Welcome

Women on the Web – B.L. Jacobs

If you’re as much of a comic book nut as I am, you’ve already discovered the wonderful world of webcomics.  For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about: imagine a comic book online instead of on paper.  That’s the essence of what they are.  There are webcomics out there to suit every taste, from the fantastic fiction fan to complex soap opera aficionado, and to suit every sense of humor, from nutty slapstick to dark, gallows humor.  They come in every genre and every artistic style.

If fantasy, romance, and rich art are to your taste, check out Xyliatales by B.L. Jacobs.  It’s the story of a young historian named Charles, who discovers his long lost connections to the faerie realm of Azloe, the love of a faerie woman named Xylia, and the adventures they shared through his multiple lifetimes.

The art of Xyliatales is what I find most captivating about the series.  It’s luxuriantly colored and realistic.  Jacobs has a wonderful style that sits on the line where realism and cartooning mix—similar to current style used to draw superheroes, but without the harshness—the shadows blend instead of cut, the colors soften instead of accentuate.  The “real” world, the one the story begins in, is predominately neutral colors that contrast sharply with the world of Azloe where the color is much more vibrant and everything seems more alive.

Jacobs also does the writing for the series (proving she’s that rare bird—an artist who can draw and write) and the story is highly original, though the first few pages—with the rather typical Only--Can-Save-The-World storyline—are cheesy and clichéd.  Appropriate, under the circumstances, but cheesy and clichéd.  The storyline and the writing get better after the first few pages.  Xyliatales has a certain dreamy quality in its writing that some would call “mushy” and others “romantic.”  I think it’s suitable for the story; Charles has been misdiagnosed as a schizophrenic, is hopelessly in love with Xylia, and faced with a world that is usually only found in fantasy novels, all of which might make one a little “dreamy.”  There are also touches of humor here and there as well as the prerequisite cute animal, a Welsh-Corgi named Livy.

If I have any complaints about the series it is that it does not update very regularly, but that’s pretty minor, all things considered.

Check it out at www.xyliatales.com, as well as the rest of Jacobs’ awesome work.