Another comic comes to an end, but a complete end this time. Return to Eden wraps up a rather long story that in the end I didn't expect to enjoy so much. I knew the ending was coming, but I really didn't expect it to be here so quickly.
There are so many things that kept me interested in the comic. The mythology of the comic proved to be, well, incredible. Partially based on Biblical mythology, it twisted it in just the right way to make it feel unique. As the comic got nearer the end, I got drawn further in, and found a world far more interesting, and far more human, than I might have expected before.
As I flip through the early chapters of the comic, I'm surprised at how improved the artwork got, while still retaining its style. The sketchiness of the strips is there throughout, but by the end it proved more controlled and deliberate than the early ones. There's also a certain level of "chibi" built into the comic's early strips, and that is all but missing in the later comics. I think it's related to how serious things got near the end, and I appreciate that.
I also noticed there were far more colored pages early on as opposed to later in the comic. In fact, one of the early key plot points was that the main character's eyes changed color. Later on though, the number of color pages decreased dramatically. Some of that is due to time constraints, I think, but also an increase in skill of the artist. It didn't NEED to be in color any more. That's a great evolution, though I do wonder what it would look like if it had gone full color instead.
In the end, the oddest thing about this comic is that there really wasn't a central villain until near the end. Oh, it was a GREAT villain, but the revelation of who it was and why didn't come until the comic was almost over. Makes me think that there wasn't much of a "plan" for the comic early on. There may have been some vague ideas, but nothing serious. At one point, there was even an apology for introducing a new, very important character in the last third of the comic. The creation of that character, the villain, and the final conflict and story was all late additions to the overall comic.
One of the few faults is the cast: They didn't have much to do at the end. A couple were hard to differentiate from the each other, causing a bit of confusion along the way. Still, the later characters are MUCH more memorable, and stood out in dress and design much better. Some had arcs, but not many. Even the main character really didn't have an "arc," she really just became a bit more mature as the comic went on, nothing more.
Even so, I enjoyed the comic for it's entire run. I'm glad to see a comic come to a natural end like this, completing the tale and showing a true evolution in artistic skill and story telling ability. There is a new comic in the works by this artist, and I will happily read it as well. I think it might be really good.
Well, another comic down, but not for bad reasons. Until next time kiddies.
There are so many things that kept me interested in the comic. The mythology of the comic proved to be, well, incredible. Partially based on Biblical mythology, it twisted it in just the right way to make it feel unique. As the comic got nearer the end, I got drawn further in, and found a world far more interesting, and far more human, than I might have expected before.
As I flip through the early chapters of the comic, I'm surprised at how improved the artwork got, while still retaining its style. The sketchiness of the strips is there throughout, but by the end it proved more controlled and deliberate than the early ones. There's also a certain level of "chibi" built into the comic's early strips, and that is all but missing in the later comics. I think it's related to how serious things got near the end, and I appreciate that.
I also noticed there were far more colored pages early on as opposed to later in the comic. In fact, one of the early key plot points was that the main character's eyes changed color. Later on though, the number of color pages decreased dramatically. Some of that is due to time constraints, I think, but also an increase in skill of the artist. It didn't NEED to be in color any more. That's a great evolution, though I do wonder what it would look like if it had gone full color instead.
In the end, the oddest thing about this comic is that there really wasn't a central villain until near the end. Oh, it was a GREAT villain, but the revelation of who it was and why didn't come until the comic was almost over. Makes me think that there wasn't much of a "plan" for the comic early on. There may have been some vague ideas, but nothing serious. At one point, there was even an apology for introducing a new, very important character in the last third of the comic. The creation of that character, the villain, and the final conflict and story was all late additions to the overall comic.
One of the few faults is the cast: They didn't have much to do at the end. A couple were hard to differentiate from the each other, causing a bit of confusion along the way. Still, the later characters are MUCH more memorable, and stood out in dress and design much better. Some had arcs, but not many. Even the main character really didn't have an "arc," she really just became a bit more mature as the comic went on, nothing more.
Even so, I enjoyed the comic for it's entire run. I'm glad to see a comic come to a natural end like this, completing the tale and showing a true evolution in artistic skill and story telling ability. There is a new comic in the works by this artist, and I will happily read it as well. I think it might be really good.
Well, another comic down, but not for bad reasons. Until next time kiddies.
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