The Weekly Wrap-up with Wes Molebash

If I were giving out some kind of award for building community, I would probably award it to Wes Molebash for what he's done with his latest comic, Max vs. Max. Several times a week, he posts a question to start some conversation, such as "What are the signs of a 'bad' webcomic?" or "Is it OK to read your Bible while sitting on the toilet?" People get talking, interaction happens. It's simple and effective.

But I'm writing this post to tell you about another of Wes' traditions: The Weekly Wrap-Up. Every Friday, he posts a run-down of posts from other blogs, comic strips he's enjoyed, the Tweet of the Week and/or Comment of the Week, and an inspiring (usually cartooning-related) video link that he's found. It's pretty cool, simply because it's a way of supporting cool stuff--it's a way that Max vs. Max points to stuff outside its own site and is like, "Hey, check this out."

And that's a good thing. You know I do the Pick of the Day thing on my Twitter, to share cool comics with you, so no surprise that I think it's a cool idea. When you share a cool comic, everyone wins. (I do tend to share strips from the same handful of comics, though. It's not a perfect thingy.)

I have some other thoughts on that, but for now it's about time to wrap this post up. For now, just wanted to give a shout out to the cool things that Wes is doing over at Max vs. Max. Check it out!

Reader Feedback Time

So, I'm back from hiatus--but during my hiatus, I had a lot of time to think about the future of This Week in Webcomics. Now, I want to know what you think.

What do you think of TWIW? What do you want to see more of? What do you want to see less of? What do you want me to get rid of entirely? Get candid with me. Share any thoughts you have at all. Tell me what new things you want to see in the new year. Tell me how this blog can better serve you, the reader, and what role this blog can play in your webcomics-reading experience.

Poll Results: You Guys Like Superfogeys

The masses have spoken! Thanks to Brock Heasley's inundation of the polls with his many readers, Superfogeys has carried the day and earned itself yet another review. To be entirely fair, I have mixed feelings about how fair such tactics are. On the one hand, I hold these polls in order to let you, my readers, choose the comics you want to see reviewed, not complete strangers who only came here because a cartoonist asked them to. On the other hand, those who voted may well come back to check out the review, since if they cared enough to vote for their favorite comic, they may also be interested in what people are saying about it.

On the third hand, I love traffic. So, cartoonists, send me your voters. Let's get a new poll going on here, with the following options up for grabs:

• Eben07: Operation Mongoose
• The Home World
• Addanac City
• Tuna Carpaccio, P.I.
• Galaxion

On a note only related insofar as it is about comics: long before I got into webcomics, long before there was even a web of note to put comics on, I read comic books. Specifically, I read Valiant's Nintendo Comics System titles. In second grade, I spent many an afternoon enjoying the selection at my local comic shop, reading the adventures of Captain N, Link, and the Super Mario Brothers, and I, like Chris Flick, have many fond comic-book shop memories.

Sadly, I found the following in my basement just recently:


Just look at that mildew! My childhood dreams are covered in nasty grossness.

What were your first comic experiences? What are some of your favorite comic-reading memories? Drop a little nostalgia my way, because all my nostalgia is moist and wrinkly.

Slated for Review: Poll Options #1

Once again, I find myself polling my readers to see what they want to see reviewed. For your consideration:

• Eben07: Operation Mongoose
• The Home World
• Addanac City
• Superfogeys, Chapters 4 - 6
• Galaxion

Check 'em out, drop a vote in the poll at the top of the blog, and look forward to reviews of the comics you want reviewed. Let it never be said I didn't give the peoples what they wanted!

Poll Results: Your Reading Habits

According to poll results, readers enjoy finding new comics and keeping up with their favorites in equal measure. They are markedly less likely to go back and reread a comic that they're up to speed on, but if the poll is indicative, a few webcomic enthusiasts (among whom I would count myself) enjoy going back and checking out older strips and storylines from their favorites. Now you know--and knowing is half the battle.

How You Read Webcomics

I have a handful of comics that I read regularly; you may well have a good idea of which ones they are, given the frequency with which I mention them. Additionally, I enjoy discovering a new comic and rampaging through the archives, or researching an unfamiliar comic for a review. Sometimes I'll trawl through the archives of a comic I already read regularly, just because it's so much fun to revisit. My point is, there are a lot of different ways to read a comic.

Which brings us to our current poll, which you can vote in at the top of the page. There are a lot of different ways to read webcomics, and as always I'm interested in how you approach your favorites. The three options above may not cover how you most enjoy catching up with your comics of choice; if that's the case, drop a comment and get qualitative on me. I'm looking forward to hearing more about how you read.

Return to top & take the poll!

Sidenote: a Little News about TWIW

As you can see from the results of the You-Choose-the-Reviews poll above, readers demand more Superfogeys and Marooned. To what extent this results from Brock Heasley and Tom Dell’Aringa hurling their fans at my site like so many Prinnies, I'm not sure, but their respective comics pulled into the lead early on before news even spread about the poll, so I'm pretty sure this reflects what the readers want. And who doesn't like more traffic?

But in all seriousness, thanks to all of you who voted or publicized the poll. I'll be reviewing Superfogeys #3 sometime in the next few weeks, and Marooned shortly after that.

In other news, I've had video games on the brain lately. Yesterday I posted a few reflections on Penny Arcade, which you may have seen already. And those of you who have been following my Twitter know I've been playing Disgaea 2. I beat it yesterday, and it is hands-down the most hilarious tactical RPG I have ever played, not that there are many hilarious tactical RPGs out there. Apparently there is a manga, which I am thinking of picking up to see if it is as hilarious as the game.

But I digress; you come here for the webcomics. In all likelihood, Friday's week-in-review post will go up late Friday evening, and long-time readers know what that means. I'll see you guys tomorrow, and until then, stay cool and read good comics.

Share Your Story: How Did You Get into Webcomics?

As you know, I run this blog because I enjoy talking about webcomics--not just to you, but with you. Thus, from time to time I invite you to speak your bit about comics.

Today, I'd like to hear how you got into webcomics. What was your first webcomic? How were you introduced to it? When and how did you start following webcomics regularly? Tell me your stories--I'd love to hear 'em.

Also, you have about one week left to vote in the Review Requestion Poll above. In case you're curious about some of the comics up for possible review, here's a handful of links:

• Order of Tales
• Superfogeys
• Jump Leads
• Deadpool Classic #1 and #2
• Marooned

So, vote in the poll, drop a comment, interact. We welcome your input. And by "we" I guess I just mean me.

Poll: Review Requestions, Anyone?

Hello, all. I hope you had a good 4th of July weekend. I hope you also enjoyed this past week's comic-form update. It is democracy that makes this country truly great, and let it never be said that I don't listen to the voice of the masses. As part of my ongoing quest to give the peoples what they want, I would like to know what comic you want me to review next, so please take a moment to vote in the poll above. I'm still working on the free waffles, but in the meantime, you can let me know what reviews you're interested in.

If you enjoyed the comic-form update, please share it with a friend who likes comics. Thanks, guys--I'll see you again on Friday.

Good Journal Comics, Anyone?

Hi, everyone. Right now I'm at the Outer Banks in North Carolina, enjoying the beach with my family, as you read these words that I typed last week. Automation is a truly magical thing.

Anyway...once I come back, I've been thinking about doing a feature on journal comics, and I'm interested to hear from you on the subject. Do you read any journal comics? Is one of your favorite comics a journal comic? What do you think about the idea in general--creating a comic that is expressly about oneself and one's life? Drop a comment and share your thoughts on journal comics.

Be sure to tune in this Friday for a guest entry from Jen. I hope that you're enjoying your summer, whether on vacation or not...I'll see you next week!

Ctrl+Alt+Del

Today I want to talk with you about Ctrl+Alt+Del. On this blog, we always talk about what I want to talk about--except when there are guest bloggers. For better or worse, this is pretty much how blogs work.

Ctrl+Alt+Del is a popular comic--but it's also an infamous comic. Offline, I've found several fans, from my friend Dave to the guy at the Micro Center customer service desk, but on the internet, CAD is the subject of scathing criticism. I was first introduced to it by John "Your Webcomic is Bad" Solomon's characteristically vitriolic review, and thread topics at the Dinosaur Comics message board include "justify CAD's existence" and "Christmas Miracle: [CAD Creator Tim] Buckley Somehow Becomes More Terrible."

I personally don't think all the CAD hate is merited. Beyond the obvious fact that I'd much rather celebrate and share good comics than talk smack about bad ones, I simply don't think it's a terrible comic. I could defend specific charges against the art, the writing, the overall comic craft, and I could accede the validity of other charges...but I'm not interested in convincing or refuting anyone.

Comics are a communication medium, whether for stories or jokes or webcomic reviews, and I recently had an insight into just what CAD is trying to communicate. Buckley has described it as "a gamer comic, not a gaming comic," and I believe that he's simply trying to present a cross-section of life as a gamer. The humor isn't the tightly-paced three-panel comedy of Penny Arcade or the consummately-crafted "art of the comic strip" of Sheldon. Sometimes the funniest moment occurs in the first or second panel. It's the humor of gamer culture, for better or worse: the sarcasm, the needlessly verbose insults, the snarky elitism, and the occasional bursts of genuine wit that make you lol, even lyao.

CAD has its problems, to be sure. It's wordy, and even if it means to present a slice of gamer life, it needs to make some concessions to the comic format in order to communicate effectively. It doesn't always have to be funny, but its characters must develop beyond one-dimensional caricatures if we're going to take Ethan's game-store business and his relationship with Lilah as seriously as Buckley would like us to. His art is known for inexpressive character expressions and copious use of copy-paste, but over the past year, the art has grown more varied and less static. Honestly, I think the interactive Ethan McManus: Space Archaeologist adventures have been the most successful CAD undertaking yet. With crisper sci-fi artwork and more dynamic panel layouts, they just look better, and the non-canonical, reader-influenced storylines allow for such repercussions as the death of significant characters. Buckley puts forth effort and takes risks on these things, and I think it pays off.

But fundamentally, I'm not most interested in making pronouncements or justifying CAD. I seem to be the only person on the internet who simply thinks it's "sometimes not bad," and I want to know your opinion. I don't just want to talk to you about CAD--I want to talk with you about CAD. Is it a good comic? A bad comic? You tell me. I want to hear what you think.

Your Favorite Webcomics

So, what are your favorite webcomics? What's on your list of regulars, and why do you read them regularly? Drop a comment and let me know what you like to read, what strips you think are top-tier cartooning, what's funny, what's awesome. Have you ever had an experience where you trimmed down your check-regularly list and gained an increased appreciation for the comics you continued to read? I'm looking forward to hearing about your favorites.