Windsor McCay (2 Points)

Windsor McCay, although not the inventor of comics nor animation, can be considered one of the great early innovators for both forms of media. He can also be considered an absolute workhorse, creating a massive amount of political illustrations and comics over the course of his career- but on top of that, also creating thousands upon thousands of images for his animations as well. I would focus more on his animations, but to me, his comics are the star of the show (not to mention this is a course on comic literature). His comics are exceptionally drawn, when compared to other comics of the time period, and even current comics on occasion struggle to be even near the quality of McCay's works. Especially with what I consider his greatest work, Little Nemo, he pushed the boundaries that were set in that time period with his creative paneling and almost making each panel its own full illustration. The work he was passionate about almost always was filled with joy and wonder, and the characters and bright and wondrous environments almost felt like they could leap out of the page and screen.

(260 words)

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