Webcomic Review: We're Back!

[vultureX21]

Well, not really we so much. There was never a we. There's a me, and I used to write Webcomic Review for fun and as an exercise in writing in general for the Escapist's review forums. I stopped years ago, don't really recall why, probably that whole grad school thing. Also, I moved to China.

But, excuses excuses you say! And you're right. I got very nostalgic today and started looking at old reviews and wondered why I ever stopped writing them. So, in the spirit of doing something that I used to love doing here goes again! Over the next week I'll be posting Webcomic Review again. After that, we'll see if I continue or not. For now, here's a schedule based on old requests and personal choices:

Today, Feb 4th (Beijing Time) - Questionable Content
Feb 5th - Legend of Bill
Feb 6th - OFF
Feb 7th - Goblins
Feb 8th - VG Cats
Feb 9th - Menage a 3
Feb 10th - Broken Plot Device
Feb 11th - OFF
Feb 12th - The Trenches

That's it for now. Assuming anyone actually WANTS to read these reviews or has a request please respond in the comments to this post. There were a few devoted readers years back, but I assume you've moved on to bigger and better things. Also, I'm not entirely sure any of you were actually real in the first place.

If you're new and interested in seeing my backlog of reviews, simply search Webcomic Review and you'll find them in the forums.

 

[Newtonyd]

VG Cats still makes comics? At the rate of what, once every few months?

This review thing could be pretty interesting if you make it regular. I used to scour the depths of the internet for good webcomics, and mostly came up holding armfuls of trite bullshit with a few nuggets of gold. I've mostly given up exploration since then and read a small group of webcomics I've deemed 'best', but I'm not opposed to giving something new a try.

I'll throw in a request for my personal favorite: Homestuck, and its precursor, Problem Sleuth, both at mspaintadventures.com . These are pretty hefty comics that take dozens of hours of reading (Homestuck itself is nearing 6,000 pages), but I found it worth the effort. It's also managed to collect a bit of a rabid fandom, which has a bit of an annoying reputation.

Anyway, look forward to seeing your reviews.

 

[NightmareWarden]

Belcome Wack! So what is your policy on spoilers? Considering you're gonna do Questionable Content I assume you'll talk about how the relationship between the original two main characters developed, but will you explain why it changed? You wouldn't spoil you-know-who's backstory, right? You wouldn't spoil certain deaths in Goblins, right?

I skimmed over one of your webcomic reviews and I came up with a few general questions: What standards do you hold that helps you decide whether a comic's art is good or ugly? If a conversation develops, will you interact with the posters about your review? If you do a review of a comic like Least I Could Do will you mention that its creators are currently working on a television show for it or will your review be restricted to purely that comic? Will you review comics which generally do not have a consistent plot such as Scandinavia and the World? Generally, what do you focus on in your reviews? What, if anything, will you try to do now that you weren't doing before?

And since you said we can throw in requests, I'll throw in one webcomic which began the final chapter of its trilogy: Nuzlocke's Pokemon: Hard-Mode. Oh, and I'm a new reader so I haven't looked at your older reviews much yet.

 

[BiscuitTrouser]

Please review homestuck. That is all. (dammit ninjad)

ANYWAY i like a fair few of the comics there, will be interesting, is your previous work still on here?

 

[Shinsei-J]

Review Antics and I'll be a loyal fan for life.
Here's a link
Start at the begining and go through!
...
I'd probably still be a fan anyway.
Seems like a fun idea.

 

[Guffe]

I don't think I've read your reviews before...
But you avatar looks very, very fimiliar...
Good luck and Have Fun

 

[DazBurger]

Have a look at lackadaisycats.com! That comic deserves WAY more attention.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

Neat.

I see you've done a few of my favourites already. (Richard FTW!)

Here are some extras once you've cleared out your backlog.

http://www.errantstory.com/

Errant Story started in 2002 and ended in 2012, now the author is going through the archives and adding author notes as well as touching up a few pages. If you hate the concept of 'perfect elves' you'll love this.

http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/

The creator has pulled various myths and legends to create this story, with lots of hidden meanings that contribute to an overarching plot involving Gunnerkrigg Court (a school that is more than it appears to be and is full of secrets) and Gillitie Forest (ruled over by the trickster god Coyote).

 

[bluepotatosack]

Webcomic reviews? Yeah, I'll read. I can always use some more reading material!

Seconding Gunnerkrigg Court and Lackadaisy.

Plus I'll add:

http://paranatural.net/
Some hilarious writing and possibly the greatest facial expressions I've seen. I don't have much to say about this one but I cannot recommend it enough.

http://www.templaraz.com/
Very unique comic. It's a sort of modern day alt-history setting. Many different subcultures with vastly different ideologies occupying a fictional city in AZ. Great characters with some real history behind them, and the best character might be the city itself.

 

[vultureX21]

VG Cats still makes comics? At the rate of what, once every few months?

This review thing could be pretty interesting if you make it regular. I used to scour the depths of the internet for good webcomics, and mostly came up holding armfuls of trite bullshit with a few nuggets of gold. I've mostly given up exploration since then and read a small group of webcomics I've deemed 'best', but I'm not opposed to giving something new a try.

I'll throw in a request for my personal favorite: Homestuck, and its precursor, Problem Sleuth, both at mspaintadventures.com . These are pretty hefty comics that take dozens of hours of reading (Homestuck itself is nearing 6,000 pages), but I found it worth the effort. It's also managed to collect a bit of a rabid fandom, which has a bit of an annoying reputation.

Anyway, look forward to seeing your reviews.

Adding "Homestuck" to the list along with "Problem Sleuth." I like annoying reputations in fandom, makes reviewing more interesting!

 

[vultureX21]

Belcome Wack! So what is your policy on spoilers? Considering you're gonna do Questionable Content I assume you'll talk about how the relationship between the original two main characters developed, but will you explain why it changed? You wouldn't spoil you-know-who's backstory, right? You wouldn't spoil certain deaths in Goblins, right?

I skimmed over one of your webcomic reviews and I came up with a few general questions: What standards do you hold that helps you decide whether a comic's art is good or ugly? If a conversation develops, will you interact with the posters about your review? If you do a review of a comic like Least I Could Do will you mention that its creators are currently working on a television show for it or will your review be restricted to purely that comic? Will you review comics which generally do not have a consistent plot such as Scandinavia and the World? Generally, what do you focus on in your reviews? What, if anything, will you try to do now that you weren't doing before?

And since you said we can throw in requests, I'll throw in one webcomic which began the final chapter of its trilogy: Nuzlocke's Pokemon: Hard-Mode. Oh, and I'm a new reader so I haven't looked at your older reviews much yet.

Good questions all around. The QC review is up already and I did avoid spoilers. I certainly won't spoil Goblins either.

As for the standards of review...

1) Determining the quality of art - art is, after all, totally subjective. I freely admit that, but my preferences vary depending on the art style. For example, I like black and white art especially because it takes a bit more thought and care to really bring out details in that contrast, so a comic like Better Days or Mega Tokyo often hits me right in terms of imagery. With the colored comics, which are more common, I enjoy art done so well that it creates a feeling of three dimensional depth to the scene and characters. Questionable Content shows a really nice progression towards this throughout Jacques work, so does Penny Arcade. By and large, I don't like free-hand wavy-edged art (though I acknowledge a lot of people do) because it leads to misshapen figures and that distracts me from the writing and development of the piece itself.

2) I love interacting with posters, best way to bring out new thoughts and ideas.

3) I sometimes mention other projects the artists are doing, but only if I've seen them myself will I provide any kind of insight into how I feel about the product. Otherwise if people suggest things like the LICD TV show I sometimes check it out, but I tend to treat the comic as a stand alone work.

4) I don't really have a preference for plot based comics or random comics. Good plots make up for weaknesses in those comics that have them, but a great creative comic with no plot is often better than a generic one with a plot.

5) I'm not an art major, I didn't study art or comics or graphic design in any way (and given that, feel free to ignore all my thoughts on various comics). I was a history and literature major who became an educator at the secondary level. I have no expertise in the field of comics. What I tend to write about is story and characters. Are they interesting? Will they keep you reading? Did I have to slog through the whole backlog or was it easy to read thousands of comics? I also like to veer off course and talk about the artist's growth and thoughts via the comic and any connection I can make to the artist (typically by email). When I review, I'm thinking about whether the comic says something that makes it worth reading or if it is hilarious or well-crafted enough to warrant investigation.

6) One thing I am trying to do more, and remember this is a test run to see if I can keep doing this again, is to talk directly to the artists about their work. My favorite part of doing the old reviews was interviewing David Hopkins of Jack and having him be so candid. That's incredibly worthwhile to me, I'd love to talk to more artists about what they do and why.

I will try to keep that backlog of reviews going, Hard Mode is in.

 

[vultureX21]

I added all the requests to the list of "To Do" comics. Keep in mind I'm still in a trial period for this so they may or may not get done. However, I always appreciate new reading choices!

 

[Newtonyd]

Adding "Homestuck" to the list along with "Problem Sleuth." I like annoying reputations in fandom, makes reviewing more interesting!

Awesome, I look forward to the review. Hope you like time shenanigans.

 

[The Diabolical Biz]

I'd read it. Another one I'd like to put up for consideration is feel afraid. [http://feelafraidcomic.com/] I really like it.

Looking forward to it!

 

[Queen Michael]

Have a look at lackadaisycats.com! That comic deserves WAY more attention.

Preach, brother. Too true.