22 replies to this topic

[Mysticgamer]

I liked the back story it gave to NID which I hope to play some day. I liked seeing Jackle. I didn't like how Nights was basically sonic in a jester out fit. And didn't like the fact that Nights turned on his friends and family because the pink hair girl in yellow asked him. What about you?

[DAiLiGHT]

I loved everything about those comics. They were witty in a "90's humor" kind of way. "Suddenly I feel like I have the energy of the Chicago Bulls' starting lineup! Coolness!" <--- That line will always be iconic in my memory. I personally loved the comics and everything about them. They were really what introduced me to the NiGHTS franchise and I will never forget them.

One problem I have with them is yes, I didn't quite agree with the way NiGHTS turned on Wizeman and Reala just because random pinkhair girl said "please". You know.

But I loved the artwork and the witty comments and everything. I especially loved the second series where Reala comes more into play and the artists really play his image and personality up to be a complete manipulative psychopath.

[NNR07]

When I first read them, I thought they were the best thing ever to be in my hands.

After looking back at them; now an artist...

I can say I'm not pleased with the way NiGHTS was drawn all the time, and maybe the story changed a little too much for me at the end. I don't really mind the first three, but they definitely could've done better with some parts of the story.

I can read the first three without RAAAAAAAGE, though.

The last three?:



Ok; last three I can stand as well, I just prefer the first 3.

I also despise how they made him look too human in some points.

[Mysticgamer]

When I first read them, I thought they were the best thing ever to be in my hands.

After looking back at them; now an artist...

I can say I'm not pleased with the way NiGHTS was drawn all the time, and maybe the story changed a little too much for me at the end. I don't really mind the first three, but they definitely could've done better with some parts of the story.

I can read the first three without RAAAAAAAGE, though.

The last three?:



Ok; last three I can stand as well, I just prefer the first 3.

I also despise how they made him look too human in some points.

The second series was drawn by Sam Maxwell. IMO one of the worst comic artist I've ever. Nights went from a flying dream court jester to stick figure muppet in his hands.

[TRiPPY]

I liked- Rodger. I thought it was cool Archie tried to bring some of the more obscure charachters into it. I mean wtf they actualy knew about Mepians.

I hated- THE CHINS. THE CHINS. ARGH THE CHINS THEY MAKE MY EYES BLEED. Actualy i disliked a lot about the comics. But thesedays i like them because theyre so bad theyre good. In a sort of shudderish way.

edit- sort of like strong vodka.

[DiGi Valentine]

What i like about them? ....er.... ok, well, if anything - a NiGHTS comic exists out there somewhere. The thought of an official NiGHTS comic existing is probably the only good thing about it since there has not been a comic about NiGHTS from anywhere else (other than fan doujinshi's but that doesn't really count).

What i hate about it is everything in it. No care or consideration went in to it at all.

[DAiLiGHT]

There is something else I think I should mention. In EVERY SINGLE ISSUE, whenever the word "Nightopian" or "Nightmaren" or something like that comes up, they HAVE to define it at the bottom in that Archieish way of theirs. WTF? It's as if no one read the last issue so they feel they have to define it again.

It's six issues long, the series, and every issue has the words "Malevolent Dream Creature" and "Benevolent Dream Creature" in a little yellow box at the bottom.

[Nemoide]

I was actually re-reading the series a couple of months ago so it is still fresh in my mind.
The first three issues have fairly good art in my opinion. I really like Spaz's work in Sonic but I do not think he was working hard enough to capture the feel of NiGHTS. Still, he did a respectable enough job and it stands as good as I think it possibly could be as a series coming from Archie. Spaz was possibly the only member of Archie's staff at the time to also be a gamer and Saturn fan. I think he was also the first Sonic regular artist who was a Sonic fan before being hired. He has my respect, even if he illustrated a poor-quality comic.
The writing in the first three issues was trying way too hard to appeal to young kids. I'm going to blame the Archie bigwigs because a lot of the dialog makes the comic feel like Riverdale with a coat of paint over it. NiGHTS tries to spout out catchy one-liners and the feel of the world off balance. When I played NiGHTS, the mysterious nature of things were a large part of the appeal. Things seemed to be serious yet also ambiguous and the player did not really know about large portions of the game. This enriched the world, in my opinion. However for the comics they defined everything constantly laying things out so that small children could easily understand the plot, as well as trying to make NiGHTS appealing and somewhat edgy. I could almost imagine him wearing a backwards baseball cap and skateboarding. The writing just ruined his character and really brought down the entire world.

The second mini-series on the other hand managed to be even WORSE. I found nothing appealing at all about those comics. One thing that stands out as bothersome about it is the fact they regular reference is made to the fact that NiGHTS looks like a mime. The problem being that he DOESN'T look like a mime at all but rather a jester.

The biggest flaw with both series are that they are aimed at an Archie audience rather than a general "all-ages" sort of thing. I am glad that NiGHTS was able to get some merchandise in this country in the form of the comic but honestly the comics do not stand up on their own.

ALSO WORTH NOTING - after the original three-issue mini-series it was announced that NiGHTS into Dreams would be made into a regular monthly series. Presumably the second mini-series sold so poorly they scrapped that plan.

ANYWAY, I HAVE RAMBLED ENOUGH NOW!

[DAiLiGHT]

I liked the second series because it sort of toned down NiGHTS' powers and made him seem more human to me. The first series almost portrayed him as like, God. Able to fly and Dualize and do all kinds of crap whereas the second series, he was wobbly and freaked out and half dead.

[NNR07]

I liked- Rodger. I thought it was cool Archie tried to bring some of the more obscure charachters into it. I mean wtf they actualy knew about Mepians.

I hated- THE CHINS. THE CHINS. ARGH THE CHINS THEY MAKE MY EYES BLEED. Actualy i disliked a lot about the comics. But thesedays i like them because theyre so bad theyre good. In a sort of shudderish way.

edit- sort of like strong vodka.

Didn't they get most of their info on stuff from SEGA? I remember SiLK explaining that to me.

... yeah XD;. NiGHTS's chin was like... too pointy. And it was like a 'u'; not THAT pointy, but already pointy enough.

... Same XD;.

The second series was drawn by Sam Maxwell. IMO one of the worst comic artist I've ever. Nights went from a flying dream court jester to stick figure muppet in his hands.

Look at Superman, Batman, Spiderman, Lucky Star, Kingdom Hearts, Love Hina, Chibi Vampire, Simpsons, Futurama, ANY Comic or Manga. The general rule of thumb is that all the artists are suppose to mimic the main artist (if it's a team of artists drawing). i.e.: Bongo Comics; Matt Groming draws the Simpsons, and any other artists draw similarly to him. The Last 3 NiGHTS comics should've stayed true to that rule of thumb.

[Nyx]

Okay, before I get into my lecture mode, let me just say that don't hate the comics -- I actually do like them, for what they're worth. What's one thing I like about it? The way everyone hates it.

Seriously, though -- Even if they weren't the best in terms of official comics, they did what they were supposed to do -- get the fanbase to it's feet. Think about it -- they were 'bad enough' to make many of the artists in the NiGHTS fanbase make their own comics -- just to show that it could have been done better.

Honestly, I was happy that there was a comic at all. Parts of it I rolled my eyes at -- a lot of the jokes were corny. But it was the comments and responses by those who had read the comic that were the real gems.

What disappointed me the most was the storyline. They could have gone so much further. What about a lucid dreamer who could bring items from the dreamworld back with them? What about what happens when Claris and Elliot get older? What would happen if someone could manipulate pieces of the real world like the dream world? There were hundreds of possibilities, and they chose to do a watered down recap of the game and a confusing, somewhat pointless continuation.

Don't get me wrong -- the recap wasn't a bad choice. Since you jumped right into gameplay in the first game, you kind of guessed the story as you went. Done correctly, they could have done some pretty interesting things -- but Archie didn't do it very well. NiGHTS's life before he rebelled? Great choice, and they could have spun it into gold -- but yet again, they didn't deliver. Seriously, NiGHTS would have had to seen, done, or heard something that would have made him be convinced so quickly by the girl.

Also, there were many portions of the art that I thought were kind of amateurish for an 'official' comic.

That being said, I've also read the 'Return to the Labyrinth' manga by Jake Forbes and Chris Lie -- the same thing happened there. They had tons of material to work with, the fans were screaming to know what happened after the Labyrinth movie, and they could have chosen anybody to work on it. When the first volume came out, many of the fans didn't like the beginning that the writers had chosen to continue the story, and most fans agreed that the artist that they had chosen was irritatingly ill-suited for drawing the characters. A lot of the fans only bought it because it was the official continuation of a subject that they already loved.

Going back to the topic at hand, things are rather similar. Many didn't like the story, and most didn't care for the art -- yet they bought it to complete the collection.

Me, personally, I'm neutral. Do I like them? Yes.
Could they have been done better? I have no doubt.
Did they achieve their purpose? If their purpose was to entertain and awe the fanbase -- No. Not by a long shot. However, I saw their purpose as a challenge to the fanbase. A challenge to do better. And that's one challenge that I'm up to.

[Mysticgamer]

[quote name='Nyx' date='May 25 2008, 04:38 PM' post='52142']
Okay, before I get into my lecture mode, let me just say that don't hate the comics -- I actually do like them, for what they're worth. What's one thing I like about it? The way everyone hates it.

Seriously, though -- Even if they weren't the best in terms of official comics, they did what they were supposed to do -- get the fanbase to it's feet. Think about it -- they were 'bad enough' to make many of the artists in the NiGHTS fanbase make their own comics -- just to show that it could have been done better.

Honestly, I was happy that there was a comic at all. Parts of it I rolled my eyes at -- a lot of the jokes were corny. But it was the comments and responses by those who had read the comic that were the real gems.

What disappointed me the most was the storyline. They could have gone so much further. What about a lucid dreamer who could bring items from the dreamworld back with them? What about what happens when Claris and Elliot get older? What would happen if someone could manipulate pieces of the real world like the dream world? There were hundreds of possibilities, and they chose to do a watered down recap of the game and a confusing, somewhat pointless continuation.

These are all plots that would have been more fascinating than the second series comics.


Don't get me wrong -- the recap wasn't a bad choice. Since you jumped right into gameplay in the first game, you kind of guessed the story as you went. Done correctly, they could have done some pretty interesting things -- but Archie didn't do it very well. NiGHTS's life before he rebelled? Great choice, and they could have spun it into gold -- but yet again, they didn't deliver. Seriously, NiGHTS would have had to seen, done, or heard something that would have made him be convinced so quickly by the girl.

Like say, a grisly ritual to extract the ideya from the two dreamers.

[Saphira]

Archie's comics had many cons to it, and few pros.

Cons:
WTH is up with NiGHTS?! It looks like somebody put him through a taffy puller, then squished his face.
Why would NiGHTS betray Wizeman and Reala just because the girl said so?
Cheezy lines...
Terrible handwriting... I could barely read what Wizeman said.
It looks like no one took the time to fix the mistakes, and FIX NiGHTS's HEAD!!!!

Pros:
Entertaining in some parts

[Envy]

I really liked the art and the story in the first part, but the second was just blah. Not worth buying to me...

What I didn't like about the comics was when I tried to buy the first one online and the stupid store tried charging my credit card twice and then when that mess was fixed the sold it to someone else..

So really I guess I hate that stupid store.

[Murasaki Doku]

The one thing I like about the Archie comics was the eventual production of Parody into Dreams. 'Nuff said.

The thing I hated the most was the artwork. If you could call it that. The marens were some sort of half-assed attempt, halfway between human and maren. I'm all for individual drawing style, but that's just ridiculous. If I counted all the times they forgot to draw NiGHTS's shoe-straps, I would need more than all of my fingers and toes. It breaks my heart to know that the artist was, at the time, probably twice the age I am now, and I spent much more care in my drawings, even if they're just notebook doodles.

[phosphorus]

If NiGHTS looked less demented in that particular panel, I'd really like the picture of NiGHTS brushing his teeth.

[DAiLiGHT]

I loved that if just for the dementedness. I loved the "APTIVA! OOOF! Walking! What a strange conept!" page. XD

[JAZZ-man]

the comics were more intresting. the only ones i like are the first three.

[Penelopi]

The weird art style was one of the first things I noticed. In the post-NiD story, NiGHTS looked drunk when Elliot and Claris were helping him up the stairs. People's eyebrows did weird things. The dialogue throughout the whole thing was very cliche. When there was the whole "half-good, half-bad," discussion between the mepian and the nightopian, I groaned. So cheesy! It sounded as random as my brother's jokes, and those are very random. But I liked how the comics gave a creative backstory for Twin Seeds. That was pretty original.

[Empa]

WHAT I DISLIKED WAS THE LAST THREE.
Good for some lulz, but nothing else really.

What I liked most was all the awesome faces Elliot made all the time lol. For instance when he got hit with a mallet.

[Dreamer#96]

the one thing i liked about it is when NiGHTS was in Elliots body,but when they go to the muesuem and all the dumb things NiGHTS does,first of all,NiGHTS isnt that dumb to go talking about Nightopian and Nightmare and wizeman and all of that in the real world,and then Reala in roger's body,that just makes it worse,that part might of been good if they didnt make NiGHTS look dumb,other then that,the comic was OK,but it could of been better

[TheOrangeNightmare]

"Suddenly I feel like I have the energy of the Chicago Bulls' starting lineup! Coolness!"

GO BULLS!!!! I LOVED almost EVERYTHING about it!!! The only thing was that NiGHTS really never said anything...he was just kind of the kids with powers. He never spoke for himself. SPEAK TO ME NiGHTS!!! SPEAK TO MEEEE!!

[Hoban]

Yeah, wasn't that the weird part? At the same time I thought it was kinda cool. It's like they simply possessed NiGHTS' body and controlled everything about him, like just became him. And NiGHTS only "woke up" when he senses somebody else in danger or had to do something and such.

And since when could a dream creature with no neck eat stuff?