What happens when cartoonists take on their critics in comic form ? Recently , the webcomic Zen Pencils raged against online critics — and received a comic about the value of negative feedback in reply .
Top figure of speech from Zen Pencils’“The Artist - Troll War . ”
Zen Pencilsis a webcomic known chiefly for adapt inspirational citation from celebrated people into , well , inspirational comic . We ’ve highlighted some of creative person Gavin Aung Than ’s comics here , including his illustration ofNeil deGrasse Tyson ’s Most Astounding FactandChris Hadfield ’s advice to aspire spaceman . Sure , the comics can be a bit platitudinous , but they ’re fun and ( normally ) cheerful if you do n’t heed a little saccharine in your comic diet . And it ’s open that a lot of people don’t;Than recently score a book spate , and a Zen Pencils collection is due out in November .
https://gizmodo.com/neil-degrasse-tysons-most-astounding-fact-adapted-as-a-5908023
http://io9.com/5989277/words-to-live-by-chris-hadfields-advice-to-aspiring-astronauts
In February , Zen Pencils took a different tact , telling a four - part original comic titled“The Artist - Troll War . ”In it , people who post their critique online are transform into a slimy hate monster out to destroy artistry — at least until the guardian of art ( led by an ersatz Hayao Miyazaki ) build a giant robot to take out the hatred monster . It ’s not terribly subtle .
What sparked this takedown of so - called trolls ? I surmise it may have begin back in August , when Than posted his laughable accommodate a portion ofBill Watterson ’s 1990 speech to the graduates of Kenyon College . The comedian , which is about creating a aliveness for one ’s ego and caricature Watterson ’s visual style , was largely well take in , but it also drew some hard criticism . Some masses did n’t like the idea of another cartoonist using Watterson ’s words and his expressive style of imagery , but others feel that the comic was critical of commercial-grade artistic creation . David Willis ( who gain a living work his tail off on various webcomics ) used his webcomic Shortpacked ! to offer a retort to the Zen Pencils comedian . “You have to leave or the money cooties will demoralize your art,”Willis jest .
On the other hand , in reply to the strain of some of the critique aimed at Than , Kate Leth of Kate or Die ! remind reader that“The creative person on the other side of the sieve is a person . ”
In a pre - Internet historic period , “ The Artist - Troll War ” is something that probably would have sat in a notebook , a little bite of purgation that an artist might have shown to a few Quaker before moving on . But just as the Internet constitute it easy for people to apportion negative feedback ( whether heedful or uncaring ) with creators , so too does it make it easygoing for creative person to pull their abreaction out of those notebook computer and clapperclaw a wounded ululation into the wider world .
It would be easy to review “ The Artist - Troll War ” for its message and the way it represent it : Than lump all negative unfavorable judgment into the category of “ haters . ” He create a untrue duality between critics and creative person , snub that some artists have felt negatively criticise by his own work . And using Hayao Miyazaki as the avatar for Than ’s side of the debate is nothing short of hubris . It ’s all a scrap odd for someone who illustrate Tim Minchin ’s admonition to“be hard on your opinions . ”Personally , when I saw the first installment of “ The Artist - Troll War , ” I decided this was something that Than only needed to get out of his system , and decide I would just brush off Zen Pencils until the inevitable victory of “ undecomposed artistry ” over “ hater . ”
But Kris Straub , the creator behind the webcomicsStarslip , Broodhollow , andChainsawsuit , as well as a number of other online projection , did something much unspoiled than neglect “ The Artist - Troll War , ” something surprising and improbably fresh . He drew an installment of Chainsawsuitthat figuratively take Than by the hand . “ It ’s really self - indulgent , ” Straub writes , using the form of Than ’s hate giant . “ It feels like … you were writing it from a wounded position . ” Go read the full comic , which softly critiques “ The Artist - Troll War , ” and then reminds all of us who receive minus critique online that , even when it hurts , we should look for value in electronegative criticism .
Straub does n’t abnegate that there are some critics who are fell because it is fun or because it offers them a sense of power they ca n’t find anywhere else . But it ’s incredibly endearing to see him play as the webcomic big brother , bid to guide Than through the briary thicket of negative feedback and find the rose wine blossom there . As much as I appreciate Leth ’s admonisher that the non - bot people we run into on the Internet are real , flesh - and - blood human beingness , Straub ’s lesson is an important one to take to mettle , not just on-line , but in the wider world .
Comics
Daily Newsletter
Get the good tech , skill , and cultivation news in your inbox daily .
news program from the future tense , delivered to your present tense .
Please select your desired newssheet and render your email to upgrade your inbox .
You May Also Like
