So, for the very first time in nearly three years of subscription (one from my FLGS, nearly two directly from paizo), I surprised myself yesterday.
My dungeon magazine arrived (finally!). I was pleased, the poster map was there, and looked nice. I opened the magazine... and flipped immidiatly to Downer, because I was curious about the story.
After much reflection, I realized that this was the first time I'd ever done that - when I first started buying dungeon again, I thought downer was an annoyance - bad art, incomprehensible story, and incredibly disjointed.
I think it's grown on me (possibly like a fungus) over the years.
Props, Erik, Kyle, James, for keeping downer around. You've at least turned this hater into something of a fan...
The conclusion of the Downer comic in #146 made me go "What?!?!" Nice move on the rakshasa's part, though.
SO what was meant by "you are eating the ullolok?" That was weird.
SO what was meant by "you are eating the ullolok?" That was weird.
the ritual to become the god of gaming consists, at least in part, of cooking and eating the Ulok.
Hmm. apparently downer is unintentionally joining the apotheosis. It's an interesting bluff thats being run...
but hey, I could be wrong. =D
I thought downer was an annoyance - bad art, incomprehensible story, and incredibly disjointed.
I ... don't know how to feel about that. Going back and gathering stuff for the first Downer book is kinda painful. Part of me wants to re-do everything from the start. But, you do something for like 4 years and you can't help but get better. Nothng like learning on someone elses dime.
SO what was meant by "you are eating the ullolok?" That was weird.the ritual to become the god of gaming consists, at least in part, of cooking and eating the Ulok.
Hmm. apparently downer is unintentionally joining the apotheosis. It's an interesting bluff thats being run...
but hey, I could be wrong. =D
I thought the ullolok was some kind of a statue-not a living thing(although he certainly likes to bite people's fingers}
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I thought downer was an annoyance - bad art, incomprehensible story, and incredibly disjointed.I ... don't know how to feel about that. Going back and gathering stuff for the first Downer book is kinda painful. Part of me wants to re-do everything from the start. But, you do something for like 4 years and you can't help but get better. Nothng like learning on someone elses dime.
It's your stuff; of course you're gonna be hypercritical.
I always thought the art was really tight. It's really fun to look at.
I thought downer was an annoyance - bad art, incomprehensible story, and incredibly disjointed.I ... don't know how to feel about that. Going back and gathering stuff for the first Downer book is kinda painful. Part of me wants to re-do everything from the start. But, you do something for like 4 years and you can't help but get better. Nothng like learning on someone elses dime.
Here's the thing, kyle - I've gone back and re-read three years worth of downer comics. I get it a lot more now, and the visual style, while admitedly less refined, is still appealing to me now on the aesthetic levels.
Don't be hypercritical of your work - It is too easy to do for an artist in any medium.
Kyle: We are always critical of our own work. That being said, there has certainly been a clear progression in Downer, both in the art and the story execution, from when I first started reading it to now. :) Keep it up, Downer is a very fun character.
The thing I really like about Downer is how it's made me rethink some of the iconic monsters. Downer is inspiring me as a DM, which makes it entirely fitting to be part of Dungeon. Keep it up. And please don't let it end-keep it going.
I thought Downer was bloody brilliant the first time I saw it. It takes common D&D archetypes and makes them fun, or twists them, or fleshes them out in ways I wouldn't have imagined. The story is kind of haphazard and difficult to follow but that would be case for any story that only had 2 pages per month, and one that spanned the multiverse to boot. You've made a great contribution to Dungeon and I'll be happily buying your collection. Keep Downer going, he's one legendary mo-fo.
Kyle, I know you've heard this from me at least once in the past, but in case you missed it, here it is again:
I love Downer. I like the art, love the charachters, and find the story interesting... If slightly disjointed with some mild coherency issues. (On that last point, it's actually a nit- I love the art and charachters so much that the story itself is largely secondary to my enjoyment.)
On the chaarchters: Some of the most g%@ d!#ned creative charachters I have ever seen related to D&D. Some of the most creative fantasy charachters I have seen in years. I mean, seriously: Kensai Githiyanki? I never would have thought of that. Honestly. And Kalro is aweomse. If I ever get a game going, I AM going to jack a few of your charachters as NPCs, mainly Downer Tarantula, but possibly others as well.
What makes the charachters so great (in my opinion, anyway) is that they take established memes and turn them on their ears. Plus you use both iconic and obscure charachters in interesting ways. (Case in point, I think that I shall never see, an Ethergaunt lovlier than a tree...)
On the art: I will admit it: At one point, I'm pretty sure I called your art "ugly." Interesting, but ugly. That was at least two years ago now, and you've made great strides in quality and presentation since then. I've been truly sold on your art ever since the day I saw the Azer cooking breakfast on his head- Your art often brings a much-needed whimsy and irreverence to the table.
And one last thing: Your colors in Downer are beautiful. Rarely have I seen anyone use such drab palettes and make them seem so rich.
In short: Keep improving and don't let anybody get you down. Downer is awesome.
The art is cool. The characters are interesting. But I'll agree that the story is really tough to follow from month to month. I have had problems following serial comics on a monthly basis in the past, so there's that, but Downer has been even tougher to follow than usual. Reading a collection might mitigate that factor...