The Unoriginal Comic

Comics => The Unoriginal Comic => Topic started by: Celedh on July 31, 2018, 11:00:34 PM

Title: PWP - Kid Radd
Post by: Celedh on July 31, 2018, 11:00:34 PM
Read up on previous week's PWP (http://theunoriginalcomic.com/?comic=753) if you missed it.

This one is probably not as popular because it didn't use any copyrighted materials.

None. What. So. Ever.

It was all very influenced by NES games though, you can see similarities in characters styles and looks, or in the games they visit throughout the story.

But more than that, Kidd Radd also had a very distinct and unique presentation. Rather than relying on a panel system, it used a rudimentary HTML code combined with layered GIF pictures to make something that would be similar in essence to what can be done with Flash animations. You would move between panels by pressing the 'next' button, and most of the panels were animated. Sometimes simple loops, sometimes much more complex.

It had a very short run compared to Bob & George and 8-Bit Theater, a mere 2 and a half year. But it was a great run. The author had a plan, and stuck to it from beginning to end. Deviated maybe a few times for guest weeks or otherwise, but the story ended and he never looked back on it. Much to our sadness as viewers, because no other webcomic ever came close to this style.

(https://i.imgur.com/Nvi7dAU.png)
The very first title screen, February 2002

Unfortunatly it's also impossible to reproduce in screenshots alone the visuals of Kid Radd, so I'd rather direct you to reading through the archives instead, or downloading the zip to look at your leisure. You can find it here. (https://www.bgreco.net/kidradd/)

Kid Radd visited several games that were heavily influenced but never directly ripped from any single game. For example, they eventually visit a game called MoFo, which borrows the artistic style of Earthbound.

(https://i.imgur.com/4TCEYci.png)
The world of MoFo, while Kid Radd does air guitar, his signature pose.
Yes, that guy has no legs because he used to be the character behind the counter in shops, so he was never drawn any. That's the kind of thing we see in here.

Plenty of humor, amazing writing to make you FEEL the characters in the more tense moments, all heading to a great ending, we wish we could have more. It knew how to build the suspense and tension perfectly with its visuals.

What about the rules? There was none of the rules to break here, it was all pure creativity and uniqueness, while being a blast to the past of video games of old. A highly suggested read for any Sprite Comic lover.

Be ready for next week... when we start checking out the bad. Oh boy.
Title: Re: PWP - Kid Radd
Post by: Seraya on August 31, 2018, 08:18:15 PM
I loved Kid Radd doing its run, for so many reasons, how clever it was with game mechanics (put Tetris pieces in mirrored boxes, and pure energy generation!) as well as being reminiscent of other games but using all original art.