“Here’s the thing, I think that good visual communication should speak and be silent.” -Scott Mcloud.  And with this quote, I would definitely agree with it. Sometimes reading too many words can be overbearing, and it takes away from the pictures in the comics. There has to be some sort of in-between balance between these two elements. Not too much, but just right. I think a good example of this in-between balance is the comic novel, “They Called Us Enemy” by George Takei. I feel as though the balance between the writing of this story and drawing really lined up well evenly throughout the story. Even though the story touched upon hard topics of the Japanese-Americans being rounded up in internment camps, George Takei really found that middle ground to stand on. He was still able to present the ideas through the writing really well, while also having good illustrations to go along with it. On top of that George also incorporated other techniques in his story, like C.A.R.E and R.E.A.D. These techniques really helped make the story a worthwhile read. Yes, at times it was boring, but the illustrations were stunning and there really wasn’t ‘that’ much reading that had to be done anyways. 

Here’s an example of my favorite page panels:

I really liked the contrast between the two perspectives of the mother and the two little kids. While the kids are practically radiating happy energy and glowing with happiness, the mother on the other hand is gloomy and she is expressed darker in shading. While the kids are blissfully unaware of what’s happening the mother is looking out the window hoping and longing for something outside and out of reach for her. What she wishes for is for everything to go back to normal and be okay, for everything to go back to how things were, their peaceful life undisturbed. 

Simple comics like these can be quite impactful if you think about it. For the people who love art or for the people who don’t like to read that much, comics can be a way for these people to enjoy their reading differently.