A short post tonight (mainly because it's been a busy day, so glad I've already got a few reviews written up for April, I need a buffer) and, like the title says, these are webcomics that update sporadically and really need to update more often (why? because they're good and there is always a need for good stories). These were just the comics I can think of that still seem to be alive (don't worry, there will be special posts for comics-that-shouldn't-have-ended) and look like they might update again in the near future. So, onto the comics!
Directions of Destiny
One of the earliest webcomics I came across that I thought was actually dead until lately but, since some concept art has gone up in the past few months, I think it might revive sometime (this already seems to be it's second incarnation so who knows!). But before all of that, could someone else whose seen Revolutionary Girl Utena look through this and see if I'm the only one getting major Utena vibes off of it? The shots with the elevator to the principal's room, the super powerful student council, the general setting of the school and the phrase "the direction of destiny" all really remind me of Utena, heck the idea of a power to change the directions of destiny sounds a lot like the power to bring about the world revolution*. Honestly that's all that has happened so far, we've met the characters, seen some mysterious things happen and heard mysterious phrases promising power, it's a nice start but really needs to move beyond it!
The Dragon Messiah
It's been a while since I read this comic (I didn't realize until a few days ago that it updated back in February so it's not dead yet) so I'm hazy on the plot but I remember it involved multiple groups of people, magic, elves, mysterious eyes, and one really kick-ass girl. So clearly I enjoyed this when I was reading it (I'll probably go reread it and hope that it really is going to resume regular updates soon) and it's also notable for being one of the comics I follow that's in two languages, English and Italian^ so, if it really does resume regular updates soon, there's no reason not to follow it if your a fantasy fan.
Key
Another one I intially wasn't going to include since it's been so long since it last updated (past the deadline the creator gave themselves and with no new deadline set) but it looks like they have been redoign the earlier chapters and that counts as progress. Another fantasy adventure, this one involving other worlds, conspiracies (or at least it looks that way), and a quest to forge a powerful lock before the worlds are overrun with demons. A very colorful comic (it's really pretty to look at, bet it would look lovely in print) the characters are a bit flat at the moment but hopefully plot advancement will mean character development as well. I don't know how much of the comic is going to be redone (I thought only the first chapter but it looks like the second chapter is being worked on now) but the comic isn't bad at all so if you like it I would say just go ahead and read the rest, you've got the time anyway!
No Rest For The Wicked
A comic that's been on shaky updates for well over a year (tvtropes says the author lives in the Phillipines and got hit by a bad typhoon back in 2009 which is understandable) I still want to link it here because it's a good example of redone fairy tales. This one takes the setting from a more obsure fairy tale, The Dead Moon, where the moon has vanished and Princess November (from The Princess and the Pea) can't sleep because of the lack of the moon (she's even more sensitive than in her original tale so this is really throwing her off) so she sets out to find the moon. She's joined by characters from other fairy tales in a world that's a mash-up of stories with a grim touch but isn't an overdone, full-blown "dark fairytale" which I like. Yes the story is dark but it isn't trying to hard to be dark, it's just trying to tell the story and this is how it goes, this is how you re-tell fairy tales people! Fingers crossed this one updates again soon, it's short right now but I really feel like it could go on for a while and want to see it finished.
Outsider
Again, checked this one recently and was surprised to see it had updated, I didn't even remember this one until I was talking science fiction with my dad and thought that one of the ideas sounded familiar. We have a classic tale here, Earth has finally ventured out into space only to find that there are many other species out there and they are at war with each other. Trying to stay out of the war (since we are completely outgunned), Alexander Jardin is the sole survivor of a scouting mission to find out more about these two groups and is picked up by the ships of one group (the Loroi). Since the space administration here was smart and trained all it's people in case such a situation happened, he is now tentaively Earth's embassador to this group and is trying to figure out who blew up his ship, get back to Earth, and not commit them to a side in this war without being absolutely sure this is what they should do. So a nice set-up, story is still in the early stages at under a hundred pages long#, but I like it and hope that it keeps going, more science fiction for me please!
Picatrix
Yes the link is broken, don't know why and I can't find the mirror site for this comic to post instead, if anyone has it please tell me! Anyway, another fantasy story, this one concerns Winnie Foster who has just been sucked into another world of magic, angels and demons and just isn't having a good day. It's hard to detail more of the plot without spoilers (also since we've apparently had a major timeskip) but it's got a plot that wouldn't be out of place in a manga and with manga-style art as well. I read it more as fluff than anything else (fun and filling but not something I muse about between updates) and I do like the comic. It was supposed to come off hiatus in January but then the artist was doing another comic for the Yen Press contest and then that one stopped updating so I really don't know what's going on now. I'm hoping that things will get back to normal soon but, if the main website is down, that's not a very good sign.....
Again, no post tomorrow since I already know tomorrow is going to be hell but then Tuesday and Wednesday you get the "Comics that shouldn't have ended (and thanks for never giving a reason why they stopped updating!" pages, expect a bit of ranting and more sarcasm than usual but I've kinda been looking forward to those posts actually.....
*If the writer/artist here isn't a fan of Utena and just managed to make this comic incredibly similar all on their own I swear I will eat my hat, my good hat too.
^I've actually seen a number of comics that are in multiple languages, sometimes because of the author (like here, I think the author is actually Italian) and then other times by friends, like scanlations except legal I suppose.
#According to tvtropes it averages out to eight pages a year, suddenly I'm a bit more scared for this comic.
