ghostparty-waitlist

[ghostparty-waitlist]

Final Project for StoryBoarding and Comics, Spring 2022

[ghostparty-waitlist]

In class comic in color

[ghostparty-waitlist]

Adaptations Essay-thing

I decided to go with a title that is a part of a genre that’s been gaining traction both in its native country and outside of it. The genre is known as danmei and is Chinese web literature with a focus on gay relationships between men. One of the most popular authors of this genre is Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (or MXTX) who has written three novels that have all been adapted to animation and, in the case of two of them, live action. Her first novel is called Scum Villian Self Saving System, a meta novel poking fun at the tropes of both xianxia (Chinese fantasy novels) and stallion novels (male power fantasy novels).  

The novel is a short, fun romp. Upon his death, a modern-day man is thrust into the role of one of the antagonists of the web novel he’s been hate-reading. This antagonist is the catalyst for all the misfortune that will befall the web novel’s protagonist as well as his meteoric rise to power and bloody revenge. The transmigrator is terrified of the fact that he’ll likely end up dead again and does his best to endear himself to the protagonist. He just doesn’t realize how much he’d come to endear himself to the protagonist.  

In 2020 Scum Villian Self Saving System was adapted into a CGI animated show with the shortened title Scumbag System. Scumbag System stands out due to it being a CGI animation as opposed to the other animated adaptations of MXTX’s work that have all been mostly 2D animation and largely inspired by the Japanese “anime” style. It adds to a unique feel and while the animation does look rushed, especially towards the end, it’s a style you eventually get accustomed to.

I did enjoy a lot of the acting in the show. It’s one thing to read a character's words and imagine a voice for them and another to actually hear an actor portraying them. It can run the gambit between good and bad and thankfully Scumbag System falls into the good category in my opinion.  

Something that is unique when it comes to SVSSS is that there doesn’t seem to be “official” character designs. It has had multiple releases in several countries and different artists have taken artistic liberties with the character designs, each with their own flavor. Some people prefer some designs more than others and there is contention over the character designs. I personally think they’re... fine. Perfectly passable, but I’ve found that I prefer the designs other creators have come up with. Of course I understand that animators have to keep a lot of things in mind when it comes to designing characters and usually the simpler the better, but they just aren’t as appealing to me.  

Another major issue that this series faces is the matter of censorship. From what I understand gay relationships can be depicted in literature; however, anything outside of that is largely forbidden in China. What’s ironic is the fact that these stories are exploding in popularity and because of that showrunners must get creative with how they depict the “totally not romantic” relationships between the male leads. Something MXTX has developed over time is a better balance between the romance and other aspects of the plot and that allows for the adapters to better work within the parameters the government subjects them to. Unfortunately, because SVSSS was her first work it is largely focused on the romance as the main driving force of the plot I fail to see how exactly they are going to adapt the novel as time goes on.

There has been a sizable delay in the release of the second season of Scumbag System and I have a theory that this issue of censorship is a contributing factor. MXTX’s other work has also been controlled by companies that can be a bit laxer in how they depict the male relationships, but Scumbag System is being produced by Tencent, one of the largest entertainment and tech companies in China and they are rather notorious for censorship.

In the end I find myself drawn more to the novel as it is in its most complete form there. You can take it in as MXTX intended and thankfully a publishing company in California picked up the series for distribution. So, it is now possible to read an official translation of the books without concern for accuracy as there used to be several unofficial, varying translations available online.

[ghostparty-waitlist]

10 page comic

[ghostparty-waitlist]

In class work.

[ghostparty-waitlist]

Shorter Explorations for Storyboarding and Comics

[ghostparty-waitlist]

Storyboarding Scene Project done with The Last Unicorn “Butterfly Scene”.

[ghostparty-waitlist]

Short Animatic for Storyboarding and Comics class.

[ghostparty-waitlist]

Homework for the first Storyboarding and Comics UML Spring 2022 assignment.

A day in the life of an online artist.