Thread "My thoughts about this comic" in forum "Hurrocks Fardel"

Posted at 12:10PM, Oct. 2, 2009

The plot:

Plot is very interesting so far. I really liked Drake's barbed remarks and also, the interactivity between the cast(Rationales, Drake and Joan) are excellent.

I really enjoyed the medieval tint to the story, the post-apocalypse background(just enough to be there and not too much to seem utterly "fake"), the various historical tidbits, the various "races", etc., etc.

The various events so far, hint at some very epic happenings in the distant future. And it's also a very good thing that you introduced things bit by bit, instead of dumping too many plot twists into 1 chapter. Too many good comics have been ruined by that.

And also, the various "races" don't feel utterly gimmicky like in so many fantasy comics. And they just feel like natural, living beings instead of some rehashed stereotype as they have their own beliefs and behaviours.

So far, the only slight problem was that lengthy fighting scene with Rationales and Drake, with Joan doing little to nothing. And oh, that earlier scene with the knight as well. Those 2 scenes kinda felt a little less than engaging for the cast and the plot 'cos they lacked a certain level of interactivity. I can only hope that future fighting scenes will be more compressed and dynamic, in order to preserve the flow of the plot and add some spice to the scenes. And that the characters will do something instead of just standing there or at least, start improving in terms of fighting ability or chipping in terms of some combat aid.

And no, all that talking during the mob scene was no big deal. Errant Story, I recall, has far more dialogue than this even during fights.

And that… okay, this is me being mean but I wish the story would move a bit faster. =P But ah well, can't complain, can I? :)

The art:
The art was a bit rough when it first started out. However, everyone has to start somewhere! And comparing the "early" pages to the latest(pg 284), the art has definitely progressed by a lot. The lineart and pencilling feel more refined. And the anatomy of the characters looks much better now. The characters also emote better now as compared to the slightly awkward facial expressions and body language in the early strips.

And although, some of the perspectives of the scenes/characters still look a bit off to me, I'm confident that things will get even better. :) And oh, the colouring is quite an excellent improvement too. At the beginning, the colouring was kinda flat but now, it's got a lot of depth and you can make out the curves and other details on the characters/background/items.

And also, the layout/composition(whatever the heck you artist folks call that) of the panels look a lot better now. Previously, the details in the panels like buildings and scenery felt a little "flat" or if not sparse. But just look at Pg 224! I simply adored that city layout.

All in all, this is a fairly nice find that I'm adding this to my "reading list".

Posted at 10:10PM, Oct. 2, 2009

Thanks for all the feedback, it's really great to read such an throughout response and to see that readers are following everything that's going on and thinking about it. Its also the best way for me to figure out what I need to work on.

My pacing is one of the big things that I'll be trying to improve, and there will be an action sequence coming up for me to try my hand at it again. I hope to make it run more smoothly than the last few. I'd love to know what you think when we get to it.

thank you so much, and I hope the comic continues to be something that you like reading.

Posted at 5:10AM, Oct. 3, 2009

Thanks for all the feedback, it's really great to read such an throughout response and to see that readers are following everything that's going on and thinking about it. Its also the best way for me to figure out what I need to work on.

Ehhh no problem… I just enjoyed this comic a darn lot. ;)

My pacing is one of the big things that I'll be trying to improve, and there will be an action sequence coming up for me to try my hand at it again. I hope to make it run more smoothly than the last few. I'd love to know what you think when we get to it.

Nice! That sounds pretty cool. :)

Oh and… forgot to say this: maybe you can also try having more dialogue and more action per panel instead of less dialogue over a few pages of large panels.

Something like this(since I rarely read most fantasy much, sorry, that's the only example I can think of!)
http://www.errantstory.com/2009-09-02/4430

I say this 'cos fantasy epic tends to be fairly complex and wordy, thus compressing the amount of pages works much better for the overall plot.

thank you so much, and I hope the comic continues to be something that you like reading.

Hehe… no problem, dude. :) Hmmm… managed to get a friend into reading it too. :P