01-06-06

The Learning Process
Okay, here's the thing:  I've known about Welcome to Kynintonne by A. Gregg for some time.  I've actually been reading it semi-regularly for all that time.  It's even been on my links page for a while.  So why haven't I reviewed it?
          At first I didn't review it because the author asked me not to.  We "met" online on The Webcomic List Forum right around the time I panned (some say attacked) Gossamer Commons, and Gregg (who goes by Twisted Gecko online) wasn't sure she had the confidence to stand up to that sort of attention.  Later, she gave me permission, but unfortunately that was about the time I went on my strange hiatus from reviews.  But I'm back, and so are the reviews.
          It's very difficult to write an honest review when you like the author.  It's difficult to write honest reviews anyway, because it's hard not to realize that every comic is the product of someone's hard work, but when you know the author, and know for a fact that she's a nice person, the temptation to softball it is immense.  Unfortunately, my main duty, no matter how much I like an author, is to my readers.
          It's very hard to like WTK.  To begin with, the story moves very slowly and, on 25th page of the comic is still almost incomprehensible.  As far as I can tell, WTK is the tale of Lila, a "null" (which may be a person who is immune to magic or may be simply a derogatory term for a normal human, I'm not sure), who has recently taken a job as personal chef to a fire spirit named Sammy.  Lila bears the bruises and scars of recent abuse, and Sammy—prior to setting her up in his spacious apartment—takes her by his friend Ril (an air spirit) to receive some healing.  This is when we discover she's a "null", but whether she's just a normal human, or she's a special human who is immune to the effects of elemental magic is left open.  Later, when she is delivered to Sammy's apartment to begin her job, she is haunted by an animated shadow that may be from her past.  So far, that's it.  Of course, unless you have a certain amount of patience, you probably stopped reading around page five or so, when the story got bogged down in coy half-hints.
          But WTK encourages patience.  The writing is coy but not cutesy, and the matters left unsaid encourage you to find out more.  While the slowness of the plot and introductory exposition can be frustrating, it's a good kind of frustrating, like the long-lingering odor of the roasting turkey on Thanksgiving.  The transitions tend to be jarring, but that is just a product of Gregg's youth, and, as she becomes more experienced with plotting, they will become more smooth.
          Because WTK is a living example of the Learning Process.  Every page exposes another trick that Gregg has learned to improve her story-telling and art. 
          I won't lie to you about the art; it has problems.  The early pages were scanned at low resolution and are very pixelated.  Later pages, while less blocky, have pencil smudges or "paper grey" backgrounds.  The shading is inconsistent.  So are the coloring and the figure-drawing.  But they show ongoing improvement, and they're worth a look.
          Gregg sets a tone from the very beginning.  She uses flowing lines and imperfect corners and perspective to create a feeling that something is not-quite-right, and even while she improves her skills, she maintains this intriguing style. 
          It can be hard to like.  But it's also hard to put down.

Welcome to Kynintonne by A. Gregg

Updates: Monday
Caveats:  Adult themes, language
Rating: