Red Lantern | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CID: | 18394 | Subscriptions: | 87 | Readers this Week: | 3 |
| Frequency: | Inactive | ||||
| Url: | http://www.rukiscroax.com/redlantern/ | ||||
| Genres: | Action-Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Furry, Gay-Lesbian-TG, Political | ||||
| Description*: | Rukis, Alectorfencer, Myenia, Ishaway | Online, sex scenes printed exclusive | Color | Abuse, slavery, prostitution, violence & war themes The Shanivaar Islands. A neutral safe haven for the navy, free pirates and morally questionable groups. For the vast majority of anthropomorphs living there however - canines, felines and many other mammals - life is to live beneath the ruthless rule of hyena clans who proudly owns them as slaves (or under the specifications of the new treaty with their continental neighbors, 'indentured servants'). Freedom is all but a fleeting dream on the far-flung island for most under the hyenas' rule, for they manage the wages that the contracted captives earn, marking them with collars and treating them as nothing more than property. The ports of the Shanivaar Islands offer many services to all who docks on its shores, whether it be refreshments, restocking or the syndicated sex trade, with exotic 'indentured servants' being imported from around the world. Amon, a male jackal indentured servant working under this monopolized prostitution system knew of the times before he was a slave, back when he had freedom. But that seems like a distant memory now, and he has accepted the 'work' of the port's brothels a long time ago. But not even the faintest of hope of freedom - this forced, contracted sex work, would last. The docking, free individuals from distant shores are often specist and discriminatory in choosing who they want to be serviced by. Thus Amon, moving towards the end of his years of youth becomes tasked with training a new pitiable soul entering the life of servitude - Dhaval, a young and naive white male tiger forcibly taken from his now far away home. Despite having to teach this newcomer the demeaning sex work he himself was forced to go through, Amon isn't despondent even though his choices are limited. With the wars in the Dark Continent making the islands a popular port for all sides of the conflict, new winds are blowing towards the island, and both Amon and Dhaval are in the way of the stirring storm. What will they be able to do in this chaotic time of apathy and strife? Before the times of Red Lantern: Off The Beaten Path, story of Shivah, Ransom, Puquanah, two years prior | http://www.furaffinity.net/view/11578732/ Heretic, story of captain Luther, nine years prior | http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8720004/ Legacy, story of Kadar, Amon's father, twenty years prior | http://www.furaffinity.net/view/16364412/ | ||||
* Descriptions are user submitted and might not express the views of the admins of this site, or of the comics creators themselves. | |||||
| Flags: | A Adult Situations L Adult Language N Nudity V Graphic Violence X Explicit (NC-17) | People who read this, also tend to read these:
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(31%) i Prophecy of the Circle V
(31%) i *Gemutations: Plague ALNVX
(30%) i *Havoc Inc. LN
(29%) i Swords & Sausages ALN
(29%) i *Like Family ALNX
(28%) i *Caterwall
(28%) i Cut Loose ALNX
(28%) i *Broken Wings AL
Higher percentages are more closely related. | |||
| Entry Added: | Sat, Jan 29, 2011 | ||||
| Entry Modified: | Mon, Jan 15, 2024 | ||||
Reviews: 2 Average Rating:
Here is why I dislike Rukis's comics. Red Lantern, Cruelty, ALL of them.
The three main reasons:
One) The lack of expressive emotions and facial features give a sense of monotony throughout the story arcs. Honestly, the emotional range of nearly every character is "slightly sad". Honestly.
Two) The style of art and the choice for the sense of "pseudo-realism" give a borderline air of "uncanny valley". The artists choice to use live models for the art does not help this, and mixed with the fantasy element of anthros makes for awkward and often wonky posing.
And even then, this "realistic" style is flawed at it's most basic level. A friend of mine pointed out that every character looks like a variation of a dog, ALL OF THEM. The examples she cited, this: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/5064329/ and this: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/5128892/ . NOTE HOW ELONGATED AND GENERIC THE MUZZLES ARE.
Look, Rukis can paint very intricate details, obviously, but at the most basic level, IT'S ALL FLAWED.
Three) The stories within the comics lack any real substance at all, and are completely unvaried in their plot. In fact, it is in this reviewers opinion, that if it wasn't for the gay sex in these comics, they wouldn't even be that popular.
NOW for the counter arguments and why I think they're crock.
Counter argument to lack of expression: "But that's her style, which is realistic. Realistic wolves don't have a wide range of expressions, and she does the best she can."
WELP, the fact of the matter is, comics need expression to portray ranges of emotion. Because the only text being used to tell the story is dialogue, the art must pick up the slack to exhibit said variety of emotion, reactions, etc. Without this, each character comes off with the emotionally visual equivalent of a robot voiced by a cheery optimist. It creates a sense of discord in the actions.
Counter argument to art style: "The art style is very detailed and wonderfully colored! Fur and clothes are intricately drawn, as well as the characters themselves, and Rukis has some of the most realistic comic art out there."
WELL, this ties in a bit with the first point. The style doesn't fit the medium. It falls flat as a comic form and becomes boring. To reference uncanny valley, there's a fine line or portraying something that shows viable emotion and heart, and something that comes off as slightly unsettling. Rukis's art sometimes falls into this. In fact, if I had to pick the greatest downfall of this comic, it would have to be the "Realist" style of art and the choice to stick to it. (And just because something is part of the "style", it doesn't make it a viable argument against the critique.)
To make a hyperbolic comparison, try to imagine if Leonardo DaVinci tried making a comic. No doubt, he's a great artist, but his medium I daresay would be utterly boring in the comic form.
Counter argument to the thin stories: .... I can't honestly think of one. All I hear is "No! Rukis's stories are great! I read it for the stories, not the sex!"
*cough*bullshit*cough*
I'd have to say, quite frankly, I consider most, of not all of the stories, to be B-actor style Soap Operas. Yeeeeah there's drama. Yeeeeeah there's a bit of plot. But it's kind of the same stuff over and over, and I have MORE than an inkling that without the sex, there would be nothing to sell or even be interested in reading. There's no real hook to them. No catchy point or whatever. It's just run-of-the-mill comic drama with sex thrown in for fan service.
And oh, what do I mean by that line? Simple. Take out the sex, merely allude to it, and you have the exact same story as before. Nothing is added by the sex scenes, nothing is taken away, at least as far as story is concerned. Does that mean it can't be there? Well, no, but I'm tired of hearing the sex be justified that it "goes with the story". It doesn't really. It's just sex! It's meant to be a sexy comic, and that's perfectly alright. There's just no point in justifying it, imho.
So the final thoughts.
Rukis's comics could be improved in THREE main areas. One: Let the characters show a little more emotion. Loosen the realistic style and give them more freedom so that they seem like characters instead of detailed puppets that keep the same face. Two: Refine this "Realistic" sense of art. I'll say it more bluntly, Realism is overrated. However, if you're going to go mostly realistic, learn realistic anatomy. Learn about the human body, as well as the animal body, and learn how to draw them in a way that's appealing and less awkward. And Three: Work harder on your stories. Go past superficial drama. Give the characters more depth through their dialogue and way of speaking. Tell me a story I haven't heard before, and make it interesting.
And that, I think, is why I dislike it when someone says "Rukis's comics and stories and art are amazing," because beyond the superficial layers of heavy art and faux-dramatic story, everything from the art style, characters, and story can be described in a single word: UNINTERESTING.
~LSC
Ps: This is all my opinions, thoughts, and view points as far as comic art is concerned. I follow a subjective form of critique: Looking what the artist is trying to achieve through their work, and how effective it is. That said, am I saying Rukis is unskilled? No. She has skill. Wonderful skill. It's just that she doesn't achieve much with it through her comics, and she has much room to improve.
The three main reasons:
One) The lack of expressive emotions and facial features give a sense of monotony throughout the story arcs. Honestly, the emotional range of nearly every character is "slightly sad". Honestly.
Two) The style of art and the choice for the sense of "pseudo-realism" give a borderline air of "uncanny valley". The artists choice to use live models for the art does not help this, and mixed with the fantasy element of anthros makes for awkward and often wonky posing.
And even then, this "realistic" style is flawed at it's most basic level. A friend of mine pointed out that every character looks like a variation of a dog, ALL OF THEM. The examples she cited, this: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/5064329/ and this: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/5128892/ . NOTE HOW ELONGATED AND GENERIC THE MUZZLES ARE.
Look, Rukis can paint very intricate details, obviously, but at the most basic level, IT'S ALL FLAWED.
Three) The stories within the comics lack any real substance at all, and are completely unvaried in their plot. In fact, it is in this reviewers opinion, that if it wasn't for the gay sex in these comics, they wouldn't even be that popular.
NOW for the counter arguments and why I think they're crock.
Counter argument to lack of expression: "But that's her style, which is realistic. Realistic wolves don't have a wide range of expressions, and she does the best she can."
WELP, the fact of the matter is, comics need expression to portray ranges of emotion. Because the only text being used to tell the story is dialogue, the art must pick up the slack to exhibit said variety of emotion, reactions, etc. Without this, each character comes off with the emotionally visual equivalent of a robot voiced by a cheery optimist. It creates a sense of discord in the actions.
Counter argument to art style: "The art style is very detailed and wonderfully colored! Fur and clothes are intricately drawn, as well as the characters themselves, and Rukis has some of the most realistic comic art out there."
WELL, this ties in a bit with the first point. The style doesn't fit the medium. It falls flat as a comic form and becomes boring. To reference uncanny valley, there's a fine line or portraying something that shows viable emotion and heart, and something that comes off as slightly unsettling. Rukis's art sometimes falls into this. In fact, if I had to pick the greatest downfall of this comic, it would have to be the "Realist" style of art and the choice to stick to it. (And just because something is part of the "style", it doesn't make it a viable argument against the critique.)
To make a hyperbolic comparison, try to imagine if Leonardo DaVinci tried making a comic. No doubt, he's a great artist, but his medium I daresay would be utterly boring in the comic form.
Counter argument to the thin stories: .... I can't honestly think of one. All I hear is "No! Rukis's stories are great! I read it for the stories, not the sex!"
*cough*bullshit*cough*
I'd have to say, quite frankly, I consider most, of not all of the stories, to be B-actor style Soap Operas. Yeeeeah there's drama. Yeeeeeah there's a bit of plot. But it's kind of the same stuff over and over, and I have MORE than an inkling that without the sex, there would be nothing to sell or even be interested in reading. There's no real hook to them. No catchy point or whatever. It's just run-of-the-mill comic drama with sex thrown in for fan service.
And oh, what do I mean by that line? Simple. Take out the sex, merely allude to it, and you have the exact same story as before. Nothing is added by the sex scenes, nothing is taken away, at least as far as story is concerned. Does that mean it can't be there? Well, no, but I'm tired of hearing the sex be justified that it "goes with the story". It doesn't really. It's just sex! It's meant to be a sexy comic, and that's perfectly alright. There's just no point in justifying it, imho.
So the final thoughts.
Rukis's comics could be improved in THREE main areas. One: Let the characters show a little more emotion. Loosen the realistic style and give them more freedom so that they seem like characters instead of detailed puppets that keep the same face. Two: Refine this "Realistic" sense of art. I'll say it more bluntly, Realism is overrated. However, if you're going to go mostly realistic, learn realistic anatomy. Learn about the human body, as well as the animal body, and learn how to draw them in a way that's appealing and less awkward. And Three: Work harder on your stories. Go past superficial drama. Give the characters more depth through their dialogue and way of speaking. Tell me a story I haven't heard before, and make it interesting.
And that, I think, is why I dislike it when someone says "Rukis's comics and stories and art are amazing," because beyond the superficial layers of heavy art and faux-dramatic story, everything from the art style, characters, and story can be described in a single word: UNINTERESTING.
~LSC
Ps: This is all my opinions, thoughts, and view points as far as comic art is concerned. I follow a subjective form of critique: Looking what the artist is trying to achieve through their work, and how effective it is. That said, am I saying Rukis is unskilled? No. She has skill. Wonderful skill. It's just that she doesn't achieve much with it through her comics, and she has much room to improve.
The detail drawn into this comic is absolutely fantastic. It's still too new of a comic for me to say much about storyline, but this is looking quite impressive so far.
