Because Artistry isn't Everything

If you're reading this blog, chances are you already read web-comics. If you don't read web-comics, then why are you reading this blog?

Circular logic, you win again!

Really, though - there are a lot of good things going on that you won't find in the newspaper funnies. Oh sure, you have some great strips that will get your hands all black and inky, but amazingly, you can read them on the internet, too. That crazy Al Gore and his wonderful invention.

For example, I keep up with Dilbert, Zits (the heir apparent of Calvin and Hobbes if there ever was one) , and the new strip Retail (which is the most spot-on look at the retail industry if there ever was one - if you've ever worked in the customer service industry, or if you've ever shopped, you'll find this amusing) via the Seattle Press-Intelligencer web-site.

I used to read Get Fuzzy all the time, but I find it's not as consistently amusing as it used to be for me. Don't get me wrong, I love the art in this, especially the way that Satchel, the dog, is quite possibly the saddest, most adorable thing ever drawn, but it's not always funny. Much of the humor comes from the art, and in dialogue-heavy strip, that's a disappointment. You might give it a try, though, because there are some genuinely funny moments.

For some reason, I keep up with two soap opera-like comics. The first is For Better or For Worse, a strip that has corny humor, but that's not why I read it. It's weird, but sometimes when you grow up with a certain habit, you will continue it even though you don't get a whole lot out of it. That's what this strip is like for me. For example, I "watched" as April grew up. So I guess I just want to know how everything turns out.

The second is an actual web-comic, Penny and Aggie. I'm not exactly sure why I started reading this, but I do know that I enjoy the artwork a lot (there is definitely a Anime influence), and the stories were pretty interesting, at least at first. Perhaps it was because I was first able to read them in a continuous fashion that the stories seemed so much more coherent, because now that I'm caught up, I'm usually unsure exactly what's going on all the time. Still, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (a web-comic standard, for the most part), I tune in.

The first web-comic I really got into, my oldest brother tipped me off on: PvP. It's very geek-oriented, in that it is chock-full of pop-culture references that video game and sci-fi nerds would enjoy, but I think it has enough appeal for the masses. Considering he publishes the strip in comic book form through Image has to mean Scott Kurtz, the author, has gained some popularity. His blogs are sometimes amusing, too, if only because he's got a little bit of an ego (because he's been successful in a highly unsuccessful industry, money-wise). And hey, this guy does a daily, so maybe he deserves some props.

Another great strip is Full Frontal Nerdity, by Aaron Williams. This is straight-up nerd-time, very much dedicated to the gaming community (and if you don't know what I mean by "gaming", then it's probably not for you). But it's hilarious if you get the references (or, rather, the tongue-in-cheekiness). This strip is only a weekly, because Williams has a few other projects. His blog, as opposed to Kurtz's, is great, and he is a link-finding master. I plan on reading his other comics as well: PS 238 and Nodwick. You can access them both through his home page (use the "blog" link).

A couple of other good ones: Todd and Penguin, Queen of Wands, and Irregular Web-Comic are all very good. The first two have atrocious art, but they're very interesting, and the last one is made with Lego mini-figs and has a number of different story-lines. Queen of Wands is no longer being made, sad to say, but it is loosely tied to a very popular web-comic, Something Positive that I plan on checking out, too. Both of these, and Irregular, were recommended to me by my cousin, so I'm giving him his propers.

That's about it for now. If I find any more, I'll keep you posted.

All three of you.