TopHeavy

What do you think so far?

Added 2022-11-05 12:00:32 +0000 UTC

We're 10 pages in, and I just want to check in with you guys and get your feedback.

Here's my self-assessment:

From my perspective pages 6, 7, 9, and 10 represent one of the most difficult parts of the entire comic to make. The fact that they were so difficult is a kind of professional wake-up call for me. To be frank, I was bored. I'm not very good at mundane scenes, but those are usually the most important. They do a lot of heavy lifting for the story. But the spark wasn't there. Pages 1, 2, 3, 4, and 8 were all super fun to make. The spark was there and they turned out all the better for it. I think I need to get better at holding on to the spark for mundane pages if I want to tell the stories I want to tell.

Regarding the style change from Cel shading to Soft shading. I sometimes wonder if I made the right decision. I like the soft style because it creates a sensual feeling. Toph's flesh feels... fleshy, and I think that for this particular project that's exactly what you want. Though sometimes I miss cel shading because it was quick and easy. The problem with soft shading is that things can feel too mushy. The problem with cel shading is that things can look too rigid. I may try to find a way to compromise the two like I see so many other artists doing, but not ina way that will compromise the aesthetic consistency of the comic as a whole. All in all, figuring that stuff out means everything is taking a little longer than I hoped. Page 10 alone wound up being around 125 layers. I'm sure once I have a system I'm confident about, I'll be able to accomplish what I need to in no less than 10 layers, and then we'll be schmoovin.