Grrl Power #5 – The Begininging Again
So this was originally going to be the first comic, as evidenced by the quick establishment of the comic shop setting, the character’s names both being used and the allusion to the fact that I have shaky confidence in the quality of this venture. Also, the fact that this was a comic about super heroes was supposed to be something of a surprise as you’re reading along from the beginning, but I start talking about then on the next page, and the whole web page is all “Hey look, super heroes!” So… I went back and drew the RP session to give the whole thing a bit more of a hook while I do a little establishing stuff.
SuperheroThey're super, thanks for asking!
Meatspace ComicSeriously these are awesome. Check 'em out!
Not UpdatingNo longer updating or only updates sporadically, but definitely worth reading.
SeriouslySeriously you guys. If you like Grrl Power the check these out.
"Mature"Mature subject matter and occasionally something explicit but usually safe. Can't guarantee the ads are safe though.
Dongs Ahoy!Full frontal and backal. Lots of skin, sex on some or all pages, explicit or otherwise.
oooh, GD. good call
Agreed. GD is the best paper comic series.
agreed, good call :) the intro is awesome btw.
I agree, GD has got to be the best comic out there!
Looking back on it…the RPG session was interesting, but really not necessary. You could have managed without it. I’m almost reluctant to use this analogy, but look at the first Spiderman movie. They didn’t have an opening shot of him in his costume where he suddenly started narrating. They jumped straight to the beginning and showed him as the photography nerd gaining his powers.
In other words, just because it wasn’t a mystery where you were going doesn’t mean you had to spill it right up front like that. It would have worked fine if you had just started with this comic as you had originally planned.
That’s probably true, but it’s fair to say that probably everyone going to see Spiderman probably knew the nerd at the beginning was going to become Spiderman. Plus they’ve already paid for a ticket and were going to sit there for the duration. With a webcomic… there’s really no guarantee of repeat traffic and I suspected the comic might bumble along for a bit while I got my feet wet, so I thought it was a good idea to throw out the hook as soon as possible.
Well, yes, everyone going to Spiderman knew what they were getting, that’s my point. Like you said in the blurb, it’s pretty obvious that this is going to be a superhero story, so new readers shouldn’t need to have the first few comics jump right into it like that.
The repeat traffic bit is a fair point. It’s just that the two or three comics after this one seem to lay it out pretty clearly themselves.
I don’t know, I guess I’m just being a nit-picky backseat driver. I’ll shut up and stop complaining now.
The hook worked for me, says the me from the future, as an avid reader since around the Bank.
The RPG session was awesome.
I would say it worked out well, apart from the inevitable early installment weirdness.
Yup. It is what hooked me in initially, being a gaming nerd. But there are a bunch of comics which focus just on parodying role playing games (e.g. Goblins and The Order of the Stick), so I am glad that the comic quickly revealed its true nature thereafter.
I love the last panel – especially the tongue stuck out…
haha just noticed the futurama comic down in the corner xD
In the last panel she looks cute :\
Thanks – even though she looks different on every page, eventually that’ll settle down. She’s supposed to look like “the girl” in each group. The next-doorsy one that everyone takes for granted but you don’t feel awkward around busting out a massively sexist joke or fart.
First panel, bottom-right comic, “futuram-” it’s Futurama, with Amy dressed like a super hero, fighting a Teddy bear. I got eyes like a bawss.
Like the background, including the “Futurama” super hero with Amy kicking ass and looking hot in that costume. Also Red Sonja, offshoot of Conan the Barbarian.
F*ck Yeah, Gold Digger! Good taste ^_^
hum, I just noticed (on, what, my third read through?) – “some new new superhero comic”.
Hah hah wow, I’ll add that to the fix list.
5 years later, and it’s not fixed yet (and fourth read-through, I just noticed that).
6 years and counting lol
But when are we going to see our ‘young super heroines in love’?
A specific character that hasn’t been introduced yet can answer that for you in a Science Corner. Don’t say more, we want a bigger community.
i like the nudge at the fourth wall there
I notice Sydney’s epic bangs seem to change sides from panel to panel. First they’re tucked behind her left ear, flowing freely on the right, than the other way around, then back again and then again the other way. I call this, the: “jRPG character portrait syndrome”
Yeah her design was very much in flux for quite a few pages. I have never drawn her before I started doing the comic, unlike almost all the other main characters.
Yes, Sydney fools with her bangs a lot. Changing from ear to ear. Don’t think of it happening in real time but time jumps.
Is there really a Young Superheroines in Love comic book or are you just trying to avoid copyright infringement with DC by changing the second word in the title from Heroes? Or did you just forget the name?
Used to be one of my favs before it sunk out of site.
The title was partially a meta-reference to Grrl Power itself, cause eventually there will of course be relationships forming amongst the team, but it’s also sort of an oblique reference to “Young Doctors in Love” which is an Airplane style movie that spoofs medical shows. I haven’t seen that in forever, I should probably look it up and give it a rewatch. I actually had no idea there was a comic called “Young Heroes in Love.”
Erstes panel: Comicüberschrift: “Junge verliebte Superhelden:”
panel zwei Sydney: “Hey Joel.” Joel: “Hey Sydney, was liest du?”
panel drei Sydney: “Äh, ein neues Suerheldencomic.” Joel: “Überfülltes Genre.” Sydney: “Ja, aber es ist angeblich mehr Personen bezogen. Der Schwerpunkt liegt weniger bei Humor und Action als bei den Gesichtern und der Zeichnung.” Joel: “Hört sich vielversrechend an.”
panel 4 Sdney: “Hoffentlich.”
Are you translating for others to read?
yes.
Second archive-run of a (comparatively) short webcomic… so different perspective now.
… Sydney still looked relatively normal in the early days. I say “relatively”… Her face is shaped a bit weirdly even here… BUT comparing to the most current strips, this is pretty normal.
All the other characters gradually look more like actual superhero-fare … while she ends up looking like some weird caricature or self-parody.
Ok… that probably sounded a lot more harsh than I actually meant.
Anyway… her facial structure gets kinda weird later on.
Hey Gold Diggers in the background! Young Superheroines in Love?
Oh god that chin.
Sorry but after reading the rest of the comic it looks so bad in the second panel
The urge to redraw the early pages is strong.
DaveB you can always redraw it one day if you want the old art to better match the later art. Or maybe just “clean up.”
NO!!! Leave it as is!
Just started my second archive run, and realised: that last panel of Sydney, I want it as a poster/wallpaper so badly!
DaveB please, can we haz it?
I think it’s safe to say that Sydney’s hope was not misplaced. You’ve got a smashing success here Dave
Thanks! It seems to be going pretty good so far. :)
So when will our superheroine be in love? And which other ones might be too?
It is amazing how long it took me to catch Sydney’s fourth wall breaking moment in the last panel.
I I ave to was wonder what the actual Checkoves count is already!
uh oh barbie neck syndrome
I love how she’s reading her own comic. You know, the one she’s in.
fourth wall break.