Why Old Friends Are A Good Thing

(image from Kaboom studios website)


In Roger Langridge's Snarked #4, we are left with a moment of reflection by one of the oldest literary creations ever-- that dreamer, that man of La Mancha, the wise, mad, beautiful romantic Don Quixote.

As Wilburforce J. Walrus and Company dash off, after being assisted by the old knight, whom one presumed to be the white knight of the gate (i.e., from the Looking Glass story) from an earlier issue, we are left with a surprising commentary on the concluding panels:

Walrus: Many thanks Whitey--you're a gentlemen and a scholar.

Knight: (smiling) They ALL say that!

Knight: ( now alone on an empty street at night, standing next to a rather wearied looking horse and he himself drops into an expression of a sad understanding) Yep--they all say that. Then they grow up....and they do. / Ah, well. S'pose it's for the best. Come, Rocinante...Let's get some hot cocoa.

(The final panel shows them ambling off into the night, with  the cheshire cat watching them).

 While Snarked has been a showcase of Langridge's love of Caroll (through a really solid character building by the way), this nod to Cervantes and one of the most famous imaginative creations in literary history is presented in a quite frankly moving moment. I have no idea if Langridge plans on bringing back the impossible dreamer and his trusty steed (maybe some Sancho Panza action as well??), but for now its always nice that some of our old literary friends remind us that they are still around if we need them to save the day or make us smile for a moment even if we have grown up.

Snarked issues 1-5 are out in your local comic store now, or possibly available online. It is published by Kaboom!. You can also visit the webpage built by Langridge snarkisland.com 

Educational questions around comics

Well it has been a while since I posted here, but that's the life of working on your doctorate...time just gets away from you and your writing and teaching commitments become multiplied in a hurry. I just wanted to pause here at this point in the semester to think some more about why comics, or, why graphic narratives, or why sequential art? What is the appeal and why do I have this need to push it as a valid and real form of creativity, communication, and scholarship that can be used in isolation, but , rather, in my argument, in constant use with other types of media in order to create wider contexts for learners.

I am preparing soon to teach another day on comics in the classroom in a little over a month, and I am in my usual planing stages. This time, however, it just feels like this go around needs to be just as dynamic as the work being discussed. But how? That is where I am currently stuck...what is the pedagogy and theory to augment the intended practices, not only in my execution of the presentation and subsequent discussions, but also in how I can present possibilities for these pre-service teachers to actually see that it is a very real possibility of using this medium in the classroom. These questions are weighing heavily on me also as I recently have started discussions with others about the possibility of my dissertation actually being a graphic narrative. It is elating, but also scary as shit.

Next time, more about this plus actually getting back to writing about comics again, if but for a brief time.