Two-Page Splash Pages

Much like our discussions of Tintin, Monday's discussion of The Mysterious Underground Men often focused on the influence of silent cinema.  I would argue that the action of Tezuka's comic owes less to slapstick comedy than Herge's.  The comic is, nevertheless, a thoroughly cinematic one.  Its "opening credits" and Tezuka's sly inter-titles are a particularly innovative bridge between cinema and comics.   The most outwardly cinematic pages are those that depict a single, massive frame over two pages.

In class, we discussed the chaotic image of a huge brawl late in the comic.  The frame above is my personal favorite.  The detail and depth of the image is not matched by any in the other comics we've read. Though Hergé employed large frames throughout The Blue Lotus, nothing matches the scope of Tezuka's images. The set recalls the massive ones built for silent-era epics.  Also, by stretching the image over two pages, Tezuka creates a visual phenomenon that is not unlike the pan of a camera.   More than perhaps any image we've seen, this one calls on the reader's prior knowledge of cinema to build the relationship necessary for closure.  Obviously, the first Star Wars is many decades younger than this comic.  I could not, however, help but be reminded of its opening shot of the Star Destroyer.