7-Who Brought A Giant Fan, Anyway?

So lately I've been getting back into Terraria.  I only know a couple of people in person who have played the game, and I think by now they have moved on from it.  Like most open-ended, sandbox style games, they have their appeal for awhile, but over time it takes on a flavor of vain repetition.  That's one of the bigger reasons why I don't play WoW or any other MMO for that matter.  But with Terraria, I guess I still haven't played it ad nauseam.  I still have a sense of adventure when I open up the game, and it keeps stringing me along with new gadgetry and possibilities.  My friends who are into Minecraft think I'm a little crazy for choosing to play what is essentially a platform version of the game, but I'm a sucker for nostalgia.

Also, I did have quite a lot of fun creating this page.  Hope you enjoy it too!  I might just be getting used to working with this less refined style, but it seems to work with what I was going for...

I always imagined Liz would have a sort of distorted view of how people react to Crystal, and I think this sort of unintentionally came out in my quick drawing of the rabble in the second panel.  Liz may or may not also be prone to hyperbole.  ^v^

6-Problems?

This page brings up a conundrum in my head that seems to arise in many things that I write, read, or watch.  It's the character that is considered "the hot one," or even just particularly pretty or generally recognized as beautiful.  The first part of the conundrum is that when I draw a character that I've been mulling over for awhile, he or she inevitably ends up looking just... different... than he or she was in my imagination.  Less vibrant, maybe?  Just a bit off from the ideal combination of curves and/or muscle that I envisioned?  It makes me think of the incredible things I could create if there wasn't a barrier between my brain and the paper.

The secondary aspect of this conundrum is when literary characters are put into illustration or film, and they are different than what the reader pictured.  It's compounded with many readers for obvious reasons.  I applaud the folks in charge of casting films for the work that they do, because I think it would be very difficult.  Anyway, I'm pretty much rambling now.  ぺちゃくちゃ

I'm moderately pleased with how Crystal turned out, all things considered.  And hopefully she will turn out all the better in the end.  ^-^

5-Four Weddings

So now a bit more of the major points of the plot are starting to emerge.  Though I'm sure the majority of you will be able to fill in the gaps as we go.  This story really isn't meant to surprise you, so if it does, then, well, that's just an added bonus. 

I have to write a bit of an anecdote here.  Because most if not all of my readers are male, some of you may not be entirely aware of how truly important weddings are to women.  Everyone is different of course, but for myself, and the vast majority of women I know, it's understood that a girl's wedding day is the ONE DAY in which a girl has every excuse in the world to be treated like a princess.  To be doted over.  To be celebrated.  Now, it's a debatable as to what weddings are all about, or what values they entail, but to many it can be described as the capstone of womanhood, or perhaps more fairly, the capstone of romantic relationships.

The whole idea can be spun as a bit antiquated, and even sexist, in some circles.  Conversely, it can be OVER valued in many cases.  Many people place extreme importance on the ceremony, and the marriage itself can be taken for granted--at least some say so.  I'll reserve my own judgment here, and let you hopefully be entertained by my characters' take on the issue.

4-Trust Me

I've had a series of interesting conversations regarding this comic today.  One was online where someone was questioning what it was like to be friends with girls like these, and whether or not I actually knew people who would actually scheme against one of their friends like these girls are about to do in this comic.  I think I'll elaborate more on my response in this post, as I think it's kind of a complicated issue.

First, I wanna lead with restating that these are just caricatures of people I know.  Meaning that they are a mishmash of exaggerated qualities that some of my friends possess.

But the question of plausibility comes up, which was a point of discussion that I had with one of my real life friends.  Is it plausible that these girls would plot in such a way?  Is it a true representation of what real friendship is like?

My answer, of course, is no.  But the imperfection in these relationships is the source of much of the conflict that will drive the story to its conclusion, and will cause it to come full circle in the end.

Another thing that I will always insist on is being open to criticism.  I know it's impossible to please everyone, but it's an important part of improving one's work, which is why I welcome conversations like the ones I mentioned above.  I can only hope that I have the good sense to listen to the points of criticism that are truly relevant and meaningful.  It's not an easy task, because not all complaints merit a change, but all complaints arise for a reason.  And I view sensible, well-spoken complaints as something akin to creative gold.

Look at all this serious talk about a silly story just made for fun.  Whether you have complaints, criticism, or just fits of giggles, I hope we can enjoy the ride together.  Onward and upward to giggles, jiggles, and general good times.  HOORAY!  \^^/