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WEEK 14: COMICS TODAY

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Image result for sarah's scribbles logo"
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There is a huge audience for web comics nowadays, which made me feel that they were appropriate to discuss for this week’s blogpost. In South Korea especially, there is a whole sub-culture of webtoon artists and readers. Some become insanely popular, which often lead to big hit television remakes of the comic (also true in Japan). What’s interesting about online comics is the amount of variety for me, as I can easily switch from a very emotional, dramatic story to slice-of-life comedic one shots. Websites like Line Webtoon, Lehzin, or Comico make it extremely easy and convenient to jump from one series to the next. It also brings an opportunity for aspiring comic artists to showcase their talents, and possibly gain a huge following.
I wanted to highlight three different web comics today: “Lore Olympus” by Rachel Smythe, “Ghost Teller” by QTT, and “Sarah’s Scribbles” by Sarah Andersen. These select three are extremely different from each other, but they are all very popular and available to read on Line Webtoon (links provided at the bottom). Starting with “Lore Olympus,” I would say that this web comic is like a modern romance take on the greek mythology of Hades and Persephone. The amount of remakes based off of those two characters is getting to the point of over-saturation, but I find this comic to be much deeper and more creative than most interpretations. It is a love story, but what I found appealing about this work was that the creator really took the time to flesh out these characters in a new way. Side characters are much more entertaining, and they’re also important to the plot. I love the relationship between Artemis and Persephone, because it just feels so grounded and adorable. They feel like relatable people rather than Gods.
“Ghost Teller” is one of my favorite web series to this day. The plot is very unique and well executed, as it plays with the idea of telling scary stories by the campfire. But in this story, the situation is reversed because the ghosts are the ones telling scary stories about humans. Each ghost at the round table gets a chance to tell a really scary story about the horrors of humanity. As you read it, you realize that they are telling the story of how they died and who betrayed them. Each story revolves around a moral conflict that makes you reflect your own actions and how they affect others around you. It’s a really disturbing, yet beautifully haunting web series that I would highly recommend to anyone.
“Sarah’s Scribbles” is a hilarious and incredibly relatable web comic that deals with themes of adulthood, maturity, and female problems. The reason why this series is so incredibly popular is because of its simplistic nature. The comics are very short and immediately get to the punchline, and usually they are universally acknowledged. The way that Andersen caricatures herself is rather simple, having the basic geometric shapes. This allows for more people to see themselves in that situation, therefore allowing the reader to connect to the comics on a personal level. This is like what Scott McCloud was explaining in his book “Understanding Comics.” I have been following this comic since I was in high school, and it amazes me how I can reread these comics and find them even more relatable and funny than before.
Web comics are definitely a hot trend for millennials. I am a big fan of many indie comic artists and I wholeheartedly support the idea of creating whatever you want to share online, so I hope that the online comic culture will be staying for a long time.

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