thanks for the comments!

honestly all the mentions of the shading being half-assed are pretty on point, i definitely felt i was really holding myself back in this one because i'm still not sure how best to use soft-shading in comics. i feel like my illustrations do a lot better in everything mentioned, but i dunno if it's all appropriate for the comic format. plus, my process already takes notably longer than the average person here, i don't want to make it even longer you know. still, probably could benefit from like, studying lighting in photographs, since i don't do that :V

@backgrounds: you might be able to make that criticism in other comics of mine, but in this specific case, anvil's home isn't meant to looked lived in. for one, she cares a decent bit about artifice and looking presentable, and two, she's a robot. so i take that as a success!

"like we want it" and "intentional" are very different concepts
thanks for the comments and criticism, it is absolutely appreciated

Cro- I like what you did with the councilmen who survive the smile onslaught and how you made him scott mccloud, I love that reference. others gave good crits about your shading, i'll just add that in general you will want more shadows than highlights, even in bright daylight scenes the light will be shown on most of the figure with a couple small key highlights. Also I appreciate your doing different perspective angles for this one. just keep improving and pushing yourself in those ways.

Fred- You are one of the most experimental artists on this site and I love how you're always willing change everything about your art, but out of all the various art styles i have seen you do this one feels the most incomplete.
You said it's exactly how you wanted and wasn't rushed, but there are so many small things that look like mistakes; on panel 3 the orange dot at the top, the way the table is done, the little purple showing through busters chair, and the bookshelf in the back. These things are all minor enough that they don't look an intentional, and if intentional they should be exaggerated made to make it clear that was the purpose. I'm being really picky on these minor things because you have done the same amount of comic content, at a better quality, in a day.
The closest this comic gets to reaching an intentional style is Buster on panel 3. There he looks like an abstracted shape, but the shape is pointed and clean enough that it looks intentional and he still looks like buster. A direction you can take this style is making everything more blocky and exaggerated to give it an abstract feel. But that may not be the direction you want for this style.
I'm not sure what your vision is with this style or what your goal is but you need to do something more to make this an interesting style. I have absolute faith you can do more with this style and truly make it shine so that we can see your vision with it and look forward to it.

Cro- the best kind of lore dump is the one with a pie chart.  Seconded what Duel said to take in mind the texture and shape of the surface your shading to help define them better.  The general color palette you got going on is good though.  And I mean this in the best way, the first page got the biggest laugh out of me, the one full of text and little artwork.  
Fred- This  is shaping up to be a fun prologue to your run in Elections (again).  The style you got going on is a good one that if you use it in the future could use some more refinement.  Now for the awkward moment of having to meet Smile after he killed /banged Casino in the last one.

Cro, I feel you still have room to grow when it comes to your shading.  It's a very simple haphazard style of shading where you're not taking textures or surfaces into account at all.  It kinda feels like we're looking at playdough figures.   As for your backgrounds, you make an effort but they're really plain.  It doesn't really reflect a world that feels lived in or that it represents its characters well.  I'd like to see you push those more and give more thought to the spaces your characters inhabit.

Fred, I actually really like the colors here.  This comic is actually appealing to the eyes.  I would have wished the edges were better defined, but if you had pursued solid shapes, this actually would be a really great comic instead of just a good one.

Cro - The first page seemed kind of in poor taste to me, but I enjoyed the comic! It’s honestly really interesting to see a take on what’s Void’s demographics actually are, and why. And also poking holes in the flimsy definition of what a “meta” actually is, how much different from human someone has to be to qualify. I’ve thought about it myself a lot. I haven’t seen much of Anvil but I’m really liking her so far!

Art-wise, I feel like you’ve improved, your figures definitely look more lively and less stiff. I think you could push the lighting a bit more though. All the scenes are just kinda rendered in a neutral lighting, even the second panel on page 6 which is supposed to be ominous/foreboding. Making the shadows more extreme there would have really pushed that. Likewise with the very first panel, you have this bright dramatic light but Buster is still rendered as he is in every other panel, in soft neutral light.

Fred - This works great as a setup for Casino’s Election Royale entry, and I found the lineless style rather cute. Especially Anvil basically being a brick with a slightly smaller brick on top XD However I found it underwhelming as a battle, especially a 3-weeker.

Foreword: this wasn't rushed, it's exactly as we wanted it.

as my page zero will tell you, my side requires reading this comic!

anvil's not running (and never had plans to run) for mayor, fyi :V she's a professional bridesmaid, not a bride

mayoral candidate vs mayoral candidate =00

Let it be known this battle with directly influence my votes for mayor, lol

LET'S GET READY TO VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTE