let us tell you about webcomics

Feel free to drop requests for review in our askbox! Can't guarantee that every request will get a review, but one way to keep the backlog small would be to submit a review for a comic on the list if you ask for a review.

Community reviews requested for the following comics:

Beyond the Canopy by greliz

Caelum Sky

Lovespells (lovespellscomic.com // tapas.io/series/lovespells)

Lumi The Lighting Mage

Patchwork and Lace (https://patchworkandlace.the-comic.org)

Godcleaver by Fiona "Occult" Hennessy is a story inviting you to the world of a planet Aurgelmir. First and foremost it’s a horror story as stated by the author but it combines elements of adventure, sci-fi and fantasy. The reader follows the path of the main character Mongrel who meets all kinds of freaks on his divine quest. Violence, gods, thralls, gore, parasites, fungal magic, gore, aliens, weird nature, gore. In short: a very welcoming world!

Godcleaver has incredible visuals: the saturated vibrant colors that perfectly convey the almost toxic environment of Aurgelmir or at times make you appropriately sick when someone’s head is being chopped off. There’s plenty of gory action scenes but if you need a break there are always more static background shots of the planet’s nature (and sometimes of technology). The character designs of all kinds of people inhabiting this planet are also very memorable: they always either wield some weird tool or wear some peculiar headgear. This comic also has some really great facial expressions (mostly either threatening or agonized).

As for the writing, Occult masterfully leads the reader through the story by both having a narrator voice and regular character dialogue. Each character’s introduction page is intriguing and stylish (may I also add that their lettering skills are very impressive?). A lot of Godcleaver’s characters talk in a pretty archaic way which makes Mongrel’s stick out as someone with a simpler and more modern manner of speaking. What does he hide?..

Missed Connection by Eter is a comic of living under this cloud. Friends meet in the Palace of Culture's underground goth club MORG after their respective jobs to discuss day-to-day life. Even in this brief escape of leisure and enjoying time with friends, work keeps being dragged to the forefront. Can our young professionals, trapped within both this new tech era aiming to connect us and Party-controlled censorship, find a way to reach out to each other?

In a review for those who want to discover the comic themselves, it's an incredible read of character banter and design. Everyone feels so real and endearing (or slowly becoming less than endearing in the case of Zina), never does the dialogue fall flat or last too long. You feel push and pull of tensions and familiarity within this cast. Even if you don't know our friends in MORG, you've encountered them before.

Real, grounded, and dripping in style, Missed Connection also treats the reader to stellar designs with some of the most stylish subcultures at the forefront of the art. Even if it's a comic, you hear the music thrumming through your head like a modem starting up, a familiar hum to fit a story where tech lingers in the background like a patient predator waiting to change your life in new and strange ways ...

In a simple propaganda piece where I can draw your attention fast and loose, "Do you like goth lesbians and cool butches? Do you love to see people arguing and having fun doing it? Are you a fan of the noble train or the pervert printer? Do you love the push and pull of a world who wants to use the very tech you use to take anything away? Read Missed Connection!"

I’ve been working on my passion project here about a spirit trapped in a ghost dinosaur body as she’s chased by professional ghost hunters- it’s a paranormal slice of life and I’d love to have a more critical eye on it! This is my first time doing a comic so the first few pages are a big scattered, haha.

Beyond the Canopy by greliz! http://www.beyondthecanopy.com/

Cargo by Chloe Cunningham sure is a comic.

Without ever being in Florida, this comic has quintessentially shown me the spirit of the place. Cargo tells a story of a ragtag smuggler crew in a post-apocalyptic world. Saying this ignores like 70% of what the comic is actually like. It’s dadaistic, it’s down-to earth, it has like 4 apocalypses in one, yet none of them matter much. There are supposedly zombies in it, I’ve never seen any. It reads like a political satire towards current capitalistic and facist systems, but I don’t think it aims to be just that. It’s a clown city. Cargo hides its heart under absurdism so strongly, I feel like any way of explaining what it is breaks the smokescreen. Yet I must…

Cargo is about Matt, the most moist man on earth, a delightful mix of zero self confidence with strong sense of righteous judgement, realising his life dream of being a pirate. Helping him is SJ, a cold-loving, cigar burning ex-journalist with a hooded past; her maybe-blackmailed nihilist friend, and one of the rare voices of reason, Ginger; hired thug and a Milf of All Times, Ekat; local cat lover and a boy, Richard Parker (not his real name) and, hold on I’m gonna close this sentence. I’m honestly listing all main characters like this, because they are a delightful crew and the pull of the story. You must understand.

Last member of the cast is Stanley, Matt’s cousin, zombie brainworm survivor, and a sudoku legend, among many other things. All the characters are bastards and I would not stand to be in the same room with them for 5 minutes, but together they balance out a delightful sitcom of failed dreams, perseverance, and somehow fumbling over the finish line all teeth intact. It is not found family, but it’s found acquaintances. It’s a road trip with people who barely stand each others. I love it.

What Cargo does exceptionally well is the dialogue. It’s witty and punchy, it keeps the flow through both fun and mellow times. Another thing that Cargo does well is the mystery. As a reader you’re thrown into this story with bare explanations, and at the point where the comic is now, I’m only starting to realise how little I actually do know. Where are the damn zombies? Why are computers sometimes just melting? What does all those little things and secret symbols MEAN? What bizarre out-of-nowhere thing is made illegal next? I would not survive in this world for a day, I’d be thrown into a clown jail and forcibly made into a cop for having socks in my sandals on tuesday (not having socks is illegal on wednesdays and I forgot which day it was). Please read Cargo, this is the only way I can be saved.

Sharon White has plans at world domination.  She has a magic detector, an army of robots, and a plan to overthrow the enigmatic Lord Jel.  She also has a daughter.

Puffer and Clarissa is a coming of age adventure story created by James Nelson.  After an accident washes her overboard, Puffer now finds herself stuck with Clarissa, who is just the worst.  She just can’t see how awesome Puffer’s mom is, obviously. The dynamic and interaction between the two leads is wonderful.  The enemies to friends (and maybe someday more?) pipeline is so much fun.  

I love the characters in this comic, every one of them has such great designs and over the top personalities reminiscent of the old Saturday Morning cartoons I wasn’t allowed to watch as a child.  Our heroes are plucky and interesting, and it’s been so much fun to follow along as they’ve both grown and learned about one another.  

Sharon in particular is an interesting and complex character.  There are obvious and insidious villains in the story, like Lord Jel or the wonderfully delightful Killer Whale, but the crux of the story’s conflict is about Sharon.  She is not a good mother, she is manipulative, she is cruel, she gaslights her daughter, and above all, she is self centered.  She does love her daughter, but not in a way that is healthy or really even resembles actual love and care.  Puffer’s journey to see this and hopefully break away is the heart of the story, and is told so well and so poignantly.

The flooded world of Puffer and Clarissa is interesting and cool, it is itself a character, and it is full of life and intrigue.  Every setting and location feels unique and cohesive, this is a world of survivors.

From start to present, Puffer and Clarissa has been such a delightful read, I highly recommend you check it out!  It is quickly approaching its conclusion, so now is a great time to catch up and join us for the end of this journey.

You can read Puffer and Clarissa here: https://pufferandclarissa.com

Babylon Graffiti is a cyberpunk comic set in a dystopian future, and the crew of poor artists who rebel against it. It has brilliant color choices and a wonderful texture to the linework that makes the shadows pop. To say that this comic has style, is an understatement.

You can read it on Webtoon:

https://www.webtoons.com/en/canvas/babylon-graffiti/list?title_no=801806

It revolves around a team of artists who have fallen in the cracks of their oppressive government. Using their resources, they want to unveil the atrocities and conspiracies that have been kept hidden from the public for years.

The world of Babylon Graffiti is towering in scale, with details across the backgrounds that make it seem lived in and real.

The limited color palate serves this comic well, drawing the eye and creating both menace and safety within pops of neon amongst muted yellows, greens, and grays. The effect and linework is simple but well planned out, and makes me pause and soak in moments of pure storytelling.

If I were to quickly sum up the warm and fuzzy nostalgia I have for the Ruinous Fortune artstyle, it would be a mix of Dark Crystal Jim Henson muppets and the theatrical fantasy stylings of 80’s fantasy blockbusters (which I know is a little bit of a full circle if I were to put those two in a venn diagram, but bear with me). It’s a high fantasy that has a wide cast of unique creatures, each with fluid expressions and well developed stories.

You can read it on Webtoon, Tapas, and on it’s website here:

https://ruinousfortune.com

https://www.webtoons.com/en/canvas/ruinous-fortune/list?title_no=565787

https://tapas.io/series/Ruinous-Fortune/info

The plot follows Gael Fortuna, who’s adoptive Father just happens to be a horrible, terrible, demon king, and so she is making an attempt to flee his house. Along this dangerous path of rebellion, we meet all of Gaels friends who come both big and small.

Did I mention Gael has an adorable swishy tail? This is important to me as a reader, so I hope it is also important for you.

(this is Minmo, a little hamster/fairy that I would die for, I love Minmo and I will not hear otherwise.)

The art is colorful and consistent, with pops of bright neons and moments of bold style decisions. Some character designs just really hit the nail so well, that I love every moment they are on screen, even if it just so happens to be a horrible villain wearing those designs (the best kind of villain, tbh)

The Drowning (tw: horror, PF13 sexy stuff) is one of those webcomics that I keep thinking about although I initially read it like 4 years ago. Like most webcomics, it was a personal project made with spare time, so it isn’t yet finished. However, I’m sure one day it will, if not on tapas then maybe somewhere else, since it was created with so much care.

If it is finished somewhere else, let me know, but as far as I know, it only currently exists on Tapas and is a sleeper of a horror comic that is very professional in quality.

https://tapas.io/series/The-Drowning/info

It’s author notes succinctly measure up the plot: “A beauty influencer moves into a strange apartment complex.”

While only about 23 episodes, it’s a strong start to a haunted house story with a tinge of body horror and suspense. The dialogue is natural and engaging, and the art is strong and appealing.

Clover &Cutlass by Toby (@lonelytuatara) is a fantasy romance comic based on dnd world. Every turn of a century different cults try to rise a demon lord and bring an apocalypse on earth. Jolene is one of the church students taking up her final group exams trying to prevent that (group project hell!). Maggie is the daughter of one of the local cult leaders tasked with stopping her… 

What strikes me most in the comic, is the usage of color. The limited color palette is both beautiful and clever, bringing the sort of atmospheric feeling to the scenes I feel I rarely see. The backgrounds often look simplistic: more akin to silhouettes than detailed things. The rhythm of the story only gets better with time, I really enjoy the newer chapters that take a break from the fast-paced storytelling of the beginning, and have more time to breathe and swell in the moments and emotions. The story also gets heavier with time, so it’s appropriate to take a moment for those scenes. It’s still a funny comic, there’s this certain easiness to its jokes, but there’s also so much care for it and how it wants to handle the topics it chooses to handle.

C&C is a love story, but it’s as much if not more a story of personal growth. I’m personally always drawn to stories of wiggling free of religious upbringings, so it’s easy for me to see Maggie. While she can be open and supported on some aspects of her identity, transness being one, she still has to hide parts of herself. She doesn’t want to be a part of a group that tries to end a world, but where would she go if not home. There’s something in the writing of it, that’s both very matter-of-fact, and tender in small details. She is also a horse girl, which is very important.

A couple of months ago I read Hyperdriven for the first time in a single sitting.  Around 750 pages of comic action.  This occurred for primarily two reasons:

I have hyperfixation

It’s just that damn good.

While I cannot recommend you read it all in one sitting (you do you), I can highly recommend that you do, in fact, read it.

The Story

Kaleco has wanted to be a swashbucking ship captain all her life, and now she’s got a ship, a crew, but a major problem.  No money, and a shitty freelancer license that doesn’t allow her crew to take on any well paying jobs. 

We follow the misadventures of the Bon Petit Déjeuner as they try to make ends meet and not fall apart in the meantime.  If you are a fan of space western media like Firefly, Cowboy Bebop, or fellow webcomics Ghost Junk Sickness or Thunderstryke, there will be a lot here to love.

But also mixed in with the silly hijinks the comic also touches on and deals with some really heavy stuff: trauma, mental health, bigotry, to just name a few. The balancing act between comedy and drama is such a difficult one, and I am in awe at how seamlessly Hyperdriven is able to do it.  It will have you laughing one page, and then crying just a few short pages later.

One of the major challenges with balancing an ensemble cast is making everyone feel like a distinct person, and giving everyone time to shine and room to breathe.  Hyperdriven does this very well, giving each of its little cast of weirdos so much heart, character, and trauma.  While I love them all, our protagonist Kaleco is by far my personal favorite character.  She is an idealistic disaster, and earnest to a fault.  I loved watching her fuck up, then work hard to try and improve and do better.  Character is king, and all the characters have had wonderful journeys through the story, but I wanted to especially highlight Kaleco.

The Art

I love the art style, it’s colorful, it’s clear, and it’s stylish as hell.  All the characters are so distinctive and unique, and the whole comic is infused with this colorful, distinct vibe that definitely contributes to the fun, comedic atmosphere.  There is a level of clarity in the simplicity of the color, even down the way that people will be color coded by group.

And also, holy fuck does this comic have some style.

TL;DR

Go read Hyperdriven.  Just… maybe don’t do it in a single four and half hour marathon.