Author: MHPayne

I tend to stick to my comfort zone when it comes to webcomics. Reading about a new one here or on one of the other review sites, if I’m not familiar with the creator or if it doesn’t sound a little like something I already read, I’m sorry to say that I’m not all that likely to go and take a look. Unadventurous: that’s me.

So I’m very glad I took a chance three-and-a-half years ago and signed up for the Daily Grind Contest. It’s introduced me to a whole group of comics from my fellow competitors that I doubt I would ever have known about otherwise, and I’d like to mention three of them at some length here — Trains of Thought by Stephen Burrell (his Livejournal page is at http://stephenwastaken.livejournal.com), Tartpop by Phil Redmon (his Livejournal page at http://destro-simpson.livejournal.com), and Young Adventure Friends by Billis, a.k.a. Bela Whigimill.

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Michael Payne examines new examples of the "new cute" in comics: Dreamleak by Greg Fraser, Fuzzy Things by Jonathan Sario, and Ghost Farm by Jessica McLeod.  The "new cute" is using the tropes of "cute" to tell stories that are richer, deeper, and more heartfelt than anyone would’ve thought fluffy bunnies, towheaded kids, and smiling asparagus could support.

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As the new year brushes away the crumbs left from devouring the old one, I find myself thinking of vanished webcomics: those that’ve come to the end of their storylines, those that’ve just stopped, and those that’ve disappeared altogether.

As the new year brushes away the crumbs left from devouring the old one, I find myself thinking of vanished webcomics: those that’ve come to the end of their storylines, those that’ve just stopped, and those that’ve disappeared altogether.

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