After exploring “Homestuck” by Andrew Hussie in its print version and webcomic medium, the comic features static images, but also GIFs and instant message logs. The webcomic version also requires reader participation which I found quite entertaining and kept me engaged.

I found this style of webcomic was heavily influenced by games such as “Sims” which also influenced the movie style of “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch”. I found that the art of “Homestuck” on the Web was very simple and included brief panels with detailed scenes. The webcomic version clearly represents a mash of comics and video games which I find interesting because it represents another art form.

In reading the print version I found that there are usually four panels on each page, some single page panels, or some with just text only. I discovered that this was less engaging than the webcomic. The print version brought up the problem of the lack of the reader participation, games, and aesthetic of the GIFs and non-static images. And since some scenes in the webcomic were in GIFs, Hussie had to compress a lot of the images into smaller panels in the book, so it was harder to really visualize what was taking place.

In conclusion, Hussie puts in a great amount of effort in perfecting the aesthetic of the webcomic and in the print version. The plot is interesting and keeps me entertained. After analyzing both versions of this particular comic, I believe the print version lacks the melodic virtual, melodic original and doesn’t appropriately translate the iconic webcomic on a paper medium. But after reading through blogs on Kashtan “Click and Drag”, I can see why authors would want to take their webcomics to print medium because of economic reasons.