The Belfry WebComics Index

Tale of Tails, a

CID:22259 Subscriptions:246Readers this Week:182
Frequency:Weekly
Url:http://www.feretta.net/
Genres:Action-Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Furry, Gay-Lesbian-TG, Romance, Transformation
Description*:The story takes place in a world far separate from our own, where fantasy and magic meets clockpunk and magitech, where modern aspects seem to mingle with ancient methods in a suspiciously natural fashion. The world itself is particularly mysterious to its more historically-oriented inhabitants, in that it cannot be proven to have existed for more than a thousand years, yet it’s fully developed into a heavily populated landscape with millions of inhabitants and a very strong technological and magical development.Politically, the world is divided into kingdoms, usually separated by species, but many consider themselves international lands, open to any species. 

Fenfen Maria Esteban:
Our protagonist! She’s a Fennecian, one of the rarer species in the world, born to a Fennecian mother and an unknown father, in one of the smaller mixed-species kingdoms. Her mother died during her birth, and she was given to an old friend, an aging Snow Leopard, whom cared for her as if Fen was her own daughter.From a young age, she found herself rejected by her peers because of her unusual gift (curse), having been born with both male and female genitals. By the time she was fourteen, her caretaker had passed away, and with no one to talk them down, she found herself driven from her childhood home by a mob of the same people who had tormented her throughout her life. Chased out of town and with nothing left but the clothes on her back, a devastated and broken young Fennecian set out into the world in hopes of finding somewhere to call home. By the time we pick up her trail and the story begins, she has become a very street smart, resourceful and bull-headed woman, but also one that has exhausted all options but one. After many years of difficult trial, it is time to let the Path lead her where it wishes..
* 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)
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Entry Added:Mon, Oct 13, 2014
Entry Modified:Mon, Aug 26, 2024

Reviews: 1   Average Rating:
 

06:05am 08/04/2015
 
Erotic fantasy, with heart
Sexcapades start this story, and sexcapades remain a prominent feature throughout. Thankfully, A Tale of Tails is not, as the opening chapter suggests, merely a series of pornographic encounters strung together by a threadbare plot, but a comic with a vision; sometimes thrilling, sometimes sober, and always fun. Chapter 2 already begins unveiling the larger world, specifically the arcane forces at work in the realm and the protagonist Fenfen's mysterious heritage. Eroticism is counterbalanced by everyday foibles and the quintessential adventure quest, and already the story includes a diverse and readily-personable cast of characters, only some of whom want to get into Fenfen's pants. While the author, Feretta, admits the sex scenes can be skipped without losing the gist of the story, they are not entirely gratuitous, providing subtle character development and clues to plot devices.

A graphic designer by trade, Feretta began this comic as artistic practice, and it shows: while nowhere near deficient at the start, the style very quickly develops proportional consistency, and even after figuring out a basic template she continues to experiment throughout. The result strikes a harmonious balance between cartoon simplicity and elegant detail—an important feat when half the pages are dedicated to characters in the buff—with the added bonus that several sequences convey their own aesthetic personality as she tests different techniques.

What also shows is that this is Feretta's first stab at a comic narrative. Unlike so many high fantasy stories that can spend entire chapters pouring out exposition, A Tale of Tails focuses instead on the 'now', using short, conversational dialogue, revealing backstories in bits and pieces as the scene calls, and sometimes brushing over it entirely. This is both good and bad: the lack of long, explanatory interludes gives the comic a quick, almost frantic pace, and despite having only started Chapter 3 as of this writing, much ground has already been covered plot-wise. It also means that, unfortunately, a sizable amount of character development is inferred rather than shown, leaving the audience with fractured glimmers into Fenfen's (not to mention other characters') psychology—leading to not unjustified complaints in Chapter 2 that she comes across as a Mary-Sue, and prompting the emergency rewrite of a dubious scene midway through said chapter. Feretta clearly has a plan for the story, and the companion section on lore provides a wealth of information not yet seen in the comic proper; in this sense she may be racing through an extensive backstory to focus on the meat of the plot, but if she takes the time to explore her actors' thoughts and feelings in greater depth, it will only enrich the audience's experience with what are already personable characters.

In sum: come for the sex, stay for everything else. A Tale of Tails is a clever mix of quirky humour, fantastic adventure, and if it's to your taste, unflinching sexuality. While the hurried pace and resulting uneven character development hold back the fourth star I so desperately want to bestow, it is testament to Feretta's skill that I already feel invested in the characters even with so little background. As it stands, the comic holds enormous promise, and its author is especially distinguished for maintaining active correspondence with her audience throughout its production. I sincerely hope that in serveral years' time I may return with an even more favourable review.
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