The author embarks on a quest to find the first American graphic novel, disputing the term as a loose definition used interchangeably with comics. They recount encounters with confused audiences at a panel discussion and explore early American comic publications, including novels, protocomics, and gag strips. The author examines works by various cartoonists and finally stumbles upon Fred Willard’s Moon Mullins collection, a serialized story with a beginning, middle, and end. Despite its serialized nature, the author hesitates to label it the first graphic novel due to its unplanned narrative and extraneous content, leaving the search unresolved.
https://haljohnsonbooks.substack.com/p/what-is-the-first-american-graphic