#is it obvious i don't make comics. the paneling on the full thing is so funny to me

[mars-ipan]

reposting the poll comic in an original post so i can art tag it and also ramble in tags teehee :) once again feat. @beesbeesbees42​ ‘s sona

full page under the cut btw:

[valeriehalla]

Hello! I was reminded of your webcomic Goodbye To Halos recently and wanted to let you know it had a pretty big impact on me. I read it during my teenage years and I think it really helped me to contextualize and make sense of some feelings I was going through about - well, teenage stuff. Change, I guess, mostly. Changing bodies, changing genders, changing role in society, changing relationships with others - your comic helped me process a lot of my fears about those things.

Your comic was probably my first exposure to nudity that was neither sexual nor comedic. It really stuck with me how your comic has characters in states of undress fairly casually. Not like "walking down the street" casual, they're always in a safe place like a bedroom or a bathroom or something, but still. As someone who was raised Catholic it was really powerful to see nudity portrayed as so... not-shameful. Nudity is just a state the characters pass in and out of; they're nude after taking off their clothes like they would be wet after taking a shower. There's no shame in it. And that's really the way it ought to be, right? We were all born nude, it shouldn't be such a Thing as society makes it out to be.

That's just my little input on what impact your art has had on me. It was a good thing that I read it when I did. I wish you luck on all your future endeavors.

that's extremely kind of you, and very well-said, and thank you, and also that's absolutely wild for me to read.

i actually had to remind myself just now that there was in fact a sequence of (counting) eight pages where enae had her tits out. i didn't think a ton about it at the time. i do remember debating mentally whether to slap a "warning this page has boobs in it" label on the social media posts: i chafed at the idea, and i think i didn't do it? or only did it for some of them? i didn't want to because to even put such a warning immediately prompts the reader to think "oh something Sexualle is going on here," putting them on high alert and making it into a whole Thing. and it was not a Thing.

i always thought that some day, if ever i found the right moment, i wanted to have a page where fenic was fully nude. my idea of the "right moment" for that was that it would have to be at a juncture in the story where it made sense for her to be nude, and also where it would feel to the reader like there was absolutely no "point" to her nudity. the one page in the comic where fenic is topless was sort of a prelude to that idea: that might have been the moment, if there had been any reason at all to include her lower body in those panels, which there wasn't, so i didn't.

it's a fine line to walk. i think it's fairly obvious that there were many panels in that comic where the reader absolutely was meant to think "wow this character's attractive" (if they could get past my art back then lmao). i peppered those in liberally, sometimes because it was personally fun for me to draw, but always because it just seemed, i don't know, honest? for this story about young queer adults who are sort of omnidirectionally horny for one another to have a gaze reflecting that--for the reader to feel like they're "in on it" too, not in a leering sort of way, but as if they're just, like, sharing in it with the characters themselves. but then to have that, and then to also have full-on nudity, and for that nudity to feel at home with that sensation, but also purely incidental, and not in and of itself sexual, is a lot of objects to juggle, especially if one indeed (like me) wants it to not feel like there is a "Point" being made. so, it's cool to hear that it worked for at least one person. sorry for writing 999 words about this

[mydarlingbat]

Do the Joker hate Bruce Wayne?

The answer is absolutely not. He hates and loves Batman. Bruce Wayne is Batman. The Joker dislikes the mask which is Bruce Wayne the Character. Not the name. I know that might be hard to comprehend, but it's true in my option. The Joker views Batman as just Batman. There is no other part of him to the Joker. All the Joker catches sight of is Batman wearing a mask over his true face, and i mean Bruce Wayne is that exact mask he's wearing. Even Bruce separates the fake persona from the actual Bruce Wayne which is Batman. The Joker knows who Batman really is in most comics. He just finds no need to pursue a mask when he can have the real thing. The mask isn't Batman's true self. Batman is the real identity. Bruce Wayne is the mask. Therefore Bruce Wayne don't exist only Batman. Batman isn't the mask. When Bruce Wayne go out to parties and gala's he's not the littlest interested in those event's. When he has these ladies on the sides of him, and he's acting like the typical rich guy. It's not really his true self. He'd rather be fighting crime. Right now he's just giving a show for others. Making a fool out of himself. It's not his true self. Let me disclose it in this way. If Bruce transforms into his true self, even without the mask. The Joker will prefer to him as The Batman, because he is Batman. The one who sits in the cave. Not wearing his mask, and still looking through files, still playing Detective. That's the real Bruce Wayne. That's Batman. The character he plays out in public is the fake persona of Bruce Wayne. Let's lay it out this way. Batman puts a real mask on his face he doesn't truly needs, even if you call him by a different name. In reality Bruce is Batman.

Exactly like in this panel. Batman is the Batman. There's no need for him to pretend in front of the Joker anymore. He knows his secret, and there's no need for The Joker to pretend like he has no idea who's under the mask. Of course it's Batman under that mask, pretending to be the jerk Bruce Wayne. No offense. Even without the money.. The Batman was still very much there, so all the Joker was saying in Batman #100 is that he's going get rid of that mask that you won't even have to wear it hardly.

the Joker is able talk with the Batman, and not the mask Bruce wears for the public. The Joker also calls him Batman. He doesn't call him Bruce, so it no reason to play along and pretend that Bruce Wayne is different from Batman. There's no reason to pretend that Bruce Wayne is a total different being, when in reality he's Batman, just using a different name.

It's quite obvious the Joker knows who Batman is under the mask. His mask is practically half off, and yet the Joker shows no concern about his face. He doesn't say it'd ruin the fun. He just drops the body in the water, and leaves. He's not baffled that that's Bruce Wayne.

Again in the Batman who laughs the Joker knew Bruce Wayne was Batman, yet he continue to call him Batman and bats. The usual nicknames. Full aware of Batman's life story. The Joker shows no feelings of disgust or i can't believe this, or even i can't see you strong anymore, or my king. You're just a rich boy in a bat suit. The Joker doesn't vocalize any of theses things to Batman. He doesn't say we can't play no more bats. Your secret ruined the fun. Some people claim if the Joker knew who was under the mask it'd ruin the fun. It wouldn't. This is example of that. The Joker showed Batman even without the money. The toys and gadgets. He's still the Batman at the end of the day, the Joker was right. He in fact was still the Batman without the billionaire persona.

When the Joker decides to keep the Batman alive. It's nothing about the mask. It's about his fun, if he murders Batman, then the fun ends.

The Joker doesn't desire to detach Batman's mask, because he does not desire to expose his identity to the whole world, or anybody he's around. The Joker's only implying it'd ruin the fun because others will expose it. Then it'd ruin the fun. The Joker doesn't desire for this to happen. The Joker never shouts this when he's alone with Batman, and if he does it always comes back to the world knowing his identity. Even in Batman deadly duo.The Joker didn't want the world to know Batman secret identity. It would expose Batman and ruin his fun. He didn't want Harley Quinn to take off the mask because it would have ruined his fun. He already aware he's Batman, so in reality shouldn't it have ruined the fun already??? The Joker knowing who Batman is does not ruin the fun.. What ruins the fun if everyone knew. What ruins the fun is him murdering the Batman. What ruins the fun is someone else revealing Batman's secret identity. The Joker knows it already. The Joker is full aware that Batman is his true self, however the world won't see it that way, and also the Joker doesn't need to remove the mask. He's Batman. He's only Bruce Wayne when he puts that persona on. The temptation of revealing his identity is hard sometimes, and especially in the golden age comics, but the Joker thinks about the cat and mouse game. Now let's get one thing straight the Joker doesn't know Batman secret identity in all the takes on his character.

The Joker doesn't have no reason to care about the mask. He has no reason to pursue a mask. The Joker goes along with the game. It has to be that way. He also doesn't want Batman to know he knows either. Maybe he just play along for Batman's sake, but sometimes he reveals to Batman he does know who he really is. Bruce Wayne is the mask. The old Bruce die years ago when he was eight years old. Which the Joker probably finds pathetic.

In Batman #144 Batman #143 the Joker still label's Batman as Bruce in this issue. He announces to him right after, that he loves him. Bruce can be Batman if takes off the invisible mask. There are times when Batman wears the mask, and he acts differently, and the Joker hates it. He hates it.

If Bruce takes off the mask and be his true self. The Joker would behave with him the same as he would Batman, because he is the Batman. The Batman mask doesn't make him Batman. He is Batman without or with the mask. Batman just wears the Bruce Wayne mask over his true face, when he needs to be in the public eye. Think about it? If the Joker separates Bruce from Batman, when he takes the mask off. Then it wouldn't make much sense to talk with him about Batman, and how to repair the city. How your useless character isn't helping in no way. He wouldn't have ask Bruce to make a choice to save him, when practically half of his face is showing, clearly showing his true identity. The Joker would have not been hurt when he walked away from him if he separates the two. What the Joker saw was Batman. There was no Bruce Wayne. Bruce is just an act. A fictional character in the Joker's mind. He finds him unless, boring, however the Joker let's Batman know he knows the mask over his real face, but the world would never accept the Joker view right? Especially when Bruce is wearing no mask, and the Joker says bats. It exhibits that the Joker is outright telling Batman that mask don't fool me. Maybe the Joker likes the name Bruce, although he doesn't like the front that comes along with it. Also in Batman #100 the Joker cries while he's talking to Bruce. Why though? And if he thought Batman was a stupid kids dream. Why protect it so much. Why still desire the game. Why still want the bat in the batsuit? Why still want him to save you. Do the same thing over again? This sounds like anger. This sounds like jealously. This sounds like he's in pain, and he's hurt, and he's trying to hurt Batman. The Joker feels like Batman betrayed him and the City by trying to live a happy life. Just like in Batman endgame. The Joker was angry with Batman. He did everything he could to hurt him, however in the end he still wanted their dance. He hoped it wouldn't have to end..Batman destroyed the pit. The Joker said ' You ruined us. You ruined us' the Joker never truly desires the game to end. He just knows one day it will, and he hopes that day doesn't comes. There's those times it's him who's tired of laughing and sometimes it Batman who's just tired.

It has nothing to do with the mask. Batman is only the mask if he puts on Bruce Wayne persona.. Batman death of the family. The Joker knew Batman secret identity, yet he still calls him his king and says he's his Jester. Bruce Wayne is Batman secret identity. The joker can't expose Batman secret identity to the world, and the Joker doesn't because Batman would probably stop. At the end of the day though. The Joker hates Batman and loves him. It's twisted. The world doesn't see the way the Joker does. To the Joker Batman face is exposed all the times. It's the act for the public. The character he uses in the public eye. and yes, Bruce Wayne being concern about his children still makes him Batman.

This is just my opinion.

[thewebcomicsreview]

Oh hey, Hamsteak 2. Looks like Vriska's...back in Alternia? In a dreambubble?

they sent the thief here in search of power; the power to escape the containment i so painstakingly set up for them

Al confirmed as the Candy narrator. Also confirmed that the black hole is "containment" for the dreambubbles and non-canon worlds, and that all the ghosts falling in wasn't an accident of fighting Lord English.

the black hole could only ever shelter them for so long, and in their haste to shrug off my protection they have opened the door to something far, far hungrier.

This panel is a callback to Karkat about to open the door to the New Universe. Where there were interrupted by Jack Noir. Vriska is interrupted by-

Yoo! It's Davepeta! Who feel into the black hole and has been conspicuously absent ever since. They're the only Ultimate who is not connected to Dirk, and in some ways the only "true" Ultimate. Interesting that Al considers them such a threat, when Davepeta has never been anything but benevolent.

Looks like it's all the sprites, in fact. Why...are there two Nannasprites? Oh god, I'm being pushed to the endless limits of my ability to remember Homestuck Lore. Is one of them pre-retcon? I do not remember.

ERISOLSPRITE: wwe'vve been here for liike a miilliion fuckiin 2wweep2. DAVEPETASPRITE^2: B33 < actually we just got here DAVEPETASPRITE^2: B33 < this place didnt even exist until she popped in ERISOLSPRITE: gue22 ii'll fuck my2elf.

It didn't exist until a character arrived, at which point it retroactively existed the whole time, like how a planet works.

DAVEPETASPRITE^2: B33 < does that not sound insane to you fefeta? FEFETASPRITE: 3833 < 383

What? How are Davepeta and Fefeta coexisting? That definitely doesn't make sense.

Well, logic be damned, it's apparently time for a Vriska training arc.

Gah! Talksprites! Also, Vriska enters "Hell" on page 666 of Homestuck 2, which is I think the first time this comic has aimed at any kind of Meaningful Number.

God, we are full on visual novel here. I didn't know Ren'Py could export to web, but I guess it shouldn't surprise me. I presume/hope the save option is default and won't be needed here, it's 1:30am.

Tavros is here and, much more oddly, alive. I suddenly understand jack shit.

I have no memory of Tavros ever forgiving Vriska for anything...or, for that matter, Vriska even being aware she did anything that needed to be forgiven. I presume she's just lying here, though.

This line combined with this pose is the essence of Vriska

So, Vriska's being forced to "grow as a person" and her big idea to finish her character arc is to atone for her sins by getting Tavros to take revenge on her. Vriska thinks that the secret to gaining power is getting Tavros to kill her.

I wonder where she got that idea.

But that time she refused to mind control Tavros into killing her, she wanted him to grow from it, too. Now we're past that.

I felt smart for remembering the K8LL ME bit but we're being really obvious about it now so I guess they just assumed everyone would and I'm not special :(

Oh shit. Erisol wasn't kidding.

Davepeta roleplaying being a cat who dies horribly is kind of the perfect synthesis of Dave and Nepeta. What is this music. It's very toot-y.

Oh hey a text log. How convenient. So we're trapped in a time loop, then, explicitly recreating Groundhog Day. I guess that explains the infinity hourglass on the Plot Point machine.

Vriska's having a bad couple of years.

Davepeta is "countless" cool dudes and kitty girls, which I think is the first explicit confirmation they're an Ultimate Self, though that was pretty strongly implied at least. The only Ultimate to do so without Dirk's involvement.

Stop letting me intuit things and then immediately making them clear! I don't care if it's good writing, it's making my liveblog bad!

It's so weird to compare this Davepeta to the one in Homestuck OG. There Davepeta was presented as this wise sage mentor figure who'd achieved enlightenment, and here they're much more of "Dave + Nepeta's combined silliness as one character". It's a subtle difference, but go back and read Davepeta giving this same kind of talk to Jade back in Homestuck 1. I guess that's the difficulty of a character with so little screentime in the original, they're either very limited or they feel slightly off.

Oh my fucking god, a to-be-continued select screen. Shit, that takes me back in an unexpected way.

Also, from the associated news update, "the big flash" is apparently several months away (10/25?), and I have to say they might want to be careful about overhyping it, if they have small flashes and now Ren'Py novels that are just preludes. If it's anything less than a Cascade after months and months of hype it could fall flat where a surprise [S] Enter would've popped the fanbase hard.

[monstrifex-art]

During your art challenge stuff like Vivid Shadows, how do you typically keep up motivation to continue doing it every single day? Because it’s been a struggle to keep writing stuff every single day. Granted this is my first time doing this, but I was wondering if you had any way you prevent creative burnout from doing these.

I have thoughts on this lol. There's a few ways. First a disclaimer, I started working on these Vivid Shadows pieces about a month ago. I have up through day 19 done right now (cough see them early on patreon cough). So I've been spacing these out a bit more than one every other day. I have done the challenge day by day before, and it's doable. But I'm a busy adult that needs to pay bills, and I like to give myself some cushion. But with that established, here are some thoughts I have. 1. Collaborators and Witnesses I doubt I could find the motivation to do these kinds of big projects if I didn't have friends and collaborators doing them with me. This is different for everyone, but I find I'm much more productive when I have someone else to bounce ideas off of, send WIPs to, and honestly to judge me when I don't meet my goals. This can be a friend you're working with, or a discord server where you share updates, or any other online community that you're a part of. 2. Effort Budgeting For big series like Vivid Shadows or longer comics with a lot of panels, I do not put all my effort into every piece. There's just no way. I consciously choose to half ass some things, and tell myself "eh, good enough" even if I know I can spend more time polishing. It is infinitely better to finish a piece at 60% of your full power than to pour all your heart into a project that never sees the light of day. If you feel up to it, you can spend more effort on some select parts that really make you happy. But those should be the exception, not the rule. And the more projects you finish, the better your half-assed work will become. 3. Creative Limitations You have to define some bounding rules for your project, or you'll get stuck with decision paralysis and scope creep. For Vivid Shadows, the rules I use are pretty simple. Each day has a prompt, one color to use, set dimensions and a hard deadline. I mostly use a limited palette (3 colors + black or white) because I know I can spend hours and hours shading and coloring otherwise. Limitations foster creativity. If you have a tight frame around what you can do, your brain comes up with way more ideas. 4. Keep an eye on the clock Part of what I like about projects like Vivid Shadows is that they have built in deadlines. I know I have to wrap things up by a certain day and time, and if it isn't perfect then so be it. I've done enough creative work to know roughly how much I can get done in a certain amount of time, which is very helpful for planning. The program I use for drawing has a built-in clock that tracks time spent on each document, which is a godsend. 5. Find your own methods This is all just stuff that helps me, but everyone's brain works in different ways. It absolutely takes practice to enter creative mode at will, rather than when the stars align and you feel inspired. Start with small projects, and as you train yourself you can eventually finish larger ones. Remember, something small and finished is always better than something grand that never gets done. Also worth mentioning, find the things that light up your brain. Personally, I've found that making my art horny is a powerful motivator for my creativity. In addition to the obvious neuron activation, I find it very satisfying to explore the boundaries of what I find attractive, like a mad scientist or detective. 6. Keep it fun! None of this will work if you don't enjoy the project. There may be parts you don't enjoy, but overall the project should bring you joy. If the project isn't fun, change it or drop it and start one that is. You don't owe your past self anything. Even if you abandon a project, the work you put into it is good practice for your next thing. Make work you like, and move on. Hope this helps! Good luck on your project 🙌

[zahri-melitor]

Newish Comics:

Batman: the Brave and the Bold #13: God I so want to enjoy the Nightwing and Deadman story (because Dick and Boston hanging out, given their shared backgrounds, is exactly my jam) but unfortunately this is written by Tim Seeley and while there's stuff in it I quite enjoyed it still had the problem where it was full of Seeleyness. You don't need to repeat that Dick is a carny, a traveller, a circus kid so many times, Seeley. We got your point. (Also why are you travelling on a goods train, presumably without paying for the tickets? Is this inherently important to either of you? Dick has a fortune right now and Boston's fine with spending other people's money especially if they're rich or crooks).

The Booster Gold and the Jurassic League story hmmm feels too invested in how outsiders see Booster, rather than Michael's personal competence. Not that that's unusual for a Booster story but it's disappointing. Mark Russell, given your other work I was expecting a slightly defter hand with this, but it's only the opening part of the story.

The Artemis story remains so good. That's all I have to say.

The Bruce and Guy Gardner story has interestingly stylised art (I can tell some people are going to instantly hate it) but I had to laugh at the goofy ears Bruce has on his helmet. Commitment to the aesthetic! (Also lol Roswell and Grey Aliens)

The Perpwalk: oh look it's commentary on killing Joker and why that's bad. It feels very pop psychology.

The Flash #9: I mostly loved this. Wally's continuing to lose it, Jai's still getting the main plot out of twins (which is a nice change as the balance was definitely over on Irey's side during Adams), Barry is also having a breakdown (but different), Hartley gets a quality win, and we are confirmed to be on round two of time travelling Wade (seriously Wade has appeared on more pages, aged up, than he has as a baby so far).

The Wally and Dick stuff is just really...you know how Wally's connection to the Titans saved Donna? And the Titans connection to Wally saved him? And now Dick's helping anchor Wally even as he's trying to drop all of his connections? Ugh it's so good, Dick Grayson will not give up on his best friends.

The bit which really made me sigh was that finally, we got confirmation that Linda has post-partum depression (which has been obvious the last 9 issues), and...it's been aggravated by the Rogues. Deliberately. Ugh. Which is exhausting, but the panels suggested that it was actually based on Linda having existing problems (which made perfect sense, given that among other things, she'd just been sharing the Speed Force with Wade until she lost the connection when he was born. Of COURSE her neurotransmitters and hormones were even more out of whack than your average person after giving birth). But then when Hartley removed the influence from Linda, she suddenly perks up in an 'all fixed!' manner, as if that was all that was needed. And I really really hope it wasn't that simple. (Like, even if you give me a panel when this storyline ends that has Linda telling Wally she's seeing a counselor).

I would, actually, like the comic to have a little bit of a discussion of PPD, rather than just fix it magically via supervillain nonsense ending. Because Linda has lots of basis to have developed it. And she's just had to hand over her baby to stay safe in another crisis situation. It just makes so much sense and could lead to some more interesting storytelling and I just want it to be acknowledged as a real issue, not 'waves wand, all better'.

Green Arrow #12: the hugs edition.

Look. For a story arc that's premise was 'let's get all of the associated Arrow characters out of the various separate ruts (or editorial jail) that they've been in and reunite them on page', with a framing story for why everyone's wheels have been spinning and going nowhere for anywhere up to the last 14 years? It achieved that. It also got almost everyone into a costume that didn't make my eyes burn and am happy having as their default design for a while (Cissie I'm so sorry, yours is not great).

It set everything up for a continuing run and I'm glad that it has been signed off as a continuing and due to Williamson being heavy handed with allowing Waller nonsense in this plot it's going to run through Absolute Power and presumably be able to pick up with some actual ordinary Green Arrow plots.

I just want Williamson to pick up the pace a bit, and give us some one shots and three issue stories once we get back from Absolute Power to justify pulling this huge cast together by using them as more than set dressing for Ollie having a midlife crisis realisation.

The Warlord #54: Travis has a minor breakdown because Ashiya is using the form of his dead wife, Rachel, then realises he's being duped.

Shakira pushes Tara out of danger, proving that despite everything, they don't actually hate each other.

Jennifer is now a super powerful witch who has outpaced Ashiya's teachings and they have a cool sorcery battle:

And we finish off with Travis heading back to Shamballah with Tara and Jennifer staying in the castle to learn more magic (after defeating Ashiya).

[crimsonscloud]

you know what. it's missing norton!bruce hours (again) and i got some headcanons to share this time. below the cut because we might be here a while.

general / misc headcanons:

based on norton's screenplay for the incredible hulk, this bruce's full name is david bruce banner. (this is also how i mentally differentiate between norton and ruffalo's portrayals; to me, norton!bruce is david, ruffalo!bruce is robert.)

his mother used to call him "davey" as an affectionate nickname when he was little.

frankenstein is one of his favorite books because his mother read it to him. (this one is canon to the ih novelization)

he adores dogs and adopts a puppy between the avengers and age of ultron. (i don't have a name for the puppy yet.)

he likes studio ghibli films and finds the animation style relaxing.

learned russian while getting one of his phds, like in the comics.

inspired by this panel from the "super spy banner" arc in the comics: he likes james bond. and yes, he absolutely takes the chance to say "the name is banner. bruce banner" when he's doing an infiltration mission (probably with natasha and/or clint) or something. he and natasha probably watch the films together since her solo film had her quoting along to moonraker.

bruce. is. a. martial. artist. the films forget this and i'm salty about it.

cooking is relaxing for him so he tends to make a lot of food, and he knows a lot of dishes from different cultures because of how much he's traveled. no one on the team complains.

bruce's powers:

glowing eyes <3

inspired by the john turman hulk script, electricity behaves weird around bruce when he gets emotional. he has made lightbulbs and other things explode if he's standing too close to them. he learns how to isolate the effect once he understands more about his relationship with hulk. tony helps by giving him things he doesn't mind getting exploded, and for bruce it also works kind of like a trauma release. he can still accidentally blow something up if he gets distracted / agitated, but it happens less.

the electrical-interference power also manifests as him being able to hear electrical currents. different things have slightly different sounds / pitches and tony always asks him to describe them.

still has a pretty good healing factor as bruce, it's just slower. (in a ih deleted scene sparr says she's never seen someone recover from a tranquilizer as fast as he does). also can't get drunk, but he's never tested that for obvious reasons.

in the novel he's able to dodge a tranq dart "aimed and fired in one motion" so he probably also has faster reflexes.

immune to mind control as bruce and as hulk. both are pissed at wanda for trying it.

based on a scene in the immortal hulk comics, bruce uses automatic writing and drawing to communicate with hulk when hulk isn't out.

can see astral forms. they're clearer and even tangible when hulk is in control, but bruce can also see them.

also inspired by immortal hulk, he has a weird sixth sense for when people are lying to him. as bruce the "itch" he gets can be ignored most of the time, as hulk not so much.

relationship / dynamic headcanons:

no brutasha romance to be seen here they are friends 😌 (if that's your cup of tea that's fine it just isn't mine.)

stays. in. contact. with. betty. (i will forever fight the mcu over this. they are soulmates yall.)

steals tony's band shirts like a gremlin. also steals tony's snacks.

bruce🤝wanda: blurring the lines of science and mysticism. (later comics describe gamma radiation as having a mystical element, "like a magic spell... when viewed from another angle" which is the same reason bruce / hulk tend to have some extrasensory powers).

i just think we were robbed of a bruce and wanda friendship okay.

[c0smiccom3t]

Dimension Dyfenders Update!! (9/20/23)

HEY, HEY, it's September! You know what that means! (read the above)

Hello D.D fandom, hello followers, mutuals, friends and hello people who curiously stumbled upon this post. You all know who i am, but for those who don't, let me introduce myself. My name's Comet. I'm the co-creator and main artist in the indie webcomic series Dimension Dyfenders! As of right now, i'm attending art school and trying my best to work more on the webcomic while also attending on my studies and get better grades. Now, you might ask, "Comet, what's going on with this series now?", "Why haven't been there more pocket adventures minisode 1 parts lately?" Well, i got the answers right here! First of all, let's start with the most obvious one... The Pocket Adventures situation.

Now, Pocket Adventures hasnt been online as of late, no next parts were being published, and im very sorry for that. The cause for it is the loss of motivation i had, which made me not work on it for a long while. Even when making new panels i feel extremely tired. Feeling like i should do something else (heck, i feel insecure about its panels when i draw them!) But fret not, that doesn't mean Pocket Adventures is getting cancelled. We still have loads of plans on the table and we can't wait to roll them out. But for now, we're taking a break due to IRL situations for example, art school. We, the team, have lives outside of making d.d content. We need to get our degrees and, well, try to survive life. But no worries, because I got plans to get back on D.D P.A Minisode 1 and finish it completely once winter break hits. As long as my motivation gets out of its hibernation phase. But still, i can't wait for you all to see the conclusion to minisode 1. (I just hope you dont mind if i jump right into the 'new designs' in the next pages)

Speaking of minisodes, I've been thinking of releasing minisodes only once a year than every saturday. Though this decision is not final yet. I don't want clout, in fact, i just wanna do what I love. Create stories and comics for everybody to enjoy. But if you guys would love for a minisode to release once a year or once in 3 months, let me know your opinions! Your criticism helps this series, especially its production, grow better!

Now, for the second and final question you may have asked… Thing is, Nothing has changed! But well, if you know me on my social media for my recent Crash Bandicoot fanart, then you might notice that Crash 4: It's About Time, especially it's artbook (and concept art by Nicola Saviori)... Has affected my artstyle, DRASTICALLY. So. The characters, of course, have went through some changes. I'd like to call this new artstyle... "The TFB Effect". As a matter of fact, Dimension Dyfenders (both its miniseries and full series) is going to have a brand new, more cartoony, zanier than ever artstyle! Don't believe me? See for yourselves. Starting with the main ones!

I decided to add a little bit of the good ol' Squash and Stretch to the characters to make them stand out more in the next comics. So of course, some of the colors have changed, especially designs and bodytypes. Oh, and not just that, our heroes have some new stuff, too! For example: Knockout's Dyfender Element is now refered as "Quantum Strenght", Paintdrop's is called "Cosmic Creativity" and Speedrunner's is called "Light Speed". Neat upgrades, eh? (Still, criticism is accepted.) Anyway, notice that in the first picture above there's something that says: "Dyfender Mode", right? Well, if you see that, that's because we are introducing something brand new to our heroes. Called: Omni-modes.

Now, "what are Omni-modes?", you may ask? Well, Omni-modes are modes that are set on the Dyfenders' Dy-watches, you may see that the Omni-Modes are, of course, the Dyfenders' alternate hero forms, to help them take on a mission in a different, more suitable form. When the day needs to be saved during night time (and rarely past bedtime), they activate Night Mode. For sunny beach days but still wanting to make sure nobody figures out their secret identities, Acqua Mode will be at their service. There are tons of different Omni-Modes to be shown (Especially, Pride mode, which was shown on this year's pride post.) So, yeah. Omni-modes will be shown in both the miniseries AND the full series!

Oh! And refering to characters, we can't forget about our main bad guys! Oh, you know, the Dajo-Crew? They got a bit of a make over to fit to the current artstyle! (ft. the updated height chart):

Now that we got that out of the way. let's just head over what will the future of the series look like as of right now. Starting off with the full series and pocket adventures. As said before, Dimension Dyfenders' artstyle changed. But that doesn't mean everything changed, things may be different (the more cartoony artstyle and the sillier tone), but nothing about the series has changed! And that means..

MORE POCKET ADVENTURES IS HAPPENING, THAT'S RIGHT! MORE D.D CONTENT COMING THIS WAY!

As for right now, D.D Minisode 1 may still be in development as we speak, but one thing that's completed right now is the script! Now that its finally finished, all thats left, is the panel and comic page-making (hopefully you wont mind the sudden character design changes, though.)! But in the meantime! We got some sneak peaks for not just one of the panels from the next minisode 1 pages, but also a never-seen before panel from the next minisodes of pocket adventures! (notice: some of these are not final and may change in the final product.)

That's not all! this franchise has got some new stuff coming in during it's run. We got so many plans, but this is the only thing we can show about said plans:

As you can see, you're gonna see some new characters in pocket adventures. While in the full series, you'll get some new characters too. Except... New baddies will be only in the full series, while in the miniseries then later in the animated series... You'll get to meet some new allies! So, keep your eyes peeled for them! And we hope you like them as much as we do.

Now, D.D has never shown a sign of stopping, even during hiatuses, so im happy to announce that more Pocket Adventures will be on their way after Minisode 1 has completed production! We're thinking of putting the upload dates on hold (which means, minisode 2 is delayed until further notice, sorry guys.). So please be patient when waiting for new minisodes.

And speaking of patience... I think I got a little something to keep you guys busy with while you wait... Introducing…

DIMENSION DYFENDERS TOONIES!

Now, you may be wondering: "What is THIS?" D.D.T (Dimension Dyfenders Toonies for long), is a brand new miniseries of comic strips that comes out during the weekends. (Starting in October, the end of september, or during the holiday season! No promises, though.) It's a little something i can make up while you guys wait for the next Pocket Adventures Minisodes. Oh yeah, here's one of the cover for it, too! It's not much, but i know you guys would go NUTS for it:

This will be about how the Dyfenders handle their superhero and school lives in everyday situations. (No worries, the action isn't gone. There might be some strips about school, but there will be more strips about their superhero lives, guarantee!). It's also about what The Dajo-Crew does when they aren't invading dimensions, get into some shenanigans at the castle and also when they plot evil schemes. some strips will be either original with a new short story or a recreation of old strips from phase 1 (not a final decision of course, but you can tell us if you like this idea)! One thing to point out is that some of the strips might take place before some minisodes, now thats another thing to notice, right? And that's the only "spoiler" I can give. So, sorry, no more! OH! And for any of you voice actors reading this who are like: "Wow, i wonder when this series will get a comic dub / animated series. If i'm lucky enough i might be able to voice act for it!" … Boy, do we have a treat for you all. Which will be posted in a few hours. both on bird app, bluesky, insta and on here!  The only thing I have to announce is that during the d.d stuff's production and during art school, i'm not gonna be online on social media. (until during normal/long weekends and festive days.), but no worries, the series is still alive and kicking, even when there aren't posts about it for a few months! Though, in some days, i'll be able to make and share some art for it! You're all in for a wild ride for these months and for 2024! Oh, and about Dajo's account. I'm planning to bring it back. But, Dajo is currently busy conquering Dimensions, but I can assure he hasn't abandoned Sinstagram completely. You'll see more of his influencer side, too. Both in his Sinstagram and in the upcoming strips! (And perhaps in some mini– OOPS! TOO MUCH!) That's all for now! Thank you all for your support on the series, don't forget to share your fan creations of the series in DMs or tag me and the team in your masterpieces, share it with your family and friends, subscribe to the series on Comicfury, and follow me on Tumblr, bluesky, bird app and Instagram if you wish to support the project even outside of comicfury! Once again, thank you all in this slowly-growing small fandom for all of your support, and i hope you're all excited for what's to come! If you have any questions, please drop them on my tumblr askbox, Which i'll be able to answer during the weekends. That's all, back to the offline study and sleep abyss for me. GOODBYE!

[theambivalentagender]

My Comics Process

I've seen other people post an overview of their comic making process, so I figured I'd put up my own for Valley Echoes. Fair warning, a lot of this is probably good examples of what you really shouldn't do. There's bits to it I need to tweak. But overall this is just what works for me.

Step 1: Borderline Maladaptive Daydreaming

I have a general outline of upcoming comics and plot points, mostly in my head, partially written down in a Notepad file named "ejfiejfeij." Sometimes I'll see something like an incorrect quote or headcanon that inspires a part of a comic, and when that happens I'll try to take note of the original creator of said inspiration to credit later.

Several of my comics have been literally inspired by weird things that have happened while playing modded Stardew - one good example being this bit.

Step 2: Sketch Concept

I don't always do this stage in full for every comic - sometimes I just know exactly how things are going to go. But a lot of the time I like doing it because it's a quick way to note down specific visual ideas I have for upcoming comics so I can save time once I get to them.

Funny enough I don't really write scripts for my comics. Again, probably something I should do, but I find writing out scripts actually makes it harder for me to get ideas out fluidly. A script feels like I have to lock down a lot of details right away - that isn't necessarily the truth, it's just how it feels for me, and can result in me not being able to just get the ideas out of my head.

I purposefully keep this stage very, very simplified and loose, mostly for the above reasons. The idea is to keep as much detail-oriented thought away from this stage of the process as possible. You'll see I use certain quick markers to differentiate characters - Shane's sideways hair triangle, Emily's curl, Clint's beard, and Zeke's zig-zaggy hair.

I may write down specific dialogue lines that I know for sure I want in the final comic, but mostly it's just general dialogue ideas or reminders to myself what the "bit" is supposed to be if it's not immediately obvious. I'll add small direction lines if they're important, and quick speech bubbles as a reminder that a character is talking offscreen.

Apologies for my abysmal handwriting. It's readable to me, and in this stage that's really all that matters.

Step 3: Detailed Sketch

This is the part where I finally sit down and take a couple of hours to do the initial comic sketch. Sometimes the final version of this won't entirely match up with the concept. Rarely, I've added or removed panels up until the final image. In most cases, though, this is where the overall comic gets locked in.

I use CSP's 3d models and assets for most of my scenes. I have saved models for each of the characters' proportions, which I find is super great for keeping relative heights consistent. Most of the time when I need props or other set pieces in a scene I'll just use various primatives, however there was absolutely no way in hell I was going to be able to pull that off for the camera, so that's its own asset.

I don't carry my notes over from concept to this stage, I mostly just refer back to the concept layer when I need to add those bits. I've been trying to get more in the habit of sketching out word bubble blocks at this stage to get an idea of how much space I need to leave in each panel. I didn't do this for this comic, which did lead to issues with the one panel where Zeke is trying to walk naturally, but oh well.

Step 4: "Inking"

I like to call this stage "inking" but it's really doing the final clean up layer. This is where I start messing with vectors.

There's actually a lot of steps to this that I can't quite show in this final layer version. Here, I start with just drawing over the lines in the detailed sketch layer with my "inking" pen. I try to keep my lines clear and tend to draw over crossing lines so I can erase the overflow later for a cleaner look. Throughout this stage I'm doing a lot of line adjustments, simplifying where I can, just to make the next part easier.

After I've done all that, I'll go back and adjust line thicknesses. I could probably do a whole post on that alone, but in general I lean toward thicker lines, thickening the lines of clothing, hair, eyebrows, and eyes in particular, as well as thinning wrinkle and other small detail lines.

Step 4: Base Color

I have a pallet of base black-grey-white colors for Valley Echoes, each of which I use consistently for different details. For example, nearly all characters get the same "skin" color (exceptions being Maru, Jas, and Demetrius, who each have their own). Zeke and Shane's hair and common outfit colors are also saved, as well as a few for other recurring characters.

Other than that, I try to "color" according to what needs to stick out in a scene and just trying to make sure grayscale tones aren't too similar next to each other and muddied. If two characters are going to be standing next to each other frequently I try to give them noticeably different shades in their clothing.

The process for this is slightly different for in-color comics. I also have pallets saved for those comics.

Step 5: Details

This is where I'll go back in and add other details that can't simply be added with fill and other tools. In this case, I added Shane's stubble, the blushing in several panels, and Clint turning blue with effect lines.

This is also where I'll add a background. Again, I try to keep the backgrounds so that they don't muddy the foreground elements.

Step 5: Dialogue

This is the bit where I'm likely going to do some revamping in the future. CSP's base dialogue tools are...not great. I'm considering finding another program for doing this bit.

I've also been trying to learn more about methods for dialogue bubble placement in general. This is the bit that can be the most frustrating for me, but overall it works.

How to write the dialogue itself would probably take up multiple posts in of itself. It's a bit instinctual to me because I have much more experience with writing in general. There's also a lot you can say about how splitting dialogue into different bubbles changes how those lines are interpreted, etc.

In this case, a chunk of this comic is taken directly from the original SDV scene, slightly altered for timing purposes. When it comes to canon scenes, it variates on how strictly I follow the dialogue.

After this step, it's just splitting each of these into separate images for each panel and uploading to Tumblr. And I guess that's my very messy, still in development process.

[genericpuff]

This isn't meant to be a hateful ask, but you should probably stop saying you've 'fixed' Rachel's art whenever you redraw comic frames. At first, I could see why your posts were titled that, considering they were just edits made onto a frame, trying to keep in mind the style of the comic alongside it (and let me say, you absolutely nail colors when it comes to your gLOw series, I use your notes for my own art all the time). But it seems like for your more recent posts, you're redrawing panels in your own style and saying that you've 'fixed' the frames. I'm not saying that you can't do that, redraws are a core part of the LO community. But it feels as if you're putting Rachel's art style down in favor of your own. For example, your recent post. Smaller necks and 'googly eyes' (big eyes with small pupils) are usually apart of LOs more cartooney style, they aren't something as bad as LOs men's shoulder to head width, or awkward hand and feet positions, etc. The point I'm trying to make is that you should probably start titling frames you redraw in your own style as that, a redraw, not 'fixing' someone else's art style

EDIT: oh god I totally went off with this, BIG apologies for the essay dump in response to a very simple ask, it's just a topic I'm very passionate about and am willing to talk about at really extreme lengths. I appreciate your takes on this even if I do disagree with them, I just don't make shit easy and I apologize for that 😖 😂

Oookay, so I'm gonna try and answer this as best I can, with as little curtness as possible, because I know you're asking it genuinely, but please understand that this is a topic that comes up a LOT in artist/LO spaces and I'm sorta exhausted with having to talk about it. Often times because it's approaching the argument with a very misconstrued idea of what 'style' is.

Ironically enough, before I get into this, I actually do have a post queued up for tomorrow already that's called a 'redraw' because unlike the panels I'm assuming you're calling out, I actually painted the upcoming ones for tomorrow entirely from scratch. I'm still trying to replicate the LO style, of course, but it's not trying to remain quite as faithful as my edits tend to be because it's meant to be a redraw in the true sense of the word like you're referencing. My edits are often just a normal layer on top of the original that I paint over, which is what the last few posts have been. My redraws are drawn from the ground up, backgrounds, faces, poses, etc. often times with the goal of re-compositing the scene entirely. The ones from the last couple days were not drawn from the ground up, simply altered over the originals - but the unfortunate reality is that some of them simply can't be accurately edited entirely due to the original composition being such a visual mess. That includes this one which was a struggle to edit faithfully without my own anatomical stylizations bleeding into it due to how janky the original was (IMO). Like, the original panel didn't even "look like LO", it's godawful, and it's a stretch to say I'm dissing Rachel's "style" when I'm fairly certain Rachel didn't even draw any part of that original panel, it's INCREDIBLY obvious two different people from her team drew it and there's no way of knowing whether or not Rachel was one of them. I did not touch Hades because he's not the problem with the panel. Hades as you see him in that panel is exactly how he was in the original, I merely tried my best to edit Persephone to look more consistent with Hades and less creepy.

Disclaimers over, let's get on with this.

So here's the thing - if it were a simple matter of "style", I'd agree wholeheartedly with you. I'm not about pitting artists against one another, we're all different people with different takes and inspirations making our own thing.

However, there's a difference between style and execution.

With full disclosure, I do not accept the argument that because LO has a more "cartoony style", then it's "fine" for it to very blatantly lower its quality in technical execution or turn into a cheap copy of what it once was. LO was never 'cartoony', it was more akin to storybook art, like something you'd find in old Disney concept art pieces or in children's illustration books. 'Cartoony' as in 'not realistic', sure, but definitely not cartoony in the way most people envision it or market it (like what you'd see in legitimate cartoon shows). The use of color was vibrant and had thought put into it, compositions were dynamic, lineart was only used where needed to create depth, and overall, there was a vibe to it that many of you can still recognize, it's what a lot of my blog talks about.

When I do these panel "fixes", my goal isn't to go "hey, my style is superior to Rachel's! Fuck Rachel!" Far from it. My goal is to analyze what made the original LO art so special and unique, and help preserve those elements in newer panels through key elements such as color choice, glow layers, composition, texturing, etc. many of which are elements that are outright missing from S2 of LO onwards.

Because, full bluntness, LO has zero effort being put into it anymore.

LO never had perfect anatomy and it's always struggled with creating a cohesive visual narrative, but it hid its issues well with a good balance of color choice, mood/tone, and lineart-less rendering. It wasn't meant to be some hyper-realistic comic, what set it apart were the colorful panels and vignettes and use of 'cutout' style backgrounds and foreground elements.

Stuff like this:

I have spent literally hours dissecting LO's art style, researching and hunting down its brushes, crawling the best and most recognizable color palettes, drawing and redrawing old panels in attempts to replicate Rachel's style and techniques as best I can. I'm not doing all that just to try and be like "I can do it better", more so to preserve what once was and could have been. Because I genuinely miss how old LO looked and so do many others. It's my own way of participating in a fandom that's being torn apart each week by the new episodes that only seem to further degrade the comic's original presentation and why people liked it.

Trust me, if I wanted to just draw LO in 'my style' as some sort of self-gratifying flex (because everyone in the art world nowadays thinks the only point in creating art is to have a "style" that they can pit against other "styles" as if styles are collectables like fucking Pokemon lmao), you wouldn't even recognize it.

THIS is my "style", y'all. The only elements that I've purely taken from LO is the background and how I did the lighting effects along the side but everything else is my standard 'style' when I draw anything that's NOT LO, especially with my own comics and my day job.

"Style" is not a tangible thing, at least not in the way people nowadays tend to define it. Style is an accumulation of everything that's influenced an artist over years of practice, learning, refinement, and mastery. It is not something any one person can 'own' nor is it something that can or should be 'fixed' in and of itself. Just like how Rachel has adopted elements of her style from inspirations such as Glen Keane and Mary Blair, I've gotten my stylistic inspirations from anime, manga, video games, and other webcomics. Our styles and why we create art and who we create art for are completely different.

I have zero issue with Rachel's 'style'. At its core it's actually freaking gorgeous, when she puts in the effort. Not even just LO, take a look at her even OLDER art that's still available to sift through on her DA:

The issues I'm bringing up have to do with the execution of said style, how it's blatantly obvious Rachel doesn't put any effort into the art anymore and often has her assistants picking up the slack in a very disorganized manner that leads to disjointed, bland, weird ass art that often can't even maintain consistency between SINGLE PANELS, like this:

The magic is gone. These are not reflections of Rachel's capabilities in the slightest. She is far capable of so much more, this is beyond being a 'stylistic choice' and falls more under the implication of laziness or lack of care.

What's wild is that she's outright stated that she's "streamlined" the LO creation process to make it easier for new assistants to acclimate - which would be fine, if it weren't for the fact that 'streamlining' shouldn't mean 'downgrade'. There are plenty of ways to streamline the LO art style that can still retain the original charm of LO that drew people to it in the first place without cheapening it. It's not like LO is the only webtoon under strict deadlines, Rachel has more assistants than most working for WT and yet everyone else on the platform seems to only improve in their comic's production workflow and its presentation whereas LO has only declined.

(The Kiss Bet, 2019-Present)

(Tower of God, 2014-Present)

Not every comic needs to make improvements this drastically, and technically LO didn't even have to make improvements in its original execution - but it's so far gone in the other direction that it begs the question, "Why do other creators and comics with less prestige and as many or less assistants compared to LO seem to make such bigger strides in the technical execution of their work?" Regardless of whether the style is erring more towards anime or cartoon or realism, 'style' doesn't make up for poor technical execution and lack of consistency. That's the same energy we get all the time from newcomers to the craft who reject any form of criticism towards their technique and understanding of the fundamentals with "THAT'S JUST MY STYYYYLE". Even many animators who predominantly work on cartoon productions still understand their fundamentals and utilize them in the creation of stylized pieces of work. This isn't even me questioning how much of the fundamentals Rachel knows because, again, she clearly has understanding of it in her older work, she just seems to have stopped caring or isn't doing a proper job directing her team.

I criticize the stick necks and googly eyes the same way I do the inconsistent body types, refrigerator shoulders and same-face syndrome because they're all things that are detracting from and lowering the quality of LO's art as a whole. They didn't always shade whites in the old episodes of LO, but they did often tint them to make them less jarring against the more vibrant colors. They didn't always color in the irises back in 2018/2019, but at least when they were just solid black pupils, they were actually drawn EQUALLY, vs. the solid pupils nowadays which feel like they're each on their own schedule and are never the same size or facing the same direction. They didn't always draw perfect necks and faces, but nowadays it feels like the heads are being stuck on sticks and attached to separate bodies that aren't even consistent with the characters' body types. All of these things are issues, there's no 'hierarchy' of problems, they're each a part of a much bigger lackluster whole.

When it comes to my own panel fixes/redraws/whatever you wanna call them, if they don't look enough like Rachel's 'style', that's either because we're failing to recognize what makes Rachel's art unique due to it being so watered down over the years, or because I'm just not doing a good enough job replicating it. Undoubtedly a little bit of both. I'm still 'adjusting' to a workflow that accommodates the LO style and how it looks. It's not exactly easy to just jump from one style (my style) to another without my own usual biases bleeding in (trust me, I'm not happy that there are people who know my usual art style who can still 'see' it in my LO art, because that completely defeats the purpose of what I'm trying to do lmao)

All that aside, we can't pretend that S1 LO's signature style is still being executed to its fullest potential in S3.

If I can be really brash here, there are WAY more egregious panel 'editors' out there who straight up are drawing stuff legitimately just in their own style. And they're still all great in their own right and get to the point of what they're trying to say even if they don't fit what you would define as a "fix". Don't bug me about mine.

Rachel's style in and of itself is gorgeous and unique. It's the lack of effort in the execution as time goes on that is the topic here. I can never hope to fully achieve that 'vibe' that so many people miss about 'old' LO because that was all Rachel and I can never fully capture the spirit of her work because it's hers, it's the accumulation of everything that's inspired and influenced her in her artistic journey.

What I can do is point out and design alternatives to the many errors, inconsistencies, and technical issues that tries to get it closer to that original look and feel of S1 LO that better reflected Rachel's original efforts. It's what it could potentially look like if modern LO art wasn't so disjointed among its scattered assistants and rushed with as little visible effort possible. It's what could have been if it didn't feel like Rachel has essentially given up.

Does it really matter how I specifically word my posts between 'edit' and 'redraw' in this context when both things are attempting to accomplish the same goal?

[dicctor-blog]

Dicctor's very very Awesome devilman fancomic

On Twitter I asked to see if there was an interest on a personal fancomic of Devilman, I didn't give much details (this concept is still in its drafting stage) but it was met with a lot of support. This post is a bit of an informal introduction because I just want to really get it out of the way that I've been working on this, and this is something that I will be working on for a while (I am a full time college student with a lot of work). This comic will primarily be inspired by the 1987 OVA of Devilman, therefore the designs are heavily referenced and based off of that (this comic is supposed to continue off of where it left off at the sirene bit).

Important Things to Specify

My interpretation of Miko is the one I really need to specify. As I'm sure most people have noticed, I head-cannoned the HELL out of Miko. I made a heavy amount of changes to her character for my personal fancomic. These changes can be considered good or bad, truly it's up to you! These changes include:

Tollg is a tree (weeping Willow) demon, therefore she has a tree motif rather than... the hole thing (breast holes were kept so not to stray too far from her original Devilman design)

Miko goes to the same school with Miki and Akira. This was done so she can be apart of the story more frequently (I want all four of them to be the protagonists of the story)

Biggest elephant in the room that people seem to have. A lot of issues with... Miko is south Asian, therefore darker (I have been working on ethnicity traits so this is portrayed even better)

Below is her conceptual demon design and her official ref I made

Though this comic is based off the OVAs and will continue where it left off, it is completely different and separate from the original story! Sorry.

Anything that I will draw/make that's for my comic, be it concepts, finished pieces, panels, etc. will all be posted under "#demon uprising" in order to keep track and to avoid confusion. Another small detail is I put in different moles on each character so that it's more obvious that this is not the originals and rather, a fan interpretation of them (don't ask why I just think it's cool and cute)

The most I'll post about this is just art related to it, but if you've got a question or something just shoot me a message in my ask box or in my dms! I'm not always on tumblr but I'll try to check if I see any notifs. Thank you for reading... byeeeeee

[soyouareandrewdobson]

Why do you think Dobson's art got noticably worse? I mean so much worse. There's a reason why people often think his older stuff looks better; because it does (okay when he's not making mistakes like wrong number of fingers, angles, inconsistencies, etc.). I know he wanted to move away from his manga-influenced art but I don't think that explains everything.

I think the advantage of his older art is mostly that Dobson was simply being more simplistic in his early days than later on. Only that his attempts to be more detailed and move away from his "manga-influenced" art also involved him mixing too many things together all at once, creating just ugly art in general.

There is in my opinion a bit too much going on as to answer it in just a few lines, but I will try: First, the statement "Dobson was manga-influenced" always rubbed me off the wrong way because I don't think that is quite the case. Dobson was definitely influenced in his art styl and writing by certain mangas he read -Slayers and Ranma 1/2 primarily- but a handful of manga by an even smaller pool of artists to draw from, does not encompose the sheer variety of linework and aesthetics that have been within manga. For example, no one would be able to mistake a Go Nagai artwork for one by Akira Toriyama or Gosho Aoyama, because they have vastly different drawing styles. Confusing an Endo however with an Arakawa would likely be more the case. And don't get me even started how manga is often times writen differently from most western comics of the 70s-90s in term of drama, plot etc. What rather was the case, was that Dobson took aspects of the most simplistic, surface level aesthetics of manga in art and drawing, and hoped it would lead to success. Which it didn't, because of different reasons like a lack of commitment to the writing and nothing making it visually really different from a newspaper strip comic, but with characters making silly faces associated with late 90s comedy anime.

Second, when Dobson tried to reinvent himself, I think he tried too hard to get into more details or add shadows, wrinkles and stuff to his art. It is hard to explain, but the way it looks to me (particularly in stuff like his KorraSami pics) Dobson tried to draw characters at times with more "realistic" details like wrinkles in the face, but because the characters he drew are style toons, they started too look uncanny or exagerated. Which is another problem: When you look e.g. at his Ladybug comics, he didn't even get the proportions of the characters from the show not right by comparison, especially when it came to size of heads and eyes. Which if he had just gone full chibi style wouldn't have been as obvious to most people. But Dobson was always stuck in a weird halfway there state, where the characters were neither cartoonish but proportional, or too cartoonish and unproportional that the former balanced out the later. And he never figured the problem out.

Third, Dobson was just lazy when it comes to scenery I mean, I agree partly with Dobson that at times you don't need to draw a very detailed background when the focus of a story is in one panel focused on two characters looking at something off screen, them talking, or being in thought. But when you really think about it, when did Dobson ever for example really put effort into drawing e.g. a panel where the scenery was meant to tell more of a story or a storybeat, than the characters talking? Or when was a panel ever drawn from a different ankle than simply straight face forward. Like, has Dobson ever even heard of "overhead shot", dutch ankle or POV?

[funarisjournal]

The Beginning (Comic Edition, Pt 2)

Saved the rest of this revisit for today's slow periods at work. I liveblogged on Twitter, but this is where I really get to write my thoughts out. No tiny character limits!

Anyway, if you haven't seen the first part, I suggest you check it out first because I'm going in all "Now, where was I?" Style.

[Again, my essays are more for those that have already read the story over once or twice and are looking for some deeper analyzations. Spoilers may be mentioned, so you are warned!]

Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah. Kasuga just opened the door and there was her neighbor, the one she had awkwardly talked to the previous evening.

Repeat photos, yay!

Anyway, there are two things going on here.

Kasuga opening the door to see who it is. She sees it's her neighbor and they had that convo, so she's steeling herself. She knows she can just close the door if it gets uncomfortable, but she is willing to listen because food, you say? She's (warily) listening...

Nomoto, meanwhile, is a nervous wreck because, well, how do you word this?? She is more nervous about the food proposal than Kasuga! Even on the next page, the nervousness stems from the weird-to-Nomoto request for someone to help finish off the meal she made tonight. Like, this is how she's truly introducing herself to her neighbor with little to no prior interaction. "Hi, how you doing? Wanna eat my food?"

She is well aware it sounds weird and maybe even creepy but...but what else is she gonna do with all that food when she's got no social circles or community knowledge under her belt?

We know how she acts when others (especially men) frame her passion as great wife material, but when she has to talk about it? Anxiety through the roof. She's judging herself and being self-conscious. In a way, I like how this isn't "Kasuga is a big, cold, scary woman" and more "Nomoto is super self-conscious and doesn't know how to be social in-person anymore (because she hasn't had friends since her school days and that's almost 15-ish years now, based on what I've inferred from other pages re: her current age and knowing the comic is basically Present Day)

Poor Nomoto has a lot of baggage herself. It's not as obvious in these first chapters, but she was clearly molded by folks who definitely harped on the traditional values and other expectations of adulthood around her too much....NOMOTO'S MOM.

But...I digress. So, there's something interesting to note here. I don't think I've seen people point out this specific panel. Namely, that last one, Kasuga's eye.

Kasuga loves to eat. We know this, even new readers get that impression pretty quick (and the cover, of course). She wants to enjoy all the food in the world, probably even the mediocre stuff (to which she can make future purchasing/eating-out options when she can afford it)

As you get to know her, and you come back to these early pages, you realize this food stunned her.

While we know Nomoto's food is delicious and others have voiced their satisfaction with it, Kasuga was able to taste an extra special ingredient that night. Yes, I'm being a little cheesy here. This special, "invisible" ingredient that has been missing in her life resonated within, and she responded with the most emphatic eating that, in turn, stunned Nomoto in feelings she hasn't felt before.

Fun thing to note with Nomoto in the center of the page here: based on the way it's drawn, this woman is having multiple things firing up inside her at full blast; not just the sight of someone enjoying her massive portion of food, but seeing HOW MUCH they're enjoying it and just never experiencing this before. It's new, it's stunning (multiple definitions)...she is just this side of BSOD-ing.

They have been cooking and eating with something missing all this time. Put them together and it's like something opens up within both. They had what the other was missing and they were LITERALLY NEIGHBORS...but it took a chance encounter in an elevator to start the connection

The next parts are basically Nomoto's raisom d'etre waking up from its slumber. She remembers why she took up cooking in the first place...

And while we can attribute these panels as a little lighthearted, comedic moment as the chapter comes to a close, consider this: the birds, bunnies, and deer never came...and neither did any people as she grew up and began her cooking journey. She found a "workaround" via sharing online, but it's not like her old dream. She said at the beginning how her food is missing an audience that will fully enjoy it (not just as posts). She has never had anyone around to enjoy her food until Kasuga agreed to finish off this plate.

And this is where I realized something.

....Did Nomoto even cook when she lived with her folks? Did she cook back then and they didn't enjoy it? Did she only cook for herself and that's how she learned? Or maybe her mom was like "leave all the cooking to me" so she never had a chance to show off?

Like this raises a lot of questions that I wasn't expecting to have as I reread this chapter. The future nightmare scene in Vol 2 doesn't help matters, though it gives us further insight about her friendships and her being pushed into heteronormative adulthood even at a young age. Sure, it's a nightmare, with some fantastical, nightmareish transitions, but a lot of those scenes appear to be based on past experiences she had, including the orientation quiz BUT I digress. Again! That can be for another essay!

Anyway! Whoo! What a ride, eh? And I still plan to do an essay over how Episode 1 of the drama covered their beginnings, so look forward to that!

[linesonscreens]

Let's Read Peanuts (Yes, all of it) - January 1952

There are lots of great strips I just don't have room to comment on. I strongly encourage everybody to read the full month at the official GoComics page. Today's month starts HERE.

Jan 1, 1952

Oh come on! How do you not have the last panel be Patty hitting Charlie Brown with the shovel!?

Jan 6, 1952

Hey look at that! Sunday strips are a thing now!

Also, am I crazy or was this drawn ~way~ prior to the other strips (my guess would be May of the previous year based on the head sizes)? I mean, it makes sense that Schulz would create a buffer for himself but I'm still kind of shocked at just how different this looks from the current weekday strips.

Jan 10, 1952

This one got a solid “heh!” from me. Like, out loud.

Jan 15, 1952

Do people do weirdly political snowman art IRL? Because if not they should.

Jan 16, 1952

Look at the notes he's playing in the first panel. The answer is pretty obvious: https://youtu.be/E8rVQn4YZTk?si=o1wmzoIyfQuFfde-

Jan 20, 1952

Oh for f-

JUST GET A REFERENCE PHOTO OF A DOG JUMPING!

Jan 22, 1951

Patty being into photography would have been a pretty cool long term character trait IMO. I'm kind of sad this was just a one-off joke.

Jan 28, 1952

Wait! Wait! Stop the strip for a moment.

What on earth is Charlie Brown wearing? He looks like he's there to solve a murder.

Jan 30, 1952

Find me a single kid that wouldn't do the same. Hell, I did this last week.

Thoughts:

Huzzah! We have Sunday strips now!

I have no idea why it took an entire year for them to start but my best guess is that the strip needed to show a certain amount of success before the syndicate was willing to invest the necessary money and energy into setting up a Sunday run. That might sound a bit weird but you need to understand that making Sunday strips is actually kind of a big deal (different print sizes, different companies involved, different audiences, etc) and is way more complicated than you would think. It's kind of like printing a completely separate comic so I can see why a company might wait and see how a strip does in the weekday section first before diving in.

Either way I'm really happy that they're here because I think Schulz's art really shines when he has that extra bit of space to play in. I'm really excited to read through them again.

[measuringbliss]

Ultimate Spider-Man (2024) #4 & 5

So... is it me or do I sense some hostily from Gwen towards MJ?

I didn't expect MJ to help Jonah and Ben in their endeavor, but that's a smart way to bring the cast together.

Harry's funny though. I don't think I trust him (he's definitely different from 616 Harry...) though.

Hmm. Peculiar framing.

Alright, I like Gwen too.

I was afraid that the son would be the obvious reject of the family, but his scene with Ben is really good.

Oh, I can relate to Gwen in that first panel, oops. Fascinating dynamic. Very tense, falsely light. Stressful to read. So Gwen wants to help The Paper get off. Hmm. Not sure I like this.

"...are bisexual."

In the context of the current state of my country (huge French politics post coming soon?), this is captivating.

Very interesting to see Harry be the one giving the famous line, I feel like he can twist it differently if he so wishes...

Anyway, Gwen being aware of Harry's superheroics makes me want to reread the entire issue until now. Which is what we're gonna do.

...So Gwen's full on trying to convince Peter of their cause, and she's also forcing MJ to think about the vigilante question. She quickly gets that MJ's not aware of Spidey's identity, and I think she tries to steer her towards that.

I do wonder if the "having children" subject is a source of discord in their couple though...

Overall an excellent issue, but I was right to wait until I could read the next issue. They're too short! But that was stellar, extremely solid. This is what comic books can achieve!

In issue 5, Norman dies! It's a Flashback Episode of how things happened for Harry. Alright.

Harry and Gwen use the help of Otto Octavius, which surely will go perfectly...

Gwen's further characterization makes me really like her.

What the fuck.

They're extremely gay.

So a pregnant Gwen's gonna die, gotcha.

Less of a fan of that issue, but it was still solid.

Cautiously waiting for the next few issues.

[ninjapotatohead]

I'm just going to get this out of the way...

All you ever do is ignore the obvious and just flat out insult people who were never in the wrong with a dumb meme. (I mean, memes are funny, but not your's)

People have different opinions on comics and the games and that's okay. You can't just be a hardass to Sonic fans who like media or characters you don't like.

Like, I follow people who don't like Sonamy but do I bash on them because of that? Uhhh, no. I don't. Because I respect other people's different opinions, despite the fact it's not like mine.

You, however, do not. And that is sad.

Also?? I am convinced you are homophobic, because I just noticed you didn't bring up the fact Tangle and Whisper are a thing now. Knowing you, I should've known that that was the case.

Sorry for being honest, I guess, but you're probably the most butthurt person in this hellsite. I didn't make my blog just to see your dumb posts about you criticising fans and people who work at SEGA who are doing their job.

If your life is based on constantly ignoring valid points or looking at the negative side of things in the fandom or being snarky and rude to people who just simply disagree with you, there's a good reason why a lot of people block you.

I hate to disappoint you, but unfortunately, you're an asshole.

I tried so hard not to get in your way, but your posts have been bothering me every time I look up Sonic's name because I want to see funny posts, cool fanart and all that awesome jazz.

You are just one of those people who drains out all the fun and makes fun of the fandom for simply ENJOYING stuff that you don't.

I want you to understand that. I'm not here to attack, I'm just telling you how you make me feel.

You're the living embodiment of the No Fun Allowed panel from the Archie comics, and I don't think that you'll change for the better anytime soon.

Also, don't even think about responding with a meme or your usual: "I have no idea what the hell your talking about, therefore I'm right. Checkmate."

Cause that just proves you don't care.

I know you're reading this, but choose to think I'm wrong. I know, but I'm posting this to you anyways because maybe someday, you'll reconsider how you act towards certain people.

Or maybe you won't, and I'm certain at the second option.

Really sorry, but you're just not a good person.

Either leave the fandom or grow up, which ever comes last.

Credit where it's due, you're not being a punk-ass and going Anonymous. That said, your claims are full of more holes than a fine Swiss cheese.

• "All you do is ignore the obvious and insult people who were never in the wrong..."

You're making shit up. Have you SEEN the sorts of things I get in my inbox? Oh wait, of course you (supposedly) haven't. That would require admitting that the other side of a coin exists, and that these people you claim are "innocent"... simply aren't. The only ones "ignoring the obvious" are the jackasses who make shit up about the games they never played.

• "Memes are funny, but not your's"

There's no apostrophe in "yours". Next!

• "People have different opinions on the games and comics, and that's okay."

No shit, Sherlock. You say that, yet, whenever someone (ie folks like myself, @darklightheart, @crusherthedoctor, or @aquillis-main) lists any and all grievances or problems said comic has from our perspective (with reason), the fandom takes a defensive stance almost immediately and swarms our inboxes with their own brand of unsavory behavior... but said fans are "innocent" according to you, right?

• "Also, I'm convinced you're homophobic because I just noticed you didn't bring up the fact that Tangle & Whisper are a thing now."

Did you break your back and pull every single muscle in your body or something, because that's a goddamn massive leap of logic you just made based on literally nothing.

• "...you're probably the most butthurt person on this hellsite."

• "I didn't make my blog just to see you criticizing fans and people at SEGA who are doing their jobs."

No, you made your blog to cry your way into people's inboxes about people not doing it enough.

• "If your life is based on constantly ignoring valid points and looking at the negative side of things in the fandom..."

Like those so-called "innocent fans" who blow up the inboxes of multiple users on this site to do that very thing? Yeah, no. Try harder.

• "...your posts have been bothering me every time I look up Sonic's name..."

Translation:

• "I'm not here to attack..."

Could've fooled me.

• "...I'm posting this to you because maybe someday, you'll reconsider how you act towards certain people."

So, what you're saying is the next time soy boy stans like you bombard the inboxes of myself and other users for the express purpose of trying to silence other people's opinions, we're supposed to just acquiesce? Yeah no, you're living in a bubble.

• "Really sorry, but you're just not a good person."