresee us getting any solid answers in the near future (or ever) so… - 13/14
This is my reading of "Little Nemo in Slumberland" #84. What's yours? - 14/14