Okay, this is DEFINITELY NSFW. Don’t say we didn’t warn you. THE PRO, the tale of a working girl with superpowers by Garth Ennis, Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti, has been a sales sleeper since it came out in 2002 — it’s now in its fifth printing. Some test animation has been floating around for a while and now it’s on YouTube so take a look — but ADULTS ONLY!
I think it’s really good. This is one of the best examples of a good motion comic (regardless of subject matter, just talking about the medium) where it doesn’t look/feel like a weird hybrid.
And the voice acting is really good, too.
I like it a lot!
Sweeet!!!! :)
Very good. Animation was pitch perfect. Voice acting was brilliant. My kind of dark comedy.
If this is an example of a “good” motion comic, then I don’t think that “good” motion comics exist. I loved seeing Amanda Conner’s art from the comic … until I realized that the “animation” was going to consist entirely of herky-jerky 4chan-level gif alterations of that. I’m sorry, but this is crap, and the source material deserves better.
@ K-Box:
To each his own, of course, but while I don’t know what “4chan-level” means, I do think judging something that doesn’t intend to be animation per se as crappy animations makes little sense. Like saying “soup was the shittiest sandwich I ever ate”.
Not to sound snarky (I just like that metaphor for some dopey reason). But the part of motion comics that appeals to me is that they can be produced by very few people, without great resources, which is not true for animation.
And given this flexibility, there is the possibility of a much greater range of expression than an average animated cartoon. In other words, riskier subject matter, more personal vision, control–all these are possible with a motion comic, where an animated piece requires so many cooks in the kitchen and someone to bankroll it.
So I don’t know whether that affects your view of whether “good motion comics exist”, but maybe applying a different criterion to it could change your mind.
“Some test animation has been floating around for a while and now it’s on YouTube so take a look — but ADULTS ONLY!”
“Animation was pitch perfect. Voice acting was brilliant.”
“If this is an example of a ‘good’ motion comic, then I don’t think that ‘good’ motion comics exist.”
Did you try it with the soccer ball turned on (YouTube will only offer this feature through the final game on July 11)?
“Not to sound snarky (I just like that metaphor for some dopey reason). But the part of motion comics that appeals to me is that they can be produced by very few people, without great resources, which is not true for animation.
“And given this flexibility, there is the possibility of a much greater range of expression than an average animated cartoon. In other words, riskier subject matter, more personal vision, control–all these are possible with a motion comic, where an animated piece requires so many cooks in the kitchen and someone to bankroll it.”
That all also goes for non-motion comics and even non-comic books. :)
Enlighten me, as I am not working in such an environment and not being american, I don´t get this NSFW thing.
I interpret it as: it is okay to waste your time and your employers money to read about Lindsay Lohan finally getting her gang-tatoo or how the Mets played, but you are really, really in trouble if is has anything to do with sex. Then you´re screwed.
Or is it just a fancy codeword for “yeah, nipples!” ? ;-)
What an incredible load of crap.
@AndyD I think you’re pretty much spot on. Fair use of the internet at most workplaces doesn’t extend to sexual materials.
But I think the one of the key points of the NSFW tag is that what you’re about to see might offend coworkers who happen to see it. Porn at work=bad; Creating a hostile environment by looking at porn at work=much worse.
Yeah, I got a sneak peak (voyeurism?) at C2E2, and it looks pretty darn good, ESPECIALLY since it is test footage and do-it-yourself.
As for NSFW, there’s also the Laugh-Out-Loud factor. Generally, you’re not supposed to have fun at work (but that never stopped me). Laughing out loud generally attracts the attention of co-workers, and then you have to explain what it is that was so funny, and why you were looking at it “on the clock”.
(For the record, my work blocks YouTube and most blogs. I had to watch it on my Palm Treo.)
Might we see a Pro/Boys crossover one day? Or did she make a cameo in Herogasm?
Only got to watch part of it, but I think it looked pretty sharp…..the minimalist animation kind of reminded me of MTV’s old The Maxx cartoon.
Thanks,guys. Appreciated!
I’ve enjoyed looking at The Pro in the comics shops, but in print it always seemed a little too unpleasant. Somehow, seeing it animated made it a lot funnier — I thought it was hilarious.
As for the animation, sure, it could be more sophisticated, but a decent budget will fix that. Watch the pilot for The Venture Bros sometime, it looks terrible compared to what they do now.
and now it’s gone. any idea where else it’s available? it’s one of my favorite books ever. @Todd Alcott, “unpleasant”? it’s not supposed to be pleasant. if you want unpleasant look at Ennis’ “Dicks”…
@Torsten, the Pro predates the Boys by almost a decade. that’s like asking Judd Winick to go back and do another Barry Ween comic or to return to the possibility of a Barry Ween cartoon. it ain’t gonna happen.
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