Date: 2008-11-02 11:52:02 Created: null
There is a comic strip.
It's updated three times per week.
Each strip is accompanied by at least one news post.
There is very little of continuity apart from recurring characters.
The artwork is great.
I wish I could draw like that.
And the archive makes me realize
that I could improve
a lot
if I just put more time into it.
Gabe and Tycho, the creators, are into electronic games. So the comic usually touches on news in or concerning the gaming industry in one way or another.
It could all be so simple.
But it isn't.
Actually it's so unsimple that I read through the whole damn archive and admired the artwork regularly long before I started getting things. If you happen to have heard about the news or game being commented on I might get some fun right out of just the comic strip. Usually, though, I don't really start grasping things until I read the news post. Gabe and Tycho really just make strips out of whatever makes them laugh.
So the more I can get into their heads, the more I can enjoy the strips.
(Did this just take a strange turn?)
I guess that's not too unusual in itself, but I think Penny Arcade takes it further than most. Often the comic feels like half the story, at most. Reading the news post usually makes me see the point, and from then on it gets funnier as the whole thing filters through the various parts of my brain. They recently started putting out recordings of their discussions leading up to a comic, and I find that deepens my enjoyment quite a bit.
That they're funny while discussing doesn't exactly hurt either.
I'm a regular reader these days, and I enjoy it.
That part is simple
at least.