The first comics I read in the long strip format: Hive, Sweet Home, The Gamer, DICE, Dead Days, and Who Made Me a Princess

Up until a couple of years ago, I only read comics in their traditional format. In other words, I read manga, manhwa, and even manhua; all sorts of comics from East Asia. I also did use to read Western comics, but I fell out of the loop and was not motivated to catch up.

I came about Solo Leveling when I was scrolling through my Reddit feed -- back when I was on Reddit. If I recall, that comic was being sung praises by its fan. I then discovered Hive when I was looking for a survival comic. It was also in long strip format. A thought came to my head: huh, I guess I should try reading comics like these.

Hive was a great comic. It set up its world nicely in its first part. I remember feeling excited, anxious, and happy throughout its plot. Sadly, I feel that it became too long for its own good and started getting worse after a certain character turned out to be a queen too.

Through WEBTOON, I also discovered DICE, a fantasy comic. Good premise; bad execution. The same can be applied to The Gamer and Dead Days, which had an odd, unsatisfying ending.

Unbothered by the quality of long-strip comics I had encountered so far, I tried to get into Sweet Home. I think Sweet Home had a tighter plot and pacing than any of the comics I've mentioned. It ended recently by the time of this writing -- a satisfying, lovely ending if I might add. I also picked up Who Made Me a Princess, another fantasy comic. It had a better protagonist and a good plot pacing and is a comic I strongly recommend for people who want to try the medium.

Both Sweet Home and Who Made Me a Princess were great enough that I was able to notice more beyond their art styles. The way they handled their characters and plot were superior to those before. With these two comics, I was excited to find more long-strip comics.

In my heart, traditional manga (and manhwa) format is still better than long strip. They place emphasis on story and better paneling. However, I still read long-strip comics from WEBTOON and Pocket Comics because they occasionally offer compelling premises with an art style unique to the format.