Web Comic Review: The Abominable Charles Christopher

It's time! According to my schedule posted yesterday, I'll be doing a Web Comic Review every Friday! Without further ado, let's dig in!

I discovered this comic very recently, and absolutely fell in love with it. It attracted my attention because it beat out Digger, one of my favorites, in the webcomic awards for best black and white comic. I came in with high expectations and the ACC did not disappoint!

Story

ACC is a meandering, whimsical tale following the misadventures of one Charles Christopher, who we as of yet don't really know much about. He appears to be some sort of yeti, and the story has hinted that he has ties to both the world of animals and that of man. He lives in the forest and seems to have a great love for the forest creatures.

Things get interesting when humans start encroaching on the forest, and CC is given a mission by what appears to be a forest god (or at least some sort of magical being) to stop them.

One of the most unique and wonderful things about this comic is that, while there is clearly a main story involving CC, the author (very) frequently diverges in side stories about different animals in the forest. This extremely non-linear way of storytelling could be frustrating for some, but these side stories and slice-of-life comics are one of the reasons I love this comic so much. The main story is frequently rather heavy and sometimes extremely sad, and the light and funny nature of the side stories helps balance that out.

Art

The art in ACC is all black and white (with graytones as well). The artist is a master of this medium, as the webcomic award suggests, and the stylized imagery is really beautiful. The animals are absolutely excellent, managing to convey strong and detailed expressions without the anthropomorphic cartoony ickyness that would kill the immersion in the story.

 Status/Updates

The comic is still running, and I would expect it to continue for quite some time based on the current state of the story. It updates Wednesdays.

Recommendation

If you can handle the non-linear, meandering storytelling, this comic is one of the absolute best I have encountered. Do yourself a favor and check it out!