Erma (comic)

Erma is a webcomic by Brandon J. Santiago started in 2014. Santiago initially published the webcomic on DeviantArt and Tumblr in 2014, but has since released it on various services, such as Tapas, Instagram and WEBTOON. Erma follows the adventures and misadventures of the titular six-year-old Erma Williams' experiences as a half-human, half-ghost, tending to use her haunting abilities for everyday antics, whether for better or for worse, focusing on themes such as friendship and acceptance. It is available in two languages, English and Spanish.[1] In January 2020, Comics Beat reported that with 64.5 million views and 74.9 thousand subscribers, Erma was the most-viewed webcomic on the Tapas syndicate in 2019.[2]

Erma
Author(s)Brandon J. Santiago
Donovan Tracy Gaiter
Illustrator(s)Brandon J. Santiago
WebsiteErma on Tapas
Current status/scheduleOngoing, published online daily / weekly
Launch date
  • May 28, 2014 (first published)
  • January 3, 2016 (Tapas)
  • April 14, 2018 (WEBTOON)
Syndicate(s)Tapas
WEBTOON
Publisher(s)Outcast Studios
Genre(s)Dark comedy slice of life

In October 2017, Santiago published a prequel graphic novel to the webcomic titled Spirit's Bloom, as well as two anthology collections of Erma comics, in addition releasing a short film pilot of Erma produced by Outcast Studios. In January 2019, a print collection, Tales of Outcast, was announced, as well as the stand-alone Night Detective, Siris, and Warrior Unicorn Princess, and Yokai, an in-universe novel. A picture book, Meet Erma, was released in April 2020.[3]

Overview

Erma follows the adventures and misadventures of Erma Williams, a child who lives in the suburbs and has supernatural abilities. Santiago also focuses on Erma's supernatural life and friendships with her best friends, Amy, Terry and Connor, as well as her babysitter Felicia and fellow Warrior Unicorn Princess fan Sidney.

Development

Santiago started creating and uploading Erma on DeviantArt and Tumblr in 2014. He was studying at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign at the time, from which he graduated in 2018 to work on the webcomic full-time. The concept of the series originated from a short parody one-shot of Ju-On and The Ring published on May 28, 2014. Following the one-shot's positive reception on DeviantArt and it subsequently going viral across various social media platforms, Santiago decided to develop a series based on the original Erma one-shot, debuting on Tapas on January 3, 2016, and on WEBTOON on April 14, 2018.[4] The series has received universal acclaim for its originality, creativity, and humour. In 2017, the name of the series was confirmed to have been take from the minor Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character Irma Langinstein, and that the surname of Erma title character Erma Williams was taken from the minor The Grudge character Emma Williams.

In October 2017, Santiago developed and released an animated short film based on the comic in conjunction with the company Outcast Studios, run by Donovan Tracy Gaiter and Julia Santiago. Santiago has stated regarding the initial decision to exclusively release the strip on Tapas that "Erma should at least be on one main website where it would be easy for anyone, fan or newcomer, to come together, and be able to read all of the comics in chronological order, with a more organized list"; despite this, the comic was later released on WEBTOON.[3]

Bibliography

Collections

Several print collections and a graphic novel have been published. Erma #1 covered various strips from 2014-2015 alongside original strips, while Erma #2 featured solely original strips. Spirit’s Bloom, a graphic novel set before the events of Erma, detailing how Erma's parents met as well as expanding the series’ mythology, was released in 2017. A third collection, Tales of Outcast, featuring the writing of Donovan Tracy and art of Erik Lervold and Kirsten Celander, was released in 2019.

Title Publication date ISBN / ASIN Synopsis Publisher
Erma #1 October 23, 2017 B076QCQPFT Erma is enjoying life in the suburbs, going to school, hanging out with friends, and spending time with the family. However, she is a ghost. Outcast Comics, BJS Incorporated
Erma #2 B076QDT2K3
Tales of Outcast #1 March 13, 2019 B07PQVWDFP A new threat has come to the town of Blairwood. Outcast Studios
Tales of Outcast #2 April 29, 2019 B07R7XVLB6 Discovering that their souls are trapped in a video game, Erma brings herself into the world of the Labyrinth to rescue her friends.
Tales of Outcast #3 May 17, 2019 B07RZBJMV2 Erma and her friends try to find their way out of the Labyrinth with the mysterious creature hot on their trail.
Tales of Outcast #4 July 8, 2019 B07V488HPS With nowhere left to run, Erma, Terry, and Connor face off against the creature that has taken their friends and family in an attempt to escape the Labyrinth once and for all.
Tales of Outcast #5 July 17, 2019 B07VFQJC1D As Erma and her parents are on their trip in Japan, Felicia loses her dog, Siris, while on a walk in the park.
Tales of Outcast #6 March 13, 2020 B085X3W9NS The Warrior Unicorn Princess is the heir to a fallen kingdom, and takes to the battlefield in the name of love and friendship.
Tales of Outcast #7 B085X4DFP3 Warrior Unicorn Princess returns to her home, a kingdom corrupted by dark forces.
Tales of Outcast #8 B085X3NVDD The Night Detective investigates the disappearance of two teenagers.

Graphic novel
Title Publication date ISBN / ASIN Synopsis Publisher
Spirit’s Bloom October 6, 2017 B0768FJ131 A prequel to the web comic series, introducing Erma's parents in their younger years and showing how they came to know one another.[5] Outcast Comics, BJS Incorporated

Novel
Title Publication date ISBN / ASIN Synopsis Publisher
Yokai March 13, 2020 TBA What started as a simple family vacation turns into a journey of discovery and mystery. Outcast Studios

Picture book
Title Publication date ISBN / ASIN Synopsis Publisher
Meet Erma March 13, 2020 B085X3R21W A day in the life of Erma. Outcast Studios

Other media

Pilot (2017)
No.TitleDirected byWritten byStoryboarded byMusic and sound effects byOriginal air dateProd.
code
1"Erma"Brandon SantiagoTracy Gaiter & Julia SantiagoKirsten CelanderDerek KoleckiOctober 30, 2017 (2017-10-30)TBA

On a windy night of "Meet Your Teacher Before School Starts" at Blairwood Elementary School, teacher Ms. Bierly notes that she has yet to meet one student, Erma Williams. A girl arrives, accompanied by supernatural phenomena, which Ms. Bierly attempts to flee from, only to find the exits locked. The girl offers her a red apple. As Bierly ponders the meaning of this, Sam Williams opens the classroom door looking for his daughter Erma, and identifies her as the girl in front of Bierly. Beckoning her to him to go home, Erma turns her head, revealing her normal pale face and inverted-coloured eyes.

Cast: Cecelia Negron as "The Teacher" (Ms. Bierly), with Derek Kolecki as "Erma's Dad" (Samuel "Sam" Williams)

On November 27, 2015, Brandon Santiago confirmed that an animation based on Erma was in development for after the release of Erma #2 via his Tumblr page.[6] On October 2, 2017, Santiago revealed that he had a "secret" project in development in addition to Erma #3, which he cited as the reason "there [wouldn’t] be as many Halloween strips this month as last year".[7] On October 30, 2017, Erma – Animated Short Film was uploaded to YouTube by Santiago, with a notification on Tapas describing the film as "a surprise for all of you", referring to fans of the Erma series.[8] The film was produced by Outcast Studios, and has received a positive reception.[3] The film is set prior to the first Erma strip, detailing how Erma's teacher Ms. Bierly met Erma. The short partially adapts "Coming Soon", a stand-alone comic released to Santiago's DeviantArt and Tumblr pages to announce the development of an ongoing Erma series prior to the series' original launch.[9]

Video game (2020)

On August 11, 2016, Santiago designed and released a videogame based on the Erma as a series of levels through Super Mario Maker, a game creation system developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. The game, titled Erma’s Well of Horror, contains several images of Erma composed of darkness and clouds, and has a completion rate of 4.94%.[10] Promotional art for the game features Mario encountering Erma as he's about to enter a Warp Pipe, shocked by her appearance. Santiago has stated that the game was specifically designed for readers of the Erma webcomic, as compensation for a temporary delay in the release of the following strip that existed at the time.[11] An updated version of Erma’s Well of Horror was later released to Super Mario Maker 2 upon its release in 2019. In March 2019, point-and-click adventure game Erma: The Game was announced to be in development for iOS and Mac, following, in which one would play as Erma as she searches her neighborhood of Blairwood for her science project gone awry, with an Indiegogo campaign to fund the game's development raising €24,550.[12]

Reception

Brad Miska of Bloody Disgusting has described the quality of the series as being on par with, if not superior to, Calvin and Hobbes, stating that not since the series "have I been this excited about an ongoing series". Miska also cited Santiago as having been "working diligently" with Erma; Miska additionally mistook the character of Emiko Williams (née Yūreimoto) for Samara Morgan in his review, the character from whom the design for Erma was gotten (alongside Kayako Saeki).[13] In a follow-up review to that of Miska's, Jonathan Barkan of Dread Central and Bloody Disgusting described Erma as "adorable" and "innocent", expressing fondness the series' "squeal-inducing" moments and citing "Movie Night"[14] as his favourite strip.[15]

Harry Situation of The Prose described Erma as an "[a]bsolutely fun read", calling the series "by far one of the best comic strips I’ve ever read", citing his love for Santiago's method of characterization of the main characters, finding "the rest of the characters [to be] just as likable too", describing the characters of Sam and Emiko Williams as "the most lovable couple ever". Regarding the series' artwork, Situation described it as "incredible", saying "[t]here's so much attention to detail that it’s mind-blowing. I love the expressions people give in the comic whenever Erma does something freaky. Their drawn faces and reactions are just priceless. Even Erma’s expressions are entertaining. While she doesn't talk throughout the series, Brandon found a way to let her mood and thoughts let the readers know what she's saying, and this method is brilliant. Also, it's nice to spot some cameos and easter eggs of classic horror movies in each comic strip."[16]

Chase Magnett of BuzzFeed described the series overall as "[to] be read by people of all ages", describing its humour and artwork as "adorable". Regarding the series' content, Magnett referred to Erma as "contain[ing] practical information for everyday life", "teach[ing] kids that actions have consequences", and "laugh[ing] at the day-to-day concerns of parenthood", overall stating the series to have "something that everyone can relate to".[17] Deanna Destito of Comics Beat praised Santiago's depiction of the titular Erma Williams as a "ghoulish creeper [who] just wants to be like any other kid", complementing the series' contrast with such horror franchises as The Grudge, and describing the series overall as "quirky, cute, and even a little heartwarming".[18]

See also

References
  1. "Subcultura: Erma en español". Subcultura. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  2. MacDonald, Heidi. "Sales Charts: The Top 10 most viewed comics on Tapas for 2019". Comics Beat. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  3. "9gag: 'Erma', an Animated Short Film MTC". 9GAG. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  4. Outcast Comics - Tapas.io
  5. Spirit’s Bloom – Best 90-Minute Comic & Graphic Novel Short Reads – Ranked #2, Top13Products.com, 2017, retrieved November 29, 2017
  6. The Outcast, Brandon (November 27, 2015). "OUTCAST: #preview #erma". Tumblr.
  7. The Outcast, Brandon (October 2, 2017). "SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT TIME! Hey everyone! Sorry". Tumblr.
  8. Comics, OUTCAST (October 30, 2017). "A SPECIAL HALLOWEEN SURPRISE". Tapas.
  9. Studios, Outcast (October 30, 2017). "Outcast Studios: Erma – Animated Short Film". YouTube. Retrieved October 30, 2017. This is the story of a little girl named Erma, who is enjoying life in the suburbs going to school, hanging out with friends, and even spending time with the family. What is the catch? She is a ghost.
  10. "Super Mario Maker BOOKMARK – Expert : Erma's Well of Horror". Nintendo. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  11. "BJS Incorporated – Expert : Erma's Well of Horror". DeviantArt. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  12. Brandon Santiago. "ERMA THE GAME – Help us create Erma the videogame!". Outcast Studios. Retrieved August 13, 2016 – via Indiegogo.
  13. Brad, Miska. "Meet Erma, the Daughter of 'The Ring's' Samara, In This Ongoing Comic!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  14. "Erma #1 – "Movie Night"". Tapas. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
  15. Barkan, Jonathan. "The Story of Erma, the Daughter of 'The Ring's' Samara, Continues". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  16. Situation, Harry. "Prose. Harry Situation Reviews... Erma". The Prose. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  17. Magnett, Chase. "15 Reasons Why "Erma" Web Comic Is Awesome". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  18. Destito, Deanna. "A Year of Free Comics: ERMA is creepy, cute, and just wants to be your friend". Comics Beat. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
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