Will Eisner and Craig Thomas portray emotions through character body language. This allows us to understand the mood and tone of the story without even needing dialogue.
Will Eisner has done a great job portraying fate in the three stories of A Contract With God. It’s very true how we all expect so much from life or God when haven’t truly earned it. The thing is that we don’t know what obstacles we will face in the future. Who’s to tell us what we deserve and are owed. The men in these stories expect soo much for what they have done or been through but when you start expecting things, you start losing faith.
The first and third story felt most powerful, seeing Frimme Hersh lose his daughter and go mad. From there on I could easily feel the emotion and rage he had through his body language as he took over Dropsie Avenue. Essentially giving up on faith changed his life. Did he become more successful or less? He lost his love for anything in life and was empowered by the anger to build an empire out of Dropsie Avenue. We see the transformation in character stature as Frimme is drawn slouched to his uptight proper posture. When forcing the new contract on the clergy men Frimme is hidden within shadow. You rarely see his face anymore as he stands tall, towering over everyone else. Receiving the contract he becomes soft and humble again but it’s deception as he turns straight back to his demanding self, leading to his death.
The Super is another great comic from Eisner. What interests me most is whether to feel for Mr. Scuggs or the little girl. Mr. Scuggs is always seen slouched over with his shoulders dropped. Through body language we already se how unhappy he is with life and it effects others perception. Only when he is drinking or hugging his dog do we see the happiness that is in him. What strikes me the most is finally seeing the good in Mr. Scuggs right before the niece took it away. Simply walking into his room had struck me as being a problematic. It never felt weird to me until I found out that the girl was only 15. At that point I couldn’t tell whether to favor the stuck up niece or the unhappy pervert that’s been robbed.
Lastly, Blankets by Craig Thomas is a story about first love that is conveyed through characters and line. Compared to Eisner, Craig’s design is much cleaner. His use of clean lines allows us to see the attraction between characters. We can see the delicate soft features of the girl through her smooth line quality. Craig’s choice of style enhances the story by building the love interest. As a first love situation the two characters felt very natural and real.
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