A Tale of Two Universes
Nov24
on November 24, 2015
So, tonight’s installment marks the 282nd comic since the Melonpool Reboot.There’s enough there now that it has it’s own continuity, and hopefully it’s been entertaining. I know it’s been a lot more exciting for me to write.
And not that I’m going to switch gears now (I’m committed to this reboot at least for the next three years — maybe longer — I just want to be able to publish at least four books of the reboot timeline), but I was wondering if you all were enjoying it? Which universe you like more. Which elements are you missing? Which elements of the new universe do you not like? Please comment below!
Thanks!
Steve
Overall, it is an interesting reboot, but will we ever find out what made Ralph leave his home planet in the first place ?
When will we meet the rebooted Roberta and how long did the relationship to Ralph last ?
Will the crew ever go to Earth?
Also, any chance of a crossover or two with other rebooted webcomics or mentions of other comics ?
The last question is partly due to the fact that I own the Old School Melonpool series vol. 5 and that I’m a fan of crossovers.
I like it. Though I enjoyed TOSM, it is a relief to get away from the convoluted time line of that series. I am enjoying the reboot, waiting for the appearances of other characters from TOSM. Please keep up the great work!
I’ve got mixed feelings.
It’s clear to me at least that Jalea suffers the most from this reboot since it seems she’s a droid again. She was a surprise favorite of mine because of all the characters in the original universe, she had the most development. Her name may have been an uncomfortable pun, but she went from being a silly malfunctioning machine to a woman with a mind of her own. She earned it, too, because she’d had a hard life getting blasted or cut in half all the time for the sake of a quick joke. Threatening to undo her humanity with time shenanigans near the end of the original series did not sit well with me, actually.
I’m holding out hope for the Star Trek reboot’s approach; get the characters developed into who we know they can become, but with enough room to keep getting into trouble by lack of experience. “Put aside logic, do what feels right” and all that.
I never had the chance to get all caught up on the original continuity so getting to be on the ground floor of this one is working for me.
I came in late to the original run, and only saw the last few months. I liked the art, and the story seemed interesting, even though there were a lot of references I didn’t get.
Then it ended.
I am happy to see see the reboot, and look forward to seeing where it goes.
I don’t know, Steve. Soft reboots just seemed part of the Melonpool continuity. This doesn’t feel that different. I’m enjoying it. 🙂
I loved the “original” webcomic. And I quite enjoyed the chronicles. And the Jurassic. But believe me, I’m quite enjoying this one too – and looking forward to following it, finding out where it’s going.
… I’m easy to please, aren’t I? 😉
Steve,
I’ve been reading Melonpool since around Book 4 of the original run. I missed it when it was gone and I’m loving it since it’s been back.
I’ve always liked the characters, so the fact that they’re mostly the same, with the addition of a few personality changes, is fantastic. I miss the rest of the cast and their voices, but this extended introduction showing how they all end up together (instead of doubling back in a flashback later), has been a lot of fun so far.
I also really like the addition of Old Ralphie – I can’t wait to see where that goes. With so much time spent on the original continuity, I do miss it, so it’s nice to see that some part of it survived.
I wonder if we’ll run into other elements from the original continuity, or eventually see this “new” cast interact with the 20 year difference time-shifted original cast (you know, the 1996 start for them vs. the 2013 start for the “new” cast). I’d love to see this new self-aware Mayberry teach his original counterpart some things about captaining!
So, yeah… so far so good, keep up the good work, etc.! I already have my copy of the first book, BTW! It looks great, especially the color strips, and I’m looking forward to adding more books next to the original books on my shelf!
Thanks! If I can get enough Patreon supporters, I plan to rerelease the Old School Melonpools with the color strips as well. — I’ve learned so much about coloring in the last 20 years that I’ll probably end up recoloring most of them, since I only have about 80 of the original color files… but I’d love to eventually be able to say that I have the entire original run available in color.
You may have heard that the reason Batman: The Animated Series did so well was they had a running rule to NEVER retread the origin story.
I like that there are elements of the past iterations, but I’ve also really enjoyed the fresh material. I’d definitely say bring back all of the old cast, because that’s most of the fun of a reboot, but old plot points should only be a running joke at best.
No — I never heard that before! That’s awesome! I’ve been thinking about them going to Earth at some point, but I feel like I’ve lined that story as much as I could at this point. There’s really only one reason I can think of to take them there, but I don;t think I’ll strand them there unless I can think of a new spin on that idea.
Hi Steve. I’m usually a hard-sell on reboots, but this has been such a well-handled “soft” reboot that I haven’t minded at all. If anything, it’s been very nice to see everybody get a more solid origin than they had before (well, Ralphie’s reappearance was a little abrupt, but that’s ok). As for Earth-based stories, the original comic was already past that point when I started following it, so I don’t associate it as much with Earth as others may; I’m fine with space-based stuff. Nice to see Roberta back! I look forward to Jalea’s eventual re-appearance — not that she hasn’t “sort of” appeared already 🙂
Oh, and Batman… yeah, that’s part of why “Mask of the Phantasm” was a big deal, because it was the first time they had allowed themselves to touch on the origin story.
Yeah — I agree about Ralphie. I think he’ll come more into his own in this storyline, in the same way that he did during the Time Travel storyline in the original continuity. I have no idea how, if or when Jalea will start to evolve ,,, but I’m berating really sick of drawing all those wires!
I love it and I’m so happy you’re back. Thank you so much!