Ask Slashdot: What Was Your Favorite Web Comic of 2012?

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Ask Slashdot: What Was Your Favorite Web Comic of 2012?

Posted by Soulskill on Wednesday December 26, 2012 @11:15AM from the obligatory-xkcd dept.

skade88 writes "It's time to do another year-end best-of roundup! Today's topic is web comics. What was your favorite web comic of 2012? Feel free to use the following categories, or make up your own. 1) Best overall web comic series of 2012. (Any web comic that produced content in 2012). 2) Funniest web comic of 2012. (This one represents the single funniest comic of any web comic series. Provide links!) 3) Best art in a web comic of 2012. (Web comic from 2012 with the most amazing art ever). 4) Web comic that was most relevant to you in 2012. (This one is even more subjective than the others)."

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Favorite Comic by Anonymous Coward · 2012-12-26 11:17 · Score: 5, Funny

Definitely XKCD!
Too east by cheater512 · 2012-12-26 11:18 · Score: 5, Insightful

Best art in a web comic has to be http://xkcd.com/1110/
1. Re:Too east by chronokitsune3233 · 2012-12-26 11:41 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  I love XKCD, but best art? Well, in terms of artistic ability, stick figures are far from difficult. However, this particular "strip" along with all of its geekiness—the fact that you can drag it AND a lot of the content itself—was truly amazing. I can definitely agree with this vote.
  
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2. Re:Too east by slimjim8094 · 2012-12-26 12:29 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  I think you're confusing best technique with best art. The art wasn't the beauty of the actual strokes, it was the beauty of the idea and execution.
  
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3. Re:Too east by TheLink · 2012-12-26 15:02 · Score: 2
  
  Hmm seems it's getting popular to dislike stuff because it's popular. What am I going to do when "everyone" does it. ;)
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  Too many replies beneath your current threshold
4. Re:Too east by steveo777 · 2012-12-27 01:19 · Score: 2
  
  I hated hipsters before it was cool.
  
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  This sig isn't original enough, it's time to come up with something witty...
5. Re:Too east by Chris+Mattern · 2012-12-27 07:47 · Score: 2
  
  I still remember when I first looked at that comic and started scrolling. "Hey, it scrolls! Let's scroll to the end of it!" Scroll...scroll...scroll... "Wow, this is taking a while" Scroll...scroll...scroll... "Damn, this is big" Scroll...scroll...scroll... "Does it ever end? Holy cow, it scrolls up and down too--he's got stuff tunnelling way down in the earth. A LONG way down in the earth" Scroll...scroll...scroll "Is there any end to it? Will I even be able to see all of it?" There is just no way he could've gotten that impact if there'd been a zoom function to see all of it at once. That cartoon is one of Randall's most talked about comics, and I am firmly convinced that it would not have produced one tenth the reaction it did if it had had a zoom function.
Schlock Mercenary by Sowelu · 2012-12-26 11:25 · Score: 5, Interesting

For reliable quality I'd go with Schlock Mercenary. It's not-too-soft sci-fi, consistent and pretty good art, a daily update schedule, very good pacing, and nothing about it annoys me.
1. Re:Schlock Mercenary by Y.A.A.P. · 2012-12-26 12:32 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  I think Schlock cannot be mentioned enough.
  The art is better quality than most web comics (or newspaper/dead tree comics), even if the style isn't going for as-real-as-possible. No storyline is ever dropped in the middle (there are cutaways to things happening on the other side of the galaxy, but these are things happening at the same time and the series will then jump right back to the main action).
  Not every day has a LOL moment at the end (or during the strip), but that's because something's happening in the strip which is a very much OMG sort-of thing.
  And, oh yeah, something else the parent post mentions which I've never seen any other web comic manage: a new comic every single day of the year (and it's never some kind of filler), and has done this since the comic started (which means a huge reading archive). Which means not a single day need go by without the reader getting some form of entertainment on that day.
2. Re:Schlock Mercenary by BigSlowTarget · 2012-12-26 12:38 · Score: 2
  
  It's really amazing to take a look at the first strips then walk through as the artist has improved in technique and detail. There's an easy jump to the first strip. Compare that to the latest one. The difference is profound.
Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal by noesckey · 2012-12-26 11:28 · Score: 5, Interesting

Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal
1. Re:Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal by Rizimar · 2012-12-26 16:45 · Score: 2
  
  Me thoughts exactly. I also like the little red button on each comic that delivers a second punchline, too.
2. Re:Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal by FlyveHest · 2012-12-26 23:40 · Score: 2
  
  Holy crap, I have been reading SMBC for a long while, and I did not know this!
Wondermark by oodaloop · 2012-12-26 11:31 · Score: 2

By far my favorite web comic, and some of favorites are from this year, like the one below about tic tacs. The link is for the first of a four-part series, so hit next to see the rest. And don't forget the alt text.

http://wondermark.com/813/

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Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
Best web comic by vazuff · 2012-12-26 11:35 · Score: 2

http://dementiaofmagic.net/
oatmeal by Icculus · 2012-12-26 11:38 · Score: 4, Insightful

xkcd is great but I gotta throw in for The Oatmeal.
Oglaf.com by queazocotal · 2012-12-26 11:39 · Score: 5, Interesting

Not worksafe.
1. Re:Oglaf.com by fahrbot-bot · 2012-12-26 12:58 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  More specifically, my two favorite panels, in order:
  Snow Queen (NSFW)
  Bad Falcon
  
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  It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
Favorite Web Comic by celticgeek · 2012-12-26 11:44 · Score: 3, Insightful

Best overall webcomic series of 2012: Questionable Content http://www.questionablecontent.net/
Beyond xkcd by tj2 · 2012-12-26 11:48 · Score: 5, Interesting

In no particular order:
The Oatmeal http://theoatmeal.com/comics
Schlock Mercenary http://www.schlockmercenary.com/
Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal http://www.smbc-comics.com/
Girl Genius http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php
Hark a Ninja! by ohnocitizen · 2012-12-26 11:48 · Score: 3, Informative

I can't decide between the often historical wackiness of Hark a Vagrant and the rocket fueled radical fun at Dr McNinja.
XKCD April Fools 2012 by Maow · 2012-12-26 11:49 · Score: 4, Interesting

XKCD's Umwelt comic for April Fools 2012, the best comic ever.
Dozens of different comics presented depending on your IP, your browser, your geolocation, and many other factors too numerous to enumerate.
A mind boggling concept, a tremendous amount of work, incredible creativity.
Shout out to Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal and Tom the Dancing Bug, too. Tom Tomorrow also hits it out of the park on occasion.
The Perry Bible Fellowship by anethema · 2012-12-26 11:49 · Score: 3, Informative

It has to be my favorite. It is too bad it doesn't get updated much anymore.
http://pbfcomics.com/

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It's easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them.
1. Re:The Perry Bible Fellowship by magic+maverick+ · 2012-12-26 21:18 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  If it's still your favorite web comic of 2012, even though it has probably been updated once this year, then you need to read more web comics.
  A short list (in no particular order) to get you started:
  Menage a 3 - three times a week wacky hijinks
  Misfile - I don't like the premise (an angelic fuck up), but the exploration of ideas with regards trans* folk is quite good
  YAFGC - daily dose of DnD style humor. The art is rough, but that adds to the charm
  Schlock Mercenary - others have discussed it
  Sinfest - Daily, classic, long running.
  Girls With Slingshots - Weekdays,
  Oglaf - NSFW funny stuff, Sundays only.
  Subnormality - Updated haphazardly, quite interesting and often strange comics. "Too many words."
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  Honorable Mentions (no particular order) go to:
  Something Positive - Not updated as much as I like, and the story lines are a bit less funny then they have been.
  Order of the Stick - If it updated regularly (at least twice a month) it would go up to the best list. But still.
  Flaky Pastry - Fridays, quite good, but the stories move slowly because only one day a week. If it were updated more often it would get bumped up.
  Questionable Content - not as good as in previous years, though the art's improved amazingly since the start
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  Go for it.
  
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LFG Comic - best art by Kwyj1b0 · 2012-12-26 11:49 · Score: 2

My favorite web comic for several years has been Looking for Group
Sinfest by Rhywden · 2012-12-26 11:50 · Score: 4, Informative

http://www.sinfest.net/
1. Re:Sinfest by Waldeinburg · 2012-12-27 01:02 · Score: 2
  
  An interesting feature of Sinfest is the development of the characters. In most comics the characters have some basic features from the beginning and are gradually shaped during the years. In Sinfest, on the other hand, some of the characters (e.g. Lil' Devil) undergo life-changing experiences.
A what comic? by Bazman · 2012-12-26 11:51 · Score: 2

What the heck is a web comic anyway? They're all on the web now. I'd rather see a poll for best non-web comic.
I'd vote for Steve Bell's If... strips as published in The Guardian, but you murkans wouldn't get the jokes. He was also meta before it was mainstream, one of his penguin characters joking in a strip about "the baggy-eyed yanks upstairs" when If... was printed underneath Doonesbury.
There is one which really stands out by toxygen01 · 2012-12-26 11:56 · Score: 3, Informative

http://www.questionablecontent.net/

the most impressive 1) character development 2) character psychic over time.
and over 2 thousands strips...
Is it okay if by LiroXIV · 2012-12-26 11:57 · Score: 4, Insightful

I just answer everything with Homestuck?
Homestuck! by Wintervenom · 2012-12-26 11:58 · Score: 2

http://www.mspaintadventures.com/
still Megatokyo by TheSHAD0W · 2012-12-26 12:01 · Score: 3, Interesting

Definitely the best art.
Cyanide&Happiness by hedley · 2012-12-26 12:02 · Score: 3, Insightful

Consistently funny, esp Depressing Comic Week
H.
oh yeah... by TheSHAD0W · 2012-12-26 12:04 · Score: 2

higher res version.
Re:Favs by coplate · 2012-12-26 12:08 · Score: 2

Please note the menage a 3 is very NSFW
Lackadaisycats by FlameWise · 2012-12-26 12:19 · Score: 2

In no particular order I'm currently reading:
1) XKCD http://xkcd.org/ (and yes, 1110 was amazing art even though it's mostly about arcane, subtle or smart references)
2) Dilbert http://dilbert.com/fast (makes actual work seem a little less sad)
3) Lackadaisycats http://lackadaisycats.com/comic.php (guns, alcohol and cats)
4) Unsounded http://unsoundedcomic.com/ (thieves and their pesky offspring)
5) Gunnerkrigg Court http://gunnerkrigg.com/ (a school with mediums, shadows and robots)
in order by barv · 2012-12-26 13:15 · Score: 2

best online only
1. http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php
2. http://questionablecontent.net/
3 http://www.smbc-comics.com/
4. http://xkcd.com/
and these two are the best of the newspaper comics
1. http://www.uclick.com/client/wpc/nq/ nonsequitur
2. http://www.uclick.com/client/wpc/db/ doonesbury
Favorite blah blah by MagicM · 2012-12-26 14:24 · Score: 2

Who cares? Let's just post big lists of web comics so we can all click and read and woohooooo!
Beyond the obvious (XKCD, Penny Arcade, Dilbert, The Oatmeal) there are at least these:
http://amultiverse.com/
http://www.virtualshackles.com/
http://www.cad-comic.com/cad/
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/comics/critical-miss.latest
http://chainsawsuit.com/
http://dresdencodak.com/archives/
http://www.happletea.com/
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2347
Romantically Apocalyptic by S77IM · 2012-12-26 14:29 · Score: 4, Informative

Best Art: Romantically Apocalyptic -- http://romanticallyapocalyptic.com

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Student: Is it true that the foundation of the universe is paradox?
Master: Well, yes and no.
My Nominations and Choices by SmarterThanMe · 2012-12-26 14:32 · Score: 5, Informative

1) Best overall web comic series of 2012. (Any web comic that produced content in 2012): Gunnerkrigg Court is a brilliant webcomic that has a compelling plot, interesting characters and art that has developed superbly since the comic's beginnings.
2) Funniest web comic of 2012. (This one represents the single funniest comic of any web comic series.): Evil Inc. got the most laughs out of me this year, even if a lot of the humour was a bit Dad-joke-ish. Runners up would include: Penny Arcade , XKCD , Scandinavia and the World and Overcompensating .
3) Best art in a web comic of 2012. (Web comic from 2012 with the most amazing art ever): Dresden Codak is, without any doubt, the repository of some of the most geekiest and beautiful artwork the web has ever seen. Runners up would include: Namesake , Lackadaisy Cats , Sore Thumbs and Avengelyne
4) Web comic that was most relevant to you in 2012: Real Life , because his adventures with Harper are roughly mirroring my adventures with my daughter Hailey.
Honorable Mentions (because they'd likely win categories if there were a couple more here): Bad Machinery (Best Story), Eerie Cuties (Best Black & White), Three Panel Soul (Best Drama) and Wapsi Square (Best Main Character), and Sinfest (Lifetime Achievement) among others.
Your opinion is bad and you should feel bad. by moogla · 2012-12-26 15:32 · Score: 2, Insightful

Fred is a terrible comic artist and hasn't grown _at all_ in the 10+ years he's been puttering around with that waste of a comic. It also takes him entirely too long to do a single page and have the audacity to not even bother to ink it.
In that period of time Penny Arcade has changed it's graphical style immensely, having evolved a very distinct, vibrant, and clean look, while meeting deadlines, and even being in color!
Example: http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/box/0/0/6/943006_95411_front.jpg
Another example of a comic with a distinct style that has evolved and is wonderful to look at is Octopus Pie, see:
http://www.octopuspie.com/goodies/book2-coverpreviewtext8.gif
So... die in a fire, weeaboo.

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Black holes are where the Matrix raised SIGFPE
Schlock at the top by RR · 2012-12-26 15:42 · Score: 3, Informative
1. Best overall: Schlock Mercenary
2. Funniest: Girl Genius
3. Best art: Gunnerkrigg Court
4. Most revelant: xkcd
Schlock has become a lot more kid-friendly since Tayler quit his job at Novell and now works surrounded by his children, but it's still entertaining. And he has kept its schedule for a pretty long time. Several other webcomics of that age gradually turned to weekday only, to Monday-Wednesday-Friday, to once weekly, but Schlock Mercenary keeps on updating every day.
Girl Genius has pretty good art, but what I like best is its large ensemble of delightfully inhuman characters. Every time I find a new favorite character, the Foglios introduce another crazy awesome character.
Gunnerkrigg Court doesn't have the very best art, but it's gradually getting better, and the story is intriguing.
xkcd is a comic by a nerd about nerds being nerdy.
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Have a nice time.
Girl Genius by Nefarious+Wheel · 2012-12-26 16:30 · Score: 3, Insightful

Unquestionably Girl Genius for me.
Besides, the Castle just went "clack"...

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Re:For gaming? Nerfnow.com by znanue · 2012-12-26 17:59 · Score: 3, Informative

Nerf Now was my pleasant discovery in 2012 :) Yes, some humor can be a bit weird for non-gamers, but you can't just limit yourself to XKCD (okay, maybe you can, but more regular content is better)
Xkcd has come out every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for years. How is that not regular?
I think he meant more [regular content] not [more regular] content.
Z
Romantically apocalyptic by sjukfan · 2012-12-26 18:13 · Score: 2

Romantically apocalyptic is beautyfully drawn using both photos and paintings http://romanticallyapocalyptic.com/ Goblins has to be mentioned because of the action and movement in the pictures http://goblinscomic.com/ Scandinavia and the World because of the spot on description of the Scandinavian countries http://satwcomic.com/
Re:Forgot a category - funny because it's wrong by Johann+Lau · 2012-12-26 20:36 · Score: 2

That one I'm also subscribed to.. sometimes it tries too hard IMHO, but other times it's just genius.
I'd love a fatwa on my head. That's a hat, right?