Review of Think Weasel
by Sam on Jan.16, 2010, under Independent and Small Press
So I don’t usually do reviews of web comics… well heck I haven’t done a review since September 2009. Recently, I have seen some requests in my overpacked (with spam) inbox, and I realized that I should look into doing more small press and independent stuff. So I made a twitter post asking people to email me via the contact page, and this review is the first result from that post. Well, a few days ago I began the long trek through the depths of www.thinkweasel.com’s content, and here I am.
In case you haven’t figured it out yet, Think Weasel is an internet based humor strip written and drawn by Nick Mizgala of Georgia (I think). Like my own website, Think Weasel runs on Wordpress which is designed with functionality and usability in mind rather than style. That said, it’s a very user friendly web comic that I can see myself easily catching up with as a reader, and we can leave the style up to Nick the artist rather than Nick the IT guy.
So let’s backtrack for a minute. Like I mentioned before, I am used to writing reviews of comic book issues and graphic novels. Reviewing a web comic is a little bit different for me because I don’t have a set of criteria in my head. So I’d like to take a minute to establish the basis for my review and have a good explanation for the star rating at the bottom of the post.
The first criteria should be the quality of the artwork, and this Mizgala does a good job there. The work isn’t comic book quality (though a couple of posts prove that he is capable of it); it is pump ‘em out and get 3-5 done per week quality. It’s as good as any comic you’ll find in the newspaper, with updates coming out just almost as fast. That’s pretty impressive for any artist, let alone one with a nine-to-five. Kudos, Nick!
Secondly should be writing. Now I have to remind myself that I am not reading a comic book here but a periodical strip. The story arcs typically seem to span three or four posts in a row and mostly follow the weasel-like characters of Nick and his wife Angela (I hope I’m right on this). Other characters include Lance McWeasel (news anchor), the intermission stick people, and Larry the drama Llama. All of which add some real fun to the strip and keep it fresh. The humor is tough. Anyone who reads the funnies knows that jokes with quick setups (necessary for the format) and one-liners can be hit-or-miss. The majority of the strips put a smile on my face, but select few are lost to me either in my personal sense of humor or in the depths of geographic translation (cold weather jokes probably make more sense to Georgians than to those of us here in California where the current temperature is 70 F).
To me, the third criteria should be the website’s interface, but we already covered that. So the fourth is the frequency. If I were writing this review a year and a half ago, I would have expressed disappointment, but the dates on the past 100 or so posts seem to be pretty consistent. Who would I be to complain anyways? A very neat thing that Mizgala does is to foresee the random bits of life (vacations, head colds, etc) and draw short stories featuring the intermission stick people in advance. So if Nick is out for a week, his website isn’t.
So those are all of the criteria I can think of for a web comic, and I think they sum up Think Weasel pretty well. The website has taken the last space available on my over packed Firefox bookmark bar. The website seems like the perfect place for me to spend that half hour between class and work or a quick, stress-relieving break from either. Think Weasel is some great PG-rated entertainment that is sure to lighten the hearts of even the grouchiest of net-surfers.
(4.5/5)
For more on Think Weasel, or to read the web comic, head to www.thinkweasel.com and get your weasel on! (hit the “first” link and read your way through like I did, it’s way fun!)
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May 21st, 2010 on 6:36 am
Cyrus,
Thanks for the feedback, I appreciate you taking the time to comment. My goal is continuous improvement of the quality of my work and criticism is part of doing that in the public arena. Yes, even I think the art and/or jokes fall flat sometimes, but for me it’s just part of the process. I’d rather do it this way instead of keeping out of the public eye, hoping for the day it was ‘good enough’.
Sam was nice enough to review my comic and I appreciate the even-handedness he showed in the process. Restraint and balance is something with is hard to find on the Internet these days and I respect him even more for the way he responds in his discussions with you.
May 20th, 2010 on 8:36 pm
Cyrus,
I apologize for my extremely late reply to your comment. I appreciate the time that you took to take a look at my review and write some constructive words about it. I only wish you would have done the same for the folks at Think Weasel. I went back and looked at the comic that you were referring to. You make a good point, however the validity of your point relies on your misquotation. The male weasel expresses his relief that taxes are only due once a year, while the female points out that the time in between is just enough to make doing taxes worse. This is an example of situational irony. The weasel’s only comfort about taxes contributes to their discomfort.
No, I didn’t roll on the floor, slap my knee, or force my roommates to come into my room to read it. The best it got out of me was a “hmph.” Your idea got “hmph” too, but it was more screwball-esque to contrast Mizgala’s dry irony. It seems like your problem with the humor is just that you have different tastes. It doesn’t make either of you more or less funny than the other.
I don’t know what you expect out of the art. If art of this quality were put into one of the monthly comics that I read, I would be writing DC right now for a refund. But it isn’t. This art is done on the guy’s spare time for anyone to enjoy (or not, in your case) for free. Have you ever read one of the daily black and white editions of Peanuts? If you have, you noticed that the art is simple. The character designs are consistent and follow simple rules for the small range of emotions that they express.
I’m not a comic creator. I critique. I don’t think you’re being a jerk, Cyrus. There’s no question that you disliked the comic, and I am grateful that you used my website to say so. Bringing up Roger Ebert makes sense to me. More than any critic out there(let alone, journalists, writers, and human beings), I respect Roger Ebert. Part of that respect comes from the fact that he speaks his mind, as you pointed out. Following his lead, I stand by my original assessment of Think Weasel.
This isn’t academia. I don’t grade on a rubric. It’s art can be better. It’s jokes can be more universal. I didn’t give it a 4.5 out of 5 because it broke comedic or artistic barriers. I ranked it that high because it made me smile. It gave me a good feeling. At the end of the day, that’s where my opinion came from. If that makes me a poor reviewer, so be it.
Thanks for your opinion, Cyrus.
April 21st, 2010 on 5:36 pm
This comic is ridiculously sub-par. The art is clunky, and the jokes are practically non-existent. Seriously, “Marmaduke” or “Born Loser” is funnier.
http://thinkweasel.com/comics/2010-03-14_tax_weasels.gif
Basically, this comic says:
Weasel: Taxes aren’t fun. But good thing they’re only one a year.
Weasel with bow: We find the experience of filing taxes terrible.
Read the next comic. It’s the same damn thing. There’s really no punchline. How about:
Weasel: “You know, April 15 is the dark twin of Christmas. Both come just once a year, and both have a all-seeing stranger combing through your personal life.”
Cut to Santa in a business suit: “Little Jimmy says he’s been a ‘good boy’ this year. Let’s see if he kept the receipts.”
That took five minutes to devise, and it’s not even that funny. But good artwork would cover its flaws. Think Weasel has poor jokes and boring, weak art.
Are you a reviewer, Sam? If so, sometimes you have to call a spade a spade. If a comic sucks, say so.
I appreciate that the Weasel guy cranks these out on a schedule. That’s not easy to do. And I’m anonymous so you won’t say “Are you a comic creator? If not, you can’t critique.” I might be. But I’m not going to say because such an argument would be bull and we all know it. I can compare a comic to other well-regarded comics OR to ones I find personally compelling. If I do this with Think Weasel, I end up seeing that it’s weak and uninspired. Did you do this? Did you really not see this?
If you as a reviewer can’t see the massive shortcomings of this comic, you’re a poor reviewer. There’s a reason Roger Ebert is a regarded critic - because sometimes he dislikes a film and isn’t afraid to say so.
“Think Weasel” is a poor comic. A drastic improvement in BOTH art and writing is needed.
Fortunately, it’s the Internet. I can ignore it. And from here on, I will.
January 22nd, 2010 on 1:50 pm
You got it, Nick! Keep the fun coming!
January 18th, 2010 on 6:20 pm
Thanks for taking the time to read the comic and for the review!