Why Use This Blog?

For a medium that is relatively young, webcomic production is enormous. There are a lot of webcomics available, and they are easy to find. Google "Webcomic," and you'll hit about 5,000,000 sites that mention the word. Unfortunately, only a fraction of what is online is enjoyable to read. Finding the "good stuff" can be difficult and takes a considerable amount of time and patience.
This blog was created as a guide to finding good web comics. As a starting point for new readers, it features links to great comics and tips on how to search for the good comics on your own. I also review comics that I come across in my own search for the best that webcomics have to offer.

A note: this is not a guide to publishing a webcomic. I suggest reading the FAQ of a good webcomic artist for information about how-to, or visiting this tutorial.

Also, this is not a literary review of webcomics. For a literary review, see the Webcomics Examiner.

I now update on Sundays.

August 31, 2007

Roomies/Its Walky!/Joyce and Walky Three comics in One!

Roomies
Its Walky
Joyce and Walky
Sci-fi/Angst
PG-13

This trio of comics is actually one huge comic, renamed when the characters most focused on were flip-flopped. And if there was only one word that I could say to describe Its Walky, it would be ANGST.

OH the angst. Every character in this comic has an issue. Should I? issues, Should I have? issues, parental issues, sexual issues, growing up issues, dating issues. If you want issues and scenes where characters have brief soliloquies about there feelings, this is the comic for you! And all of these issues are twined about major alien and shady government issues.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

The first third of this comic, Roomies, focuses on a couple of buddies (Joe and Danny) in college. There are no aliens (okay a few aliens, but not important to the over-all plot of Roomies), there is only normal college angst. Well, not too normal. I know that I've been through a few angsty times in college, but I don't know if I or any of my friends became as broody as these people. Roomies lasts for two years before shifting viewpoints to Its Walky.

Its Walky is much more up my alley. Aliens, secret government institutions, clones, and so on. There is still angst served in heaping portions, but the plot is more organized and the writing is much better than the Roomies stage. I can't really explain many of the story arcs because they are so twisty. In that respect, the comic reminds me of Sluggy Freelance (though I feel that Sluggy does a much better job at feeling "plausible", and is a better written comic). The comic often kept me guessing when I was still reading it on a regular basis. Finally, this portion of the comic has an actual ending, and one that would make most people happy.

Joyce and Walky I have not read. Unfortunately (for me) this portion of the comic is subscription only. I'm assuming that there is still angst, because without angst it wouldn't be the same comic.

The art of the comic, like most webcomics, has evolved over time. Really, the comic now looks nothing like it did in the beginning. This is always a good thing. The angst can sometimes be sickening, and I really don't recommend it to anyone who thinks a combonation of Dawson's Creek and Buffy at its most touchy-feely is a reason to run away screaming from the TV. But if you can wade through the self-pity, the story is not too bad.