Ghost Face: On the Case is a short 6 page comic I created as a final project for a college course. This started with some fun character designs and evolved into a full story that told itself as I wrote it. Ghost Face is an oddball detective assigned to interrogate a suspected jewelry store thief. The comedy comes from the stark difference between the two characters involved in the story. It asks the question of what a cartoon character would be like in a realistic scenario.
After coming up with the idea of the story and writing a loose script, I needed character designs. I wanted the two characters to contrast each other very well, and to be so emotive and carefully designed that you can tell each one's role just by looking at them. For Detective Ghost Face I wanted him to be overly expressive and cartoonish. I wanted the large majority of his comedy to come from his different expressions and faces, so I made him very loose and goofy looking. I colored his vest bright blue to imply he is the good guy.
For Theo, the jewelry store thief, I wanted him to feel a lot more menacing than Ghost Face, while also being somewhat relatable. I gave him pretty casual street clothes, with a red and black color palette to signify his criminal nature. He has long spikey hair and dark bags under his eyes to suit this characterization as well.
Listed below is the entirety of the comic, viewable in order from left to right.
