If a webcomic you were reading got a reboot/rewrite would you check it out?

[ButterflyEmpress]

• I'd give the reboot a chance! Maybe it really is better.
• Definitely not! Creators who reboot can't be trusted.

Show results

I know I've seen a lot of threads that are anti-reboot, but it seems that they're discuss the art aspect of it. Of course it would make sense not to reboot in that case 'cause the art is always gonna improve over time.

But what about in this scenario:
A creator feels their writing/story isn't as good as they wanted it to be nor something they can feel proud of and decides to start over with improved writing and characterization. Possibly even changing the format and drastically updating character designs.

Would you read the new version of their comic or lose faith in the creator? What if the new version is fully planned out, ready to go, and the creator has no plans to reboot it again?

Personally I'd give it a chance since a lot of creators start when they don't know any better. They learn more of the writing process as time goes on and probably want to use their new knowledge. If they start over a 2nd time, I wouldn't bother.

This part is not important to read, it's some of my honest feelings, may delete later

To be honest, this is how I'm feeling right now. I know I've gotten 100+ subscribers on both webtoon and tapas from the past 2 years and I've had some positive feedback, but I feel my comic could've been executed a lot better. I didn't just make up this story outta the blue, I'd been working on it since 2015 and didn't post online 'til 2019. I was 18 and now I'm in my mid 20's. At the time I was unaware of the popularity of the mobile format and I was really anti cliche/tropes (Due to internet reviewers like Nostalgia Critic, Cinema Sins, etc). I realized there aren't any chapters/pages I can look back on and say "I really like this moment", "This is my favorite scene/chapter" They all feel mediocre at best, cringy at worst. I know there's no such thing as the perfect story, but I know I can write better. Another issue is the character design. I have a black coded character that spends most of the time disguised as a white coded character. How'd I not pick up on this? Besides that, the human characters are too colorful. A reboot is completely up in the air for me. I'll keep working on my comic as is until I'm 100% serious.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

I'm in the same boat in regards to not being happy with parts of the story and characters not being used to full potential. I'm working on a soft reboot/redraw myself, so I'm sympathetic here.
(Plus my art style has changed three times, so I need to get it consistent into one style)

[joannekwan]

I definitely would give the reboot a chance! Especially if I liked how the original was going.

However, if the reboot is just not gelling for me I will unsub without apologies. I don't want to be dead sub weight for the creator.

[wekanian]

Or you can also publish it as a new series, reuse the title but add something else behind it. Like "Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood". We know it's the same story but there are changes and there is a promise that it will be better.

[wekanian]

And I will give it a chance.

[carolhildebrand]

I would totally give the reboot a chance! If I like the comic then I trust the artist with their story, both writing and art-wise. They know what's best for their story and I would support them to make changes in the direction they think it's best
(besides, THEY should enjoy the comic, I'm just happy to be along for the ride yk?)

Regarding your experience: I'd say go for it. If you feel you can do better and honestly from what you said about looking back and not finding chapters/pages you're fond of... Restarting could be a huge motivational boost, even if it means a lot of hard work too!

I wish you the best with either decision!!

[Rhonder]

My stance is that I'd give it a try, but depending on how it goes I may or may not stick around. This has only happened to 1 series that I was reading before, where the author halted and erased the original version of the story, and then went forward with a reboot. The result ended up being both that I didn't enjoy the reinterpretation of events, and it was frustrating waiting for the story to catch back up to the old version.

So... i stopped reading

I think rebooting is inherently a high risk, high reward process. You risk alienating and/or boring your current audience for the chance at a higher quality product that hopefully outperforms the previous version and attracts more readers. If successful you can maintain at least some of the previous readers, and gain a bunch more! But if the new version doesn't catch on, you might wind up with a similar or smaller number of readers and spend a bunch of time retreading content that you've already spent a long time making.

I'm not a fan of reboots for this reason, but I absolutely empathize with people who do go that route and sometimes it can pay off

[gabriellabalagna]

Here are some reasons people don't like reboots...
- They usually don't ever get finished.
- It's annoying if things they liked about the original get changed in the reboot.
- It is annoying for readers to have to wait for new content or for the reboot to catch back up to where the original left off.

Nonetheless, don't let this stop you. It seems a lot of people are supportive and don't mind reboots. Whatever you decide, hoping the best for you!

[Kaydreamer]

If I loved the comic, I certainly would! Especially if it's the creators first project and they had, until that point, been reliable and consistent with updates. That shows a level of professionalism and reliability, and indicates that the issue was merely a lack of experience affecting execution.

I'm in a similar boat, though with the audience I have now, I wouldn't do a hard reboot unless I got made an original or something. Instead, I'll slowly work through and update the early episodes. Nothing will change plot-wise, I just want to delve a little more into the kind of life my protagonist was leading before the plot began, and illustrate his personality a little bit better. (Unsurprisingly, he's quite a bit more chipper when he's not being attacked by pirates.)

[ButterflyEmpress]

@nathanKmcwilliams @joannekwan @wekanian @Kiweevil @carolhildebrand @Rhonder @gabriellabalagna @Kaydreamer

Thanks for all the wonderful input, everyone! I'm glad to see how most generally feel about this topic. Although, me actually starting over my comic is still up in the air, but if I do I'd most likely post it under a separate series with a new name.

[jcmraz]

Depends entirely on how much I like it

[darryljoll14]

Im not really a huge fan of reboots solely because at times they dont conclude the stories and if the original ending is right as it should be and the person decided to reboot it.

[DualDragons]

I'm kind of in the middle about it. When a creator feels their old art or writing really doesn't match up to their current skills anymore I don't mind at all. But some creators reboot their stories like six times and then my patience does run out because they simply don't seem to be able to be pleased with what they draw/write.

[Jenny-Toons]

Eh, why not.

I'm a pretty easy reader to please. If I've liked your previous stuff, I'll most likely like your new stuff (reboot or otherwise).

Also not really someone that gets tied down by whether or not a story is completed or rebooted. After 10+ years of reading fanfictions that were abandoned, put on indefinite hiatus, or came back after 10 years of radio silence, a webcomic rebooting every so often feels like child's play XD

[spadedigsbutts]

I will always give it a chance and have read plenty of webcomics after they rebooted since it is usually for the better! The only time I might not is if the creator has rebooted the comic a bunch of times and keeps going back to redo parts constantly in a relatively short amount of time. This would make me very hesitant to get invested and at that point I might just wait until the series is actually finished (if that happens) to ever give it a try.

[Kura]

1st reboot gets a pass and I'll read it.

2nd reboot gets side eye, less likely to read it, depends on the story.

3rd+ reboot I stop being an active reader, I don't unfollow, maybe I'll read it in a few years, but I don't want to keep reading the first chapters over and over again so I would rather check back in a few years to see if it managed to get further.