Saturday, January 15, 2011
September 17, 1953: Flimsy reason
Charlie Brown and Patty discuss why they like each other. I think this one is fairly interesting for that. How many of us like someone just because they like you back. Is that enough? Should it be? I actually think that yes, it should be, given that the initial liker isn't guilty of any gross defects that would preclude reciprocal liking. (Favorite phrase of the hour: "reciprocal liking.")
Patty's incidental jumping rope here is interesting because the characters are more realistically-proportioned than in the earliest days of the strip. Schulz doesn't have to distort the length of Patty's arms in order to get the rope around her huge, bulbous head, although she still must hold her arms at an angle that looks a little weird when you think about it.
Specifically, in the first panel. Maybe my knowledge on rope-jumping technique is faulty, but most kids don't hold their arms straight out, or let the rope fold in the air like Patty does. Schulz has to cheat it a little. These cheats are not a sign of artistic defeat, quite the opposite: it shows that he's put thought into depicting these weird little figures and how they could participate in typical childhood pastimes.
Chagrimace!
Labels:
art,
chagrimace,
charliebrown,
jumprope,
liking,
patty,
reciprocalliking
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