Oculama

"Poor Holly" is my first thought upon reading this one....first caught up in a service-industry gig under a bad manager, now stuck in the desolate snowscape? It's hard to say which is the worse situation ;)

The comic itself, of course, is a treat! Good work on characterization all around - you captured JaJa's headlong enthusiasm, Holly's long-suffering persistence, and poor Accountgopher's struggle.

Your use of Accountagopher is interesting, and quite a clever use of what was established about the character in round 1. Having her show up in a flashback is a delightfully indirect inclusion, but one that gives her a tremendous amount of importance in Holly's backstory and towards Holly's motivations without contradicting what we know AG did (will do?) in round 1 of the BBBB tournament.

The Bossman makes for an interesting side-antagonist to this story. Absolutely hateable from the first line, which is great for the comic, and absolutely more contemptible with every line he speaks - really makes a reader feel for AG, and makes it very understandably that Holly feels driven to seek something better for herself. My only complaint about the bossman is that I would have loved to see him clobbered, but I suppose that's not quite the point of the comic, in the end.

Your scene-setting and use of the setting for the flow of action in this comic are both commendable. You not only take advantage of the inherent hazards of a cold arena (this really heightens poor Holly's status as a MILF goin' through it), but also incorporated the swords in a clever way critical to the comic's climax. Critically, your wider-shot panels do a great job of clearly showing off the arrangement of the character's surroundings, which is both a treat for the eyes and a key part of helping us follow the action thereupon.

Speaking of the setting, you get some really nice angle work in on this comic. From the wide-angle flashback shots in the office and bossman's office (the panel with the HH reveal was a funny visual gag but also a great shot to lend the bossman some menace) to my favorite panel - the high-angle shot of Jaja plummeting down the sword-slide on the last page.

Terrific comic altogether - you hit the most important beats at a good pace, and got a good, brisk emotional showcase for most of the OCs involved. Very impressive for any OCT, but especially in a 3-way match.

Jaja is busting through the competition at breakneck speed! First thoughts after an initial read-through were that you are doing a good job at keeping the comics relatively meaty without focusing very much/ at all on the peripherals surrounding the tournament. Not an inherent strength or weakness in a vacuum, but it's well chosen and tailored on your part to Jaja.

You keep the energy turned up on HIGH throughout the comic. The opening shot of the ring with lightning and zeppelins surrounding is properly badass as a kick-off to a babe fight, and there's a lot of outstanding fight poses from all three OCTs.

(Specific love goes to Holly's superhero leap on page 1, AG posing with the chair on page 2, and Jaja's superhero landing on page 4)

AWESOME job with the outfits for everyone - the wrestling gear for Holly and Accountagopher look properly fierce, funny and adorable, and Jaja's threads for the fight are deserving of the setting and Babe! I also deeply enjoyed AG's little fur-lined winter coat; a great civvy look and unbelievably cute <3.

(Also, and while more a commentary on the layout than the outfits, I LOVE the use of AG's glasses as frames (hehe) on page one - it's a cute use of her look, but you pack some good energy into it)

Writing wise, I appreciate taking a new angle on AG inserting herself into the combat a la the vintage TV store setup, and Jaja's counter being a meta one, a move that feels appropriate to use against a character whose imagination powers are so meta-bending adjacent as to be almost viewing the fourth wall.

That said, I also respect how, even with the pun-move (pun-ch?), the combat here remains faithful to the fisticuff-style fighting that are Jaja's bread and butter. It can be a challenge to keep straight-fighting interesting without dumping in a lot of dialogue, but yo keep the text focused, and the flow brief enough that momentum is never lost throughout.

(On THAT point, I think bringing the commentator in as a fourth-wall breaker themself was a shrewd move, as it keeps the reality bending aspect of the final move from feeling like too much a departure from Jaja's powerset by externalizing the awareness of just how unusual a finishing move it is in a straight-up combat match)

Very good and brisk stuff, as with the first round. Much like Jaja herself, this comic kicks butt!

Another feast for the eyes - with some lovely homages on top this time??

The entire Star Wars setup hit a lot of great humor notes from the title page - the entire conceit of Babes as a cosmic force or quantity has an inherent funniness to it, but its also so very appropriate for this particular tournament that I've got to give it points as its own element in the junction world building this comic does. The conceit also works very nicely with AG's ability to put herself in these situations through imagination, whether as a thing that is fictional in-universe, or something that actually enables her reality-hopping.

(Speaking of, the brain-freeze transition into the field of ice and swords was a very nifty shifting device.)

I'm furthermore intrigued by the establishing of Holly as a disturbing force of babe-ness. Having her know AG both in and out of the fantasy was a nice touch that gives AG a reason to come to her defense in the icescape. The interaction before the shift also speaks to an interesting relationship I'd love to see more of at some point - Holly reads as an earnest but potentially overwhelming friend, one who, even though you sympathize with them, you wouldn't necessarily enjoy getting caught up in a sob-session with.

LOTS to enjoy just looking at here. you show off a lot of great lightscapes across this comic's run, from the warmth of the cafe to the bleaker cool light of the wasteland, to the more claustrophobic interior where the final fisticuffs take place. You have some VERY striking shots set in all three locations, so suffice to say you do a bang-up job setting both the mood of the comic and the stage(s) for the action that takes place therein.

Strong work on the visual humor as well - though things get a lot more serious as the comic rolls on, the visual shift of Holly going from chipper to despondent is highly amusing, and the wall of text gaga specifically lands nicely without detracting from the tense mood Holly brings to bear by her breakdown (bottomless, mimosas, I tell ya...)

(The visual gag of the Tauntaun-esque creature wearing its own pair of snow goggles was A+; I snorted out loud at it)

Smashing stuff, once again, AG is really a standout of a character for this tournament, and you put here in some truly beautiful adventures.

Love the opening scene in the real world. It’s a nice piece of character development and I really enjoy seeing Holly and Accountagopher commiserate together and seeing Holly be kind of a mess. And it’s a good tie into the ending where Accountagopher’s compassion for Holly’s situation leads her to spare her.

The transition from ice cream to ice battlefield was inspired. One thing I really enjoyed is how much you made the setting your own. You fleshed it out so much with the people inside it, their struggles, how the architecture would work. And it’s all sick as shit. Was I expecting sci-fi dinosaur mounts? No but it’s cool as hell and I’m on board.

Accountagopher is so adorable. Love that tiny little gopher punch.

Really nice job with the colors here, I like how each location had it’s own palette and how well that contributed to the mood. The colors for the boss fight in the end really helped emphasize that dramatic, high stakes vibe.

Really nice work on this!

Poor Holly and Accountagopher. They’re really going through it.

I liked how you transitioned back and forth between office life and battleground and had Holly’s arc develop in both in parallel as she chooses to both give up on a soul crushing job and believe in herself (I support Holly in her MILF dreams. She is already MILF in my heart.).

I found Holly’s tails being medium efficiency braking material really amusing. I was just like nod nod nod yep gotta consider friction here. Also I like all the little details you added like the part at the end where you had the heart marking on Jaja’s face break after she wiped out. Or the fact that Holly is on Tinder.

Really liked how you set up the battlefield too. Having the sword tipped over a crack and then using it as part of the fight is a good use of the setting.

This is short and fun. What a hilarious comic with lots of funny lines. I especially loved “She’s got the uppercut of an average gopher…which is apparently enough to send a fox girl to orbit”.

I love the alternate wrestling outfits that you gave all the characters. They’re all super fun and cute and help sell the vibe and cheesiness of a wrestling match.

Your clean crisp lines and spot blacks are very nice and add a lot of volume to the art, especially with that panel with the single buff Accountagopher arm. And the way you draw expressions are a joy to look at! I hope to learn from them.

Definitely curious about what happens next after your comic! Seems like there are interesting things in store for Accountagopher and her powers and it definitely makes me want to see what happens next!

My god, the lighting in this is gorgeous. It showcases every scene's emotional journey so well: you can feel the melancholic heaviness of the cafe, the harsh cold of Hoth, the sterile darkness of the base. It helps sell the characters better than the dialog, which is strong already: especially in the framing device of reality, it's always funny. Accountagopher herself always looks perfect, from sitting blankly at Holly's wailing to smugly crossing her arms when addressed as a hero. She's emotional while never seeming like she has more brain cells than a walnut. Some of the babe exposition sits awkwardly between funny and sincerely dramatic, but otherwise, excellent.

God this is so funny, but the emotional journey works perfectly. Setting Jaja and Accountagopher as the polar opposites Holly needs to avoid is a great choice. Accountagopher feels truly sad to leave behind, a victim of mundane life, and Jaja an excellent manic personification of what Holly can't quite live up to. The art and environments are simple in a very effective way, the tones make the office look suffocating and the ice like a fantastical whimsical land. The ending of the comic is a little flat, but it pays off the setup so well that it's easily forgiven for lack of a final beat.

This comic is so beautifully off kilter, it operates entirely on its own sense of logic and it never skips a beat. Accountagopher is hysterical in her mundane extravagance (uppercut especially) and Holly is so charming as a successful heel trying to be nasty. The characters feel especially shifted here, but the quick pacing and intense action make it feel like their cores are at least kept intact. The spotblacks and effects frame each page beautifully, and while I'm not sure the impact of the final panel, the beginning of that page more than makes up for it. Well done!

Lovely inkwork. I also dig you didn't constrain yourself to being on model with tings like an office or computers. Everything has an almost comical 'bend' to it, which leans to this almost unsettling twilight zone vibe as we flit between the scene out in the snowy wasteland and Acocuntagophers office monotony. I especially adore that panel with the managers face reflected in Accoutnagophers glasses. Really inspired shot!
I'll admit I didn't really notice Holly driving a knee into Jaja's gut on page 5 until a re-read. If I had a note it would be to pack more of a punch in your combat choreography to let the reader know Holly is really letting them have it. fighting compositions can be tough, but really makes those interactions sing in comics when you pull it off.

Here we go- down and dirty tussling it out in the ring! Haha seems great minds think alike. Both you and one of your opponents seemed to know Accoutnagophers glasses make for a great canvas to telegraph events. It's such a nice effect I'm glad I saw it twice. It's great to see you really took accoutnagophers concept and ran with it- even going so far as to introduce a compelling elements that hooks us into knowing more about the umbrella-ed stranger. But if I had a note it would be that apart from the setting, there wasn't really much in the way of Jaja which is really who I wanted to see take point in this narrative.

"We're just normal babes! We're just beautiful babes!" You killed me with this XD
I've said it before but it bears repeating: Your concept of your tourney rounds encompassed in accountagophers wild imagination and daydreams is so inspired and a fantastic theme to run with with in order to 'explain' these random encounters. To be able to tell a fully realized story using every element EXCEPT your own characters dialogue or real involvement but still make her feel pertinent, compelling and important is no mean feat but you pull it off.
Your color story on top of that is also very impressive. To go from that sepia of 'real life' to the snowblown tundra of her dreams and bleed into those ominous scarlet tones as we come face to face with our first opponent. Really great stuff. I have no idea how we're gonna vote a winner here, you all came with your A game

You want to know what makes me feel a bit conflicted about this one, although i love the usage of the characters of your opponents, it does feel as if accounta gopher herself has no real presence within the story until the very end where she stops the attack from Ja Ja

You really know how to convey a mood and tell a story, i just wish accounta gopher either got to do more, say more (im aware she doesnt talk) or just have more things she herself puts into motion. even though her character is supposed to be whisked into her own imagination, it just feels like everything just sorta happens to her, and i wish she had more to do!

I think you have had the funniest comics of your matchups so far and i really like how these are all coming out! you do a good job balancing the characters and boy does the bit with account a gopher hit in the GUT!!! that felt personal hahaha It made me feel bad for the poor thang and it does a good job of it

The only thing i feel kinda iffy on is certain panels feel like they could be tighter, or composed more so that there isnt as much empty space, but other than that i really like Holly's run so far !!!

A REAL BABE BEAT - EM - UP !!! I do love me some Footini character work especially on the faces and cartoonish expressions, each character is so fun to look at and watch as their face molds into any number of different emotions, and i love the conceit of this whole tournament being essentially Jaja going around and challenging each babe to her own twisted version of a wrestling match and she's the Macho (Wo)Man who can just summon a ring at any point in time! Good balance of chartacters too with a lot of fun in this round! Great Stuff!

Awesome work on this, Ninja! The art throughout is very nice, the shift in colours really helps in setting the tone for the atmosphere of each scene. Really good work on the lighting too! Your interpretation of the locale was super cool to see, making it a Hoth analogue is so good.

As for the story, big shout out to how you are able to switch between the reality and the fantasy and how they intersect. Making the fantasy a Star Wars analogy was a fun idea and like how it was used to explore the inner relations of the Accountagopher/Holly friendship. Guess if I have to give one criticism, it's just that Jaja does feel a bit left out but it's a lot to juggle so fair's fair.

Let's gooooooo, you did so good on this Ziy! The story was real nice, the separation of the two storylines and how they came together to show Holly's self-realization was very nice and you love to see a girlboss succeed! Poor Accountagopher, doomed to a life of menial labour :(

For the art, enjoyed how you portrayed the location and how you used it to defeat Jaja in the story was very fun. Great job on the action that was in this too and that reference on the boss' computer, I did the little lol.

Once again, amazing job all around and I know you've dropped out but excited to see whatever you make in the future!

LET'S GET READY! TO RUMBLEEEEEEEEEE! The whole wrestling motif of this comic was such a fun angle to go through and love how everyone was included into it, especially Accountagopher! Action was real good as expected, that gopher punch was amazing :insert laughing emoji here:!

The story of this was great too, it was short, sweet and punched a good punch (like the aforementioned gopher)! Accountagopher being sucked in as an outside viewer was a good choice to bring her into the story, fitted the character well! Only little thing to add is that the final panel does come as a bit of a surprise as someone unfamiliar with the character presented but it didn't take me out too much and it sets up for some cool potential story later!

Appreciate the cameo out of the gate, what a fun comic this was. I'm loving the weird nature of Accountagopher and how it's just inexplicable still as we see her having these visions of another life and time.I think my main complaint is that I'm not a fan of the flesh-mitt that we get on occasion with the comic. I feel like there has to be a better way to handle reducing details on hands at a distance if that's the goal. However, anatomy issues aside for the characters, this was a great comic and I'm really curious to see where you're going to take her story. Super work!

There's something so amusing about seeing Holly hang around doing these tournaments in a comfy sweater and mom jeans. You packed in a lot of content with these 6 pages. You had terrific pacing in this comic and the characters all look very cute! My one gripe is that your action is a little lackluster with this comic. You're not putting enough focus on the impact of your action. The cutaway from the punch properly connecting with Holly on page 2 is all the more noticeable with the bit we get on page 5. I wish we had a little stronger hits. It's a real shame you gotta bow out of the tournament! I like Holly and I really hope we see more of her soon either in more tournaments or just some regular battles. Great work!

I know you were pulled away at some spots for this tournament, but I think it's a real testament to your perseverance and time management skills that you pulled out a really short and sweet comic this round. I really liked how economical you were with your comic and while it was short, you gave more time to your opponents compared to Jaja which really helped it feel like they were present in good amounts. I also am so curious who that mysterious woman at the end was! While I know you're going to keep on giving us good work, I really did think this was a particularly good use of your skill when you had multiple things pulling you around. Great work.