Obviously with so many webcomics living out in the ether, there’s going to be some hits and some misses.
I’m going to firmly place Under the Influence in the “miss” column.
The idea, while perhaps a bit pedestrian, has its merits: Young people are hip. Young people like to drink. Young people like sex. Young people are funny.
Generally, that’s the formula necessary to having a fairly successful webcomic.
The problem is that Under the Influence has yet to deliver on that promise.
Take this strip, for example:
Obviously there’s a context you’re missing here (they’re talking about a band they just saw, and that the comic just spent a number of strips on), but even if you go and read the whole story-line, I still don’t get the punchline.
Why can we call them the Pied Pipers of Williamsburg?
Perhaps more importantly, Why is that “awful” (besides the obvious reason that, since it’s not a joke, it’s awful)? Because there’s the implication there’s a pun here–a wordplay that we as the reader should be picking up–but I’ve read this strip a dozen times, and I just don’t understand what the joke is.*
And that’s pretty much how I feel about the webcomic as a whole.
Ultimately, there’s very little here that would make me come back to see if the artist, Chris Liatsis, ever gets something going. The art is nothing exciting, the story-lines are confusing (the whole thing with the band and hipsters doesn’t make a great deal of sense–and has limited broad appeal, anyway), and I’m still not really sure what the roles of the different characters are, especially Jack, the protagonist’s best friend.
At least, I assume he is.
Just as I assume the protagonist, Adam, is going out with Sam.
In the end, though, I’m simply not into it enough to even worry about who’s who.
The one chance he might have in redeeming this strip is with “The Drinker’s Survival Guide,” which at least holds the kernels of a good idea and therefore the possibility of delivering on a continuous, humorous comic.
But, with entries like this (and no, there aren’t actually forty-six lessons–for some reason he randomly chooses numbers to label each lesson), I’m not sure if he’s got the material necessary to consistently produce the “Survival Guide”:
Personally, if you want a great webcomic that touches on all the same topics as Under the Influence, but does so in a highly compelling manner, then read Questionable Content. If you want something a bit more New York (which it feels like Under the Influence is going for), then read Octopus Pie. But do yourself a favor, and don’t read Under the Influence.
And maybe that’s a bit harsh, but there’s just too many good webcomics out there to spend any time on this one. I applaud Chris for taking a chance and I hope he finds success. I’m not convinced this comic is going to get him there, though.
*If you’re curious, the name of the band in question is “A Lofty Hypothesis.” So…no help there.
