webcomics!
So along with dropping the anime habit last year I also dropped webcomics for a while.
I did start picking them back up towards the end of the year but there are definitely ones that I still haven't bothered catching up on (and are probably permanently dropped from my list).
Regular updates
1. Unsounded by Ashley Cope. One of my current faves, an intricate high fantasy comic with amazingly rich worldbuilding. (2-3 primary cultures we've seen so far. Plus one of my favorite magic systems ever, and I'm talking as someone who usually "zzzz"s at that sort of thing.) Art starts out very strong and then gets mindblowingly awesome (so does the story). Also really clever non-gimmicky use of the web medium.
(this page, completely out of context from the first chapter, is stunning. I wish I could link later pages without them being massively spoilery.)
Reminds me of ASOIAF in that the world is very very gray and she has us rooting for several parties that are working counter to each other, all of whom are sympathetic to varying degrees -- except with more magic (and a much more fantastic world in general, one that would actually be interesting to tour [but probably not to live in]) and rather less problematic re: gender/race. (Mind, I'm of the opinion that GRRM does some deliberate things with gender that doesn't always quite work out well, but the way Unsounded handles it is way better IMO.)
Also way, way funnier. If your sense of humor is morbid and twisted. :P
She also has excellent prose side stories set in the universe. (not illustrated, illustrated, I don't think any of them can be read without reading the comic first though [well you could, but I think they make more sense once you know the characters involved] -- imo the two Duane stories in particular are best read after Chapter 7 of the main comic, and it's not until the current chapter [10] that the Quigley story really packs a punch [though his can probably definitely be read earlier].)
2. Stand Still. Stay Silent by Minna Sundberg. One of the most charming post-apocalyptic tales I've ever encountered. (I'm meh about post-apocalyptic settings being an excuse for gritty grimdark. This comic is way more interesting.) I really adored her previous comic, A Redtail's Dream, too (I own the hardcover whoo). But above all I REALLY admire her work ethic and business sense. She's one of the best and most sensible young artists out there, and it's really awesome.
3. Gunnerkrigg Court by Tom Siddell. One of the more famous series at this point. Probably the only comic I've been following for as long as I have now (gosh how time flies). Early art is... very stylized (and has a rather gothic tinge that has since mostly disappeared [aside from the eldritch horrors]), but it evolves into something distinctly gorgeous. It's basically a magical boarding school story. A charmingly quirky one with a strong magitech vs. myth-power theme going on (a complex take, both silly and epic in turns). Hard to describe it without going into spoilers and ruining some of the initial wonder -- there are definite Ghibli influences on the narrative (there's even a Princess Mononoke tribute in one of the chapter extras) but it's also entirely its own thing and one of the best things about it is that the central defining relationship is the friendship between two girls. Although it often has an episodic/slice-of-life feel (esp. early in the series), it soon becomes clear that there is much much more going on wrt: ongoing mysteries about the school and its past, as well as the more immediate past re: the previous generation's drama.
It's probably not the best time to rec it right now because we're juuuust finishing up one of his usual volume breaks (but his "filler" comics are hilarious TBQH).
4. Namesake by Isabelle Melançon and Megan Lavey-Heaton. I'm not as much of a hardcore fan of this series (gosh their fandom is adorably rabid), which I have been following since its initial inception, but the premise is totally interesting and the execution more than solid. Literal world-hopping "Namesakes" in a universe where Story has power. The first arc can be read as Wizard of Oz fanfic I guess (interspersed with some Alice in Wonderland "backstory" sides) but the latest arcs have drastically expanded the scope of the narrative. Good stuff, but I feel that the narrative is very strongly influenced by TV serial format (I don't mean episodic, I mean the type of TV with mytharcs and stuff) and there's something about that that leaves me cold.
Irregular updates (comic has to be GODLY in order for me to put up with irregular updates at this point in my life)
1. Lackadaisy Cats by Tracy Butler. Anthropomorphic cats play out an intricate Prohibition-era gangster drama. The art is breathtaking*. The writing (characterization and storytelling both) crackles. The amount of research and detail is incredible.
* Ignore the dialogue and just scroll down on the latest page... GUH.
And she updates like 4 pages a year. CRY
(this is my other long-running favorite alongside Gunnerkrigg)
2. Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton. What can I say, I'm a history nerd.
(I've also been a fan for a long time, but it's harder to keep track of since it's not a comic with a narrative)
Charmed but not yet committed
Wilde Life by Pascalle Lepas. Relatively new comic (launched late last year, forgot how I stumbled on it). Mythology & the supernatural in Oklahoma. Lovely art and very charming cast so far.
- - -
There are a few famous post-college/20-something soaps I refuse to admit to reading when I'm really bored and need something mindnumbing (some of them objectively good tbh, but I can't relate to most of it [drinking/party culture/relationship drama]). I used to follow XKCD regularly but these days only check in when people make references. I also occasionally check up on some other random strips that update regularly that I think are interesting for various reasons but wouldn't necessarily recommend (but like I said, most of the strips in this category I haven't followed up on in at least a year).
Among strips that are finished, the two that I have 1) enjoyed, 2) finished reading, and 3) still remember sharply enough to rec are Digger by Ursula Vernon (badass wombat heroine! Hyena culture! and a most unusual fantasy quest!), and Nimona by Noelle Stevenson (superhero tropes in an anachronistic medieval fantasy setting. Featuring a gay couple with a Past and the adoptive shapechanging teen daughter/sidekick of one of them. Sort of. It's very well-written but the underlying story isn't anything new [this isn't a bad thing].)
comments at the original Dreamwidth post
I did start picking them back up towards the end of the year but there are definitely ones that I still haven't bothered catching up on (and are probably permanently dropped from my list).
Regular updates
1. Unsounded by Ashley Cope. One of my current faves, an intricate high fantasy comic with amazingly rich worldbuilding. (2-3 primary cultures we've seen so far. Plus one of my favorite magic systems ever, and I'm talking as someone who usually "zzzz"s at that sort of thing.) Art starts out very strong and then gets mindblowingly awesome (so does the story). Also really clever non-gimmicky use of the web medium.
(this page, completely out of context from the first chapter, is stunning. I wish I could link later pages without them being massively spoilery.)
Reminds me of ASOIAF in that the world is very very gray and she has us rooting for several parties that are working counter to each other, all of whom are sympathetic to varying degrees -- except with more magic (and a much more fantastic world in general, one that would actually be interesting to tour [but probably not to live in]) and rather less problematic re: gender/race. (Mind, I'm of the opinion that GRRM does some deliberate things with gender that doesn't always quite work out well, but the way Unsounded handles it is way better IMO.)
Also way, way funnier. If your sense of humor is morbid and twisted. :P
She also has excellent prose side stories set in the universe. (not illustrated, illustrated, I don't think any of them can be read without reading the comic first though [well you could, but I think they make more sense once you know the characters involved] -- imo the two Duane stories in particular are best read after Chapter 7 of the main comic, and it's not until the current chapter [10] that the Quigley story really packs a punch [though his can probably definitely be read earlier].)
2. Stand Still. Stay Silent by Minna Sundberg. One of the most charming post-apocalyptic tales I've ever encountered. (I'm meh about post-apocalyptic settings being an excuse for gritty grimdark. This comic is way more interesting.) I really adored her previous comic, A Redtail's Dream, too (I own the hardcover whoo). But above all I REALLY admire her work ethic and business sense. She's one of the best and most sensible young artists out there, and it's really awesome.
3. Gunnerkrigg Court by Tom Siddell. One of the more famous series at this point. Probably the only comic I've been following for as long as I have now (gosh how time flies). Early art is... very stylized (and has a rather gothic tinge that has since mostly disappeared [aside from the eldritch horrors]), but it evolves into something distinctly gorgeous. It's basically a magical boarding school story. A charmingly quirky one with a strong magitech vs. myth-power theme going on (a complex take, both silly and epic in turns). Hard to describe it without going into spoilers and ruining some of the initial wonder -- there are definite Ghibli influences on the narrative (there's even a Princess Mononoke tribute in one of the chapter extras) but it's also entirely its own thing and one of the best things about it is that the central defining relationship is the friendship between two girls. Although it often has an episodic/slice-of-life feel (esp. early in the series), it soon becomes clear that there is much much more going on wrt: ongoing mysteries about the school and its past, as well as the more immediate past re: the previous generation's drama.
It's probably not the best time to rec it right now because we're juuuust finishing up one of his usual volume breaks (but his "filler" comics are hilarious TBQH).
4. Namesake by Isabelle Melançon and Megan Lavey-Heaton. I'm not as much of a hardcore fan of this series (gosh their fandom is adorably rabid), which I have been following since its initial inception, but the premise is totally interesting and the execution more than solid. Literal world-hopping "Namesakes" in a universe where Story has power. The first arc can be read as Wizard of Oz fanfic I guess (interspersed with some Alice in Wonderland "backstory" sides) but the latest arcs have drastically expanded the scope of the narrative. Good stuff, but I feel that the narrative is very strongly influenced by TV serial format (I don't mean episodic, I mean the type of TV with mytharcs and stuff) and there's something about that that leaves me cold.
Irregular updates (comic has to be GODLY in order for me to put up with irregular updates at this point in my life)
1. Lackadaisy Cats by Tracy Butler. Anthropomorphic cats play out an intricate Prohibition-era gangster drama. The art is breathtaking*. The writing (characterization and storytelling both) crackles. The amount of research and detail is incredible.
* Ignore the dialogue and just scroll down on the latest page... GUH.
And she updates like 4 pages a year. CRY
(this is my other long-running favorite alongside Gunnerkrigg)
2. Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton. What can I say, I'm a history nerd.
(I've also been a fan for a long time, but it's harder to keep track of since it's not a comic with a narrative)
Charmed but not yet committed
Wilde Life by Pascalle Lepas. Relatively new comic (launched late last year, forgot how I stumbled on it). Mythology & the supernatural in Oklahoma. Lovely art and very charming cast so far.
- - -
There are a few famous post-college/20-something soaps I refuse to admit to reading when I'm really bored and need something mindnumbing (some of them objectively good tbh, but I can't relate to most of it [drinking/party culture/relationship drama]). I used to follow XKCD regularly but these days only check in when people make references. I also occasionally check up on some other random strips that update regularly that I think are interesting for various reasons but wouldn't necessarily recommend (but like I said, most of the strips in this category I haven't followed up on in at least a year).
Among strips that are finished, the two that I have 1) enjoyed, 2) finished reading, and 3) still remember sharply enough to rec are Digger by Ursula Vernon (badass wombat heroine! Hyena culture! and a most unusual fantasy quest!), and Nimona by Noelle Stevenson (superhero tropes in an anachronistic medieval fantasy setting. Featuring a gay couple with a Past and the adoptive shapechanging teen daughter/sidekick of one of them. Sort of. It's very well-written but the underlying story isn't anything new [this isn't a bad thing].)
comments at the original Dreamwidth post