Reviews by Benor

Art: Interesting, though there isn't a lot of variety in people right now. The two male leads and the two female leads look rather similar right now. However, it's relatively early in the comic, so that might change, and we might see more regular characters emerge.

Story: I like it so far, but I'm a little worried about the latest developments. The creator seems to take the idea of "make things miserable for your characters" very far, but it makes for a good story, especially as the main characters tries to adjust to his changed circumstances. However, there seems to be a more overt supernatural element coming in, and I'm not sure how that will change things.

Characters: I'm divided on this. Two of the characters are outstanding to me, while the other two are interesting but unrealistic. I love how Aidan is trying to deal with his recent streak of bad luck, while Katrina's very nature is something I want to learn. What is she, exactly? How can she recover from seemingly irreversible damage? On the other hand, Ethan and Alyssa are funny....but the idea that they'd accept things so easily that Aidan won't doesn't jibe. They might be more relaxed, but no one is relaxed enough to just shrug off the walking dead.

Writing: We mostly see the story through Aidan's eyes, and that's where we get the humor from, too. He's kind of nervous and pessimistic-and suddenly, things have gone far beyond what he could have realistically predicted. And he's trying desperately not to become unhinged. Seeing that struggle is, in my opinion, a barrel of laughs with this presentation.

Overall: It's too early to tell how well "Always Tomorrow" will go, though it's not too early to draw some initial conclusions. I'm looking forward to more. 7 out of 10.

Sun Jun 05 2005 11:32 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

"Sinfest" is....a very large disappointment.

Art: Though there's some marginal improvement compared to the first year of strips, Sinfest has quickly locked into a pattern with its work. There is outdoor scenery, beat club scenery, the ocassional street scenery, and indoor scenery. And they all look the same. I almost imagine it's like a hollywood studio, with the appropriate scenery being wheeled in. And while they've gotten sharper, the character designs have rarely changed. The only time we see anything interesting with the art comes from the occasional "pimp ninja" stories, where the creator is basically forced to draw something different.

Story: So far, I've seen two attempts at an actual story, and both have died soon after they were introduced. This is a gag a day comic. But unlike other comics, this doesn't seem to eschew continuity, but just have no clue on how to deal with it.

Characters: Let's see. We have Slick, who embodies the worst behavior of little white and asian guys trying to be 'gangsta' and 'pimp'. We have Monique, the woman who-we're told-sleeps with everyone, yet never seems to be with anyone. God, who apparently has nothing better to do than yell at random people (in this case, the other characters) and do stupid puppet shows. The Devil, who's shown as incompetent. Two opposing religious fanatics who don't really get a name. Cherubic angels who run around and annoy everyone. A beer swilling literal pig named Squigley. A geek named Criminy who can't handle the idea of physical intimacy. And a dog and a cat.

And out of those characters, the only ones who are really that funny are the dog and cat, Poochy and Percival. They don't even deal with the rest of the cast, they're just a random interlude comic that happens on occasion. But they're the only interesting ones, because the rest seem to sicken at the mere idea of reaching beyond the stupid stereotype that is their origin.

Writing: Every joke and gag, except for the dog and cat comics, are religious or sexual. And not a one of them is funny. They boil down to "Everyone wants to sleep with me," "No one would sleep with you," "God is annoying," and "God knows everything." Not a lot of variety there, and almost every one is just a slight variation on similar jokes. Variety is good, and it's not in "Sinfest."

Overall: "Sinfest" festers on the Internet. It is, as far as I can tell, a pathetic attempt to join the bland humor of syndicated comics with the "shocking and new" ideas of dealing directly with God and sex. But I haven't seen much coming out of this that's worth reading. 2 out of 10, with one point added for Poochy and Percival. They deserve to get out of this comic.

Sun Jun 05 2005 11:16 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

If there's anything going for "Pawn," it's this: the comic has no illusions about what it is. It's good erotica.

Art: Simple, clean lines dominate here, and there's a good number of backgrounds in "Pawn" as well. I'd like to see more coloring, but the shading is adequate for the work. Beyond that, I don't have anything else to say here.

Characters: I'm a little confused on what Ayanah's purpose is in her visit-why, exactly, would a virgin want to capture a demon for herself? What's the point? Of course, I have an educated guess there, but she hasn't even given a cover story for it. I do like the fact that she's aware of her sexuality while being a virgin, though she seems a little TOO aware. Baalah is the much more interesting character, both for her intimidating introduction, and her unfamiliarity with how humans actually work-though she can easily recognize them. I also like her motivations for not wanting to lose, since it's more than "I'm evil and shouldn't be losing."

Story: In most erotic work, the story is a thin excuse. Here, it's a little bit better, but so far the story consists of Ayanah coming down, getting Baalah, and then trying to come back to the surface untouched. There's nothing inherently wrong there, but it could become a weak point.

Writing: What saves "Pawn" from being blatantly pornographic, and makes it more accessible to everyone, is the writing. Specifically, the humor. Without bludgeoning us over the head with it, the creator points out that before now, Baalah has never really learned how humans work when they're not coming down to try and kill her. Actually learning the mechanics is a new idea for her, as is getting along with the person who beat her, instead of just being killed. Sure, there's sexual things going on-after all, Baalah isn't even trying to wear clothing. But she's also not thinking about how she looks, or at least she wasn't when she first appeared in the story. The writing isn't perfect-ideas like "kissing changes a demon's size" are pretty much deus ex machina moments to solve logistical problems. But it's still funny, and it gives the comic more than sex for enjoyment. So far, in fact, I'd put the humor as the best thing in "Pawn" right now.

Overall: If you're 16 or older, "Pawn" is a light, short, enjoyable comic. If you're any younger, I won't say you shouldn't read it, but I'm also not to blame if your parents find you. 6 out of 10, with 1 removed for the people who think sex is dirty. You ruin it for everyone else, you know!

Thu May 19 2005 03:31 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

This is one twisted comic. Damn, do I like it.

Art: Most of the art for this comic is simple, but occasionally the creator shows great attention to detail, so the simpler art is mostly a choice-since the comic is updated weekly, it's safe to assume they could do more detailed work on a regular basis. However, I've no issue with the art, as it almost always gets the joke across.

Story: Not applicable. None of the comics connect into a coherent story.

Characters: Also not applicable. Many of the characters look the same because of the simplicity of the art, but that hardly means they're the same people.

Writing: For a gag-a-day....well, gag-a-week strip like this, the writing is the most important part. And "Perry Bible Fellowship" delivers. It's got a truly twisted sense of humor, which will make you laugh and say "that's not right" at the same time. However, it's not really that cynical or 'edgy'. In fact, part of the reason it seems so wrong is how often the people involved are innocent in some way. Regardless, it works damn well.

Overall: "Perry Bible Fellowship" is a damn funny comic, in the best tradition of print comics like "The Far Side." Comics in this format can be hit or miss, but this is a consistent hit. 9 out of 10.

Tue Mar 29 2005 03:57 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: A step above sketchbook work, though most of that comes from the layout. However, that gets in the way far more than it helps. While "Angel Interceptor" tries some interesting tricks, few of them pan out, and none of them really exploit the capabilities of the browser to do more interesting things. We get a lot of oddly arranged text, which becomes an annoyance, but that's about all.

Story: For most of the comic, the individual comics and mini-arcs have no interconnectivity (unnecessarily big word!), but near the current comics, a more coherent story begins to form. I say "begin" because coherent is relative, and some of the tiny stories from before are much easier to understand.

Characters: Until we meet the nameless main character of the latest story, there really aren't any continuous characters for "Angel Interceptor," and no one who leaves an impression either. The main character now is deliberately unnamed and vague, but unfortunately, he fits in with much of the setting, so he's not as out of place as one would hope.

Writing: I'm not sure what to say here. I like the writing when it's easy to read, and the ideas behind the current story are interesting-I just think they could use more work. Right now, only 2/3rds of the writing seems to fit what's happening, and the rest become tangents.

Overall: "Angel Interceptor" just needs more focus. It might be intentional, but right now, this haze the comic is operating in obscures the point, both in story and (to an extent) in its art. 4 out of 10.

Mon Mar 14 2005 06:32 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

The banner goes too faaaast!

Art: It's like the best parts of childhood drawings, combined with some technical proficiency. The figures are soft and cartoonish, but at the same time, everything is clear and easy to understand. Quite good, in my opinion, and I'm afraid I don't have more to say about the art.

Story: Ain't much of one. This could, in some twisted alternate universe, be a journal comic. But when the God of the Internet (with its surprisingly human genitals) abducts Jeffrey and lectures him, you know it ain't real. You hope, anyway. You hope and pray, as you wake up in a cold sweat. There are occasional short plot arcs, such as Jeffrey's experiences as a zombie, but for the most part it's unconnected, individual comics.

Characters: However, that doesn't mean Jeffrey's the only character. The God of the Internet is my favorite one so far (though it's only appeared twice), but Weed Master P tickles me whenever he appears, and Jeffrey's girlfriend (who I don't know the name of) amuses as well. But Jeffrey himself really brings the funny stuff the most, and damn is it good.

Writing: At the end of the day, Overcompensating could come off as spacey. Disconnected, and kind of frustrating. But the reason it doesn't is that the writing sucks you in. Even when the comic isn't that funny individually, it somehow seems true and good. Maybe it's just so consistent to its style that you can't help but love it, because it doesn't feel like Rowland is trying to make us laugh-he's just telling us crazy stories he thought of. And honestly, if you can actually capture that feeling of "hilarious stuff we come up with at 1 AM," you're probably in good shape.

Overall: Easy to get into, pretty damn funny, and well drawn, with only a slight downturn due to how random it can be. 8 out of 10.

Mon Mar 07 2005 07:38 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

I'd have to say that JibJab isn't a web comic. Web animation, yes. But comic? No, not really. No slam on the quality of the work, though.

But I'm not sure where the question comes from. With comics like Vicious Souvenirs, the question is more relevant. Souvenirs is animated....but the animation only changes the panels and their order, with very little motion inside of them. And the reader gets to determine how quickly or slowly the panels move. From what I've seen of JibJab, though, it's straight animation-you let it load and click play, and it goes until the end. So the question doesn't really make much sense.

Of course, I can't think of a better one specifically about JibJab, so....yeah.

Sun Mar 06 2005 03:48 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

DId you ever know someone in high school or college, who kept coming up with stupid ideas and thinking they were briliant? I bet you did. Didn't you want to slap them upside the head? Well, if you've still got the chance, take it. You might be able to prevent another "Jerkcity" from happening. And if you can, you should.

Though I don't know the secrets behind the creation of "Jerkcity," I'm pretty sure they involve chat logs and a word processing program, so they can get rid of anything smacking of intelligent conversation before they make the comic. It's clip art backgrounds, clip art characters, and stupid dialogue. I'm not even sure I can count them as jokes, since they basically consist of gibberish and references to gay porn. It's not even a guilty pleasure; it's just guilt. No progression, no characters of interest, no effort at making it funny or interesting. "Jerkcity" has nothing to offer you, and it manages to feel like "Get Your War On" without as much intelligence. 1 out of 10.

Sun Feb 13 2005 05:46 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

"Pathetic Geek Stories" has a very straight forward title-it tells stories about school, when the protagonists were just ill-suited to the whole experience. However, it's odd in that the stories are submitted by real people...the creator just puts those stories into comic strips. For that reason, I'm eschewing my normal format, since only one section of it would fit this comic.

While I never felt that the creator was being cruel or laughing at the people in the story, each one felt (with rare exceptions) like the sort of humiliation I might go through in school. Kids trying desperately to fit in, and being rewarded with pain for their troubles. I understand how some people might laugh at it, but in my case, it struck too close to home. Instead of being amused, each story made me feel uncomfortable, as I saw someone being hurt. Maybe it wouldn't have been as personal if these weren't real people who experienced it, but that element of realism killed the humor for me. The art was sort of a silent partner to that, as the people were somewhat cartoonish, but looked realistic enough-and the expressions were certainly realistic. Sometimes uncomfortably so.

I know humor is the flip side of tragedy, but 'Pathetic Geek Stories" never made me laugh...but I don't think that was the creator's intention. I think they use real people because it points out that many of us had trouble fitting in. Then again, I could be wrong. But overall, my strong discomfort with the comic makes me give it 3 out of 10.

Sun Feb 13 2005 05:34 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

There's a huge problem with this comic, and it's very easy to spot. The parody is too thick.

Art: A deliberate attempt at aping anime and manga style, Van Von Hunter's art comes off as....decent. There's some proportion, and the creator has decided not to parody certain aspects of anime, like the giant breasts that women tend to have. But the problem with anime is that it tends to avoid any work it doesn't need, and Van Von Hunter feels the same way. We could get more detail for the art, but sadly, none is forthcoming. And 'chibi art' almost always marks the parts that are supposed to be funny-which is too bad, because some of the good jokes get ruined by that effect.

Story: Rather minimal. VVH (shortened for ease of typing) wanders around a lot, dragging his deliberately unnamed and slightly unwilling female accomplice with him. He is chased by the Flaming Prince, who keeps trying to crush things in his hand as a demonstration of his power. Unfortunately, without a firm story to hang on, a lot of the parody falls flat, so this is a major issue with Van Von Hunter.

Characters: Van Von Hunter is a walking parody, but at least he's considered competent in his field. Even good. The girl who travels with him, on the other hand, basically acts like the reader, as she continually points out the easier and more sensible route. And the Flaming Prince....well, he's a dead-on parody of an anime villain's appearance, but his behavior is more annoying than funny. The same goes for Vengeance Joe, who isn't even that consistent of a bother.

Writing: As I said before, the parody is too thick. The best kind of parody doesn't just lampoon its subject, it also loves it. Van Von Hunter doesn't seem to have any disdain for anime in general, or the anime horror genre in particular, but it does have too much of "Huh? Look at that! Isn't that a silly thing?" A more subtle touch would improve things a lot, such as explaining why certain things are commonplace, or why townsfolk seem unable to defend themselves in any way.

Overall: I think the basic idea for Van Von Hunter is sound, but the execution needs a LOT of work. For a humorous take on anime horror, I rarely laughed. 3 out of 10.

Mon Jan 24 2005 03:35 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Like moss on a tree, this comic slowly grew on me.

Art: A weaker part of the comic, the artist does a good job on the landscape and animals, but has trouble with humans. Faces can be unnaturally thin, and close-ups...unnerving. But the art conveys action well, and considering the story for this comic, getting the background right is crucial.

Story: Since this is a serious comic, the story needs to match the tone. And for the most part, it does. in the beginning, it felt like a stereotypical "evil empire fights against rebels" story, but the interesting (though not that radical) take on an apocalypse situation adds some flavor, and makes the existence of 'mountain people' more plausible than in a present day situation. Also, we've learned there's some grey on the good guys side. The one thing we haven't seen is much sympathy for the Reich-but since they seem to be modeled after the Nazis, I didn't expect any. I have enjoyed the fact that the main dramatic thrust is not always the main plot for our characters; they don't end up fighting Reich soldiers every day or every few days. Otherwise, the war situation could quickly become tiresome.

Characters: All of them have their complexities, but some have more grace than others. Ravenwind's backstory presents someone who's always had some confidence, but has also been pushed into leadership roles by unfortunate circumstances. Max and the three Western Alliance trainees don't all get the same complexity-Damion, for example, is a much simpler character than Jack-but each of them has a history. However, I'm not as happy about Ravenwind's three apprentices. Wolfrun has the most history of the three, and even he is rather short. Normally, the fact that 14 year olds don't have much backstory isn't a big issue....but because of how they're raised, I expect those three to have already had their share of encounters. Instead, they feel like undeveloped characters who've been forced to grow simply by being in the story.

Writing: At first, this was the weakest part of the comic. Everyone's dialogue ended with exclamation points at all times, and characters were put in "dangerous" situations that had little or no tension. I didn't like the mystical parts either, as they felt tacked on and jarring. However, as time has gone on, things have improved. Now, when someone is put in danger, it feels like something bad could happen, which makes me more interested in what will happen. This started even before any bad things happened, which is good. Also, the mystical portions have grown on me, as characters don't become powerful and start using magical spells. Instead, 'power' comes through focus and clarity, and a trust that magic exists. I enjoy some fireball action, but that would have been the worst route for this comic.

Overall: If I'd just looked at "The Wandering Ones" within their first year, I would have hated it. But it does grow on you, and the creator's improvements over time make a big difference, even it's not noticeable. You find yourself understanding the world and enjoying the story before you realize it. Still, it can be hard for people to enter this without some kind of introduction. 7 out of 10.

Mon Jan 24 2005 03:16 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

"Okay Pants" is occasionally funny, rarely boring, and intentionally bizarre. None of which are bad things. However, it feels a lot like a mirage, as it quickly leaves your memory.

Art: Interesting, but rather annoying. I can accept that the art is intentionally surreal, but how old is Julie? 8? 23? It's pretty hard to tell, by the way she's drawn. Bello is more visually appealing-which is strange to say about a mushroom that can bite himself in half-but he's subject to some of the same trouble, as his size stretches and changes from panel to panel. This contributes to the dreamlike nature of the strip, but it also annoys me.

Story: Are there story arcs? Yes. In fact, despite its day to day feel, "Okay Pants" works almost entirely within set story arcs. However, the story feels like an excuse for bizarre and occasionally humorous adventures, and doesn't necessarily have a beginning and ending we can follow. And when one of your biggest stories is about winning tickets to attend a monkey-dating show....serious drama doesn't even poke its head in here.

Characters: There's Bello, and there's Julie. That's about it. Yes, others appear, but everyone gets filtered through that pair. Both of them feel undefined as people, and often spout non sequiters to each other. There isn't much else to say, I'm afraid.

Writing: As I've mentioned before, this comic feels like a mirage, or a surreal dream. Things happen without much (or any) rhyme or reason, and both Bello and Julie will accept certain things (like time travel through spinning around in one place) while being shocked by others (such as the common cold). There's not much logic operating here. That doesn't make the comic inherently bad or good, it's just something that comes with this particular territory.

Overall: "Okay Pants" was entertaining, but it doesn't last. I don't have much desire to keep up with it, and much of the archives have already faded from my mind. I almost wonder if that's the point....but without anything interesting to mark it after the fact, I have to give this one 5 out of 10.

Mon Jan 24 2005 02:53 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

I like it.

The art for "Spells and Whistles" is nice, but the characters look too....rubbery. Their physical structure is mostly in good shape, but then they've got rather distorted faces. E'los' chin could kill a man, and the mysterious assassin looks like Zippy. It's distracting at times, which is a shame, because I enjoy the rest of the art, which is quite colorful and well done.

As for story, it seems that one has been laid out well in advance. Which would be nice, except that I gleaned a good deal of it from the cast page, which contains the 3 main characters we haven't met. A good deal of suspense left the comic with that discovery, since I think it's safe to assume none of the characters will die before all six get introduced. What's appeared so far is interesting, but there hasn't been much actual advancement, which worries me. I hope the pace picks up after the current situation is resolved.

The character's personalities are more promising, but I'm a little worried. E'los seems put-upon by the rest of the group, as he's been shoved into saving the world without any direction-he's got sarcasm, but he's also honestly surprised by their behavior. However, Rakne and Grayle worry me. Rakne is a nice take on the "innocent" thief, but with unfortunate similarities to the kender of Dragonlance. She's already wearing a little thin. And Grayle-well, I suspect he'll survive many things that should kill him, which would be very annoying. As for the mysterious villain, who is not so mysterious, I'm afraid he may end up being a "all powerful doofus."

Overall, I'm currently enjoying "Spells and Whistles," but I'm very worried about where it's heading, and I'm not sure it will stay this good. Hopefully I'll be proven wrong. 7 out of 10.

Thu Jan 13 2005 02:37 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Hey, wouldn't it be cool if we made a comic online....about dinosaurs? And they only did one thing all the time! Wouldn't it be cool?

Take that late night, sleep-deprived dorm concept, make it real, and make it work. You have "Dinosaur Comics."

Art:Not applicable. There's some nice guest art, but part of the point of this is how the art's the same. And after reading through the archives, I think I'd be kind of unhappy if the art started to vary. That's a hard thing to do.

Story: Somewhat loose. There are story arcs, but they're usually there to keep a joke going more than anything else. "Dinosaur Comics" usually keeps things in some chronological order-such as Tyrannosaurus and Utahraptor's gay love affair (how? We don't know!)-but it doesn't really keep track. It doesn't even try.

Characters: Surprisingly developed. Tyrannosaurus acts as a sort of "misconception soundboard," as he continually uses half-understood philosophical standpoints as a justification for his passion-stomping things. But Utahraptor must tear his assumptions down for the good of all. And stuff. Utahraptor isn't really a skeptic, he just feels compelled to correct Tyrannosaurus when he's wrong. So he's helpful, but also rather intrusive.

Writing: The be all and the end all for most clip-art comics, and "Dinosaur Comics" has it in spades. The very fact that dinosaurs will argue about the technical definition of nihilism reaches back to Monty Python. And in the same way, I don't know how to really explain why "Dinosaur Comics" is so funny. But it is.

Overall: The one issue with "Dinosaur Comics" is that it's not immediately accessible. If you like the format and understand the humor, it's a winner. If not, then I don't know how someone could explain it. Regardless, it gets 9 out of 10.

Fri Dec 31 2004 12:24 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

"Better Days" made me feel uncomfortable. But in a good way.

Art: Pleasing, with a few flaws. There's not much evolution over the course of the comic, though i don't feel much is needed. I would like to see the background more-when it's there, it's nice, but we usually get one establishing shot and then the rest is white. Also, many of the characters seem to have the same facial structure, mostly in the eyes.

Story: This is what kept me reading "Better Days," but it also unsettled me. On the one hand, it does feel like the sort of thing that could happen to anyone-some of it might be unlikely, but none of it suspended disbelief. However, "Better Days" can be very candid, and it definitely has moments not for children (and probably not for teenagers, either). Fortunately, I never felt like those were inserted just for shock, which is why I say it's uncomfortable in a good way.

Characters: In the beginning, too adult for my tastes. Both of the kids felt like teenagers already at the start, so it was kind of awkward to read their banter. Obviously other comics have similar children, but many of those are somewhat unrealistic to begin with, while "Better Days" was aiming for a more grounded story (outside of the whole anthropomorphic part, I know). That improved over time, of course, as the kids actually grew into their overall attitudes, which was still rather strange. The mother is something of a mixed bag; on the one hand, I think she should look older than she does. On the other hand, a lot of the tension in the comic comes from her sexuality and the cues her kids take from her.

Most of the other characters are used as part of a specific story arc, with the exception of the boy's therapist. Most of them seemed developed enough for their role, but a few felt like plot devices.

Writing: The story was the most important part of "Better Days", but I think the writing was pretty good too. Solid, steady pacing helped the story a lot; if this comic had moved faster, I think a lot of the engaging plot moments would have felt cliched. I also enjoyed some of the subtle mentions of race in the comic. Subtle may not seem like the right word...but most of the time, when a child encounters racism in fiction, they have some kind of shocked look on their face as they run to their parents, and their parents give a sad sigh as they explain how some people hate others because of their skin or religion. "Better Days" didn't hit that trap, which was a relief to me.

Overall: The only thing that I'm left to wonder about "Better Days" is whether or not it's intended as a journal comic. I haven't seen much evidence for it, but the attention to chronology makes me wonder. I give it 8 out of 10. It's a solid and relatively low-key but engaging comic. It might make you feel uncomfortable, like it made me, but I don't hold that against it.

Thu Dec 30 2004 06:10 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Bright but dull. The backgrounds are pretty much different blocks of color, and the characters always stay in one position-the only things that seem to change are their facial expressions. While this comic doesn't call for a lot off action, it does need more variety.

Story: Not applicable. This is a gag a day strip, with only short little story arcs that get resolved in the sitcom way.

Characters Rather unsavory people that we don't really care about. We have 'the mean one', 'the stupid one,' 'the stoned one' and 'the fourth guy.' That's about all we really get for their personalities, and there's no development past that. I learned more about them from the cast page than I did from the entire archive to date.

Writing: From what I saw, it boils down to random humor or "mess with Joe for fun." Unfortunately, it rarely works. A lot of the random stuff is just that-random. It's not really funny. And after the first few times Jake messes with Joe, Joe changes from being a new roommate into the butt of most jokes. It's rather sad, and still not that funny.

Overall: Very disappointing. "Bored and Evil" makes me bored and evil, and I doubt that can be calle a success. 2 out of 10

Sun Dec 19 2004 12:41 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Rather interesting. I like the art style, particularly when we get to see large, elaborate backgrounds. However, the manga influence is particularly strange here, since the story comes from European fairy tales. Fortunately, the locations look rather European, so the Japanese influence isn't a real problem-and aside from the large eyes for the characters, it's not all that noticeable either.

Story: Interesting so far. I'm a little concerned that the main character will just keep picking up companions until the final event, since the current chapter looks like a good way to add a fourth member to the group-but we'll have to see how events play out. I was happy with how the fairy tales have been fused, since it's not just straight interpretations slammed together. But again, we have to see how it will develop.

Characters: The real glue at this point, and fortunately it's somewhat strong. The main character is intelligent and somewhat social, but only skilled in certain areas-which makes sense, since she's the daughter of royalty. Puss in Boots is not only clever but somewhat mischevious, and Red Riding Hood....well, obviously she's not quite herself. They're just different enough from the original stories to be interesting, but not different enough to be inaccurate. The minor characters seem to have more personality than most, but none of them threaten to overtake the main ones.

Writing: Pleasing. The characters manage to speak in different ways without obvious speech differences, which is quite nice, and the pacing is good-things keep moving along, but not too quickly for us to keep up. I am curious on how action scenes will be handled-it looks like one is just about to start, so I suppose we'll find out.

Overall: The only real problem with "No Rest" is its short length so far. I like what I see right now, but will it stay this good? I don't know. For now, I give it 8 out of 10, and hope it will sustain the same quality.

Sat Dec 11 2004 07:44 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Crude, but energetic. There aren't many backgrounds, but they can be fairly detailed when they're used. I quite like the anatomy, though it's not always precise. But the real reason I like the art for "Panties" is how much energy is in it. There's no stiffness, and it always feels like the characters are doing something.

Story: Not quite applicable. There is a loose narrative that connects all of the strips, and many small stories with very defined plots. However, this is something of a diary comic, so it's not uncommon for single, unrelated strips to be inserted, or for stories to suddenly stop for a new plot. Fortunately, the plots are loose enough that it's not a problem when such things occur.

Characters: On the one hand, everyone has their own distinctive appearance without being caricatures, which is very nice. I can instantly tell them apart. On the other hand, other than Jennie herself, there's not much explanation on when or where other characters will show up. In fact, outside of her family and her boyfriend, I don't really know who any of the characters are. So while I can still tell them apart, I don't necessarily know their relationship to the main character.

Writing: In terms of the story, it's all right for things to jump around in this comic. But sometimes it can hurt the writing when Jennie is suddenly working at a comic book store, when she was previously bussing tables. Does that switch need its own plot arc? No, of course not. But it would be nice to hear she was hired by the comic shop.

However, I forgive "Panties" for that, because the jokes are quite funny. They usually come straight from Jennie's personality, even when said personality is all screwy from alcohol or sugar rushes. And if you can't laugh at things like this, then I'm just sorry for you.

Overall: It's not perfect-playing fast and loose with the story occasionally bites "Panties" in the ass, and the random art, while nice, become a bit of an annoyance-but at its core, this comic is a lot of fun. 7 out of 10.

Sat Dec 11 2004 06:30 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Nice coloring, but the linework starts off crude. Fortunately, it improves over time. Backgrounds are usually well done, as the characters use it (not always intentionally) in fight scenes-which happen a good deal, and are unfortunately too brief. Not because they're so good they need more time, but because fights seem to end abruptly, or in the space of a second that we don't get to see.

Characters: The four main characters are uninspired. Yorikiro seems interesting at first, but we soon learn he's not really an idiot....wait, yes he is. So which is it? I could accept Yorikiro being ignorant of most things outside of sword techniques, but he seems deficient there too. Ina was an interesting character, but she's starting to take on the obligatory love interest role, which directly clashes with her personality before. Cho seems to have been thrown in because they wanted a monk-and if he didn't know he was in Japan, how could a blind Chinese monk have survived? And Kenta has 'joined the party' far too easily for my taste.

The worst part about the main characters being uninspired is how interesting the minor characters are. Genchu feels like someone who could support a comic on his own, and Hirotomo makes a damn good villain-too bad we don't see him acting much. Yuzikane just intrigues me, and I want to see Masuhiro kick more ass. He's not as strong a character as Genchu, but he gives that swordsman a run for his money. The only glaring exception to this is Matrix, who breaks the fourth wall every time she appears. A redheaded samurai woman who wears a tanktop and jean shorts? Sorry, but someone would have to notice that.

Story: Flawed but interesting. At first, it seems to be a take on the "legendary warrior" idea, with Yorikiro taking that place and doing it badly. But as it goes on, we get to see there's more going on with both sides. Still, it hasn't broken from Yorikiro as the focus, so instead of seeing more interesting scenes with Yuzikane or Masuhiro, we get Yorikiro and his three comrades acting foolish.

Writing: Distinctively unimpressive. Again, the four main characters all sound the same-only Inu seems distinct, and that's just because of how angry she gets. With Kenta joining, there are two angry people in the group, so she starts to fade. Again, the main characters get overshadowed by the minor ones, who have much more interesting dialogue, motivations, and actions. It feels like Yorikiro's group is on some kind of holiday, while everyone else concerns themselves with serious matters.

Overall: If we only got to see Yorikiro and his friends, I'd be very unhappy with this comic. But this is one of the few comics where I actively want flashbacks and interludes, because the minor characters are so much better to see. They bring it up to 5 out of 10.

Wed Nov 24 2004 06:06 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Minimalist The lines for "Achewood" are crisp and clean, there's no issues in understanding what we're seeing...but unless a detail is actually necessary to differentiate characters or settings, it tends to get left out. So there's a lot of white space to look at.

But another issue is that while we can tell the characters apart, it can be very difficult to tell {i]what they are. Is Ray a dog or a cat? What about Roast Beef? Is Philippe some kind of real animal, or a stuffed one? It's unclear, and the minimalist art doesn't help.

Story: Erratic. There are several story arcs for "Achewood", but most of them either drag on for too long or end abruptly. One story arc was entirely concerned with finishing another one that had been dropped! Unfortunately, I wasn't really entertained by any of them.

Characters: Either we see too much or too little of certain characters. Ray, Roast Beef and Philippe, for example, get a LOT of attention, and they become grating-especially Ray. Others get enough time but don't feel like it, such as Lie Bot and Teodor...we want to see them more because that means less time dealing with Ray or Roast Beef. And a few are actually underused, like Mr. Bear and Little Nephew. And Nice Pete....the less we see Nice Pete, the better.

Writing: The biggest problem with "Achewood" is the concept. I think it's confused about whether it should be a humor comic, or a serious one. And what we get is one that's....uncomfortable. We can see the build up and the punchline, we can understand why it's supposed to be funny....but it just makes us cringe instead. What makes it worse is the fact that sometimes, "Achewood" just nails it. It brings out a joke that's hilarious. And then there are long stretches without much humor. So the potential for both a serious and a humorous comic is there...but it needs to be one or the other, because trying both isn't working.

Overall: There's a part of me that really wants to like "Achewood", because when it's serious it's gripping, and when it's just humor it's damn good. But then they get mixed together, and....it falls apart. 5 out of 10.

Tue Nov 16 2004 06:20 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Very simple, but most of that comes from the format. With such small panels, it's better to go for clean and simple shapes, rather than complicating the picture and possibly making it hard to understand. So, I like the art for "48 Vignettes". I wish it had been set against a different color for the people, but I have no other complaints.

Story: Not applicable in this case.

Characters: Limited. This is the one area where "48 Vignettes" doesn't work. I'd like to meet these people for more than a few panels, but they get the same length of time that everything else does. I'd like more.

Writing: Pretty solid. The stories about the objects usually left me without any specific feeling, but they were interesting to look at. The countries and people, on the other hand, were pretty good-they weren't uproariously funny, but they made me smile and were entertaining.

Overall: If "48 Vignettes" were any longer, the limited format would become a nuisance, but this comic ends just before that point. The technical side is pretty tight; I didn't run into any problems, and the animation was pretty smooth. I give it 8 out of 10, because it's a light bit of fun that doesn't overstay its welcome.

Mon Nov 08 2004 08:51 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Political cartoons have been around for a while...in fact, they've been appearing in newspapers for nearly 150 years. Most of them suffer from being overly topical, though they do give us a glimpse at the past when we reexamine them. As a webcomic/political cartoon, "Filibuster" is quite different from many webcomics-there aren't any continuous characters the creator made, and no story whatsoever. Unfortunately, being topical isn't the only problem with "Filibuster".

Art: Caricatures, through and through. Since this is a political comic, that's not a bad thing; there's a fine tradition of exaggeration in political cartoons. However, a lot of the figures end up looking the same, and the most prominent feature ends up being teeth. It's not that hard to tell them apart, but they still look disturbingly familiar.

Writing: "Filibuster" has some interesting takes on political situations, and it's an international political comic....we get to see the creator's takes on things far beyond his own nation. However, there are two major problems that crop up in this comic.

First, there's a subtle conservative bias. Of course, that sounds rather biased itself, since it implies that conservativism is just wrong. But it would be a problem if there was a subtle liberal bias too. The real issue is that the best political satire hits everyone, liberal or conservative. "Filibuster", on the other hand, has quite a few cartoons where conservatives either get off lightly, or liberals get hammered for minor things. That doesn't mean conservatives always get off scott free, but it still hampers "Filibuster".

The second issue is how simple "Filibuster" makes everything. I can accept that some cartoons need explanation, such as ones that deal with specific election laws. But it seems that the creator doesn't trust his readers, and simple issues get dumbed down to make sure everyone gets it. It's not something I like in newspaper political cartoons, and I don't like it here either.

I could probably have forgiven these if the humor for "Filibuster" was sharper, but unfortunately it's only so-so. It got me to smile a few times, but most of the time the comic's take on an issue wasn't any sharper than a regular print comic-and sometimes it was softer, which is a bad idea.

Overall: The information was interesting, but the content wasn't harsh enough for its format. "Filibuster" gets 4 out of 10 from me, and here's hoping the creator starts to hone their edge.

Mon Nov 01 2004 01:39 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: There's an interesting comparison here with "Acid Keg". Obviously they don't look similar, but both of them evoke a particular period...in "You Damn Kid!", it's the late 50s and early 60s. There's a cartoony feel to the art, but at the same time, there can be a surprising amount of detail....especially when the creator shows something or someone that could be offensive and/or ugly. Simple art, but it serves the humor well.

Story: For the most part, "You Damn Kid!" deals with one-shot jokes. Those gags can have a lot of setup and explanation, but they're still limited to four panels. And for the most part, they work well. However, the longer storylines have been kind of clumsy; Dad's facial hair and the parade, for example, just felt stilted. And the few three-panel strips didn't have the same bite the four panel ones did.

Characters: One hell of a dysfunctional family. Mom and Dad are always fighting, Dot and the narrator keep doing strange things that give their parents migraines, and it seems like every person in town has some strange thing about them. For a while, it's entertaining. Then it starts to become grating. It's hard to believe that Mom and Dad wouldn't have divorced with all of their fights, and we hardly get a glimpse of some less screwed up people. Fortunately, "You Damn Kid!" starts to focus more on particular characters, like Uncle Mike and Aunt Rita....it doesn't quite solve the problem, but at least we know these people are already weird.

Writing: Amusing, but it can wear you down. "You Damn Kid!" feels like the dark side of the 50s....the parts that no one was supposed to talk about, because we were all the same and feeling great. It's got a subversive charm, and a lot of it rings true for everyone-we've all done things that shocked our parents, even if they accepted it better than Mom and Dad do in this strip. But sometimes "You Damn Kid!" repeats itself (sometimes literally, with redone versions of older strips), and the jokes don't work as well the second time around. The subversion is gone. Still, most of the jokes are good-even if you don't laugh out loud, you'll find yourself smiling. Assuming you're not offended, that is-but this comic relies on your knowledge to fill in the gaps. If you don't know what visual metaphor a banana can be used for, it won't spell it out for you.

Overall: Though some of the strips are no longer available (such as most of one storyline, except for the puzzling last comic), "You Damn Kid!" is an entertaining comic...but best taken in moderate doses. 7 out of 10.

Sun Oct 31 2004 07:31 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

It's somewhat crude at the beginning, and the ending is rather strange....but "A God's Life" does entertain, and ponders some interesting questions on the relation between the creator and his creations.

Art:Crude in the beginning, but it starts to improve. The backrounds and color are nice, and the whole time in Firmament was quite good-the sketchiness of the art fit in well with the location's nature. The only issue I saw was in the character design. Many of the faces in "A God's Life" were very similar, and were mostly distinguished by their hairstyle and color.

Story: A little dull, but with a quick pace to keep the reader from feeling bored. Certain elements weren't very clear, such as how the Qas worked....but the stories of how Ieris dealt with his creations were great, and the ending twist was very amusing. Unfortunately, those are the only elements that stand out in the story to me. After the first few chapters, the more serious elements take priority, which does make things more interesting, but we don't spend enough time on those elements to build any dramatic tension.

Characters: Spotty. Characters like Areqa and Saphr were interesting, since they were bound up in a lot of the world's history and had their own, distinct personalities, especially Areqa. Others, like Aerael and Callae, seemed ill-suited to being the main characters. Aerael in particular just doesn't get much definition-even the initial idea of "slacker" seems like a slapped-on label for easy identification. Ferik, on the other hand, is delightfully simple-he's a barbarian, damn it, so he'll be a barbarian in every way! It's a very simple gag, but it works because Ferik isn't stupid....just dedicated.

Writing: Interesting, but the creator mostly relies on witty comments to see them through the humorous parts of the story. It's a little hard to believe the characters can keep coming up with witty quips or non sequiters in every situation. However, the creator raises some interesting questions about the creative process. How seriously do we take our creations? How do they feel about us, and how would they feel if they knew how we treated them when they weren't aware? It's an interesting topic, and it's a little sad that we don't get to explore it further-but the comic also ends before it can become annoying.

Overall: "A God's Life" could use some revision and reworking, maybe a little extension....but it's a nice diversion, and talks about some interesting questions without delving in too deeply. 6 out of 10.

Fri Oct 22 2004 07:21 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Pleasant and simple. The art for Freefall hasn't changed much since it started (though there has been some improvement), and it doesn't really need to; it uses a limited number of lines to great effect, and the creator doesn't have any trouble adapting to new situations. I do feel that his humans tend to look the same, but it's not always apparent, since none of the three main characters are human themselves.

Story: Meandering. I enjoy the story, but it hasn't progressed much from the beginning, and even that progression has taken a long time. It's fortunate that "Freefall" focuses on its humor more than its story; if a serious comic took this much time, I would have been frustrated long ago. However, "Freefall" doesn't fall into that same category, so I give it much more leeway.

Characters: Definitely the strongest point for "Freefall." Helix, Florence and Sam are pretty damn memorable, both in appearance and personality; it's hard to miss Sam's gleefully criminal activities, or Florence's "I'll help no matter what" attitude. Also, it's interesting that all of the main characters are compelled to act in certain manners: Sam isn't just a criminal on his own, and Florence keeps catching herself (or not catching herself, in some cases) reverting to wolf standards of social behavior. And Helix is a robot. That speaks for itself. At the same time, these compulsions don't rule the characters. Sam also enjoys his illegal activities, while Florence keeps forcing herself to remember (or as to remind others when they assume otherwise) that she understands most human codes of behavior. And Helix is a robot. Finally, all three of them have begun to change....Sam is getting the occasional impulse to do a good deed, while Florence learns more about the world she's on and how species others than humans work. Did I mention Helix is a robot?

The other characters are interesting as well, but they don't get as much screen time, which makes sense. They also all come through the lens of Sam, which is unfortunate. It's plausible that Sam has dealt with these people before Florence, since Florence is new, but it makes every 'first' encounter with a new character predictable as well.

Writing: The humor for "Freefall" is amusing, but rarely more than that. The observations tend to be somewhat obvious or common, and jokes about Sam's larceny quickly become the same idea with different words. And yet, it seems to work. Why is that, you might ask?

Well, it's because at heart, "Freefall" isn't just a humor comic. It's a hard sci-fi one as well. The best jokes come from observations centering around science, such as Sam's observation that "when Florence says it's simple, I won't understand a word of it." Though it doesn't take the time to explain the principles behind everything that happens, "Freefall" never bends physics or any other branch of science for the sake of a joke or the plot. It's simply observed and worked in. That's part of the reason "Freefall" has such an odd charm-in that respect, it's almost one of a kind.

Overall: Though the jokes are rarely laugh-out-loud, "Freefall" works pretty well for entertainment, and never hits a false note. I give it 8 out of 10.

Tue Oct 12 2004 06:19 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: An interesting presentation. Everything feels like it's from the mid 60s; even when it's supposed to be referencing the mid 80s, the comic keeps a consistent style. Bright colors and simple shapes (but not crude ones) abound. It's a little strange to read a webcomic that feels so retro, but it's done well, in my opinion.

Story: There's not much here, but that's because the creator has stopped and started "Acid Keg" several times. The first story arc was promising, but ended on a rather confusing note, as the creator apparently wanted to wrap it up before starting the next one. Froot Pants and Mouse was easier to follow, but it felt like a Hanna-Barbera cartoon in the worst way: the plot didn't make sense, and didn't give us much humor. However, the most recent storyline has been a definite improvement-the light satire of spy movies and 60s rock makes me smile, and the characters are a little less random in their speech.

Characters: This is one of the weaker areas for "Acid Keg". Though each of the characters get a distinctive design, their personalities get glossed over. They also have a bad tendency of sounding the same when they speak, which becomes annoying-you can easily tell who spoke because of how they look, but maybe their friend should have said it...except their friend speaks in exactly the same way. The latest story arc has improved on that front, but I still see it popping up from time to time.

Writing: Not as strong as I'd like it to be, but there aren't any major issues with the writing. While I never laughed out loud at "Acid Keg", I get the sense that it's not going for the big laughs as much as the wry smiles, and it works for that. It's generally amusing. Occasionally the dialogue sounds stilted, and the pacing for the stories isn't always clear....but those aren't major issues for this comic.

Overall: It's not quite my taste, but "Acid Keg" is an interesting comic. The art is the strongest point in its favor; even when the humor falls flat or a conversation seems forced, you can usually revel in the 60s retro art. 7 out of 10.

Sun Oct 10 2004 07:44 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Interesting. "Journal" has a somewhat cartoony style, which I like; if the art had been completely realistic, it would have felt stilted. As it is, the style helps the strip avoid becoming boring. On the other hand, it was sometimes hard to tell a character's mood when they weren't talking.

Story: Just like other autobiographical comics, this doesn't really apply to "The Journal Comic".

Characters: This is one of the areas where "The Journal Comic" gets a little shakey. Aside from the main character and his roommate, everyone else doesn't get much time in the comic, so we don't really learn about them. While I can understand hat we don't need any 'revelations' in this, a little more explanation for the characters is still helpful for the reader. Other than that, I don't have any complaints about the characters.

Writing: Though I can nitpick about some of the writing, I won't, because most of it falls in the same realm as the Story does: it's an autobiographical comic, so it's not fair to comlain about it.

Overall: It can be frustrating to review autobiographical comics, because it's much harder to rate it. Certain components aren't really under the author's control, after all. However, I do think that "The Journal comic" does a decent job of entertaining us; the author gives us some insight into his life, but doesn't embellish or make us read through every petty thing that happens to him. On the other hand, the fact that he won't report everything means that there's nt much of a clear chronological order to the comics, which can be annoying. 6 out of 10.

Sun Oct 03 2004 11:50 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

I can stomach most webcomics, even when I don't like them. But "White Ninja" is one of the few that I couldn't read all the way through. Barely 200 comics, and I had to stop at least 4 times to stop myself from yelling at the screen.

Art: Simplistic. There's no backgrounds at all, and it's only a step above stick figure work. Not all that impressive, but since the art hasn't changed since the first comic, I suspect that it's meant to be simple, so I gave it a little leeway.

Story: Not applicable. Each comic is its own little plot, so story doesn't mean much for "White Ninja".

Characters: Barely applicable. Most of the people who appear in the comic are random strangers who, for that one comic, are known by White Ninja or do something for the punchline. White Ninja himself is the only constant, and the only firm impression I have of him is "dangerous lunatic".

Writing: I could tolerate the art. I have nothing against gag-a-day strips, though I want them to feature one character. So why does "White Ninja" make me react so violently?

Well, it's because comedy is a balancing act. It comes from tragedy, which is why we'll laugh when we see someone get cut down with a witty quip. But it's not that hard for a quip to become a cut, and then it becomes cruel instead of funny. That's where "White Ninja" ends up; the humor tips too far, and becomes cruelty instead, because we don't really know who White Ninja is abusing or why. He's just doing it to try and amuse us, so it doesn't work. And when it's not trying to be funny through pain, it's completely random, so it just falls on its face.

Overall: Not good. Don't read "White Ninja" more than once, if that much. 1 out of 10.

Fri Sep 24 2004 03:04 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Well, the title is descriptive.

Art: Wildly varies. In this area, "e-merl" seems to be both an evolution in the creator's art, and a set of experiments with different styles. There's hand-drawn, cut and paste, digital effects-basically, pushing the limits for how many different styles can be used, and used competently. It's an interesting mix-though we don't get a good bead on any kind of dominant art style, it's all enjoyable.

Story: Unlike most webcomics, 'e-merl' doesn't have an overall arc; instead, it's made up of different vignettes. In most of them, the story is secondary to the art and the point of the experiment; the creator may know the story, but we have to guess, depending on how well we read the experiment. Or the 'story' may change each time, and we have to figure that out on our own. Since the plots are almost all disjointed, this isn't an important area for "e-merl".

Characters: If the story is unimportant, the characters are even smaller. This isn't because the creator neglects them....but in almost all of the stories, none of the characters are continuous. Mr. Nile is the one exception, and he's a delightful mix of knowledge, dark humor and reasonable paranoia (even if that's an oxymoron).

Writing: The area that keeps "e-merl" from becoming a muddle. Some of the hypercomics don't work as well as they could, though I chalk that particular problem up to my browser....but most of the comics make just enough sense to keep us interested, even as they challenge conventional layouts, stories, and dialogues. This is what "e-merl" does best: it challenges how webcomics can be created. Sometimes the various layouts can get confusing, but the fusion of animation, HTML and Flash can be quite interesting. The best example of this comes from 'The Mr. Nile Experiment', where the character becomes the creator, and explores some interesting themes in webcomics, such as how space and time work differently.

Overall: Sometimes, "e-merl" comes close to the edge, but it never falls over...and some of the stuff it brings back is pretty damn good. I do wish we were able to read the weekly comic without a subscription, but c'est la vie. 8 out of 10.

Sun Sep 19 2004 05:37 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

As an aficionado of webcomics for some time, I've bumped up against more than one sprite comic. Some of them have been quite entertaining with their story, so I didn't really mind the use of sprites instead of art. Some of them did some very creative editing with sprites, occasionally making entirely new ones, so sprites were simply the format for their new work. And a lucky one or two have combined both of those traits to make a really good webcomic, such as "Kidd Radd" and the now-defunct "Jailhouse Blues". "8-Bit Theater" doesn't fall into any of those categories.

Art: Just outright sloppy. A lot of cut and paste work, with some digital effects that get wasted on inconsequential things like wisps of smoke. There's nothing interesting here, and some of the extreme closeups show how limited the original Final Fantasy sprites are, as the characters suddenly become blobs of white, red, brown, blue and black. I'd like to see more effort put into the sprites, since we see those on a regular basis, even when we don't want to.

Story: A farcical version of the original Final Fantasy story, which crawls along and usually gets lost along the way. Of course, 'farce' implies that the story is funny, which would be a lie. It's not. The plot mostly lurches along when it actually comes up. I can tolerate bad plots in the actual video games, but a comic based on them needs to bring more to the table, and that's rarely the case here. Now, "8-Bit Theater" does add one nice thing-some kind of explanation for the character's movements. The reasons are pretty contrived, but at least they exist.

Characters: Not only typecast, but inconsistent to boot. Most of the characters are either stupid overall, or incompetent in their chosen field-handicaps that may be thrown out the window when the creator needs another deus ex machina card. For example, we have more than enough evidence that Black Mage is incompetent beyond casting giant spells of doom....so how could he become Lord of Hell for any length of time? Answer-he can't. But because the creator likes the idea, things get bent for a short period of time. The same applies to Fighter-he's completely brainless, until the author wants to send up Black Mage's arrogance. And then, suddenly, Fighter has studied another obscure class and totally absorbed the knowledge, despite all the flashbacks that show him slacking off in the one area he actually enjoyed. Black Belt falls into the same category, as does King Steve and Bikke. The only ones that even have consistency are Thief and Garland-and it's quite sad that Garland has the most realistic character development of all the characters, since he's mostly a joke. Thief at least has a deeper motivation for his criminal actions, but once he's accomplished his quest, the author quickly throws him back into the main party....because without Thief, the party falls apart, both in the story and as characters in the comic. Quite sad, really.

Writing: Consistently stupid. The original jokes mostly revolve around three themes that we never quite escape.

1. Black Mage being 'evil'.
2. Thief stealing or scamming someone.
3. Someone being monumentally stupid.

These are not the building blocks for a funny comic. These are, in fact, the reasons that "8-Bit Theater" is stuck in the same mire it started in: the creator won't let go of these jokes. He desperately needs to drop the religion he's built around then, and try to branch out a little bit. Improving his comic timing would be another big help-many of the jokes might have been funny, except the punchline came too late for rescuscitation.

Another big issue with the writing is when characters talk so much. I like my word bubbles in comics, but I want them to have a point. A long, drawnout explanation of something that is completely unrelated to what's actually happening isn't funny here, especially when it keeps happening. And as an end note, I find it depressing that the guest comics almost all have much better humor than the main comic with the same characters.

Overall: "8-Bit Theater" is a successful comic, which adds to my cynicism about life in general, since it's successful despite itself. With no real art, a corpselike story, characters that couldn't be interesting if our lives depended on it and writing that couldn't go anywhere but up, having the creator 'brag' about his fans in the comic itself almost feels like a slap in the face. Do not touch "8-Bit Theater" with a 10 foot pole, because you will certainly find better writing in Captain SNES, and you will find both better writing and truly original sprite art in Kidd Radd. 1 out of 10.

Sun Sep 12 2004 12:11 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

From what I could tell, "Astounding Space Thrills" tried to recapture the fast-and-loose science and sense of adventure that appeared in Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. However, something feels off with this comic...and unfortunately, it's captured the weaknesses of those old serials as well.

Art: The early strips don't have a significant difference in art from the latest ones, though a closer look does reveal more details-hair and facial features, for example, are given more attention now. And the backgrounds are highly detailed, which is a good thing-since we see so many outer space scenes and alien worlds, we need that variety. However, the early comics also made use of a lot of motion....which doesn't work that well. Occasionally it suggests something that a regular panel would have trouble with, but most of the time it adds a small effect at the expense of load time. The biggest problem with the art, though, was the format. This was one of the comics where using small panels was a bad idea. I understand that it might have been created for another format, but almost every panel feels crowded, and being a webcomic gives creators a chance to expand beyond the newspaper or comic book limitations. I'd really like to see "Astounding Space Thrills" take advantage of that.

Story: The stories are given to us in chunks-there's no overall archive. Even 'explanation' stories, such as 'The Shift', are given their own space. On the one hand, this lets us pick and choose the comics that sound interesting...on the other hand, some of the stories fall flat on their own-notably 'The Stonehenge Connection' and 'Argosy Smith vs. Mainstream.' As part of an overall story, these might have been enjoyable sidetrips, but they can't stand on their own. A much more serious problem with the story, though, is that the webcomic archives start in the middle. Argosy Smith makes repeated references to his past adventures-and even if these adventures haven't been told in some other format, it's frustrating to hear that he's already died as an off-hand comment.

Characters: Interesting, but they usually boil down to stereotypes. Argosy Smith is the dynamic hero, Petra Vaverchek is the unspoken love interest, Professor Vaverchek is the absent-minded but brilliant scientist. On the one hand, that fits the point of the strip-if it suddenly stopped to let a character's personality unfold, we'd lose a lot of the momentum. On the other hand, I believe that we could learn more about these characters without stopping to get right into their heads. So, I'm a little torn about this comic in regards to its characters. I am amused by the character of Theremin-he's also a stereotype (the useful sidekick), but I'm quite taken with his concept. Most sidekicks are aliens or older humans, and Theremin is both.

Writing: Breathless action! Harrowing chases! Shocking twists! In form, "Astounding Space Thrills" imitates the original space operas. But it feels...inauthentic. Everyone seems cheery, and even the villains are defanged in some way. There's no sense of urgency to it. That urgency was what kept old serials afloat-you didn't know what would happen next. Sure, the heroes might come out okay, but they always seemed to be about to die. Without it, the flaws start to open wide-rushed plotting, fights that get summarized instead of shown, and pseudo-science that can't stand up to a real physicist's analysis. On the last point, at least "Astounding Space Thrills" has an interesting explanation in 'The Shift', but that only gives us a reason for the pseudo-science...it doesn't make it entirely acceptable.

Overall: Hard to say. There's never a dull moment in "Astounding Space Thrills", but there are very few exciting ones, either. I don't want to suggest anything like killing off a character, but the comic needs a feel of...well, adventure. I understand that it's trying, but so far it's not working well enough. 6 out of 10.

Wed Sep 01 2004 06:00 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Most of "Todd and Penguin" was rather disappointing. However, the most recent comics have pointed towards improvement, which leaves me hopeful.

Art: In the beginning, Todd and Penguin looked pretty similar, which was rather disappointing-after all, they're different species! Fortunately, the artist has improved, and now both Todd and Penguin look more realistic-at the same time, everything is intentionally cartoonish, so there's not a lot of realism overall. I'm not that taken with the designs for his children, but I don't see anything wrong with them, either. The backgrounds tend to be simplistic, but there are a good variety of them, and the creator rarely resorts to the one-color background.

Story: "Todd and Penguin" is modeled after a newspaper comic, and it shows the most in the format and the story. The storylines aren't wrapped up with "all's well that ends well", fortunately, but most of them don't have a long-term impact, and we see a lot of "gag-a-day" strips. However, the ones that do have lasting consequences make sense-for example, Todd's accident, his first date with Holly, Jessika moving in. My only complaint with these is that sometimes, the creator skips plot points-for example, the next time we see Holly after her date with Todd, they've apparently been going out for some time. And before, Todd worked at a gas station-now he seems to have an office job. When did that change?

Characters: One of the weaker areas of the comic. Todd is normal enough-worried about his future, unhappy about his job (but not extraordinarily so), but mostly well adjusted. Penguin's childlike nature is interesting, but after a while it starts to wear thin-you wonder why he never learns, or at least doesn't enlist accomplices other than Mr. Bear. Mr. Bear himself was almost a trainwreck, in fact...if he had been 'real' to Penguin on a regular basis, as Hobbes was to Calvin, then I would have been turned off by the imitation. Fortunately, the creator realized that wasn't a good path to follow, and nipped it in the bud. Jessika seems like a rebel without a past....I can understand that a divorce would make a child bitter, but she seems to have much more behind her venom, and I'm a little stuck on what causes it. And I want to see more of Holly, so we can get a better peg on her personality-right now, her cat is much more interesting!

Writing: On another part of his site, the creator says he wanted to imitate Calvin and Hobbes and Peanuts with "Todd and Penguin", and that certainly comes across in the beginning. For a while, it feels like an inferior version of those two comics, with possible comparisons to Bloom County as well (however, such comparisons to Bloom County would be unfair: "Todd and Penguin" doesn't deal with politics much, and Penguin is childlike and naive, instead of Opus' sheltered adult personality.). However, the comic has been moving away from that over time...and the latest batch of strips, after Todd wakes up, have been the most entertaining yet. I wasn't pleased with the 'relaunching' of this comic (which seemed to happen several times), but I think they ended up being good decisions. The humor was repetitive before the most recent change, but now I think it's improved-nothing laugh out loud funny yet, but it's certainly more amusing.

Overall: "Todd and Penguin", in my opinion, started off mediocre...but with time, it's slowly improved, and I'd call it a decent comic. Now I'm optimistic about its future. 5 out of 10.

Thu Aug 26 2004 07:28 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Reading "CRFH" so soon after "El Goonish Shive" makes for an interesting comparison. At the beginning, "CRFH" is harder to get through....but after it embraces a serious story, the quality quickly improves.

Art: When it started, "CRFH" was pretty crudely drawn, and some of that remains today: faces (noses in particular) often lack variety, and hair color/styles are the best ways to tell people apart. However, the creator can definitely do more detailed art, so I assume that they prefer the vaguely cartoonish style of the current strip. I do think that the character designs could use some overhaul, but I have no complaints about the backgrounds or the lighting effects.

Story: This was once the worst part of "CRFH". The stories consisted of 'wacky college adventures', which were usually grating instead of funny; things like Mike's tentacle and Dave's laser vision are relics of such plots. However, the comic dabbled with a more serious story....and then embraced it, which helped to give the rest of the comic a much better foundation. It was also a good contrast to the more humorous stories that came later.

Characters: It's taken some time, but the main characters for "CRFH" have reasonably complex personalities. I've been pleased the most with Dave and April's evolutions; they were the most stereotypical at the beginning, but now we know there are more complex motivations beneath the surface. Most of the characters introduced after the main ones appeared are also nicely rounded; Blue and Mike's mother, for example, was more than a 'cruel mother' from her first appearance.

Writing: When it's a serious situation, the dialogue and pacing for "CRFH" feels nice. Each of the characters have their own reactions to situations, and even with mostly three-panel strips, the action moves at a nice, even pace-not too fast, not too slow. However, there are exceptions....and when "CRFH" goes for humor, the strip's age can work against it, as the improved writing tries to deal with old jokes. Jokes about Mike's smiles stopping time, for example, should be retired.

Overall: I enjoyed "College Roomies From Hell", but I don't think I can read it on a regular basis. I keep hoping that we'll see more decisive conclusions to some of the more dramatic situations that have come up, but it's frustrating to read 'funny' comics when I want more drama. 6 out of 10.

Sun Aug 22 2004 02:23 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

I can sum up Goats in one phrase: Uncensored "Garfield."

Art: The art is better now than it was in the beginning, but it's stale. The characters haven't changed position, facial expression, or pose for several years, and I almost suspect the creator uses cut and paste for more than his celebrity "cameos". More variety, please!

Story: A series of almost-unrelated events. For the duration of a storyline, things happen and people change....and then, at the end of it, we all get a neat wrap-up that solves the problem and returns us to the status quo. This doesn't always happens....but that's usually the resolution. To be fair, though, "Goats" does keep its continuity most of the time...however, the most consistent use of that continuity is using one "wacky" story to launch another.

Characters: Jon is obsessive over women. Phillip is stupid. Fish is absent-minded. Lori is cruel. Diablo thinks he's evil and compulsively lies. Toothgnip gets women. If you try to look for more personality than that, you probably won't find it.

Writing: As stale as the art. To emphasize the parallels between "Goats" and "Garfield", consider these three examples:

Goats: Phillip is stupid!
Garfield: Odie is stupid!

Goats: Jon can't get a date!
Garfield: Jon can't get a date!

Goats: Don't take away Phillip's beer.
Garfield: Don't take away Garfield's lasagna.

The only real difference is the fact that "Goats" will use some pretty nasty stuff for their jokes, but that doesn't make them funny. And after a while, any shock value from this goes away, leaving you with jokes that might get a chuckle or too....but nothing really that funny.

Overall: "Goats" just isn't fresh. It's not all that bad, but it's certainly not good, and I'm wondering what can improve it. In the meantime, I give it 4 out of 10.

Sun Aug 15 2004 11:54 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

I can see this comic in two ways. The first is as a humor comic, where it fails pretty badly. The second is a fusion of Dadaism, Surrealism, the grotesque and Gary Larson. And on that front....it's okay.

Art: It's decent, but it never really improved much compared to the beginning. The creator does a good job capturing gross scenes, but that's the only part which stands out.

Story: Most of the comic consists of one panel jokes, but some of them are miniature stories, while the comic ends with a prolonged murder mystery in 'Sockland." The mini-story comics are actually quite good; we don't get all of the context, but we usually don't need it. The murder mystery isn't as good, since it begins to drag soon after it starts.

Characters: None, really. Everyone appears for one comic and leaves, with the exception of the last story arc...and that didn't last long enough, or branch out enough, to build any interesting characters.

Writing:The miniature stories, as I already mentioned, are interesting. The rest....well, if it's meant to unsettle or disturb, it's only partially successful. If the jokes were meant to be funny, then it's an abject failure. The intention isn't clear.

Overall: What you think of the comic depends on what its aim is. As a humor comic, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. Only two of the comics got me to laugh, out of 9 years of archives. If you think it's meant to unsettle someone, it could be interesting....but since some of the real problems we have are unsettling enough, it could do better. Depending on your interpretation, 1 or 4 out of 10.

Sun Aug 15 2004 11:35 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

I first read "El Goonish Shive" 6 months ago, when I found the link on my own. I remember being unsure on how I thought of the comic at the time, which is why I decided to read it again before I tried to review it here. Now, fortunately, I have a firmer grasp on my thoughts towards it.

Artwork: Starts off crude, but steadily moves up in quality. I find the current art pleasant; it could use a little more detail, but I have a generally favorable impression. However, several of the characters bear a very close resemblance to each other, which can make it hard to tell who's speaking. Perhaps this wouldn't be such a problem....if it weren't for the story.

Story: The most apt comparison is to the Leaning Tower of Pisa. You can enjoy what you see these days, but you know it has a bad foundation. I gradually came to accept the plot, but it doesn't hold up under a harsh light, and I think that keeps pulling the current storylines down. The most recent arc, "Painted Black", has been the best so far....but it doesn't look like we'll see more like it. Which is a pity, because the "new strange transformation!" stories are just boring and repetitive.

Characters: I'm mixed on this. The original motives for the characters are pretty simplistic...and with some of them, I don't think we ever got a clear idea on why they act as they do. But they've gradually evolved and changed, so now there's a decent range of emotions. However, I think Tedd and Grace are the only ones who do much of consequence, forcing the other characters to react most of the time. I'd like to see Elliot and Sarah's relationship develop past "we're dating now", if nothing else.

Writing: Another mixed bag, with nuts to boot. The writing has definitely improved from the beginning; the creater has more skill with drama now, and the jokes are occasionally funny. Unfortunately, it hasn't improved enough to escape its origins, and I still see traces of the original problems in the current work. Jokes are usually 'amusing' instead of funny, and "serious" situations can be hard to take seriously. Still, the creator does a better job now than in the past, and has even killed off some of the more ridiculous ideas in the strip's history. Getting rid of the principal's resemblance to Hitler was a good move.

Overall: The real problem with "El Goonish Shive" boils down to some of its central conceits. The constant transformations could be used to raise some serious points, such as asking what a person's 'true form' is...or if there even is one. Perhaps the unprecedented physical instability could be linked with new forms of mental instability. The creator has touched on these very briefly...but it's mostly used for cheap jokes and sitcom 'problems', which usually ends up annoying me instead of amusing me. I hope to see better soon. 3 out of 10.

Fri Aug 13 2004 08:23 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

"Poppycock Circus" has an interesting concept, but it doesn't pull things off.

Art: The art is passable, but it doesn't show any signs of improving over time, which worries me. I'd like to see more detail appear, and see theminor characters become easier to identify.

Story: The stories for "Poppycock Circus" are interesting, but rather random at first...and then they become predictable. When the circus strongman is visited by a famous ghost the first time, it's interesting. When it happens again, it's mostly a bore. The best storylines are the ones that don't build on previous ones, or ask us to remember strips that seemed random at the time.

Characters: Hit and miss. Chauncey and Benny are the most interesting of the bunch, since their most important traits are also somewhat understated....Benny's illegal bent and Chauncey's intelligence make for good humor, but fortunately they're not overused. Peter and Poppycock are middle of the road; they can be funny, but they can be tedious as well. Paul and Clyde usually don't work; Paul just destroys things, and Clyde's 'funny' stupidity is generic and unamusing. He can be funny with others involved, but not on his own.

Writing: When "Poppycock Circus" gets its timing right, it's damn funny. The characters can have some great interactions. However, the author doesn't stick with the characters. They try to force the situation to be funny through the plot, instead of the characters, and that's where things usually fall flat. Some of the plots work, but not enough of them.

Overall: "Poppycock Circus" has some interesting elements, but it needs some overhaul. Plots that center more on the established characters would be good, along with improving characters like Clyde and Pete. 5 out of 10.

Sun Jul 25 2004 09:11 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

We have another autobiographical comic, and unfortunately it's so-so.

Art: The art started off crude, but it's greatly improved; panels no longer seem crowded, and the art is much cleaner. I'm still unsure about the shape of the heads, but now it seems to be a stylistic choice.

Characters: Unfortunately, the characters aren't well defined. The main character gets some definition, but not much; everyone else seems to appear at random points, and disappear after one strip or two. I'd like to see more about them, or at least get some explanations.

Writing: I know it's autobiographical, but the writing could use some work. The events described are pretty random, and don't seem autobiographical at all; the only time that I cared about what happened was when the main character felt sad or depressed. On the one hand, this was an improvement; on the other hand, it would be nice if that wasn't necessary for the quality to improve.

Overall: There were some interesting moments in this comic, but it needs a lot of work before I'll care about what happens to the characters. 3 out of 10.

Sun Jul 25 2004 10:41 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

"Mindmistress" had some flaws, but it was a different experience, and I was mostly pleased with it. "Intelligent Life", on the other hand, was a big disappointment.

Art: The art for the aliens was passable, but everyone else just looked misshapen or caricatured. It wasn't amusing, and distracted me from the dialogue instead of helping it. This needs some fine-tuning, so it serves the story instead of hindering it.

Story: Hard to follow. I could understand what happened, but I couldn't find a reason to be interested; the events were too disconnected or unclear for my tastes. Instead of explanations, we got bad jokes.

Characters: The only one that I had any interest in was President Bush, and he was almost painful to look at. A complete caricature, and an annoying one at that. I understand that he can do stupid things-and my detailed opinion on that does not belong here-but the joke has been played to death. Time to move on. The rest of the cast was forgettable, except for the queen....and I remember her more for the fiery cape than anything else.

Writing: The worst part of a chain of weak links. The jokes aren't funny, and the characters are all so stupid it's painful. I'm sorry to say that I was grateful the fifth part hadn't started yet, because this was one of the few comics I've had trouble finishing.

Overall: Not good. I don't know what it would take to get this comic out of its current pit, but it would take a lot. I really hope the fifth part shows some improvement-and maybe the beginning of a coherent story, instead of seemingly random events and non-sequiters. 2 out of 10.

Sat Jul 10 2004 07:39 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Though it looks a lot like a sketch because of the lines, I enjoyed the art for "Mindmistress"-but it has two flaws. First, it doesn't convey action that well-there isn't a lot of combat, but when it appears, it seems stilted and unrealistic. Second, perspective is often warped for anyone other than the central person in a particular panel. Those didn't keep me from reading any parts of "Mindmistress", but I couldn't quite get past them.

Story: The beginning is interesting, but beyond that, it becomes a strange fusion of sci-fi and a super hero story. I didn't really like the result, and episodes like "Horrible Thoughts" blurred the line even further. I think the author should have concentrated on one of those two aspects, rather than letting them blend together.

Characters: Beyond the interaction of Lorelei and Mindmistress, most of the characters act more as plot devices than anything else. We learn about them or they reappear when they're needed for the plot, which keeps us from learning much about their thoughts. Even Lorelei acts as a plot device on occasion, though the author does keep faithful to the fact that Mindmistress can't just take over. The one exception is the detective Lovelace; since we get to hear his thoughts, we actually know him a little.

Writing: A curious mix. On the one hand, Mindmistress usually has to deal with problems from other quarters-such as dealing with deceit, or matching her intelligence against sheer cunning. This is more interesting than a straight match of intelligence would be, and I think the author made a good decision in that regard. Other problems arise because Mindmistress, even though she wouldn't admit it, does make mistakes-her high intelligence doesn't stop her from being human, no matter how often she says otherwise. However, I always get the sense that she's playing with her opponents in some way-the only one that she respected wasn't really an antagonist. That kind of behavior annoys me, and I think someone who was that smart could have several contingency plans for things like theft or her 'twin' revealing too much.

Overall: Mindmistress has some interesting ideas, but the execution needs work-I find it hard to care about her problems, and I see a growing tendency towards the character herself being a 'deux ex machina'. 6 out of 10.

Sat Jul 10 2004 11:50 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Interesting. The humans were somewhat simple, but I liked the style; the backgrounds had a good deal of detail, which I enjoyed. Overall, this is the best part of "Journey", since it seems to fit the strip like a glove.

Story: Apparently we're at the very beginning, and I can believe it. The story that we do have is pretty strange, and I found it hard to believe. Hopefully newer strips will explain some of it, but judging by the first issue, I don't think things will improve.

Characters: So far, the two demon/muppet/unexplained things are the most interesting characters. Since we never got their names and they don't appear that much, this is a bad thing. Chain is just a bumbling fool to me, without any humor in him, and his girlfriend/roommate is an anomoly. I did enjoy Mao's ramblings, but since he's not an important part of the strip, I don't think I want to see more of him without some tie-in to the plot.

Writing: Another weak point for this comic. The humor feels flat, and the sequence with the woman and her cat was just....well, drawn-out and boring. I felt like it could have been done in one strip, not 4. And the almost random 4th wall breaking puzzled me. I couldn't see any sound reasoning for it.

Overall: The layout for "Journey" is atrocious. Not only does it use the line-connected panels that annoy me, but it's enclosed inside this small box, which took control away from me. I spent more time navigating the system than reading the comic! Combined with the weak story, characters and writing, I have to give "Journey" a 2 out of 10.

Sun Jun 27 2004 06:21 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: This was pretty simplistic. Not bad, but simple. I didn't see anything remarkable about it, I'm afraid. Overall, rather bland.

Story: There really isn't one. It's about the author's life and its ups and downs. That's certainly a story, yes, but she seems to be giving it just as it happens. So, I'd rather not rate her life.

Characters: This is where we run into a problem. I can understand some of the characters in the comic, but a lot of them just come and go-it feels like we're supposed to know them without getting any names. And some of her life that happens outside of the comic directly impacts what she tells us, but we don't get much information about it. It's rather frustrating, and I found myself not caring at the end.

Writing: "Life Squared" rarely got me to laugh-but it's hardly a gag-a-day strip. its more about the author's life and her private reflections. Interesting material, but it threatened to slip into a hole several times, and at the end I had gotten nothing from it.

Overall: "Life Squared" is....all right. It's not a bad read, but it's like an illustrated form of a journal, and no more. And as one reviewer already mentioned, "Life Squared" has some horrible site navigation. Most of the strip isn't available from the archive, and I basically had to fight the organization to find all of the comic. I found the comic enjoyable, but I don't like having to struggle with the site for its main feature. I give it 3 out of 10.

Wed Jun 23 2004 03:22 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: The art for "Sacred Pie" is...well, it's all right in most regards. It does improve as the comic goes on, though it's hard to see. The best aspect are the fight scenes....they're overdramatic, but they look good and usually flow well. That can be hard for a comic to do right. However, all of Chapter Twelve is done in Flash instead-and most of the time, it's a chore to wait through (the voice acting isn't that stellar either, but they can't afford to hire professionals, and it's good for an amateur effort). Aside from those two points, nothing to write home about.

Story: In a word: silly but taken seriously. Our main characters have a portal open in their room (their status is never explained), and they immediately use the same portal and get into major trouble. Sound improbable? Well, not as much as you'd think. The fact that they accept it so soon is strange....but not the fact that they screw up as soon as they enter a new place. Basically, that's how most of the plot in "Sacred Pie" goes-it doesn't suspend disbelief enough, but you can almost accept it. With the exception of one major plot point, where one of the characters is killed in a truly disturbing and sad way....and then it's ruined. I won't say how, but it was just ruined.

Characters: Lots of characters, not a lot of characterization. The very nature of the story throws them into "good" and "evil" categories, and only a few get to occupy a grey area, such as Sirmo. Sid, Roohas and Bob have some interesting flaws, but not much else to make them interesting.

Writing: Okay....

First off, I wasn't pleased with how the whole thing started. A dead man shows up in the room of these three guys, and it takes them 5 minutes to go through a strange portal to an unknown place. Then they manage to escape and get trained in how to use their new equipment, and become masters of unarmed fighting. This is the roughest part of "Sacred Pie", and I slogged through it. It's interesting to note that despite their 'mastery', they don't seem all that skilled in later fights.

After that point, things become more plausible-until we have to deal with a HORRIBLE parody, which throws things off-track. And then there's time travel to deal with, which never ends well. After the story finally gets clear of that, it gets to another interesting point, hits the major plot point that was previously mentioned....and then, as I also mentioned before, it's ruined. Doesn't recover for a while, either.

As you can probably see, "Sacred Pie" goes up and down quite a bit. Small touches can either be very good (like the fact that the smoking main character can't find cigarettes for three months, because he doesn't know where to look in space) or very bad (English is NOT the simplest language to learn by any means). Right now, it's at an interesting point, since it's centered on Sid, Roohas and Bob...and when it focuses on those three, Sacred Pie does better than any other time. However, I don't know when it will change again.

Overall: "Sacred Pie" is like a rollercoaster of quality. It can dip down and become almost unreadable, or rise up and be quite interesting. The sum total right now is a 4 out of 10....hopefully it will stabilize soon.

Wed Jun 09 2004 04:51 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Impressive. Even at the beginning, "As If" is very engaging to look at, and there's a lot of energy in the art. Most of that comes from the character's reactions and expressions. I was also impressed with the backgrounds, though they sometimes disappeared for a panel or two. There is a tendency for the page to get overwhelming; I've only noticed this twice, but it's happened during two important scenes, and I think the layout was the biggest issue. Other than that, though, I really thought this was the best part.

Story: "As If" follows two teenage girls as they grow up in the 80s, and how they deal with life. I enjoy the stories, since they're all down-to-earth things....I got a very strong sense that it was autobiographical. I do wonder where things will end up, but I'm enjoying the ride so far.

Characters: Interesting, but only Hunter and Angela start off as complex characters. Everyone else gets filled in as we go; Tony and Peter have eventually approached Hunter and Angela in that regard, though Peter receives more attention than Tony. I would like to see more definition for the rest of their families-we've seen a little of everyone's home, but the parents tend to get left behind, with the exception of the mothers.

Writing: Interesting, but this is where the comic stumbles. The 80s gives it a rich ground to draw from, but it also means we need to know about the 80s....otherwise, it's easy to miss the references to fashion and music. The movies and TV shows are the worst, though. For some reason, 80s music and fashion have enjoyed brief revivals, which make them easier to learn about...but old 80s cartoons have mostly faded away, and a lot of 80s movies are terrible when you rewatch them. And while I'm fond of the Atari and love the original Nintendo, video games weren't big at the time.

Overall: I really enjoyed "As If", and I've been following it for a while. Unfortunately, though, I have to subtract a point because of the possible translation problems. 8 out of 10.

Wed Jun 09 2004 04:17 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

There's one word that describes this comic.....flat.

Art: Decent, but the characters look very similar-even the turtle's face resembles the other characters. I did like the backgrounds, but rarely noticed them after I noted the location.

Story: There's very little here. We do have the continuing plot where the characters try to make a movie, but the strips felt disconnected-whenever they mentioned the movie, I was surprised it was still the focus. The rest of the strips are gag-a-day, though chronologically they seem to be happening right after each other.

Characters: Dismal. One's a pyromaniac, the other is blond, and the last one is a turtle. That's really all the definition they get.

Writing The real issue with this comic. The writing for Matt and Theo is....well, bland. I can see what the joke is supposed to be, but it never worked for me-the timing would be off, or it would trip over its own words. I did get a chuckle out of one strip....but only that one, I'm afraid.

Overall: Matt and Theo is disappointing, and it really wasn't funny. However, to be fair, it had a limited run before the creator moved on...and he noted that he didn't enjoy confining the strip to four panels. If this had been less of an experiment, it might have worked better. 2 out of 10.

Sat May 29 2004 09:58 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: This starts off crude, but there's a gradual and steady evolution through the years. It's hard to compare the first comic with its latest incarnation. Throughout, though, there is a 'loose' interpretation of anatomy-sleek lines seem to take precedence. This felt like a stylistic choice rather than a shortcoming in skill-but at times it irritated me.

Story: This also took some time to evolve. At first, the story was simple parody-no real depth to it, and no shame about it either. Recently it's become more important, though, and we're starting to see inklings of the villain's plans. The heroes have only recently gained a good reason to travel, though we've heard a good deal about their origins-some of that was parody too, but it usually had serious elements.

Characters: Again, an evolution took place. We started off with some crude development, which went in stops and starts-characters would have no known motivation, then suddenly get a backstory. It became smoother as time went on, though the Hero-Cherry-Diane love triangle has always felt forced to me. Visually, they've also gone through redesigns...however, I welcomed those. They always worked from the original designs, rather than sudden turn-arounds. The best change was probably in Galgarion....he went from a bad joke to a respectable adversary. We still don't know where his power comes from, but we know he's willing to kill, especially after his last encounter with the heroes.

Writing: A little bumpier than the rest. In the beginning, this was very stop and start-jokes about RPG cliches were easy to pick out, and it could have fallen into a pit. Fortunately, the creator managed to pull things out, and we got to see more subtle things-such as where the summoned monsters come from, and how characters could actually exploit the strange 'rules' they had to cope with. The serious aspect has also been a welcome change, as it has slowly gained prominence in the story; it's taken time, but now I'm interested in what will happen next, as well as looking forward to the gags.

Overall: If we had reviewed this comic earlier, even a year ago, I would have probably given it a lower grade. But it's still getting better over time-not through leaps and bounds, but simple, steady change. 8 out of 10.

Fri May 21 2004 05:47 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Laughable. The characters are very simplistic, and they rarely do anything but stand up and move one arm. There are no backgrounds either, unless you count color changes. It's just not good.

Story: Not much of a story to this. There are a lot of strange relationship swaps, but no overarching plot of any kind. Occasionally we get something different (like Pete's 'descent' into pop stardom), but it never lasts long enough to impact the story-except to spur more relationship swaps.

Characters: Stale and nearly interchangeable. The only ones that I could consistently identify was Clango and the Red Robot, since they were obviously not from the same sprites as the rest of the cast; Indie Rock Pete was usually not a problem, but that's because he was a frustrating character.

Writing: Ye gods. This is a huge issue with Diesel Sweeties; it's all bad jokes about sex, music and selling out, and the difference between robots/computers and humans. Or any combination of the three. It doesn't really work that well, and it quickly got on my nerves.

Overall: Diesel Sweeties isn't that funny. I didn't laugh once while I was reading through it, and it rarely got a rise out of me. It did not, however, manage to offend me. 2 out of 10.

Mon May 10 2004 05:57 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

This one hurt. A lot.

Art: It would be good with better subject matter. The creators have some artistic skill, and even when I was repulsed by their toilet illustrations, it was well done. I'd like to see their work without all of the bodily functions and excessive blood.

Story: Story? What story? The characters break 4th wall whenever they can, and we're deliberately started in the middle! We're stuck in a hole and we're not getting out, people.

Characters: Not much, really. We get a lot of over the top caricatures of Dragon Ball Z, but nothing original to the series. Not that interesting.

Writing: And now we get to the crux of the problem....

The humor is based entirely on fusing a Dragon Ball Z parody with toilet humor, and that's all. Nothing with actual content, and every joke is a tired retread of the standard complaints about the series....or it's really disgusting. Either way, it's not funny.

To make it even worse, though, Buttlord GT is obviously based on the American dub of DBZ, and that's notorious for its lack of quality and unreasonable changes to the script. It was also stuck on a certain part of the story for a LONG time, which is why this thing ended so soon. And we're not even at the worst part of the writing.

The worst part is that Buttlord GT made me want to watch Dragon Ball Z again, because it would be more entertaining. It managed to be worse than the material it parodied-and since I've seen more Dragon Ball Z than I care to admit, that's a real low.

Overall: I wouldn't recommend this comic to an enemy, let alone someone I liked. It's crude, disgusting, and not that funny. Now, I must admit that I still enjoy the Dragon ball manga, even though the show is pretty bad. So, I may be biased. But I know when something doesn't amuse me, and this never came close. 1 out of 10.

Wed May 05 2004 04:50 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: The art for Bruno was decent. The backgrounds were probably the best part, because they often boasted a lot of detail. I wasn't as taken with the people, though; they all looked similar, with long, drawn-out faces. The only real exception was Louis, since he was wider.

Story: The story is usually focused on Bruno herself-and unfortunately, the story has its ups and downs with her. If she's spinning her wheels, so is the story itself; I didn't feel that it maintained my interest when she wasn't doing something. And even when she was doing something, there were times where the strips just dragged a scene out. I thought they worked better when it was just a snapshot of a situation.

Characters: The characters were interesting, but we only get to know them through Bruno. She's the one that brings them together in some way, and gives us a basis for interpretation. I think this limits some of them, such as Stanley.

Writing: The most interesting but least realistic part of Bruno. Everyone seems well read (within reason) and eloquent in this comic, and people are rarely lacking for a witty retort. Even when they say they don't have anything to say, they do. It's interesting, but is everyone that witty and quick on their feet? No, and that makes it tiresome after a while. I want to see more strips where someone doesn't have a glib reply,

Overall: I like "Bruno"; I can forgive any faults in the art, and there's something endearing about a main character who provokes such reactions in people. But after a while, the comic feels like it's going nowhere, and retreading familiar territory. 6 out of 10.

Fri Apr 30 2004 05:22 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

She blinded me with science!

Okay, maybe not. Anyway:

Art: Good. DAMN good. I would like to see more detail in the character's faces, but I'm really taken with the art for "Miracle"; it's spare, but always has the important details. I do worry about the backgrounds sometimes, though; I feel that when we get a look at it once, it's not shown again.

Characters: Very well done. As I said before, I would like to see more detail in the character's faces...but none of them look similar. I think I could easily pick out the characters in profile, and all of them have their own motivations. Benjamin is more than he seems, but not in a sinister way....Caprice, on the other hand, has a lot of "power". However, I know her more by personality than ability, which is always a good sign. And Dr. Haas' flirtation with Beatrice is quite touching, even though we know he's a rather ruthless antagonist.

Even the minor and less active characters feel well thought out, such as Gustave and Caprice's parents; I'd like to know more about all three, because it feels like they have more of a history than the comic shows. On the other hand, Benjamin and Caprice are complex enough for main characters!

Story: Also good. Benjamin and Caprice have a reason to be on such a dangerous trail-they're police officers, after all! I'm also curious about what Dr. Haas ultimately has planned....and the interaction with Mars is always interesting. It really is a different place than Earth in "Miracle", and I like that. I would like to see Gustave appear more, though; Benjamin strikes me as a responsible police member, and seeing him make a report or two could be interesting. For the same reason, I would like to know how Caprice interacts with her own police department-and how the police work on Mars, if they work there at all.

Writing: Top notch. Just....wow. Every single character has their own distinctive feel and motivations, and I feel like we got dropped into a fully formed world. There are no sudden fixes or sloppy holes in the setting here, and we learn things through the characters. No omnipotent narrator appears to explain things; characters ask questions, and we learn the answers along with them. And for the same reason, we don't get unnecessary information. Someone who's explaining how a weapon works doesn't have a reason to go into its history, which would be solely for our benefit-and thus, to me, a little annoying.

The interesting relationship between Benjamin and Caprice is really quite touching, and doesn't feel forced at all...neither does it detract from the rest of the story. The recent chapters are a nice interlude, not a distraction.

I'm also taken with how much this feels like genuine science fiction. Nothing seems forced or over the top; all of the theories behind how things work seem logical to me. And it just feels....majestic. We're not going from point A to point B....we're going across the solar system. That may be easy for the characters to deal with, but it's not trivialized for the readers. I really like that.

Overall: I feel a little guilty about this review, since it's mostly been gushing. But "A Miracle Of Science" just captivates me. It's good, clean science fiction, with a lot of careful work and the right mix of personality. A human story among the stars. 9 out of 10.

Sun Apr 25 2004 08:14 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: At first, I liked the art for Desert Rocks. However, the characters have all ended up looking similar; if you took away the hair and shading, I'd probably be hard pressed to tell who was who. I'd like to see more variation in the people's faces. However, the backgrounds never disappointed me, and I wish other comics had this much detail for their settings.

Characters: Like the art, everyone seems to have the same motivation. Almost everyone is wandering for their own reasons, and sometimes those motivations aren't very clear. I do like Coen, but he's not interesting enough to warrant the attention he's gotten so far.

Story: Right now, the story is rather rambling. At first I thought we were following Coen, but now we're following May and Nizma as well, who have all of Chapter Nine (all that's finished, at least) to themselves. I feel like I've come in after the first fifteen minutes of the movie-I'm not lost, but I don't know why I should care about these people or where they're going.

Writing: I like the writing for "Desert Rocks"; I may not like the story so far, but everyone seems to speak realistically, and the people who travel prioritize intelligently. This part is probably the best feature of the comic.

Overall: I enjoy "Desert Rocks", but I don't think I can ramble on with it for much longer. It needs to develop a point soon, even if it's not all that dramatic. 6 out of 10.

Thu Apr 22 2004 01:21 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Pretty good. The jerk may not have a lot of detail in his torso and head, but his arms and legs look pretty realistic, so I liked his design. The backgrounds were spare, but deliberately so; they weren't blank pages, but blank rooms. I think the art was good, and I really liked the touches outside of the boxes.

Story: Kind of odd. We learn more about Frank Delbruck (and did anyone else catch the Young Frankenstein reference?) than we do about the Jerk; we don't even get a reason why he's called the Jerk. He just is. I think I would have been annoyed by a longer story, but the Jerk stops before it wanders off track.

Character: There's very little to say here. We know the Jerk had a traumatic experience at 8 and lost his heart...beyond that, he has no past that we're told about. I suppose that fits for how short this story is, but I find it hard to get past his name, when he doesn't act like a jerk at all.

Writing: Interesting. I liked the fact that Frank Delbruck was a catalyst rather than a character; considering the fact that he was dead in the comic, that makes more sense anyway. The end was rather poignant, and I liked it...but I also found myself wishing the Jerk had kept his heart, which is a good sign. If I could empathize with a character who had so little to say, there was some good writing behind this comic.

Overall: I liked The Jerk, even if it was abstract. The formatting was rather strange, especially the panels with more than one image; the "click here" links weren't always clear, but they never seriously impaired me. However, I would like to see a low-bandwith version, since I imagine some people have had long load times with this comic. I give it 7 out of 10; a nice experience, but not interesting enough to be sustained. If there was more than one of these comics, I would have had to lower my rating.

Fri Apr 09 2004 12:53 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: The sprites may not be that detailed, but "Kid Radd" does a great job with the animation, especially when the creator gets into more detailed work. He also does a good job with the facial expressions, even though he doesn't have a lot to work with. Plus, it's all original. You hear that? ALL of it. Well, except for one Goomba and an invincibility star, but those were intentional.

Characters: Very good designs. Radd is obviously an 80s child who's out of place, while Bogey and Sheena actually have some common sense. It's a very nice balance, and provides a lot of humor. At the same time, Radd quickly starts to learn that things are NOT the same outside of his own game-and even Bogey and Sheena have to adapt. Dr. Amp is interesting as a crazy old professor, while G. I. Guy provides a helpful-but unsettling-source of power. And Crystal, Gnarl and Kobayashi provides villains of every stripe-the serious, the wild card and the comic relief. The only character that hasn't worked out would be Julie, who doesn't get much development-she's tied to Dr. Amp, and thus hasn't had much screen time. While other characters can begin to learn more about themselves, Julie is stuck as an obsessive beegirl.

Story: Intrigue, betrayal, death-"Kid Radd" doesn't play nice with its characters, and that's a good thing. The humor rarely disappears, but even the silliest characters can get downright serious at times-however, this doesn't happen at the drop of a hat. Crystal's ambition is nicely justified, and the troubles of adjusting to 'real life' have been nicely handled. I do worry about the current story, though, since I think it could bog down if the creator isn't careful.

Writing: Very good. I really found myself caring for the characters, and I had no problem distinguishing who was speaking, even when it was just two text boxes and no one was visible. The twists and turns haven't come out of nowhere, but they're also unpredictable-just the mixture I like. Top-notch writing.

Overall: I really love Kid Radd. It's the best sprite comic out there (Though Captain SNES is, in my opinion, a close second for writing), and it also shows that sprites do NOT have to be recolors and small edits. They can be entirely original and look just as good. Plus the animation is astounding. I give it 9 out of 10.

Sat Apr 03 2004 10:53 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

"When I Am King" is...well...it's something.

Art: The art for "When I Am King" is strange and simplistic. The people are either round or square objects, with simple lines for limbs. I would want more detail, but there are a LOT of panels in each comic, even before we see animation appear. The transition to computer animation was an interesting change, though.

Characters: Well, we have the king....two guards, an amorous camel, two women, bees, a rock star shopkeeper, and 5 annoying kids. None of them really get any personality, though the king has a motivation-to get his underwear back and return home. Beyond that, they felt quite random.

Story: Story? What story? This was more of a journey than a set story-interesting, but hardly a gripping chronicle. On the other hand, seeing the misadventures of the king was quite amusing.

Writing: "When I Am King" has a lot of interesting moments, and I liked the flow of the story-all of the king's difficulties were pretty rational. There were a lot of penises, though, and it almost became boring. I'm glad things ended when they did, since I was almost losing patience. Strangely enough, I felt this comic had too many panels....rather than building up for the last one, some of them seemed to drag the individual comic out.

Overall: It's hard to accurately describe "When I Am King". I would call it a surreal journey, and leave it at that. But I give it 6 out of 10, regardless.

Thu Mar 18 2004 03:19 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

"Gene Catlow" had some interesting situations....but the tone of the comic irritated me. Hopefully I'll be able to put the reason into words in this review.

Art: I had very few complaints here. The style is cartoony, but at the same time, it is mostly realistic in how the characters are treated; after I got past the beginning (which had some exaggerated features), I stopped thinking that we would see "Looney Tunes" action. And I enjoyed the backgrounds-though I do wish the "Sight Of The Soul" had more than a blank slate. Fading out the characters and then putting them against a white background annoyed me.

Characters: In visual design, I really liked the characters. Regardless of the species, I could easily pick out any of the characters-but at the same time, the few who were related showed a family resemblance. I suspect this is part of the reason for the cartoonish style, and it paid off in spades. In terms of personality, though, I wasn't as impressed. Cotton wasn't interesting, he was irritating. It took a long time for me to accept him as a real character, rather than an awkward fusion of a character and a plot device-and even now, I suspect that was his origin. I do like Gene, though his relationship with Catwhiskers would be cliche...if others didn't comment on it for us. And I will say that I liked how the minor characters got personalities as well.

Story: There are a few unexpected twists and turns, but the story is decent instead of good. I could accept what was happening, and why. However, I was never worried about what would happen next, and I rarely felt suspense.

Writing: Here goes.

The creator of "Gene Catlow" does one great thing with his setting-he makes the anthropomorphs a subject of derision and disdain in times past, and some of them still meet that with their own negative emotions. Though the past hasn't really been clarified, I don't want it to be-giving us a full explanation would probably end up disappointing.

However, there's a lot of easy redemptions in this comic. As long as someone says the right thing to a 'bad guy' in "Gene Catlow", they'll see the error of their ways and do something to be good. And that's just grating. I don't like it when neutral or 'evil' characters suddenly switch around, especially since they never get much help with their reasoning in "Gene Catlow". Real prejudice has had time to lock in, then develop rationale and 'science' to support itself-here, that doesn't happen. Only Avariss has any argument to sustain his beliefs, flawed though they may be-and only one character actually takes time to be convinced he's wrong. Everyone else gets a change of heart, meets someone who says a few simple words to convince them, or gets killed-and that's too simple. I always found myself believing in the hatred the characters possessed, until it was actually tested. And then it folded like a deck of cards.

While I don't mind the cameo comics much in "Gene Catlow", they do distract from the story...and there were also several comics where children possessed strange powers, aside from the popular "Sight Of The Soul". And no real explanation was given in the comic-they were just there. Perhaps we were supposed to know what they did already, but that's unfair to a new or inexperienced reader.

And on a very minor (and slightly petty) note, there was a decided tendency towards ! and ? as the only ways to end a sentence.

Overall: "Gene Catlow" is enjoyable, but several important factors limit the comic to me. I'd like to see more sustainable antagonists, and at least one who feels they're doing the right thing without being labeled as "insane". 5 out of 10.

Thu Mar 18 2004 12:25 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: The art for "Catharsis" starts off pretty primitive; Baxter is a particular example, since he looks like a pillow with a head for a long time. Rremly doesn't start much better; he looks like a strange dog with wings at the beginning. Gwen, on the other hand, looks fully realized when she first appears, and then gets minor adjustments. Tennibrook...not so much. It takes a while for her to look like a younger Gwen.

Characters: Gwen is interesting, if not all that exceptional-of course, considering how many strange things the others come up with, this makes her exceptional for the comic. Tennibrook, while she can be a nice interlude, can also be annoying after a short time-and I think we should have gotten a formal explanation of her function LONG before we actually did. Knowing she's Gwen's inner child made manifest makes it a little easier to understand, at least. The dust creatures add quite a bit of weirdness, though not as much as Rremly and Baxter. Rremly is always guaranteed to make things interesting, if not actually funny...but Baxter changes from being terminally grumpy to a mini Rremly, in my opinion, and I don't like that. He's just more conscious of the consequences, even if he doesn't care.

Story: Unfortunately, the story behind "Catharsis" isn't that impressive. Most of the time, we see gag-a-day strips or short storylines. And when they go for a longer story, it usually fizzles not long after starting. The best stories, in my opinion, come from the short interactions where Gwen tries to understand Rremly's brain-and fails.

Writing: It has some good moments, but most of the comics make me smile rather than really laugh. That's not a bad thing, really, but I do wish there was more to it. I was also struck by some of the comparisons between Gwen and Rremly, compared to Tennibrook and Rremly-the positions were almost completely reversed between these two, and that just annoyed me.

Overall: I enjoyed Catharsis, but most of it seemed rather tame, and some of it was disappointing. I'd like to see wilder schemes from Rremly, and a little bit more of Gwen's wild side...maybe outside of Tennibrook. If Gwen can see Rremly, after all, she has to be unusual herself. 6 out of 10.

Sun Mar 07 2004 11:07 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Passable. Despite the simplicity of the art, I could tell the characters apart...and some of the scenery was very nice. But aside from a few exceptions, the characters didn't have many details-and the cute looks quickly began to grate on me.

Story: Easily the best feature of "Unicorn Jelly". The concepts behind this comic were very interesting, and I'd love to see more of it come out! While a lot of science fiction writers have focused on crystals in some way, I thought that "Unicorn Jelly" did it in an innovative way, and I do wish more of it had come out.

Characters: There isn't much here, I'm afraid. At the beginning, it's fairly easy to tell the characters apart. But they soon begin to blur; none of them really stick out, except by appearance. And with the exception of the non-humans, the appearances are very similar. More than once, I began to have trouble with the names; I understood they were referring to separate people, but the people themselves were indistinct unless they were seen. I think they could have used some of the work that the story got.

Writing: I nearly stopped because of this. At the start, at least, the writing for "Unicorn Jelly" is horrid. Sentences are badly constructed, strips recap the story before the story gets to start...I winced many times. It improves a little, but it's a LONG time before it even approaches what the concepts need to make this work. Pacing was a big issue; some sections of the story took forever, while others got rushed or skipped entirely. And the story is severely hampered by the writing. So many segments of the culture could have used at least some explanation, and none was given. Very sloppy, really.

Overall: I loved the basic ideas of "Unicorn Jelly", but that's not enough. The storytelling needs a lot of work to do those ideas justice. I give "Unicorn Jelly" 4 out of 10.

Fri Feb 20 2004 07:29 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

This is one of the harder comics to review, since it is...well, improv. At some point, any form of improvisation is going to fall flat, and that's just part of the game.

Art: There are a LOT of different approaches. in "Morning Improv". Comparing "Somnivore" with "Meadow of the Damned" is a good example: one is rather surreal and dreamlike, while the other is somewhat realistic and plain. However, there is a basic element of style that runs through all of them; all of the characters have similar facial designs, though not similar appearances.

Characters: Not applicable. The characters keep changing, after all. And some of them are specifically throw away characters; I certainly hope we don't see more of "Inertia Man" or "Rhetorical Question Man".

Story: Not applicable. Some of the comics, like "But No One Ever Noticed The Walrus", have a storyline...but it's more of a vignette on office life than something with a beginning, middle, and end. In fact, the only comic that really works with that model is "Meadow of the Damned".

Besides, it's a little unfair to look for a storyline when the comic could go anywhere.

Writing: Along with art, this is probably the only section of "The Morning Improv" that can be fairly judged. And...it's decent. I like some of the comics, like "Somnivore" and "Meadow". "Man Eating Shoes" was probably the only one to really make me laugh. Others not only feel random, but kind of forced; "Zen Dating" started to fall apart, and "The Accidental Dentist" was something of a chore.

Overall: I enjoyed some of the comics, and none of them were actually bad...even "Robots Love to Dance!" had a quirky charm, especially since it cut off before it got tiresome. But I probably wouldn't keep up with this comic...more likely, I would come back every three months to see what had been made. 7 out of 10; I would give it 6, but I've added a point because it's improv. Having done that myself, I know that great ideas don't always translate well, so I'll give the creator some leeway.

Tue Feb 10 2004 07:30 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art:I like the slick presentation of "Japanese Beetle", and I think the art fits the content: relatively simple, but also striking at times (usually for entrances or dramatic moments). But....

Characters:...it needs a LOT of work on the character design. If you changed Ken's roommate's clothes and haircut, he would be his girlfriend. The same applies to Asashi's friend, though to a lesser extent. The only reason that Ken stands out is his hair color, honestly. I can tell the people apart, but not by their faces. Along the same lines, Asashi and Ken's roommate don't have much that makes them interesting; in fact, the roommate seems more like a vehicle for gags than a real person.

Story: Like comic books, "Japanese Beetle" doesn't really have an overarching story. Rather, it's got short sequences against one villain or another. We've already seen Ken go through three in this incarnation, and he's currently teaming up with "Max Factor" against a fourth-though that might be done with at this point. Beyond this, there is a subplot of Ken trying to make a relationship with Asashi...but right now, it's not very large.

Writing: Average. Japanese Beetle can set up some interesting situations, but it doesn't carry through as well. Joe McCarthy's appearance was a nice parody of 50's anticommunism comics, but the rest of it petered out-with the exception of the pants. The police commissioner was a nice touch, and I'm glad that being a super hero parody doesn't mean we get knock offs of Superman, Captain America and the like....but I would like to see some definition of the city beyond the random fights, and more of the other super heros. Max Factor was a start, but we've already been told that other heros are around. Why aren't they appearing?

Overall: "The Japanese Beetle" makes some interesting points about superheroes with its parody (and as a comic book geek, I loved Ken's comment about Green Arrow near the beginning), but the points have been made before. And that means it's easier to spot the flaws in the setting. 6 out of 10.

Sun Feb 08 2004 09:46 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Flipside has a good story concept, but the execution needs a LOT of work.

Art: The art for "Flipside" is passable, I'm afraid. The characters looked very similar with a few exceptions. I had no problems telling them apart by clothing, but by design...it's hard to see. And while some of the locations were interesting, they soon became very similar. It may be a fantasy setting, but that's hard to tell. Things do improve later on, fortunately; the shading in particular pleased me.

Characters: Very dull, I'm afraid. Maytag is only defined by her gimmick-putting on her jester costume makes her sexy and confident, while real clothes leave her somewhat shy and unassuming. And even then, the gimmick isn't that good...we see her with the jester costume more than without. A great deal more. At times, I began to forget she wore something else. Bernadette is probably the only one with much of a personality...the rest only get simple motives. The exception was Moss, who was genuinely nasty and unpleasant. He's hardly an appealing character, but at least he forced reactions from the rest. And very late in the comic, we get an idea of why he's so mean-unfortunately, the presentation of it nearly ruined him for me.

Story: As I said, Flipside has a good concept of a story-the core of the previous story arc would have been quite interesting. But the presentation stifles a lot of the impact. Though the two real players are neutral, I felt like they kept getting yanked into alternating "good" and "evil" roles. I can appreciate when characters switch roles, but not this abruptly...and more importantly, not this often. I'm also left to wonder where the story is going from here....other than picking Maytag up, there doesn't seem to be much on the plate.

Writing: This doesn't help much either. The dialogue is tolerable, but I never really enjoyed it...and there were a few times that it made me cringe. I did like the time in the temple, since that had the only times of real suspense in the strip. For a while, the author had me in suspense...and even the ending was satisfying, since the characters seemed to have escaped death without a deus ex machina way. but the rest of the time, I wasn't satisfied with what I saw.

Overall: I liked the creator's commentary at the bottom of each comic, since it gave me a view into what they were thinking when they made each page-and the mistakes they saw with it. But the comic itself didn't impress me. I give it 3 out of 10.

Mon Jan 26 2004 05:04 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: "Return" had some very nice art. The characters had a touch of the cartoonish to them, and I liked the visual designs-and the backgrounds. Lots of detail, but without being overwhelming. There was some trouble with perspective, though...and considering the two 'monsters' that we got to see, I have a feeling that the artist has more practice with inhuman figures.

Story: So far, there isn't much of one. I am intrigued by the mysterious mail slot, and what it caused with the first letter....as well as the interest that outside forces are showing. But the characters are in the dark, and so are we.

Characters: A big flaw for "Return". I like Colette and Often, and Often seems pretty realistic in one way-when a demon appears on his doorstep, he tries to rationalize what he's seeing in many ways. None of which fit. However, beyond the fact that they know each other, the two don't have any hint of history or information-except for gender, that is. Why would Often want a new place to live, for example? This seems like an intentional gap than the creator forgetting it, but it's still an important factor.

Writing: The writing is decent. I think that things alternate between 'whacky' and 'surreal' too easily, especially since Colette has little rhyme or reason to her actions. And time tends to pass without much comment, which annoys me...especially in regards to buying the apartment and moving in. But the pace keeps the story from slowing down, and "Return" did something that few others comics have-detail the working lives of a character without making it important or distracting.

Overall: "Return" needs one thing: time. It hasn't had enough to really build the story, and this review may not apply when we get to see more. But for now, I give "Return" a 6 out of 10. It's got good elements, and it's an enjoyable read-if a short one.

Sun Jan 25 2004 11:41 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Jack has the guts to cover some pretty heavy topics, and the art to go with them. But after a while, the stories started to blend.

Art: Probably the highest point of Jack. The art rises to meet the challenge of the writing; The backrounds may be bleak, but they have a lot of detail-most of it grotesque. I never doubted that I was seeing a vision of Hell, and a very powerful one at that. Though not everyone in Hell is ugly or visibly scarred, that only adds to the effect. And when violence happens, it's detailed and disturbing...just like the real thing. This was top notch, and suited the subject matter perfectly.

Characters: The larger characters (such as Jack, Drip, and the other Sins, along with Farrago) are typecast, but they really can't help that; after all, they're meant to be symbols to an extent. And for that reason, it's not a bad thing. The only one to really show much change or branching out is Jack, and even then he's trapped in his role. However, the mortal characters didn't grab my attention in the same way...and since they appear far more, it was rather annoying to see how often they looked the same or acted the same. I did like how the author connected the mortal characters, though...rather than tying them in life, he tied them in death.

Story: Jack is broken up into story arcs and shorts; some of the shorts are humorous, and some are serious. Almost of the story arcs are very serious, and very dark. I did like that the arcs connected loosely; there was a good sense of continuity, but you didn't have to go sequentially either. Even the archive page enforces that; when I was reading through, I found myself considering which arcs to read, and in what order. However, most of the story arcs after the first few feel the same. Someone is dying, and either they or a loved one must learn a lesson-which doesn't always happen. The ones that took place entirely in Hell were the ones that really stuck out, and the ones that really took advantage of the art.

Writing: This is my biggest complaint against Jack. Far too much sex and violence. I can handle how graphic things were, and how often it occured. But it often sapped from the emotional impact, or distracted me. In some of the stories, of course, it made perfect sense...the gunman in the office, for example, and the school shooting. However, it's what sticks out the most about Jack, and that's not a good thing. I would rather remember the emotional impact of the comic, but it honestly doesn't come through as well.

Overall I like Jack at times, and it's not afraid to deal with very powerful subjects...but I want to see a more subdued approach with the graphic nature. Otherwise, it becomes something of a chore. I give it 5 out of 10.

Fri Jan 16 2004 02:37 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: I enjoyed the art for Wish3. Though it had some traces of manga influence, so did Rules of Make Believe....and in the same vein, Wish3 doesn't imitate manga. In my opinion, that is. There is an abundance of neck, though, that can be a little irritating...but that's a minor point.

Story: A good point to the comic. Wish3 has a strong story, and one that deals with Japan's mythology and history...and in my opinion, does it quite well. I've enjoyed what I've seen so far, and I'm curious for more. The only jarring element, to me, would be the sword that Basil started to use...and how quickly it's affected him. That may become more important, but for now it's just distracting.

Characters: A mixed bag, in my opinion. Basil and Paige are developed to me, though I'm a little disappointed with the similar visual design. But a lot of Wish3 has been about the stories of others...and we only caught a glimpse of Basil and Paige before they got caught up in the current story. A little more time with them as 'normal' people would have been nice.

Writing: I like Wish3's story, but the dialogue needs some work. Many of the scenes between Basil and Paige seem like retreads of the first one together, and Gabriel's introduction doesn't change much. And while I can accept the idea behind Basil's first wish, it also removes his family from the equation, so we only get to deal with what they've done through flashbacks. I think they could have been more of a force, and I'm a little annoyed that they got taken out so quickly.

Overall: Wish3 is, overall, a solid comic. There aren't a lot of flaws, in my opinion, and the story is flowing along...though I worry about the destination. I give it an 8.

Sun Jan 11 2004 10:35 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: I enjoyed the art for Dominic Deegan, even though it bore a strange resemblance to Shifters. I was a little annoyed at how backgrounds were used...at times they gave me a good sense of the scene, and then they could completely disappear while two characters talked. I understand the reason for removing it, but when he does have a background, it feels much better. Though the art has improved like any other comic, Dominic Deegan isn't as old as some...and the changes come as subtle refinements. It's easy to connect the first strip to the latest, though they're separated by over a year.

Characters: Giving your main character glimpses of the future can be dangerous...doubly so when he knows the difference between a dream and a foretelling! But I felt that Dominic Deegan's creator handled it well-especially since there are defenses against Dominic's skills. Also, he brings out the small benefits to the trade, which is quite amusing.

Luna is a nice contrast to most female characters-she has low self esteem for a legitimate reason, but she's also improving. I think she's realistic, which is always good-her relationship with Dominic is interesting without being sappy. And Sparks seems like the perfect cat, with his focus on food and little else.

Unfortunately, I think most of the other characters haven't been treated as well. Jacob is a nice villain in the making, but Gregory doesn't have much for his personality, while Sigmund (or 'Siggy') gets to be the hulking, overbearing swordsman. I understand that they don't get as much screen time, but a little more would be nice...though in Sigmund's case, I think that wish will be granted.

Story: The comic has had a few interesting plot arcs, but so far, I haven't caught any focus beyond Dominic's general life. I am interested in more details from his past, though...and it's nice to see that the protagonist is operating on a smaller scale. He's trying to save people, but not the world.

Writing: Unfortunately, this is a weaker area for Dominic. Some of the jokes are quite nice, and the creator does a nice job of keeping dramatic tension, even with Dominic's foresight. But the puns can be truly awful, and he reuses at least one gag. I can forgive him a little for that, due to the circumstances, but it still annoyed me. The pace can also be quite slow...thankfully, it's a daily strip.

Overall:Dominic Deegan: Oracle For Hire has some good stuff. I'm interested in the current story, and some of the character interactions show a lot of promise. But the humor can repeat itself, which is grating-and if the comic ever changed from a daily strip, the pace could become painfully slow. 7 out of 10.

Mon Dec 29 2003 04:05 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: I really like the style for Sketchbook, and the level of detail that goes into it. The backrounds always stand out to me, which is hard to do. However, while the creator has done a great job with the inhabitants of K'ozmana, I'm less impressed with the humans of the story. While I don't mind the oversized hands, their arms don't seem to fit their physiques.

Characters: While I have problems with the visual style, I like the personalities behind the characters. Abe is someone who hides his problems behind humor, to me, and I can understand that. Mavis isn't as easy to pin down, but I thought her reactions were reasonable to me. And Nobu was just cool. Back on track...the same, fortunately, could be said for the K'ozmana natives. Alabaster is a noble figure, and loyal-but that loyalty has cost him a great deal as well, which he tries to hide. I could keep coming up with examples, but in my opinion, they're all believable...except for the principal. I find it hard to believe that he would dole out punishments that quickly without having some kind of official reprimand coming down on his head.

Story: I liked Sketchbook's story a lot, because it had more depth than I expected. At first, I thought Abe would just appear in the world and start to make the connections, thus changing into the standard "savior from another world" idea. However, he's just now making the connections-and outside of K'ozmana, as well. I like that, and the fact that Abe hasn't solved the mystery...he just has a better shot at it. At the same time, the readers have more clues, but I haven't come up with an easy or obvious answer. Things can still go several ways, and I like that. It lets me construct my own theories while preserving some of the mystery.

Writing: I like the writing for Sketchbook, but there are some holes that nag me. For example: is Abe an albino, or simply pale? Several people have made comments about his complexion, but I can't decide. And what happened to the Kevin that was sent to our world? He definitely appeared...and since Mavis, Abe and Phistus have been in the 'real world' for several weeks right now, I think he would have come back in some way. Of course, that might be just on the horizon...but I'm waiting.

Overall: I give Sketchbook 9 out of 10. I certainly enjoy it, and I want to see more of the story unfold. While it has some weak spots, they appear isolated to me, and I can't wait until it comes back from its hiatus.

Tue Dec 16 2003 09:56 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Teaching Baby Paranoia has a simple but gritty feel to the art. It's not that detailed, but there's a definite style to it...my impression is that it's somber. However, as one other person has noted, the characters look very similar. Beards are bushy, hair is wild or well combed (one or the other)-and every man seems to wear a tie. I like the style, but I want to see more variety in it.

Characters: There are no continuous characters in "TBP", as I'll call it to save space. Though the author appears the most in the comic, he becomes a narrator rather than a real character. I don't mind this change, since the stories that are told are entertaining.

Story: Like the characters, there are no continuous stories in "TBP". While several stories arcs have been done, they usually don't link together. I like the format of the stories in the comic, though, short as they are.

Writing: I have one big issue with the writing for "Teaching Baby Paranoia": separating fact from fiction. On the one hand, the author does a very good job of mixing them. On the other, it frustrates me to think that there are possibly interesting stories to tell from history, but I can't be sure about what is real and what isn't. The footnotes don't shed much light on it either, so I'm left wondering with each story. Except for a few, that is. I can appreciate how difficult it is to bring fact and fiction together without leaving a hole, but I'd like some kind of sign. Of course, I may be asking for too much on this score.

Overall: "Teaching Baby Paranoia" is an interesting comic, and it's one that I want to keep up with. However, I'm not sure I enjoy the fact that I keep having to guess. 7 out of 10.

Sun Dec 14 2003 11:00 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: Tween is lush. While there haven't been many characters yet, the art is vibrant, and it looks like a fantasy setting without beating us over the head. The background is probably the best part, in my opinion. It gives us a good idea of Tween as a place-whether we're seeing a healthy forest or a frozen wasteland, it looks realistic.

Characters: This is a weaker point for Tween. Ehron and Pheebus are interesting (Pheebus is a funky looking elf, so there went that stereotype), and Ehron's a nice parody of the all knowing wizard. But Bijou is little more than a valley girl accent with a face right now, and Bad Mojo...well, he's too ridiculous as a villain for my taste. The only one who's really caught my attention is Eel bone, since he has a sense of humor while being evil. Hopefully seeing more of the story will improve the characters, since Furtado is currently near the beginning.

Story: Right now, the story is pretty simple. An evil force is coming, and someone has to stop it. Tween gives it a twist, though, because evil hasn't been around for a long time...and what's coming is hardly organized. There isn't much of a story yet, but there's a lot of promise...I'm looking forward to what is coming.

Writing: Tween's writing is decent. I'm not sure how it will progress, though; the humor is good, but I worry about the serious moments. The narrator especially worries me-I feel he could ruin any dramatic tension if he's used at the wrong time. However, we'll have to see what develops. There is a rudimentary sense of who is speaking-most notably with Bijou-so that, at least, is promising.

Overall: Tween has a great deal of promise. It's a fantasy comic that has a sense of humor, and it's already subverted some stereotypes of the genre. But without something at stake, I'm worried that the humor will fall flat. 8 out of 10.

Sat Dec 06 2003 09:31 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

I liked "American Born Chinese"...but right now it's telling three stories, which makes it hard to follow.

Art: The art for "ABC" (as I heard one person refer to it) is good to me; it's simple, but deliberately so. There's a lot of backround, and the character designs remind of "Same Difference"...though in a simpler form. The only thing that threw me was the design for the monkeys...they all looked like "Mojo Jojo" from the Powerpuff Girls to me.

Characters: This is harder to judge...at least part of this is autobiographical, if I'm reading "ABC" correctly. For the childhood and adolescence parts, they at least seem to have believable characters...and I can't fault someone who brings up Transformers. The Monkey King is interesting, but he's very one dimensional to me-part of that would be his focus, of course, but we mostly see him being defiant or learning kung fu. Hopefully he'll branch out when we see him next. And Chin Kee...well, he's funny, but I felt bad for laughing. He brings up stereotypes I haven't seen in years.

Story: The weakest point of "American Born Chinese". I have no issues with the individual stories, but they're all incomplete...and all mixed together. Will we see more of Chin Kee in the next installment, or more of the Monkey King? Perhaps we'll stick with Jin's story. I don't know, and that annoys me. Perhaps there's a schedule to the whole affair that I'm missing...with only 5 official chapters, that's a very real possibility.

Writing: This, thankfully, is a stronger area. All of the stories in "ABC" kept my interest-I certainly want to find out what happens with the Monkey King, and Jin's story is also intriguing...though not as much. The only weak point is Chin Kee's storyline. I want to see more of his 'antics', but at the same time, I'm worried about what will pop up.

Overall: "American Born Chinese" is something I enjoyed, though the odd format threw me off. I'd like to see more of this one, and I intend to keep up with it's updates. 8 out of 10.

Mon Nov 24 2003 04:11 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

The New Adventures of Death is....random. That's the easiest way to sum it up.

Art: The art is tolerable; it's simple, but also clean. I feel the artist could put more detail in, and has chosen not to, so the comic is easier to draw.

Characters: Aside from Death himself, this is a rather strange mix of characters. Ares and Anubis have appeared, but they are the only ones that stick out, aside from our 'hero'. Everyone but Death kind of floats by, just appearing for the story and then fading away again. I'd probably like the characters if they stayed, but only Death is constant...which may be a subtle comment. Death himself is usually down on his luck, though the reasons aren't explained very well.

Story: As far as I can tell, there isn't a main story; each of the separate archs are self-contained. On the plus side, this means that characters can be reused...but it also means that there's not much of a pattern to the comic. Some of the individual strips were very funny, but the stories just left me confused at the end. And since I enjoy situational humor, I don't think it's an issue of 'not getting it'.

Writing:The writing for New Adventures is well reflected in the stories...it's random. Aside from a few individual comics, it feels very abrupt and absurd. On the other hand, New Adventures doesn't try to excuse this, so I'm more forgiving.

Overall: The New Adventures of Death is like Hutch Owen, in that it takes nothing away; the archives are rather short, and it ended before anything could grate on my nerves. However, unlike Hutch Owens, it doesn't have any attempt at a story, which actually frees it in a way. For a somewhat pleasant romp through non-sensical stories, I'd recommend New Adventures. I give it 4 out of 10.

Mon Nov 17 2003 03:46 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Hutch Owen was...bland. It was not offensive to me, or hard to get through. But once I finished, there was nothing left behind.

Art: Hutch Owen is weak in its art; I think a lot of it comes from the artist's particular style, but that doesn't make it good in this case. If it was used for a more humorous story, I might find it more interesting.

Characters: I don't know whether I've just missed other Hutch Owen comics, but the characters aren't that interesting. Hutch seems to be a vehicle for diatribes, while Blumer seems like a nice person, without a personality-until he suddenly erupts, for no clear reason. It's hard to pay attention, and the opening segment has characters we don't see again...

Story: The opening segments of Hutch Owen are rather nonsensical, but they begin to form into a plot. To be fair, the concept is something I liked, and so far Hutch Owen is carrying it well.

Writing: However, describing it is another matter entirely. A lot of Hutch Owen is buried under the weight of its rants and speeches, trying to make us favor one side or the other. Hutch Owen himself constantly talks about how corrupt the system is, and how he's the only one who seems to see this...I almost tuned him out near the end, and I'm not sure what will make him go off.

Overall: I got nothing from Hutch Owen. It didn't take anything away, fortunately, so it's not a comic to specifically avoid. But I can't recommend it, and I really hope the diatribes start to go away...the plot, at least, could be a good comic. 1 out of 10.

Sat Nov 15 2003 07:36 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Normally I'm not this prompt with my reviews. However, I decided to test the Modern Tales site, to see if the password would work correctly. And...well, I'll say what I thought after I give the review.

Art: The art in "Vicious Souvenirs" is quite good. Before I go into more detail, though, I'd like to note the format. "Vicious Souvenirs" is a flash comic-you are, for the most part, given a choice on how it goes. You click on the picture, and you're taken to the next frame. There is also a back button, to go back through the frames. It's hidden unless you specifically put your cursor over the location.

Now that it's in the proper context...the characters are somewhat simplified, which is a little disappointing. However, I'm quite pleased with how the comic's layout is handled. Flash comics could become very messy if they're not done correctly, but I think that Vicious Souvenirs has a person of great skill on the technical end. While the art could improve in character design, I have no problems with the layout. And that's something of a surprise, considering what could have happened. There are some moments where new panels are overlayed on old ones, and the result is confusing. Fortunately, though, this is more of a problem in the earlier comics.

Also, the layout isn't just used well-it's used in ways that make you think of webcomics as a real alternative to print. Keeping the suspense of what's about to happen doesn't depend on putting the panels in the right order, and making the big thing happen on the next page. Because the creator can display the panels in whatever order (and show as many or as little) as he wants, there are several moments where surprises come out without blindsiding you.

Characters: There are some really good characters in Vicious Souvenirs...and some who beg for more explanation. Diesel and Wikkid are interesting, and they're developed enough to keep your attention as the other characters appear. After that, you begin to find out about the man named Dorian Closer. Closer is shrouded in mystery throughout the series-even up to the current comic, who or what he is hasn't been made clear. While the layers of mystery are still interesting right now, I worry that they'll keep piling on, and begin to lose readers. What I would like to see more of, though, is development for Miss Curtis and Fatal. Right now, both of them have been secretive for a little too long, and it's starting to become an annoyance.

Plot: A strong point of Vicious Souvenirs. While the plot may not show it a lot, this is a superhero world-and because of that, you get the feeling that there's a lot more going on than you're being shown. Fortunately, it's not a frustrating feeling-the story that you're getting is enough to keep you interested. In fact, for Act I, it was downright gripping for me. It had superheros and supervillains mixed in with espionage and world conspiracy theories, in a way that worked. I was hooked.

Unfortunately, though, there was some disconnect with Act II. It was still the same stories, and a lot of the questions that left me on a cliffhanger with Act I were answered. But it felt a little too quick for my taste, and it's only become as satisfying as Act I was in the last two comics.

Writing: A whole lot of fun. I really like the dialogue of the characters, especially how some word bubbles pile on top of each other-as a way to show someone interrupting, it's the best method I've seen used. I also like that things fit together...sometimes. And where they don't fit, it's because the characters are missing pieces, not because they've been overlooked by the creator. It has enough mystery to keep me guessing, but enough revelations-and some refutations, to show that characters make assumptions that are wrong-that I wanted to keep finding out what would happen next.

Overall: I'm a big fan of superhero comics, and something of a fan for conspiracy theories and secret agent action. Vicious Souvenirs is a damn near perfect blend of those near the beginning, and has managed to get back to that previous pinnacle. I really want to keep going with it. A very enthusiastic 9 out of 10.

Sun Nov 02 2003 08:28 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: I like the art in Clan of the Cats, but there can be real issues with layout and poses. Sometimes, I feel that the action isn't continuous, but a series of still frames. Of course, that's what they are in reality...but a good action sequence is able to blend the panels together, and that's spotty here. It crops up in the regular story as well, but it's not as much of a concern to me. It's interesting to compare the art now to the original strips; in comparison, the originals are very sparse on the detail that's now common. But it's also nice to track the evolution of the creator's work, which is easy to do here.

Characters: All of the characters seem real to me, even when I didn't like them or thought they had made a bad choice. That's a very nice thing about Clan of the Cats, and I think it's something very important to the strip. Chelsea is a good example of this, as is Ben. In fact, none of the major character seem to be simplified or "this particular cliche" to me. They all have plots and stories of their own, but not at the expense of others.

Plot: This is shakier, unfortunately. While the strip goes in long plot arcs, a lot of them have a 'monster of the week' feel to it; something magical and scary comes by, and Chelsea has to deal with it. While I don't have a problem with this the first few times, it becomes rather tiresome after that-and as Salen noted, some of the plots make very little sense. Fortunately, I don't think the characters are compromised for the sake of any particular plot arc. Also, the beginning with Chelsea in New York is very distant compared to the rest of the strip...however, since North Carolina quickly becomes the focus, I feel that was a minor issue.

Writing: It's not hard to distinguish which character is speaking, most of the time...but occasionally, it just sounds disjointed and incomplete. I think it could be done with a better flow of words, and some spell checking-though that was more of a concern at the beginning than in the current arc.

Overall: Clan of the Cats has a good base in several areas, and it's a strip I've been following for some time. But it needs to improve its work on connection, and try to guide the readers a little-sometimes, it isn't mysterious so much as frustrating. I give it 7 out of 10.

Sun Nov 02 2003 09:32 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Considering how much everyone else liked this comic, I almost want to give it a low rating to be contrary. But...I must resist.

Art: It takes Elf Only Inn a while to hit its stride, artistically. The comic starts off with a lot of cutting and pasting-the art is original, but there's no movement to it. Eventually, you start to see different poses...and finally, near the end, real backrounds appear. While the artist has some skill, I was annoyed that it took so long to see.

Characters; It's hard to say. While there are 'characters', the real humor comes from the chat participants-who may drop character at a moment's notice. They're an interesting bunch, but Lord Elf quickly becomes an annoyance-it's hard to see why anyone would actually stay in his chatroom when he's such a blatant annoyance. Again, the characters begin to actually develop later in the strip, and more consistent.

Plot: At first, there isn't much of a plot to Elf Only Inn-it's a gag a day strip. However, it quickly begins to have a continuity-story arcs come later, and rather late in the game.

Writing: Like the characters, the writing is hard to say. Almost all of Elf Only Inn seems taken straight out of a chat room. However, it's a very precise selection-we get to see all of the strangeness that can take place, and many of us have probably dealt with these situations before. Here, at least, I can't find any fault with Elf Only Inn.

Overall Elf Only Inn was a good comic...near the end of its run. While the writing was high quality throughout, it took time for the rest to catch up. I give it 8 out of 10.

Thu Oct 23 2003 12:51 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Kagerou had some rich imagination in its creation; that, at least, is easy to see. However, planning is a weaker area.

Art: Not a lot that I can fault here. I like the character designs, though I feel that a lot of the differences are tied to the character's hair. The colors are probably the best part-they feel rich, but not overwhelming to me. I am troubled by the tendency towards "cuteness", but not a great deal.

Characters: The characters are...decent. I liked the interplay between the various personalities in Kano's head-but at the same time, I felt it was to the detriment of the other characters. Cho hasn't seen much development (and fell for Kano with NO explanation), and Mindi is just a face with a name to me. I'd like to see more for the other characters; it's fine for Kano to be the most complex person, but the only other character to grab me was Monster.

Plot: Confusing. While the plot for Kagerou isn't too complex (after piecing it together), it takes a backseat to Kano's multiple people. I'd like to see it told in a less jarring fashion, but without someone sitting a character down to explain it for us. Once you have a grasp of it, though, it does have some good points. I didn't like Nick's flashback, though. It didn't make a lot of sense to me. But more importantly, I didn't see the reason for it.

Writing: Good on the dialogue, but not as good on the clarity. I liked how the colored text was used-but on the other hand, it felt like something of a shortcut for distinguishing the characters' speech patterns. Right now, Cho and Red have the most distinctive way of speaking...I worry about picking others out by their voices, though. I'd also like to see smoother transitions for flashbacks-right now, I feel like they could happen at any point, and that's not something to keep me coming back. On the other hand, certain comics (such as the remembrance of Red meeting an old friend of Kano's) were quite striking, and I thought those did a good job for transitioning.

Overall: Kagerou has a mystery to it, and it's good enough to grab my attention. The art is a good compliment to it. But I feel that the other characters should add more, and that the story should be less fragmented. 6 out of 10.

Sat Oct 18 2003 05:43 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Partially Clips is, at least, a step above Get Your War On. However, while it has individual flashes, a lot of the strips are less than inspired.

Art: Nothing. The quality is all right....but it's clip art, so that doesn't count towards the comic.

Characters: Also nothing...though Partially Clips, at least, doesn't try to make anyone recurring.

Plot: Yet again, nothing. Each of the comics is a separate gag, so there's no plot to tie them together.

Writing: With the chosen format of Partially Clips, this is the area that could have made the comic great. But...consistency is not to be had. I like the biting humor of Partially Clips on occasion, but it doesn't keep going. And while my initial reaction was very positive, I found that I had no desire to go back and keep up with the comic. I knew that the humorous strips were too few to wait around for another.

Overall: Partially Clips could be very good, if the writing was up to the challenge of the images. But I don't think it will reach that point, and that kills my interest. 3 out of 10.

Sat Oct 11 2003 05:55 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Suburban Jungle is a strip that I've followed for a while, like Salen. However, I'm not as enthusiastic about it, especially after the rereading I did for this review.

Art: The art is one of the stronger points of Suburban Jungle. While it took some time to lock in the forms, you can see traces from the beginning. And once they are locked in, they're a nice compromise between simplicity and realism-I can almost imagine seeing anthropomorphic characters like Tiffany and Leonard walking down the street. Almost. Backrounds are sometimes neglected, but they look realistic when they're put in.

Characters: I like most of the characters in Suburban Jungle. Tiffany and Leonard are definitely nice, especially as their most recent plot arc develops. Conrad and Drezzer are also interesting, though not as much. While Dover's speech pattern is strange enough to catch your eye (and not too hard to discern, since it's in text format), it becomes a distraction later on. And the pacing between him and Comfort is far too quick, in my opinion. I also had problems with Yin, on the whole-she was an unwelcome distraction outside of single jokes, to me. I'd like to see more development to Eddie, Wesley and Ramses, as well. I get the distinct feeling that they could be interesting, but for now they don't appear in many continuous strips.

Plot: The plot for Suburban Jungle is pretty simple-Tiffany Tiger's current life. The strip doesn't try to hide it, and for the most part it works. Her dreams of being a model seem realistic but hard, and her love life is...well, rocky. But it's a testament to the characters that it rarely seems forced when there's trouble.

Writing: Not as strong as I'd like, but the writing for SJ is adequate. I had a lot of problems with pacing and timing for the strips and their different stories...especially with Dover and Comfort's relationship. I did, however, like the fact that species are separate in their tastes, and each have a stereotype to deal with-stereotypes with at least a grain of truth. Predation has not been explored that much, but it hasn't been neglected-we are dealing with carnivores, after all, and they need to eat meat. While having it thrust in our faces would turn me off, I want to see it happen a little more, and with a better explanation of how it works.

Overall: The Suburban Jungle could be better, to me...but it seems rather stunted. It might have been the preponderance of guest strips or "hiatus" pieces of art, that would kill the momentum which had been building. But while I want to keep up with SJ, for now it's more of a passing interest. I give it 6 out of 10.

Sun Oct 05 2003 08:06 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

1/0 was definitely an experience. I'm not so sure it makes a good webcomic, but it was a good read.

Art: There isn't much to say about the art of 1/0. It's pretty crude to start off with, and stays that way for a while. It does eventually improve, but it remains pretty basic-the point is not to impress with the drawing, but the writing. I can respect that to an extent, but I would have liked to see more of an improvement by the end.

Characters: This department starts off pretty bare-the first character is stolen, and the next three made by a device taken straight from the Bible. At first, it's rather silly. But as the comic progresses, the characters start to become serious...and then introspective without being angst-ridden, as they explore the space along with the meaning of who they are. That's probably the best feature of 1/0, in my opinion.

Story: There is a progression to 1/0-it's certainly not a gag-a-day strip. But there aren't any separate plot arcs-things don't return to normal, because everything is continuous. Nothing is put by the wayside...it just isn't seen for a short time.

Writing: At first, the writing for 1/0 is at the same level as the art. Or it seems to be, at least. But it picks up much faster, and it was the reason I kept reading. I wasn't sure where 1/0 would end up, but I wanted to find out. While I was wary of the creator speaking with his creations, I thought it was handled very well. They have a deity of sorts in Tailsteak...but a flawed one, and who won't try to hide it. While he is 'toying' with them, to an extend, he also sees the characters as living creatures. He doesn't manipulate them to make something happen, but lets it come out of their own interactions. Of course, he writes their reactions as well, but I think he did a fine job of it.

The meditations on character, and fourth wall interactions, were also a high point of the writing. Some of the arguments about whether Tailsteak was a creator or a god were quite interesting...and I was glad that the 'truth' didn't come out immediately. It would have been too easy and unsatisfying, to me. While some of the characters could be long-winded, I was rarely bored, and kept on reading.

Overall: I was quite pleased with 1/0, though I thought it had a rather slow start-both for the story, and the load times. The ending also gave me mixed feelings...the closer was good, but also forced. I give it 8 out of 10, and hope others take a look.

Sat Sep 27 2003 08:08 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Art: The art for Same Difference was a nice blend of realism and cartoons. You could tell when the characters were being serious and when they were being a little outlandish-but not with jarring breaks, as some comics use. Everyone was very distinctive, but not for being very ugly or misfigured. The backrounds were also very cool, without being distracting or overelaborate. And with the level of polish put on this comic, I have no complaints about the lack of color-it certainly didn't need any to look good.

Characters: Simon and Nancy are the obvious backbone of the story, since they're the two who drive it. But I liked the story Simon told about Irene, and their meeting at the supermarket. Nancy's motivation to meet Ben Leland was a little disturbing...but at the same time, it's something that happens. And though Ben didn't get a lot of screen time, I felt like he was a well-rounded character; you may not have learned much about him, but he seemed to have a lot underneath the surface. The only one who I would have liked to learn more about was Ian. While having him come on the trip would have been awkward, he said little and did less. However, that's a minor complaint, to me.

Plot: Probably the highest point of Same Difference. The plot seemed to evolve naturally without being rushed, and the reasons-as well as the results-made a lot of sense. I only wish that other comics were as lucky.

Writing: Another strong point. There's some good dialogue in Same Difference, but none of it seems out of character or odd for the situation-when Nancy says something, it somehow comes out as something she would say. I can't imagine the same words coming from Simon. The pacing is also very nice-I particularly liked the use of the Tom Waits song "I Don't Wanna Grow Up", to mark the trip from Oakland to Pacifica.

Overall: The biggest flaw about "Same Difference" is that it ends, really. But it has a natural, unforced ending, which ties up loose ends and leaves the characters changed, and maybe a little better than before. It's a perfectly normal story, but it's done in a very good way. I give Same Difference 9 out of 10.

Tue Sep 16 2003 07:58 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Magic Inkwell is...different. I'm not sure that's such a good thing, though.

Art: A lot of the strips concentrated on different layouts, as opposed to the actual art-I felt that a lot of images repeated, which became rather tiresome. There was, as Phantom Critic noted, a definite Krazy Kat feel to the whole thing-not just the character's appearance, but the desert and plateaus that often appeared. After a while, it started to feel stagnant, which only changed with the last few strips. Compared to the rest, they started to interest me again, and I'm sorry there weren't more of them.

Characters: There wasn't much in the way of characters. They were distinctive, yes, but almost all of them served to make a point, instead of developing on their own. I didn't mind this as much in the beginning, but after seeing the same characters over and over, I really wished they could speak for themselves.

Plot: There isn't one, really. This isn't quite a shortcoming for Magic Inkwell, though. The comics often have a message rather than a story-or the story is meant to give a message, anyway.

Writing: The most interesting part of Magic Inkwell, but the most flawed. To me, the comics were basically about the creator, and his musings on whatever struck him. This meant many of them were hit or miss, with more misses than hits. But when it worked, it worked quite well, and I felt like it was an honest conversation.

Overall: Magic Inkwell isn't a comic, so much as a presentation. The creator uses his works to say what he thinks and feels, with the characters as a medium for interpretation. On those grounds, I think that the presentation could be better. A lot of animation was used that I didn't think was necessary or helpful, and some of the layout ideas became "hide and seek" instead of being innovative. I give Magic Inkwell 5 out of 10; it's interesting and atypical (for which I give him a point, just for trying out new things), but I don't know if I want to keep reading.

Sun Sep 14 2003 06:59 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Ghost Cat is a passable attempt at regular print comics. However, I began to read webcomics as an escape from the newspaper, so that's not much of a recommendation.

Art: The art for Ghost Cat is passable; objects are clear, and the people are distinctive. But beyond outlines, there isn't much there to look at.

Characters: The characters for Ghost Cat are relatively nameless. It's hard to distinguish them in personality, beyond the fact that Val says "no" to the guy's "yes", and Mr. Shingles' complete lack of reality. Mr. Shingles is distinctive, but in a better comic, he wouldn't stand out so much. Ghost Cat has no personality, but at least that seems intentional.

Plot: There is none. Plot arcs bear no relation to the last one, and have no dramatic impact-even when the characters are threatened with death, there's no concern about what will happen. It's probably the biggest flaw of Ghost Cat.

Writing: Another big flaw for Ghost Cat. The non sequiters can be quite funny, but those shouldn't be the only humorous comics. I'd like to see the humor come from the characters, rather than random comments that could come from anyone. To be fair, many of them seem to be great set-ups...but are used as the end of a strip, rather than getting to the payoff.

Overall: Ghost Cat offers little, but on the other hand, it doesn't have any parts that are painful. It just needs more to offer. 4 out of 10.

Fri Sep 05 2003 03:53 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

The Ciderview Project is a serious comic, which I always like to take a look at. It's also entirely realistic, which adds to the appeal. But my reading was marred by technical issues, and the use of "to be finished" pages was somewhat annoying.

Art: Ciderview is definitely original in style. I can't think of another comic that looks like it. However, there was one complaint that kept cropping up in my mind-the lines used for everyone's face. Almost everyone looked 20 years older because of it, and it started to annoy me. While everyone in the comic is stressed in some way, I doubt they would cause the characters to look that old. Fortunately, they did improve as the comic went on. However, I prefer that the comic not have "layout" pages-if the art is not done, I can wait. Seeing the dialoge is more of a frustration to me.

Characters: The characters in Ciderview are definitely flawed. But the creator doesn't really explain these flaws; until I read the characters section, for example, I had no idea why Allan acted as he did. Now it makes sense with his mild autism, but it's not something that can just be picked up. Peter and Amber seemed the most interesting to me, and there were times when the focus changed at an annoying point. Seeing Allan and Emily be distant towards each other was the biggest example-if they have so many problems, why hasn't someone else at least noticed?

Plot: The plot for Ciderview is hard to judge, since it's meant to have a set beginning and ending-and it hasn't gotten through a quarter of that story. However, I find that I'm interested. Though the third chapters seems like an ending to me in some ways, it also has ways to branch out and continue. However, beyond Everett and Amber becoming friends-and possibly Emily breaking up with Allan-I don't know of many places that the plot can go.

Writing: Ciderview does have some good dialogue, and the pacing can be nice. However, it's not always consistent. Sterling's appearance, for example, didn't make much sense, and seemed more like a plot device so Cassie could react to something. I am glad about how the creator handled Peter, though. I think a lot of comics would have saved that for the end, but that's not the point.

Overall: The Ciderview Project has a good sense of where the comic is going, and what the focus is. But I think some of the writing needs to be worked on-and the pages would sometimes take 10 minutes to load, for no discernable reason. Normally I would give it an 8, but the technical problems helped drop it down to a 7 out of 10.

Fri Aug 29 2003 07:05 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Zebra Girl was a strange find for me. I hadn't really encountered a comic quite like it. But it's quite pleasant, and I certainly want to know more about what's going to happen.

Art: Zebra Girl is quite nice, in regards to art. A good level of detail, and all of the characters are distinctive-though I feel that Jack and Crystal's designs could use some retooling to look less cartoony. While I like them, Zebra Girl very quickly changed from humor to drama, and so they seem a little out of place. Sandra more than Jack, though. Sam, on the other hand, is very....very....nice. I think his design is perfect for the environment, and his facial expressions in particular catch my eye. I am occasionally disconcerted by the creator's love for contrast, though.

Characters: In terms of characters, I think Zebra Girl is very strong. Sandra, for example, has NOT just shrugged off her condition; it's still a very big problem for her to handle, and no one has just said 'live with it'. It wouldn't be very realistic, and in fact would insult me to an extent. While Jack has become more mature, he has not deviated much from his core personality-just added to it, and made it more complex. And Sam....well, Sam is one of the best anthropomorphic characters I've ever seen. He seems realistic to me, and very much understands that he is an alien to this world-even if Sandra, Crystal and Jack accept him, that doesn't mean others would. Of course, as he pointed out, they may just disbelieve him entirely. He doesn't care. And while I may have ragged on Crystal's visual design, I think she's fine as a character. Sure, she's an optimist, but not to an unrealistic degree.

Plot: While I like the plot arcs that have appeared in Zebra Girl, the change from comedy to drama was too quick for my tastes. It did take place early on, so it wasn't a major shift when it happened....but on the other hand, we had very little time to meet Sandra before she changed so drastically. I do like how Professor Broadshoulders initiates some fo the action, though-it came as a very nice surprise to me. Jack's flashback, the most recent plot arc, was my favorite by far. Though if I had come in during the middle of it, I would certainly have gone crazy with anticipation.

Writing: I like the dialogue in Zebra Girl, though there are few things that really jumped out at me. The actions, on the other hand, really stuck with me at points. I would say more, but I think that the art is intentionally the main focus. And I think that's fine, since the writing is strong enough to support it. I do like how Sandra's situation has been handled; the audience knows as much as the characters do. Which amounts to "She may be able to change back, but there's nothing definite." If I ever see a comic wher some mysterious figure talks about how to cure her, though, I will be greatly disappointed.

Overall: I would like to see more from Zebra Girl, because I really enjoy it. But I think that it needs to start working towards an answer for Sandra soon, or else it may start to drag. I don't think it would personally, but it's a risk. Overall, I give it 8 out of 10. It's a good comic, and I don't see any glaring problems. But it could improve still.

Thu Aug 21 2003 01:54 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Well now.

I believe I've said before, that I wouldn't give any comic but the best one a 10 out of 10.

I believe I just found it.

I've been reading Nodwick, off and on, for a few years. I was sad when I stopped buying Dragon and Dungeon, the main print avenues for much of it. Until I found the online archives, that is.

Art: Nodwick has a great art style to it; all of the humanoids looks realistic in proportions to me, and he can do any monster you care to think of. In a fantasy setting, that's an important skill, in my opinion. The creator also does a fine job with backrounds....and lesser characters aren't skimped on. Even if they only appear for a few panels, he gives them the same degree of care as we see in, say, Nodwick himself.

Characters: Almost all of the characters in Nodwick are caricatures. But they've been built with care, and poke light-hearted fun at the genre, rather than being cynical. Yes, Yeagar is a perfect example of the dumb warrior, Artax the disconnected wizard, and Piffany the naive cleric. But they're also consistent in this regard, as points out for us.

Plot: There's a nice balance of plot in Nodwick-while individual story arcs can last for some time, they never drag. And while they can be tied in with previous stories, there's no great, overarching drama to it. In more serious comics, this would be a downside, but I think it's the right idea for Nodwick.

Writing: The humor in this comic is great. It's accessible to those who aren't big D&D or fantasy fans, but being either one just makes it better. While there are common themes (the biggest being Nodwick's repeated deaths), there's very little repetition or boredom that I could find. Definitely a plus, considering how long it's been going. I do wish the comic books were available on the site as well, but that's just idle wishing. If he can make more money off of Nodwick, then I'd love to support him. Also, small asides such as Light Side/Dark Side are good enough that I'd like to see more of it....though not at Nodwick's exclusion!

Overall: 10 out of 10, definitely. Nodwick is one of, if not the best, comic that I've read online. I look forward to tomorrow's strip.

Wed Aug 13 2003 08:33 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

The Spiders is a very interesting comic overall, and very nice. The only big flaw was that I want more.

Art: The art for The Spiders was very nice, and very clean. I liked the realism, and the attention to detail; the first part opens up with such a point, as the soldier complains that his weapon won't imtimidate without a clip. The artist took the time to make it clear for us with the art, instead of throwing something in like an arrow, trusting the readers would pay attention. While it's not the most stunning comic in the world for beauty, it is very realistic, and I could easily tell what was happening in every scene.

Characters: There aren't many characters in The Spiders that last long; to keep from spoiling what that means, I won't say who or why. But all of them seemed natural to me, and distinctive. I could tell almost all of them apart in a line-up, for example, and all of them helped the story without being devices for the author to continue.

Plot: The overall plot to The Spiders is not as clear. While it has me interested, it's also under heavy wraps in some ways. I withhold judgement on this aspect until the comic finishes.

Writing: The area that really grabbed hold of me. The writing for The Spiders is top notch, in my opinion; the author has (or seems to have) a real grasp of Arabic culture, which is important, considering his area of focus. The 'spiders' of the title are very nice-and something that I could see being made, easily. The author doesn't skimp in that area, either-the "news page" in part three has news articles about the spider's implications. It also makes sense for them to be popular, considering how voyeuristic people can be.

Overall: I give the Spiders 8 out of 10. The entire presentation impressed me, along with the comic, and I heartily recommend it to anyone. One of the touches that really impressed me, actually, was loading a page...and getting a javascript application while while I was in another window. The window did not say my browser needed me; it said my spider needed me. Though for a downside, the load time is probably prohibitive for 56k users, due to the comic's layout.

Thu Aug 07 2003 12:17 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

While it is tempting, I opted not to review the separate comics in "Traced". I felt they were too short to do so without taking a long time; and I don't have much this week, I'm afraid. Anyway, on to the review.

Art: There really isn't much to say about the art in Traced. I do wish it was more detailed, and the use of white on black was a strange choice to me. But on the other hand, the art was primarily a vehicle for the creator's words, to my eye; almost as if it would keep your attention span better than text would. In that respect, I can respect it. But I hope she starts to put more into the comics.

Characters: This isn't really applicable for Traced. Since the comics are closely based off of her life, I wouldn't feel right trying to judge who was well done or not.

Plot: Again, not really applicable. Since the events aren't under the control of the creator, it's not something you can say was done well or not. However, I can say that I think the story selections were interesting...but repetitive.

Writing: I liked some of the stories, but all of them began to wear on me a little. Fortunately, none of them were especially long or grating. In general, the stories revolved around one common theme-the creator as she was growing up, and a few after she was an adult. I couldn't relate to all of them, but some made a lot of sense to me.

Overall: I give Traced a 5 out of 10. I think the comics have merit, and talk matter-of-factly, rather than explictly pulling on your emotions. But at the same time, they tread a theme that has often been heard. I think it could stand to improve in some areas, but it's an unusual selection; reviewing certain portions would be reviewing someone's life, and I won't do that if I can avoid it.

Sat Aug 02 2003 09:21 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Heh. Yeah...I did get permission from your all-too-gracious sales fox before doing this. Now....on to the review that's on time. Again, I apologize to everyone, for making you look at such late reviews...

Strings of Fate was a good comic. An excellent comic. However....there are a few minor problems.

Art: The art for Strings was very nice; everyone had their own look, but not because of wild deviations. All of them were (for the most part) human in appearance, but with their own traits. I never questioned who I was looking at, at any point. Even when you saw Meishuu and Tony, the way they carried themselves made who was who clear. The animals were also very nice in appearance, though I wasn't exactly clear on the shrimp. I did feel that the art was a little "pointy", but that's really a minor quibble.

Characters: Another strong point for Strings. The characters had complex relationships, partly because they had strong emotions attached...and sometimes not. Unlike some comics, the characters didn't swing from one mood to the other. It almost always felt natural. However, I wasn't that happy about Jeff as a character...he had very little time in the comic, and now he's shaping up to be a major character very suddenly.

Plot: The plot was interesting, and had some nice ties with (I assume) Chinese folk lore...but at the same time, it was easily accessible. Often, when people use mythology in a comic, it can be easily garbled. And it didn't rely on sudden twists to keep you engaged, which is a nice change. However, the text portions in chapter 1 and 2 threw me off in comparison-partly because I expected a straight comic, and partly because it was too abrupt a beginning. So I think that could use some reworking.

Writing: Another good point for Strings. The dialogue is, again, rather unique to the characters; when someone was speaking, I quickly came to expect what they would say (in the general message), because it was consistent.

Overall: Strings of Fate was a lot of fun to read, and I certainly plan to keep up with it. However, the main gripe I have is the layout. Please, PLEASE put up "next", "previous" and "home" buttons for all the chapters! It's really much easier to navigate that way, and it was the main problem I had all through the comic. I give Strings of Fate8.5 out of 10; normally I don't use half points, but the layout was enough to deduct it this time.

Fri Jul 25 2003 09:04 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

There is a rich vein of black humor in Something Positive. Whether you like it or not, it's there to find, and that's exactly why it's up for review in my opinion. Personally, I enjoy it.

Art: SP has never been great on art, but it's consistent-and evolving. Backrounds are a mainstay, and usually only removed for stylistic purposes. I think it fits the comic well, though I'd like to see more detail at times.

Characters: The dark heart of SP lies in its characters. Davan's withering cynicism, Aubrey and PJ's rather senseless destruction, Choo Choo Bear's....well, disturbing lack of bones....it's all the source for the humor. While they may be striking out at the world, these are not judgements from on high-whether they like the idea or not, these characters are a part of that same world, and cause problems as well. Many of them, in fact.

Plot: While interpersonal relationships don't just fade away, most of SP's plot archs are short, and often don't show much impact until another, similar arch starts.

Writing: One of the main strengths of SP, along with its characters. The writing is very strong, in some ways-characters have their own voice, and never did I feel that one of them was speaking for SP's creator. On the other hand, almost everyone says quite a bit. And while large word bubbles aren't a problem from time to time, sometimes it can be hard to plow through it all, and believe every character speaks so much.

Overall: I enjoy Something Positive a lot, and will probably continue to do so. However, it's not for everyone-and that's not because it's too shocking. But the mood is consistently dark, and as some have pointed out, it's not as funny when you have to actually deal with people like these characters. I still give it 8 out of 10, though.

And I promise...the next review will be for Strings of Fate, and ON TIME.

Thu Jul 24 2003 07:42 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Is this horribly late? Why, yes. And I do apologize. However, I was given clearance to post it here....along with my missed Something Positive Review. I will space that out for tomorrow, then hopefully add my thoughts on Strings of Fate soon. Anyway, on to the review.

Soul Chaser Betty is an interesting comic....partly because the main hero is not, in fact, chosen. But I'll talk more about that later.

Art: Soul Chaser Betty, at first, seems to have a "manga" style. However, there are few if any of the common manga conventions, to my eye-proportions seem realistic, eyes are small and have a regular structure. Overall, I liked the art a good deal-it was clean, but also had details. The best work would probably have been on the demons....they are DEFINITELY alien to our reality. It's clearly shown.

Characters: There aren't many characters, unfortunately, in Soul Chaser Betty. The Weaver and Betty herself are the main ones-while many others are introduced, a good number of them are lost, and those that remain aren't as well developed in comparison.

Plot: It's not the strongest point for Soul Chaser Betty, but the plot shows more work than many I've seen. I liked how Betty became involved in the story-and the realistic reactions to this. While the Weaver's backstory in the fourth chapter takes some time, it's better thought-out than a lot of villains.

Writing: The writing for this comic is strong in my eye; when the soul chasers learn how Betty came into their world, they react realistically. When Betty herself enters, she doesn't immediately believe-but on the other hand, she quickly learns to treat it as real. However, Betty's friends aren't as good to me-right now, they seem like props with dialogue.

Overall: I liked Soul Chaser Betty, and I look forward to seeing more of it. However, I feel that the pace of the story isn't well-established yet, and the lack of characters beyond Betty and the Weaver impairs it as well. I give Soul Chaser Betty a 7 out of 10.

Mon Jul 21 2003 07:42 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Faans is a comic that I've followed for a while now. Not for a remarkable stretch of time, mind you, but a while.

Art: The art for Faans isn't that complex, but I think it's a good fit for the story. There are few times where the scene isn't clear, or that I can't immediately tell what something is. The guest artists are interesting, but also somewhat annoying for the break in style.

Characters: At first, this was the weakest point of Fans. The characters looked a lot like the stereotypes, and acted like it as well. Admittedly, there are real people who act in the worst way....but for that reason, I don't need to see them in a comic. However, over time, it's become the strongest point to me. It doesn't mean that the characters have just turned around. But they've become more complex as the comic has gone on, both from more knowledge of the past and the events in the strip itself.

Plot: The initial plot of Faans left much to be desired, but again, it has slowly improved. The latest plots have been somewhat farfetched, but they've also been quite realistic-in fighting a war, there were casualties, and those who survived have been altered by it. It's much deeper now than before.

Writing: I think this is another strong point of Faans. While you have the strange and important events, the characters aren't neglected when that happens-they react as themselves, rather than changing until the crisis has passed. And those who have flaws, still have them-and while they may overcome it, they may also get new flaws in exchange. Unfortunately, pacing is a problem at times-it was much more pronounced at the beginning, but it still becomes an issue at times.

Overall: I like Faans, a lot. It doesn't concentrate on the fanboy aspect as much as it used to-which is both good and bad. Instead, it's moved beyond that, and takes the subject much more seriously. However, I do worry about the future of Faans. I think it has potential for both a great end-and a great disaster.

I give Faans 8 out of 10. It's a good comic, with solid writing and characters. However, it had a shaky start, and occasionally drags in telling its story.

Wed Jul 09 2003 08:47 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Gravedigger was a gritty pulp comic, through and through. Quite good, too.

Art: The art was quite good. It fit the story well, and showed the characters as scarred-but not unusually so. While you could pick out most of them from a line-up, none of them screamed "I am a criminal!" There were a few places where it seemed to decrease in quality, but not drastically.

Characters: Digger, Angel and Red were the only characters with any real development, unfortunately. Digger had the most, naturally, since was the narrator-and that was a real treat. He's not a good guy by any means, and doesn't try to deny it. But he's also unflinchingly honest, both about himself and everyone else. Red was interesting-at first. However, as Digger himself noted, Red wasn't much beyond fierce. And I liked Angel as the antagonist of the story-of sorts.

Plot: The plot was rather standard fare, to start with. But most stories would probably have ended with either Angel or Digger outwitting the other and taking the money. Gravedigger went beyond that point, to what seemed a logical conclusion. And the very end was a lovely twist.

Writing: The writing for Gravedigger was almost entirely filtered through Digger-which limited what it could explore. I like that Digger didn't act as an unbiased narrator-that wouldn't have fit with his character. But on the other hand, I'm curious as to what happened with the lesser characters in this case-a question that Digger dismisses, thus closing it to the reader as well.

Overall: Gravedigger was a good read, with a clear beginning, middle and end. I give it 8 out of 10, for its dark characters and bleak story-something that was often reflected in the landscape.

Mon Jun 30 2003 11:06 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Okay, I can't resist saying a little bit about it. I liked Soul Chaser Betty. Now, on to the real review!

Exile from Kiirs was an interesting story, but the pacing seemed to be stop and start-the time lapses were not very clear, and I felt that several sequences were sped through to reach the fight that much sooner.

Art: Exile from Kiirs was interesting, artistically. I liked the style, but except for the king, everyone seemed to have the same face. There was a good variance of costumes and hair styles, but not of facial features. The use of silent panels was good to me, but too many started to make this comic drag.

Characters: As Pingu noted, there were basically three characters: Raed, the king, and the townspeople. Raed never spoke enough to gain much if any development; this made him somewhat mysterious, but for the wrong reasons. And to be honest, I must wonder why he would dress in all black, when dark greens and earthtones would probably work better for camouflage. The king looks regal enough, but I couldn't really understand WHY he'd come to the village himself. The townspeople, on the other hand, were very good. They didn't just change their minds about Raed, and honestly believed he was a dire threat to them. I liked that.

Plot: The plot, unfortunately, didn't have much of a chance to develop, for lack of length. I did like the overall arc (after the somewhat confusing introduction), but the epilogue was very, VERY obvious. And tied things up too neatly.

Writing: Exile from Kiirs didn't rely on much dialogue, compared to other comics, but the writing was very good during the big fight. I thought it was realistic, and the ending very much in character for Raed, considering his abilities. However, as I mentioned before, the pacing was inconsistent, and the villagers took more attention than they should have because they had better dialogue than Raed. Of course, considering how little Raed spoke, that wasn't hard.

I give Exile from Kiirs a 6 out of 10. I liked it, but I'd like to see a better ending to the story, and a better view into Raed's motivations. As it stands now, both of them are considerable obstacles.

Tue Jun 24 2003 07:24 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Well....Get Your War On just blows my mind. How this could be published in any magazine, I will never know.

Art: None. It's cut and paste to the worst degree. Even sprite comics show more effort than Get Your War On does. Which is rather sad, considering how much effort most sprite comics get (Kid Radd being a welcome exception).

Characters: None. The clip art doesn't change, but trying to pretend the same art is the same character doesn't really work.

Writing: This is the main strength of any good satire. Too bad it's so lacking here. Get Your War On relies on cursing, shouting and situations so ridiculous they pass from satire to nonsensical. It then tries to sustain said situations, when the initial joke was completely useless. It's just not funny, and says nothing clear or coherent.

Plot: None. The comic is entirely based on current events, so for once, this isn't entirely Get Your War On's fault. Though it does try to create story arcs. These fail as well.

Overall, Get Your War On was a horrible attempt at commentary, with no redeeming traits that I could see. As others have noted, its viewpoint is entirely from America. Being an American, I can say that it's still without any content, so being from another country shouldn't change your opinion of this at all. I would give it 0 out of ten, but 1 is the lowest number I can give, so: 1 out of 10. Do not read Get Your War On. Instead, curl up with some Jonathan Swift for real, biting satire and wit.

Sat Jun 21 2003 06:04 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

The character Checkerboard Nightmare is a horrible human being (as far as we know), and will hopefully realize how shallow hs is one day. The comic, on the other hand, is something I would fight tooth and nail for.

Artwork: The art for Checkerboard Nightmare is simple and clean. I certainly have no complaints about the current style-while it's possible that the art could be more detailed, I think it would only be a distraction from the dialogue in most cases.

Characters:To me, the characters of Checkerboard Nightmare are a great selling point for the strip. Chex is a shallow advertising shill-which is he resoundly denounced for. It's not cute to the other characters, and it shouldn't be-which is part of the reason the humor works so well with him. Vaporware's tendency to try and kill Lyle is hummorous, but it's not an uncontrollable urge. IT's a much more frightening indulgence. And Lyle-well, being the straight man in this comic is a tough job, but he means well. Are they all well developed? Well, not really. But rather than an oversight, it's deliberate-except for Lyle, the characters are not meant to be well balanced or sensible.

Writing: The best part of the whole series. Straub is rarely of target with his ideas, and the punchlines almost always made me laugh. It's not an easy thing to make the recurrent themes stay fresh, but I think he's done a great job-because he doesn't try to fit them all in at once. He cycles his recurring jokes with new ideas and other themes-but doesn't change the characters without reason, so that the humor derives from their personalities combined with the situation. The constant jabs at online popularity also ring true-partly because, following other online comics, it's easy to see it happen.

That being said, I do worry about some of the jokes being played out-especially Vaporware's homicidal ideas. While the internal logic of the comic makes some sense out of the idea, keeping it funny may not be feasible for much longer. I have the same concern for other themes, but not as strongly.

Plot: The plot for Checkerboard Nightmare is the one problem I have with it. It's not always clear what's happening-while I don't mind the fact that the story isn't continuous (Lyle would be long-dead if that was the case), I think the author needs to work on bringing the overall plot arcs together in a coherent form.

Overall: I give Checkerboard Nightmare 9 out of 10. I think it's consistently funny, and offers characters that are good, but not necessarily likeable-because if you had to like everyone, it wouldn't be nearly as interesting.

Fri Jun 06 2003 05:11 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Argon Zark is....well, it's interesting, in a good way. But I'll get down to details for a better view.

In terms of art, I really like Argon Zark. You could call it "comic book" style, but I just thought it was good. The use of Bryce was well-done, in my opinion, and the whole environment was rich. I felt that the backround here got much more care than in many comics, too. It's just rich in detail overall, and feels a lot like someone having fun with their concepts. Which I definitely approve of.

The characters are nice. However, they haven't had much time to develop, unfortunately. Argon himself is definitely a geek of the highest order (and he has good taste-check out the album cover on Page 1.), but there isn't much to him beyond that. The main problem, however, was Zeta. She gets very little development, and goes from being a delivery girl to Argon's companion without a hint of trouble. Even for someone with experience using computers (as Zeta seems to have), I think this experience would be stranger to her. Cybert is entertaining, though his speech recognition problems are up and down-he consistently misunderstands, but you'd think that Argon would take some time to fix it.

The story has yet to do much; the first book consisted of chasing a bad guy, and now the second is about chasing bad guys. It's interesting, but not very deep. Still, it entertains me because it makes sense so far, and I hope it will become complex later on. Starting slow is good, in my book.

The missing pages issue was annoying, since it seemed that most of them were heavy on dialogue-which can't be guessed at through the miniature version. I was able to circumvent one such issue, as the current Argon Zark! page has the first 8 pages of book One available-solely as a teaser to buy the hard copy, though.

I give Argon Zark! 8 out of 10. I'd like to see the story keep going, but I think the characters are a little too simple at the moment. However, I really enjoy the ride they're on, and I want to see their future stops.

Mon May 26 2003 12:38 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Angst Technology.....GOOD.

And now, to elaborate.

Angst Technology, to me, is very funny. I will get that out of the way right now. And I think the reason is simple: it starts off with a rich cast, and goes from there.

The art is simple and clear for AT; there's never a lot of detail, but it's rarely needed. And that's all I have to say in that regard, really.

In terms of story, AT does an admirable job in introducing new storylines-and growing them from older ones. They aren't completely random, wacky adventures. The current story, for example, depends heavily on what we've learned from previous ones. It's not that complex at the moment, but its conception makes a great deal of sense.

The characters are the best point of AT, to me. The jokes do not rely on the characters, fortunately. But because of the source, they can be that much funnier. The only characters without as much background are new-in other words, it makes perfect sense that they aren't as well-developed yet. In terms of character, I have no complaints at all about AT's ability.

Finally, the humor. This is where AT can stumble a litle. But at the same time, it's not for lack of humor-rather, you come to expect high quality. And on the few occasions where it doesn't reach that quality, it stands out, even though it's still funny.

Anyway, I'm going to bring this review to a close, because I don't think I made much sense. I give Angst Technology 9 out of 10, and I hope it keeps going for a long time.

Fri May 16 2003 11:44 AM | Read All Reviews for this title

Life of Riley is a comic that I now have mixed feelings about. I've enjoyed it for some time. But after looking back through it, I'm no longer so sure about why.

The art is nice, but there is little development that I can tell, beyond the first comic. The artist can certainly make characters distinctive, but none of them have much detail to their designs. And landscapes, unfortunately, tend to be flat and monocolored. Fight sequences are nicely done, though they are, unfortunately, rather short-and end up emulating DBZ in the worst of ways.

The characters, as I mentioned, are pretty distinctive in design. However, they don't have much detail-and the origins/introductions of many are either badly handled or simply make no sense. The "goddesses", for example, enter without any real explanation, and Gore's origin was a simple (and unfunny) joke.

Sometimes, the humor is spot-on, and works quite well with the characters. However, topical humor rarely worked at the time it was put out, and sometimes the references make no sense.

And the story.....well, this is the area where Life of Riley flat-out fails. The creator certainly seems to understand the plot, based on the explanations; he actually has a coherent goal in mind, I believe. But for bringing it across, it doesn't work at all. The first serious story is muddled, and the explanations are usually breathless while placed in the action-it manages to be both rushed and plodding at the same time in places. And the two follow-ups are worse. The story of the two Dans (though it was described, in character, as completely pointless) could have been very interesting, but instead became an uninteresting duel. And the current story arc (recently completed) didn't make much sense before OR after reading.

The layout is pretty clear; the action starts at the top, and moves from top to bottom. This can be somewhat annoying when the comic is long, but I never lost track of what panel went where-which is a concern when they aren't arranged in a "traditional" pattern. Being unconventional can turn out to hurt a comic if they aren't careful.

Overall, Life of Riley seems a lot like a guilty pleasure to me. The story makes little sense...but the jokes are usually good now, and I'm really waiting to see more of the minor characters from earlier in the strip's run. Hopefully the story starts to come together, and prove that it makes sense. I give it 5 out of 10.

Sat Apr 19 2003 08:32 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Rapid Eye Movement was another not-quite-comic....less in the way of art than A Drug War Carol, but a better story.

The art was interesting....there were some very sophisticated 3-D images, and almost all of them were well-done for emotions and expressions. I can understand why there wasn't an attempt at a 'traditional' comic, considering the level of detail that was used. However, some of the pictures didn't mesh well with the story, or seemed like a rude interruption to a good passage. So for 'layout', I can't say I liked it.

The length of Rapid Eye Movement was nice. It was long enough to allow some suspense and build, but the author ended it before it became too much to sustain.

As for the plot, I enjoyed it. I won't ruin it, since there are some good surprises. But things are set up where you don't KNOW who's good and bad until near the end. And even then, things get blurry. However, the phrasing could be awkward, and there were times when important actions blurred right into mundane ones.

The characters, while interesting, are not that memorable, for the most part. I could tell them apart with ease by the names, but I'm not so sure about an actual comic of the same story...Dr. Hollister is the only one that really stood out to me.

I give Rapid Eye Movement 6 out of 10. I liked the story, but I think the writing needs to be fine-tuned somewhat...and the art, while nice, needs to be better implemented for story flow.

Sun Apr 06 2003 04:03 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

As an argument, I thought that A Drug War Carol was good, though somewhat heavy-handed. As a comic, though, I wasn't as pleased.

The art is done well, in my opinion. The figures are pretty realistic, as is the setting. This doesn't change, no matter where the story goes...nothing really stood out but the Ghost of the Future, though. And he felt rather jarring in comparison to every other character design. On the other hand, I can't think of a better fit myself, so I suppose that was the intended effect.

The characters, for the most part, are rather shallow. Either they don't get enough attention, or they continue with the same message. And I was not happy about the sudden turn-around from the 'protagonist'. He had shown no change at all before then, and it annoyed me because of how arbitrary it seemed.

The actual message, however, is the most important part to this selection. And for content, I think it's very good. There's a lot of information about drug addiction in general, and marijuana in general, that would cause most to consider. For presentation, though, it could be heavy-handed. And after all the information that was presented by the Ghost of Christmas Past, the sections for the other two spirits was far too short.

I can understand why this propaganda piece was presented as a comic. It helps to catch the eye, and gives a face to the statistics and examples that were used. But purely as a comic, I am not that impressed. The parody of "A Christmas Carol" was done in a loose faction, and it almost seemed unrelated at points.

As an argument, though, I think it's a good basis. Some of the dialogue should probably be softened, and more attention should be paid to modern statistics-both in adding more, and putting them with the Ghost of the Present so he has more time.

I give A Drug War Carol 7.5 out of ten for information/opinion, and 5 out of ten for the comic. In this case, I think those should be separated. However, that's simply my opinion.

Mon Mar 31 2003 08:06 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

After finally finishing the archives tonight, it is time for my illuminating (he just picked that word at random, folks) review of Ozy & Millie!

Seriously, it was a good thing to run through the archives against-just to see how it had changed, if nothing else.

The art has certainly changed over time-they have a good deal of detail, compared with the earlier versions. And while you can certainly tell the family resemblance between Millie and her mother, they are also not the same-if we ever see Millie as a grown-up, I expect she'll be significantly different in appearance.

The humor has changed as well-and a good deal for the better, I think. Many of the references that popped up in the earlier strips were very topical. And while I understood what was said, the humor no longer fit. This still appears in the more recent strips, but to a smaller extent. The jokes are usually funny, but not much-the strip rarely strikes me, and many of the jokes are vaguely repetitive.

The story arcs rarely operate on a large scale. They can stretch for some time, but unless you follow it closely, they seem to revert back to the daily gag strips. On the other hand, that fits very well with the characters, and I don't think a serious story arc would be that enjoyable.

Overall, Ozy & Millie isn't really sharp in its humor, or striking with its characters/art. But I do like the fact that the artist is doing what he wants in there, and what happens seems natural to the characters-sometimes the weirdness pans out for them. Other times, it breaks down like a lot of kid plans do. So on that score, at least, it's VERY realistic. And as a side note....one thing to watch out for with anthro comics, in my opinion, is what roles species play. Ozy & Millie doesn't highlight this often, but it usually does it well to me.

I give Ozy and Millie 7 out of 10. I think it could stand tighter writing for the jokes, and more experimentation-my big concern with it was how much it was like a newspaper comic (and on that note, I noted a LOT of Bloom County and Calvin & Hobbes similiarities with the early comics), and I'd like to see a little more experimentation. But it's a solid comic as it stands.

Fri Mar 28 2003 03:41 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Ah, Commander Kitty. It's like Star Trek with anthropomorphism and several mental illnesses. Now, on to the serious thoughts.

The art was good to me; it's simplistic, yes, but clean and consistent. That's something to build on, if nothing else. And considering what happens in the comic, I think the cartoonish style is very fitting.

The layout is clear as well, with some variation-but not too much. If one of the strips is set up differently, then it's a nice break from the norm, for the most part.

The characters are not in a good state...Commander Kitty is trigger happy and rather carefree with his subordinates, Fluffy has no mind, Mittens has been run ragged and Mr. Socks can't be understood by anyone. Naturally, I think they're a great bunch. CK can get on my nerves, though; it's hard to imagine he'd still have a crew at this point. And Fluffy shouldn't be on any kind of ship.

The story is somewhat confusing, since so much of it has been a flashback. When it finally went to the "current time", I was thrown by the lack of transition initially. And I'm hoping to get more of an explanation for certain events, such as why they were being pursued by Pangolin ships...

The humor is pretty good to me. But it can be hit and miss at some points, and there haven't been many laugh-out-loud moments....a lot of chuckles, though.

I give Commander Kitty a 7.5 out of 10. It needs clearer continuity, I think, and some time to move ahead chronologically. But I really like what they have so far, and I think it does some fine parody work as well.

Tue Mar 18 2003 09:39 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Stubble, in my opinion, is fragmented. There are good sections, but they don't connect enough to make a coherent whole.

The art was decent for the most part. There were strips where it rose above that-and others where it fell below. Whatever the quality, I would have been satisfied if it had been consistent.

The characters are consistent to me.....but badly formed. The love triangles in general annoyed me, mainly because there were so many. I could keep them separated, but I didn't have a lot of reason to care. And the introduction of Roland made no sense-his reason to resent Clint was never clear to me. Fortunately, Clint became less of a "goth" character as the story went on, which was good-considering how well his life started to go. But he is one of te few that I really wanted to pay attention to. Yes, he's important as the main character, but he shouldn't be the only one I want to watch....

The story is probably my biggest complaint. The overall arc has been clear.....but there have been many storylines that just start and stop abruptly. Even though they are usually ended, it's not clean, and I felt that was more to get it over with than anything else. And time was treated pretty liberally as well, sometimes going by without any warning. I thought that they did keep continuity, in a general sense-Clint's various injuries didn't just heal, for example. But on the same subject, they didn't use that enough, and I'd like to see more references to past events. Just to lock down their place chronologically, if nothing else.

The layout was usually pretty simple-4 panels in a simple square. It usually worked, though there were points where I wanted a longer strip for a better conclusion. And for some reason, there are many pages where the image repeats as a separate file-but without any changes from the first. I couldn't understand the point to that, myself. For other technical matters, I also had a problem loading a lot of the images. It took at least one 5 tries, and many of the others took 2 or 3. At first I thought it was my connection, but I could access other sites without trouble at the same time.

As a side note, I haven't read the other comics related to Stubble yet-and since they're not the suggested comic, I won't review them. I will read them, however.

I give Stubble 4 out of ten. The art could be good, but it needs to lock in on a specific idea first....the story definitely needs work, just to give the reader a better idea of what's happened so far and in what order. It has my interest so far....but I'm worried that it won't start to improve. And the subject matter isn't interesting enough to stand on its out, I believe.

Wed Mar 12 2003 03:11 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Rules Of Make Believe

Well, I'm glad I held off on reviewing this until I got a chance to reread it today. It has improved my thoughts a lot.

ROMB is probably one of the best mangas-in-progress that I've seen out of any webcomics. It has its own style of art, rather than copying a popular idea or trying to fuse manga-style with American. And that's not just in reference to the art; the scripting is well done to boot.

For the art, Pingu had a VERY important point. If you don't go from right to left, you will probably get lost on what's happening. It didn't take me long to figure this out for myself....but until I did, I was floundering on what was happening. The one complaint I have would be a concern about the backrounds....some panels get crowded with details, making it hard to pick out what we should focus on. In others, the minimum isn't enough to fit with the rest of the art, and I'd like to see more. One last note about the art, though, is that every character so far has been easy to tell apart.

The story has been interesting as well-when I started, I was afraid that magic of some sort would be used to get it started. But the beginning has been interesting, and remarkably fresh in my eyes.

And as Kajamir noted, the technical design has some real thought behind it. Rather than just glossing over the details, the creators took the time to give us a good idea of how the game works, both in rules and technical consideration.

The layout can be rough, but I've seen few real problems with it.

The main issue with ROMB is where it'll go from here. I intend to watch and find out, though; it's certainly doing a good job so far, after all.

7 out of 10 for Rules Of Make Believe. It needs more time to establish, I think, but the base that I've seen so far is nice and solid. If the creators keep going, I think the result should be very good.

Mon Mar 03 2003 12:29 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Nowhere Girl

This was an interesting comic.....but since that could be good or bad, on to specifics.

The art was realistic to me, but kind of stylized....it's hard for me to properly describe it, actually. It was clear, which was good, but it rarely caught my eye. You could see the difference between chapter One and Two, I believe.

For the characters: Most of them seem realistic. But for development, beyond Jamie, I have seen very little. I can understand her behavior to a point, but I'd like to see more from the others. Especially Daniel at some point.

The writing is good enough to keep my interest. But I'm worried about the third chapter after the end to the second. I want to learn more about the characters before bringing in any outside trouble.

I'm not writing as much as I have before, and I don't like that. But the biggest problem with Nowhere Girl is very simple-there isn't much there yet. Of course, that doesn't excuse the short review, but that's another issue.

I give Nowhere Girl 7 out of ten. It needs more time to establish, and I'm worried about the next chapter. But what's come so far is solid to me.

Tue Feb 25 2003 10:31 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

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.

Sun Feb 16 2003 01:36 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Space Opera has been, unfortunately, one of the comics that I have to make myself finish. I think there are some good ideas in there; nothing striking, but good. However, that was defeated by several factors.

The first would be the art. While I felt it was decent, I had some difficulty telling males from females by the face, and the backrounds were sometimes wildly different from each other when it was still the same location.

The second, and largest issue, was layout. This is one of the times that a focus on this issue would have helped a LOT. The dialogue felt that it would fit, but not to the panels that I saw. Rather, it should have been (in my opinion) stretched over two comics to make better sense. As it was, trying to fit it into one comic made things confusing to me. As for the dialogue itself, it always felt that it was on the verge of being funny, but had to pull back for some reason.

The third would be pacing. It's inconsistent, and I never saw a really clear opening-what was a flashback should have been the opening, in my opinion, or some kind of prologue.

Plotwise, things start to make sense as things go on. But when it starts, I felt as though I had been dropped into a continuing comic, it was so abrupt. While I don't mind having blank areas at the start, it's something that should be handled carefully. Here, it wasn't. And the introduction of Shin and the Gaia project (which was done so off-hand as to be offensive, along with the mecha fight) feels more like a weight than anything else-something to throw in the mix so the main story won't have to conclude as soon. The plot is actually rather interesting in the abstract, but the presentation needs work.

However, despite my overall impression, there were some times where Space Opera started to come together. The dialogue and panels fit, and the story being told started to pick up.

Space Opera needs work. A lot of work. And though I don't want to be mean, I feel that's the truth. However, I also think there is something to be worked with, and some revisions could vastly improve what we're seeing. Because as much as it needs to change, it has a story to work with, and characters that (while sometimes rushed) felt consistent.

I give Space Opera 2.5 out of ten. It doesn't have much now, but it could be something good.

Sat Feb 15 2003 09:24 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Well, now.

Demonology 101 has been mentioned to me in passing, but this is the first time I tried to sit down and read it. It took me some time, mainly because the images often took a while to load.

I kind of regret the fact that the artist redid the first chapter, because I missed the chance to compare the beginning art with the most recent incarnation. But Chapter Two gave a good example of how the art had changed. I like the style, and while it doesn't change much, it does become cleaner and sharper. The black and white fits the subject matter well, but isn't oppressive; it can be at times, but only when it's intended to be. The characters are pretty much distinctive, with what I thought were two exceptions....Lethe/Isaac and Gabriel/John. They were not interchangeable by any means, but in some comics it was hard to tell just by looking. And I may be alone in this....but it seemed that everyone had the same nose with very small differences.

While Eli seems to have grown up some, he is the only non-adult that I've seen it in. Raven and her friends look much the same in age as at the beginning.

The characters haven't taken interesting turns, so much as we've seen the previous ones....aside from Raven, most of the characters seem to be fairly complex from the beginning. You learn what choices they made as part of their pasts, though they also change in the series-some drastically. Fortunately, Raven keeps pace, developing as she learns the truths that the others already knew.

In terms of pacing, Demonology moves fast. But it gives you time to breath first, setting up the conflict and giving you some clues about the players. It goes light on real action in my opinion. Nothing wrong with that, but I'm left wondering if there will be a real fight at some point.

The story is interesting, but probably the best point about it was very simple: Demonology 101 does not use many outside sources for its world. The concepts aren't blindingly unique or revelatory, mind. But they are interesting in combination, and the author doesn't try to bolster their credibility by drawing from a lot of Biblical or secular ideas on demons. That was certainly a refreshing change in my mind. And while Raven may be special, she isn't a wielder of great power; she has the possiblity, but it needs to be developed. My one real complaint is that I'd like to see a little more of the high school part; aside from Mackenzie and Malcom, school is mainly dealt with in the hall or with random teachers.

I give Demonology 101 7 out of ten. It can improve, I think, but there's a lot of good here, and it certainly has its own ideas to work with. That's something many comics don't, and for that reason alone I enjoyed it. The rest was gravy.

Sat Feb 01 2003 10:03 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

Oh, boy.

Shaw Island is a comic that I've been reading regularly for some time now, so I hope I can keep this coherent.

First off: the art. It's simple, yes. But it's also clean and clear, which I like. And it's certainly improved over time.

The style of the comic has certainly changed over time as well. The first few were very serious sometimes. And while I think they had good points (as far as I can tell), the juxtaposition of humor and serious issues was rather strange. It's become more humorous as it goes on, though, and I think the mix is better.

The characters are much the same; they've certainly developed over time. However, that's something natural and to be expected, and I like how things have gone. I have to agree that Ben is probably the funniest character in the whole strip, but Zeb is in the runnning as well, with Gaming Jesus close behind. And the hamsters. God, the hamsters are GREAT. They're almost human in behavior.....but very definitely hamsters. It's just beautiful how it works sometimes, and very funny.

One of the best points (to me) about Shaw Island is the story. Plotlines usually don't take long, but they have some real length to them, as opposed to finishing in three days. The comic also updates regularly, which is always a plus in my book.

Probably the best part to it is very simple: continuity. Shaw has taken a good idea and done it well, and continued with the same idea. Things never go back to "normal", they go back to stable. And while the characters may not have changed over a "serious issue" (as treated by dramas, that is), they still change. Things that have happened before can and will affect the latest storyline, something that is nice to see after reading gag-a-day strips.

Overall, I would give Shaw Island 9 out of 10; I reserve the last point because it's going to end at some point (stated explicitly by the author), and 10 out of 10 is for the perfect comic. I have yet to see one, but Shaw comes pretty close in my opinion.

EDIT-I would make another post, but I don't want to clutter the thread too much with these questions....what about reviewing strips after their time? For example, if someone wanted to review Shifters now or at a later date, would that be out of place, or could it be accepted-so long as it was dated in some way?

Sun Jan 26 2003 03:13 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

I'll list this as the reason I should visit Pitch more often.

I'll take a shot at this club, if no one minds. And when I finish Shifters, give my own opinion.

EDIT-And having done that....

There are parts of Shifters that I liked, and some interesting ideas. Unfortunately, those ideas were all small ones (such as the man who sold his body as advertising space). For the overall plot, I'm not that impressed. The idea of a "force of change" has been done many times. This, in and of itself, isn't a problem. However, there is very little different about Shifters in that regard, and I found myself finishing it more to say I had than out of actual interest.

I think the lettering is a concern at the beginning, but it improved as it went on. So did the art, along with the connections between strips. On occasion, though, it seemed as though they missed part of the action, because the connections didn't quite make sense.

In many ways, it seems like the product of two White Wolf fans, primarily WereWolf ones. It's not a direct take off of White Wolf's systems, fortunately, but a lot of the ideas there either parallel or come from those systems.

The main issue, to me, is that the script needs to be refined, and the characters given more time to develop. At this point, they've been thrown into so many situations that everything has been a reaction. And the dream sequence/flash back that's happened was a poor effort at character development.

I think there's good things in there, but it'll take work and some time off to bring them out. 4 out of 10.

Tue Jan 21 2003 03:24 PM | Read All Reviews for this title

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