Week of 5/20/2024

Bob leads an insurrection on The Shapes and I critique a magical girl comics anthology.

The Shapes

Close Endeavors of the Bob Kind 4-6

News

2nd Anniversary

Two days ago marked the 2nd anniversary of putting The Shapes out there for the world to see, which I mentioned last week. I’m still interested in the idea of a Q&A series of strips, so as my final call, if this is something you want to see happen, comment below or reply to this email! I’ll only proceed if at least 5 of you respond yes. I promise there’ll be meta and 4th-wall-breaking jokes galore!

Sammy the Critic

Aradia Beat Volume 1 Review

Those of you following my past few updates already know I was selling The Shapes at the TCAF Digital Marketplace, which just ended yesterday. How did I sell? I have no bloody clue yet, so for all I know, I probably sold nothing. Regardless, I still wanted to show my support for a few artists and brought myself a few comics, this being one of them. Was this magical girl anthology and 90s teen fashion magazine-styled hybrid worth 5 bucks? Read and find out.

Ok, so before getting to the meat and potatoes or even the menu (table of contents), there’s an absolutely hilarious parody advertisement for a curse diagnostic service which I swear could be its own comic, setting the tone for the anthology structure. Speaking of which, the fake ads are generally witty and all tie in with the magical girl theme. My favorite ad is a service that assists in helping magical girls find discreet locations to transform. Sounds like it would be convenient for Usagi Tsukino. There are also a few actual ads, but they’re for other comics, particularly the ones part of the Aradia collective, so it never feels distracting or out of place.

To preface the book, editor NAAN recounts their childhood experience with nooks (as in the room) and their elusiveness. As they pointedly acknowledge, this has nothing to do with the magazine’s content, but it’s an amusing little tale. Now, on with the comics!

A Day at the Mall by Phyllida Luna – For all the praise I gave for the format, this was not the strongest comic to open with. Even though I don’t know, it looks like all the entries were required to be four pages or less because it really shows throughout, adversely affecting the pacing which is either too rushed, half-baked, or simplistic. When working within these confines, a simple premise is generally the way to go. However, issues arise when leave take a simple premise and don’t do anything with it which is the case here. How is all this story structure lecturing relevant, you might be asking to which I give you my exhaustive synopsis breakdown:

“Two teen girls fight a mall monster and subsequently have lunch.”

No, this isn’t a summary, but a description of all the events that occur. There’s no major struggle whatsoever besides a single strike which is countered with a spoonful of zaps and hits to help the monster go down in the most vapid way. In combination with lineless art and Christopher Hart-ish character designs, the saturated colors are just unpleasant to look at.

The Butterfly Girls by G. Saavedra – A magical girl musical act wows television audiences with their powers. Yay, another comic that can be entirely recounted in a headline. The artist at least seems like they have illustration experience even if it’s not my favorite style. Hmm, perhaps from here, things will only climb uphill.

Fit for a Queen by Zamoore – Finally, a good comic! Using a blue tone that looks like something risographed, we’re presented with middle-schooler Diane who convinces her older brother to buy a dress she found in a magazine catalog holding supernatural powers. While there aren’t any real stakes, Zemoore does an excellent job taking this simple concept and portraying the excitement a child would derive from such a discovery. All in all, it’s a delightful read.

How to Navigate Your New Crush as a Teenaged Witch – Here comes the quiz section of what a teenage witch should do in this ongoing fantastical scenario with a sapphic twist. I can’t say I’ve ever been fond of fashion magazine quizzes, but I still found this column pretty enjoyable.

The Night Before by E.B. Hutchins – Sorry, but this reads more like a sampler part of a bigger story than an installment. The comic literally begins in the middle of the plot which would normally precede the climax. All we see is this warrior talking about this battle happening the following day and the princess reaffirming him and them kissing.

Wait, what?! Who is the king of the Ire Horde, and why should I be afraid of him? What are these two characters’ history, and what’s the context behind any of this? Even as a sampler, this would feel too spoiler-y.

Artichoke & Alex by Michael Peralta Myers – For this one, we have a wordless comic where a guy is saved from a kaiju monster by a magical girl. Although it is lacking in action, its unique art style combining Eastern with Western design approach utilizing sharp linework is visually impressive. It certainly leaves me interested in seeing more of these two.

How I Spent My Vacation by Blue Dragon – Unapologetic 90s nostalgia and campy catchphrases reign galore to my amusement. Alas, saturated colors and unappealing art strike again, bogging this down to a mid-tier entry that I definitely have to be within a certain mindset to enjoy.

No Walls in the Head! by NAAN – With seven pages, this is the longest comic and the only one surpassing 4 pages besides “How I Spent My Vacation” which made complete sense given how complex the plot is. Hell, even at that page count, it feels too complex, the opposite grievance I have to the preceding contributions.  It is clearly meant to be an emotional story about two characters reuniting after this “wall” separated them for years. Here’s the thing that undermines the poignant overtones; the “wall” concept is so abstract that the reader has no idea what weight it has on characters nor is there enough context established to understand the duo’s relationship because so much time is spent on the reuniting aspect. NAAN needed at least 10-15 pages to pace the comic better.

Xtreme Force by Seth Tamarkin (writer) & Waldo Irby (art) –  So miracles do happen outside of Christmas, don’t they? I never imagined putting a cute magical girl in an edgy 90s superhero comic setting, but it’s such a perfect combination that makes for a silly yet witty spoof that’s lovingly self-aware without crossing into acrimony. Out of everything I’ve read throughout the anthology, this is one of the few ones that feels like a completely self-contained short story. Bonus points for making me laugh out loud.

Mary’s Golden Heart by Chibat 1 6– Just taking a protagonist's generic thoughts during a transformation sequence doesn't qualify as a plot. Next!

Little Witch’s Apothecary by J.D. Harlock – Being the only prose inclusion, I liked the writing quite a bit along with the use of the author’s local cultural background to convey this magical realist tale about magical elixirs. May, who works behind the apothecary counter, assumes every customer asking for a potion wants to kill someone is downright funny and so is the recurring joke about not eating with sfouf (turmeric cake) in one’s mouth.

Beautiful Dreams by Ki Hiwatari–Yawwn, spreading out a bunch of half-baked thoughts about the appeal of escapism through fantasy isn't as endearing as it sounds. Maybe I’m acting like a cold cynic, but it’s hard to be moved with you have mediocre, choppy writing.

Mirage of a Friend by Alyssa Kozdron – Ayano helps Amara recover from a nightmare. Again with the contextual details, since the reader doesn’t see the nightmare or receive any idea of how profoundly it affects the MC beyond the surface level, it’s impossible to be emotionally invested in what’s happening.

Star x Bubble: A Magical Crossover! by Niambi Kelly – Ok, I’ll admit. While it could benefit from more substance, this is a genuinely sweet send-off to magical girl nostalgia, one that would be a perfect commercial for a shojo manga/anime line (which I mean in a positive way).

A Magical Grrl Friday Night by Archita Mittra & Alina Wahab – Page 1: Establish the cool goth girl who forgoes a night out with a friend.

Page 2: Jump straight to her in magical girl/demon girl form struggling to defeat her adversary.

Page 3: Oh wait, that’s all. How does it even qualify as a story? Pity such exceptional artwork and composition amounted to only this.

A Little Bit of Magic by Kamilla Sims– I know I've been complaining about many of the entries feeling half-baked due to their 4-page or less confines, but Sims was able to work around this limitation well. The reads like a pilot episode. The concept is laid out from the get-go and is straightforward focusing on the two protagonists and letting their background and characterizations manifest from the plot build-up before ending on a cliffhanger that leaves you curious for more.

Magical Pet Tamabani! By Bren Bonniere – In a world where Tamagotchi pets come to life and transform you into a magical girl…

What? Don’t tell me you were expecting more.

LARPing at Blockbuster by Verena Rod – A knight and elf duo unknowingly isekai themselves to our world where they find themselves at a Blockbuster location (R.I.P). I love how the people there mistake them for role-players and the two characters are oblivious to their new setting until the end where the knight asks the elf “Where did you open the portal?” only to be met with “I might have opened it far. Like, in another dimension far.”

Late, Again by Faye Pyatt – Coincidentally (or perhaps intentionally), the last story collected here also pertains to Blockbuster, more specifically, using magical girl abilities to return a due video there before it closes. While I never used to rent videos, I certainly used to borrow them from the library growing up, so I found this relatable nevertheless. It’s a solid way to close off the magazine.

In between all these entries, there are additionally various activities such as cut-out dolls, word searches, and quizzes which would be fun to try out if you own a physical copy although with a digital one, you can still print those pages for personal use. Plus, there are several good single illustration contributions, my favorites being from Starpunch, Kagura, and Starfey.

Here’s my ranking of every contribution (from best to worst):

1. Xtreme Force

2. Fit for a Queen

3. LARPing at Blockbuster

4. Late, Again

5. A Little Bit of Magic

6. Artichoke & Alex

7. Little Witch Apothecary

8. How to Navigate Your New Crush as a Teenaged Witch

9. Star x Bubble: A Magical Crossover!

10. How I Spent My Vacation

11. No Walls in the Head!

12. Magical Pet Tamabani!

13. Beautiful Dreams

14. A Magical Grrl Friday Night

15. The Butterfly Girls

16. Mary’s Golden Heart

17. The Night Before

18. A Day at the Mall

The top six picks are above average with “Xtreme Force” being exceptionally great, the middle 4 are average, and the rest are forgettable. Lack of editorial oversight where it’s needed is the biggest flaw. Most of the stories would benefit from a longer page length to flesh out the material, and if the magazine needed to stay within a certain page count, then cut down on the number of contributions. It’s better to showcase a smaller curation of content that leaves an impression on the audience than a smorgasbord of mediocrity.

Nonetheless, if the objective was to primarily present a collection of short-form work of four pages or less, then the editor should have stepped in to guide (or at least provide suggestions) to its creators on making their material cohesive and not some excerpt of a bigger story.

You can buy a digital copy here. At the moment there aren’t any physical copies available, but you can keep up with what the Aradia collective is up to on their Instagram and Twitter pages.