Here’s a round up of some of the best comics we’ve seen online recently. If we missed something, let us know in the comments below, or on Twitter of Facebook.
Let’s start off with a short fan comic that’s been making the rounds on social media. Two Superman fans named Scott Kurtz and Karl Kerschl — oh hey, I know those names — shared this eight-years-in-the-making comic featuring the Man of Steel.
“Eight years ago, I came home from seeing Man of Steel and wrote a 5 page Superman story,” Kurtz said on Twitter. “Karl Kerschl offered to draw it. Eight years later he finished it. I’m gobsmacked!”
“This is a work of fan-fiction, not an official, published thing,” Kerschl posted. “We did this because we love Superman.”
That last page is really great. Check the story out here.
Last week a column by ICv2’s Rob Salkowitz sparked a lot of conversation on social media — and not in a good way, as the column came across as condescending to creators whose work appears on Webtoon and Tapas and other non-traditional venues. (Webtoon’s reaction was on point). It also felt very deja vu to those of us who lived through the “debates” about whether doing indie comics work was somehow “lesser” or “less professional” than working for the Big Two (Answer: Nope.)
So, I thought it would be a good week to highlight a few of the Ringo Award nominees in the best webcomics and best humor webcomics categories — in particular those that appear on Tapas and Webtoon. Which is pretty easy to do, since half of the 14 nominations across those two categories appear on Tapas or Webtoon.
Let’s start with DPS Only, a strip by Velinxi, aka Xiao Tong. It’s about a girl whose brother is a pretty big deal in the world of competitive gaming. She would also like to compete, but is afraid that would open herself up “to the hate, doubt, harassment significant women gamers receive every day.” So she ends up becoming her brother’s manager — until a local competition has an opening, and she puts on a disguise to participate. It’s a 30 episode webcomic and is now complete, so you could read it all in one sitting.
Next up is Fangs, which is one I’m familiar with more because I see it pop up a lot in my various social media streams from people I didn’t even realize were comic fans. It’s by Sarah Andersen, and it’s about a centuries-old vampire who begins dating a werewolf. It’s been collected by Andrews McMeel if print is more your thing.
Jumping over to Webtoon now, Shiloh is by Kit Trace and Kate Flynn, who really draws the hell out of it. It’s about two cops tracking down “The Marked Man” in the very dangerous city known as Shiloh, which is filled with demons and dystopia.
Finally, to wrap up for today, I’d recommend checking out Cursed Princess Club on Webtoon. It’s about a princess who doesn’t really fit the model of your traditional princess, but then she ends up in “the twisted world of the Cursed Princess Club, and her life will never be the same.” It’s by Lambcat and is nominated in the humor category for a Ringo, but just as easily could have been in the other category as well.
You can find all the nominees for this year’s Ringo Awards — plus links to the webcomics ones — here.