Prequel

Digital affordances are one of the distinguishing features of webcomics; the narrative and textual elements differentiate webcomics from the other kinds of serial fiction [1]. One of the most well-known webcomics is Homestuck, which uses flash animation and the infinite canvas. Prequel began as a forum thread on MSPA (MS Paint Adventures) Forums. Simply put, it was inspired by Andrew Hussie’s webcomic Homestuck.

Prequel is based on the Elder Scrolls universe and follows Katia Managan, an alcoholic Khajit (cat-person). Aside from having a completely different plot from Homestuck, Kazerad drew a lot of inspiration from Hussie. “Not many panels are static; most are comprised of .gif files with a looping animation,” was used to describe Homestuck and is also perfectly representative of Prequel [2]. These looping animations provide more action to the story; instead of static panels, the character is moving before your eyes. McCloud stated that pages are an option and can work well but there is also the advantageous option of putting all of the panels together on a single “canvas” [3]. Unbounded by the limits of a physical page, Kazerad tailored the length of each “page” so that each one would end at a point when the main character Katia was making decisions, instead of ending based off of space limitations

Lastly, both webcomic creators of Homestuck and Prequel used the comments from their audience to move the story along. Kazerad actually writes in his fans’ comments throughout the webcomic. The digital affordances used in Prequel has allowed for a close interplay between creator and reader, and because of this, Kazerad continues to add to his story nearly a decade later.

1. Romaguera, Gabriel E. "Piecing the Parts: An Analysis of Narrative Strategies and Textual Elements in Microserialized Webcomics." Order No. 1487585, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), 2010. http://prx.library.gatech.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.prx.library.gatech.edu/docview/837419788?accountid=11107.

2. McGown, Justin. "Homestuck Fans Prepare for Webcomic Release." University Wire,Oct 17, 2011.http://prx.library.gatech.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.prx.library.gatech.edu/docview/1646851349?accountid=11107.

3. "Web Comics: Beyond the Panels." Mint, Sep 04, 2015. http://prx.library.gatech.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1709469644?accountid=11107.