Should I redo some pages? feedback needed

[CloudyMagpie]

I know most people will say not to dwell in the first few pages by changing the beginning over and over again, but my comic is still fairly new and there are really only five pages that I feel I should improve. These five pages all gave me a hard time when I first started my thumbnails so I just kind of rushed passed them to keep the story going. I never went back to fix the thumbnails and even finished the pages, but they always stuck out at me for feeling poorly composed or confusing and they keep me from wanting to share my comic. My plan isn't to change the dialogue very much, just little aspects of it to make it stronger as well as the visual storytelling.
This is page 5 but felt kind of pointless because no one was really doing anything, at least in the second version they are already moving through the scene while the interaction between the two talking characters is kept between them.

I'm planning on doing similar redoes of the next four pages after this one, but would anyone even suggest that? Am I wasting my time or should I just leave things as they are? How do you guys deal with having new (sometimes better) ideas once you have already spent so much time on finished pages?

[malverav]

Leave them! I think they look perfectly fine. Your colourwork is sharp as hell, by the way. Those backgrounds are shockingly good. Everyone has a few fishy pages at the start of their comic, but you gotta keep moving imo.

Don't be the comic ouroboros forever redoing your first 5, 10, 20 pages, you're gonna be the only person who ever really sees those mistakes. You can go back once you're done and redo them if you hate them that much, but otherwise you'll learn more pushing forwards and keeping these past errors in mind rather than on your canvas. Having a finished comic, for many readers, is more important than a perfect one.

I always go back and kick myself when I see the first ten, fifteen pages of my comic, but I have to restrain myself from redoing them or I'll never stop! Better to use all that improvement on the next project than stalling on the current!

(However if you really really really hate 'em to the point where you can't post please ignore me and tweak it around - your enjoyment as the artist is the most important thing! Good luck!)

[nostalgicroxas]

I've seen several artist's "redo" their comics once they're finished so they're done in updated art and skills, but the old is still there for people to read.

[CloudyMagpie]

Thank you for the kind words! I know I really should leave them, but I just always felt like it was within these pages that I lost people because of a lack of focus. even doing just this one page makes me feel a little better about it. the page on the left just seems so cluttered to me, while the new version on the right, even with fewer panels, carries the same conversation but now it has that focus on the main characters and they feel like they are really moving along. Idk, maybe I'm overthinking things, I do that a lot :3

[JRHoch]

Only redo them if you plan to go vertical scroll. The art is better than a lot of stuff online.

[revisionstudios]

I'm gonna be "that guy" and actually say I prefer your first one :') I feel like an ass, but it's way more interesting to me and I get to see the characters and their expressions. Plus, ending on that head shake is gold.

Of course, this is from someone whose first look of your comic was this page. My opinion could change if I saw the pages surrounding it.

I agree that it's generally better to have them doing something concrete while they talk, and being efficient with your panels is important. But you also want to be careful not to go overboard with the efficiency, you know? Because then you end up culling what makes it charming.

And I mean... in this case you still just cut out the last two panels of interaction from the first page and stretched out the rest of the dialogue. Isn't that technically less efficient?

[CloudyMagpie]

Most people are saying to keep it lol. guess you aren't the only one who preferred the first version better. My brother said his solution would be to keep both pages but the second version would be completely new dialogue as a sort of continuation (that was what he thought it was until he read the repeating lines) he says that way I don't waste any of my art. :'3 love that kid. I guess really I just wanted to get them moving without wedging in a new page, so I changed this one. However, you're right, I hadn't even considered I'd be throwing out that characterization for new readers and now I have a shiny new page to add even more. Thank you!