#eventually. mary webcomic real

[girlboyburger]

🎁

🎁 Do you prefer drawing fandom stuff or your own characters? technically, both! i really like chipping away at doing worldbuilding for my personal projects through oc art, but i LOVE to make ocs for fandoms with preexisting worlds. i could talk for hours and hours about my minecraft & homestuck ocs

[deusvervewrites]

I mean when you think about what was currently hot before MHA's first issue was release back in 2014 I believe, it was the MCU that bought back Superheroes as a genre as a whole so there was going to be some Japanese manga writers making stuff about superheroes. What made MHA distinct from fellow Superhero Genre One-Punch Man is that the former is Superheroes that happens to be in a school setting compared to Superheroes in an adult setting. The MHA setting in general would be an interesting plot as normally, the people who have superpowers are in a minority and placing it in where everyone is a super and in a school setting would place the lens on how such a society works.

And I'm going to have to agree with Hori's editors that Izuku getting OFA is a necessity in order to prevent the early MHA from being on the chopping block at Jump. If Izuku was written to be only a Quirkless hero, Hori would've been forced to nerf everyone else and give Izuku to be more of a Mary Sue Batman. As much as we want to have a Quirkless Hero Izuku in a Quirked society, I don't think it would make that big of an impact. It just that the fast pace nature at Jump kinda forces world building and plot points on the back burner. At least we have spin-off mangas like the School Briefs, Vigilante, and Double Team Missions that give out more characterization and world building if people are interested in those sort of things. And because MHA is now popular, we could have a non-Japanese Quirkless hero spin-off manga if he wants to(Japan is not the right setting to have a Quirkless Hero). The real concern is that Bakugo gets too much screen time from Hori that prevents the development of other characters and plot points but that is a separate issue.

MHA, like all other manga, has to survive the first few steps and make a splash compared to its competitors if it wants more chapters. If it was cancelled at Chapter 50 or so, we wouldn't be here complaining about the story, discussing what things could be better or different, or look that things that were in hindsight?

As disappointed as I am, I do agree that Midoriya getting OFA was the right call.

One Punch Man was also a very different kind of Superhero work, and was originally a webcomic rather than a manga publication, which meant they didn't compete much. The eventual manga of One Punch Man was an adaptation, which I'm sure made some interesting conversations among the Shonen Jump management staff

[cynocardia]

hey, I’m fascinated by Sasha and the way you draw them, do you have any stories or info you want to share about them?

;_; i'm really glad you like them

god um. some of this may still be incomprehensible because it's missing context, they have literally so much lore

they're a contract negotiator for a pharmaceutical company, which they've been an employee of since the 1950s, because the company technically (though it now does its best to not be associated with that) started as an organized crime ring, which sasha worked as a cleaner for because they couldn't... get any other job, other employers just kept turning them away, so when a guy asked them if they wanted to do some janitorial work, they went sure! and then found out "janitorial work" really meant "cleaning up bodies"

the thing is that even after this, they didn't leave, because 1 they were scared 2 they were getting paid, which after being cut off by their legal guardians (something something no help for people with congenital disabilities in adulthood) they needed money for medical supplies, because i don't care that the mitrofanoff procedure didn't exist until the 1980s, i'm trying to make a point

eventually they graduate to enforcer due to "no one else left because their boss keeps killing their coworkers" but they're extremely adverse to it, and after their like kind of father figure i guess gets killed their final straw snaps, this aligns with morgan sniffing around, and when they're sent to quiet him they instead ask him for help because like at their heart sasha doesn't want to hurt people themself and doesn't want people to be hurt by others either, they are fucking literally terrified of themself due to both being a violent child and being treated like they're evil their entire life

anyway they never manage to "take walter down", he gets killed which is what puts an end to the group, and his son forms an actual pharmaceutical company out of its skeleton as an "apology to the public", due to the fact that walter was using a pharmacy he bought from small time business owners as a front. so the company becomes the fucking monster it is now, and sasha still needs the money, so they stay

and after a few years this like... leads to sasha and morgan to start clashing over issues of morality, until sasha gets morgan fired, at which point they split completely, because morgan realizes sasha is just... a corporate lap dog now

...... also that's all just pre story but it's the foundation of their character i guess. one foundation. help

whereas the actual story is just, um, "things get worse and worse relentlessly". idk how to do plot summaries. dr colt has been working on what would be a revolutionary heart medication for years with her team, and marie (... current ceo) freezes it for bullshit reasons, but then the company starts to go bankrupt until she picks dr colt's project back up, which secures a bunch of investors, she promises them they'll get their cut of the deal in another like 10 years, but they're not satisfied with that so she gets dr colt to find a way to speed up the process. dr colt discovers this way is dangerous. really bad things happen

like

i'm just using them as a device to rant about medical capitalism, though they're just one facet of it

and i was originally actually writing this but i am just... not well enough so i'm choosing alternate means of telling this story

and i do have so many like written scenes because "writing ahead" was one of the ways that helped me figure out like, sequencing, and i have had a comic sketched since october, i just need my like, hand to work

because writing is still one of the ways i want to do this i think, it's not the easiest but it's easier for me than like, comics

if i /had/ the ability to do so and i definitely don't i really do wish i could do an actual webcomic because i /know/ exactly what happens in this story and there isn't any real ending because it's just... i don't like, like stories where they take down the evil corporation especially when i'm trying to make a point, i like, like, just idk people surviving? because that's how it is irl, but

anyway um. yeah

[loopy777]

RE: WIPs game: do I even want to know what Dicebenders is is it another scam how many times are the Gaang gonna get arrested for scamming

No, this time it's me scamming people. XD The dice in question are the RPG Dungeons & Dragons kind.

For a while I was doing a screencap webcomic in the style of "DM of the Rings" and "Darths & Droids" with another creative fan named Captain Boomerang. I was the scriptwriter and selected the screenshots for each panel, and Capt-BA would assemble the comics and improve my scripts (a process that did frustrate me a little, as I felt locked out of the revision process, but I did like the results. I just felt like I wasn't holding up my end of the partnership a bit). I wrote a story bible explaining the characters and storytelling rules, planned out the adaptation of the entire AtLA premiere, and had less detailed plans for the rest of the series, but we only got 6 comics in before Capt-BA went on a trip and never returned to the internet. I did manage to re-establish contact with her long enough to get permission to continue the comic, but the problem is that I have no image-editing skills whatsoever.

If I could find comic-making software that I know would do what I want and be easy to use, I wouldn't mind dropping some money on it, but everything I've looked at is trying to do lots of things I don't need. I only want a way to import existing pictures into comic grids, and then easily add dialogue bubbles. That's it. But the stuff I've found is more about image-editing than comic assembly, and it takes me an hour to put together a dialogue bubble that looks good. So I have 3 scripts that were never produced, which along with the planning docs are what's in that WIP folder, and I don't ever see myself going beyond that.

Besides, someone else already managed to complete something like this, and while I'm not a fan, I don't need to be. At this point, Dicebenders is dead. I'm glad I tried it, and it's a shame it didn't work out, but I'm happy with the other projects I've done instead.

I am squatting on an empty Tumblr for it, though.

Anyway, to share something new, here's the first section of the Story Bible I wrote to make sure Capt-BA and I were on the same page in terms of characterization. The rest of the bible details the plotlines for full series.

AVATAR: THE LAST DICEBENDER

BIBLE

Premise- A small group of players attempt to run a fantasy martial arts RPG that winds up essentially becoming the Avatar saga, or something very close. The main point of the series is comedy, based mostly on ridiculous links between Avatar and RPG's. Sometimes the humor will be in the vast difference between what happens in the comic, and what happens in the cartoon with the same screenshots. Other times, the funny will come from the unexpected ways they converge.

SPIRITUAL PREDECESSORS

DM of the Rings- The original, and my personal favorite. It's a good showcase of how to run a single quest together, while using narrative jumps to skip to the good bits.

Darths & Droids- A similar project, this stands out from its predecessor in two main ways. The players and GM are more friendly with each other, and are more or less having fun with each other. There is also a running, coherent storyline in both the game and in the lives of the players.

Benders & Brawlers- This is actually an existing attempt to do Darths & Droids with Avatar. This is helpful as an example of what we DON'T want to do, retell the Avatar story in a completely straightforward manner, with RPG players behind the characters.

CHARACTERS

None of the characters will be given real names. The players shall always be referred to by their character names, although this can be done in a teasing, ironic manner. When the characters are speaking, their dialogue bubble must always be attached to an image of the character.

The Gamemaster- The GM is a female in her early teens. She is a geek, and a bit of a social outcast for it. Nevertheless, she's trying to make that work for her, although she's not quite mature enough to make it happen yet. She has just discovered RPG's, and in her enthusiasm has gone all out in starting her own campaign. The only problem is that she doesn't know how to recruit players, so she ropes her best friend and little brother into playing with her. This is the GM's first campaign, so she'll a little in over her head. She knows the mechanics of play, and what she's supposed to be doing as GM, but doesn't have the fine skill in crafting an engaging RPG experience. Still, she wants to do her best, is willing to learn, and has a positive attitude about the whole thing. The GM has a strong crush on the Sokka player, but the only way she can express it is by having all the female NPC's flirt with the Sokka character.

Katara- Female in early teens, and the GM's best friend. Katara's player was friends with the GM from when they were both in grammar school, so while they have grown up into wildly different personality types, they are fully loyal to each other. Katara is popular, and outgoing, and doesn't care or know about geek stuff at all. She's only playing the game because the GM begged her to. At first, Katara is clueless about RPG's, and frequently questions or ridicules the mechanics of the game. She never quite gets into the idea of role-playing, but quickly takes to the idea of meta-gaming. She'll have her character act like a righteous do-gooder, because completing missions and fighting bad guys earns XP. She hoards items that will boost her stats. She'll advocate abandoning a mission/plot if it doesn't pay out enough rewards. Katara's player also can tend towards trying to Mary Sue her character, but this is inconsistent and usually shot down by everyone else.

Aang- Male in junior high, and the GM's little brother. He plays simply because his sister has cajoled him into it, and there are hints that he's getting some kind of reward or payment for it. He abuses his position by forcing the GM to give him what he wants in the game, even if it breaks the rules- access to the restricted Airbender class, the ability to bend all four elements, overloaded stats, an Avatar State that protects him from dying, a magic super flying cow ride, etc. However, it's important to note that Aang's player isn't a jerk. He's just immature, and like all kids, just always goes for what he wants via the easiest path, and doesn't realize that he may be causing trouble or hurting feelings. He's enthusiastic about trying out this RPG thing, but he has trouble coming up with any action beyond attacking or retreating. He's also hyper aware that the GM and Katara are girls. He is too old for cootie concerns, but thinks that girls are fundamentally different creatures with their own incomprehensible concerns. Having a big sister, he doesn't find this a big deal, just part of life. Aang's player is too young to be a geek. He likes cartoons and sports and fantasy and school-dramas. He also tends to follow whatever his sister likes.

Sokka- Male in late teens. This guy is your quintessential RPG player. He has is own top-quality dice, he's played campaigns and systems of all kinds, and knows the tropes of the hobby cold. He's a huge geek for all things geeky, but roleplay is easily his favorite. He's a social outcast, but he's made friends among his fellow geeks, and thinks life is just fine. Sokka's player joins when he meets the GM at the comic/games shop they both frequent. The GM was buying some sourcebooks and material to support the fantasy martial arts game she's running, and Sokka noticed, asked about it, liked what he heard, and got permission to join the game. What Sokka doesn't realize, because he is a geek and neither has experience with it or realizes it's even possible, is that the GM is sweet on him. This manifests in the character Sokka's canon luck with the ladies, only kicked up a notch. *Every single* female NPC flirts with him, whether it's appropriate or not. Sometimes player Sokka notices and tries to roleplay it, and sometimes he's just plain confused. Sokka has a few quirks. His best set of dice are his Lucky Red Dice, which always roll high when he needs it, but have been tested and proven to be fair dice. He also mandates that every character he plays use a boomerang; he was turned into a geek by the first video game he ever played, a Legend of Zelda title, and his favorite weapon from those games are the boomerang. Each of his characters has a unique, named boomerang.

Zuko- The GM's favorite NPC. She created him to be a compelling, dramatic character, with a complicated back story, moral struggles, badass loner personality, angst about his existence, a darkly noble quality, and a cool scar. The GM intended Katara to get to know Zuko, for her to try to woo him away from the side of evil, and perhaps to even have a romance with him. The PC's, however, couldn't care less about him. To them, he's just another mini-boss, and the fact that most of his character development is happening "off screen" means they don't realize that he's recruitable. A frequent gag is Zuko delivering a stirring monologue while no one pays attention.

Iroh- Background NPC. The GM tries to use him to give (ignored) hints to the players.

Toph- (tentative) A male munchkin gamer who picked a long list of weaknesses in order to get superbending. Toph's player is a friend of Sokka's player, brought in after an "incident" with his old group, and causes some initial resentment in the group when tries to show the n00bs how its done. Cowing Toph's player is a major victory for the GM.

Momo- NPC, but maybe make him a talking sidekick who gives the players hints when the GM is really exasperated?

Azula- the GM's best favorite villain. Azula is the GM unleashed, letting her take out frustrations on the players in both combat and harsh taunting. Eventually the GM comes to like the character so much, she retcons mental health issues into the character's backstory, and has her pet NPC, Zuko, spare her.

[365days365movies]

March 9, 2021: Orpheus (1950) (Part One)

Greek mythology was my first mythological love.

And yes, that is ironically a very cliché thing to say about Greek mythology, since it’s by FAR the most popular and well-known mythology in the Western world, but...what can I say, I’m a sucker for the classics.

When I was 6, my mom got me a copy of the Odyssey, followed by D’Aulaire’s Book of Greek Myths, and that book was my SHIIIIIIIIIIT. From the Titanomachy to the Trojan War, from Decaulion to Daedalus, from the Lernaean Hydra to Ladon, and from Zeus to Dionysus (my second favorite Olympian), I LOVE Greek mythology.

There have been countless adaptations of these stories over the last century of so, some better and more faithful than others. We got Blood of Zeus (which I...genuinely dislike) on Netflix last year, Lore Olympus is a fantastic webcomic and modernized retelling of the universe of stories in general (fuck Apollo, that’s all I have to say), Hercules by Disney is fun (though extraordinarily inaccurate), and who doesn’t like some Percy Jackson (the books, not the movies)?

Today’s entry won’t be the first of the Greek mythology stories this month; after all, it’s DEFINITELY fantasy, so there were going to be a few entries in here. Some will come pretty close to each other later this month, but for this one, we’re jumping forward 10 years from The Thief of Bagdad to 1950. Let’s get back to France, shall we?

Famous for his adaptation of Beauty and the Beast is Jean Cocteau, legendary French surrealist filmmaker. His stylings definitely capture a sort of practical magic, compounded with clever angles and fascinating visual and practical effects. It’s evident with the classic fairy tale, which I would’ve done this month had I not already seen it. So, instead, we’ll be looking at the middle film in a trilogy known as Cocteau’s Orphic trilogy. This is, apparently, the most important one. And that makes sense, since it’s focused upon...

Is Hadestown good? I’m real tempted to find a way to watch it, and it sounds like it’s just up my alley. I’ll probably check it out one of these days.

Orpheus was (maybe) the son of Calliope, the muse of poetry, and Apollo, god of music. Maybe. Parentage differs based on the retelling. No matter the parents, he was renowned for his charm and grace, as well as his voice and music. He was loved by animals, nymphs, and maidens alike. He was invited to be the Bard of Jason’s DnD group (AKA the Argonauts), and used Bardic Performance to inspire his comrades (and also helped them overcome the sirens by singing EVEN LOUDER).

But the one whom he loved most was his wife, Eurydice. Unfortunately, a satyr (AKA horny horned half-goat man) chased her right into a viper’s nest, where she was bitten and died. Orpheus was CRUSHED, and his song was so depressing that even the gods cried. They said, “Dude, go to the Underworld, get back your lady from Hades, please!” And he did.

Hades, the old romantic that he secretly is, agrees to let Eurydice’s soul, on one condition. That he doesn’t look back at her as she follows him out. Orpheus agrees, but the man can’t stop himself from looking back to make sure that she’s there. And she was...and then she wasn’t. So, our sad boi fucked up, and then...well, it’s spotty. 

See, some people say that he stopped worshipping Dionysus (his previous patron), and the wine boi’s female followers tore Orpheus to pieces as punishment. Some say that these same women got a liiiiiiiiiittle too into the Bacchanalia (think orgies, but religious and violent), and ripped him apart in a frenzy. And some say that he only took male lover from then on, and women tore him to pieces for not paying attention to them (also, possible homophobia). You know, it varies. Still, we can agree on the ripped apart by women thing. His head could still sing, and as the women threw his body parts into a river, it sang a song so beautiful that the rocks and branches in the river refused to strike it. His instrument of choice, a lyre, was eventually interred amongst the stars as the constellation Lyra.

The story of a pained artist searching for a lost love and losing her is all over the goddamn place, with the crazy-ass Moulin Rouge being a solid example of it.

But OK, let’s finally begin Orpheus, or Orphée to be more accurate. Gonna be a weird ride, I guarantee it. SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap (1/2)

The story starts with a recap of the original myth, and notes that it doesn’t need to be limited  by time and place. This sort of story, after all, could happen anywhere and at any time. And in this case, that time and place are 1950s-era France, where we quickly meet famous poet Orpheus (Jean Marais).

At a café, he meets a friend, the Editor (Henri Crémieux), where they speak on Orpheus’ fame, which is not well-liked in a cafe frequented by poets. Also arriving there is a young drunken poet, Jacques Cégeste (Édouard Dermit), who is accompanied by his patron, known only as...the Princess (María Casares). Come on, guys, can we give our female characters names, please?

Anyway, Jacques quickly gets into a drunken brawl with other patrons, which leads to the arrival of the police at the café. They forcefully arrest him, but before they can, he’s hit by a couple of motorcycles, and potentially killed. The police bring Jacques back to the Princess’ car, with the help of her driver Heurtebise (François Périer). For unknown reasons, she summons Orpheus to help them. He agrees, and goes with them to the hospital.

Or he would be, if they were going there. Instead, as they drive off, Orpheus discovers that Jacques is dead already. They aren’t going to the hospital. Instead, they head to a mysterious mansion, as ominous and oblique poetry plays on the radio. They’re soon accompanied by the men on the motorcycles that killed Jacques, who work for the Princess. The plot fuckin’ THICKENS.

Back at her mansion, they bring the body of Jacques upstairs, much to the confusion of Orpheus, whom the Princess keeps calling stupid whenever he asks questions. However, he’s not proving her wrong, as she immediately convinces him that she’s actually dreaming at the moment. Although...maybe he is?

She sits in front of a mirror, which breaks...somehow. Frustrated, she commands Orpheus to wait there for her to return, as she goes to check on Jacques and her men. Like me, Orpheus is confused. This gets worse for me, though, as the Princess goes to the other room and tells the dead Jacques to get up. AND HE DOES. Well, Jacques’ a zombie, I guess. He identifies the Princess as “his Death”, which she agrees to. She tells him to hold on to her coat, and then...

...I got questions. I GOT QUESTIONS HERE.

They go through the mirror, and the Princess’ henchmen follow, just as Orpheus walks in. He also has questions, and he tries to go through the mirror, to no avail. Completely confused at this point, he passes out against the mirror, alone in the mansion. And then...he’s outside.

Yeah, he’s just outside now, and waiting there is Heurtebise, the chauffeur! Orpheus is freakin’ out, and Heurtebise has no answers for him, but has been told to take him back to town once he...arrived. OK. Still questions.

In town, the disappearance of Orpheus is being discussed by a police inspector, his wife Eurydice (Marie Déa), and her friend Aglaonice (Juliette Gréco). Aglaonice doesn’t seem to like Orpheus very much, as she’s trying to convince Eurydice that he’s cheating on her. And that’s hard to argue, since he was last seen with the Princess. However, just as there’s about to be a scandal reported by a spontaneously appearing journalist, Heurtebise and Orpheus arrive home.

After a rough encounter with the journalist, he arrives home to a relieved Eurydice, and an enraged Aglaonice, whom Orpheus also dislikes heavily. He’s apparently forbidden her from entering his house, and tells her off. The Inspector leaves too, and asks Orpheus to come to his office to discuss the matter of the missing Jacques.

Eurydice reminds Orpheus that Aglaonice is dangerous, as she runs...the League of Women. Well...I think we know what role Aglaonice is going to play by the end of this. Her and her League of Bacchanalian Women, get me? Yikes. Anyway, the conversation turns into an argument, when the EXTREMELY ornery Orpheus basically just storms off, being a DICK to his poor wife. And when he goes upstairs to his room, he actually sneaks out of the window.

Meanwhile, Heurtebise comes into the house to offer an alibi to the pained Eurydice. While she doesn’t quite believe it, the two share some time together and seem to bond. However, when he smells gas from the stove, Heurtebise lets it slip that he committed suicide by using a gas stove. He covers it up before Eurydice notices the slip-up, but...OK. So, “the Princess” is death. Going by the traditional Greek myth, she’s some form of psychopomp, and the world beyond the mirror is the Underworld, I can only assume. OK...I can dig it.

Orpheus, meanwhile, is at the car, listening to the strange radio poetry and writing it down. The, uh, “Princess” is busy as well. Like a ghost, she walks into the household and watches Orpheus as he sleeps. A narration refers to her as Orpheus’ death. Funny, I’m pretty sure that’s going to be Aglaonice’s role.

Two days later, Orpheus is increasingly obsessed with the poetry from the mysterious radio and its odd messages. While Eurydice seems to mock this obsession, Orpheus also seems to be far too enraptured in it. But, interestingly, the messages seem to be coming from nowhere known. However, it’s all beginning to affect their marriage greatly.

On the phone, the Inspector comes calling, and Eurydice asks Heurtebise to answer the phone. He does so, and soon after, we see the phone float into place, as if placed there by a ghost. That’s confirmed as Heurtebise phases to the outside from nothing, where he meets Orpheus and informs him of the message. The two decide to head to the Inspector in his car, rather than the mysterious talking car.

While Orpheus goes through town, looking for the Princess rather than the Inspector, there’s something that I wanted to mention here. Call it an interpretation. Apparently, Heurtebise is often considered an angel by critics and interpreters. However, I’m gonna suggest that he’s actually supposed to be a representation of Hermes, the messenger god and a psychopomp who escorted souls to the Underworld. Not sure about the Princess yet, but Cocteau apparently never meant for her to be portrayed as actual death. Interesting.

Meanwhile, at the Inspector’s office, both Aglaonice and Orpheus’ poet friends (supposedly) are accusing Orpheus of being involved in Jacques’ disappearance. The Inspector turns them away, just as Heurtebise and Orpheus reconvene in town. While Orpheus didn’t find the Princess, Heurtebise says that she came by, saying that he could stay with the married couple for now.

Speaking of the Princess, we see her at night, staring over Orpheus. And her eyes are...strange. They seem artificial, and it bothers the EVER-LOVING SHIT out of me. And the whole affair isn’t helping Eurydice either, as she’s tired of Orpheus’ obsession with the car, and is planning on going to Aglaonice for advice. Heurtebise tries to stop her from doing so, but she insists. But when she goes...the motorcyclists come for her. And she’s dead. As proven when the Princess arrives through the mirror.

Alongside her comes Jacques, acting as the Princess’ servant. She notes to him that their work isn’t easy, and couldn’t be done if she were dressed in the way the humans portray her. So, she is seemingly Death, or at least an aspect of Death. Obviously, as we’re talking about the Greek story, we can assume that she’s meant to be Hades in particular. But, we’ll see. It’s also confirmed, by the way, that the mysterious messages are indeed Jacques’ poetry, recited by him on the radio waves from beyond the grave. Neat.

Heurtebise is clearly upset with what’s just happened to Eurydice. He asks if the Princess actually had orders to kill Eurydice. She avoids the question, and guesses correctly that Heurtebise has fallen in love with Eurydice. He confirms this, and counters with the fact that the Princess has seemingly fallen in love with ORPHEUS. The plot fucking THICKENS.

Good place to pause, I think. Halfway mark and all. See you in Part Two!

[omniversalobservations]

Scoob and Shag (2014)

The Internet is a place of many fanworks, with fans from around the world taking the established properties they love and paying tribute to them through fanart, fanfiction, and various other creations. Some of these fanworks take on a life of their own, transcending their tributary origins to become something original. One such fanwork is the webcomic Scoob and Shag, created by illustrator Diego Casasola, known by the pseudonym Dingo online.

Scoob and Shag started in 2014 as an inside joke between Casasola and two of his friends, who would imitate the voices of the iconic characters Shaggy Rogers and Scooby-Doo as they joked about Scooby being rude to Shaggy. Eventually, they made a blog on the website Tumblr to share comics relating to the inside joke, which became more popular than they could’ve ever expected. It wasn’t long, however, before the blog died down, as ultimately the comics were always intended as one-off jokes.

However, in 2016, Casasola had an idea to turn Scoob and Shag from a series of unrelated joke comics to one long, continuous story. As he told Tiger Media Network in a 2019 interview, “At some point, I revived Scoob and Shag with some comics here and there, and thought it would be funny if the comics started having a continuity.” And so, the new Scoob and Shag began, soon growing to a magnitude no one expected, not even Casasola himself. What was ultimately still intended as a joke soon became an ambitious, jaw-dropping action adventure.

Vulgar, violent, and unapologetically weird, Scoob and Shag tells the story of Scooby and Shaggy’s most dramatic adventure yet. On the way, they discover their unearthly origins and are thrust into a long-running, epic war between classic cartoon characters such as Buggs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, and Popeye.

One of the most interesting features of Scoob and Shag is the power system, inspired by the powers system from the classic anime JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Ballyhoo. Every cartoon character in the comic has their own Ballyhoo, named after various TV-related terms, based on how beloved they are as a character. The more well-known and loved a character is, the stronger their Ballyhoo is. As one of the most iconic characters in western animation, Scooby’s Ballyhoo is one of the most powerful, making him a force to be reckoned with.

At almost 100 updates and still ongoing, Scoob and Shag has become an incredible property all its own, with almost 200,000 subscribers on Webtoon and overwhelmingly positive reviews. The comic’s extensive fanbase has even spawned many fanworks of their own based on it, with fanart and original characters abound. There are also many dubs and fan-animations on YouTube, with the channel Studio Meraki even creating an original musical OST for their dub.

Source: Comics Studies at the University of Mary Washington

Scoob is very aggressive to others, usually resorting to violence as the solution to his issues. He often pulls out a gun when faced with difficult or annoying situations. However, he cares for Shag and puts himself in danger for him.

Scoob looks just like his real-world counterpart Scooby-Doo but with two distinguishing features: his dog tag is the insigna for the pre-war Sixth Fleet, and his eyes are squinted.

History Scoob was the Commander of the Sixth Fleet during the pre-war period. Scoob and Bugs were good friends. Bugs showed Scoob they had achieved communications with Martians first before any other Commander.

After the war, Scoob lost his memories, as had Shag and Kerm, and they seemed to begin to live normal lives.

After getting into a high-speed car chase with the police and crashing the Misterie Masheen into a tree, Scoob and Shag fled into the forest in an effort to lose the cops. Inside the forest, the two met Kerm, and after traveling further into the forest, they come across a house and head inside.

Inside the house, after some spooky stuff and shooting Mario, Scoob and Kerm get separated from Shag, and shortly afterwards meet Mick, whom for some reason Scoob does not shoot. After a while of Mick guiding them around the house, the trio enter a lab and encounter Barney, who immediately transforms into a monster and chases them out of the house, which is actually a gigantic ship, and they were inside the Holo-Chamber.

To fight the monster off, Mick informs Scoob of the power he holds within him and tells him to listen to the voices of everyone counting on him. Scoob then activates his Channel, his Ballyhoo, for the first time since losing his memory, and he quickly blasts the giant monster away with one shot of his Ballyhoo-empowered pistol.

Scoob, Mick and Kerm then head back into the ship and encounter Sam, who captures Scooby after shooting Kerm and pinning Mick down beneath his boot.

While imprisoned, Scoob is taken to what appears to be a trial by Sam with three shadowy figures. They ask him what he has to say for himself after wiping out entire fleets of their people, and after replying by giving them the bird, he's taken back to his cell. Scoob is then called to by Mick from the vents and is informed that a rescue team is coming, and together they make a plan for escape.

Sam brings Scoob to an interrogation room, where he threatens to shoot Scoob until Scoob remembers everything. After Droopy informs Sam that there's intruders, Sam leaves, leaving only Droopy and Scoob. After witnessing Sam's defeat at the hands of Pop, Droopy also must leave the room, only to be killed by Mick, who tells Scoob it's time to escape.

During the rescue team's battle with Bugs, who had already lost Swipes, Scoob stops Bugs before he could take another victim. Pop then tosses Sam's gun to Scoob, and while aiming at bugs, activates Channel.

Abilities Scoob’s Ballyhoo is Channel, first used in Feel and then properly named in Cruel. Channel allows the user to imbue any weapon with pure ballyhoo energy[1]. So far, Scoob has only used Channel with guns, so its effects on other weapons is unknown.

Channel is also a rare hybrid between a physical type and an energy type[2], making it one of a kind.

While using Channel, not only do Scoob's eyes glow and leave a streak like other Ballyhoo users, Scoob's dog tag also turns into a four point star shape.

Source: Scoob and Shag Wiki

(images via Webtoon)

[wulfrann]

AFTG Check, Please! AU

Ok so I had this idea a week ago because I’d read something about Andrew getting into baking to satisfy his sweet tooth cravings, and now I can’t think of anything else. So here we go.

(PS: If you don’t know anything about the incredible webcomic that is OMG Check, Please!, do yourself a favor and go read it.)

(PPS: No one is one character, I just took what I wanted for x character and left the rest aside.)

_

The Foxes are the same as in the books except they play hockey and live in a frat house.

(NB: Hockey is a mixed sport in this AU thank you very much)

(NB: I don’t know how many people there are in a hockey team and frankly I don’t care. I’m here to have fun, not to be accurate.)

_

The hockey team has a frat house instead of a tower, and it’s called The Haus. The few larger bedrooms are shared, the smaller ones are not.

Andrew and Aaron share the attic. They have a mini-fridge for Andrew’s ice-cream and booze, even though there’s already a huge fridge in the kitchen. Andrew likes to climb out the window to smoke on the roof.

Renee and Allison also share a room, and so do Matt & Seth. (Matt does spend a fair share of his nights in Dan’s room, though. The both of them have the most “relationship fines” out of the whole team.)

Kevin technically shares his room with Nicky even though it’s small, except Nicky actually really lives off-campus with his boyfriend Erik. (I lied. They’re the ones who have the most fines. The amount of pet names they can use in just daily conversations is disgusting.)

Neil… sleeps in the basement. Officially he has a dorm room, but he’s never even set a foot near the dorms.

Is he even enrolled? Yes. Where does he hide his bed during the day? He sleeps on a camping mattress. What about his dorm room?? John, his never-roommate, was disappointed until he realised that it meant he could have parties whenever he wanted.

_

Kevin hasn’t been that comfortable with contact during matches since he left the Ravens.

When Neil joins and he starts training him at the crack of dawn, Neil makes a deal with him: he’ll follow Kevin’s instructions without complaining if Kevin accepts to practice checking with him.

_

Andrew has a baking channel on youtube. He got into baking a long time ago and kept watching baking videos while thinking he could do better, so one day he just. started his own channel.

He always looks bored in his videos and never takes Q&As seriously. No one’s ever really sure if he’s actually joking.

(“What got you into baking?” “I wanted to be taller and thought eating yeast and egg whites would speed up my growth. So far the results are mixed.”)

He’s not big or anything, but the fans he does have love him. His videos are always well-made and well-framed and the recipe’s clear, and there’s always something in the background of his videos - be it a knife that’s obviously not made for cooking just sitting there, or a passed-out Kevin still holding onto the bottle of vodka from last night.

(There’s a fair share of his fans that are just here to pick up on those odd details and ponder theories about who he really is. The leading hypothesis thus far is that Andrew’s lying about the hockey team and is actually in some kind of cult.)

He rarely talks about hockey or his life in general, except to roast or complain about something or someone, mainly Kevin. His twitter however is full vague posts about his life, but never clear enough that anyone who doesn’t actually know him can figure out what exactly he’s talking about. If Andrew’s bored, and at any moment of the day chances are that he is, then you can be sure he’s typing away on his phone somewhere, complaining about campus coffee or how exactly stupid his teammates are.

No one on the team except Renee knows his twitter handle. This of course doesn’t prevent Andrew from vaguing about her, which she takes in stride.

(No one on the team knowns Renee has a twitter. They’re all convinced she’s, like, anti-social media apps for some reason. They’re not exactly wrong, because Renee does avoid getting involved in any of the unnecessary drama those apps stir, but she likes to watch when she feels like indulging in some form of mindless entertainment.)

_

Neil used to figure skate in the Raven’s junior club when he was a kid, and he still loves it to death. He turned to hockey after Mary’s death though because he needed some way to be on the ice to cope, and was surprised to find out that he likes it. A lot. There’s something about being part of a team that - well. Anyway, it wasn’t supposed to last. He planned to leave at the end of the year - that is, until he got recruited by Wymack and none other than Kevin day, who was in the Ravens’ hockey junior team, and, well. Off to Palmetto he went.

He doesn’t get Andrew at first (doesn’t even want to after Columbia), but one night he stumbles upon Andrew filming himself as he bakes some kind of pie in the Haus’ kitchen. They both agree not to say anything, since Neil’s not even supposed to be in the Haus at this hour, but it doesn’t take long for Neil to find Andrew’s channel on one of the Library’s computers the day after that.

It confuses him more than anything, to be honest, but it also makes Andrew appear more, well, human, and Neil’s curiosity gets the better of him.

He starts looking for Andrew whenever he disappears and usually finds him filming himself making some kind of pastry or another. It gets to the point where Andrew’s just used to having him here while he films, and decides that he might as well help while he’s here.

So Neil starts popping up in Andrew’s video. Oh, it’s nothing at first, just a hand here and there, entering the frame just long enough to pass something to Andrew. But then he starts making comments that Andrew doesn’t edit out and even responds to, sometimes.

(“Isn’t that a little too much chocolate? I thought Kevin wanted you to eat healthier.” “If Kevin wants to eat nothing but grass, that’s his problem. I like real food.” “By which you mean sweets. Are you sure you don’t have a sugar addiction?” “Are you sure you don’t have a death wish?”)

The only other people who know about Andrew’s channel are Aaron, Renee and Bee. Andrew and Bee frequently exchange tips and recipes, and she always leaves some kind of encouraging comment on his videos.

_

Neil practices figure skating on the court sometimes when no one’s around. Andrew finds out about it eventually. (He watches from the rafters, because someone’s got to keep an eye on this suicidal idiot somehow, and Neil pretends to ignore him.)

(And if one day Neil’s feeling so on edge that he asks Andrew to skate with him just to make sure that this is real, that he’s not back in Evermore with the Ravens, skating through Winter break with as many cuts and bruises as he has hairs, that he’s safe - and if Andrew says nothing but gets his skates anyway, so Neil can hear someone else’s blades cutting the ice, can hold onto Andrew’s shirt to remember that he won’t run - well. No one has to know.)

_

When Neil gets a phone, the Foxes make it their duty to create a profile for him on every social media platform imaginable. Eventually he gets a twitter account, and Renee messages him Andrew’s handle.

Neil starts scrolling through Andrew’s profile distractedly until he realises that a lot of his posts are about him, and he immediately starts responding.

Andrew, of course, cannot leave well enough alone, and the whole thing escalates to the point where Andrew’s followers start calling it a Feud, then a War, and post summaries of the day’s battles for those who couldn’t follow in real time.

(It’s flirting. They’d deny it to their graves but it’s flirting.)

_

Everyone has a nickname except Andrew, because he’s lame.

Allison’s is Allie. 

Dan’s just Wilds, because it’s already cool enough. 

Seth’s is Gorder. 

Nicky’s is Mickie. 

Renee’s is Walker, because same as Dan. 

Aaron’s is Ronnie, and he hates it (Nicky came up with it). 

Matt’s is Boydster. 

Kevin’s is Daisy. 

Neil’s is Joster, then Jester after the interview with Kathy Ferdinand. 

(I know those don’t do justice to Check Please so if you have better ideas please tell me.)

_

Bonus facts:

Matt and Nicky do Ransom & Holster’s “Hockey Shit” thing at Neil every time Neil asks a question.

Kevin has the best Hockey Butt, no questions asked.

Allison has the best Flow, no questions asked.

When they make the playoffs they stop shaving/getting haircuts, because that’s the Rule. Dan throws hers and Allison’s epilators in the trash as soon as they get the news. Matt’s beard is crowned Most Magnificent by the end. The twins get, like, five and a half hairs on their chins. Neil ties his hair back because it keeps falling in his face. Nicky grows a beard which he either loves or hates depending on the day. 

[lemoncrumpet]

Hello! I'm a big fan of your fanfic "sun and rain makes a rainbow" (amazing work btw please don't ever stop writing 😅) and I was wondering what exactly made you ship England and Romano? I mean I love them together and honestly wish the ship was more popular but since it isn't I'm always curious when people do ship them. I'm especially interested in your opinion in particular seeing that you are writing such a perfect story about them in which their personalities are just ON POINT. Lots of ❤

Now this is a question I can definitely answer! Sorry it took so long for me to reply, tumblr has decided it’s not going to bother sending me any notifications letting me know I have posts. -____-  

To answer your question; I’m a bit of a history buff IRL, and I fell in love hetalia right away. Back then it was still just a webcomic, but England, and the ever sassy Romano became my two favourite characters  as soon as they appeared. I got really annoyed by the fact that all the fanfics at the time were FrUK or UsUK, or Spamano, especially given the fact that in canon England and Romano are both pretty head strong characters, and the fandom often makes them uke to the point of being entirely submissive. I didn’t (still don’t) like that. It’s just not them in my opinion.  

So, I went on a hunt for non USUK or FrUK fics, and eventually came across the only EngMano story in existence. I absolutely fell in love with it, and over time more and more stories by the same writer appeared. Sadly the person who wrote them has now deleted a lot of the fics, and they no longer exist anywhere from what I can find. I was horrified to see they were gone. It broke my heart. 

The pairing and stories had left such a strong impression on me that it actually got me into revisiting the fandom again (pairing wars, Mary-sue OCs, and other things killed the fandom for me for a long time), but EngMano was still really obscure, even SpUK was fairly unheard of at the time, and I couldn’t find anything to sate my EngMano cravings. I started looking into real history, and found that the two countries share a lot of similarities. I can’t go into too much detail without possibly giving away possible spoilers for my story, but it was extremely eye opening and interesting to research.

As the precious few EngMano stories that had existed slowly vanished one after the other I came to realise that if I wanted to see EngMano I’d have to write it myself (I thought about drawing, but I’m a terrible artist). I only really wrote the story to satisfy my own cravings for EngMano. Which is why I wrote it anonymously on the kinkmeme; if no one read or liked it it wouldn’t matter, but eventually the story escaped the prompt, and became its own, and livejournal’s character limit and lack of editing facilities got annoying. I wasn’t able to write the story the way I wanted to, so I ended up posting it on AO3.

I was really worried that I would never be able to recreate the same enrapturing quality of the original EngMano fics I’d found all those years ago in my own writing, but the response I’ve gotten for this story (especially for such an underrated pairing) has been so amazing that I’m so glad I chose to try and bring it to light, because it really is an amazing pairing!

So, yeah, that’s the story of how I came to discover EngMano, and write ““Sun and Rain”.

[desiderii]

Tag Game!

Tagged by @the-bookdevourer :D

If your OC were a hot beverage, what would they be? A hot beverage? I’m gonna use Almod for this, b/c that’s the one ya’ll are most familiar with, but he’d probably be spiked hot chocolate, tbh. Warm, neither truly wholesome nor decadent, vaguely buzzed and definitely without any sensible inhibitions.

Have any of your OC’s changed drastically from their original concept? The first one that comes to mind is Clarinel, actually? Currently she’s a nine-foot-tall horror-terror in a committed relationship with a sentient library. Originally she was a little girl possessed by a pissy goat demon who came to the MC of her story for help getting rid of him. Her aesthetic tickled me just enough that I have carried it through several stories (that, uh, have never seen the light of day and never, ever will) before she finally found a home.

Where were you when your idea for one of your stories came to you? So I have a stew bucket on the back burner of my brain that I throw stuff into as I learn it or come across it. It could be images, songs, whatever, but it’s sort of a bucket of bubbling sludge that every once and a while produces enough of an idea that I can really run with it. So...where? Usually the shower, tbh, or scrolling the internet feeding the stew new ideas to connect to old ideas. But the most fun place I get new ideas is while writing old ideas. I’ll spawn whole new stories off of lines, sometimes with the same characters, but sometimes with entirely new casts.

Is there a genre you love, but don’t feel confident to write? ...heist? Is that a genre? Maybe ‘crime thriller’ would be the proper genre. But even so, I would REALLY love to write heist stories. I just...they’re HARD and COmPLICaTED and you have to do all of the plot and be smart.

Based on the Hogwarts Houses, which house is your favorite sort of character to write? Hands down Slytherin is the MOST fun type of character to write. Ambitious people want things, will do stuff to get it, and naturally generate conflict when they’re opposed in their pursuit. Hufflepuff is probably my second-favorite? Because they’re attached to people as their driving motivator rather than another high-minded ideal. This makes for really interesting decisions, because people are messy and sometimes their solutions and desires are messy. Ravenclaw and Gryffindor strike me as more generically heroic, as the Wizard and the Warrior. They can carry a story, but they’re actually a lot of fun as support characters with sub-plots rather than front and center.

Do any OC’s share a pet peeve as you? You know, I don’t usually give my OCs my own annoyances, since mine are...weirdly specific shit. Like ‘my hair is too long in the back’ and ‘will someone just fucking get that sniffling person a kleenex.’ So, ah, no. Some might someday? But it hasn’t worked out yet.

If your OC were to become a mythological creature, what would they become? Hee, so Katy’s already a shapeshifter, and Clarinel is sort of...a...lich/outsider entity. Peppa would try for shapeshifter as well, because she’s very practical, but I think Almod would go straight for deification, like go big or go home. If he could take on the mantle of some sort of forest spirit or god, or he could settle into being like...the avatar of the Deity of Gardening, he’d be very happy. 

FMK some OC’s. Bonus points if you explain why. Hrm. Well, I’d clearly marry Katy, b/c she’s super marriage material. She’s sensible and thoughtful and can access knowledge from beyond the mortal plane. I’d probably off (from an entirely different story) Arcturus, because he’s sort of ultimate skeeze. He does that thing where it’s supposed to be romantic but is in fact horrifyingly controlling in a ‘I just want you’ sort of way. And, from that same canon, I’d proooobably fuck Sonya or Belvedere? Sunny would be a delight, and she’s very playful, adventurous, and likes to cuddle, and Belvedere has a vague aura of needing to be tied up and petted and sent directly to subspace do not pass go.

Describe an OC of yours as vaguely as possible. Wandering disaster intent on befriending the universe one fuck-up at a time.

What weapon do you want an OC to use, no matter how illogical? (ex. Scythe) I absolutely love those weird sharp whip thingies that are like...blades all over? I don’t know who I’d give it to, probably Peppa, as she’d be the one who’d actually figure out how to use it and is young enough she might get good eventually without losing a hand. Ahha! Yes! A Whip Sword! They’re super ridiculous but someone needs one.

I tag @learning2beme, @barbex, @stone-goddess-writing, @thewordseamstress, @lisa-writing, @bucketsiler...and, um, I haven’t actually built up a lot of writeblr people to follow! And I have pretty much no idea who is currently following me. SO. If you do follow me (why do you do this thing? idk! ilu anyways), I would like to tag you personally so I can get to know you and you can play with me next time I do another of these. :) (And if @thespooniewrites, @the-bookdevourer, and @awritersnest wanna do the thing...)

Have ten questions!

If your OC were a stuffed toy, what sort of toy would they be, and what would they be stuffed with?

What is the last text/letter/telegram/’send message’ spell your OC has sent and to whom?

Your OC is getting their face painted! What do they ask for?

Do you have a particular character type that you’re drawn to and/or find easiest to write?

If you were to write in a format/type of media you’ve never tried before, what would you try first? (ie: novel, short story, microfiction, play, video game, tv show, serial, webcomic, etc.)

Do any of your OCs have phobias? How would the other characters in their canon react if they knew?

In honor of my OC: If your OC could summon anyone or anything, real or fantasy, who or what would they summon and why?

Design your own Mary Sue/Gary Stu! What canon are you from, what’s your job/powers/etc, and why?

Your OC can’t do everything all the time, can they? What tasks do they half-ass, what tasks do they 3/4ths ass, and what tasks do they deserve ‘you didn’t really try at all’ stars for?

Which of your OCs is mostly likely to stab someone with a fork in a tense situation? Afterward, which is the OC most likely to congratulate them on the stabbing and, if they get into a similar situation, which is the OC most likely to congratulate them on finally NOT stabbing and/or be disappointed they didn’t try again?

[annasellheim]

Okay, let me talk about this doodle comic for a minute.

This was drawn during my semester at @cartoonstudies, which was really the last time I doodled besides the ones I put in letters to friends and fans. I stopped doodling once I really started making comics seriously, but for years that was all I did. I did fine art for school, but really, all I cared about was the doodles and art in my sketchbook (you can check it out, if you scroll back through my tumblr or in the art tag ). The way I learned how to make comics (I might have said this already on here, if so please forgive me) was to obsessively doodle for 25 years (ok ok maybe 23, I probably started making art at 2, not at birth) while writing unrelated embarrassing Mary Sue fan fiction in my head every night for hours as my way of falling asleep. Oh, and I read comics all the time too. All of those things gave me the chops that I had to be able to pretty much start making decent comics right off the bat. I mean hell yeah, I’ve improved since then, but I still like the first real comic I ever did a lot. (BTW, if you want to see the doodle comics I did from 9th grade until I was 25 check out my comics tag and go through a few pages. I think the writing in the autobio gag strips are fine but yeah, beware the art).

ANYWAY THAT WAS NOT WHAT I REALLY WANTED TO TALK ABOUT AT ALL!

What I want to talk about is how I come up with ideas, bc I feel like people have trouble doing that. The first comic I linked earlier I did when I was 19. I then didn’t do another real comic until I was 25. The second one was a response to a prompt that @squarecitycomics gave at the first meeting of theirs I ever attended, which was, “a brush with the law.” 

After that, I went to CCS. I did a few more comics before, but really I only did 3 or 4 real comics total before going “Fuck man, I need help with this.”

What CCS taught me more than anything else, is that what gets me to make comics faster and easier than anything else is having restrictions and prompts. So the first semester, my teacher would say something like, “You need to do a comic about a vacation in 8 pages. Each page needs to have three tiers. You’ve got a month.” (please keep in my mind most of us were full time students at that point so 8 pages in a month was pretty painless, if it sounds like a lot it would be for me now).  And then I would panic because I wouldn’t have an idea for 3 days but I’d doodle and fret like crazy. Then BOOM! IDEA! Having the restrictions of a page count and the tiers, and having a prompt that was vague but still concrete ended up being what ended up making me inspired to make comics and stories on a consistent basis. 

To this day, I still use prompts when I feel low on ideas. It’s the reason I do as many anthologies as I can. It’s a prompt  with certain restrictions (most often page count, but sometimes other things) that will eventually give me a story that people will pay me to make! Plus, I get to network with other cartoonists that are in the anthology. Anthologies rule side, seriously.

And even if you aren’t accepted into the anthology, you can still do the story. The webcomic I’m working on started as a failed pitch to the Beyond anthology. It’s now a completely different animal, but the prompt of “queer urban fantasy,” is how I came up with the idea.

Not every prompt is going to be fruitful. I wish that I could be in every cool anthology, but certain themes and ideas are just not gonna cut it. But anyway, my advice if your stuck not being able to think of comic ideas is to look up some writing prompts and find one you like and make a SHORT comic about it. 

[literarilymanga]

Hi, all! It’s time for another webcomic feature! This week I interviewed Micah, creator of The Roommate from Hell! Read the full interview after the cut!

Me: Would you share a little bit about yourself as a creator? 

Micah: Sure! So currently I'm a student at University of Wisconsin Stout, in a program called Entertainment Design - Comics and Sequential Art. So it's basically a comics major. I've been drawing and creating things as long as I remember, and I started taking it seriously around middle school. Put out my first webcomic in high school. Creating comics is basically my life, I spend all my free time on it.

Me: Could you give a short summary of The Roommate From Hell ?

Micah: Up 'til this point it's been about a college student named Mary who moves in with a new roommate she met online. He's really suspicious and she starts investigating. Eventually she convinces herself that he's actually a superhero. He's not a superhero, but he's not exactly normal, either. If you like stories with supernatural elements that are occasionally high action but often focus more on the characters and their interactions, and how these supernatural elements affect their lives, you will like the comic.

Me: Could you introduce the readers to your characters? 

Micah: Alright. So there's Mary. She's rather high energy, I designed her to be rather relateable as she's very interested in anime, internet culture, etc. Very friendly and enthusiastic about life. Then there's Hugh, her new roommate. Short, shy, and really awkward. He is weirdly paranoid about everything and is obviously hiding some kind of secret.

Me: Who is your favorite character—and why?

Micah: So I really like Hugh, he's super fun to draw and temperament wise very similar to me. Way further out I'll be introducing a character named Samur who is probably my second favorite. He's super deadpan and plays off the other characters in funny ways.

Me: Who is your least favorite character—and why?

Micah: I'm not sure I have a least favorite, although there's a few characters that are harder to draw than the others. Or characters that are hard to write for. There's a group of characters coming in a bit later, Zane, Shatiq, Lael, and Gabe, who are relatively new and will be a bit of work to keep consistent and interesting in their dialogue. Shatiq is super fun to draw, though.

Me: Can you offer insight into how you’ve developed your story and your creative process so far? 

Micah: So, many of my story ideas, including Roomie, come from random dreams I've had. So I can't speak much on the ideation process. After that I start coming up with scenes and situations that would be interesting to see these characters in. Once I have that starting point, I try to string them together. Usually over-arching themes will develop and I’ll organize a story around those messages I want to convey. My primary goal is always to be entertaining and make the readers feel for the characters.

Me: What is your favorite part of the creative process? The least favorite part? 

Micah: Creating and developing characters is probably the best part. I do a lot of role playing with these characters with my friends and end up developing them far past the scope of their stories. My least favorite part of the process is stringing together plot points that I want to include but can’t figure out how to make it happen. Discovering plot holes and trying to fix them, and editing stories to try to maximize clarity for the readers, is also a difficult but necessary step.

Me: You mention on Roomie’s site that the comic is going to get spooky. What made you decide on a supernatural story?

Micah: It was the subject matter of the dream. It's not actually going to be that spooky, just, the subject is something generally considered part of the horror genre. 

Me: How have readers reacted to your characters and story thus far? Are there any challenges that you’ve had to overcome when working on Roomie?

Micah: So I haven't gotten a ton of feedback. Site stats say my site isn't entirely dead, but people don't seem to like to comment a lot. People have enjoyed it, though, especially my friends who know the larger plot and role play with me. There's this one guy who comments a lot who has actually been around since my older webcomic, Operation Reboot. Generally their comments are constructive criticism, which some people might find disheartening, but I think they enjoy the comic and I appreciate the opportunity to improve my work.

Me: What do you want readers to take away from your story? 

Micah: Really I just want my readers to be entertained and have something to look forward to. I try to write interesting diverse characters, so if they can identify with them, especially if the characters are of an underrepresented group, then that's a bonus.

Me: Who is your “intended” audience? 

Micah: Probably [readers in their] late teens to late twenties. The nerdier crowd, and members of the LGBTQ+ community, mostly.

Me: Do you plan to pursue other mediums for your story ?

Micah: I'd like to print it eventually? And actually I'm planning to expand the universe out into a different website I'm designing. It'll be fictional and about the supernatural element of the story, but made out as if it were real. It will feel like the website of a hospital or charity sort of thing. It's a bit hard to explain. I'm hoping to figure out a plot for it eventually and make into an ARG sort of thing? It won't launch for a year or two so it's up in the air.

Me: What drew you to the webcomic genre? What made you say, “This is how I want to share my story?”

Micah: I'm not really sure. I've been doing this for years and I kind of forgot why I decided webcomics were best. Probably because it’s free and accessible to people? And rather uncomplicated on my end, just have to pay for hosting and learn WordPress.

Me: Do you have any advice you want to share with other artists and writers? 

Micah: Write for yourself. That's probably my best tip. If you write for yourself, motivation will be easier to find. And if you like your story, it's very likely other people will too. Even if it's a story appealing to one in a million, there's 7 billion people on the planet so that's still a ton of people.

Micah: Also, prioritize life drawing. Even if it's just SenshiStock. Your characters will improve immediately.

Me: What are your tools of the trade? Any special software? 

Micah: I use a monoprice tablet and GIMP. It can bug out sometimes but I make it work. Roomie is inked on paper and colored on computer but I also do full digital and full traditional work on occasion. I am poor and cheap.

Me: When does Roomie update?

Micah: Monday/Wednesday/Friday. Soon there will be a side comic, exclusive to Patreon and voting rewards on TopWebcomics, which updates on T/Th/S/Su. So there will be something every day :) The side comic will be free and archives for the current issue free, but previous issues will be avaliable as Patreon rewards.

You can read The Roommate from Hell on its main site and keep an eye out for future updates on mirror comic sites. Roomie takes a hiatus every May and December, so if you are interested in sending in a guest comic, Micah will be posting more details on their site in April. 

Be sure to check out last week’s interview with webcomic artist J.M. Henry.

If you want me to interview you about your webcomic or you just want to share some input on the creative process, comment on this post, send a note, or submit an ask. 

Until next time, happy Saturday! 

(This post was adapted from a Twitter interview.)

[recentanimenews]

Who's Your (Dream) Daddy? Game Creators Appear at CRX

  Where does a team of game creators get the idea to make a dating sim where you create your own "dadsona" and date other dads? Disneyland, apparently.

  The team behind Dream Daddy, the game that's won over a massive fanbase in just over one month, made an appearance at this year's Crunchyroll Expo to chat with fans about the inspiration behind their new creation. Among the staff on hand were creators Vernon Shaw and Leighton Grey as well as Amanda's voice actress Erika Ishii.

  So what exactly inspired the game? Leighton's musings on the concept of "fursonas" kicked it all off, it seems. What other sort of "-sonas" could a person create? Her mind eventually went to "dadsonas"... and a trip to Disneyland with Vernon led to the discussions that ended up paving the way for Dream Daddy.

Ready for some Dad Trivia?

  Damien really did just start out as "Goth Dad." As the team discussed different types of dads, they listed off the types they'd want to see in the game. Early on? A "bad dad" and "a big dad you can hug." Leighton immediately followed this up with "Goth Dad" and... well... the rest is history. (Well, the rest is apparently Vernon running around Disneyland yelling "LUCIEN! I'VE LOST MY SON!" But you get the idea.)

  The demo only had one voice actor. And it was the lead programmer.

  There's a lot of real-world angst in the game. Vernon and Leighton drew a lot of the drama for the game from their own personal lives, with Vernon describing "Cool Dad" Mat as his self-insert character.

  Brian was originally "a conflict-free cinnamon roll." The original concept for Brian was just a big huggable guy. But they eventually felt his story needed work, and that a "Rival Dad" was also something the game lacked. Surprisingly, the rivalry aspects fit well over Brian's story as it stood.

  The team watched Brokeback Mountain for inspiration; it didn't go well. To research a camping date with Craig, the team decided to watch what they believed was "the You've Got Mail of cowboy movies." As anyone who's seen Brokeback Mountain knows, there's a lot more to it than the one scene that got publicized. The movie affected them so much emotionally that it took two days before either of them could get back to writing.

  These guys are really serious about Bad Ends. The game contains a very small number of "death states," but there are a few things that didn't make the cut. An old rejected one involved watching YouTube forever while waiting for "Bad Dad" Robert to get back to you on Dadbook.

  They also kicked around the idea of what they called "Iron Dad" Mode: if you got a death state, your dadsona and save files were wiped from the game completely. (This concept was alternately referred to as Dad Souls.)

There were several lines of dialogue that didn't make the cut. And only a few of those got read off at the panel. Suffice to say, while they would have been funny, they might have changed the tone of the game a bit. Damien, for one, has a few opinions concerning the Victorians and how they made their children stronger.

  One dad is, in fact, Best Dad. When asked which dad they'd date, the team almost unanimously agreed on Damien -- though Leighton tagged on Mary as another dating possibility.

  Thanks to the Dream Daddy team for coming to the first-ever Crunchyroll Expo!

  >> Buy Dream Daddy on Steam

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  Kara Dennison is responsible for multiple webcomics, blogs and runs interviews for (Re)Generation Who and PotterVerse, and is half the creative team behind the OEL light novel series Owl's Flower. She blogs at karadennison.com and tweets @RubyCosmos.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com