One thing I don't think I can ever get used to as a creator who became a "micro-celebrity" within the Sonic fandom is how often people will treat me and my work like some faceless corporate entity they can just like, say anything to.
Like for example, someone (not on tumblr but in a different place I post Infested) already made up some scenario in their head about where this thing with Sally is going to like, complain about it? Like they got no idea what's gonna happen, guessed some outta nowhere thing, and started complaining about this thing they are assuming will happen.
Like, man. I'm not Sega. I'm one single passionate fan who's making this because I love the series and I love comics. The person reading your comment is, in fact, NOT just some social media manager. They are the person pouring all of the hours of their day into making this passion project you're reading.
Like, hey, sorry to kvetch, but like. It did get under my skin. Kinda did need to get that off my chest.
Well, I do hope when I get to the actually mature parts of Infested (not the gore though that's "mature" in the sense that it's inappropriate for children), the kids who shouldn't be reading Infested will get bored and stop doing that.
On one hand I absolutely understand how and why folks would get pissy about Shadow being "weak". But on the other.... that's the point? It's a paradigm shift that makes the horror elements shine the brightest--Shadow is basically Canon Shadow in power and accomplishment, so 1. If SHADOW is afraid of this situation, you know it's something that has to be taken seriously, and 2. Knowing that SHADOW (verified by the narrative) is completely powerless to an unknown force turning him into a mindless killer is very scary for the other characters' safety. If it was canon Stoic Aloof Shadow it would get boring pretty fast.
So yeah, ditto on approving of this writing decision👍
Thanks! Yeah, idk, I saw more than one person huffing and puffing at the idea of Shadow falling and hitting his head on a rock and bleeding from hitting his head on a rock. Like long after that page was released, even.
It got me thinking about the toxic nature of power scalers and how much of it consists of a buncha dudebros getting strangled by their own love of Character, attaching their own identities to said-Character, tying even their MASCULINITY to Character, to the point that if Character is ever defeated by anyone or overcome by anything or, say, hit in the head by a rock, suddenly that's emasculating to them, personally. Suddenly it's some deeply insulting, wounding thing because their Sports Team (character) is LOSING!!! And that means they are losing by association.
Bobby Schroeder of ThanksKenPenders and Super Lesbian Animal RPG fame talks about this briefly in her essay titled "IDW Sonic: On Lanolin the Sheep, and the problem with Sonic Twitter:"
"They treat it like it's not a story with ups and downs, but a sport. You root for your favorite characters, and when bad things happen to them that means you're losing. It gets even worse when powerscaling is involved, which you see all the time in discussions of shonen manga. When a character wins a fight or does something cool, they're proving they're the GOAT and moving up in the power rankings. The second they lose a fight or do something foolish, or even when they simply don't do enough cool shit in a given arc, that means they were always a fraud. Out come the Potential Man memes! And if you're a fan of a fraud, that makes YOU look stupid for rooting for them!"
(I highly recommend reading this full essay, especially if you are a fan of Lanolin or maybe even if you are not)
As a writer, the type of fandom here can be very scary and highly discouraging. They want "hype moments and aura" instead of a rollercoaster of a story with a message driving it. I can only hope this attitude passes someday. At the very least, these folks don't bother me as much as they go on about IDW Sonic -- But I hate that they're pestering poor Ian Flynn and Evan Stanley.
There's a weird trend I've noticed where people will avoid media that makes them uncomfortable in any sort of way to the point that they will publicly denounce it as if their own personal opinions are fact. Not bc they're trying to protect themselves from triggering content, or bc they're criticizing media that glorifies/romanticizes "problematic" themes and topics instead of trying to start a meaningful conversation about them, but because they truly believe that any media that makes them feel anything less than happy is inherently Bad.
There was a post floating around here somewhat recently where someone said that ALL instances of character death were manipulative bc they were only added to... make the reader sad?? And not bc the author intentionally included them to aid the story they're trying to tell??? I don't know if it's bc people are still in their "english class sucks boo we hate blue curtains" mindset or what but it's just crazy to me. Especially as someone who usually uses whether or not a media makes me cry as a testament to how well written it is 😭
I think if people would just come to terms with the fact that A) there's nothing wrong with media that makes you uncomfortable/sad; B) it's healthy to engage with media that makes you uncomfortable/sad every once in a while; and C) your personal opinions aren't indicative of the quality of the content and are sometimes just that - personal opinions; then everyone would be so much more chill and happy. Like it really is just that simple!
Also maybe don't read a horror comic if you don't like super common horror tropes like death because like. C'mon.
Yes! Exactly! I remember that post you're talking about, too. BONKERS stuff.
We've become so insulated that we've forgotten how to really, truly Feel, it seems like sometimes. It's always been my dream to make a story that moves people in the same way stories have moved me. I do want to make others cry, I want to make them feel. I want them to feel a safe sort of pain, and share it.
There's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong with being moved. That's what stories should be doing. It's not all sugary sweetness. It shouldn't be, anyway. There needs to be balance. It's not "problematic" for there to be balance. My god do we need balance.
Such a scary, worrisome trend, what you're describing. Calling anything that makes us uncomfortable "problematic," no matter the author's intent or HOW one was made uncomfortable. I hope we shake out of it and kill the conservative within ourselves.
Do you prefer Omega's backstory in the archie comics or in the games?
Rare case of me liking the way the games did something more than Archie Sonic. In Archie, it's all Gamma's fault that Omega ended up switching sides, but in the games, that decision is entirely his.
In Archie Sonic's case, it doesn't really matter how it's spun, it just felt like a case of a hero brainwashing a villain "for the greater good." It's icky to me in that sense and denies Omega his agency in another.
Outside of Infested, what is something that you deemed the creepiest character/story crafted?
"Outside of Infested" is funny considering I'm not even prioritizing creepiness, even if it is a horror comic. I definitely wouldn't put it on a list of Creepiest Stories. 😭
I think for like, creepiest stories uhhh, I dunno about anything that's like, objective fact since I haven't seen or read or played everything within the horror genre ever, so this is definitely My Onion based on what I've experienced in the world as of this ask, but I'll give you both my personal creepiest story and creepiest character:
Story: Lake Mungo - Got under my skin badly. It wasn't sleeping well because of that movie. I feel like I shouldn't spoil that one, but there's a specific part of it that made my skin crawl. For the knowers: It has to do with a phone.
Character: Lisa (PT) - How she died, her noises, the fact that she's glued behind the player character's head, how she moves, and how she absolutely sucks to look at. I can handle a whole lot of gnarly character designs but I canNOT handle Lisa.
What has your favourite Sonic character taught you?
My favorite Sonic character, Shadow, taught me that he's the coolest, and I believe him even now. I dunno, I don't feel all too "taught" by media as much as real experiences. If anything did, it would've been when I was way, way younger and my memory of that time ain't so clear.
Well, I like him. It's nice to see a character who's considered a "Cool Character" even outside the Sonic fandom who's like, got actual PTSD. Ultimately (heh) he is a character, and a character is a tool used for storytelling. Stories as a whole matter more to me than individual characters, even with my favorites. I'm gonna appreciate a good story about Zazz much more than a bad story about Shadow, any day.
hello! I was wondering what inspired you to create infested? And if you have any media that you feel inspired by when drawing? I really enjoy your work!
Hey howdy! Many folks have asked this one, so I feel I should probably add it to my FAQ at some point, haha.
To summarize quick: Bad, unmedicated depression got me started on Infested, as well as the thought from my old post here from my main blog after re-reading Archie's Sonic Unleashed arc after Sonic pretty much did exactly that before his first transformation into the werehog.
For media I feel inspired by, well, there's the obvious answer of Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog while Ian Flynn was the writer for it. Then there's everything else (for general inspiration and not necessarily stuff that inspired Infested):
Various comics by Mike Mignola
Spider-Man: Blue
The art of Glen Keane
EC Comics, but specifically the works of Wally Wood, Frank Frazetta, and Al Williamson
