In Last Day of Vietnam, we find a retelling of some stories inspired by Will Eisner's trip to Korea and Vietnam. We have stories depicting how those soldiers who fought in the wars were affected in their daily lives. From the Major who had a kind of blind positivity about the war, to a man who is seduced by a native woman who leaves a grenade under his bed. There's a lot of warped sense of perception being portrayed by these characters that Eisner created.
Maybe it's because I was not raised in a family of vets (although my grandparents did work in the wars) so my views of veterans and war efforts are not really 'shining'. But I'd like to think that Eisner also thought what he was seeing was the brainwashing of those in the war. Because no matter how life-threatening the situations be, these men still saw them as a thing that should be praised or repeated. In The Periphery, the guide even proves how dispassionate the journalists are until they know someone involved in the war, and then it becomes their problem. Considering the backlash the Vietnam war got on American soil, and considering how many people lost their lives then and even now due to Agent Orange used in the war, I thinks it's safe to say that it's no joke.
I loved Eisner's use of storytelling in the comics, nonetheless. He makes sure that the emotions of the characters are not just shown on their faces, but also shown with their entire bodies. If someone is happy, they won't simply just be smiling, they will be smiling and jumping for joy. Eisner really makes you feel like this a world filled with characters who express REAL emotion. Exaggeration in media is always what conveys better than sticking to the reference. We learned that very well in our animation classes. Eisner's characters feel animated. That's such a feat to achieve in comics, especially in his time period.
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