#The Webcomic Review Reviews Motion Pictures

[thewebcomicsreview]

This 8-second clip is rapidly turning into a meme on YouTube/TikTok, but is also a great example of how unbelievably efficient these movies are, which is how they can fit so much shit in without it becoming overwhelming. In literally seven seconds

There is a joke with a setup and a punchline. It's kind of a cliché joke (The ol' "He's right behind me, isn't he?") but Miguel's confusion and the sound effect keeps it from feeling generic.

We establish that Miguel kind of looks down on other spider-people (calling Gwen "kid") and thinks only he can handle things

His immediate failure lets us know that he's not as capable or in-control as he thinks

The fact that he doesn't know the Vulture is behind him lets attentive audiences know that Miguel, unlike most spider-people, does not have a spider sense.

Because of the first movie, we know that Miguel not having a spider sense means he can't instinctively know if someone else is a spider-person or not, which is obviously relevant to his relationship to Miles

That's a lot of exposition in the length of a Vine, and none of it feels like exposition! And, because this is mostly texture, it also doesn't feel like the movie is just reciting a list of plot points at you the way being hyper-dense can sometimes feel like.

If you want to write...really anything, but especially a comic where every page is going to take an entire afternoon to draw and you have to make it count, you really should be studying the Spider-Verse movies, because they have some of the tightest scripts I have ever seen in any medium. That whole exchange up there only needs four panels in a comic (1: Miguel saying he'll handle Vulture with Vulture behind him, 2: "Knock yourself out", 3: "Why'd you say it like that?" 4: Punchline). You could even fit two more panels in that page if you were so inclined.

[imdoingthismspaintadventure]

In which it keeps happening

Dave: Go online and view sites indicative of your interests.

Oh this should be good.

Oh no more content related to Gamebro and their unholy ilk.

“Grand Snack Fuckyeah”...GTA....I love that it’s not even trying to make a clever pun. You know those “there was an attempt” stickers? This isn’t even an attempt.

Also is that review written by Dave? I want to learn how to write like Dave. That Moses comparison gave me life and took it away at the same time.

“Will popular beverages play a role? And how critical will they be in your quest to attain absolute sweetness?” I HATE that Death Stranding has made that actually not a joke. Just....God fucking dammit. DS is great by the way. ....I just realized Dave Strider and Death Stranding share the same innitials when I typed that. Why does it all fit? This is a weird ass tangent.

Seems every kid has their own browser after all.

You open the HEPHAESTUS web browser and direct it to your ironically maintained blog where you post monthly satirical reviews of GAMEBRO MAGAZINE. Your latest post is a review of the MARCH ISSUE. You've been meaning to write a review for the latest issue too, but you've been sort of dogging it. Something about the game they're reviewing just doesn't strike you as ripe for satirical purposes.

Don’t be a coward Dave! A true artist doesn’t blame his tools! You can make the greatest shitpost ever, I believe in you.

Excuse me what in the fuck

In a new tab you open another one of your sites, a webcomic ironically maintained through a satirical cipher vaguely similar to that of your blog. It's called SWEET BRO AND HELLA JEFF. You have legions of devoted fans, most of whom are totally convinced of your creative persona's sincerity. Which is just how you like it.

...

Is that a real site?

Oh god it’s real

Oh god what the fuck is this

This....This actually takes effort to do. Like, the fucking title is a low res looking JPEG piece of fucking shit, but it’s a finely curated piece of fucking shit.

I just touched one of the buttons and it changed page.

it changed page.

there are more pages.

what

is this another comic entirely??

What...What do I do with this??

Do I liveblog it?? IS this still homestuck?? What is going on????

Okay I asked what the fuck this was, and all you guys answered me with was cryptic warnings and hushed expectations for my suffering and/or ascension. Like this was some sort of cursed chthonian text that would kill my sense of sanity.

Seems about right.

I don’t know why it posted two times I think I might have clicked it twice.

I’m not fixing my mistake cause I think it goes perfectly well with the spirit of the work.

Speaking of the work.

Nani the fuck

So one of these two duders is going to play some games of the video....and he encounter stairs....and he falls down said escaleras.....over and over again....in an endlessly recurring loop........while the other guy just fucking LMAOs at him saying “I told you about the fucking stairs, dumbfuck!” and he keeps falling...and falling...and falling...

Also I have heard “It keeps happening” before as an internet phrase. I’ve used it before What the fuck, it came from here?? From this.... thing??

This....

This is so perfectly and intentionally shitty, the whole comic is way too far to the left even. There’s a huge empty space on the right side.

Is the font fucking comic sans??

OH MY GOD THERE ARE 46 OF THESE.

You know those things that make you go “there isn’t a god”??

THIS IS NOT ONE OF THEM.

This is proof for the existence of a god.

A talented and artful god

who fucking hates you

I’m gonna move on with the actual comic and you guys tell me if I should continue with this thing and when.

I’ll just leave you with this

Dave: Check the latest page of the Midnight Crew.

OH EXCUSE ME FUCKING WHAT

OH WELL SURE LET’S FUCKING GO LET’S JUST OPEN MSPAINTADVENTURES INSIDE THE COMIC ITSELF

IS THE MIDNIGHT CREW THE IN-UNIVERSE VERSION OF THE PROBLEM SLEUTH CAST?? IS THIS WHAT PS IS INSIDE THE COMIC??

You figure as long as you're chilling at your computer you might as well see how that new MSPA story is going. You haven't looked at it in a while.

How meta can we go in this comic?

We’re already way to fucking deep and I don’t know how to swim.

Let’s go back to the shallow end of the pool please.

Midnight Crew.

Oh so we’re actually doing this. Oh.

What is this liveblog session?

Why is there a sword stabbing that map?

"You are members of a sinister gang called the Midnight Crew. Your nefarious plots are serpentine in complexity. Your schemes, convoluted. You are planning a heist in your underground hideout. What will you do?"

I just checked and this is a pararell to “Compensation, adequate” oh my god

It really is Parallel Problem Sleuth

Use Occam's Razor on plans and schemes.

OH MY GOD AN ACTUAL INVENTORY

BUT IT’S REVERSED.

THERE ARE 5 WEAPONS AND ONE ITEM THIS TIME

AND THE WEAPONS ARE ALL HAND-TO-HAND INSTEAD OF GUNS.

Also Occam’s Razor is fucking brilliant name for a Scalpel/Knife.

The right solution to a problem is usually the simplest one.

"Spades Slick uses OCCAM'S RAZOR to carve a circular hole into the HEIST PLANS, freeing it from the knife. You wonder what moron would jam the knife so hard into the table in the first place."

Probably one of you.

Probably all of you.

I know how everyone in these comics is.

SS: Climb ladder and exit hideout. Implement nefarious plots

Oh my god no

They are stuck in their hideouts aren’t they?

I can just feel his anger at this unbelievable bullshit

"You push against the MANHOLE COVER, but it seems some unbelievable jackass has parked your GETAWAY VAN on top of it. A familiar feeling stirs. That feeling is overwhelming, soul-blackening rage. It's the sort of rage that'll make a man feel totally justified in sporting an unnecessarily elaborate assortment of fancy blades."

Spades Slick seems like a hair away from murdering everyone else in that room. And somehow he’s the most relatable one in there.

Dave: Skip ahead a hundred pages or so.

Wait, that’s illegal

What is going on.

Why is everyone beating the shit out of each other?

Why is there a blender in there?

What is that antler thing and why is it coming out from a door?

Who is that guy on that picture?

You don't remember where you last left off, so you jump way ahead. You always forget to save your place in the story. It looks like tempers have become short in this pressure cooker already. You speculate that the tipping point may have been an ill-advised motion for a game of 52 PICKUP.

Jumping ahead in these comics looks like a fine way to get really confused.

Dave: Save your place, read it later.

Hey now that’s familiar

Even though the adventure began recently, it's already over 3000 pages long. You just don't have time for this bullshit. You'll catch up later. Besides, it looks like someone's pestering you. You're pretty sure you know who it is.

How long is homestuck by the way? I know it’s ungodly long but I just want to know the full extent of my road ahead on this foolish endeavor.

Also imma leave it here for today as I try to figure out what the fuck this was

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[thatbookcritic]

CICADA GIRL: Love Appraiser

Title: CICADA GIRL: Love Appraiser

Media: Webcomic

Author: Yuanqian Gong and Royalacg

Criticism written by: Kai

Editor: Julie

The Review:

Hello everyone! My name is Kai ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ I’m sure you all know who I am if you follow Julie’s and mine others blogs. If not, just know that I’m one of the reviewers in the blog ThatYandereCritic. Today, instead of rating or reviewing a yandere story, I’ll be reviewing a webcomic that I’ve been following for sometime…

Love Appraiser follows the story of a woman named Sally. As the title suggest, Sally is a “Love Appraiser”: a person who help wives and girlfriends verify their husband’s or boyfriend’s sincerity in the relationship (AKA would the guy cheat?). The entire time Sally was working as a love appraiser, not a single guy proved to be loyal. It was during one of her jobs that she met a man named Benny. Sally mistaken him as her target and was surprised to find that he was a tough nut to crack. Intrigued by Benny’s aloof nature, Sally decided to give love a chance and chase after Benny and the two eventually started dating. Of course, being a love appraiser, Sally have to make sure that Benny is loyal…

Aaand, that’s the whole story in a nutshell. There’s lots of drama in between with character dynamics and spoiler alert: Benny pass Sally’s test… for now. I want to first start out in saying that the art is absolutely breathtaking and incredibly detailed. It’s particularly unique and the way the women are drawn are really beautiful. As for the guys… eh, they’re fine. If the artist tried, I’m sure they can draw an attractive dude but for some reason, all the guys look average to mediocre. It just makes me go, “how can these guys hook up with all these hot chicks? Are they rich or “have a good personality”?” Anyways, the art is amazing and the dialogue is particularly interesting. It really draws you in and characters say some thought provoking lines. Too bad once you take away all the flowery language, you realize how stupid the characters are and that the “morality issue” is bullshit.

If you look pass the art and the grandiose dialogue, you realize that the message of “the morality of love” that the author is trying to get across is just plain weak and idiotic. Just like Shiki, Love Appraiser just fell flat with it’s “area of grey”. Stripping Love Appraiser of it fancy wrapping, all you find is a bunch of manchilds whining about how it’s women fault that they end up cheating. Christ, it’s like reading an incel forum if the incels were a little more eloquent with their words.

You see, dear readers, the author is trying to paint the conflict of “men’s desires vs. women’s distrust in love”. The comic is just one big show of “Women distrust men= woman test men= men fall into temptation= man cheats= they break up= self fulfilling prophecy.” But there are so many things wrong with this painting that I don’t even know where to start. First of all, the comic is stating that all men cheat and if given the chance a man will cheat. The message that is trying to get across here is “women need to accept the fact that men will cheat on you and to just live with it.” Just… no. Truly loyal men would never cheat. I recall there was a dialogue in the comic that basically boils down to: “Are you tell me that men shouldn’t cheat? Crazy.” YES. EXACTLY.  IF YOU’RE DATING SOMEONE. DON’T CHEAT DUMBASS.There was another message of how “it’s womens fault for why a man cheats.” A) No. It’s not. Women aren’t some puppet master that control your actions. Just say no and move on. B) Yes, the woman is at fault if she hired a “love appraiser” to test her man but it’s still the guys fault for even falling for it like a moron. Honestly, if you really want to hit home on “woman’s distrust” you don’t show it by proving the woman is right. If we see the man passing the test and then finding out that he was test; which leads up to the break up, that would be more meaningful for this message. C) Most women aren’t that distrustful in the first place, tbh. Unless there’s an insecurity, most women trust their partner. I like to think that most women have a “gut feeling” when if comes to when a guy is cheating on them. Basically, this point just falls flat no matter how you look at it. There was another issue where this guy was cheating on his wife (who he has kids with mind you). When Sally tried to put out how fucked up this was, the group of “friends” shut her down by shaming her and gave excuses why cheating is a good thing. They gave the excuses like “how messy divorce is”, “how married life ruined this guys life”, and “that he still loves his wife but also the mistress”. Just… fuck off. Just grow a pair of balls and commit to that divorce if you hate your married life so much and clearly he doesn’t love his wife enough if he willingly made her a cuck. The most infuriating point they made was when one of the guys said, “Dating this mistress made him (the cheater) act like himself again. It’s like he’s 18 again.” Oh? So what about the wife who’s acting her age in juggling a job, a household, and children? Because fuck her for “ruining his life”, am I right boys?! AY!

Fuck off assholes.

The more I read, the more angry I get yet I can’t look away like watching a trainwreck in motion. Authors always have a hard time in writing morality and it can fail horrible in a story, just like Love Appraiser. When you want to create a story about two clashing moral points, they have to weigh equally on a scale. Yes, there are some faults with a woman being distrust in a relationship, but that’s honestly normal. Relationships are scary but with trust and communication, it can be something secure. You know what isn’t normal? Cheating. No matter how the author tries to paint cheating, cheating is bad. Morally? Bad. Society? Bad. There’s nothing good about it and all parties get hurt. This isn’t polygamy where everyone is a consenting adults. It’s one person (maybe two) going behind their partner’s back without them knowing. “Poor the guys for having to put up with a relationship!” No, pity the women who have their trust broken by the person they trust the most. If you want to be with a different person, then be the bigger man and break up with your current partner; don’t cheat. Seriously, don’t. It ain’t rocket science folks.

Well, I might be harping too much since cheating is a big issue with me. I’m pretty morally loose person but if there’s two things I’m rigid on is loyalty and humility. I still encourage everyone to read this webcomic and come to your own conclusions but I only beg that you don’t be tricked by the pretty pictures and sparkly words. As your teachers like to preach: Think critically.

Overall Score: 5/10

(Kai’s note: People give yanderes a bad rep as a love interest but honestly, after reading this comic, they’re looking more ideal. Who doesn’t want a loyal partner who would literally do anything for you and never cheat on you? I don’t know about y’all but I can sleep more easily with a guy who’s could kill me instead of a normal guy who would cheat on me. I already risk getting murdered by random strangers everyday just by going outside, what’s the difference?)

[undeadimpulsereviews]

Musuko ga Kawaikute Shikataganai Mazoku no Hahaoya (Demon Mother: My Son is so Cute, I Just Can't Help Myself!) First Impression

So before we begin you may notice the title; it’s extremely long both in Japanese and English. In the review I will only be writing out the whole name for the manga once at the very beginning and once at the very end. Otherwise when referring to the manga I will just be saying Demon Mother. Also I looked back recently at the manga; I haven’t read it in quite sometime due to slow updates and realized there are a small amount of chapters currently out. So this will be my first impressions on the manga rather than a review. With that said, let us begin.

Happy Mothers Day to all who apply; I hope your day goes well and those special to you make it so. I’ve been saving this manga for just this occasion and finally the day has arrived. Musuko ga Kawaikute Shikataganai Mazoku no Hahaoya, or Demon Mother: My Son is so Cute, I Just Can't Help Myself!, is a slice of life comedy manga from mangaka Juugoya. This is Juugoya’s first manga to be serialized and the start of her mangaka career. The manga was serialized on Tonari no Young Jump as a webcomic and currently from what I can find has forty eight chapters out in Japan. For us here in american there are only twenty one chapters translated online which roughly makes one full volume. I honestly don’t remember how I came across this manga; the best that I can remember is that something about the main character looked familiar. She reminded me of another character from something I’ve seen before but I still can’t quite put my finger on it. Other than that I just kind of went into the manga with little to no thought or knowledge about it. I’m currently caught up and while I do really enjoy what I’ve read, the story is just starting to pick up now. There isn’t to much going on out the gate, but Juugoya is presenting so ideas for where the manga could go from here; Allow me to explain.

Demon Mother is the story of a Demon, named Lorem, as she lives her life with her newly born son. Lorem was never much of a caring demon; in fact she is known as one of the strongest and scariest demons to ever live. She killed many people, from demons to humans; though once her son Gospel was born she put her past behind her. No longer fighting and killing she dedicates herself to raising her knew child, with the help of her sister and human friend can she be a good mother?

I really enjoy the story but as of right now it’s solely this; a lot of the manga is dedicated to the first stages of Gospel’s growth. His first words, first steps, and the many firsts of a demon; there has truly only been two conflicts in the manga as of chapter twenty one. One isn’t to big, but it lights a fire in Lorem to be a better mother; while the other is a greater conflict that effects the lives of one of the characters immensely. That’s all there is to it, or at least that’s all there is for the moment; many story elements have been introduced. We’ve started getting a deeper look into Lorem’s past and could play into the future; the idea of human and demon relations has come up. Right no humans and demons are still on the best of terms, but there are some who wish for coexistence. Lastly, in the latest chapter a shrouded mysterious figure has appeared, and they don’t look like they have good intentions; though it’s anyone's guess, I don’t know to what degree these elements might play a role in the future of Lorem’s story but I’m interested to say the least. Overall, for what the story currently is, it’s an adorable heartwarming story of a women learning what it means to be a mother; the manga is partially structured like a 4-koma, and also like a normal manga. It’s short and segmented, but it’s not comprised of only four panels for segment. It’s short but above all incredibly sweet and I can’t wait to see where the story take itself. The same can be said for the characters; Lorem is an amazing character, and with Gospel I’m sure Juugoya can really develop her well.

So far there are only the four characters I mentioned before in the story f Demon Mother; You have Lorem and Gospel, Lorem’s sister Merii, and her human friend and caretaker Chiharu. Before Lorem had Gospel she was strong in terms of her physical strength, but I think she is strongest in character because of Gospel. Over the course of the manga we see many interactions between Lorem and Gospel; at first it’s just her idolizing him and how cute he is. Yet due to events Lorem starts to take her parenthood a lot more serious then before, but even then she needs help. Gospel doesn’t really develop in character due to his age, but rather it’s the develop of him as he grows up. Lorem’s Sister, Merii, has always been the supportive sister in more ways than one; while she is also new to this like Lorem, she approaches this with a calm and level head from the start. She also hasn’t had much development over these few chapters, but unlike with Gospel’s case, this is more due to the fact that she hasn’t really had her defining moment to grow as a character. Lastly is Chiharu, she is Lorem’s only human friend and helped when Gospel was ready to be delivered. Instead of running from Lorem when they first met she instead did the opposite and now looks after Gospel with things Lorem can’t do herself. Chiharu starts as a normal character, but as the manga goes her resolve develops really well and she has a goal set in motion. Overall Lorem is still the strongest in terms of character; not only because of her development over the course of the manga so far, but just her profile in general. She gave up everything about her life as a demon, made friends with a human, and got her act together; she did all this not for herself, but for her son. That alone is the start of a great character, and I can’t wait to see how she grows. Lastly we have the art and this could either make or break a work for some; plus you’ll likely see a lot of Lorem is you search the manga up and I know there are so out there who might pass on this because of her design.

Demon Mother’s art style follows more along the lines of a 4-koma than a tradition manga; the characters are more detailed, where the backgrounds tend to be majority white space. Though, that’s not the big issue with the art; if it wasn’t apparent somehow from the thumbnail, the bodies of some characters are very extreme. If it were just Lorem I wouldn’t pay it any mind; this is not uncommon in manga but we have to be honest with ourselves that there those where the art can destroy an impression of a work.

Pictured above is Lorem’s sister Merii; just like Lorem her body proportions are to the extreme. I don’t know if Juugoya is planning to make this a thing with female demons, but as of right now this is only how Lorem’s and Merii’s bodies look. Chiharu’s body is normal, but even then I can’t say what the choices might be for Juugoya’s art direction. I will not lie, if it weren’t for Gospel being in most of the photos with Lorem I’d probably believe this was something from an ecchi manga, but instead of passing on this because you may not like the body proportions I think you should give it a chance. Body aside, Juugoya has an great art style; her designs for demons are really great. First let’s use Merii above; look at the detail in her sweater, or her hair, the level of line work to get the shading is beautifully done. Then you have the eyes and the horns; the demons of this manga all tend to follow this design template; each has a set of horns, a tail and wings, and dark eyes. Merii is an alright example, but I find Lorem to work better for this.

This is the first image from chapter one, where we see Lorem before Gospel. This picture is a good example of how the body of a demon works; when a demon is not in danger, or planning to attack, they’ll look human to a point. Though when entering battle mode, as they call it, their skin will harden to a black scale like texture and their eyes go a pitch black. Plus each demon has something that makes them special; some ability they can do that is related to their body type. For example Merii is able to heal where Lorem is able to generate heat. It’s really interesting and cool to mean that instead of going with your average demons, Juugoya opted to create her own each with their own special differences. Overall I really like the art work; it’s not for everyone, but don’t just pass it up because you may not enjoy it. It’s hard, especially with the time we live in, but remember this is normal in the place of origin.

Overall I really like Musuko ga Kawaikute Shikataganai Mazoku no Hahaoya; it’s got a long way to go and the story is just starting to ramp up, but I’m excited nonetheless to see where Juugoya will take it. The characters too; I really want to see how she will continue to develop her cast as the manga starts to grow. For Juugoya’s introduction to the life of a Mangaka, I think she’s doing a great job and I wish the best of luck for the future. I recommend this manga for those looking for something heartwarming to read; it’s cute and the mother-son moments make the manga all worthwhile.

Next week will be the review for Akiba’s Trip; with the release of the third game in the series releasing this Tuesday, I thought I’d finally post this long overdue review. So until then Happy Mothers day, and have a great one.