By reading a variety of international graphic novels we’ll begin to understand different cultures: their values, their relationships, and their narrative and artistic styles. Through our exploration, we’ll challenge the simplistic thinking that often reduces a nation to a caricature or a stop at Disney’s Epcot. In the Brazilian Daytripper, we’ll consider how celebration of a sea goddess influences the work and demonstrates the complex history of a country. Moving to African Comics, we’ll see modern superheroes and re-imagined history. In Israel, Modan’s Exit Wounds will help us think through family relationships marked by ongoing political turmoil. Ranma 1/2 from Japan is a delightful tale of high schoolers dealing with gender expectations. Finally, we’ll move to Europe with the French graphic novel Blue is the Warmest Color to think about more about romantic relationships. In each geographic area, we’ll look at samples of work from these locations to get a better sense of patterns. Using the interdisciplinary approach of cultural studies, we’ll consider the connections between the personal, the familial, and the national identity. By bringing graphic novels and scholarly work together, we will develop a better understanding of our increasingly global world and work towards more complex multicultural perspectives.