Season 3, Page 3
On Hiatus
No Title
By Andrew-david
December 3rd, 2012 at 03:00AM
Hello everyone!
So, as you probably noticed, we're taking a short break. We're not sure how long it's going to last, but we'll try to keep it as short as possible.
We're taking this break because we want to give our new illustrator some time to polish the art and build a buffer so he can work on the pages at a comfortable pace. When we return, the artwork will be much improved and everything will be awesome.
Until then, enjoy the holiday season if it's something that you do, check back regularly for updates, and have a wonderful week!
UPDATE: Read about Aikonia's current situation on our blog!
Chad said:
I think the new art's fine! It just takes some getting used to. The People who complained need to realize art is hard to do and it's hard for people to make much less change their drawing style! If people want Katie's art they should go to awkwardzombie.com Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 01:26AM ReplySheikah replied:
Actually, art is really easy if you're good at it, and I'm speaking from experience here. But it's true that if your predecessor was greater than you, even if it's just by a little bit, you will constantly be compared to him/her. It's like when Tom Baker regenerated into Peter Davieson. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 10:44AMThat One Chick replied:
I don't believe "greater than you" is the proper terminology here, seeing as how the difference is the style not the skill. Experience perhaps too, but you're being quite harsh (purposefully or not.).Not to mention art is not something that comes easily to most people. If you find it easy, congratz--but don't automatically apply your expectations to the rest of artists in general because I am also an artist and it is difficult. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 07:05PM
That One Chick replied:
Sorry I guess I should clarify--I agree whole-heartedly with Chad :) My last comment was directed at Sheikah Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 07:06PMChad replied:
Some people have art come easily to them others have to work to become great at it. I like the new art style. I feel that the artist is trying his best to fill in Katie's shoes, and lampooning him is basically insulting all the work he's done up to now. Be considerate of the new artist, he doesn't deserve the crap people like you are giving him. Believe me when I say that being compared to someone never feels good. (Keep doing what you're doing Jose! Do whatever you feel is right it's art!) =) Posted on December 4th, 2012 at 01:24AMCorina Dee replied:
I think you meant, Jared. Jose is just a figment of our collective imaginations (who is, incidentally, a rather awesome artist himself). Posted on December 4th, 2012 at 04:52PMJohn replied:
Hey, that one chick:I think some styles are better and worse than others. I'm not commenting on whose is better in this circumstance but stylization is not easy. That's why it took the 9 old men so long to invent animation, and that's why a good concept artist is worth their weight in gold.
Want to see some bad stylization? Check out the phillips cd-i legend of zelda games. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNpLXo55yfw
Rubik, the amazing cube.
http://bit.ly/ZWpkZd
Or the infamous Weegee.
http://bit.ly/TaSaB6
This can be seen across the vast divide of the uncanny valley itself.
http://thepunchlineismachismo.com/images/uncannylion.jpg
You can never defend something completely by saying it's 'just the person's style' because let's face it: some styles are terrible. Posted on December 20th, 2012 at 08:00PM
Chad replied:
I really don't get what you're trying to say at this point I never said that everyone could do art. As an artist myself I know how art should and should not look like and Jared (pardon me for earlier) honestly does not have a bad style. I've seen several comic books change style and they all turned to crap but Jared had managed to keep his comics along the lines of Katie's and even added his own embellishments. There's a reason he's been on hiatus for two weeks because of the complainers and people who came because of Katie Jared took two weeks off to please you guys and yet you're still complaining get over it suck it up and support the new artist. He's doing what he can. And honestly the Cd-i crap that you mentioned earlier is nothing compared to his artwork. I came here because of Katie and I intend to keep reading because of the great story and the great artwork. It's obvious these people have the reader at heart and are trying their best to have us enjoy their comic. If you don't like it don't read it. but leave the artist alone. Posted on December 22nd, 2012 at 12:29AMSheikah replied:
Well said. I really hope people stop complaining about Jared... Posted on December 23rd, 2012 at 08:18AMJohn replied:
sigh. DEAR CHAD:I did not SAY that his style was on the level of CD-i stuff. In fact I specifically refrained from commenting on his style, OR katie's. I am remaining completely neutral here.
I was just saying from an academic standpoint that it is possible for bad styles to exist because some people around here seemed to be saying that all styles are good and I think that is a fallacy. I'm not commenting on the styles in question, either Jared's or Katie's.
sincerely the guy who just had to write the exact same thing for the second time Posted on December 27th, 2012 at 07:00PM
Mark said:
Wait, does this mean Katie left the project? If so, what gives? Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 02:12AM ReplyMattxAus replied:
yes she left the project a while ago. there was a big fuss about it, definitely in the comments. its a bit sad, but between awkwardzombie, this and schooling, im kinda surprised she made it so far. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 05:46AMAnonz said:
Loss of artist, "sudden" hiatus. You're 2/3 on the dying comic checklist. Now we just wait for a delayed apology about how things just coultn't seem to come together. It was nice while it lasted thoughz, I guess. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 08:28AM ReplyAndrew-David replied:
Hey now, did you read the blurb entry?We're only taking a break to improve on the art and to build a buffer so our artist can work at a comfortable pace.
Jared joined during the last guest week, so he only had one week to prepare and to illustrate the next page. Instead of working on one page per week, we'll give him some time to have at least five pages done before we start posting new pages, that way he won't be too stressed about completing a page before Monday. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 10:27AM
That One Chick replied:
Hey! I have a great tip! :D Pessimists who don't READ THE BLURB are always welcome to whine on 4chan. I hereby give you permission to take your butthurt somewhere else :) Have a nice day! Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 07:09PMkhiton replied:
Geez, so many webcomics fall through the cracks. Seems to give the impression that maybe they're really time consuming and demanding with little appreciation even when you provide it free to readers without expecting more than a web visit. I suppose if all you expect out of life is others to fulfill your entertainment needs with not so much as an acknowledgement to the creators, this does seem quite criminal. Posted on December 4th, 2012 at 09:33PM? replied:
I think what Anonz was trying to say was that he doesn't believe what you put in the blurb is true and that this is a dieing comic. (I do not believe this and wish to see more) Posted on December 27th, 2012 at 02:55PMLibbie said:
I read Katie's comics so when I heard about this I came here, even with her gone I've become a fan and eagerly await the next page, sometimes to the point of hitting refresh...a lot. Just because the new artist isn't as good doesn't mean I'm going to leave. Most comic art gets better as time goes on not right from the start. I'd like to see his art get better as the story goes on, and I'm not expecting his art to be a replacement for Katie. But if needed, maybe with some time off he can find a style that he'll like for the comic. I'll still be checking in at the least once a week to see if the story moves on. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 10:25AM ReplyAndrew-David replied:
That's great! Thank you for your support :) Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 10:28AMNoble Wrot said:
I think the art is pretty good. It is not as stylistic as Katie's, which I have gotten used to, but that is fine. The way I look at it, Aikonia has a dark theme, and Katie's art added a whimsical feel to the whole world, which worked for a fantasy setting. Maybe this new artist could add more to the serious tone of the story.I know this new artist may find it hard being compared to Katie, whose art in genuinely unique and amazing, but I am rooting for him. I hope he finds his own place and his own style that works for this comic. I can only imagine the direction he will go. Good luck to him. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 02:55PM Reply
That One Chick replied:
I totally agree! I'm looking forward to seeing this style develop because I actually was a bit distracted by Katie's style--It was great of course and I loved it, but the "whimsical" feel, as most people put it, did make certain serious scenes seem more comical to me haha. :) Now Jared's got a fanclub of at least 3 people! :D Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 07:13PMShannon said:
The new art could use some improvement but it's not like it's terrible.The art had such a drastic change that it's hard not to compare, but at the same time it's not so fair to compare. Katie's style was very cartoony, and Jared's approach is more realistic.
As a webcomic artist myself, I know the drastic amount of improvement one can get from simply drawing a comic a week for a month or two, and I'm confident the same will apply to the new art. After all, old pages can be edited or redone later.
Looking forward to the next comic! :) Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 05:31PM Reply
Chris said:
I've been excited about this comic ever since I found it and that hasn't gone away. The changing art was not an unwelcome surprise, just a surprise. Don't get me wrong, I loved Katie's style, but with a new chapter, it's exciting to see what another artist can do with the story. Just like books about the same characters all written by different people can bring out aspects readers never considered, or all of the variations on myths and legends. I'm incredibly pumped about seeing what this new chapter has in store and I hope that Jared feels welcome here. Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 07:06PM ReplyNinja said:
Is there room in that fanclub? Posted on December 3rd, 2012 at 07:15PM ReplyKelsey said:
Honestly, if Jared's art suddenly became 'better' and looked more like Katie's, I'd be disappointed. Jared has a unique style and it'd be great to watch it develop more as the comic progresses. I've followed a lot of comics where the art starts out at a lower level and become really great. Not saying Jared is lower level. He's high level!Well, I guess I'll be reading again in a few weeks. :D Have a good holiday, everyone! Posted on December 4th, 2012 at 03:32AM Reply
? said:
I know its none of my business but if the reason why Katie decided to stop drawing Aikonia is posted anywhere could someone please tell me where i could find this? Posted on December 4th, 2012 at 04:44AM ReplyDraconis replied:
I'd appreciate this as well. I looked back through, some of the pages, and even on the AZ forum, but found nothing. Posted on December 4th, 2012 at 02:04PMShadowdragoonftw replied:
Looked back through the Comments of the last several strips, and couldn't find anything. It could be somewhere on the AZ Forums (buried, as posts there disappear quickly). I haven't been able to search myself yet. AZ is blocked at work, and I keep forgetting to do it when I'm at home. :( Posted on December 5th, 2012 at 05:41AMRiddles said:
I myself joined in when I found out that Katie was illustrating, and that was from the beginning. To hear so many people complain about the art change, clearly have not love for Aikonia. I love Katie's art style, but I don't think its the best, because there can be no label for that. Instead I'm staying for the awesome story, and the game once it comes out. Posted on December 4th, 2012 at 07:02PM ReplyCarl said:
I've no idea why some people are complaining about the new art style. As with most of the guys here, I gained interest from Katie's site. As I read through each page I found myself more attracted to the story and characters than the art style. The change was unexpected, but I didn't mind so much. I think he's great at what he does and he's certainly not bad.Personally, I hope he's not taking some of the criticism too hard. It must be a pain having to put up with being compared to Katie. Posted on December 5th, 2012 at 08:06AM Reply
Jimenez3rd said:
For those asking for information regarding Katie's departure from Aikoniahttp://blog.madsoftgames.com/ has the official announcement. Posted on December 5th, 2012 at 01:30PM Reply
? replied:
That actually added nothing to what i already read on this site. Posted on December 18th, 2012 at 04:22PMSirCannonFodder said:
Andrew-david: Tried contacting you on Kickstarter, figured I'd try here too.Just to confirm, all the packages besides those with that one particular poster (which I didn't select) were shipped out back in October, right? Because mine hasn't arrived yet, and I'm starting to get worried (I mean sure, it has to get all the way to Australia, but 5 weeks seems a bit long). Posted on December 5th, 2012 at 02:27PM Reply
Andrew-David replied:
Oops! I just replied to your message on Kickstarter. Sorry about that! Posted on December 5th, 2012 at 03:32PMOmnijack said:
i think that while both art styles are fine, the old one was more fitting for this specific comic. the new artist has talent but i don't think it suits the comic as well. hopefully i'm proven wrong but you never know. Posted on December 6th, 2012 at 07:03PM ReplyRiddle said:
I think it'll be hard for new artist to polish his skills in such a ?!hurry!? .It takes months of non-stop work to change old habits. Anyway, can't wait to see new pages ;)
Cheers from London. Posted on December 14th, 2012 at 07:44AM Reply
SomeDude said:
Did anyone notice that Solaris has 6 fingers in the ad frame? (adblock enabled) Posted on December 14th, 2012 at 07:28PM ReplySheikah replied:
He has five. It's just really hard to draw hands right :/ Posted on December 15th, 2012 at 06:18AMKelsey replied:
Are you sure? Because now that Somedude mentioned it, it really DOES look like Solaris has 6 fingers... Posted on December 16th, 2012 at 02:53AMSheikah replied:
Hmm. Well, I gathered evidence not by turning on the adblock but by refreshing the page over and over so that I can see Solaris for a millisecond before the ads turn on, which means that you're probably right. Posted on December 17th, 2012 at 10:50AMSheikah replied:
Solaris stayed on just long enough for me to count and, yes, he does have six fingers. Posted on December 17th, 2012 at 10:51AMRuby said:
Hey! I think Jared's doing a great job! Keep it up, man, I am eager to see more pages. :-) Posted on December 16th, 2012 at 07:23PM ReplyEmy said:
Did Jared do his own profile picture? Because I liked it the best out of all the ones there. Also, I thought that those were some very attractive shades of orange and blue... Posted on December 17th, 2012 at 09:04PM ReplySmurfton said:
How's everyone doing?How large a comic buffer do you have now?
Good luck with getting the ball rolling again. Posted on December 26th, 2012 at 06:52PM Reply
? replied:
Same here it would be nice (although completely not necessary) to see a little comic status update. Posted on December 27th, 2012 at 02:59PMSmurfton said:
Six fingered Solaris wants me to disable my adblock... which happens not to exist. (unless McAfee is being annoying again.) Is the code for the advertisements broken for some reason? Posted on December 28th, 2012 at 01:48PM Replydrose said:
I know it's kinda inconsiderate, but if you guys had a bit of an update or something to let us know what's going on....it's been nearly 3 weeks since the last comic. Posted on December 31st, 2012 at 11:23PM ReplyNHW said:
Is there a scheduled plan for the release of the next comic? Maybe a Gantt Chart? As a company, deadlines are important, y'know. and keeping your potential customers in the dark isn't very attractive, either. Just saying. Posted on January 1st, 2013 at 09:59AM ReplyGabe Newell replied:
I beg to differ. Posted on January 7th, 2013 at 05:10AMNinja replied:
PPPFFFFFFFFFTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT Posted on January 23rd, 2013 at 11:17AMKelsey said:
Hey! Happy New Year. Hope things are going good for everyone. c: Can't wait to see the comic return. Posted on January 4th, 2013 at 06:14PM ReplyBobsNotYourUncle said:
Annnnnnnd we've now gone inactive long enough for wild spambots to start hawking penis magic in the comments. Looks very promising. Posted on January 5th, 2013 at 11:07PM ReplyAndrew-David replied:
The spam comment has been removed. Posted on January 7th, 2013 at 12:30PMWiredmana said:
It's not so much the art that bothers me. It doesn't really bother me what so ever - It's just - I really have no idea who the hell anyone is. The change is so steep that it's become troublesome. The characters don't look the same, and that's the large problem. Posted on January 6th, 2013 at 06:14PM ReplySirCannonFodder replied:
That's because they aren't the same characters, none of them are. We've moved to a different area of the story. Posted on January 7th, 2013 at 02:32PMRuby said:
So sorry you won't be joining us, Jared. :-( Posted on January 6th, 2013 at 11:56PM ReplyThat one guy said:
I'm going to be brutally honest here, I'm not a big fan of Jared's style. No, it's not because I miss Katie, I just don't like it. I don't think it looks very unique or professional, at least not at the same caliber as Katie's (again, this isn't because I am butthurt about Katie's lost. I CAN NOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH). The anatomy is off, the characters aren't striking enough, there isn't a lot of detail in the characters or the environment, too many rounded edges, and a whole myriad of other reasons. This isn't hate, I'm just stating my opinion. If he's really committed to improving, I would suggest making the characters stand out a bit more, an iconic silhouette if you will. Another great improvement would be to fine tune the shading and detail, take longer to release the pages if you need to even. This may sound like I'm making a big deal over nothing and may sound like I'm hating but believe me, it's not. I LOVE Aikonia and I just want to see this artist live up to his full potential. If anything, I want to see him succeed in his endeavors to improve. Posted on January 7th, 2013 at 06:26PM ReplyMattxAus replied:
if people bothered to read updates on aikonias status, they would understand Jared ISNT doing aikonia anymore. they do not need to restate what everyone else has already said about his style, weeks after the fact."We worked hard with Jared for a little over a month, but despite the support we’ve given him, he told us that the project was too much for him to handle. This means we are currently still looking for a new illustrator. " Posted on January 8th, 2013 at 02:35AM
MattxAus replied:
ah, just noticed Drose paraphrased it right below. awkward. Posted on January 8th, 2013 at 02:37AMThat one guy replied:
Huh, didn't see that update until you mentioned it. Well, best of luck to them in finding a new illustrator then. Hopefully they'll be able to grab someone with iconic style. I enjoy a number of different art style so as long as this next person doesn't use anime, I'll probably be happy. Posted on January 8th, 2013 at 10:54AM? replied:
I know this has nothing to do with the comic but just to enlighten you (nicely). You don't draw anime you draw manga. An Anime is an "Anime"ated (I know its spelled incorrectly) version of the manga style and does not necessarily need to be an animated version of a certain manga title. Posted on January 15th, 2013 at 01:53PMdrose said:
by reading the blog, people would see that jared was overwhelmed, and they are looking for someone else, so IT DOES NOT HELP to rail on his style. Jared, good luck in whatever endeavors you pursue. also, please post your updates on-site or on facebook/twitter/etc....since regular readers may only have certain accounts Posted on January 8th, 2013 at 01:43AM ReplyAndrew-David replied:
We actually posted a link to the blog post update on Twitter, Facebook, and on this site. Posted on January 8th, 2013 at 10:57AMThat one guy replied:
Yeah, I didn't notice their update until a little bit after I posted my comment. :/ Posted on January 8th, 2013 at 11:04AMKelsey said:
Well bummer. :( Good luck Jared! Sorry for the luke-warm welcome you received here. I hope your next projects go well.Good luck Andrew-david on finding a new illustrator! I'm sure you can hunt someone down. Posted on January 8th, 2013 at 11:41PM Reply
Andrew-David replied:
Thank you! We already have some great candidates and we'll be announcing something soon :) Posted on January 14th, 2013 at 03:40PMMattxAus said:
i guess if you dont find an artist soon, youll have to make live-action youtube clips of the weeks' story... hah, please dont :C Posted on January 12th, 2013 at 08:29PM ReplyManuel said:
I REALLY hate this art style. I think Katie should go back to this. Posted on January 14th, 2013 at 04:46PM Replydrose replied:
were you not reading any of the other posts or updates? Posted on January 15th, 2013 at 02:06AMKelsey replied:
Manuel, either you have the world's slowest Dial-Up, or you haven't been paying much attention. Posted on January 15th, 2013 at 02:29AM? replied:
Or we should stop feeding the troll because that is what is going on here. Manuel you are a troll. (Also this should be the last reply to this guy ignore him and everything will be better) Posted on January 17th, 2013 at 12:18PMYour Name said:
Ooohhhh, man, I was gonna leave a post about how the new artist was just comparably terrible to the previous one. Also, was going to post wondering why it's taking s long for this comic to come back. Looks like both of those questions were answered. Good luck on finding someone new, because the plot of this comic is wonderful, independent of the artist. Just hoping the artist matches it better this time. Posted on January 21st, 2013 at 06:37PM ReplyNinja said:
I am immensely disappointed in the behavior of the comic's audience and wish Jared the best of luck. It was ridiculously inappropriate for people to be so ignorant and inconsiderate. Posted on January 23rd, 2013 at 11:22AM ReplyJake replied:
I will agree that some people have been complete and total a**hats in the matter but there a few of these people do have a point. Katie is an incredibly talented artist, Jared just couldn't fill her shoes in terms of quality. Posted on January 25th, 2013 at 01:56AMThat one guy said:
Hmm... I've tried going through the new illustrator's tumblr but I couldn't get past the enormous amount of cat gifs :/Does this person by any chance have a portfolio or something? The profile pick looks promising so far but I need so see moooooooooooore. Posted on January 25th, 2013 at 02:05AM Reply
drose replied:
so they have a new artist? or that's jared's tumblr?Posted on January 25th, 2013 at 03:47AM
That one guy replied:
Nope, they actually found a new artist. You can find them on the cast section under where the usual staff is. Posted on January 26th, 2013 at 02:00AMAndrew-David replied:
We wrote a blog post about our new illustrator here: http://blog.madsoftgames.com/post/41251716999/introducing-ira-gladkovaYou can also follow us on Facebook to stay up to date on the latest news. http://fb.com/aikonia Posted on January 30th, 2013 at 06:10PM
Draconis said:
Aaaaaaaand after two months of anxiously awaiting the return of this comic, there is still nothing. You can't tell me that even with a million other things going on, Katie wouldn't have had a better production speed. Posted on January 28th, 2013 at 04:16PM Replydrose replied:
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand if you'd been paying attention more carefully, you'd notice that the new artist is picked and they are working on new posts as we speak. Posted on January 29th, 2013 at 03:10AMSmurfton said:
Welcome, Ira Gladkova. Good luck; have fun. Based on your drawing for the biography page, I expect to like your work. What nationality does your last name come from, by the way?Also, where did Jared's biography go? He did have one for a little while, and he was involved in the creation of a couple of pages. Posted on January 29th, 2013 at 11:11PM Reply
Andrew-David replied:
Hey Smurfton, we removed Jared from the cast page because he was only around for two pages and those pages are being re-illustrated by Ira.We feel it is inconsistent to have only the first two pages of a new chapter be by a different illustrator than the rest of the chapter. Posted on January 30th, 2013 at 06:13PM
CrimsonAzule replied:
Wait. We're having another artist now? Did Jared drop out? Posted on February 2nd, 2013 at 01:43AMThat one guy replied:
This is kind of old news Crimson. Posted on February 2nd, 2013 at 03:06AMCrimsonAzule replied:
Excuse me for being sick for over a month and half. Posted on February 4th, 2013 at 09:52PM