Toddbot.com’s Cartoon Journal by Todd Webb, reviewed by Justin Pierce

Both Schindler’s List and The Shawshank Redemption are considered great films, but nearly anyone will tell you that Schindler’s List was more powerful, because it actually happened. The same thought process can hold true for webcomics. A journal webcomic is unlike any other breed of webcomic because it’s real. It’s not merely a realistic comic; it chronicles events that have really occured in the author’s life. This gives it a power and an intimacy other webcomics don’t have. Continue Reading

Heads that Shine by Vicho Friedli, Reviewed by Justin Pierce

If there’s any doubt whether art and humor are global concepts, Vicho Freidl’s webcomic is a topical solution that gets to the root of the dilemma. But perhaps we’re getting a-head of ourselves…

Cabezas Que Brillian (literally "Heads That Shine" in English) features Chilean roommates Cesar and Oscar, whose adventures are the centerpiece of the comic. The vertically, follically-challenged boys are nearly identical, except Cesar has thicker eyebrows and facial hair. They star in two types of comics: one is a gag strip format, and the other, newer addition is an ongoing storyline.

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Return to Sender by Vera Brosgol, Reviewed by Justin Pierce

Feeling a little blue? If so, you’re in luck, because Vera Brosgol’s Return to Sender makes a little blue go a long way.

Return to Sender is essentially a realistic webcomic with one small, yet deliberate plot twist that sends it into many fantastical tangents – a bit like the old television show Early Edition, but with the fantasy knob cranked up a few notches.

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Bueno the Bear, reviewed by Justin Pierce

Reading Bueno the Bear is like being let in on a really good inside joke — you can be laughing all the way through, if you’re in the right frame of mind. Created by Pendleton Ward, Bueno the Bear exposes us to a bear and a handful of his friends as they do everything from pounce on bugs to stare at the sky.

Bueno is a happy-go-lucky fellow, despite having his melancholy moments. Penelope the Piddlebug is shy, and Giovanni the Giraffe is the pluckiest one of the trio. One could even draw comparisons to the Hundred Acre Wood, with Penelope and Giovanni serving as the respective “Piglet” and “Tigger” to Bueno’s “Pooh”.

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