Erstwhile brings you the often overlooked gems in the collections of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm; tales that despite their quality are often ignored or unknown. Contained within this collection are a series of lesser known short tales.

The webpage has a preview that you can click on to see a full size page or three of the artwork inside the comic. Great stuff. Keep checking back with them through the 13th for more free daily comics.

Top Shelf Comics, right? More specifically, Top Shelf 2.0, with fresh webcomics every day, five days a week. This is my new place to check every day. Just sayin.

Gingerbread Girl, image above, is a cute, sweet, indie-flavored comic reprint of a “complete new graphic novel by Colleen & Paul (creators of Banana Sunday, Small Favors, and tons of great superhero stories for Marvel).” By part 3, I was in love with the protagonist and the supporting players. The art is clean, with bold lines and an enthusiasm and confidence that should be seen in all indie books.

Make sure you head over today for this and other great webcomics. While you’re there, of course, check out their catalog of print comics as well.

This week, it’s Puppet Makers #1, by Molly Crabapple (art) and John Leavitt (words). A young French aristocracy and steampunk monks weave in and out of this interesting tale of…umm…we’re not sure, but it’s a splendid beginning, especially with those robot suits and manuscript machines. Make sure you check this one out today while you hide from your boss in your casual friday clothes.

It is time to put the kids to bed and hit up a more adult-oriented Webcomic.  No, there is no nudity or 69 different positions to take notes on in this weeks strip.  There are, however, one liners that take on a vast range of issues facing working stiffs like us.

The first thing one will note when hitting this strip is that it looks like your neighbors kid did all the artwork.  Everything from the navigation menus to the boxes surrounding the ads looks like it was drawn with a crayon.  This is not a bad thing as it really keeps the atmosphere of the comic light and fun.  If you walk in trying to take this seriously, you will most likely walk away in some infant temper tantrum.

The comic itself is not going to win any awards for artistic talent.  Every thing is painted with flat primary colors, while the lines are thick and pronounced.  This is a step up from stick figures killing one another with stick swords, but not by much.

The art is not the main feature as the jokes are adulthood gold.  Everything from politics to sex gets the same humorous treatment.  Where else can you come and get an ascii dick joke in one comic and an astrology joke the next?  Even the awesomeness of Carl Sagan is not safe from this strip.  It is almost like Weird Al took up a pen and started writing comics!

Sure, the art might not be up there with the greats, but does it really need to be?  When you can target the worry of asking your wife to orgasm louder in three panels, you get our vote for one week of internet fame.  Just flip through the archives and I bet you find some jokes that will have you LOL’ing when you should be pencil pushing.  Check your rages at the door and enjoy this comic for what it is…humor!

What really caught me off guard about this comic is not the art or the jokes.  Nope, it was that Krishna was an Electrical Engineer.  I’m talking a Masters in Electrical Engineering and working in chip design engineer type.  What Krishna did is quite possibly the definition of knowing your dreams and going after them.

Krishna left all the chip designing, electrical engineering super happy fun times behind to follow his passions.  He went back to school and got his MFA in Animation.  He is now a full time instructor at the Art Institute of Tampa.  Even better, he writes webcomics!

Krishna now freelances from time to time as a cartoonist/illustrator for TechCrunch, Hinduism Today, The BENT Magazine, EE Times, C|net, and many more.  This just goes to show us that a great comic can come from anyone.  If you ever think it is to late for a career change, here is but one example of the contrary!

So onto the comic itself.  PC Weenies was first started back in October of 1998.   This comic follows much of the classic formula of pumping out a new comic three times a week.  PC Weenies has stood the test of time like a strong running 486 DX2!

The artwork here is pretty basic.  In fact, what really struck me is this is a tech comic and the artwork feels a lot like the days of the Jetsons.  When you make this comparison, it is crazy how fitting the artwork actually is.  Simple flat colors with thick dark lines.  It feels so much like reading a cartoon from the 80′s that it is hard not to get all nostalgic.

The writing is certainly geared towards the tech savvy crowd.  The winning formula was apparent in the very first comic that hit a few stereotypes of us computer geeks.  I mean, who doesn’t remember the date and time of their first computer purchase?  I think one of the best ways this comic hits technology right on the head was with the comic about the MacBook Air.  The comic goes on to point out all the flaws the machine had, yet the desire for it by the many who wanted one.

I highly recommend this comic to anyone in the IT industry.  It should hit home on so many fronts that it just might make your regular reading rotation.  The artwork might be simplistic, but the jokes are of tech gold.  Sometimes, it is all about the punchline, and PC Weenies definitely delivers on the laughing good.

If you’re a comics creator, feel free to hit us with your own work and we’ll get it out to all our rabid fans. All three of them! Hah. So, here’s your first Free Comic Friday. This week? We’re focusing on Boom Studios, with the cool free comics you can read right on their website.

2 Guns – Two guys walk into a bank! It goes badly!

Described on the back cover as a “plot-rich crime thriller for fans of Elmore Leonard, Ocean’s 11, and The Italian Job,” this book looks all sorts of sweet crime-drama action. The book starts on page 1 and the latest page is 125. How’s THAT for free comic love? Written by Steven Grant with art by Mat Santolouco and covers by Kristian Donaldson and Rafael Albuquerque.

Tales of Cthulhu – Read this at your own risk!

This one looks slick, too. If a bit on the “scary if read at night” side. The web version is up to page 99, so there’s plenty to whet your whistle while you whork (sorry, had to). Creators include Michael Alan Nelson, Keith Giffen, Mark Waid, John Rogers, Andew Cosby, Hans Rodionoff, and Mark Badger. ‘Ware the Cthulhu! Spell Carefully!

One of the greatest things about Webcomics is there are so many hidden gems out there.  This week’s Webcomic took me by surprise.  On this adventure we take a trip down the road of fantasy and magic.  We bring you The Blind Fisherman / Personal Demons.  This comic combo was started back in September of 2009 by Bryn Colvin and Thomas Brown.  Ever since we have been treated to a new panel every week.

The first thing that really caught me off guard on this comic was the artwork.  The whole series looks like it was drawn on a sketchpad with pencils and charcoal.  Many times it felt like I was looking at Thomas Brown’s personal sketchpad.  So many comics now use photoshop and look nothing like the old school sketches from artists waiting for the bus.  I am not talking stick people here, but rather a feast for the eyes that is carefully prepared and slow cooked all week.

The one aspect that is used sparingly is color.  Color is used for things like a blue magical fireball or the green slime that is the blood of a demon.  Due to its sparing use, it grabs your eyes with fishhook vengence.  The simple blue added to a small bit of magic focuses your eyes to it.  This also gives it a real feeling of power while making one ask just how powerful this little girl is.

Every once in a while we are treated to a full panel in color.  When these happen we see dark rich greens and brick reds grace the canvas.  These are fantastic as they not only carry the colored pencil feel, but also show off what Thomas is capable of in the world of color.  Lighting techniques are used to pull the eyes around the wonderful piece of art.  I would go so far as to say I would love to have this artwork proudly displayed in my office.

Of course, this comic would be nothing without a good story.  The Blind Fisherman is a short story leading up to Personal Demons.  This is a world full of magic and fantasy with dark themes.  Personal Demons follows a little orphan girl as she learns about her magical powers.  The innocence of childhood is maintained through clever and innocent one liners.  The story is written as if Tim Burton lived on Sesame Street.  The dark and unique fantasy world created here carries a child-like innocence in every panel, every story.

With some candy for the eyes and veggies for the brain, this is one fine Webcomic.  You are not years behind, as these works of art must take tons of time, so what are you waiting for?  Check out this series and maybe you will be chomping at the bit for the next update.  I know I sure am.

I have been reading Penny Arcade since it was first displayed on my Netscape browser back in college.  It has been an awesome decade of watching this comic grow from simple art to some fantastic masterpieces that really rock some great artistry.  The jokes have come from simple one liners to well crafted hits on politicians.  It has been one crazy ride that only looks to continue to grow!

Penny Arcade was born in 1998 by two insane friends by the name of Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik.  Penny Arcade got its world wide debut thanks to the Loonygames website.  Since its initial launch, Penny Arcade has grown into a web sensation, spawned a great charity, and produced two yearly conventions.  Penny Arcade has proven that gamers are not the spawn of the devil, but rather a very charitable and caring bunch.

Penny Arcade follows the shenanigans of Tycho Brahe and John Gabriel “Gabe”.  The strip very rarely caries a story from one release to the next.  These are more one shot deals, though they do have some series that will run over the course of a few days.  The Cardboard Tube Samurai is just one of the specials that will stretch more than one strip.  For the most part, Penny Arcade sticks to gaming and issues facing gamers today.

Jerry and Mike have managed to capture the raw essence of gaming.  One of my favorites they have done was the Mega Man 9 comic.  Not only did this manage to capture the excitement of the game, but it also illustrated that even grownups turn into kids under the right circumstances.  There was also a recent comic mocking the Sony reality TV show.  The look on Anthony Brown’s face in the last panel is nothing short of a wtf moment.

Over the years the writing has only gotten better.  The art has gone from a simple color pallet and hard edgy lines to some panels being so well detailed they have ended up as my personal wallpapers.  I only hope that one day I can own an original piece of Mike’s art.

I am proud to make them the very first webcomic to be featured here on Comics Are Evil.  If not for them, I just might have never taken up reading the greatness that is WebComics.

Wolverine will team up with Sunspot and fight off some zombies in South America.  You read that right…zombies.  Even better, there is a classic X-Villian behind it all.

Galactus had a daughter and you now get to see what she was up to.  I am guessing it is not all chitter chatter and texting.  This is a story that was voted on by fans ont he Marvel site.  Check it out before Galacta’s story starts to unfold next week.

Don’t have a subscription to the Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited?  No fear as you can sign up right here.  It doesn’t cost a lot and Marvel is already making it worth your hard earned pennies.

Moon Girl – the new iPhone comic on Comics, by Comixology – is making the scene across the comicsphere. If you haven’t heard of it by now, what is wrong with you? Lucky for you, however, we have a direct line (we call it ‘email) to the creators, Tony Trov and Johnny Zito. We assume that these are their real names, but since they make comics, anything is possible.

We sat down with the gruesome twosome today and learned a bit more about them, their comic, and life in general. Honestly, it changed us. Here’s what we got:

1 – Who are you and what do you do for a living?

Tony: We are Tony Trov and Johnny Zito. The greatest hermaphroditic duo to come out of Temple University since Hall and Oates.

Johnny: We’re are also full time comic book writers and are known to run the most arrogantly awesome Twitter pages on the internet.

2 – How long (have you been) involved in comics?

Tony: We’ve been involved with comic as professionals since we started out on Zuda Comics way back in the year ’08.

Johnny: For those who don’t know, Zuda Comics is DC’s online imprint. Sort of like Thunderdome for comics.

Tony: Ten Comics enter. One is left standing.

Johnny: The Black Cherry Bombshells is our first series. It kicked butt and they let us have a second comic, LaMorte Sisters.

Tony: Which also kicks butt.

3 – What’s so dang special about your current project (Moon Girl)?
Tony – Moon Girl is a character from EC comics and is actually about 60 years old. In it, masked vigilantes wage a psychotic war against 1950’s bourgeois; it’s The Dark Knight meets Mad Men. Clare is a Russian Princess happily exiled to New York. When enemies from the past threaten her new life the repressed Warrior Queen fights back. In the media her secret, nocturnal adventures are attributed to a mysterious hero; Moon Girl.

Johnny – Champion of the counter culture, Moon Girl represents a movement of young people fed up with the corporatism and conformity of post World War II opulence. The urban legends of Moon Girl inspire the ‘Super Manifesto’ – a post human gospel. Fundamentalists subvert the establishment by dressing in bright technicolor clothes and taking futuristic new names. Extremists turn to violence and terror, expecting to shock the system into change. Only Moon Girl stands between them and us, anarchy and order.

Tony: It’s out on Comixology, which is an awesome iPhone and iPad application. If we did this interview an hour ago, I wouldn’t have said iPad.

Johnny: The thing that makes Moon Girl so special is the amazing art by Mr. The Rahzzah. He’s unreal.

4 – What other work or projects can we look forward to in the near future from you?

Johnny: We have two ongoing series over at Zuda Comics. ’The Black Cherry Bombshells‘ is the tale of ultra-violent girl gangs fighting for survival in a world where every man on Earth has been mutated into a flesh eating zombie. It updates every Monday. LaMorte Sisters is the story of Maddie, the new girl at the vampire orphanage run by strict catholic nuns. It updates every Wednesday.

Tony: Oh and did I mention they are free?

5 – If Superman was your best friend, what color tree would you be?

Johnny: I would be seasonal. Zito Red in the fall and Zito Blue in the spring.

Tony: I’m friends with Batman. So…you know…

A big thanks to Johnny and Tony, two mortals among men. Enjoy the gallery of stunning artwork below, and be sure to grab Moongirl from the Comics App.