My first impression of this story is that it is beautifully illustrated, designed, and composed. I found it to be a very immersive reading experience, emotionally grabbing me and guiding me smoothly between panels.
I can see that Shaun Tan put a lot of care into not only showing what it was like to be an immigrant but also using tools to pull every reader into the protagonist's shoes and making them feel what it's like to be in a completely foreign world. His tools of no dialog, alien symbols, and fantasy environments and creatures worked to convey that idea in addition to making it more accessible to anyone of any age. Once the viewers are drawn in, Tan was then able to use the fantasy elements to represent a lot of serious tones and ideas without being off-putting.
Shaun Tan certainly achieved a lot by expressing a whole story without words, just as when a writer conveys mental images without the use of illustrations. However I hope that people don't get the impression that things like The Arrival are meant to eliminate the need for writers altogether because writing and illustrations have so many unique qualities and capabilities and neither could singlehandedly do all that the other can. This is why I believe that comics and graphic novels are such a great medium for story-telling because they can both come together to create a fully immersive experience in made up worlds.
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