Wednesday, February 24, 2010
"Tragic Bargain!"
Another romance comic about money! This one features a heroine who is apparently legitimately mousy but sweet, and who shows a surprising amount of spine and spark when betrayed. She crumples soon after, of course, but I still do enjoy the tongue-lashing she gives her brother and lover when she discovers their..."Tragic Bargain!"
The preponderance of men with pipes in romance comics cracks me up, somehow. It seems to have been a sign of...suavity? Sophistication? Something like that...which is odd as the romantic lead in this one isn't particularly suave at all...
Despite dedicating herself to her brother and niece's happiness to the exclusion of love, Fay happens one day to run into a handsome man. Later, he seeks her out and they fall in love. But after their clinch, trouble begins to surface in paradise:
I'm not exactly sure I follow the logic of that ending, but ah well. For a self-sacrificing Angel of the House, Fay shows a surprising amount of spine, all things considered. And I guess I'm glad to see her out from under her brother's paternalistic thumb a bit...I just kind of wish she'd kept walking until she found a job and a life somewhere else!
The preponderance of men with pipes in romance comics cracks me up, somehow. It seems to have been a sign of...suavity? Sophistication? Something like that...which is odd as the romantic lead in this one isn't particularly suave at all...
Despite dedicating herself to her brother and niece's happiness to the exclusion of love, Fay happens one day to run into a handsome man. Later, he seeks her out and they fall in love. But after their clinch, trouble begins to surface in paradise:
I'm not exactly sure I follow the logic of that ending, but ah well. For a self-sacrificing Angel of the House, Fay shows a surprising amount of spine, all things considered. And I guess I'm glad to see her out from under her brother's paternalistic thumb a bit...I just kind of wish she'd kept walking until she found a job and a life somewhere else!
Labels: romance
Sunday, February 7, 2010
"Dangerous Corner!"
I like this one not only for the melodrama of a woman falling in love the day before her wedding, but also for a couple of traditional romance comic tropes that appear.
The "trapped in a revolving door" moment is...surprisingly erotic there, I think.
They run into each other later the same day and he decides it must be fate, and takes her out to dinner.
I love the next set of panels for the romance comic tears--crying is of course very common in romance comics and yet very, very difficult to portray in art. So romance comics tend to have incredibly stylized tears, as below:
I also love the broken...language...of...despair! And yet despite the crushing melodrama I think the art and writing actually do pretty good job of conveying the rather ludicrous situation...
The next day she puts on her wedding dress, but cannot bear to go to the ceremony and wanders the streets aimlessly, finding herself back where she met her love the night before.
I assume this is a drawing fluke, but her true love looks rather taken aback to find that she's available.
And so stoic Donald goes off into the sunset, sadder and wiser, and hopefully less likely to get engaged to women who fall in love with people because they get stuck in a revolving door with them.
The "trapped in a revolving door" moment is...surprisingly erotic there, I think.
They run into each other later the same day and he decides it must be fate, and takes her out to dinner.
I love the next set of panels for the romance comic tears--crying is of course very common in romance comics and yet very, very difficult to portray in art. So romance comics tend to have incredibly stylized tears, as below:
I also love the broken...language...of...despair! And yet despite the crushing melodrama I think the art and writing actually do pretty good job of conveying the rather ludicrous situation...
The next day she puts on her wedding dress, but cannot bear to go to the ceremony and wanders the streets aimlessly, finding herself back where she met her love the night before.
I assume this is a drawing fluke, but her true love looks rather taken aback to find that she's available.And so stoic Donald goes off into the sunset, sadder and wiser, and hopefully less likely to get engaged to women who fall in love with people because they get stuck in a revolving door with them.
Labels: romance
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