‘Let’s Be Friends Again’ Webcomic Fires Artist [Updated]

We've mentioned the superhero-oriented webcomic "Let's Be Friends Again" several times at ComicsAlliance, shouting out the fantastic Big Two funmaking of writer Curt Franklin and artist Chris Haley. According to a press release issued by Franklin this morning, there are big changes underway at the comic, with Haley stepping down as artist effective immediately, and Ignatz Award-winning artist and Eisner Award nominee Joel Priddy picking up the reins.

While the change may seem sudden to fans, Franklin insists that "this is something I've been building to for a long time, a lot like human evolution. You can see it in the crude beginning, when 'LBFA' was still some kind of comic-ing primordial soup, just splashing around and making barely legible strips. With Joel here, 'LBFA' has now mastered the use of opposable thumbs, so to speak, something made clear in the art, which now looks like it was drawn by a human being."

Priddy, whose illustrations have also appeared in the New York Times, added that "it has been a rank humiliation to step down from the lofty world of print comics - those respectable tomes in their fine leather bindings, best enjoyed in the comfort of one's private club with a cigar and brandy - to the gutter of webcomics, which, as near as I can tell, are only read by porn-addicts when they need to rest the deformed claw that was once their masturbating hand. But I need the money."

There were no quotes from Haley in the press release, nor any farewell message from him on the comic website, a bit of a curious omission that left us wondering how amicable this split really was. Perhaps the pressure of creating a regular strip has taken its toll, and left the two friends and former collaborators at odds, or even worse... frenemies? Edit: Haley has given us an official comment on his departure; see along with the full comic announcing the change in creative team after the jump.When contacted for comment, Haley confirmed that "the news was a surprise to me too, I think anyone who's read 'Let's Be Friends Again' or knows Curt and I could tell that something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. I'm sad to see all of my hard work be for nothing (for me personally), but I'm glad that the elderly Mr. Priddy could breeze in and become a part of 'LBFA' and finally get some recognition before he dies. I'm also hoping that Curt will find that Priddy, who is crotchety as hell (because of his age), won't be as amicable to Curt's freewheeling jerkass tendencies as I was."