Little Nemo in the Palace of Ice

I had learned about Windsor McCay’s Little Nemo before in History of Animation, and was initially introduced to the work through the animated movie as a child. I was in love with the idea that Nemo traveled to Slumberland every night, though as a kid, I was jealous that I didn’t get to do the same. Awkwardly enough, no matter how many times I watch the movie, I can never seem to recall the ending (although, it is very easy to correctly guess). And so when the comic was listed for this class, I had to read it.

The very first thing I noticed about the characters was their very clean line work. The outlines were very smooth and solid all around. They also have no crosshatching for shading, making the characters look clean. The only other black ink would be the solid black on their clothing (like Imp’s shorts/skirt) or their hair (namely Nemo’s and Flip’s). The characters usually don bright colored outfits, and on more than one occasion Nemo’s costume will be ridiculously elaborate, and to the modern reader possibly just plain ridiculous. Although the princess undergoes as many costume changes as Nemo, her clothing seems to be more believable, less gaudy yet still ornate. The only thing about the characters that left me a bit peeved was the overall lack of facial expressions. It could be that I’m used to manga, and the exaggerated expressions. But I found a character’s emotions in the speech bubbles rather than their face. The characters personality-wise are rather flat. Nemo does whatever he is told, Flip seeks trouble and wants attention, and the Princess is proper, seeking an audeience with her father. They characters aren’t what draws readers in. The backgrounds though, are another story.

The backgrounds are amazing. They are exquisitely detailed with vibrant colors. They are what makes the comic so surreal and phantasmagorical. They not only lead the characters from land to land, but they also take the reader from reality into the nightly adventures of Nemo. In addition to being detailed, the backgrounds are just as clean as the characters. The lines add surface texture to objects yet leave enough for the eye to rest. Cross-hatching is used sparingly, and usually to describe where the ground becomes visible from a pitch black (or doorway when McCay didn’t want to overburden an image with superfluous details).