Romance comics are full of pain and anguish, but always end with the girl getting her guy. The mid-century stories always seem to follow the exact same path: (1) we are introduced to a painfully insecure girl (2) who falls in love with the man-of-her-drams, (3) but the promise of a relationship quickly turns to existential despair, (4) which is followed by a “surprise” happy ending where the lovebirds are reunited and plan to get married.
Let’s take a walk through some vintage romance comics and see this play out, step-by-step.
Insecurity-Love-Anguish-Matrimony: The 4 Stages of Every Mid-Century Romance Comic
I knew they existed. I’ve seen some of them in passing but they have never appealed to me. It might be because I don’t even like to watch romance movies. Occasionally I will be dragged into watching one but it’s never my first choice. But these? These would be torture. Maybe it’s the soap opera element.