Personal Review - "Witchy"

Created by artist Ariel Slamet Ries, “Witchy” is a gorgeously executed webcomic with a colorful world, stylistically appealing characters, and fun visual comedy. The story features moody color palettes that help to convey the emotion in intense scenes and is one of the strongest artistic elements present, yet it is only one of many.

“Witchy” is one of my personal favorite webcomics for a variety of reasons, but primarily in how well the art and writing suit one another to create an immersive reading experience. Especially since the author is still a student, the art quality and attention to detail is astounding.

Even panel to panel, the changes in colors can be very drastic yet still feel nuanced and natural because of their parallel to the story. Ries takes great care in choosing appropriate tones for each panel which directly aids to the whimsical realism in every panel, an aspect not just desired but also necessary for the storytelling. Being set in an imagined land, it can be difficult to create a sense of believability that is rooted enough in realism to seem like it could exist, but also take full advantage of its creative potential. “Witchy”s worldbuilding is constructed to work side-by-side with Rie’s artistic decisions, as even the details of sketchy linework and roughed panel edges create a subtle “ancient” feeling as if the whole story were being told on withered parchment.

The development of online comics provides a more free platform for artists to create upon without the concern of studios or companies pushing to avoid discussing controversial topics or adhere to a brand name - an opportunity especially crucial for minority artists. Comics like “Witchy” take this opportunity to express themselves creatively and help to put the artist’s name into the world, since there is an incredible potential of reaching a wide audience with online media and is likely the present and future of comics.

Homework 14 - Monster Pop

Created by self-made illustrator Maya Kern, Monster Pop is a lively webcomic that features lovely color palettes, original musical interludes from the creator herself on ukulele, and quirky characters that feel as if they could be found on any college campus. The overall plot centers around the protagonist George, an enthusiastic and well-meaning yet naive cyclops who starts at Unity University with her best friend Franny among a lively, larger group of characters.

The webcomic uses its media form to expand the reading experience with music, and the illustrations themselves fluctuate over a period of time. Comparing the beginning style with the end may appear a little jarring at first, but the transition between them is essentially seamless and doesn’t affect the story experience.

In fact, it has a unique opportunity of showing the artistic development of a young creator in a more forgiving format that is easily accessible.

As the name suggests, a majority of the characters are at least part monster, and the people of this world approach this as a racial trait. Just as many people of color face stigma in our universe, the characters in Monster Pop find themselves in situations where they are judged or looked down on for their background.

The story also takes modern approaches to characters with a very diverse cast. Being a freelance illustrator, Kern creates and acknowledges her LGBTQ+ characters in a natural way, drawing experience from her own life to approach her comic with.

Of course, Monster Pop doesn’t just primarily focus on these elements, and the main arc of the story revolves around the shortcomings and struggles that people face in coming-of-age moments while still keeping its lighthearted day-to-day feeling. It is a webcomic I have been reading for around four years now, and don’t intend of stopping soon!

http://monsterpop.mayakern.com/

Personal Review - "Speak"

If you walk through Barnes and Noble on an average day, there’s usually a good chance of stumbling upon a popular book reimagined in a graphic novel format. Much like how movies adapt books for the big screen, there usually are a number of changes made in these comics to better suit the platform, yet likely not as many since the written word is a common element the two media forms share. However, despite that similarity, it isn’t often that I find a comic interpretation of a book that captures the integrity or feeling that the original source material is so well known for, and usually, the memory of the comic unfortunately blends into the memories of the original book.

Perhaps this common pattern is a part of the reason that the comic interpretation of “Speak” was as impactful as it was, being not just an outlier in its format but also debatably being a stronger story than the original novel because of how well the artist took advantage of the medium. After being exposed to and learning about other graphic novels as forms of literature, I sought to revisit this piece I read months ago with a new focus to see how this comic made a literary story beloved by English teachers everywhere even better.

Written by Laurie Halse Anderson, “Speak” follows the story of Melinda, a girl in ninth grade who comes to terms with and relives her trauma as a rape survivor by finding her voice. Published in 1999, the themes are incredibly relevant even to this day, when artist Emily Carroll adapted the tale for a new medium. Illustrated with heavy, thick black ink, Carroll’s illustrations bring a new sense of horror about Melinda’s experience and the struggles that plague her on a daily basis.

Words and people become harrowing shadows that haunt Melinda and trap her mentally and literally through composition on paper, an opportunity presented by the source material and very much emphasized during the character’s moments of crisis.

While much of the emotional impact is a result of the writing, the visuals pay close attention to the words and what the character is experiencing beyond what is said. This graphic novel interpretation succeeds so well not just as a result of the critically acclaimed writing, but the way that Carroll chooses to present the established themes in a way that literature could not achieve.

Melinda’s infatuation with cubism, for example, was discussed in the book yet taken to a new level with illustration. While the character might talk about how cubism moves her, the way that she sees herself as well as her teacher are two instances where Carroll chooses to show how that interest affects her worldview beyond what is just explicitly stated to the audience.

“Speak” the graphic novel was an entirely new experience for me - having read the novel before, I hadn’t expected to be as emotionally affected as I was by the piece. Carroll clearly had a lot of respect for Anderson’s story and sought to represent it as powerfully as Anderson had written it, a goal that I would say she certainly surpassed. Reading this was a breath of fresh air from the pattern of stories being told in new formats for economic benefit and this comic is one I would highly recommend, whether or not they had read the book beforehand.