Dumbing of Age

Last updated
Dumbing of Age
Dumbingofagecomic1.png
Author(s) David Willis
Website dumbingofage.com
Current status/scheduleUpdates daily
Launch dateSeptember 10, 2010
Genre(s)
  • Drama
  • Slice of life
  • Comedy

Dumbing of Age is a webcomic about college life at Indiana University by cartoonist David Willis with themes involving drama or comedy, occasionally with a mixture of both. The series itself is a reboot reusing characters from Willis' previous comics (Roomies!, It's Walky!, Joyce and Walky!, and Shortpacked!). [1] [2] While Willis' previous webcomics shared a science-fiction universe, Dumbing of Age is independent of these, reflecting more slice-of-life than the previous works. [3] The comic is generally set in the present day, yet not set in any particular year due to the glacial pacing (Every in-universe day takes around 1-2 months of daily comics), current technologies are depicted in-comic anachronistically so the comic is not a period piece. [4] Willis has reported Dumbing of Age to be his most popular webcomic, with a readership that around three times that of Shortpacked!. [5]

Contents

Plot and themes

The story follows a large ensemble cast, most of which are Indiana University first-years living in the same co-ed dorm. Major characters including a Christian girl who was homeschooled, an atheist who is her best friend, a cheerleader who has been disgraced, and many other characters. [4] There are themes of parental abuse, depression, attempted suicide, sexual assault, [6] and some instance of homophobic and transphobic sayings, along with other mature themes.

Characters

Publication

David Willis announced at AnimeFest 2010 that his newest project is titled Dumbing of Age, a return to the setting of the original Roomies! comic, Indiana University, with both old characters from Roomies!, It's Walky!, and Shortpacked! as well as new characters created for Dumbing of Age. [11] [12] Writer and researcher Sean Kleefeld later noted that Willis set the comic in college so he could "work out his personal demons" and to connect with a bigger audience, even though, as Kleefeld puts it, "the characters remained fundamentally the same." [13]

On September 18, 2020, Willis announced that he would be drawing a Patreon-only comic based on the in-universe Dexter and the Monkey Master comics. [14]

Influences

In an interview with The Mary Sue , Willis said that he based Joyce and her family on his own upbringing, with his parents reading the "early 1980s equivalent of Fox News ," removing everything that she thought would "corrupt" him, like Scooby-Doo , Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears , Care Bears, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood , and The Simpsons , with his family attending a "nondenominational fundamentalist Protestant church." [9] Apart from that, he stated that he passively listened to others, following "wonderful people" on Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook, hearing what they have to say, and trying to find empathy with others, even if he makes himself "a little uncomfortable" and confronts his white privilege, even revising "false information" at times.

Reception

The comic has been received somewhat positively. Some said that the "sharp changes between humour and seriousness" are a trademark for the comic, [15] while others have called it interesting and enjoyable, even if it is a source of frustration to see "characters in a different setting." [16] Maggie Vicknair of Comics Beat stated while it would not be possible to accurately summarize every plot moment in the comic, each chapter "revolves around one day and jumps between different characters’ adjacent plot lines," with stories range in their subject and tone, even as they are all in the same universe, along with many "interconnected romance plots." [17] Tom Speelman of ComicsAlliance called it one of "the best original ongoing comics being published today," with the characters learning about "life's ups and downs and that adulthood isn't easy," and called it Willis' magnum opus, saying it has "emotionally true storytelling." [18] He further said that the comic has a "crack sense of humor" and said that anyone coming into college, in college, or in high school should read it, along with those who like his previous works or other webcomics like Questionable Content , Girls With Slingshots or R. K. Milholland's Something Positive.

Related Research Articles

8-Bit Theater is a sprite comic created by Brian Clevinger that ran from 2001 to 2010 and consisting of 1,225 pages. It is a sprite comic, meaning the art is mainly taken from pre-existing video game assets. The webcomic was at times one of the most popular webcomics, and the most popular sprite comic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harvey Pekar</span> American comic book writer, music critic and media personality

Harvey Lawrence Pekar was an American underground comic book writer, music critic, and media personality, best known for his autobiographical American Splendor comic series. In 2003, the series inspired a well-received film adaptation of the same name.

<i>Questionable Content</i> Webcomic by Jeph Jacques

Questionable Content is a slice-of-life webcomic written and illustrated by Jeph Jacques. It was launched in August 2003 and reached its 5,000th comic in March 2023. The plot originally centered on Marten Reed, an indie rock fan; his anthropomorphized personal computer Pintsize; and his roommate, Faye Whitaker. However, over time a supporting cast of characters has grown to include employees of the local coffee shop, neighbors, and androids. QC's storytelling style combines romantic melodrama, situational comedy, and sexual humor, while considering questions of relationships, sexuality, dealing with emotional trauma, and artificial intelligence and futurism.

<i>Real Life</i> (webcomic) American webcomic by Maelyn Dean

Real Life is an American webcomic drawn and authored by Maelyn Dean. It began on November 15, 1999, and is still updated, after breaks from December 10, 2015, to September 10, 2018, and again from July 16, 2019, to June 15, 2020. The comic is loosely based around the lives of fictionalized versions of Dean and her friends, including verbatim conversations, as well as fictional aspects including time travel and mecha combat. Characters regularly break the fourth wall. Real Life focuses on humor related to video games and science fiction, and references internet memes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miss America (Madeline Joyce)</span> Fictional superhero appearing in Marvel comics

Miss America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Otto Binder and artist Al Gabriele, the character first appeared in Marvel Mystery Comics #49 in the Golden Age of Comic Books. Madeline Joyce is the first incarnation of Miss America. The character has also been a member of the Invaders, Liberty Legion, and All-Winners Squad at various points in her history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brad Guigar</span> American cartoonist

Brad Guigar is an American cartoonist who is best known for his daily webcomic Greystone Inn and its sequel Evil Inc.

Chris Crosby is a co-founder and the chief executive officer of Keenspot, a company providing a platform and network for webcomics. They are also a comics writer and artist, with works including Superosity, Sore Thumbs, and Snap The Punk Turtle.

<i>Erma</i> (webtoon) Webcomic by Brandon J. Santiago

Erma is a fantasy-dark comedy slice of life webtoon created by Mexican artist Brandon J. Santiago. It follows the adventures and misadventures of the titular eight-year-old Erma Williams' experiences as a half-human, half-yōkai/half-ghost, tending to use her haunting abilities for everyday antics, whether for better or for worse, focusing on themes such as friendship and acceptance. Santiago initially published the webcomic on DeviantArt and Tumblr in May 2014, but has since released it on various services from January 2016, such as Tapas and WEBTOON. It is available in two languages, English and Spanish. In January 2020, Comics Beat reported that with 64.5 million views and 74.9 thousand subscribers, Erma was the most-viewed webcomic on the Tapas syndicate in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Willis (cartoonist)</span> American web cartoonist (born 1979)

David M Willis is an American web cartoonist currently living in Columbus, Ohio. He is best known for his interconnected series of webcomics Roomies!, It's Walky!, Shortpacked!, and Dumbing of Age. Willis is also known online for his chatrooms and forums including "ItsWalky". KUTV in Salt Lake City calls him a satirist who is "a little bit edgy."

Watch Your Head is a webcomic and former daily syndicated comic strip written and illustrated by Cory Thomas, focusing on the lives of six students at a fictional historically black university. Based upon Thomas' experiences as a student at Howard University, Watch Your Head was first published in Howard's newspaper, The Hilltop.

Sluggy Freelance is a long-running webcomic written and drawn by Pete Abrams. Starting in 1997, it is one of the oldest successful webcomics, and as of 2012 had hundreds of thousands of readers. Abrams was one of the first comic artists successful enough to make a living from a webcomic.

<i>Ménage à 3</i> (webcomic) Webcomic

Ménage à 3 is a webcomic by Gisèle Lagacé and David Lumsdon. The comic ran from 2008 to 2019.

Notable events of 2004 in webcomics.

Notable events of 2005 in webcomics.

The business of webcomics involves creators earning a living through their webcomic, often using a variety of revenue channels. Those channels may include selling merchandise such as t-shirts, jackets, sweatpants, hats, pins, stickers, and toys, based on their work. Some also choose to sell print versions or compilations of their webcomics. Many webcomic creators make use of online advertisements on their websites, and possibly even product placement deals with larger companies. Crowdfunding through websites such as Kickstarter and Patreon are also popular choices for sources of potential income.

Assigned Male is a webcomic illustrated and written by Sophie Labelle. It draws upon her experiences as a trans girl and woman. The comic, and series of zines, address issues of gender norms and privilege. It began in October 2014 and is ongoing, published in English and French. The webcomic is released in printed anthologies on Labelle's online store.

Giant Days is a comedic comic book written by John Allison, with art by Max Sarin and Lissa Treiman. The series follows three young women – Esther de Groot, Susan Ptolemy and Daisy Wooton – who share a hall of residence at university. Originally created as a webcomic spin-off from his previous series Scary Go Round, and then self-published as a series of small press comics, Giant Days was subsequently picked up by Boom! Studios first as a six-issue miniseries and then as a monthly ongoing series. In 2016 Giant Days was nominated for two Eisner Awards and four Harvey Awards. In 2019, it won two Eisner awards, for Best Continuing Series and Best Humor Publication.

Notable events of the late 1990s in webcomics.

Venus Envy is a webcomic written and designed by a trans woman, and artist, named Crystal Frasier. It was first released in 2001. In addition to dealing with the themes of transgender people and gender transition, the strip also deals with other themes such as adolescence in general, William Shakespeare and women's soccer.

References

  1. ↑ Inglis-Arkell, Esther (September 20, 2010). "'Roomies' Webcomic Creator Heads Back to College in 'Dumbing of Age'". ComicsAlliance . Archived from the original on January 24, 2011. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  2. ↑ Hanson, Ralph E. (2016). Mass Communication: Living in a Media World (Sixth ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications. p. 556. ISBN   9781506358567.
  3. ↑ Willis, David (March 18, 2013). "At the beginning of Dumbing of Age I did a very..." Tumblr . Archived from the original on March 13, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  4. 1 2 Willis, David (2020). "About". Official website of Dumbing of Age. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  5. ↑ Willis, David (March 17, 2015). "How popular (in terms of pageviews) have each of your webcomics been?". Tumblr . Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Dunstan, Elliott (March 24, 2017). "Review: 'Dumbing of Age' Book One: This Campus Is A Friggin' Escher Print". Monkeys Fighting Robots. Archived from the original on January 5, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Dunstan, Elliott (March 30, 2017). "Review: 'Dumbing of Age' Book Two: The Cragged Shame Pits of the Lustwolves". Monkeys Fighting Robots. Archived from the original on January 5, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  8. 1 2 Sando, Joe (August 12, 2014). "A Deadshirt Webcomics Field Guide to: David Willis' Dumbing of Age". Deadshirt.net. Archived from the original on November 27, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  9. 1 2 Willis, David (November 4, 2015). "Webcomic Spotlight: An Interview with David Willis, Creator of Dumbing of Age and Shortpacked". The Mary Sue (Interview). Interviewed by Alex Townsend. Archived from the original on July 6, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  10. ↑ "This is totally babies". July 2015.}
  11. ↑ DeLuna, John (2010). "Shortpacked! Panel - AnimeFest 2010". Vimeo . Archived from the original on September 14, 2010. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  12. ↑ Willis, David (2020). "Dumbing of Age - A college webcomic by David Willis". Official website of Dumbing of Age. Archived from the original on January 2, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  13. ↑ Kleefeld, Sean (2020). Webcomics. London, England: Bloomsbury Publishing. pp. 159–160. ISBN   978-1350028197.
  14. ↑ Willis, David (September 18, 2020). "Story". Official website of Dumbing of Age. Archived from the original on November 18, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  15. ↑ Dunstan, Elliott (April 28, 2017). "Review: 'Dumbing of Age' Book Four: Amazi-Girl is Always Prepared For Anything". Monkeys Fighting Robots. Archived from the original on January 5, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  16. ↑ Baden, Robert J. (November 28, 2012). "World of Webcomics: 'Dumbing of Age'". Fanbase Press. Archived from the original on September 29, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  17. ↑ Vicknair, Maggie (November 30, 2016). "Webcomics in Review: Dumbing of Age – Changing for the Better". Comics Beat . Archived from the original on May 18, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  18. ↑ Speelman, Tom (March 10, 2016). "College, Everyone: Should You Be Reading 'Dumbing of Age'?". ComicsAlliance . Archived from the original on September 29, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2021.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.