A new week, a new list of webcomic must-reads! This list of webcomic and webtoon must-reads features possessed cars, body-swapping, Greek mythology, and more!
Things are starting to heat up on Mars’ second webcomic heavy-hitter, Ride or Die, as Lucky finds himself running from masked individuals and (literally) losing control of his car. Described as Christine meets Fast and Furious meets Ghost Rider but gayer, RoD has been slowly building to this moment for over two chapters and it was well worth the wait.
RoD follows Lucky's high-octane antics after he discovers his mother’s forgotten muscle car in an old barn. After fixing it up with his former-crush, Vic, he finds himself thrown deep into the world of street racing. Little does he know, the old car has a dark secret lingering under the hood.
The vengeful spirit possessing Lucky's slick new ride finally makes his on-screen appearance in ch2, pt.9 after being teased heavily throughout the series and it was, quite literally, explosive. If you’ve been sleeping on this webcomic, now is a great time to pick it up. The revelation in this chapter kicked the story into high gear and you won’t want to miss what comes next.
2. Iris Complex by Josh Tierney (@jwtierney) and Caitlin Soliman (@salamispots) on Tapas
It seems like every new episode of this series leaves readers with more questions than answers and a permanent "what the hell just happened" response. This unnaturally eerie series is relentless in its disturbing and uncanny narrative, and this week things get super weird.
Iris Complex is the story of an amnesiac college student who wakes in a field one warm day surrounded by tall apartment-like buildings. All she has on her is a ring of keys and an architecture textbook. On a quest to uncover her lost memories, she comes across strange people and otherworldly occurrences. Each new memory she uncovers only adds to her confusion and she begins to question whether or not her past is truly worth remembering.
This week, we catch back up with Iris after another bought of memories resurfaces. The non-stop chaos that happened in the previous few episodes comes to a halt as Iris suddenly wakes in a time and space she cannot recall and begins to question if the body she finds herself in actually belongs to her. Fans of dark, trippy horror won't want to miss this one (especially since the series is on a temporary bi-weekly schedule, it's a good time to start it).
This adorable recent release is the most good-natured and honest series you'll read this week. Premiering only a month ago, this debut webcomic series from mille started strong and continues to provide cheerful vibes and down-to-earth storytelling with each new episode.
College freshmen and childhood best friends Caspian and Maribel begin the next phase of their lives as they are thrust into university life. While out exploring the campus, they come across Wren, an eager peer who believes he can help anyone's dreams come true. Mari and Cass are roped into joining the club and, together with Wren, they aim to help those around them find happiness through their unusual extracurricular activity.
Wish Chasing Company's diverse cast, LGBTQ+ themes, and realistic look at college life makes this colorful webcomic immensely relatable and comforting. Ep.8 dropped this week and really brought out our main duo's personalities and gave us a deeper look at their friendship. The cast and setting have started to take shape now that we're several episodes in and this is a series you'll want to keep your eye on if you enjoy bright slice-of-life stories.
4. My Calypso by Fairytale on Lezhin
The underrated boys’ love gem from Lezhin veteran creator Fairytale, My Calypso wrapped up its narrative this past weekend with ep.42. This series is perfect for fans of modernized mythology and features a clever BL twist.
The story follows Hyun-min while he's out on a scuba-diving trip in the beautiful country of Malta. After invoking and mocking the name of Calypso, he finds himself pulled down into the watery depths and brought to the outer realms of Olympus. Coming face to face with Calypso, he discovers that the legends neglected an immensely important detail; Calypso is no goddess, and the lonely immortal finds this loud-mouthed human to be an interesting new companion.
My Calypso’s well paced story and build-up spans the entire length of the one-season webtoon*. The clever use of the inaccuracies of history and legends to add a queer spin on a well-known myth is a wonderful and tangible storytelling trick that allowed Fairytale to craft a unique and approachable story all-ages* story. Now that it has reached its conclusion, this is the perfect time to binge the whole thing without those pesky week-to-week cliffhangers.
5. Bicycle Boy by Jackarais (@Jackarais) on Bicycle Boy
Jack teased this update of his long-running webcomic series Bicycle Boy last week with a tweet stating “I think you'll like (hate) it.” Fans of the series grew antsy well in advance of the page drop, and the anticipation rose for those of us who eagerly wait for the Friday updates to roll around. And, yes, I did like/hate it.
Ch.8, pg.77 sees settlement leaders Solle and Stonehenge visiting Dr. Smith after a heavy binder where subtle hints are dropped along with an unsettling realization. This chapter has been one of massive revelations and repercussions for our battered cyborg and his ragtag group of acquaintances as the action ramps up and the secrets behind Poet's creation slowly unravel.
Bicycle Boy's stunning illustrations and color palettes never disappoint and, as always, this update is packed full of details, eerie lighting, and intense emotions. The chapter is close to wrapping up, which means a short hiatus before ch.9 starts, so new readers will have plenty of time to binge this lengthy series and long time fans can re-read and scour for crucial details before things pick back up. Also, the KickStarter for the first vol. of the series goes live today so now's a great time to delve into this series if you're unfamiliar with it!
*all-ages on Lezhin does not actually mean all-ages, there are still mature/sexual themes but nothing explicit is shown. It is recommended for a more YA age range.
*webtoon is the term used for scrolling digital comics from South Korea, not to be confused with WEBTOON, the app.
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