Webcomic Book Club Full Reviews of Mac Hall by Ian McConville & Matt Boyd

"Mac Hall" Review Overall My reaction to "Mac Hall" can be summed up by saying that I absolutely loved the artwork and found the writing to be mostly so-so, with the exception of a handful of truly first rate strips. Writing & Intended Audience I think you really have to be a part of the video game subculture to fully appreciate "Mac Hall" (which I am not). There is still much that I enjoyed, but a lot of the intended humor probably flew right over my head. This Strip, "Glowing Means Future" is very representative, encapsulating the attitude and intended audience. Although gaming may be the shared experience, most of the strips focus on the petty trials and tribulations of college dorm life. Unfortunately, I don't find much freshness in the fairly standard stuff about messy dorm rooms and pulling all-nighters. I guess if this were the first comic strip you ever read about college life, this material might be hilarious. Characters None of the characters or relationships are explored with much depth. If pressed, I don't think I could really describe the personalities of any of the characters all that well. For example, there's one guy (Micah) who plays Everquest all the time, but I don't know much about him beyond that or why the one recurring female character in the strip (Helen) would be interested in him. Exceptional Strips There are, however, a handful of exceptionally well-written strips that I quite enjoyed: "It Got Feet" is an amusing literal take on the tedium of the work experience. The themed trio of Halloween costumes had me smiling in "Sorry, It's All Pencil This Time" "Stock Monkeys" provided a wonderful tour of the Wal-Mart employees caste system. The disconnect between what Moms hear about race relations on campus and day-to-day reality is brilliantly captured in "We'll Call Him Lando" My favorite strip of all is this recent offering about attending a friend's wedding that skillfully blends poignant self-reflection and drunken humor: "The Wedding (5)" Artwork If my reaction to the writing was mixed, there is no ambiguity in my love for the artwork. It almost doesn't matter what each strip is about; viewing each page of Ian McConville's slick and appealing creations is a joy. It's not that the illustrations are particularly detailed or sophisticated, but he knows how to communicate a lot with a little. I've never seen fudged, blurry backgrounds used to such great effect to give one a sense of environment while showing almost nothing specific. The line work, character designs and expressions are all first-rate. The coloring is always rich and evokes a sense of mood. You could almost click on any page to see what I am talking about. Here are a few example of the best of the best: Look here at how he represents the dazed perspective of a morning slumberer: "The Waking Part 2" Or how nicely he does the blizzard effects here: "Not Infact A Tiger" In "The Wedding (6)", he captures the blurry headlight/street lamp feel of a city drive at night more brilliantly than if he had meticulously rendered each building and automobile. Knowing how to cheat effectively is a sign of a good cartoonist. Overall Part 2 I'll keep reading "Mac Hall", even if just for the art, but I'd personally like longer story arcs, more depth and exploration of the characters, and maybe see them grow beyond the in-jokes of the gamer lifestyle. Review by The Phantom Critic Sat Feb 22 2003 05:24 PM

Well, this isn't too pleasing, particularly considering I picked this selection. Unfortunately, it seems something about Mac Hall's server finds occasional issues with my comp, freezing my computer almost randomly when I go to other pages. And sometimes the page refuses to load up entirely. I managed to reach about comic #70 or so, which isn't even half of this seemingly nifty little comic. Because I did want to read more, but am not willing to deal with the irritating freezes (takes several mins to fully get back online), I don't think I can give a just review for Mac Hall. From what I did see though, visually, it looked pretty sharp, almost like stills from an animation. I thought at times it could be kind of formulaic, sort of one-two punches, and I rather had hoped to see some aspect of depth to the characters or their environment, which was not present in my short run with this. I think that lack of content to the characters themselves was the only real issue I had. It looks like a decent comic otherwise though. From what I'd seen, I would give it about six of ten stars, but again, that's not a fully explored review from cirumstances. Review by Kajamir the Giant Fri Feb 21 2003 02:09 PM

Ah... Mac Hall... It brings me back to memories of Thursday when I read the entire thing in one day so that I could talk about it now... It's truly a splendid comic done with absolutely beautiful computer graphics! The layout of each page is very easy to follow; not confusing at all like some comics can be. Plus, it's pretty easy to tell each character apart. I'm not sure about anyone else, but I absolutely adore Drew... Hell, it only took me 163 comics to remember that his name WAS Drew! I just love those evil-glowy-red eyes that he has! simply and purely 3vil! The comic itself is hilarious. Surprisingly, I only have 56 out of the 176 comics that I read saved... I give this comic a ten out of ten... mmmm... pizzzaaaa... Review by Cave Sun Feb 16 2003 06:55 PM

Well. Mac Hall is another comic that I've been a fan of for some time, so I have to try and be objective again. First off: the story. There isn't much of one, but that's by design; underlying themes pop up, such as Drew's contempt for most humans and the mind-numbing quality of certain classes. There is some romance as well, but not much. The main point to Mac Hall, as I see it, is a good script and a good joke with every update, and in that regard I think it's excellent. It's been consistently funny, even if it hasn't updated regularly. The art started off solid, and I don't think the designs have strayed much from their origins-but they have become more complex, I believe. The occasional flip over to "simple mode", as I like to put it, can be disconcerting. But I think it works. Overall, it's damn good, and that's all I can really say. The humor, as I said, is good. It can be harsh on occasion, or have a good point as well, but it always seems...natural to me. Since I don't want to leave it there, what I mean is that it's based in reality, rather than "This wildly improbable event happened!". I've seen many strips use that device for most of their humor, and it starts to get old. The characters are well-defined, believable and consistent. Drew's glowing red eyes are the only thing that's out of place, along with Ian's kitten. But they're more visual flourishes than anything else, in my mind. Overall, I give Mac Hall 9 out of ten. The inconsistent times for updates take away a point, but the end result is always impressive-and the artist has tried to set regular updates to compensate, which is a good idea in my opinion. Review by Benor Sun Feb 16 2003 04:36 PM

as someone who goes to college park (University of Maryland (where this comic takes place)) regularly, i can tell you that the setting is right on the money. Mac Hall art i loved it, i am a fan of the comic computer made look. the backgrounds were good, and made me say, "hey, i was right there on thursday!" the people were done well, and it was generally good all around. the art did not distract form the dialouge, and unlike shaw island, it was a big part of the strip. story usually one off strips, unconnected by a storyline. a few storylines, but not that many. the storylines that they did have are usually good. the contenunity is usually good. (i particualarlly like the computer science teacher strips) cast theres a lot fo them, so i will go down the list... Drew he is a UM comp sci major. the UM comp sci department is evil. the CS advisors do their best to have NO students, i guess thats why UM is so highly rated in comp sci... anyway, the ones who remain are evil it seems.and drew definitely fits. i read him and i think steve!, thats STEVE!, (my friend in CS at UMD) JM a nice philosopher character. he reminds me of a few other people i know. and that is what the greatest comics do. possibly one of my favorite characters. okay, thats all i have to say on that ian i like the character. i dont have much to say on him however... micah another character that i feel like i know. i see him and i think Marcus! the lazyness, the addiction to vidio games, the smoothness, everything. matt again, i dont have much to say on him, i like the character however... those are the main ones, so i will leave it at that. overall so sometimes the updates are infrequent, but hey, all in all its a great comic. the art the story the setting, everything, i know im a bit biased because i live in maryland and i go to UMD often, but still, a great webcomic 9 out of 10 frestanding coffies Review by Zen l33t Sun Feb 16 2003 03:05 PM

Machall I like this comic. It has good art and is generally funny, something that a lot of online comics manage to miss: the "Comic" bit. That said, the artist has a busy life outside of the comic, so it updates irregularly. People seeking deep revelations or emotional gobbledegook, look elsewhere. There isn't much continuity either… there's the occasional series like the recent "Wedding" sequence but for the most part its just one shot strips. Rating : 8 out of 10 screaming demon weasels Review by Ohtar Sun Feb 16 2003 08:52 AM

Offsite Review Summaries

"A web comic about a group of college students who are typical slackers. While they sometimes do some actual work for classes, most of the time they just goof off and hang around the campus having fun. The comic takes its name from the dormitory, McDonald Hall, that the students live in at Bowling Green State University. In episode #229 the cast moved into a house, where they currently reside. The series seemed to have less focus on college life and more focus on the cast's antics afterwards, but as of episode #290 it has started to return to a college focus." more... Read Full Review by Wikipedia contributors at Wikipedia Thu Nov 13 2003

Visitor Reviews & Comments

this comic is the standard to which all other webcomics must be compared. none so far have measured up. the art is unparalleled (mmm... photoshop mastery...), the writing (actually done by matt boyd, which is clearly documented on every single comic, on the bottom left corner) is clever and insightful, not to mention ACTUALLY FUNNY a great deal of the time. 10/10, all the way. Review by lycaon Mon Nov 07 2005 11:32 PM

My favorite non-plot webcomic. The humor about video games and geekness is really humerous. The characters are a unforgettable cast. I love Matt most likely because he reminds me of myself. The comic has an excellent variety of jokes. To video games to messy dorms. I give Mac Hall a ten out of ten easy. Review by Mike of Gamer's Hideout Fri Jul 23 2004 05:15 PM

"I give it a 9.5 out of 10, the missing 0.5 is because sometimes they fall behind on updates." Sence when is updating an element of reviewing a webcomic? A review shouldn't be about what page is done when, but about what has been done so far. In a year from now who will remember that page XXX took X number of days to finish? Review by Doc Nimbles Mon Jun 07 2004 02:39 PM

I have never read an online comic before, but when i came to this, i could only describe it in 1 word, wow. The artwork is just so fascinating and it just blows my mind. As an anime fan, i really appreciate how they mixe the different types of artwork into the same comic. Most of the comics are funny, but it can get pretty borring at times, not often though. If there's a borring comic, there is often a rejuvination with a really good one. It's not easy to keep the humor after years of work and they did a great job of keeping it up. Keep up the good work. 99 of 100. Review by Tulio Sun Mar 14 2004 03:12 PM

In respons to The Phantom Critic, and Kajimir the Giant's reviews I have this to say. You both said that the characters didn't have much depth to them, I do not think so, even though they don't go into detail about the characters there is enough information there for you to understand them. Even without the writer or artist going into detail about them, after reading the comics you can see that they do have personalities. And in response to your comment Phantom Helen likes Micah because he's smart, but not to brainy, says so in the comic. Now on to the review, Machall is one of the best comics I've ever read, it has awsome art, alot of "tounge in mouth" jokes that only gamers could understand, and while the "bunch of guys go to collage and make a mess of things" story line is overused Machall brings a new element to the field. I give it a 9.5 out of 10, the missing 0.5 is because sometimes they fall behind on updates. (P.S. I'm writing this at 5:00 AM after a long day of work so if my spelling isn't to good don't be mad at me, now of to bed) Review by Wollen Thu Feb 26 2004 02:59 PM

The most creative comic, art and writing in the web comic/gaming world. 9.9 of 10 Ps. Anyone who gets invited to Ireland to speak, must be good, real good! Review by aceprep@aol.com Tue Feb 03 2004 06:40 PM

MacHall: The title at first suggests an Apple computer-focused comic. That's only a fraction of what the comic really is. It doesn't take long for the reader to discover that the comic chronicles the everyday life of a college-student, which apparently isn't so normal. What with giant bugs, robots, and stray Pikachus, you'd think that MacHall would quickly degrade into a strip in which they blow up a bunch of stuff every strip. Thank goodness, no. The writer himself is fairly consistent with his ability to come up with some meaty concepts, and even has minor plot threads scattered in between some jovial nonsense that is probably thrown in by Ian. It is for this reason that MacHall is one of the few comics that makes me laugh out loud. The writing, if not great, is still good. The artwork...the ARTWORK. Ian as an artist garners a lot of respect from me. He obviously has enough experience to make drawings that are simultaneously cartoony, entertaining, and convincing, no matter how outlandish the facial expressions get. And...well, the guy injects some random insanity in there from time to time, giving the reader a kind of high. It's very exciting, to say the least. The only glaring downside of the whole webcomic is, sadly, its platform. The website itself is at times temperamental, and Ian and Drew sometimes forget to update for a while. But you've got to expect that from undergrads. The website has some occasional downtime, and there were rumors of the server being infected with a virus (Drew kindly linked to an online virus scan). When the site does update, the new comic isn't the only thing to watch out for. Ian and Drew (and sometimes even some other friends) often have personal muses, words of wisdom, or other cool stuff to share with the readers. Often enough, the journal entries are nearly as entertaining as the comic itself. Therefore: 9 yellow jelly belly beans out of 10. Review by Vedas Mon Sep 15 2003 07:07 PM

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