Salvage: Varaki returning wasn't something that I was expecting, but it pulled it off in a pretty cool way! Loved seeing the foreshadowing for Direlgan at the end, too.
Snowy: DEUS?? Oh dang, I wasn't expecting that! I'm super invested where you're gonna take this plotline. I loved the artwork here, too! Tokage looks great in your style :]
Beautiful work on both sides, and so so fun!! I don't have any brain power for the moment to express my critiques properly, but I want to give flowers regardless!! Amazing stuff you two, I cant wait for more!!
Thank you to everyone who's critiqued and commented so far! I will keep them in mind and hopefully improve even more in the future. Especially for the critiques and suggestions to improve action shots, I'm trying to get better at them and knowing what specifically I can work on for them helps tremendously.I also greatly appreciate the comments about doing more with screentoning and using different methods of shading. I definitely thinkthe comic would have looked better with more rendering for Tokage and Deus especially!
♡♡♡ Rose, I appreciate that you mentioned Dairyu's personality and motives when leaving a comment on my opponent's entry, I'm so incredibly happy that you remember so much about how and why she acts the way that she does. ♡♡♡
Dinochuck - I think as a co-creator of Tokage, you may have a bit of a bias on Tokage's role in my comic. If you've read my previous comics, it should be obvious that the 'scuffles' always take a back seat because I am more interested in furthering stories with her. I will try to showcase more battles and fighting in the future since I'm not terribly great at action scenes and am trying to get better at it, but this also isn't a promise that I still won't focus on interpersonal drama and relations. I'm also admittedly a bit confused, because I made dialogue and connections to Varaki that could not have occurred with any of the other kaiju in the Showa bracket. Saying that I got his personality and appearance down makes me think that you wanted the comic to only be about the fight between them, which was never my plan for round 2, and Varaki being my first opponent made me write a plotline for this tournament focused on their dynamic. I am sorry that you were displeased with that aspect of this comic and I hope that you and Salvage continue making comics on VOID that more suit what you're expecting.
I hope I don't disappoint anyone with how I plan to wrap up this tournament in case I get to round 3, but even if I don't I am still planning on furthering this plot since I want to finish it. :)
BRINGING BACK THE KING OF ROBOTS WHAAAAT!!! I wanna know where you're going with this and can't wait to see what comes next! Your inks were amazing as always, as well as your composition. Dairyu's tails breaking panel borders was such a nice touch to help sell her size and movement while also centering the humans below in that panel. I think literally my only gripe is that Tokage's kick on page 6 feels a little off... It feels a little stiff and static, where I would have expected more of an impact. If the goal was to indicate Dairyu's toughness, I think you'd still want to show the force involved, but maybe draw a burst effect or something to indicate the force mostly bouncing back towards Tokage? Also, showing him losing balance as his target proves more sturdy than expected might help (although that might have required a separate panel to communicate without weakening the initial impact). But like literally everything else was really beautiful, the action was sharp and engaging, the particle effects (I think that's the wrong term but I hope you know what I'm trying to say) look SO good, and I'm digging your use of screen tones to add texture and dimension! I also really liked how you captured Tokage's signature attitude with quips and banter with Kyoko! And I liked how powerful he felt despite being so much smaller than Dairyu! You know they're a strong opponent if Dairyu decides to take a step back from the fight!
This comic was really cute! I'm always so charmed by Tokage's dialogue and his banter with Kyoko. Dairyu felt a little bit off to me, like her personality and motivations felt more driven by the plot than who she is as a character, but I did really enjoy how protective she was of Yamato XD that was cute! Also, everyone calling Tokage ugly is incredibly rude and I think he's very handsome!!! I'm really looking forward to whatever you do next because I am quickly becoming a big Tokage fan!
Posted on Demon of Flame and Goddess of Aircomic by Salvage
Salvage, that was SO GOOD! I was snagged by the story immediately. I even forgot my bias towards void lands over city scapes because your buildings look so tangible and heavy and full of shards of glass! only neg I have is this: your dark color fills are too close to your lineart. either they should be lighter fills, OR you can set the lineart layer to color-over and make the line art white were it needs to be. pretty complicated stuff, so I'd personally stick to just making the black more gray.
But yeah all the character interactions were so cute and I think you've really nailed the voice and motivation Dairyu needed for this story! and your hand lettering is still killing it. it is almost a lost artform at this point. It was nice to see Veraki again as well! great chops and I look forwards to seeing more work from you. It's clear you've had tons of practice writing for Kaiju stories and are dedicated to the style, with lots of influces we don't have around void I think? so basically: yummy fresh blood!
Posted on Demon of Flame and Goddess of Aircomic by Salvage
Cheers to you, you've taken all the critique from Round 1 and now have a comic that is an improvement on practically every level. The word ballooning is more organic, the lines are sharper, and everything is easy to follow. Just keep working, taking in advice, experimenting and drawing, and I'm confident you're going to go up several levels a year from now
@ Snowy
Another complete pro-level piece, and I have to recognize you've set up a lot of great intrigue in this one, calling back to the past comic while also giving enticing seeds for a potential finale, you've helped make the Kaiju Clash feel bigger, present across the Void Lands. Some things to note: screentoning for shading is doing its job, I bet there's a stronger way to use it but I am admittedly still weak myself with really mastering it. As I understand it, one would generally want to choose either fill shading *or* screentoning for their grayscale/monotone comics, but they can definitely be married together with enough forethought. I think the more pertinent detail that is on my mind though is the lack of shades for the characters (contrasting of Dairyu's or Rickter's darker hair for example, or DEUS seeming un-colored), most especially noticeable with Tokage: One of Tokage's defining features from sheet to bio is his black armor, so seeing him without it made me miss who I was looking at upon first glance. This was probably an opportunity to go with spot blacks, and it would have helped contrast him from Dairyu even more across the panels (I can see pages 6 and 7 really benefitting if Tokage was mostly black). I think more spot blacks across the board would help balance with the screentoning as well. Coming back to Tokage, I do commend you for the effort you put on him, he does seem like a creature outside your comfort zone/range of creature design but I bet it was also good practice for exactly that reason. If you don't do this already: one of the best things that help me figure out a monster unfamiliar to my hand is practicing drawing them outside the comic ahead of time. A luxury based on time, for sure, but something you'll want to employ when you have the opportunity. Keep it up, the effort and improvements are showing
SALVAGE- I really liked the direction you took on how the story went down. Tokage's personality is super fun to see when interacting with someone like Dairyu. Good stuff
SNOWY - Your inks are drop dead gorgeous in this one! Also the story and action is super engaging and dynamic. The ending is so ominous and it has got me on the edge of my seat!
Your art style is really something, like the vibe of your character, majestic and elegant. It feels natural for a guardian character to get into the fight in response to threats not necessarily to herself, but mainly to the world she is protecting
To start things off, I really like what you are planning here with Dairyu and Deus. The way you are building this up is very interesting and I look forward to how it will play out. That along with the quality of art and action puts this a step above the previous tournament round. However, something that has been bothering me a bit that's been hard to place down is the use of Tokage in this round. You drew him very well and got his personality down too but I sorta feel like him and his scuffle with Dairyu took a back seat to the story you are cooking up. In a way he feels like he could be interchangeable with any other monster or that his presence in the comic is sorta inconsequential if that makes sense.
Regardless of that nitpick, again you are developing something that has definitely caught my interest and I look forward to how it will play out in the next round or in future comics.
Tokage consistently being portrayed as this rebellious punk is fantastic. Impeccable action; the choreography and blows had a lot of weight to them. This ongoing storyline you've set up is intriguing.
Tokage really is at his most endearing when he's 2 feet tall. But as a full sized kaiju his quippy sarcastic demeanor really makes him stand out, especially in this tournament. I do think this is one of the best matchups for Tokage, because a match against Dairyu really allows you to fully utilize all aspects of the character, I feel, which you certainly leaned into.
Posted on Demon of Flame and Goddess of Aircomic by Salvage
Definitely no complaints from me this tike around, solidly made comic with some good action! Thst ending Definitely has me interested in where you plan to take this
This was such a fun read. I loved the mix of humor, tension and heartfelt moments. I must re-emphasize how great of a duo Tokage and Kyoko are, and props to you for finding a creative way to utilize Dairyu, a character far stronger than Tokage.
Posted on Demon of Flame and Goddess of Aircomic by Salvage
Tokage was so well rounded and consistent across both of these and Dairyu was so fucking cool to see in action. Short and sweet, art was phenomenal and I enjoyed the battles shown! Immaculate panel structure as well! I found it easy in both these rounds to follow the story!
Absolutely LOVE the back and forth. Each time I read Tokage, I love the dude more. I get Sonic the Hedgehog vibes off of him! And you did a great job representing your opponent, it didn't feel weighted towards either or, it was nice and balanced! Great artwork to boot!
Posted on Demon of Flame and Goddess of Aircomic by Salvage
Thank you for the battle, Salvage! I enjoyed your entry, there was some very interesting storytelling you put into play here. The limited colors were nice, and added some fun contrast in the comic! I wish there was a little more explanation on the difference of Dairyu using two different forms of her god forms, since I had to reread the comic to make sure I wasn't seeing things, but I loved how you drew both forms! Nice work,I'm happy to have battled you. :)
Posted on Demon of Flame and Goddess of Aircomic by Salvage
Comments (25)
Salvage: Varaki returning wasn't something that I was expecting, but it pulled it off in a pretty cool way! Loved seeing the foreshadowing for Direlgan at the end, too.
Snowy: DEUS?? Oh dang, I wasn't expecting that! I'm super invested where you're gonna take this plotline. I loved the artwork here, too! Tokage looks great in your style :]
I'm super invested in this plot!
This was fun from start to finish! I need more.
EHhehehe I love this so much!
Dairyu's cat form is one of my favorites!
Your art is always gorgeous!!!
Beautiful work on both sides, and so so fun!! I don't have any brain power for the moment to express my critiques properly, but I want to give flowers regardless!! Amazing stuff you two, I cant wait for more!!
Thank you to everyone who's critiqued and commented so far! I will keep them in mind and hopefully improve even more in the future. Especially for the critiques and suggestions to improve action shots, I'm trying to get better at them and knowing what specifically I can work on for them helps tremendously.I also greatly appreciate the comments about doing more with screentoning and using different methods of shading. I definitely thinkthe comic would have looked better with more rendering for Tokage and Deus especially!
♡♡♡ Rose, I appreciate that you mentioned Dairyu's personality and motives when leaving a comment on my opponent's entry, I'm so incredibly happy that you remember so much about how and why she acts the way that she does. ♡♡♡
Dinochuck - I think as a co-creator of Tokage, you may have a bit of a bias on Tokage's role in my comic. If you've read my previous comics, it should be obvious that the 'scuffles' always take a back seat because I am more interested in furthering stories with her. I will try to showcase more battles and fighting in the future since I'm not terribly great at action scenes and am trying to get better at it, but this also isn't a promise that I still won't focus on interpersonal drama and relations. I'm also admittedly a bit confused, because I made dialogue and connections to Varaki that could not have occurred with any of the other kaiju in the Showa bracket. Saying that I got his personality and appearance down makes me think that you wanted the comic to only be about the fight between them, which was never my plan for round 2, and Varaki being my first opponent made me write a plotline for this tournament focused on their dynamic. I am sorry that you were displeased with that aspect of this comic and I hope that you and Salvage continue making comics on VOID that more suit what you're expecting.
I hope I don't disappoint anyone with how I plan to wrap up this tournament in case I get to round 3, but even if I don't I am still planning on furthering this plot since I want to finish it. :)
BRINGING BACK THE KING OF ROBOTS WHAAAAT!!! I wanna know where you're going with this and can't wait to see what comes next! Your inks were amazing as always, as well as your composition. Dairyu's tails breaking panel borders was such a nice touch to help sell her size and movement while also centering the humans below in that panel. I think literally my only gripe is that Tokage's kick on page 6 feels a little off... It feels a little stiff and static, where I would have expected more of an impact. If the goal was to indicate Dairyu's toughness, I think you'd still want to show the force involved, but maybe draw a burst effect or something to indicate the force mostly bouncing back towards Tokage? Also, showing him losing balance as his target proves more sturdy than expected might help (although that might have required a separate panel to communicate without weakening the initial impact). But like literally everything else was really beautiful, the action was sharp and engaging, the particle effects (I think that's the wrong term but I hope you know what I'm trying to say) look SO good, and I'm digging your use of screen tones to add texture and dimension! I also really liked how you captured Tokage's signature attitude with quips and banter with Kyoko! And I liked how powerful he felt despite being so much smaller than Dairyu! You know they're a strong opponent if Dairyu decides to take a step back from the fight!
This comic was really cute! I'm always so charmed by Tokage's dialogue and his banter with Kyoko. Dairyu felt a little bit off to me, like her personality and motivations felt more driven by the plot than who she is as a character, but I did really enjoy how protective she was of Yamato XD that was cute! Also, everyone calling Tokage ugly is incredibly rude and I think he's very handsome!!! I'm really looking forward to whatever you do next because I am quickly becoming a big Tokage fan!
Salvage, that was SO GOOD! I was snagged by the story immediately. I even forgot my bias towards void lands over city scapes because your buildings look so tangible and heavy and full of shards of glass! only neg I have is this: your dark color fills are too close to your lineart. either they should be lighter fills, OR you can set the lineart layer to color-over and make the line art white were it needs to be. pretty complicated stuff, so I'd personally stick to just making the black more gray.
But yeah all the character interactions were so cute and I think you've really nailed the voice and motivation Dairyu needed for this story! and your hand lettering is still killing it. it is almost a lost artform at this point. It was nice to see Veraki again as well! great chops and I look forwards to seeing more work from you. It's clear you've had tons of practice writing for Kaiju stories and are dedicated to the style, with lots of influces we don't have around void I think? so basically: yummy fresh blood!
@ Salvage
Cheers to you, you've taken all the critique from Round 1 and now have a comic that is an improvement on practically every level. The word ballooning is more organic, the lines are sharper, and everything is easy to follow. Just keep working, taking in advice, experimenting and drawing, and I'm confident you're going to go up several levels a year from now
@ Snowy
Another complete pro-level piece, and I have to recognize you've set up a lot of great intrigue in this one, calling back to the past comic while also giving enticing seeds for a potential finale, you've helped make the Kaiju Clash feel bigger, present across the Void Lands. Some things to note: screentoning for shading is doing its job, I bet there's a stronger way to use it but I am admittedly still weak myself with really mastering it. As I understand it, one would generally want to choose either fill shading *or* screentoning for their grayscale/monotone comics, but they can definitely be married together with enough forethought. I think the more pertinent detail that is on my mind though is the lack of shades for the characters (contrasting of Dairyu's or Rickter's darker hair for example, or DEUS seeming un-colored), most especially noticeable with Tokage: One of Tokage's defining features from sheet to bio is his black armor, so seeing him without it made me miss who I was looking at upon first glance. This was probably an opportunity to go with spot blacks, and it would have helped contrast him from Dairyu even more across the panels (I can see pages 6 and 7 really benefitting if Tokage was mostly black). I think more spot blacks across the board would help balance with the screentoning as well. Coming back to Tokage, I do commend you for the effort you put on him, he does seem like a creature outside your comfort zone/range of creature design but I bet it was also good practice for exactly that reason. If you don't do this already: one of the best things that help me figure out a monster unfamiliar to my hand is practicing drawing them outside the comic ahead of time. A luxury based on time, for sure, but something you'll want to employ when you have the opportunity. Keep it up, the effort and improvements are showing
This was a real good round!
SALVAGE- I really liked the direction you took on how the story went down. Tokage's personality is super fun to see when interacting with someone like Dairyu. Good stuff
SNOWY - Your inks are drop dead gorgeous in this one! Also the story and action is super engaging and dynamic. The ending is so ominous and it has got me on the edge of my seat!
Your art style is really something, like the vibe of your character, majestic and elegant. It feels natural for a guardian character to get into the fight in response to threats not necessarily to herself, but mainly to the world she is protecting
They way you carry the interaction is interesting. And how you shift the focus into fighting off Varaki together is awesome
To start things off, I really like what you are planning here with Dairyu and Deus. The way you are building this up is very interesting and I look forward to how it will play out. That along with the quality of art and action puts this a step above the previous tournament round. However, something that has been bothering me a bit that's been hard to place down is the use of Tokage in this round. You drew him very well and got his personality down too but I sorta feel like him and his scuffle with Dairyu took a back seat to the story you are cooking up. In a way he feels like he could be interchangeable with any other monster or that his presence in the comic is sorta inconsequential if that makes sense.
Regardless of that nitpick, again you are developing something that has definitely caught my interest and I look forward to how it will play out in the next round or in future comics.
Tokage consistently being portrayed as this rebellious punk is fantastic. Impeccable action; the choreography and blows had a lot of weight to them. This ongoing storyline you've set up is intriguing.
Tokage really is at his most endearing when he's 2 feet tall. But as a full sized kaiju his quippy sarcastic demeanor really makes him stand out, especially in this tournament. I do think this is one of the best matchups for Tokage, because a match against Dairyu really allows you to fully utilize all aspects of the character, I feel, which you certainly leaned into.
Definitely no complaints from me this tike around, solidly made comic with some good action! Thst ending Definitely has me interested in where you plan to take this
This was such a fun read. I loved the mix of humor, tension and heartfelt moments. I must re-emphasize how great of a duo Tokage and Kyoko are, and props to you for finding a creative way to utilize Dairyu, a character far stronger than Tokage.
Tokage was so well rounded and consistent across both of these and Dairyu was so fucking cool to see in action. Short and sweet, art was phenomenal and I enjoyed the battles shown! Immaculate panel structure as well! I found it easy in both these rounds to follow the story!
Absolutely LOVE the back and forth. Each time I read Tokage, I love the dude more. I get Sonic the Hedgehog vibes off of him! And you did a great job representing your opponent, it didn't feel weighted towards either or, it was nice and balanced! Great artwork to boot!
Both were good in their own ways, I like how Tokage in both is just some dumbass impudent kid at heart.
Thank you for the battle, Salvage! I enjoyed your entry, there was some very interesting storytelling you put into play here. The limited colors were nice, and added some fun contrast in the comic! I wish there was a little more explanation on the difference of Dairyu using two different forms of her god forms, since I had to reread the comic to make sure I wasn't seeing things, but I loved how you drew both forms! Nice work,I'm happy to have battled you. :)
Snowy! I think you did fantastic on this fight, looked really great and i love how you portrayed Tokage, very entertaining comic!
Hyped for this one.
Oooooh fun matchup!!! I can't wait to see what you both do this round! 👀👀👀