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Second Shift.
And that's where it all starts, doesn't it...
The writing.
Here's 2nd Shift, a shift about just that: second shift at the workplace. Wonder of wonders, such an original idea... no, not really. You see, this story's strength and fault is its writing. It's an overdone comic idea, it's an overdone cast... you could grab any workplace comic and find that their cast is really quite interchangable. The 'just like you' main character who probably didn't quite really want to be there, and all in all plays the normal joe. Then there will be a fat guy for comic relief, an obligatory girl who will either be bitchy or insane. There must always be an insane character, probably punky. You can predict the cast of 2nd Shift before you even pick it up, and from there, you can really predict where it's going to go... because when you start reading it, it follow a very typical line of plot for a workplace comic.
Though the writing is strong, it might not be enough to save it from the stigma.
Because, you see, it's not all an average workplace comic. It throws in twists. Its characters are vivid and interesting with suitable character designs for their personalities, making them memorable... once you get past the 'every other workplace comic' cliche. It's not every other workplace comic. It could... and chances are, WILL get better.
You can predict the cast... so far. Things have already been said, enough to cover the plot, and I agree with what's been said in the other reviews. The writing is not bad. The characters are interesting and I can see it spinning into quite an interesting plot from here. It's just a little mysterious, with the normal ol' workplace plot on top. It's well paced and well played up.
But what's being used to convey this storyline?
Hmm.
The art.
J's art isn't that great. Is it improving? Aye. But if you read the archives, there seems to be some copying and pasting going on, and wonky anatomy. But it is certainly getting better.
Now, what it has going for it is that it's original. This is an art style you won't see that much. It's no anime ripoff. It's not traditional bad art, which makes it still interesting to read, even with its flaws. And if you see more art like this, you WILL think of Second Shift, because this art is original--it's certainly not a photocopy of every other comic's art!
Frankly, the lineart is the best part of this art. If it was a serious comic, I would want to see it black and white with bold black and white. Unfortunately the orange is critical to it being Second Shift. It's not 2nd Shift without the orange. Alas. Because it is really nice lineart, unfortunately, it's just paired with not that amazing art. It's improving fast, I'll give it that, and with some subtle background work and more work on ironing out the characters, it'll look a lot better.
The characters aren't very expressionate in the beginning, but they're getting there.
I want to see more black, I want to see more expression in the characters. But hey, J's already working to improve his art, so I'm forced to comment on the old things. It's going in that direction! It's getting better. The new art style looks like it has potential, and it's definately more expressive than most of the archives were in the beginning.
What's left? The site? It's very orange. It works. It suits the comic well enough. An about page rather than a cast page pretending to be an about page would be great, as well as a synopsis in the about page--as this is looking to be a little more complicated than most gag-a-day wordplace comics. It works.
So, what's there to say? It's not outstanding yet. It's not a comic I'll remember in a few months if I stopped reading it. If I saw art similar, I might be reminded of it again, because the art is memorable enough that you'll think of Second Shift if you see anything like this. It needs to be played up more. The writing, once you get into it, is really interesting and throws a twist on typical workplace comics... fun times. The art's improving and I think given a few more months of work on that art, and a few more months of story advancement, this will be a 4/5 comic.
But for now, it's too much like most of its predecessors to really be an outstanding comic. It's well written for its genre, the character interactions are enjoyable. If you enjoy workplace humor twisted with a bit of DUN DUN DUNNNN plot mystery... you should definately check out Second Shift.
The artist and writer is aware of the artistic flaws and certainly working to improve them. He's enthusiastic. For him, it's not just another workplace comic. It's Second Shift, it has its own cast with its own history and its own story... and it shows in the art and the writing.
Only the evolution into the future can shape this comic's fate, be it to the recycling bin of overused comic photocopies or to an outstanding 300 dpi scan of life... sorta.
User: amanda
On Writing: The writing is what hooked me! J has created characters with such depth and personality that you could easily imagine meeting these people out there in the real world. It's written with a slice-of-life bent that makes it funny, tense, and bittersweet, but there are also elements of the supernatural to keep you on your toes. J drops hints of the characters' pasts and has delved into them slightly, giving the reader a distinct impression that the story goes deeper than what has been revealed thus far.
On Art: When J first kicked off 2nd Shift, his art was service-able. His characters were a bit out of proportion, but they were still expressive - and ultimately, you could see exactly what he was trying to show you. As the comic goes on, you notice marked improvements in the art, a growing consistancy with the features of each character, and a much better sense of proportion. In more recent pages, you can see J branching out from his original style, experimenting with various aspects of his characters and implementing a few new tricks he's learned down the line. The new style that has emerged gives the comic a slightly more cartoony look without being childish, the linework is crisp and quite pretty, and the interactions between the characters seem more natural and less posed. To sum it up, he's improving rapidly with no signs of slowing down!
On Website: The first thing anyone will notice is orange. ORANGE! After checking through some of the pages, it becomes obvious that this is the trademark color of Copy King and is thus acceptable. ^.~ In fact, you may even come to like it! The site's navigation is straightforward and intuitive which makes it easy to find what that for which you are looking. I'd like to see a more attractive archive page, but that's a minor complaint.
Overall: *thumbs up* Good stuff! Set aside some time to check out the archives and catch up on the story - it's worth the read, and I have a hunch that you'll want to find out more about the characters and where the story will take them. J is constantly looking for ways to improve because he CARES about the story and about his characters, and his enthusiasm for 2nd Shift is palpable - that extra effort plays a big part in pulling you in.
User: kallisti
On Writing:
The basic story of this comic (so far) is following the adventures of delightfully-named Az (Asimov) and his new semi-love-interest, Zoe. Az has just (as the story begins) been thrust into a management role at the copy shop where he works, and amongst the things tossed at him on his first night is new employee (and sister of Az's boss), the mohawk-sporting nonconformist Zoe. Throw in the creepy guy (KC) who's a little too attached to one of their super-printers, the gay black artistic type guy (Charles), the big strong silent guy who's also deep and troubled (Eddie), and (after the first arc) the completely-oddball Delta who appears to be half-stuck in some parallel webcomic where the rules are a little... different.
The writing is strong and normally well thought-out. A tragic past haunts Zoe and prevents her from moving too fast on her evolving relationship with Az. Something (not yet revealed in the story) appears to be eating away at Eddie. And the entire thing surrounding Delta - I won't spoil it for you, you're going to have to read it yourself - has been well-played up until this point.
There are some holes, however... Az's rise to 2nd Shift manager comes at the cost of the death (accidental) of the former manager, who nobody seems to miss or particularly mourn the loss of. While it's possible that happened off-panel, the throw-away plot contrivance-ish nature of that amidst a comic that does fairly well at representing interpersonal relationships felt out-of-character for me.
On Art:
The art is... well, it's not that good. It isn't terrible, by any means or measure either. It's certainly not hard on the eyes like some comics are. I doubt I'd use anything made from the comic (to date, anyway) as a wallpaper for my desktop, but I'm certainly not going to stop reading it just because each page isn't a hand-painted watercolor.
The creator seems to have realized this is a weak spot too, as there are multiple references to "experimentation" in art styles surrounding some of the newer comics, and there is a marked improvement across the entire body of work when looking at all the comics, from the first to the last.
There are also a number of sly and subtle references to other comics hidden in some of the backgrounds, which (to me) is awesome. Look out for the "Save Hiatus" poster that pops up from time to time.
On Website:
The website is well-composed and functional, albeit a little bland. The bright yellow-orange color is the same as the standard-issue uniforms for the copy shop, so I'll let that pass (otherwise I'd recommend a more subdued tone). Navigation is nice and clean, and the archive page has the story arcs nicely broken down with overall topics and links to all.
The "About" page is really a character page, which is a little confusing. I usually like to see a little about the author and the forces behind the comic, however a character page was handy... I might recommend a restructure the next time the site is getting an overhaul, just to make it a little more intuative.
Overall:
When is a copy not a copy?
I find it hard to be overly hard to a well-done comic, and this is in all of it's elements a well-done comic. The writing and the characters are all solid, the artwork (while not perfect) is showing strong signs of improvement and is at the very least consistant.
The problem is... well... there are dozens (if not hundreds) of webcomics started each year about a common workplace with a grinding unrewarding job where people who could do better toil away and rely on their wacky gang of coworkers to not go insane. This is one of them. While this comic steps that formula up a level by adding some supernatural components to it... that just means that instead of being in a field of hundreds, it's down to a field of dozens. Several dozens.
The characters are compelling and realistic, but I can't help but feel they're "printed from the same copier" as dozens of other characters I've seen out there. From straight-arrow Az to broken-arrow Zoe, there's not a massively original character in the bunch. Any of these people could get fired from their copy shop and easily wind up at a bookstore, or a coffee shop, or the food court in the mall, or any other number of similar shops with an equally balanced cast of wacky and unusual characters.
Meanwhile, half an hour of trolling the "webcomic help wanted" boards could easily replace Zoe with overly-pierced Chloe (formerly from a webcomic where she worked at a coffee shop), or a tattooed Zelda (last employeed in a webcomic about Pretzels-R-Us), who would merge seemlessly with this cast and restore the balance.
Don't get me wrong. While this comic may be one-of-many, there are certainly a number of unique things about it that make it redeemable. The real question will be how the characters grow and develop, and how some of the more interesting plot elements develop as time goes by. It's planted in a grove with a lot of trees that are about the same age - if it continues to grow and can perhaps outstrip some of it's similar-themed contemporaries, then it could gain a lion's share of the sunshine and really take off.
Otherwise... it's probably going to be the recycle bin.
2nd Shift - http://2ndshiftcomic.com/
DescriptionThey are bright and talented, but they still ended up up on second shift at a small copy shop, anyway. One part comedy, one part paranormal, one part mutant ocean lemmings. 2nd Shift. Photocopying life... sorta. Tagsworkplace supernatural comic work second shift zoe humor photocopy comedy Related Webcomics |
Reviews
User: TianaSecond Shift.
And that's where it all starts, doesn't it...
The writing.
Here's 2nd Shift, a shift about just that: second shift at the workplace. Wonder of wonders, such an original idea... no, not really. You see, this story's strength and fault is its writing. It's an overdone comic idea, it's an overdone cast... you could grab any workplace comic and find that their cast is really quite interchangable. The 'just like you' main character who probably didn't quite really want to be there, and all in all plays the normal joe. Then there will be a fat guy for comic relief, an obligatory girl who will either be bitchy or insane. There must always be an insane character, probably punky. You can predict the cast of 2nd Shift before you even pick it up, and from there, you can really predict where it's going to go... because when you start reading it, it follow a very typical line of plot for a workplace comic.
Though the writing is strong, it might not be enough to save it from the stigma.
Because, you see, it's not all an average workplace comic. It throws in twists. Its characters are vivid and interesting with suitable character designs for their personalities, making them memorable... once you get past the 'every other workplace comic' cliche. It's not every other workplace comic. It could... and chances are, WILL get better.
You can predict the cast... so far. Things have already been said, enough to cover the plot, and I agree with what's been said in the other reviews. The writing is not bad. The characters are interesting and I can see it spinning into quite an interesting plot from here. It's just a little mysterious, with the normal ol' workplace plot on top. It's well paced and well played up.
But what's being used to convey this storyline?
Hmm.
The art.
J's art isn't that great. Is it improving? Aye. But if you read the archives, there seems to be some copying and pasting going on, and wonky anatomy. But it is certainly getting better.
Now, what it has going for it is that it's original. This is an art style you won't see that much. It's no anime ripoff. It's not traditional bad art, which makes it still interesting to read, even with its flaws. And if you see more art like this, you WILL think of Second Shift, because this art is original--it's certainly not a photocopy of every other comic's art!
Frankly, the lineart is the best part of this art. If it was a serious comic, I would want to see it black and white with bold black and white. Unfortunately the orange is critical to it being Second Shift. It's not 2nd Shift without the orange. Alas. Because it is really nice lineart, unfortunately, it's just paired with not that amazing art. It's improving fast, I'll give it that, and with some subtle background work and more work on ironing out the characters, it'll look a lot better.
The characters aren't very expressionate in the beginning, but they're getting there.
I want to see more black, I want to see more expression in the characters. But hey, J's already working to improve his art, so I'm forced to comment on the old things. It's going in that direction! It's getting better. The new art style looks like it has potential, and it's definately more expressive than most of the archives were in the beginning.
What's left? The site? It's very orange. It works. It suits the comic well enough. An about page rather than a cast page pretending to be an about page would be great, as well as a synopsis in the about page--as this is looking to be a little more complicated than most gag-a-day wordplace comics. It works.
So, what's there to say? It's not outstanding yet. It's not a comic I'll remember in a few months if I stopped reading it. If I saw art similar, I might be reminded of it again, because the art is memorable enough that you'll think of Second Shift if you see anything like this. It needs to be played up more. The writing, once you get into it, is really interesting and throws a twist on typical workplace comics... fun times. The art's improving and I think given a few more months of work on that art, and a few more months of story advancement, this will be a 4/5 comic.
But for now, it's too much like most of its predecessors to really be an outstanding comic. It's well written for its genre, the character interactions are enjoyable. If you enjoy workplace humor twisted with a bit of DUN DUN DUNNNN plot mystery... you should definately check out Second Shift.
The artist and writer is aware of the artistic flaws and certainly working to improve them. He's enthusiastic. For him, it's not just another workplace comic. It's Second Shift, it has its own cast with its own history and its own story... and it shows in the art and the writing.
Only the evolution into the future can shape this comic's fate, be it to the recycling bin of overused comic photocopies or to an outstanding 300 dpi scan of life... sorta.
User: amanda
On Writing: The writing is what hooked me! J has created characters with such depth and personality that you could easily imagine meeting these people out there in the real world. It's written with a slice-of-life bent that makes it funny, tense, and bittersweet, but there are also elements of the supernatural to keep you on your toes. J drops hints of the characters' pasts and has delved into them slightly, giving the reader a distinct impression that the story goes deeper than what has been revealed thus far.
On Art: When J first kicked off 2nd Shift, his art was service-able. His characters were a bit out of proportion, but they were still expressive - and ultimately, you could see exactly what he was trying to show you. As the comic goes on, you notice marked improvements in the art, a growing consistancy with the features of each character, and a much better sense of proportion. In more recent pages, you can see J branching out from his original style, experimenting with various aspects of his characters and implementing a few new tricks he's learned down the line. The new style that has emerged gives the comic a slightly more cartoony look without being childish, the linework is crisp and quite pretty, and the interactions between the characters seem more natural and less posed. To sum it up, he's improving rapidly with no signs of slowing down!
On Website: The first thing anyone will notice is orange. ORANGE! After checking through some of the pages, it becomes obvious that this is the trademark color of Copy King and is thus acceptable. ^.~ In fact, you may even come to like it! The site's navigation is straightforward and intuitive which makes it easy to find what that for which you are looking. I'd like to see a more attractive archive page, but that's a minor complaint.
Overall: *thumbs up* Good stuff! Set aside some time to check out the archives and catch up on the story - it's worth the read, and I have a hunch that you'll want to find out more about the characters and where the story will take them. J is constantly looking for ways to improve because he CARES about the story and about his characters, and his enthusiasm for 2nd Shift is palpable - that extra effort plays a big part in pulling you in.
User: kallisti
On Writing:
The basic story of this comic (so far) is following the adventures of delightfully-named Az (Asimov) and his new semi-love-interest, Zoe. Az has just (as the story begins) been thrust into a management role at the copy shop where he works, and amongst the things tossed at him on his first night is new employee (and sister of Az's boss), the mohawk-sporting nonconformist Zoe. Throw in the creepy guy (KC) who's a little too attached to one of their super-printers, the gay black artistic type guy (Charles), the big strong silent guy who's also deep and troubled (Eddie), and (after the first arc) the completely-oddball Delta who appears to be half-stuck in some parallel webcomic where the rules are a little... different.
The writing is strong and normally well thought-out. A tragic past haunts Zoe and prevents her from moving too fast on her evolving relationship with Az. Something (not yet revealed in the story) appears to be eating away at Eddie. And the entire thing surrounding Delta - I won't spoil it for you, you're going to have to read it yourself - has been well-played up until this point.
There are some holes, however... Az's rise to 2nd Shift manager comes at the cost of the death (accidental) of the former manager, who nobody seems to miss or particularly mourn the loss of. While it's possible that happened off-panel, the throw-away plot contrivance-ish nature of that amidst a comic that does fairly well at representing interpersonal relationships felt out-of-character for me.
On Art:
The art is... well, it's not that good. It isn't terrible, by any means or measure either. It's certainly not hard on the eyes like some comics are. I doubt I'd use anything made from the comic (to date, anyway) as a wallpaper for my desktop, but I'm certainly not going to stop reading it just because each page isn't a hand-painted watercolor.
The creator seems to have realized this is a weak spot too, as there are multiple references to "experimentation" in art styles surrounding some of the newer comics, and there is a marked improvement across the entire body of work when looking at all the comics, from the first to the last.
There are also a number of sly and subtle references to other comics hidden in some of the backgrounds, which (to me) is awesome. Look out for the "Save Hiatus" poster that pops up from time to time.
On Website:
The website is well-composed and functional, albeit a little bland. The bright yellow-orange color is the same as the standard-issue uniforms for the copy shop, so I'll let that pass (otherwise I'd recommend a more subdued tone). Navigation is nice and clean, and the archive page has the story arcs nicely broken down with overall topics and links to all.
The "About" page is really a character page, which is a little confusing. I usually like to see a little about the author and the forces behind the comic, however a character page was handy... I might recommend a restructure the next time the site is getting an overhaul, just to make it a little more intuative.
Overall:
When is a copy not a copy?
I find it hard to be overly hard to a well-done comic, and this is in all of it's elements a well-done comic. The writing and the characters are all solid, the artwork (while not perfect) is showing strong signs of improvement and is at the very least consistant.
The problem is... well... there are dozens (if not hundreds) of webcomics started each year about a common workplace with a grinding unrewarding job where people who could do better toil away and rely on their wacky gang of coworkers to not go insane. This is one of them. While this comic steps that formula up a level by adding some supernatural components to it... that just means that instead of being in a field of hundreds, it's down to a field of dozens. Several dozens.
The characters are compelling and realistic, but I can't help but feel they're "printed from the same copier" as dozens of other characters I've seen out there. From straight-arrow Az to broken-arrow Zoe, there's not a massively original character in the bunch. Any of these people could get fired from their copy shop and easily wind up at a bookstore, or a coffee shop, or the food court in the mall, or any other number of similar shops with an equally balanced cast of wacky and unusual characters.
Meanwhile, half an hour of trolling the "webcomic help wanted" boards could easily replace Zoe with overly-pierced Chloe (formerly from a webcomic where she worked at a coffee shop), or a tattooed Zelda (last employeed in a webcomic about Pretzels-R-Us), who would merge seemlessly with this cast and restore the balance.
Don't get me wrong. While this comic may be one-of-many, there are certainly a number of unique things about it that make it redeemable. The real question will be how the characters grow and develop, and how some of the more interesting plot elements develop as time goes by. It's planted in a grove with a lot of trees that are about the same age - if it continues to grow and can perhaps outstrip some of it's similar-themed contemporaries, then it could gain a lion's share of the sunshine and really take off.
Otherwise... it's probably going to be the recycle bin.