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Full review: Girly

So let’s talk about the elephant in this room… Because I think it just ate someone’s couch.

Slightly NSFW review with spoilers below.

#girly #webcomics #review #comic #lgbt webcomics #queer #lesbian

So tumblr mobile just deleted my entire post after breaking its own code by turning some of its own mark up language into emojis... so thats fun.

I'll rewrite it soon... theres 6 hours of editting gone

Tumblr is a functional website...

#its editing style finction is broken too #good lord this app

Full Reviews: Girly

What’s Pink, insane, NSFW, hilarious, and somehow heartwarming at points? This comic is a ride and a half, and I’m genuinely surprised more people haven’t heard of this one… I’ve been wanting to talk about this one for a WHILE. So let’s talk about the elephant in this room… Because I think it just ate someone’s couch. Slightly NSFW review below.

#girly #webcomic #comic #review #lgbt

Queer on Tumblr

Tumblr is an extremely difficult platform to navigate for webcomics. It relies on usually absent tags, a page archive that involves a lot of scrolling or messy links, and it takes a bit of work to dig them up. But that being said, let’s take a look on some queer comics on Tumblr with Honey and Venom, Band vs Band, and Robin and Cat.

#comics #webcomics #lgbt #Honey and Venom #Band Vs Band #Robin & Cat

Essay time: A Rant About Comic Backgrounds- Part IV

The Final part on web comics and backgrounds. So let’s wrap this up with some Rob Liefeld classics and a few final words. This was a joy to write.

Judgment day - Rob Liefeld & Alan Moore Changing interriors and strange background choices Although the backgrounds really fall apart with the second page. Besides the first background being an odd choice to start with. They wanted to show the team as impressive, which is kind of strange considering that the character doesn’t see them that way, nor are they saying anything that makes them seem impressive. The character is disorientated and shocked at the people in the room, and the character’s aren’t really saying anything heroic, it doesn’t entirely make sense for the background to try and position them as impressive there. But, heroic introductions to the main cast isn’t the weirdest thing to happen in comics. But, it’s still strange when it doesn’t match how the characters are actually introduced story wise. The next panel doesn’t do much, it doesn’t add to the character’s confusion, it doesn’t contrast the first. It doesn’t do anything. A little strange for such a large panel, but it isn’t confusing at least. The biggest problem in this page would be the third panel, though. This page happens straight after the first example, and the entire set up of the bedroom has completely changed. The room is now covered in blood, the bed’s a different shape, the table and chairs are gone, the bedside table and lamp are gone, and there’s now a book table in the far corner. It’s supposed to be a reveal of the actual state of the room. But the sense of place is absent, there’s no continuity, there is no reason to believe this is the same room (besides maybe the carpet?). Did he get moved to a different building when he was asleep? was that a flash back? Why is it a different room? It’s confusing, at least I was heavily confused. The audience doesn’t know why the superhero team is impressive, they don’t know what the character generally thinks of them, and they can’t tell where the character is. The backgrounds here aren’t just not being used in interesting ways, they’re ultimately confusing. Which is bizarre from a print comic.

Judgment day - Rob Liefeld & Alan Moore Blank backgrounds without purpose But distracting and confusing setting design aside, there’s also the weird use of negative space. In the two blank panels in this page the character is supposed to be confused and angry. He’s being accused of a crime he didn’t commit. But the use of negative space is... bizarre. It doesn’t really contrast with the other blank backgrounds, the only thing supporting that is the border-less edges, and narrative wise. In the first instance the character is calmly trying to explain his innocence. the background is probably trying to show he’s shocked, but with the angle used it doesn’t make sense, he’s just speaking with two calmly talking people side on. He’s backing away but again, he’s not in enough fear for the panel to show his emotional state, and with him spacing out it doesn’t match his calm yet confused dialogue. Even narrative wise the sense of place is... strange, he was sitting on a bed and now he’s backing away, why is he backing away? Why did he get up? especially if he’s in shock. Why are the people standing right in front of him standing in the door frame, and why are they standing right in front of him again? it’s just hard to read, what’s happening, why is the character doing things, where is he in that room and why does he keep teleporting, why is everyone teleporting, why is the background blank? It’s not entirely clear. The next instance of a white panel isn’t much better, the character is running( I think) at the other character (not sure what he’s trying to do there, maybe he’s floating... trying to hit the woman maybe???). The panel is white except for the shadow on the backdrop which is an odd choice. Besides the shadow it doesn’t make sense timing wise or focus wise. The action isn’t clear enough to be the focus; the dialogue isn’t ground breaking enough to be either; the character is disorientated maybe, but the dialogue, angle, warping of the scene, and pose does not support that; and it’s strange to just have a big empty panel to end on a note that’s supposed to be frantic or angry. It doesn’t really make sense. The backgrounds in Rob Liefeld and Alan Moore’s “Judgment day” doesn’t make sense. The backgrounds don’t have a use, and in many case are used in ways that contradict or just muddy what’s happening in the scene. Not to mention that a lot of the background assets are warped or don’t make physical sense. Which is really distracting. But, the poor use of backgrounds (and visuals in general) makes reading the comic extremely confusing. I still don’t understand what’s supposed to be happening in those pages...

#comics #webcomics #essay #Ariel Magic #Rob Liefeld

Essay time: A Rant About Backgrounds - Part III

To use backgrounds and not to use, and a quick showcase of genre.

But, even if backgrounds vary in use and may even negatively impact certain panels, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter when and how they’re used. There’s always a lot of freedom with what does and doesn’t work with images. But, backgrounds are a tool, you work with it rather than ignore it. Now, with this example, again it’s important to remember the context it was made with. A different industry (once again, the South Korean comic industry with a salary model), and the problems in the industry and the number of people on a project effect how it functions. And the capabilities. One isn’t necessarily better than the other. But, they do work slightly differently. However, this example from Team Gaji “What Does The Fox Say?” (strange title, I know) is a solid example of poor use of background and it’s subsequent effect on the story. The assets and backgrounds in this comic are all 3D rendered, which gives off a strange disconnect between the 2d characters and world they inhabit. And this effect is unintentional, it takes away from the story, it’s distracting, especially at first. But, probably the biggest impact of the rendered backgrounds (the use of rendered backgrounds is a different topic, this is just a case example) is how they’re structured. They’re bland. There’s no information in it. The backgrounds are generally grey scale and empty, the only information is the design. Clean modern. Which could reveal a bit about the character if the other backgrounds and assets in the comic weren’t exactly the same. The use of rendering backgrounds in this case is more about making the workload easier, which could be a completely fair reason, however it does effect the comic. The purpose of backgrounds become purely location based, where the character is when it’s necessary. It doesn’t explore the character’s relationship to the setting/opinions/tone/or personal flares even. So the backgrounds are boring. But even with that the comic still tries to have moments of no background or simple backgrounds for some effect. In the first panel the only focus is on the figure, we see she’s smoking, we see her look down, we see her blandly look over to off screen, then there’s a reveal of another character sleeping in the bed. This is supposed to be a small moment, a moment of quiet with removal of the backgrounds, but that doesn’t work when the backgrounds are information-less to begin with (just grey and sterile, not even for effect). And with the grey gradients you can’t really tell what the character’s are thinking with how the expressions are drawn, even if that’s supposed to be the focus of the frame and be the critical component to the visual story telling. The background tells the audience nothing, the lack of background tells the audience nothing, and in the end the comic relies on dialogue cues. Doesn’t make the scene horrendous, but, it does make it hard to understand and a tad boring. There are many reasons to not use backgrounds in scenes, from setting being irrelevant, to panels needing to be simple, to background removal being a really strong effect. But, Backgrounds are still a tool, and even if they can be used as often as they are not, completely disregarding how they effect the scene doesn’t make a great scene.

#Comics #webcomics #essay #how to be a werewolf #kill 6 billion demons #gunnerkrigg court #go get a roomie #what does the fox say #spinnerette

Essay time: A Rant About Comic Backgrounds - Part II

Tones and focus. A further look into what backgrounds can do.

#comics #webcomics #essay #kill 6 billion demons #the sea in you #always human #gunnerkrigg court #how to be a werewolf #go get a roomie

Essay time: A Rant About Comic Backgrounds - Part I

Look, I get it. Backgrounds are hard to do. They’re time consuming, perspective is hard, and making them accurate panel to panel is maddening. Not to mention that it’ll take years to master them. Yet, with a digital renaissance happening with webcomics right now, there’s a surprisingly large amount of comics that don’t use them well, if at all. And that’s a shame.

Because, backgrounds are insanely useful. [This essay was supposed to be a page long. But... now has to be split into a four parter so my computer stopped freezing... so... enjoy?]

With comics like Gunnerkrigg Court the setting and it’s relationship to the character’s is integral to the plot. Character’s belong to certain environments; switch environments; effect environments; and in turn get affected by them. So the setting and how they relate to each other is an important aspect to the story. Even if the the backgrounds may be simpler in some panels the comic takes time to show the character exploring the space; and through warping, how they feel about each landscape. In this case, a sense of safety when upset. It’s a comic about location, so it takes time to show it’s effect on characters, and their opinions on it. Through showing characters travelling from location to location, and warping/colouring backgrounds to reflect character’s opinions on them; it presents an understanding of the world and it’s settings in a way that enhances the narrative. It shows us how the space works. Backgrounds here are a vital tool. Gunnerkrigg Court is a strong example of backgrounds, and the information they can explore. When it comes to heavy focuses on settings though, comics don’t have to be so involved with the personalities of its locations to need a strong sense of space. Kill 6 Billion Demons is still a comic about it’s space, the space is cruel and complex and the story is about the character navigating it. But, a lot of the uses of backgrounds in this comic explore a more functional use of understanding space (although it does explore the relationship of character and setting too, it is also a great example of functional settings). For example, in the page exampled below the protagonist is planning to infiltrate a floating palace. There is a bit of dialogue, but the splash page holds a specific purpose. It shows how far away the character is from the goal. Through an understanding of the space and what the character is going to have to do to navigate this space the background cements the difficulty of the task. The character’s could just talk about the difficulty of the task and leave it at that, but the visuals give the reader a wealth more information. The palace is huge, flies, the world is torn and dying,and she is small and very far away. It’s extremely effective, and when it comes to a storyline where a character is going to have to figure out how to navigate the setting the use of backgrounds is vital.

With that aside though. The scene in this sequence in particular uses no backgrounds besides gradients. Those backgrounds certainly have a use, but in this instance it negatively effects the scene. In this scene character A (red scarf) is eaves dropping on character B’s (woman green hair) conversation in a cafe. And from the visual information provided, how to feel about this scene is ultimately unclear. You cannot tell how far the first woman is from the seated one, you don’t know where the eves dropper is in relation to the cafe’s entrance or structure. Is she hiding behind a wall? near the wall? behind some people in the line? It omits a wealth of visual information and asks the audience to rely on the dialogue instead. But by doing this it stumps a lot of potential of humour (maybe she’s positioned somewhere ridiculous), tension ( maybe she’s too close), or even the character’s motivation (did she just happen to walk in? did she decide to stalk her and listen in last minute? is she staked out in the back of the room for some reason?) the scene isn’t incomprehensible, but the absence of backgrounds in this instance limits a lot of humour and characterization that could be shown with their relation to the place their standing in. Let alone it restricts showing the character’s opinion on the setting (maybe one character is shy and uncomfortable in a crowded cafe, maybe the cafe is shabby and not to one’s standards). By omitting the background in this scene it removes the character’s relationship to the environment and how they’re interacting to each other. You can tell one character is listening in on the other, but that’s all, all the context provided in this scene relies on mostly dialogue and the pose of the characters. It isn’t an incomprehensible scene, not even necessarily a bad one. But, it stunts a whole lot of information by making the environment and the character’s relationship to it unimportant. So instead the scene feels empty, as if it takes place in an unimportant void. It makes the scene a whole less interesting. How interesting is a conversation in a void?

#Comics #webcomcis #essay #ava's demon #kill 6 billion demons #gunnerkrigg court #go get a roomie #partition

The Webcomic Graveyard

There are plenty of amazing comics on the internet, but for every good one there seems to be 3 abandoned ones. You never know when one of your favourite comics will be dropped or even simply deleted, and if you’ve read a few webcomics it’s probably happened to you a few times. But, even if unfinished they’re interesting in their own way. So, why not take a short look at some these dead webcomics?

First of all, of course there’s a GL comic about a magic taco. Second of all, what a title. This comic is all kinds of weird. it’s art style is painfully 2000′s with the grey shading, gradient backgrounds, geometric yet empty landscapes, and pixelated line work. And this was presumably made in 2015. Everything about this feels and looks like a competent 2000′s comic (minus the furries), but by far the weirdest thing about this comic was that even if I read it twice a while ago, I had NO idea I had only ever read a third of it until a researched it for this list. It went on a small hiatus in the start of 2016 posting a small how it was made list instead of a page which sent you to another part of the website if you clicked on it, so there was a whole year after that update which I had never read because I kept getting stuck on that damn update page without knowing. So I finally go to finish act 1 of this comic after 3 years, and man, what a page to end on. This comic started out as a small yet surprisingly sweet romance between two characters. Princess a heavily sheltered model(?) who’s father controls her day by the minute, and has lived that way all her life except for the few minutes a day where she takes off all her femme apparel and is allowed to wander around due to a lenient body guard. Think a reverse Hannah Montana if Hannah Monatana was secretly a butchy punk lesbian. And Roxie the stuck in the dead end job for 4 years cashier, who works for an insane grandpa who talks to a “Magic Taco” and has a huge crush on the supermodel princess, well, at least her celebrity persona. And the characters are weirdly… interesting. The plot as batshit as it is is alright, there’s clear conflicts for the characters and the twist before the comic ended revealed the “magic taco” actually existing? There’s definitley a few cons to it too, the art is awkward at times, The backgrounds are weird, and there feels like there’s something missing in the story. But weirdly enough, I still kinda want to know what happens next. But with what comes next though act I wrapped up on the 23rd of April 2017 with a message saying it would update again in June the same year. It never did. No more updates. No hiatus notices. Just an empty Tumblr, Facebook page, and badly designed website. Apparently act 2 had already been written, so who knows the story behind that one. An orphaned series.

Alright, we’ve finally come across a comic that’s domain has been deleted (most likely due to the bills on the domain not being paid for a few years) and subsequently has had it’s entire archive destroyed (bar a few blurry Jpegs floating around). So information about this one is going to have to rely on what I can remember from 5 years ago. So… Buckle up, let’s horribly stumble through this one! If Roxie and the Magic Taco felt like a little like 2000′s comic Amazoness! by comparison eat’s and breaths 2000′s. From the early anime influences, bold colours, and ms paint vibes coming from every pore (not that ms paint is inherently bad. More that i’s used particularly). And, I swear, every abandoned comic has a bizarre premise and plot. So what is the plot? Good question. I’m not entirely sure myself. Amazoness! is set in 559 BC in a fictional Amazonian empire. Think wonder woman but ms paint, a little anime, and a whole lot more lesbian. They live in a women only empire with a giant infamous army, and generally despise men, which makes finding husbands difficult, they’re also basically all lesbians, which makes finding a husband very difficult. Enter the main character (Left in the panels provided), she’s small and weak compared to her Amazonian peers, which as the next Queen, is a bit of a problem. So she goes on adventures around the ancient world (and by world I mean Greece before being cancelled). It’s a fantasy story with a lot of the 2000′s brand humour, blandish characters, and weird plot. It’s as 2000′s as it gets. But it did have a lot of standout jokes including the dark brooding Amazonian who was originally an ancient goth accidentally starting modern goth fashion in ancient Greece. There was also possibly a trans character, but being the comic that it was, whether that was their gender or whether they were going to become a cross dresser butt of the joke character is up for debate. Considering it was 2007 I’m not the most optimistic about that bit. All in all though it was the standard 2000′s fantasy comedy genre with some nice jokes, a few starts to some promising romances, a few bludges on some touchy subject material, and pretty forgettable art. Who knew what this comic would have become, as a young teen I wanted to find out, but now it’s just another orphaned series, lost to time. This is not a series that’s sorely missed, But maybe foggily remembered. Oh well.

#Webcomics #comics #lgbt #Roxie and the magic taco #Amazoness!#Mora and Stima Apei

Queer on Webtoon

A few miss the mark, but still are worth reading, A not quite superhero, a ball of fluff, and the JRPG parody protagonist who needs to research the meaning of “no”.

A quick look at Power Ballad, My dragon Girlfriend, and Mage & Demon Queen.

So, controversial opinion but I’m not the largest fan of the anime style. Especially when it comes to comics which have used it as a pallet for character reactions and plots to an extent where it… well, heavily stunts the plot and characterisation. There are always exceptions for the rules though. So. Mage & Demon Queen. Mage & Demon queen is set in a world that’s a giant parody of JRPG fantasy games, about an over powered Mage and her massive crush on the land’s evil Demon Queen. It’s a comedy, fantasy, and definitely takes a lot of inspiration from Japanese manga and anime. And, it does these well, especially the setting, it knows the tropes and it’s advantage is it knows how to make fun of them. Romance wise it’s a regular character aggressively denies feelings and beats up the plucky protagonist story. However there is one element that made the comic extremely difficult to get through, which is unfortunately the main character. It may be an over the top comedy but the main character’s crush on the love interest definitely comes off as obsessive and creepy at times. I can see what the author was going for, and the character is called out on it a little later on. But, even with that, and that story being an over the top comedy, and her being obsessed with the LI being the main gag of the comic; it makes the main character impossible to root for at times. And that’s a pretty hefty problem. Besides that the comedy is fine, the world is interesting, the characters are well written, the author understands the source material, and the art is well done. Even if sometimes the backgrounds are a little 3D reliant the character’s are beautifully designed, the colours are great, the settings are even solid. But, the main character comes off as creepy at times, and that is understandably a deal breaker for some people, it’s why I dropped the comic a few times. If you’re looking for a JRPG dungeon crawler parody with a comedy romance plot this might just be for you. However, the main character’s crush on the LI will probably be a deal breaker for a lot of people. can be read here. https://www.webtoons.com/en/fantasy/mage-and-demon-queen/list?title_no=1438 Mage & demon Queen will get a full review once it’s completed.

#comics #webcomics #lgbt #webtoon #Power Ballad #My Dragon Girlfriend #Mage & Demon Queen

Full review: The Night Belongs To Us

Horror, drama, romance, comedy, and a few NSFW moments. The Night Belongs to Us by L.R Hale is a comic about Hank, a medical illustrator who gets mauled by a rogue werewolf when on an evening jog. Who, after becoming a werewolf, finds herself dealing with the bureaucracy of the supernatural underworld, criminal vampire rings, the wanted werewolf who turned her, and Ada the grumpy drug dealing vampire helping her (Who Hank can’t help but find a little cute).

#The Night Belongs to Us #TNBTU #Review #Webcomics #lgbt

Full Review: Go Get A Roomie

Where would a queer webcomic review blog be without one of the longest running GL comics of all time “Go Get A Roomie!”? Light Spoilers below

#go get a roomie #ggar #Review #Webcomics #lgbt

Queer on Tapastic

An abandoned comic, a bubbly one, a 5 minute read, and the comic I dropped WAY too soon. A quick Look at Beserker, Bubbly Parfait, Tinder, and The Magpie.

I’ll admit, this is kind of a weird one to start off with. When people think of queer comics on Tapastic not many people, or any at all will name Berserker as one of their top picks. Actually nobody’s probably heard of it. It’s abandoned, only one chapter, and in a black and white pen style that’s a little Allison Bechtel crossed with a 1950′s action cartoon. It’s more miss than hit in that regard. But, I still think it’s worth the first spot. Berserker is a slice of life action mystery comic set in 2000′s America about the life of a young Lesbian Casey, growing up in an environment not entirely accepting of her with a darker twist beneath the grounded childhood tale. There’s a few stand outs with this comic: 1) the absolute care the writer has put into her characters. Every person in this story feels well rounded, with lives beyond the main character and plot, and it’s definitely one of the comics strong points. The kids act like kids, the characters react in a believable manor and they’re all quite relatable . And there aren’t many comics where the creator takes time to round out the parents and families as well. 2) the art. It is probably a hit or miss for people, it’s pen on paper with very little shading. But the art works, it’s beautifully down in a realistic style, the backgrounds are well down, the characters are distinct. It’s quite an old style, but it works, and after a few pages it grows on you. 3) This is probably the main reason I liked this comic, I’ll admit, so I’m definitely biased here. The main character is a Butch lesbian, and the comic explores her and her relationship with her masculine identity while growing. And that, is sadly extremely rare. but very refreshing and relatable as well. In all, Beserker on Tapastic is a hard sell, and considering it’s unfinished and will likely never be, I’m not even certain that it should be sold. But It is a very grounded story about a butch lesbian with a lot of heart and refreshing characters. But it has an old art and story style, and will always be unfinished. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, with reason. But it is worth mentioning. Can be read here. https://tapas.io/series/Berserker BUBBLY PARFAIT - Goobermation (Ongoing)

#Webcomics #lgbt #lesbian #comics #tapastic #Beserker #Bubbly parfait #the magpie #tinder #review

Queer on Webtoons

This week looking at: Always Human, Circuits and veins, and #Blessed.

#Webcomics #lgbt #lesbian #webtoon #comics #Always Human #Blessed #Circuits and veins #Lgbt webcomics

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