If You See The Hills
Genre:
Modern, Drama
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The sound of the city is a distant noise high up on the roofs, where sixteen-year-old Katja spends her afternoons in this coming-of-age teen drama.
Sure, "these are the times that you will miss," but being a teenager can be a struggle as you deal with growing up and all the changes that come with it. It certainly is for Katja, who like most teenagers, hates going to school. And why wouldn't she? Most of her teachers are drunk deadbeats, and once she graduates, the chances of finding a job look slim in her hometown (or anywhere else, for that matter). Spending her spare time at home, usually fighting with her unemployed mother, just isn't very tempting. So with no other place to go, Katja and her friends Sasha, Natalya and Luka hang out on the roofs of the city; the only place where there aren't any adults around, and they’re allowed to find out who they are and what they want to be when they grow up.
With only the blue sky above them, and the depressing gray city below them, Katja and her friends feel free and forget their dreary lives for a while. Here in the sun they spend almost all their free time, watching cloud shapes, pondering about life, falling in love and daydreaming about changing the world...
Thanks to everybody who voted and/or commented! It's been a great experience being part of the competition and a lot of fun.
I haven't decided if I'll continue the series elsewhere, but you can follow me on Twitter (www.twitter.com/salfield) or subscribe to my newsletter at newsletter@salfield.com to be the first to know about that or any other new comic I'm doing.
Some of the other entries have stronger art, but this story left the biggest impression on me. There's an honesty in your work and, out of all the entries, I'm most interested in seeing what happens next in your story. You have my vote.
There's something about this that appeals to me. I'm not keen on the art, but it feels like it starts in the right place and moves along naturally without overselling itself. Could go anywhere, but a nice set up.
The more I read "If You See The Hills" the fonder I become of it. It's unique...uplifting...a breathe of fresh air from the typical & yawn-worthy horror genre blah of many comics. As Kastner so aptly put it: "If you see the hills, you see the best comic." Be proud of yourself Mr. Field ;) Job well done :slap on the back:
This is great! It is one perfect episode. I hope it gets continued because I can see all sorts of things that could be developed.
Thanks, frequentcontributor, your comment made my day! And thanks to everyone else, too.
Hmmm... First of all, I don't really need to ever read more of this, but that's a good thing. This is such a sweet and funny and beautiful short story, and it could stay this way forever and be perfect. If you don't win, which you probably won't, judging by the standings, you should attempt to reformat this for something like McSweeney's...
Also, that first page is the best. Hell, that first panel is the best! I would love that very first panel of the city as a poster, it's so pretty. And the flow of the girl coming onto the roof over those three panels is really a prime example of something that can only really be done in comics. Very nice.
If you see the hills, you see the best comic!
Well done!
Awesome comic! Go get 'em, buddy! :-)
Kind of cute and interesting, but I can't say it grabbed me. Maybe if I was in school still, though.
Sal, congrats on getting into the competition. You have a knack for writing believable sounding dialogue. I would have liked to see more happen in these eight pages. All of the action is in the conversation, and it's hard to grab an audience with just talking heads. Good luck!
Thanks for the nice comments everyone.
I'm reminded of Scott McCloud when I look at your work (in a good way) great job.
My review:
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http://pigs-of-the-industry.blogspot.com/2009/08/zuda-review-if-you-see-hills-anyone.html
This was a refreshing read. Brought me back to the innocence and wonder of being a child/teenager. I would definitely like to see more. Keep it up!
Very nice work and I'm looking forward to the rest of the story.
I'm impressed. The depth makes you feel like your really up on the roof. To me the thing that stood out the most was the quality of the facial shadows. The quality jumps off the screen. Your talent is as boundless as your future.
Great dialogue! Best of lucks!
One Fan's Opinion & Review:
http://silianrailroad.blogspot.com/
this is one truely 's got potential!
i hope if the bad ranking position remains that you can tell the rest of the story, elsewhere!
good luck!
Oh forgot to say, "my cell is on the fritz lately" made me laugh. :D
good luck
Excellent work, great art, great look to it and a talent. So when's Hollywood picking up the rights? All the best my friend. :D
Muy Bueno!
Wow, I love this. You have talent - and that's sincere. I honestly mean it. I thank Marisa for showing me. ;)
love it!
@William_Duel: They certainly won't be stuck on that roof forever if the series continues, there'll definitely be other locations as well.
The writing is great and the character potential is there but I'll readily admit that these sorts of stories aren't my thing. And I have to wonder that in the case of a victory, would we really have to see that same blue sky for 52 pages? I think artistically you should have pushed the architecture of the buildings, while the layouts are great, the buildings themselves seem to turn into boxes. And maybe a slight scene change would have been a nice change of pace. Sorry if my comments are contrary to your goals for this comic.
Good stuff! Good luck this month.
too light, something is missing, like some fact, how sick IS the main character family or something that gives value to the fact of being there in the roofs.
...sorry bout that mpd..it was kinda late.
oops... But doesn't the sky look wondeful???
This is really compelling, and a breath of fresh air for Zuda. Good luck this month!
Uh...
That's 'gradient' as in the slope of the roof not the colouring which is fine ;-)
I really like these character. I can't wait to see where they eventually take us.
Thanks for all the comments.
@Melonie: Yeah, I really don't get why so many comic creators don't pay attention to lettering. It's becoming a lost art, especially in webcomics.
i think you have sth good at your mind for this story! good luck!
I'm a little disappointed in this. After the beautiful layout and panoramic view on the first page I had high hopes. Unfortunately you don't really take full advantage of the weight of your environment, your character models are a little stiff and your pacing is really slow. You did have a nice moment on page 6, but you didn't really establish the meat of your story.
Wonderful layout and clear storytelling.
Gradients work pretty well actually..hello???...Bayou???
I think you have a lot of potential going on with this, if you have the opportunity to take it further.
One thing is for sure, you are highly skilled with lettering, I was very impressed by how your text bubbles were placed and organized, along with the way you manipulated the text to fit the scene. For example, when the boy was talking quieter, you made the text smaller. It really stood out.
The overall story is nice and simple, and I loved how minimalistic it was. I have a hard time staying focused with comics that require excessive reading, but yours was great in this area, I got a nice relaxing read out of this.
I think it definitely needed some sort of oomph to capture interest, some sort of climax at least, but overall, I really did enjoy this and I hope to see you go far, because you have a lot of talent. :)
Reviewed.
http://leftyfilmsblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/zudaaugust2009.html
The first screen promised a lot and I was prepared to vote, but it all kinda slid off the roof for me - that's a nasty gradient! Kids huh? Perfectly good flat roof and you wanna sit on the apex?
Like the layout and the story. Very clear and clean. Cheers.
Nice work. I like that you're bring a more character driven aspect to the story as opposed to more of the plot driven devices of other comics. For me, I was reminded of Wet Moon, which I love and is also a compliment. Good luck!
@JeffAlbertson: Thanks, that's a great compliment, Waiting Place is one of my favorite comics!
@Fushigimonica: Wow, that was quick. I wasn't sure anybody would actually get that reference.
I found Loo-Kee! I love the natural interaction between the characters. The first page has a really nice feel to it and an interesting layout, visually it makes pages 2-4 seem a little bland in comparison but the strength in those pages is the excellent pacing used to break up the dialog.
Nicely done. Reminds me a bit of Sean McKeever's Waiting Place (which is intended to be a compliment, by the way). good luck in the competition.
This is really great. What a perfectly captured sentiment. Well done.