Webtoon Spotlight

Spotlight#17: Urban Animal

Have you ever experienced "changes" throughout your life; well, if you did, then you will probably relate to the Webtoon Urban Animal by Justin Jordan/John Amor.

Author

Once again, I do have some more concrete info on the authors of the webtoon. Justin has been writing comics for over ten years, including the Luther Strode series, Spread death of love, and the Family trade for image comics specifically. John has lent his artwork for Judas: Last Days for Idw, One week in the library for image comics, etc. The inspiration for Urban animals, in particular, was Ben 10, Filipino folklore, Beast boy, animal man, John Carpenter's The Thing, Megaman, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Archie comics.

Summary

Meet Joe Gomez: an average teenager with close friends, loving parents, and even a band. However, like all teenagers growing up has caused him to go through particular...changes only. Instead of squeaky voices and acne Joe instead becomes a literal animal. 

For you see, my dear friends, it's revealed that Joe is secretly a force of nature given form: a chimera. An immortal being that reincarnates throughout its infinite lifespan with the ability to turn into Earth's many animals. And as Joe gets thrust upon a world beyond his imagining, he must learn to embrace it if he has any hope to protect what he loves.

Characters

Joe Gomez: Joe is our admirable hero. While he has shown to be awkward and easily flustered, his new life as a chimera has made girls the least of his worries. He is entirely willing to put his life on the line for his friends and family, even if it does mean a night butt naked and imminent death. And while he doesn't have much of a grasp on his powers, he is a very quick study as he has so far adapted to his new role as protector while trying to answer the question. He is your average Joe, or simply the latest reincarnation in the chopping block.

Corkinadale: A chimera that has lived far longer than most what he lacks in strength; he makes up for in wisdom. While he does have his purposes for Joe right now, he wants the kid to survive as he gives him the lowdown on living the chimera life. However, there are many skeletons in his closet. 

Overview/Good stuff

Urban animal has a very gritty comic book art style, making the many transformations and transitions pop as it's always stylized. The creators researched the anatomy of many animals to create some downright fabulous creations (Ex: rhino-horse hybrid, T-Rex, and Frog monstrosities). Of course, the color scheme used to display these creatures is also on point. The transformations cause the fights to have a lot of momentum, dynamics, and brutality. The Pacing is also a solid point. Every chapter gives you a great sense of fulfillment. Typical melodrama between Joe and his cast could last chapters is handled pretty fast. Every character makes the most of their respective screen time, so even if they don't have much to offer, that doesn't mean they have nothing to say. The creators do an awesome job of making them all feel unique and likable, which is essential for later arcs in the plot. The mystical world of chimeras is one I can't get enough of. It is an excellent way of establishing an engaging urban fantasy with excellent body horror. So far, the various seasons have given us parasites that turn men into monsters, humans who have devoured the power of chimeras for themselves, and secret societies that created much of the folklore you see now. Effectively we have a world that feels concrete but also unlimited.

An example of that is in the Chimeras tiers of power. From weakest to strongest, we have changelings that can only transform into one animal, swarms that can become one of many, skin dancers that can turn into the same animal genus. Beastmasters can transform into multiple animals for more power, and real chimera can manipulate nature like plants.

If that weren't enough for you, then maybe you'll enjoy an interaction as old as time itself: Author and Reader. I've never seen creators interact this much with an audience before; they leave consistent comments to answer any questions and drum up even more drama from time to time. As someone who is also a resident author himself, this was a very welcome surprise.

Epilogue

Urban animal is a great story that will probably be even greater with time. I can't wait to see what happens next, but in the meantime, I wonder what form my spotlight will take next as well.