If other kiwi's wish to alog Ethan, so be it but at least make the posts interesting. Provide screenshots of tweets, archives of posts, timestamped livestreams, clips of videos or something of substance to explain why you feel the way you do,
I would, but I already have a day job, and rely on others to carry out these valuable tasks and services.
It seems like there is a demand for advice videos for indie self-starters in comics, both in art and writing. This would seem like the ideal topic for Comicsgate in its current phase, having evolved from an establishment-criticism focus to one of creator-owned self-publishing.
But looking at Comicsgate content in general, there seems to be a problem in the supply that possibly arises from a focus on streaming over making shorter, digestible, edited videos.
Even mentioning the legend Marshall Vandruff and wunderkind Stan Prokopenko in the same breath as comicsgate feels odd. Two men with an enormous wealth of expertise and teaching experience under their belts, both free from bitter public obsessions and glaring character defects. How does comicsgate match up to that? How can it? A thing born of political and idealogical bile and hectoring, transformed into a very vague publishing label that purports to be about creating comics for customers, but remains mired in internet drama, genuinely shocking infighting, and sneering at tweets from individuals in what remains of the old comic industry.
Don't get me wrong, I agree that moving in a more instructional direction would be a good thing.
Anything to get away from the feeling like we're keeping up with the latest spats from Mad Max's schoolyard. Even I feel a twinge of sympathy for the frog if he looks upon his works and despairs, and wants to shift to something more legitimate.
I just don't know if comicsgate, as a whole, can manage it. Those who can, do; those who can't, teach. How many in comicsgate are capable of either? In the spirit, if not the fact, of providing something of substance ('Substance'. Fuck me. Lolcows be serious bizness.) it looks like only Ethan and Jon Malin - possibly also Sweetcast - have any sustained success. All other CG creators seem to fail to fund, fail to fulfil, fulfil but with awful products (TUG, WCBS), or fall away with subsequent crowdfunders. (YaBoi, Nasser) Is that accurate?
So what do these people have to teach anyone about making comics, except how not to do it? Even the Little Nero at the top of the pile struggles to write, draw and distribute two floppy comics in what, two, three, four years?
Ethan and Jon's success doesn't seem to be very replicable, and may not be, if it depends mostly on their very personal styles of capering and bickering on youtube, rather than the quality of their books. Given that, how does the demand for advice videos stack up against the gaunt hunger for soap opera antics and slapfight rubbernecking?
Ethan is making great gains in his channel by falling back on what made him blow up in the first place: Star Wars videos. You'll have to forgive me if I didn't rush to check them out and timestamp every remark - are they in the same style and tone as his old rants? How many action figures has he mutilated so far? How does any of it relate to robotic frog books? Does anyone care as long as he calls Kathleen Kennedy names? Or has the tide turned to simping for Gina Carano?
All of it, origins, performance, focus, it all feels too tainted.
Let's narrow the focus to my favourite topic
du jour.
I definitely like this direction, at some point the Liam and Donal milk will run dry and you'll need something to fall back on.
Replace 'Liam and Donal' with 'comicsgate' and I'm there.
I want to see you work on your raw natural storytelling ability, because right now I would say that Big Daddy, who you clowned and roasted, is a better horror storyteller than you. He has actually scared me just from talking on his streams, whereas you have never scared me even a tiny bit. And you're the one selling a horror comic!
That's all you need to be able to do. Can you make me shit my pants, either through laughter or fear? That's the main thing we all want deep down.
Those who can't etc. etc.
I can get behind this. Nasser, I bought one of your books. I couldn't finish it. The most horrific aspect was how quickly it threatened to plunge me into a coma. You've had one successfully fulfilled comic, and I've listened to you beg your youtube audience to buy your books so that Amazon will throw you another few cents this month.
I'll use up my one optimism coupon for this month: I think you can improve and be a good writer. I think the comicsgate subsidy and certain kiwis (not Pilule) giving you pointers to be a better dancing poodle on youtube, will stunt that growth. Superchats for your hot takes will not retroactively make Eternity or Duality much better. But all the same, I see you are now considering posting videos instructing viewers about 'craft'. It's - What - I - Did you become some in-demand literary superstar when I wasn't looking? Straight away, Pilule, otherwise cheerleading, is pulling you up on your understanding of basic scene-setting. Don't you think you should learn how to walk before you can run?
I know how I sound. Tell me to fuck off if you think I'm trying to browbeat you 'for your own good'. I'm not your dad. But sometimes taking in comicsgate feels like beating your head against a wall, and sometimes yours feels like the densest brick in it.
