EPILOGUE 758 | The Future Is Now

EPILOGUE 758 | The Future Is Now

September 28, 2014 | 10:19 pm, by Pascalle Lepas



Comments

  • lake_wrangler

    Hmm… Must have been “Backwards Day” when you wrote your review…

    Surely, you meant to say that the plot was delightfully intricate and full of foreshadowing, the relationships were well thought out and realistic, and the ending was unexpected yet pleasing beyond words

  • No, because that would be lying on all accounts.

  • lake_wrangler

    Well, I guess we are all entitled to our opinions, however misguided they may be…

    Of course, if it was that painful to read, nothing stopped you from simply moving on. Exactly what did you hope to accomplish, by spewing such unabashed criticism, after the story was finished? From what I can tell, many were those who actually enjoyed the story, and had no problem with the elements you complained about.

    Constructive criticism, along the way, as the story was being created and displayed, to make the creators aware of some blind spot they may not have noticed, may have been one thing… but what you did was far from that.

    I guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree, then.

  • I criticised the comic. You’re criticising my criticism. I don’t regard either as inherently wrong to do.

    Anyhow, I read a lot of webcomics. It takes an awful lot to put me off continuing one entirely. I finished this one, so it isn’t like it was unreadable. The ending was just a disappointment after all the time it went on for.

    What others do or do not opine about the subject matter is irrelevant. Most of those who visibly comment on any given webcomic out there give the impression of being unashamed arse-licking sycophants by the looks of it. Sometimes it is because the webcomic creators are ruthlessly pruning anything that doesn’t praise the ground they walk on, but sometimes it is just because these kids grow up thinking that voicing negative opinions is somehow wrong.
    It really isn’t.

    Anyhow…. Art dramatically improved. That was done right. Ending rushed and awkward. That was done wrong. That is my take on the comic in short… and I don’t have any intention of expanding on it.

  • lake_wrangler

    Of course, there’s nothing wrong with criticizing a webcomic. That’s how artists and authors get feedback on how to improve.

    I just thought your review felt rather terse and unhelpful… For instance, instead of calling the ending “utterly arbitrary”, you might have mentioned that after all the buildup, it seemed to end in too convenient a manner, and perhaps resolved too quickly. Kind of a “Zap ex machina”, since Zap did all the heavy lifting at the end, with seemingly hardly sweating (until he completely dissolved, that is…) But as they say, “he got better”… ;) (I would probably have agreed with such a sentiment… the ending was, indeed, a little rushed, after all that buildup…)

    Maybe if you had expounded a bit, offering hints or advice as to what might have made it better, in your eyes, or said why you felt how you felt. After all, one cannot debate feelings. One can argue whether a webcomic is or is not good, but one cannot debate how it made you feel, how you felt about it.

    Although, admittedly, some artists/authors frown upon such advice, but that would be their problem not yours, as long as you offered it earnestly and politely.

    That’s one problem with writing on the internet: emotions and feelings are hard to convey. The conciseness of your original comment made it feel rather harsh, whether that was your intention or not. At least, that’s how it came across to me. Had you taken the time to expand your comment, in a more constructive way (exactly what did you feel was a mess, about the plot, for instance), I probably would not have replied at all. But as it was, I felt I needed to add a “flip side of the coin” point of view, couched in some jovial, over the top manner.

    I’m sorry you did not enjoy your reading experience (and I am in no way affiliated with the author or the artist), but hey, at least, it wasn’t unreadable, right? :P

    Have a pleasant day.

  • PeregrineGauntlets

    Never say never, Targon! You’ve beautifully encapsulated, in one of the most well-written, poetic reviews I have ever read, the way I feel about Zap! after having just read it a second time myself. I remember seeing someone mention in the comments of Wilde Life, a couple of years ago, that Pascalle had written another comic called Zap!. The praises sung were so strong that I tracked it down and read it through in a single sitting, but I could never bring myself to comment on any of the pages because it felt kinda…. wrong, what with the whole concept of “necro-ing” a thread or a post.

    But I felt compelled to respond because you’ve hit the proverbial nail on the head. I’ve watched a few web comics over the years and one of my favorite parts of doing so is to see a fledgling artist grow into a skilled and experienced content creator. Pascalle has not disappointed.

    So thank you, and all the other readers, who kept reading an encouraging Pascalle to keep going. Without every one of you, artist, writer, and audience, I’d have never gotten to enjoy this masterpiece. <3

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