Comments on: What is most popular webcomic?

By: Amborn

Amborn — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 14:10:01 +0000

I’m laid off from work now. So i been reading blogs all day and found yours. I found a lot of good info here. Thank you!

By: Dylan

Dylan — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 00:29:33 +0000

I only follow 3 web comics: Beaver and Steve (beaverandsteve.com), Multiplex 10 (multiplexcomic.com), and Penny Arcade (penny-arcade.com)

By: Torsten Adair

Torsten Adair — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 02:49:37 +0000

It’s difficult to categorize comics by length. Pogo was a gag a day strip with an ongoing story. The first collection was edited into what would now be called a graphic novel. MAD Magazine runs both comic strip gags (Sergio Aragones) and single page comics, yet most do not consider it a comicbook.
Here are some possible classifications and criteria: previously published (Dilbert, She Hulk), original licensed comics, Original To Web; daily publication, weekly, irregular; format and length (strip, page, issue, animated, hybrid); cost (free, subscription); Google strength (how many people link to it); independent, co op, studio, corporation…
myself, I like Maridee,Unshelved, Last Kiss, and Retail.

By: Henrik J

Henrik J — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 22:02:00 +0000

Penny Arcade is the only webcomic i really follow, there are certainly many other good webcomics around but none who are as consistantly funny everytime

By: Alana Abbott

Alana Abbott — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 20:53:55 +0000

I think the problem, HABE, is that a lot of gag comics also have ongoing story lines. Order of the Stick started out as gag-a-strip and became a story that was a lot more epic, a change that has been difficult for some fans who are still expecting a gag in the last panel. I’d call Questionable Content mostly a gag comic, because each page has a beginning and an end, and the end is usually funny, but the characters throughout grow and change.

Those webcomics are between traditional strips, non-traditional strips like XKCD, and full on narratives like Cowboys and Aliens II (which I’m writing for). So drawing the lines, as much as it might need to be done, could get very messy…

By: HABE

HABE — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 19:34:55 +0000

I think we need a more specific definition of “Webcomic” for lists like these because it’s really apples and oranges to compare a comic strip like Garfield to a comic-book-style story like MegaTokyo, especially based on hit-counts. The reading experience and audience is totally different.

At least for me, clicking by for a second to read XKCD before lunch or during a break is easy. That’s what comic strips are for. Looking forward to and keeping up with ongoing stories like Gunnerkrig Court involves a different set of motivations and payoffs. Those who read Zuda offerings are not generally the same people who get e-mailed a daily dose of Dilbert.

Comic strips update much more frequently and their archives generally have a lot of re-read and pass-along value, so their hit-counts will always be huge compared to ongoing story comics. Humor also gives them a wider appeal. That’s all good, and that’s why I think they deserve a list all their own.

I usually scan these lists looking for a good story and always come away disappointed because those kind of Webcomics always get bumped off by the strips. It would be nice and more informative to put these very different animals in two separate cages.

By: Red Stapler

Red Stapler — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 15:28:16 +0000

XKCD is one of my favorite webcomics.

Rare is the body of work–any body of work–that can make me laugh, but then also make me feel a hollow sadness.

It speaks to the loneliness of growing up geeky, and remaining so as an adult.

But on the other side of that, it really highlights how much damn fun geeks are when we get together.

By: STWALLSKULL » Interesting Links: November 21st, 2007

STWALLSKULL » Interesting Links: November 21st, 2007 — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 14:44:40 +0000

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