POW! Don’t you hate it when adventure sneaks up and hits you in the face like that? Paul Southworth, for those not in the know, is the artist behind the classic webcomic Ugly Hill. Sadly, he chose to end the strip this year, but the archives are fully functional, and worth a look. What’s going to be really interesting is meeting Paul this weekend at the first-ever Webcomics Weekend. Jamie sent Paul some artwork of “him” so he knows that he’s playing a part in our story, so it will be cool to see his reaction.
So yeah, as mentioned, Good Buddy Lar and I are hitting the open road this afternoon, destination: Webcomics Weekend. Much Red Bull will be consumed and gas expelled on our 8 hour trip to the great state of MA. I am not sure what exactly to expect from this weekend, but at the very least it’ll be cool to hang out with some good friends (and also, Sohmer) and meet some of the Webcomic folks that I have been reading a following for a while. David Willis of Shortpacked comes to mind, especially after this strip. Do you think he listens to The Watchtower…?
Before I strap myself into Gimli and take off though (yes, Lar’s car is named Gimli), I did not forget about the list of Graphic Novels that one should check out after seeing Watchmen that aren’t part of the DC catalogue. Behold:
Strangers In Paradise – Probably the most sensitive and beautiful book I’ve ever read. The story of the relationship between two women and how their lives inevitably lead back to each other. Before you worry I’ve gone all soft though, it also features plenty of murder, ninjas and Yakuza fun.
Bone – The Lord of The Rings for graphic novel fans. This book is an amazing fantasy tale, and is available in coloured editions, but I would recommend the “one volume” black and white book for the true Bone experience.
Scott Pilgrim – Scott Pilgrim is awesome. Seriously.
Astonishing X-Men – Joss Whedon gave us Buffy, Firefly, Serenity, and gave us back the X-Men. Easily the best X-Stories since Morrison and Quitely’s run on New X-Men. Gorgeous art, and the best writing of Whedon’s career, in my opinion.
Maus – This book will change your life. Just trust me. It’s hard to explain Maus, but it is simple a brilliant tale of how delicate life is in the face of the darkest times in human history.
Ultimates 1 & 2 – Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch bring their take on The Avengers to the Ultimate universe in this book that can only be described as a block-buster. Explosions, conspiracies, and yes, Freddie Prinze Jr. This book has it all.
So there ya go. We got into this a little deeper on this week’s episode of The Watchtower, including Dizzle’s favourite Graphic Novels. I’m gonna take a few of these to read in the car, and we can compare notes when I get back.
the new bright layout scares me… >.<
I know, I know… it’s a drastic change from the sombre and dark reds and black of the old design… but c’mon… dark red wallpaper look? what was I thinking?
i think dark red might have worked. or at least some sort of “easy on the eyes” color. the small red and major white just looks like it belongs in a pokemon forum, no offense. then again, all the other colors are already used. crtl alt delete has the green, penny arcade has the gray and blue, devils panties has the sort of previous layout you had….. but i think the colors of your icon work pretty well. the gray at least has a bluish tint, and the red always adds a certain “i dont know what” to it. and actually, the slight flesh tone could work for the background or link spots. (sorry if i seam to nitpick a bit. blame it on my college art teacher.)
Love the new lay-out – have you set up the site so that when we log in – we are at the newest page – unlike the previous site – where you had to click on the date in the calender . Other than that – enjoy your trip .
@mrminion – no offense taken. The choice in colour was a concious one – and not really guided by other webcomics. The old layout was based on our second generation logo, but outfitted for our return to our first generation logo. However, Something about it always bugged me after I did it – The page seemed way too somber and dark for the comic. I tend to think of No Reason as pretty light hearted, which is why we returned to our first generation logo. It’s far more colorful, and that’s where the the scheme comes out of – the logo we use. The new site layout actually harkens back to our first generation layout, which was horrible in overall look, but was light and easy on the eyes. I hope you’re not really finding it too offensive. I’m not choosing colours based on what other people haven’t used yet, but what I think best serves the style of site and the feel of the comic.
@as636 – thanks! I’m glad you like it. Murph and I are really excited by the changes.
I’m not sure what you mean by about the login redirect – the login module at the top of each section should keep you on whatever page you login from, unless you go to your dashboard. The login on each page is designed to use AJAX coding to relaod the module without reloading the page – hence not taking you to a new page once you login.
That being said – the current comic is always on the front page, which you can access by clicking on the No Reason Logo.
no offense taken either. and your idea works, so best to go with what works
Maus is really an incredible work, I couldn’t put the volumes down, skipped class and just plowed through it.