Luann - Finally
Time to get back on track -- analyzing and rating each comic in the Raleigh News & Observer. I get sidetracked rather easily, I realize, and sorry for that.
Luann is next. Luann is Zits for girls. Actually, Luann got started 10 years before Zits, so I think it's more precise to say that Zits is Luann for boys. The similarities are quite striking: They both have an angsty (but not too angsty) teen as the main character. Luann has two best friends - Bernice and Delta. Jeremy (Zits) has two best friends - Hector and Pierce. Even stranger, Luann's mom and dad look very much like Jeremy's mom and dad:
EEK! I enjoy both of these comics, but is this plagiarism or what?
My problem with Luann is the same problem I have with Zits: for a teenage-angst based strip, there's not enough angst. Luann does a little better. Delta had Hodgkins lymphoma. Bernice likes a guy in a wheelchair. Brad (Luann's brother) has a crush on a girl in an abusive relationship. So, there are some teenage issues, I guess -- although cancer, disability, and abuse certainly aren't TEEN-ONLY issues. Anyway, at least it's more than just "parents are dumb and embarrasing," "homework sucks," and young love is searing. I mean, all that's true of course -- homework DOES suck -- but there needs to be a little more than just that. I'm sure Laura Ingalls thought homework sucked and Pa sure could be embarrasing when he brought out the fiddle and called her "Half Pint," but you wouldn't exactly cite the Little House on the Prairie series as an example of teenage angst.
Creepy Clown rating: 2 Creepy Clowns (1 C.C. = awesome comic; 5 C.C. = it sucks)
I gave Zits 2.5 Creepy Clowns, and the truth is, I like Luann better. This is probably because it's from a teenage girl's perspective, and I was once a teenage girl myself. So it's not necessarily an objective rating, but well, what sort of rating system is completely objective?
But, in addition to being from a girl's point of view, it's just slightly more angsty, which was my major criticism of Zits. There are also more characters in Luann -- more friends, teachers, brother's friends, etc. So, that provides the variety I often harp on.
Finally, Luann never pisses me off (this is also true of Zits). The more I write about the comics, the more I see that as a good thing. So many of them are just so stupid and piss me off to no end. You get a higher rating just for keeping my blood pressure down.
++++++++
On a personal note, if any of my Navy friends are reading, and if any of you have heard about an inactive reservist muster, and if any of you have a clue why I'm being mustered -- drop me a line. Not that I am not proud of my (supposedly finished) service, and not that I won't be at my muster site bright and early -- it's just, well . . . you know I'm not a HUGE fan of the current administration, the War in Iraq, etc., etc., etc., and I don't have a great desire to be caught up in it. Any info is appreciated! And, sorry for clogging the comic blog with personal and political chit chat. No more.
Luann is next. Luann is Zits for girls. Actually, Luann got started 10 years before Zits, so I think it's more precise to say that Zits is Luann for boys. The similarities are quite striking: They both have an angsty (but not too angsty) teen as the main character. Luann has two best friends - Bernice and Delta. Jeremy (Zits) has two best friends - Hector and Pierce. Even stranger, Luann's mom and dad look very much like Jeremy's mom and dad:
EEK! I enjoy both of these comics, but is this plagiarism or what?
My problem with Luann is the same problem I have with Zits: for a teenage-angst based strip, there's not enough angst. Luann does a little better. Delta had Hodgkins lymphoma. Bernice likes a guy in a wheelchair. Brad (Luann's brother) has a crush on a girl in an abusive relationship. So, there are some teenage issues, I guess -- although cancer, disability, and abuse certainly aren't TEEN-ONLY issues. Anyway, at least it's more than just "parents are dumb and embarrasing," "homework sucks," and young love is searing. I mean, all that's true of course -- homework DOES suck -- but there needs to be a little more than just that. I'm sure Laura Ingalls thought homework sucked and Pa sure could be embarrasing when he brought out the fiddle and called her "Half Pint," but you wouldn't exactly cite the Little House on the Prairie series as an example of teenage angst.
Creepy Clown rating: 2 Creepy Clowns (1 C.C. = awesome comic; 5 C.C. = it sucks)
I gave Zits 2.5 Creepy Clowns, and the truth is, I like Luann better. This is probably because it's from a teenage girl's perspective, and I was once a teenage girl myself. So it's not necessarily an objective rating, but well, what sort of rating system is completely objective?
But, in addition to being from a girl's point of view, it's just slightly more angsty, which was my major criticism of Zits. There are also more characters in Luann -- more friends, teachers, brother's friends, etc. So, that provides the variety I often harp on.
Finally, Luann never pisses me off (this is also true of Zits). The more I write about the comics, the more I see that as a good thing. So many of them are just so stupid and piss me off to no end. You get a higher rating just for keeping my blood pressure down.
++++++++
On a personal note, if any of my Navy friends are reading, and if any of you have heard about an inactive reservist muster, and if any of you have a clue why I'm being mustered -- drop me a line. Not that I am not proud of my (supposedly finished) service, and not that I won't be at my muster site bright and early -- it's just, well . . . you know I'm not a HUGE fan of the current administration, the War in Iraq, etc., etc., etc., and I don't have a great desire to be caught up in it. Any info is appreciated! And, sorry for clogging the comic blog with personal and political chit chat. No more.
posted by big al at 2:42 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home