From Maine to Japan

I was mentioning to Rudyinparis that a LOT of women's comics plots revolve around class issues--either fantasies where love overcomes class barriers, or more sobering tales where even the deepest passion can't survive the pressures of class.

"One Reckless Moment!" starts with an impetuous young heiress going into a waterfront dive on a whim, where she meets Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome himself:



Mmm, a big, grimy hulk of a man. I'm struck with how the artist struggles with drawing a man who isn't a traditional clean-cut guy. He clearly feels a lot happier when Joe shaves later...



(He kisses her again...and she doesn't mind!)

I also like how his shirt apparently gets ripped open with the force of that blazing kiss. Though I must admit that panel has an energy lacking in a lot of romance comics...







They decide to get married anyway, but when they throw a party and invite both his and her friends, it becomes clear how impossible the divide between them is.



Well, that was a bummer. Love does not always conquer all in the heated prose of romance comics!

Labels: romance

When I was a wee lass, visiting my grandmother's, my sister and I found a box full of musty romance comics that had belonged to my uncle. We consumed enough of them that we were capable of drawing our own "fake romance covers" later (I wish I could find those now!).

Thanks to the wonders of the Internet, I've gotten my hands on some vintage romance comics from the 50s-70s. Fun, sometimes very crazy stuff. For example: Forbidden Future! a cautionary tale of the dangers that divorce will wreck on your life, with a sentimental happy ending thrown in for the bargain (you couldn't count on romance comics having happy endings, by the way--each title had a different "tone," and some leaned heavily toward "she learned too late" sorts of stories).

In Forbidden Future! (yes, the exclamation point is necessary!), a young divorcee returns to her home town to discover that her reputation is permanently soiled by her hasty actions:



Our heroine explains her sad situation:



There's a pretty creepy near-rape scene:





The doctor and she fall madly in love, but she's afraid to marry him because his patients may shun him for marrying such a loose woman. He supports her, but she decides to flee town rather than ruin his life:



I love the 180 degree turn of the town scold there. :)

So in summary: divorce might ruin your reputation, but if you manage to save a busload of school children from a blazing death, you can salvage it somewhat! No problem!

Labels: romance