''Paranatural'' is a supernatural action/ comedy webcomic created by Zack Morrison. The

comic a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...

has been written and illustrated by Morrison since its debut in 2010, with seven completed chapters and an eighth chapter currently ongoing. Set in the fictional town of Mayview, the comic follows the Activity Club, a group of middle school students who have the ability to interact with the

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

world. The comic began on ComicFury and Smackjeeves before later moving to its own site.

Synopsis

The comic follows the adventures of Max and the Activity Club throughout their adventures. They fight ghosts and bullies, play hitball, and solve the mysteries of the town. The story is told through an omniscient third person, sometimes including guest art or mini-comics. The comic is drawn page by page in a standard panel format, including shifted panels and extraneous movements depending on the activity going on. Morrison also includes alt text on each page (starting with the 24th page of the 1st chapter), with a short comment on the page. Morrison interacts with their readers through the text underneath the pages as well as both their Twitter and Tumblr accounts.

Reception

'' Comic Book Resources'' has described ''Paranatural'' as "fun, action-packed and visually inventive", with "enjoyable character moments", and compared it to ''

Dragon Ball Z ''Dragon Ball Z'' is a Japanese anime television series produced by Toei Animation. Part of the ''Dragon Ball'' media franchise, it is the sequel to the 1986 '' Dragon Ball'' anime series and adapts the latter 325 chapters of the original ...

''. PopOptiq considered it to be "brimming with wit and humor", while io9 emphasized that there is "a rich story sitting behind all that humor," and recommended it as worthy of an

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

. ''The Hawkeye'' praised its humor, which it described as "a mix of almost self-aware snark, fun-loving parody, and downright great standalone jokes", its art, which it described as "a mix somewhere between western cartoon and anime", and its cast of characters. ''

Inverse Inverse or invert may refer to: Science and mathematics * Inverse (logic), a type of conditional sentence which is an immediate inference made from another conditional sentence * Additive inverse (negation), the inverse of a number that, when ad ...

'' praised its "sly use of

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

-esque stylistic tropes", remarking that "its characters leap off the screen". ''Paranatural'' reached the final round of the Mix March Madness 2014 Webcomics Tournament, a single-elimination tournament between 128 contestants.

References

{{Hiveworks 2010s webcomics 2010 webcomic debuts American comedy webcomics Anime and manga inspired webcomics Fantasy webcomics Ghosts in written fiction Long-form webcomics Paranormal fiction Parody webcomics