Archie and friends are iconic and a reboot to the modern day could have been an utter disaster.
The result is actually the opposite: a totally entertaining, plausible story line that keeps the best aspects of the original without making it seemed forced.
A title that will be a stayer.
Waid and Samnee are on a roll, but there’s no complacence here. Recent issues have covered post-natal depression and Murdock’s own depression and now we have a great story on aging and relevance involving The Stunt-Master. I’m hoping the TV launch doesn’t change the great trajectory this title is on.
9/10
Hello and welcome to Webcomic Wednesday! Each week I take a look at a webcomic and let you know what I think about it. This week I’m having a look at a comic that takes you behind the curtain to see how the artist works in a digital space. It’s Cthulhu Calls, courtesy of Mark Waid and Yves “Balak” Bigerel.
While Mark Waid’s name may be tied to this particular comic, he isn’t the star of this show. What began as a short script for a print comic, Waid asked artist Yves “Balak” Bigerel to begin a simple storyboard for a digital comic, which he then turned into its own peek into the artist’s mind. Balak provided not only the storyboards, but also annotations below each, explaining the process each step of the way.
I’m not sure about any of you but I find this both informative and incredibly interesting. Each step is meticulously thought about in such a way to enhance the visual aspect of the storytelling – it brings up points I didn’t necessarily consciously notice, but felt them anyway. Balak’s annotations are fantastic and it’s clear how important good art is to this medium.
That’s not to say the story is any less good – the brilliant tale of Cthulhu unable to take a one night stand is funny and original, and it’s full of personality. I’d actually like to see more stories like this from Waid, as it is just so much fun.
If you wanna see what goes on behind the scenes of making a comic you can check out Cthulhu Calls here. It’s funny, original and incredibly informative.
Have any webcomics you want me to check out? Let me know on my twitter @Pipes815, or send me a message via our contact form.
Hello and welcome to Webcomic Wednesday! Each week I take a look at a webcomic and let you know what I think about it. This week I’m checking out a web series known as Insufferable, courtesy of a lesser known team known as Mark Waid and Peter Krause.
I’m kidding. It’s freaking Mark Waid.
Insufferable is the story of a superhero father-son team, Nocturnus and Galahad, who go their separate ways after a falling out. Where Nocturnus goes into hiding, essentially killing his alter-ego, Galahad uses his status as a hero to begin a celebrity career – or as the comic blurb states, an “arrogant ungrateful douchebag”.
While there are clear ties to a Batman/Robin relationship, Insufferable stands out in the execution. While admittedly Jarod Culver’s Galahad is a bit of a twat, John Culver’s Nocturnus is hardly unaccountable for either. It’s a case of bad parenting versus bad child, and it takes the Bruce Wayne/Damian Wayne dynamic and runs in the other direction.
Where Insufferable truly shines is in its mix of celebrity status and superhero. Galahad tweets, blogs, throws press conferences, and suffers the fallout of it. I’ve never really stopped to think how celebrities handle being insulted after putting themselves on such avenues. It’s interesting stuff, as there are times Galahad seems to be pushing too much to impress his biggest detractors, which in the end only makes them worse.
As for Peter Krause’s art- it’s seriously paid-for-comic material. It’s solid art that really compliments the story, with it’s generic costumes only allowing the reader to make their own connections to other superhero material. It’s a pretty fantastic looking comic.
If you want all the bells and whistles of a paid-for-comic written by one of the best writers out there, without the “pay” part, check out Insufferable here. Also check out the other stories on the site as well, as some others were also written by Mark Waid. Seriously, you owe it to yourself to check it out – it’s Mark Waid.
Have any webcomics you want me to check out? Let me know on my twitter @Pipes815, or send me a message via our contact form.
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