How Important is the First Page of Your Comic?

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 19:13:02 UTC #1

REALLY IMPORTANT
The first page of your comic is important.
I go through a lot of comics on this forum and read the first issue of each comic. Mind you, there are thousands of you here.
What does a first page of a comic do?
It hooks you into your audience in draws them in to reading it.
It gives your readers and idea of what they're getting into.
Jump Comics and other weekly magazine comics have honed this skill in finding a first page to draw their attention their editorial department as they have to sift through thousands of entries at a time.
So basically what I'm asking here is, what are some comics with some good first pages here?
Be honest.

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 19:16:15 UTC #2

I'll start.
The cover aside, because this is a webcomic like a manga, the first issue of the comic is suspenseful. You see the shift of emotions of the character going from professional and apathetic, to snarky and sarcastic, to dreadful fear.
It makes you want to see what's going to happen in the next issue.

ble 2019-08-17 19:23:20 UTC #3

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ZatchZ 2019-08-17 19:24:15 UTC #4

That's step two, planning.

jensrichard77 2019-08-17 19:24:54 UTC #5

Indeed it is important.

And I'm in conflict with myself.

This is my official first page, and it is important for me. Because this is the biggest step i did to make comics.

But i do not say much. and I usually promote my comic with page two, that is more of a bether page one to tell what my comic is about.

I just can't make myself remove the first page. It is dear to me.

vothnthorvaldson 2019-08-17 19:33:55 UTC #6

I'm super insecure about my first 3 pages, but I really like the 4th one.
That makes me want to redraw the first 3, and I actually started some time ago. But then I have so little time that I prefer drawing new pages.. it's a dilemma going for months!

Sometime I wonder if it's only me who thinks page 4 onward are better (or at least more representative of my comic), and sometimes I think I lose readers because of first 3... I really don't know!

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 19:41:35 UTC #7

The first page works, but the second page has a weak follow up. This can be remedied with some planning and reviewing your writing before committing it to a comic.

jensrichard77 2019-08-17 19:41:55 UTC #8

So I like to give some feedback here to help.
And in that I also must admit something...

The first 3 pages IS the best pages. They was the one that made me subscribe, and the one that I remember.
It might not be the detail level of art, but the storytelling you have here.

Then.. as the comic goes I must admit that it wasn't a comic that I continued to follow. Sorry.
But all I can say, Don't be sad about the 3 first. But perhaps look into what makes them special, and maybe learn from them in the rest of the pages.

What I guess made me read, was the balance in questions and answers.

Kelheor 2019-08-17 19:43:40 UTC #9

I think ours is pretty good, it is everything you need in the beginning of this story.
Especially James in the end, people love him
Maybe a little problem with bubbles, since original font was much smaller and we had to make it bigger later.

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 19:44:58 UTC #10

The first three pages work as they feel like they're a prologue to something cool.
But the rest can be remedied with some color changes to make it more palatable for the readers. Try using more warm and vibrant colors.

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 19:48:34 UTC #11

The writing is good, but the issue is the layout clutter making it harder for the reader to read.
Although this is remedied in the next issues.

jensrichard77 2019-08-17 19:48:35 UTC #12

That is something to think about.
even that the episodes is standalone and just some funny ideas in my head. But that I learned from and as the comic goes the connection and some story arcs begin to form.

Thank you for reviewing

vothnthorvaldson 2019-08-17 19:58:10 UTC #13

Thanks! That's very interesting to get such a different point of view!

To be honest I really don't think the first 3 pages look like me at all, so I really don't want to continue in this style (even if I knew it would make me get subscribers), but it's interesting to know that I can potentially lose readers later on rather than because of these!

Is it weird that it's comforting? Maybe that's because it reminds me that there are all kind of readers, and that I should not worry about specific things?

Anyway, thank you very much for the feedback!

jensrichard77 2019-08-17 20:00:24 UTC #14

Then it might be a good idea to redo them into the style you want to be seen as?

vothnthorvaldson 2019-08-17 20:03:17 UTC #15

I suppose.. I would if I had time. Maybe when I finally do it, I'll ask here of the forum for opinions on both versions

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 20:05:21 UTC #16

That's because your anxiety have been confirmed and now you know which way to go.
Feel free to change your art style to how you see fit. Tapas will display your newest comic to new readers.

Jenny-Toons 2019-08-17 20:09:23 UTC #17

For me, I really boils down to how I set the tone of the story. For Our Universe, I'd say the first page was this little piece (the page is enlarged!):

This leads from here:

Granted, it definitely could've been better (I drew this at the tail end of 2018). The word panels were a bit too bulky for what I was going for, but I believe it still helped get the message across. I used the same paneling for the first page of season 2, only this time, I feel the tone has gotten better with better paneling and art (also enlarged!):

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 20:11:02 UTC #18

Eeyup, that's some good 'ole forshadowing and theming right here.

InkRoseArt 2019-08-17 20:29:04 UTC #19

i dislike almost the entire first chapter of my comic so...
guess i'm screwed ( ; ω ; )

ZatchZ 2019-08-17 20:31:11 UTC #20

It's fine, not great, it's fine.
It's short, concise and it acts as a soft opening to your story.
The next page has a follow up that ups the stakes.