Jon Erik Christianson

When preparing for the first day of school, having the correct supplies is essential. Are your pencils of the number two variety? Do you have a glue stick that dries clear? Are your supplies sentient and hell-bent on world domination? That last question should've been answered with a "no," unbeknownst to Albert, Earth's first exchange student from space. ComicsAlliance sat down with Albert the Alien creators Trevor Mueller and Gabo to discuss their Harvey Award-nominated webcomic, alienation as an alien, and Saturday morning cartoons.

It's tough being a kid. It's also tough being a kid who's considered "different." It's exceptionally tough being a kid who's being chased by a secret organization because you're considered "different" by virtue of your mythological heritage. In Cait May and Trevor Bream's Irregular, themes of isolation and alienation bloom big as six children deemed "monsters" run away from adults who more closely fit that description. ComicsAlliance spoke with May and Bream about their webcomic, cryptozoology, and growing into one's power.

Characters dubbed the "chosen ones" in their stories are always surprised at the moments when their destinies are revealed to them, but arguably no character could be more caught off-guard than Sister Claire, who was abruptly interrupted in the nunnery lavatory when a mermaid rose from the toilet. Not everyone can get a letter from an owl. ComicsAlliance sat down with creators Yamino and Ash to discuss the zany world of Sister Claire, gay nuns, and kittens inspired by Sailor Moon.

When many people see outer space, they envision something cold, apathetic, maybe sterile or unforgiving. If there's civilization out there, it definitely looks like the Apple Store, or the interior of a tin can. When Tillie Walden sees space, she envisions something warm, inviting, and definitely dotted with trees. ComicsAlliance spoke with Walden about her webcomic On a Sunbeam; why she embraces space, but feels at odds with conventional science-fiction; and the use of fish as space travel.

If you are what you eat (or at least what you dream about swallowing whole), Meat & Bone's Anne Verbeek is soon destined to become Jane Fonda's Barbarella. To clarify: Anne isn't a cannibal, but her deep-seated body issues are manifesting in ways that are catching both Anne and her friends off guard. ComicsAlliance spoke with Meat & Bone creator Kat Verhoeven about her queer slice-of-life webcomic, the far-reaching influence of body image, and well-rendered chins.

Escapist fantasies are seductive in their power to take us away. Whatever mundane, excruciating chore you find yourself mired in, forget it. Imagine yourself in a fairy tale, where the fantastic and enchanting and eye-catching come to life. Or fashion yourself with some unshakable destiny, charted on a world-saving path that is only yours. In Megan Lavey-Heaton and Isabelle Melançon's Namesake, Emma Crewe gets both of those — she's plopped into a world of inter-stitched classic fairy tales (Alice in Wonderland, Wizard of Oz) to find herself expected to serve as a "Dorothy." Her fantastical escape might not be quite what she expected. ComicsAlliance spoke with Melançon and Lavey-Heaton about genre subversion, color choices, and the problem with "grimdark."

College student Becka thinks her fellow classmate Kim, described by Becka as "100% cutie with a booty," is basically an angel. And she is, sorta. Kim's an angel of death, a part-time grim reaper. Look, we all take odd jobs in college to make the ends meet. ComicsAlliance spoke with Kim Reaper series creator Sarah Graley to chat about Becka and Kim's shenanigans, odd couples, and what it takes to be hired as a grim reaper.

Hair has meant many things across many stories — for Samson, strength; for Rapunzel, escape; for Gretchen Wieners, secrets. In the world of Ariel Ries' Witchy, hair represents magical potential and, for its lead hero Nyneve, family trauma. ComicsAlliance spoke with Ries about magic, the sociopolitical ramifications of hair in her comic and the real world, and subverting genre expectations.

How does Gotham City realistically have any architecture that's more than a decade old? Do construction workers comprise the bulk of Marvel's New York workforce? And who pays for the city-wide collateral damage incurred every time aliens invade? Amanda Green, SIA, a webcomic written by Greg Thelen and illustrated successively by artists Marili Ramirez, MJ Barros, and Amy King, explores what it's like for the civilians in the oft superhuman-besieged city of New Romford, including its titular character, the superhuman insurance agent Amanda Green. ComicsAlliance spoke with Thelen about his story of regular people in a superhero world, the consequences of collateral damage, and sudden dinosaur transformation.

If the dream of the '90s is alive in Portland, then the decade's nightmare is alive in Drugs & Wires' cyberpunk post-Soviet eastern Europe. Cryoclaire and Io Black's webcomic envisions a futuristic 1995 where virtual reality and cyborgs are as fashionable as JNCO jeans. Unfortunately, that future kind of sucks. Especially for Dan, the comic's battered and weary protagonist. ComicsAlliance spoke with Cryoclaire and Io Black about the comic's unique setting, and its eclectic fashion and black humor.