If you’re reading this you probably noticed that I’m featuring the comic’s first explicit sex scene. The choice to do this goes right alongside my choice to feature uncensored nudity, which I’ve done since The Legacy’s beginning two and a half years ago. I’ve spoken about this before, but I figured this would be a good time to reiterate the reasoning behind this choice, so folks wouldn’t have to scroll through previous blog entries (though you’re welcome to do so).
The choice to show an uncensored sex scene, as well as numerous depictions of nudity, is a direct response to the years and years of uncensored violence I depicted during the Oracle for Hire years. Never once did I hesitate to draw mutilations, decapitations, and showers of blood when there was a fight, but I always censored sexual intimacy and natural nudity. Whether that’s a commentary on how our society glorifies violence and shames bodies is a discussion I’m not qualified to lead, but looking back on my own body of work I decided it was time to change what I proudly featured and what I censored. The Legacy will feature very little violence and no gore, while openly displaying nude bodies and consensual sexual intimacy. The Legacy is, for me as its creator, a conscious choice to be as artistically opposite from the Oracle for Hire years as I can while staying true to the story, the setting, and the original cast’s own legacies.
That being said, I totally understand if some folks are uncomfortable with this choice. Many folks check their webcomics at work, and viewing depictions of nudity and sex register differently than viewing cartoonish violence in public places. A few folks have very kindly asked me to put up “warning pages” for any especially NSFW pages. After some consideration, I’ve decided to not put those warnings here, but elsewhere. Here’s why:
1) The Legacy is going to feature uncensored nudity and sex, but the latter isn’t going to happen so often that it will become an issue. It’s taken two and a half years to get to one sex scene, and while it may seem gratuitous at the moment, there’s a point to it. And whenever a sex scene is coming, I’ll be broadcasting it a few pages in advance.
2) A good way to check if a page is going to be NSFW is to follow me on Twitter. As loathe as I am to admit it, social media is an important tool for artists nowadays, and interacting with my comic update posts (liking, commenting, and sharing) boosts its visibility. So if you need a workplace warning about whether a new comic page is going to be appropriate for public viewing, I’ll be posting those disclaimers there. And more followers on social media is a big help. (Quick spoiler: Wednesday’s comic is going to be very NSFW)
However you feel about my choice to feature nudity and consensual sex over violence and gore, I hope this helps you understand where I’m coming from.