Today I discovered that Saturnalia had recently returned from an extended hiatus. (And by recently, I mean… many months ago.)

I sometimes wonder how many great comics I am still in mourning for that are now merrily updating away without my notice.

In any case, I happened to check up on this one and was well rewarded for doing so.

Saturnalia is one of those comics that may not blow me out of my shows, but is still fun to follow. It has manga style art, which can sometimes be a little chaotic to follow, but often with some exceptionally good scenes. The story is set in the future with your usual hot-headed protaganist and a whole set of quirky ‘friends’.

The plot, as of yet, has a lot of mysteries, and if some things seem to be done a little too neatly… well, that may be explained in time.

However, I discovered one thing that was done exceptionally well during the months I had missed.

Chapter Nine of the story focuses on an announcement made by the King of the planet. Up till then we’ve only heard strange rumors about the King, and implications that something horrible and shady may be going on behind the scenes.

The King himself is over three hundred years old, and despite the machines that keep him alive, his body is failing.

At this point you are expecting someone diabolical. This man controls the entire world – an ancient genius plotting who knows what. Your first view of him is the visage up above – a shadowy figure, isolated and alone.

What I was not expecting was a figure who looked nothing so much as a boy playing dress-up, in an outfit a few sizes too big.

Looking close, the facade of youth is clearly that, from a physical standpoint – King Hal the first appears far from healthy.

But he still acts like a kid. He suffers from a fear of public speaking. He dwells on the achievements he made in high school – in grade school, despite it being three hundred years later. Several of the silly names of cities, communities, and the kingdom itself make much more sense, if you imagine a man like this as the founder.

One does not expect him to cut such a jovial figure, but he manages it well – despite his extra pair of arms.

Now, is this all there is to him? Doubtful.

It could well be that he is a diabolical genius planning something sinister. But whether a villain or not, he is an interesting character.

The creator, Space Coyote, has done something very well – they have subverted expectations. They took what could have been something easily cliche – and mindless, and dull – and done something completely unexpected with it. And that makes it all the more fascinating.

Does this mean every artist should throw absurd characters into the story without reason or explanation? Well no – one of the reasons the character of King Hal works is that the very flaws in the character make him believable. And he clearly has a place in the story – he isn’t thrown in recklessly.

Having that sort of originality is vital for a storyteller. As I mentioned earlier, I enjoy Saturnalia, but it has rarely wowed me. Adding something new and exciting, though – that makes me remember it. That gets my attention.

I’m not saying to try and constantly one-up the reader. Don’t ruin the integrity of the story because you are afraid readers might see the plot twist coming, and don’t create wacky characters or events solely to try and shock and dazzle the reader. It isn’t about beating the reader in some obscure way – but it is about doing something to win them over and get them coming back.

But if you can carefully, subtely lead their thought process one way, and then successfully subvert that expectation with something fascinating and clever?

Then the game is already halfway won.

I’ve noticed a handful of webcomics have returned from the lands beyond while I was gone.

This pleases me greatly.

These days, I find it safer to assume that a comic on hiatus will never more see the light of day. This isn’t to say I don’t check back with them time and time again – but this way, if they do resume, the return is all the sweeter.

Anyway, on to the show:

NeverNever has seen its share of troubles. It has had no less than three long breaks, each of them close to two years in length. Since its inception, it has had more time in absentia than actually updating.

But… it keeps coming back.

Given how many setbacks it has had, the fact that it returns time and time again (much like its primary villain, the Black Knight himself) is pretty damn impressive.

It’s a nice comic. I’m glad to see it back. For the most part, it isn’t anything heartbreaking or award-winning – just a classy little comic with cute characters, a fun story, and its fair share of silly jokes.

The new artist is looking like an absolutely perfect fit for the style, to be sure. So I’m all the more eager to see where it is going from here.

In any case, it’s likely this isn’t news to you – NeverNever’s return has been pretty heavily hyped, just as it has in the past. (As a matter of fact, I think one of its previous rebounds was when I first was introduced to it.)

There is another comic whose return, on the other hand, may have fallen a bit more under the radar: On the Playground.

I plan to give some more in-depth chatter on that bad boy tomorrow, but thought I should make sure to spread the word as soon as possible. This is a fantastic comic – filled with a lot of the cuteness that has made Count Your Sheep into such a star, though it tends to bring out its sharper edge more often than not. Of course, sometimes childhood wins out too.

In any case, some great comics that I’m glad to see back on the funny pages… so to speak.

Notable things this week, at least in my humble opinion:

–Queen of Wands is back! It is still on reruns, but even those are pretty quality reading, especially with the daily commentary.

-All that stuff I posted about My Nemesis? Yeah, I was wrong, Kal’s still a dick. But hey! the strip is still very pretty and has its own fun brand of humor. I’m not entirely sure where he is going with it all, but its fun to read nonetheless. (Now, as to whether this latest development makes the strip more or less deep I’ve not yet decided. Of course, as long as I’m enjoying reading it, it probably doesn’t even matter.)

–Some interesting stuff going on over at Girls with Slingshots, and not just because they are at a strip club. Rawr!

-I’ll admit, it was kinda fun seeing Rayne end up in over his head. He’s one of those guys that always seems to come out on top (no pun intended), so having things not end up perfectly for him was perversely satisfying.

-Finally, I just started reading Goblins. It does the gaming parody riff rather well – but it also seems to have a good sense of more serious elements.

Aaaand, that’s all for this week.