The Webcomics Weekly #42: Skulls and Coins Edition (7/2/19)

Welcome back, The Webcomics Weekly is back in your life. The magic continues in “Agents of the Realm” as Norah learns to do things with her new magical outfit. “Sam and Fuzzy” comes to a less than thrilling conclusion. “Skull and Coins” sounds like a slot machine from hell, which is fitting for this anthology like black and white horror strip. “Tiger, Tiger” has had many updates recently.

After the delightful Magical Girl reveal page, we’re thrown right back into the thick of things. Louis does a nice job of representing the momentary awe of suddenly having a school outfit + pauldron appear on your person and when reality comes crashing down and it hurts inside. Norah’s moment of bliss nice little three panel sequence. In the first half of the page panels are nice and rectangular giving the reader enough room to see the outfit and facial expression of wonderment. Things go south quickly in the in the second half as Norah reacts with her magical shield to block the evil bear’s latest swipe. The paneling in this moment is off center and complemented by some action lines that make these three panels feel more like one large image. It is a nice effective way to get back into the swing of things.

The rest of the Bear sequence goes pretty much how it would in any other anime of the type, the only thing missing is an up tempo J-Pop track, as Norah continues to unlock her newly acquired magical powers. Louis shows really good use of pace and page design in these moments as she summons her sword and accepts the knowledge of previous Agents. The paneling for the sword summoning isn’t super stylish but using that consistency to slowly pull out and match the extending sword makes the moment. The knowledge bit features similarly matched imagery that does both shows things in sequence and reads as if everything is happening simultaneously in a single never ending moment. Which builds right into the big splash page Triforce-like slash. When strips are put out a page at a time it can feel like there is a disconnect between pages at times, but that hasn’t been the case with “Realm.”

Louis has good banter chops, it isn’t overdone and constant but there is a playfulness to it that fits the tonality of the strip.

Good may have one the day, but we end on our antagonists. Bad Prof. Blackwater is undone and she isn’t even our big bad! While these pages are the start of Ch. 1.5, they form a nice endpoint for this episode of “Agents of the Realm.” It teases more adventure without bothering to explain any of it, yet.

My paranoid nose smells some nefarious nonsense upon reading this ending to an otherwise uninteresting arc. Something is amiss, and that is exactly what Sam Logan wants you to feel reading “Sam & Fuzzy.”

‘Buyer Beware’ ends its tale with a resolution to a fight against a dapper tyrannosaurus and a tense back and forth with the titular Fuzzy and flashback character Hazel. There’s a little moment where Hazel convinces Fuzzy that everything is okay, that he should have listened to her, that even upon challenging her with the knowledge of previous partner Eric he should be trusting her, lest he lose lint-filled limbs.

This becomes quickly apparently yet another of Hazel’s misdirections, and Fuzzy is becoming more hip to them. Whatever it is Hazel is hiding, Fuzzy is obviously going to get to the bottom of it. Given that this is a flashback arc, that is likely to be what separated the pair and led him into the bumbling arms of Sam, setting the series in motion.

Visually, this has been a fun arc, though the bulk of it may have been a laborious slog. Which is a shame, as Rexford T. Rex is a wonderfully absurd character and watching him face off against Brain the cat is a highlight of ‘Buyer Beware.’ Logan also plays the quieter moments, revealing in subtle fashion Hazel’s deceptions, in a deft manner. There’s nothing flashy here, but it all presents itself competently.

I’m left curious as to what ‘Employee of the Month’ will bring us. Just enough to continue the journey of absurdity that is “Sam & Fuzzy.” Only just enough, though. Whatever Hazel is hiding is intriguing, but all in all, I’m ready to continue to Sam & Fuzzy’s current day adventures, as that is by and large the more enjoyable aspect of this series.

If you’re in the mood or the market for black and white horror comics, look no further than “Skull and Coins.” While it updates rather infrequently, with large gaps between updates, each new chapter is worth the wait. While this batch of updates is mostly one story, ‘Mariette’s Morning’ being the only one shot of the bunch, I have to talk about the way Adrian crafts these stories. The episodic, unconnected nature of the chapters makes it easy to jump in at any point while the recurring characters rewards the long-time readers with greater context of the world and a looming, creeping sense of dread.

Answers don’t come easy either; diegetic storytelling is clearly more important than expositional and “Skulls and Coins” is all the richer for it. As far as these updates are concerned,‘The Beating Hearts’ marks the first time that we’ve really gotten concrete connections between the dual protagonists of previous chapters. Their meeting is one of joy and sadness, swinging between somber revelations and the unbridled joy of a moment stolen for one’s self. We’re given details about the mechanics, history, and social structure of the world of “Skulls and Coins” as they talk about their lives and the secret pains that torment Eva.

Have I mentioned yet how absolutely fucking gorgeous this comic is? Because it is. Starting with the lettering, which billows out from the townsfolk characters, acrid and smoky, as if the words rotted in their chests, while trailing clear and tall, as if always coming from above, from the mountain kin. The artwork itself is stunning and grotesque in equal measure, capable of conveying small emotions with big impacts and great motion with huge force. I adore the way Adrian’s figure work and attention to the motion of clothing transforms each panel in only the way a comic can. The scene of Eva & Julia dancing is magical, the power of the moment conveyed through the scratchy, large lettering and repeated images of them, arm in arm, letting their hearts sing and move their bodies.

You almost forget that this is a tragic and terrifying world but then the rest of the world creeps in again and you remember, this is a cruel world, and one that is filled with sadness, no matter how much thanks one gives.

Las time when we checked on Ludovica and Jamis, they were just arriving on the Farpoint docks, alongside the rest of the crew. On this new chapter, both take their first steps on firm earth for the first occasion in a while and, obviously, problems start to arise almost immediately thereafter.

There is something about the aesthetics that artist Nordlund instills on the world of “Tiger, Tiger.” First of all, and it is made apparent on this arrival on a distant land, the sense of architecture and urban design is not something readers see often. This is a city that, for all intents and purposes, looks like it is a functional place, with building, small houses and streets apparently connecting. It feels less like the drawing of a location, and rather the blueprint of an actual physical place.

Second, the use of black-and-whites and shades of grey lends itself very nicely to the “adventures of old” type of narrative. Readers seem to be learning among these adventures after finding an old book sitting on someone’s attic.

Despite of that, the more up-and-close moments of the book still look lively, largely due to the artistic freedoms on facial expressions. It is only then that the artist allows anatomic liberties; the contrast between that and the realistic background is quite interesting to look at and keeps the flow going.

Plot-wise, this was a bit of a slower update, but the signs of the next major arc are sowed. The suspicious on members of the crew that something is amiss with their captain and Jamis is popping up, and not from the most savoury of individuals. The bubbling maturity of Ludovica is also always a joy to look at, and it will be rich to look at her in some years time.