Sunday Revue February 16: Tea Dragon Society

Good Gentles And Redoubtable Rapscallions of the Public,

the Doors of the Strip Show Are Hereby Open Once More!

On With The Show!

Today, on stage we have the beloved, the delightful, the darling

The creation of Katie O'Neill, the Tea Dragon Society can be read at this link.


After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives -- and eventually her own.
The Rating

Put the kettle on to boil and curl up with me for a lovely read. You'll be so very glad you did.

The Raves

On Tea Dragons, I'll have to begin with the visual aspect. This work. This work is just plain BEAUTY.




Echoing the award-winning cartoon Hilda in style, Tea Dragons is a visual delight. Done in soft curves and pastel lines, its style is gentle and comforting, giving a soft 'it's going to be okay' message to your mind even when it showcases some tragedies.




It's the perfect support for this story. Oh this story. Oh, my friends, this story. To grossly oversimplify it, imagine if Pokemon was more about the work and love of being an animal caretaker than it was about Team Rocket and battles. Gentle, supportive and inclusive, Tea Dragons reminds us that there is more than one kind of strength. With compassionate determination, it shows us how to rear and care for the magical Tea Dragons, hybrid flora-fauna crosses who grow the finest tea leaves on their antlers. It goes into quite a lot of detail on a charming side page. And it follows through on its central tenant in every page. The valor of battle is a strength, true. But the patience and diligence needed to nurture life is also a strength.


The dedication it takes to perfect a craft is a strength. The ingenuity to find an answer to a problem that doesn't involve violence is a strength.




And the compassion to understand another is a strength.






The inclusion in this story is effortless, showing at least two LGBT characters in a wonderful committed relationship while keeping it kid friendly. The elder figures of Erik and Hesekiel remind me a lot of Lark and Rosethorn in Tamora Pierce's Circle of Magic series, and I ate it up with a spoon.


And all I can say is THANK YOU for a story that shows the dedication and care it takes to be a craftsperson in a positive light. Thank you. So much. This is a story I want all young kids and tweens to see; it's the perfect thing to show them (and remind us adults) that all ways of being strong are needed. And sometimes, the great work of figuring out who you need to be in this life is all the adventure you need.

The Razzes

Does 'I want more, sniff, sniff, it's too short, whimper' count? ;) Probably not.

The Revue

Pour your tea. Curl up. Read. Let the story ease in around you. Steep your soul in the story today. It will ease the aches and soften the hard edges.
I can give no higher praise.

Comic Revue June 10: I Kill Giants

Grab your weapons. Hang on Tight.

 We're riding to Battle with

I Kill Giants is an incredible comic written by Joe Kelly and illustrated by J. M. Ken Niimura. It is a tale of pain and redemption, loneliness, loss and connection. It's a tale of everyday magic hiding just under the skin of the mundane, and the power of myth to change a life.


Barbara is a freak. A weird kid. A nutcase. From the outside. But inside, she is a hero with a sacred trust. She studies the lore. And she. Kills. Giants.

This comic is a must read. For sale at this link, it can be read here until you can buy a copy of your own. There will be no spoilers below, but I will repeat: Read. This.

The Rating

A gem.

The Raves

If you've not heard the term 'urban fantasy' before, welcome to the genre. This comic tells the tale of a girl with one foot in Faery and one foot in the principal's office. And she has something worth fighting for. Her quest consumes her. That sounds noble until it gets you sent to the school shrink. 

The exploration of the intersection between these interior and exterior experiences is seamless, poignant and absolutely true. If you were ever the weird kid, this story will bring tears to your eyes and a grin to your lips. If you were ever the one trying to help the weird kid, you'll most likely feel the same. I love this work for its ability to gently explore the interface between fact and inner truth, the fault lines where the stories we live by rub up against the expectations laid on us by those around us.

At its heart, this work is a story about stories and their power. When life hands us the incomprehensible or the unbearable, we humans have a choice: we can become stone, bearing up under the weight at the cost of shutting down our emotions. We can become shattered by the pressure. Or we can become storytellers who force the narrative of events into a tool we can use in our fight for survival. 

This comic's frank, realistic and humorous exploration of trauma and the places it can take the mind of a child is amazing. Relatable, empathic and painfully funny in equal measure, it is the story I'd most recommend to school counselors and anyone dealing with kids handling difficulties. The creators truly remember how children think, and they remember how sharp the edges on the world are when our hearts are new. In Barbara's utter focus on the rituals and lore she must abide by in order to slay giants, we understand humanity's desperate urge to have some control over our lives. In Taylor's urge to hurt others, we understand the need to feel we have power of some kind, any kind. And in Sophia's stubborn insistence on seeing the good in others, we can see that connection is what has kept humanity alive this long.

Most of all, this story reminds us why we tell stories: to make us something more than we were and give us the strength to take on our monsters. Gamian said it best: Fairy tales are more than true – not because they tell us dragons exist, but because they tell us dragons can be beaten. That is why Barbara kills giants.

And now that I've gone on my poetic rant, let's talk about the art. Don't let this work fool you. It's kept loose and stylized to match the material, but this piece knows all the tricks and uses them to advantage. The simplicity of the ink drawings, without color or complex backgrounds to dazzle the eye, leads the reader to every detail.

The pacing is perfection, and all I can say is....*happy sigh*

The Razzes

Occasional, very occasional, reversals on word balloon reading direction can be irritating breaks in the flow. I would have liked to see those resolved. Other than that? I got nothing.

The Revue

Read. This. Today. Feed your child's heart and your inner geeky soul. Go on. I double dog dare you.

Sunday Revue May 6: Waste Of Time, The Comic

Sit Back And Reeeeelax This Sunday, It's Time For

Growing up, getting by, getting a date and getting the groceries. Millenial life distilled into a strip, that's Waste Of Time. Written by Mel Cormac, Waste Of Time can be read at this link.  The story revolves around two brothers, Seth and Jon, and their attempts to navigate adulthood...with mixed results.

The Rating

Sorry lads. You've got a ways to go.

The Raves

There's a definite sense of snarky humor in this strip, fitting for a handful of young adults trying to figure out which end to hang onto life by.  It's definitely worth a couple chuckles. Treated as a gag-a-day, I'd class it as a good college strip to read between classes with a sympathetic smile.
As a reader I was impressed with the sheer persistence of the creator. They've come a long way from the semi-stick figures of 2009, gaining a better sense of style and use of color. The characters live through many relatable situations with comedic and reflective takes on situations we've all been in.

The Razzes

Unfortunately, that's where the comic's appeal starts to flag. There are a lot of things to improve. A few suggestions:

*Favicon

Even a rookie website ought to have a favicon, and a comic this old is long past due for this grace note. Adding one is simple. The html is <head profile="http://www.w3.org/2005/10/profile">

<link rel="icon" 

      type="image/png" 

      href="http://example.com/myicon.png"> 

For a little more detail, take a look at this site.

Style

There are a lot of comic styles. A very short list includes: 

Western (European, American)

Basic Comic (Little Lulu, Calvin and Hobbes, Dilbert, Garfield)

Superhero Comics (Marvel/DC)

Classic Cartoony (Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry, Mickey Mouse)

90’s Retro Cartoony (Thick Black outlines, sharp edges, Dexter’s Laboratory, Powerpuff Girls)

Noir (Black and White, Detective, 1940’s themed)

Modern Cartoony (Thin Lines, Subdued colors, Steven Universe, Clarence)

Anime Inspired (Avatar, Legend of Korra, The Boondocks, Totally Spies)

East Asian (Japan, China, Korea)

Anime (Japanese animation, Naruto, One Piece, Dragonball)

Dong Hua Pian (Chinese cartoon, Kuibo)

Manhwa (Pucca, Hello Jadoo)

You get the idea. If I had to guess, Waste Of Time is trying to fall into the Basic Comic bin, but there's a difference between being stylistic and being in need of a little more work. For example, Ted Rall draws editorial cartoons that are quite rough, but they are saying something in their style. Rall states "To me a good political cartoon is something that makes you think about things in a new way. It’s not necessarily going to change your mind. But it might get you thinking, get you started along a line of thinking, that causes you to check things out more thoroughly. It might make you more able to articulate opinions that you already had." in his article. Like XKCD and The Oatmeal, they make definite statements that they're intending to be satirically funny with their style that is deceptively oversimplified.

Every artist should ask themselves what their style says to readers. Soft, bright colors and rounded shapes like Dennis the Menace or Calvin and Hobbes tell us that everything is safe and we can relax on a Sunday morning.  Intentionally rough work like Rall's stuff, The Far Side and The Oatmeal tell us satire is in the offing.

Hard lines and harsh shadows tell us that a rough story is coming, a la Watchmen. Mixed media and watercolor aka Sandman tell us to expect the unexpected. But what does Waste Of Time tell us?

Well, the colors are there, but the bodies mainly tell us that the artist is aiming for realism and missing. If the creator likes the cartoon style, here's some great books and resources: 

Cartooning: Character Design (How to Draw & Paint) by Sherm Cohen

https://www.creativebloq.com/features/how-to-draw-animals-people-landscapes

http://theetheringtonbrothers.blogspot.com/

https://randomnerds.com/learn-to-draw-cartoons-with-the-now-public-domain-famous-artist-cartoon-course-textbook/

The Revue

Well, the comic named itself Waste Of Time. It's not quite that...but it's not the Mona Lisa.

Sunday Revue April 8: Valley Of The Silk Sky

There Is A Valley Beyond Your Imaginings...

Enter  this valley, and you step into a new world. Do not apply your own rules or expectations here: they have no place. You are in a new place that plays by its own rules. Learn fast, or things might get a bit...

Dangerous...

The creator, Dylan Edwards, describes the story like so: 

Valley of the Silk Sky is a queer YA sci-fi webcomic for ages 13 and up. Follow the adventures of a crew of queer and trans scientists as they attempt to discover new medicinals, find lost artifacts, and generally try to avoid being eaten by the more dangerous denizens of the Valley.

Valley of The Silk Sky can be read here . Even better, it can be bought on Amazon, Gumroad, or read in many forms available at the artist's main site. 

The Rating

A glorious gem of a story, it only needs a touch of polishing.

The Raves

There is so much to love about the Valley. Especially if you have a scientific bent. Especially if you enjoy good worldbuilding. Especially if you're into adventures that don't ask you to leave your brain at the gate. Especially if you're part of the QUILTBAG  cohort. Especially if you like coming of age stories that don't beat you over the head with the message. Especially if...aw heck, you see where this is going.  

This is the perfect story for an adult and the tweens and teens in their lives to share. It's got enough action to hold an 11 year old's attention, enough nuance to interest an adult, and a really lovely sense of interpersonal humor. The creator has taken the leap that so few world builders dare to do, truly creating a world that is its own entity rather than an analog of our own. Many of the issues we expect to see reflected simply don't apply. That doesn't mean there aren't issues. Oh gods are there issues. But they are not the tired horses of bigotry that we have collectively beaten to death. Now, don't get me wrong, those issues should and do need to be addressed regularly, so that we can understand them. But it's so refreshing to see a story that lets us look at the world as it could be on the other side of the fights we're in today: a world where race and gender are such non-issues that they don't need addressing. The diverse groups of characters, human and otherwise, binary and otherwise, are shown as people. Simple as that. 

The characters in these stories have other things to worry about.

Things like bandits, invasive plant life and deadly predators. Oh, and misfiled paperwork. Lots of it. 

One of the things to love in this work is the relatability in the interpersonal relations and the situations. Strange as it is, we share the characters' frustrations with bureaucracy:

We laugh with them as they experience the wonders and the exasperations of cultural exchanges. And we give a sappy sigh at the power of friendship. Come now, you know you like to give a sappy sigh once in a while.

Another selling point: this story is clever. One of the plot points revolves around invasive plant species. Does the plant eat people? No, but it wipes out economically valuable native species and impoverishes communities by wiping out their livelihood.
*Leans forward over podium* Gentle readers, do you know how rare it is to find a story with a real-world issue that is not overtly violent being used as a main plot point? Especially one that involves the economic value of plant life?
Let me tell you. Vanishingly rare. Hen's Teeth rare. The bookish squeal of delight I let out when I read that scared my cat.

The clever use of science, ethnobotany, biology and architecture makes the world creation a character in its own right. Without beating you over the head at any point, the story subtly weaves its readers into a new biosphere with its own traits. I especially appreciated the nicely understated way in which the creator shows the view of the world through human and non-human eyes to make it clear that the world does, indeed, look different to us all. Especially if 'all' includes beings who see in heat signatures.

The story also makes us question our own assumptions in the best possible way. What at first glance to Western human eyes looks like an alien cheesecake art piece turns out to be a bathing ritual. Yep, Harakos clean themselves and each other the way cats do, with their spiny tongues. No sex involved. Get your mind out of the gutter, you!

I also devoured the chapter addendums, each of which is a witty and well-thought-out world building dissertation. No, this is not boring, dear readers. This is fascinating, and the perfect thing to read with your youngsters in order to get them interested in the underlying structures of their own world to boot. Of course you can always read it yourself, for the sheer joy of exploring new ideas. I know I did. 

The Razzes

The only thing that knocked this story down a peg was the art. Lovely and fascinating as it is, it's also got a bit of work still to do on creating anatomically natural moving characters. Too often, the characters are stiff, especially at a distance. They often seem to be missing joints as well, creating wooden arms and/or legs and a hard-to-pin-down sense of something 'off'.

I'd also like to see a smoothing out of the color washes. The general stylistic effect is nice, but in some areas the effect gets a bit too scribbly and could do with some cleaning up. 

The coloring issues can be aided by running a *slightly* dampened sponge over the color laid down by the marker, as long as the creator is using a water-fast marker for the linework. The body dynamics are best worked on by doing a little more with wire-frame sketches before setting down those final lines. And by that, I don't mean draw more wire-frames. Many, many great artists have used wire frame and still ended up with stiff characters.  Instead, focus on lines of action. 

Art By Patchy9

The line of action technique starts a character not as a series of blocks attached by lines, but as a single flowing lines with other lines radiating from it. The body shapes are then drawn in over these lines, and a character emerges.

Art By Matt Smith

If the creator would like to improve on their fluidity, I'd recommend working on line of action warm up drawings once a week for a while, and maybe working it into their art style.

The Revue

This is a great story. Hand it to your kiddos. Hand it to your nerdy buddies so you can geek out together. Hand it to your favorite biology-field folk. Hand it to some teachers, this would be great in a classroom. It has a lot to teach folks.
What you learn from it may surprise you.

Sunday Revue February 4: Oops! Comic Adventures!

Hurry Hurry Hurry, Have We Got A Show For You!
This Week, We Are Proud To Present

Have we got a show for you! Oops, Comic Adventures, creation of an individual by the lovely handle of Potoo Gryphon, is the very thing for pulling you out of the winter doldrums. It can be found at this link and is well worth the visit. Follow the example of the main character, Oops, and stumble into magic!

The Rating

A wonderful wander through the Forbidden Forest!

The Raves

Sword and Sorcery is a tired old horse of a genre, to be sure. Which makes anyone who can ginger it up with a witty take something of a genius in my book. And that's exactly what 'Oops' manages with its cockeyed magic and street rats. No, I mean it. Street rats. Literally. The main character's best friend is a 5 foot rat named Plague with a wicked sense of humor and a flare for the dramatic. And did I mention Oops is bone white, mute, and on a quest?

Add to that gryphons, ancient spells, old mistakes, destinies and hec hounds, and you're going to enjoy the story quite a lot.

It puts me in mind of Calvin and Hobbes with magic, or of one of Pratchett's Tiffany Aching stories designed for younger readers. Much more self aware and sassy than Sir Valiant, this is a take on Sword and Sorcery that works. The storytelling focuses on interpersonal relationships and is heavily dialogue driven, in a good way. The characters interact in a consistently dynamic way that is brisk and surprisingly amusing, with a good balance of events and one liners. 

The art style is also reminiscent of Bill Watterson on the good days, and I really appreciate a style that manages to look both effortless and masterful. I've been extremely impressed with the page layouts, framing, layout and design of this work. A real treat for the eyes!

The Razzes

The main problem Oops has is in consistency. On a good day, it's right up there with the best. But this comic often and unexpectedly comes out in black and white. It regularly interrupts the story for short fan-art events or goes on hiatus. And it has been on break since September (though it is still extant and coming back soon!) 

Now I know first hand how long a good comic page takes. I'm a comic artist as well and I've missed my share of updates. But this kind of uncertainty hurts a page's numbers when it comes to hits and visibility. I'd really like to see the artist take the time they need to get everything settled at home and get a nice BIG buffer going, then come back fresh with less worry about whether they'll make the next page update. It'll be good for them and their reader base!

One thing the artist might keep an eye on from the craft perspective is foreshortening. Several times characters in the background or from odd angles appear squashed and doll-like, and I'd like to see that worked on a touch.

The Revue

Go wander in the Forbidden Forest, you'll have a lovely time!