Grrl Power #37 – Butt Kicking in 5…
Well Sydney, let’s see if your sass mouth can help you with this situation.
I’m sure some people might wonder why the robbers haven’t noticed the purple haired woman in the paramilitary outfit yet, keep in mind that since Sydney walked into the bank and now, it’s been about 10 seconds, much of that being fairly chaotic. In a printed comic, you’d just turn the page but the weakness of a once a week comic is that you have a week between page turns. Things can seem like they should be happening faster or in a different order.
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.
Uh-oh…
Sydney: *Hands over tube*
Bad Guy: *Opens it*
???
Bad Guy: *KOd*
I do not think that our ‘bad guy’ would put himself in a position where his hands will be busy opening the tube. I think what will happen is that he will order Sydney to show him the contents, after which the fireworks will begin.
you’ve never seen “Worlds dumbest crimenals” have you.
I see that the tube can roll towards her if she needs it.
On another note, I love it every time the “…” is used!
I thought she was rolling it away so she could make it to another room to change into a hero.
Ellipses are your friend.
Stomped in the middle of the back, yeah, that gotta sting a bit.
He’s actually stomping behind her. I was trying to show that he had come up behind her while she was futzing with the tube, but as usual I’ve crammed too many panels into the page so I was a bit limited with how that last panel was laid out. My big problem is trying to end each page on some kind of punch or cliffhanger, I wonder if I’d be better off putting half the number of panels on a page, drawing bigger, and potentially posting more often, but then I’d have a lot of pages that kind of hang mid-thought for a few days until the next comic is posted. I may experiment with that. If you pick up a comic book, most pages will probably have around 5-7 panels on it, I think I average 7-10.
Hey, that’s all good. I average between four and six panels most of the time, and I feel like it’s not enough per page. Now that I’m using a tablet and I can zoom in on each panel, though, it’s a lot easier to squish in little panels and get the detail I want out of long-distance shots. Which is good…because my comics won’t be the constant “talking heads” scenes that they usually are….
My problem with being able to zoom in is that I spend a lot of time on detail that doesn’t really come across in a 1000 pixel high final piece. I work at 600 dpi, mostly so the magic wand tool doesn’t leave noticable gaps in the pointy bits inside lines so the danger is there that I can really get in too close. Normally I try and never zoom in more than 50-75% though.
What about doing two pages per update? Either by posting them in a double length format (that is divided in two if/when it makes it to print), or two single-page posts? It would give you the same amount of time you would need for 2/week updates, but could be built on a 1 cliffhanger/ 2 page format without story just…. sitting there twiddling its thumbs.
I’ll probably play with doing that. The page I worked on this weekend has 10 panels, which is obviously not optimal. Part of the issue is that I’m still getting the hang of this sequential art thing, part of it is that I’m “visually verbose” and part of it is trying to end each page on an appropriate punch. But 10 panels really is too much I think, so I may try to break up denser pages like that in the future and if that works out I’ll post more often.
I’m just waiting for the nunjas to roll in there and kick some robber ass.
Have just discovered this! Loving the artwork and the concept so far :) I’m very much looking forward to ‘Halo’s reveal… should be interesting.
Thanks! I don’t think it’s going to go down quite how people expect, but hopefully it’s entertaining.
I like surprises xD
A new reader approaches….. and likes what he sees! The comic has been going excellently so far; keep up the awesome work! I hope you continue to slightly parody some of the more logically questionable aspects that are prevalent in most superhero comics.
Now, back to todays comic. I spy a zombie banker in panel two, and as for panels 6-7, I didn’t know Sydney was a jedi! jk.
Thanks a lot, glad you’re enjoying it. I’m sure everyone here has had conversations about “that unrealistic thing” that happened in comic or manga X. I mean, us nerds love to pick apart stuff like that. There’s a very entertaining series of books called “The Nitpickers Guide to Star Trek” (or something like that) It contains mundane stuff like continuity errors, but also stuff like a character saying one thing in one episode, and another in a different episode which, if it was consistent, would basically break the whole universe. Superhero comics are an easy target with nomadic writer teams crapping on continuity every dozen issues or so, but even though I haven’t read them lately (I collected nearly every Marvel title between the original Secret Wars (yes I’m old) up to about Xmen 300), so I have plenty to draw from. The challenging part for me will be reconciling some of my character ideas with a more realistic presentation. Dabbler especially is proving to be an issue, I mean, if you’re wondering why, just take a look at her bio on the Cast page. She’s obviously a little out there.
With a character like Dabbler (as described in the bio page), it actually could, from a certain perspective, make sense to have her be quite inconsistent and “out there,” especially since she sounds like she’s a crazy awesome genki girl (yes, I do read TV Tropes quite often).
OwO i just came cross This Comic last week
And on a scale of 1-10 this is a top notch ten!
From the first page i was hooked, i love the facial expressions and Sydney’s dialog.
Im gonna make a thing and Send my comment every week on just how awesome it was.
Anyway
Supa L out :D
Thanks a lot!
Why does she look like a male in panel 5?
That’s my attempt to draw “consternation” or something. For some reason I seem to create situations requiring expressions that I can’t find any good reference for. It’s the “stare of realizing what she needs to do” and I tried to give her a furrowed brow and smushed chin. I know that moment happens a lot in manga/anime but it’s usually more of a blank stare, which I think is disappointing as one of the strengths of the manga style is the expressiveness of the characters.
you sir should check out the lackadaisy expressions page, its got some great expressions and some great tips I know its helped me and many other artists https://lackadaisy.foxprints.com/exhibit.php?exhibitid=333
I have a few go-to references, and that’s one of them. Of course, she’s a fantastic artist and the cat to human conversion isn’t exactly 1 to 1 so it’s useful but limited.
Have you ever followed Candi? The art style is a lot more cartoonish than yours, but the artist, Starline, is *very* good with facial expressions.
It’s the bushy eyebrows and the different jawline that do it, I think.
Soooo good! You have a new fan.
Whoo, thanks Dave! You just got me twenty bucks!
From a bet or advertising on your page or what? And am I entitled to a cut? :)
I bet my friend twenty bucks Maxima wouldn’t be on the next page. ^_^
I’m really liking your comic so far, but only Monday is not quite often enough for my insatiable need for webcomics. Do you have any prior work available?
Thanks. I know I wish I could put them out faster as well.
I do have some other art and some comics out there, but they’re… well, they’re for an entirely different… audience. So to speak. I think I’d like to keep those things separate really. I need to decide what I’m going to do with my DA page since it’s kind of hodge podge at the moment. There’s not much on there that you couldn’t find here anyway.
hork?
shouldnt the tube be sliding twoard Syd not away?
It is. I probably could have made that a little clearer with the panel layout.
Is this incident before or after she joined Maxima’s team? Or will that be revealed in the next strip?
Wondering that my self.
I’d say before. Otherwise she probably would have recognised Maxima at the head of the line.
As short as she is, I doubt she’d notice an elephant at the front of the line…
OOOhhh, that’s mean. Better be careful about teasing supers…
This is where they first meet. Perhaps after the robbers are toast Sydney will have to tell how she got the contents of the tube. (A flashback in a flashback…)
You should move the story forward more in every comic or update more. I really like it so far, but I wish there was more than a small part every week.
I’d love to, which is one reason I have so many panels on a page, trying to get it all in there. On the other hand, while there is a story, the point of the comic is really more about the moment to moment stuff. So there will be action and plot happening, it’s just as likely that there will be a gag about Sydney getting caught staring down another girl’s cleavage in jealous disbelief. Or something along those lines.
Well, I’m looking forward to the first non-pinup-fullpage.
Dude, be glad it’s a weekly update. I’m following webcomics that haven’t been updated in MONTHS. The guy can only draw so fast!
Case in point: https://dresdencodak.com/
Holy crap that’s amazing art. But yeah it looks like 3 weeks to 3 months between updates.
i found this today and LOVE IT.
recommending it to friends next week (when i see them, X3)
Here’s a puzzle for you. Wouldn’t the bad guy at the desk have had to walk past Maxima to get there?
Its possible she’s on the floor pretending to be a hostage, but I’d think the purple hair and orange skin might be a bit of a givaway.
Regardless, I’m loving how well drawn and fun this comic is. Please keep up the good work!
Well, I guess I haven’t really drawn a panel that shows the layout of the bank well. On either side of the line, there’s one of those “sign your checks and fill out slips” desks which kind of breaks the main floor of the bank in to 3 areas, the guy with the pistol went over to the right (if you’re looking from the doors facing the teller’s desk) so he wouldn’t get slowed down by people diving to the ground.
Glad you’re liking it!
Hey, just started reading, and I’m liking this a lot. It’s no argument the most interesting webcomic I’m following at the moment, in terms of wanting to see what happens next! I’d second the other comments that it would be nice to have more frequent updates, but having a schedule and sticking to it is more important I guess. Although if you wanted to experiment with smaller updates more frequently, say 4 panels twice a week, I definitely wouldn’t object :)
Well I certainly won’t argue about that with you.
Syd’s pulling a “To me, Mojinar!”
(Or whatever it is that Thor says.)
((Or… An “Empire Strikes Back” Jedi stunt.))
The name of his hammer is Mjolnir.
If we are talking Norse gods and not the cartoon, the hammer of Tor would be Mjölner, umlauts and all ^_^
Or Thundercats: “Sword of Omens! Come to my hand! “
Very nice updates. Glad to see you are getting plenty of comments.
Wow! I just found this sucker this morning. It’s amazing!! The art is pretty awesome as well!
Thanks a lot. I’m glad my ADD fueled daydreams are entertaining.
I’ve literally sent this to all my friends! love the artwork and attention to detail, and this is without a doubt the most on edge of your seat action you can get from a webcomic! gold stars for everyone!
Thanks I appreciate you sharing it around.
Heh heh I have a joke about gold stars… It’ll be a while before we see that one though.
That’s an understament! Sheesh how far in advance were you creating this comic?
I just have a big notepad with a bunch of jokes written down, cause I’d forget them otherwise. :)
A little late to the party since I just found your comic last week. Good stuff… and yes, I saw what you did there… with those gold digger comics on the shelving at the comic store. ; )
What can I say I’m a fan. :)
First time commenting. I have to say so far I enjoy your sense of humor. It takes quite a bit of skill to be a good artist and a good writer and IMO you do both quite well. Keep up the awesome work.
Thanks. I’ve been concerned about my writing skill, cause as you said, artists aren’t necessarily writers and vice versa. I can do goofy humor ok, we’ll see how it holds up if I need to get into a (relatively) serious storyline. Hopefully art and writing will only continue to improve.
You’re doing better than a lot of people out there.
I think from what I’ve seen you will do fine. Your pacing is good and you’re not trying to overwork yourself. As someone who helps (hosts and does none of the actual editing) with a podcast I can respect the amount of effort it takes to produce something like this. I will not begrudge you if you stay strictly to once a week updates. The show I’m on is a biweekly review show and even that takes some serious effort to produce on a consistent basis.
It just occurred to me that reason we do not see a Costume in the Cast is maybe she Gets OUTED here as a Super. She might not have a Secret ID.
Since you are concerned that you have too many panels, you could have lost panels 3 & 5 since they offer nothing that isn’t in panel 4 … just sayin’.
You’re right I could probably use a little editorial oversight, and hopefully I’ll become a better self editor over time, thought I would defend that progression of panels as showing Sydney getting over her initial fear and realizing that she can help. This page isn’t too bad, but I’m working on a page that has 10 panels and I really think that’s too much, so in a few weeks when I’ve posted everything I’ve already finished drawing I may try to break the pages in half and if that works out it could lead to a Monday/Thursday posting schedule, but we’ll see.
Just found this, hilarious to date and really well drawn. Loving it so far, can’t wait to see more.
Thanks!
I’m happy with a regular weekly update. I can save them up ;)
love the comic, love the art, love the nerdiness, oddly enough love the very sharp teeth o,,,o
Thanks! I think I need to scale the teeth back just a bit though.
in my humble opinion i think (should you choose to) you should only scale back the pointiness of people that aren’t sydney, she’s just too adorable with those werewolf fangs
he said till dude is from britain no question friggin british robber people