 |
I would like to apologise in advance for the shortness of my reviews lately. I've just been too busy.
Flipside is a bit slow, although it has a very interesting story. I appreciate the author's attempts at making something HAPPEN in every page and his artwork certainly improves from issue to issue, the style is getting exquisite.
The characters of Flipside are very interesting to explore. I like Bernadette's conviction to her peers and I like her development. One thing I'm disappointed with, however, is the lack of exploration of Maytag without the Jester suit. I love the concept of Maytag, her trademark naughtiness contrasts well with Bernadette's levelheadedness, but... I'd like to see more of her without the mask.
The storyline is pretty linear, but very good. That's really all I CAN say about it. It could use more... character development, though.
Flipside stays quite true to its genre. I love the concept of putting characters in the "interview chair" for people to ask questions. It adds depth to the character. Unfortunately, questions CAN get repetitive...
I give Flipside a 7 outta 10 for great effort, artwork and storyline. There's plenty of room for improvement, though. |
|
Sun Feb 01 2004 09:49 PM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
The artwork in Return to Sender is beautiful. The faint powder bluish hues are have a calming effect and the characters are well drawn and pretty well defined.
Beyond that, I do not think that Return to Sender was a very good webcomic. Perhaps it is because it's still in its infancy.
The two main characters of Return to Sender are flat, uninteresting and generally stereotypical or cliche. I don't like the way they respond to situations (it's hardly realistic) or the way they go about doing things. I have no idea what their relationship is, or why they even have a relationship.
The storyline... well, there's very little to work with at the moment, and it doesn't come across very effectively. I don't understand what's going on half the time and there's violence that occurs without a reason. The plot has lost me, it's so jumbled, I don't know what's going on, and I don't see how the actions relate to each other. I understand the need for violence in a comic strip that takes place during a war time or even the violence in Jack. I do not understand the violence in Return to Sender, it jsut seems to be there just for the "heck of it".
Basically, I find Return to Sender a rather shoddy work. I give it a 1 out of 10. The one being for the artwork, because beyond that, there is no storyline at all. |
|
Wed Jan 21 2004 11:47 PM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
Having been guilted back into writing reviews, and being unable to sleep tonight, I thought I'd put in my two cents.
First things first. Jack is about hell. It has bits about heaven in it, but it's mostly about hell. Hell isn't pretty and the artist and writer are not about to go pulling any punches or covering anything up with syrup. What you see is what you get. The artist is no Da Vinci, but he gets the story across rather effectively. It's a cold, calculative way of doing things, but the graphic nature of the drawings tend to enhance the storyline.
The characters of Jack are quite interesting. They're mysterious and definitely not flat. I would have to say that they're well thought out. The personification of the seven deadly sins is an interesting concept as are the reasons behind their choices that led them to become such strange characters. Fnar, the innocent who lives in hell, is another great character concept. I find that each character is used as a sort of explorative device to answer many philosophical questions and that impresses me greatly.
Jack's storylines do not travel along a set timeline. They jump about the place (time has no meaning when you're dead, I guess) sometimes moving forward, sometimes moving backwards but somehow, the author manages to keep a pace with world events. He rolls with the changes in the real world and manages to add them to the storyline, which is a great touch because it gives a more worldly feel towards it. Each story can be read in its own individual right and leave just the right amount of loose threads at the end to keep you reading and yet you could probably read just one storyline without having read the others.
I can't say I enjoy Jack as much as I would other webcomics, but I do find myself drawn to the storyline and relatively hooked to it because the situations are very realistic. It's a personal opinion of the other side and the outcomes of ones actions. Although I don't necessarily agree with it, I appreciate the honesty of the artist and writer. In fact, I respect their creativity.
I feel that I am in no position to give Jack a grade. I am a Christian and a devout one at that. Many of the concepts in Jack, while interesting, are hardly the kinds of things that I agree with or approve of. I do not wish to be biased and give it a low grade because of my religion, nor do I wish to give it a high grade because of it's fascinating concepts. I hope I am clear on this point. |
|
Fri Jan 16 2004 04:12 AM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
*Groans in irritation* I tried to use the new submitting interface and it got rid of all my paragraph spacing. And it didn't seem to put my picture next to my review. Oh well... ANYWAY... Let's try this again.
Insecurity, Anti-social tendicies, Depression, Substance Abuse, Bulimia, Peer-Pressure... So many similar themes are covered by "Traced"
Traced is a fascinating approach to writing one's own story. It's got a "Live Journal" sort of feel to it. It's a rather good way to look into the past events of one's life. The stories are serious but I had the distinct feeling that she meant some of them to be slightly humourous. However, the humour is lost on me.
I especially liked the way things are done in Traced, and the ideas are put across quite effectively. Traced touches on a lot of the problems faced by people, not just females in society today.
I especially enjoy the way things are done in it. But unfortunately, I have a similar pet peeve about the Loser comic - the find the object interface just didn't seem to load properly for me and that made reading the comic incredibily annoying. The timing in the dialogue, however, was quite good.
The artwork of Traced is terrible - it's not a work of art but seems more like notebook scribbles. However, I feel that this actually suits the comic well because they are memories, and memories tend to be hazy. Furthermore, they're drawn by someone who is merely trying to get her thoughts onto paper. It doesn't matter how well the comics are drawn, so long as the ideas in them are put across properly.
I feel that the comics are awfully depressing and seem to revolve around the same ideas. Much as I respect the artist for managing to get through the problems that she's gone through, after a while, I feel that the comics are repetitive.
I'm not completely sure if the comics are supposed to have a moral, I think that they're just reflective pieces of a woman who is looking back on her life. I don't think that I am in a position to judge her ideas or her memories or reflections.
I give this comic series a 6 outta 10. Although the pieces are intelligent and have feeling in them, I just had to take points away for the lack of material (they all seem to revolve around how sorry she feels for herself) and creativity. |
|
Thu Jul 31 2003 10:26 PM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
Well now, nobody seems to be posting, which is odd but anyway...
Strings of Fate is well written and drawn. I especially love the expressive eyes that the artist draws. Everything is so pretty!
The art style is kinda unique, I think. It's neither Animeish to a fault, but it's not cartoony to an annoyance either. It's a lovely balance, a little reminiscent of Disney artwork, I think.
I especially enjoy the way the writer has done so much research on information about Chinese zodiac animals. It's well written and the storyline is quite unique. I like the use of Chinese characters on the animal bodies.
I can't really think of anything I'm peeved with Strings of Fate other than the fact that the Phoenix is a male and female at the same time. (Traditional Chinese requires the Phoenix to be female)
All in all, the storyline is solid and ties in well with the background research.
I give it 9 outta 10 - 1 point taken away for the phoenix. |
|
Wed Jul 23 2003 05:19 PM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
*Ahem* I apologise for not being around the past review, but I happened to be busy looking for a new apartment which (unfortunately), I was unable to find due to my landlord kicking me out at an inopportune time.
That aside, let's get on with my review.
Black humour abounds in Something Positive and the archives are a real good read. The artwork is medium in terms of complexity - I find it impressive that this artist actually bothers to draw his backgrounds.
Something Positive is quite inflammatory - which is not a good thing. Oddly enough, though, I find it hilarious to read. It's funny and the storylines are told in an intelligent and quirky manner. This is certainly a series for a thinker to read (or a severely irritated person, it matters not).
Although the archives are a great read, I find that the latest comics (that have a lot of bashing on Christianity) are a bit over the top. I think it's because I'm a devout Christian.
In any case, Something Positive is something fascinating that I don't think should be given a miss. I give it a 7+1 outta 10 for being a solid and fascinating comic - but had to take away points for it's unfortunate inflammatory nature. The +1 is for the squishy cat. Things with cats in them get high points in my book.
A good read. Go see it.
*Prods everyone* |
|
Mon Jul 14 2003 12:47 AM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
Well now, with a name like Gravedigger, I was actually expecting some kind of gag-comic about well, you know, gravediggers not a well thought-out story with fascinating characters.
I liked the idea of the main character being a hardened criminal - especially the way the whole thing was pulled off by showing the main character's thoughts throughout. The way in which the story was written was reminiscent of those old dectective shows ("The dame was loaded" etc..) The characters were so real that I could practically hear them speaking to each other.
I was quite disappointed to find that there weren't any real characters beyond Angel and the main-character whose name eludes me at the moment. The rest seem to be like cardboard figurines - just there to add to the atmosphere and scenery. I would deeply have loved to see them in action somehow.
The artwork is quite stylised and it's obvious that the artist is trying to follow the old Elfwood/Marvel/DC style. It's quite well drawn for such a short comic and only proves to be a work of heart for the artist.
I also liked the used of framing technique which brings the whole story together, the beginning ties in with the end. I do wish the story had a happier ending, but I guess it only goes to prove the harsh realities of the ex-convict's life.
I give this comic a 9 outta 10 for great artwork, a solid storyline and no spelling mistakes beyond accents.
Selphie Trabia/Catty Dewclaw |
|
Sun Jun 29 2003 12:32 PM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
oooooOOoOOh. Sorry for the lateness of this review! I kinda had some major exams to study for.
ANYWAYS.
Exile from Kiirs is a fascinating fantasy comic (pun not intended).
The artwork is quite stylised and slightly bland but quite good in its own right. I like the way the hands are drawn, but the facial expressions leave a little to be desired. Just a little.
Storyline-wise, Exile from Kiirs follows the old fantasy story formula quite closely. The usual unfairly-treated-orphan-proves-to-be-really-cool kind of story. However, I much liked the way the villagers were written out as still being skeptical even after the geist (we never seem to run away from that word, huh? It's been chasing us since Soul Chaser Betty) saves them. But the king's promise seems to make things too... easy for the geist.
As a prelude to another comic and an extra (as stated on the page), Exile from Kiirs does very well. It's short, has some action and is does well in setting up the world in which the story will take place.
I give this comic about... 6 outta 10 for good effort. The story is good, but could use a little originality. |
|
Fri Jun 27 2003 01:28 PM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
All right, I have to admit outright that I do NOT like this webcomic whatsoever, and I have no qualms in saying that I don't.
Firstly, I share Pingu-san's sentiments about the art. It's cut-and-paste and therefore, there's no point for me to be impressed or not impressed about it. I'm a bit skeptical about cut-and-paste artwork and in fact, it lowers my respect for the people who make the comic. If they can't be bothered to draw it, that probably means that the comic is not a work of heart.
Then we come to the choice of words in dialogue. I'm a conservative person - the type of girl who prays before bedtime and goes to church every week, so I do have reservations about a comic that uses swearwords like punctuation. "Get Your War On" certainly does that.
That aside, I wouldn't mind the extensive use of swearwords if the comic had good content. Unfortunately, "Get Your War On" also fails in that aspect. The dialogue is flat and bears little relavancy to people who are not citizens of the USA (I am a Singaporean, therefore the comic is not relavant to me). It has no gripping storyline and it isn't exactly very funny either.
All in all, I find "Get Your War On" to be a childish attempt at comical satire. It fails to bring its point across in a mature manner. The comic itself is not well thought out and only has a niche audience in mind.
I give the comic a 1 out of 10 for effort - and only because I would give at least 1 point for something.
Selphie Trabia/Catty Dewclaw |
|
Mon Jun 16 2003 12:21 AM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
Uhm... gee... this is the first time I'm writing a review and I'm not very good.
Although the setup of the comic is a bit cliche (the chosen one to save the world thing), the concept of this comic is incredibily fascinating even if it is a little cruel (Coma patients only in a coma to fight a monster? How sad!) I hope to see this concept develop more as the story goes on. However, I find the characters to be a little... flat. Their personalities are too single-sided.
Hmmm, the artwork is a little peachy, the body proportions being a little strange, but on the whole, it's quite nice. The drawings are very unique.
On the whole a solid comic, though and I enjoyed it very much. I give it a 7 outta 10. |
|
Fri Jun 13 2003 05:29 PM |
Read All Reviews for this title |
|
|
|