Sinfest

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Sinfest
Author(s)Tatsuya Ishida
Websitewww.sinfest.net
Current status/scheduleDaily
Launch dateJanuary 17, 2000 (2000-01-17)
Genre(s)Comedy, satire

Sinfest is a long-running American webcomic by Tatsuya Ishida. Updating daily, Sinfest started as a black comedy strip in January 2000. It has featured a wide range of perspectives over its long history, including on American politics,[1] organized religion,[2] radical feminism,[3][4] conspiracy theories,[5][6] and antisemitism.[7]

Overview[edit]

Sinfest originated as a four-panel daily comedy strip relying on dark humor with frequent pop culture references. Over its first decade it evolved into a more serious work, with a large cast of regular characters commenting on such themes as organized religion,[2] American exceptionalism,[1] and economic insecurity.[8] It abruptly shifted focus to radical feminism in 2011,[9] tackling issues such as slut-shaming, misogyny, and street harassment,[4] later incorporating criticism of sex work and the concept of gender identity.[5] It increasingly embraced far-right conspiracies during the Trump presidency and COVID-19 pandemic,[5][6] and following the Israeli invasion of Gaza has been accused of adopting antisemitic and neo-Nazi language and imagery.[7]

History[edit]

In an interview with Publishers Weekly,[8] Ishida stated that he knew he wanted to become a comics author ever since he read a Peanuts paperback as a child: "[S]omething about the simplicity and solitary nature of the medium appealed to me."[8] Ishida briefly served as penciller for Dark Horse Comics' G.I. Joe Extreme in the early 1990s. Ishida said that he botched this job, noting that "several [of his] pages were so poorly drawn they had to get another guy to redo them entirely".[8] Later on that decade, Ishida attempted to work in animation, but this path also did not pan out.

Early years (2000-2011)[edit]

In 2000, Ishida taught himself HTML, put together a Geocities web page, and started uploading Sinfest strips seven days per week. Ishida stated that he managed to sustain this strict schedule during the first seven years purely through "coffee and revenge".[8] Ishida is rather private and has little interaction with his readership.[10]

Over the years, Sinfest has gone through many shifts in tone.[11] Ishida views his older works as an indicator of his emotional state during that period, describing his early Sinfest strips as "unhinged, totally off the chain".[8] In 2009, Ishida claimed his strip was "still pretty wild, but there's also more warmth, more tenderness",[8] citing 2005 as a turning point towards more sentimental, character-driven storylines. Sinfest was nominated for three Web Cartoonists' Choice Awards in 2004.[12]

Ishida self-published three print volumes of Sinfest between 2002 and 2005. Two volumes of early Sinfest have been published in print by Dark Horse Comics. The first of these was released in mid-2009 and reprints the entire first year of the webcomic. The second volume, a 2011 collection titled Viva la Resistance, covers the webcomic's run from 2003 to 2004, featuring over 600 pages that were previously uncollected.[10] Sinfest has also appeared in the Norwegian comic magazine Nemi.[13]

During the 2008 United States presidential election, Sinfest incorporated more political themes. This was in part because of the "collective anxiety" regarding the financial crisis of 2007–2008.[8] Ishida stated that he switches between characters and situations in his webcomic "pretty much on a whim",[10] claiming that the longer storylines of his webcomic help to tie it all together. In 2011, Ishida started to produce weekly colored strips, giving readers "something extra fun and engaging"[10] on Sundays.

Increasing radicalization (2011-present)[edit]

In October 2011, the comic abruptly shifted in tone, focusing heavily on radical feminist themes.[3][4][9] PC Magazine listed Sinfest among the best webcomics of 2015.[14] The narrative shift proved divisive with readers; in 2018 Ishida started a Patreon account [15][11][16] and created a new "anti-pornography, anti-prostitution" forum for "people who like the message of my comic",[3] aiming "to establish a community that takes a strong stance against the sexual exploitation industries."[17] This developed into aggressive criticism of sex work;[5] in 2019, commentators noted Sinfest began incorporating strongly transphobic themes.[5][6]

Late in the Trump administration, Sinfest began referencing the MAGA movement and far-right conspiracy theories, including COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, QAnon, and Great Replacement theory.[5][6]

In September 2022, Ishida posted on the Sinfest forums claiming to have been locked out of Twitter for "hateful conduct"[18] in reference to a Sinfest strip.[19] In December 2022, the Sinfest Patreon account was removed,[20] and soon afterward a replacement Ko-fi account[21] was also shut down.[22] On December 8, 2022, Ishida made a blog post stating that the reason for the Patreon removal was that Patreon had banned him;[23] six days later, he tweeted that Patreon had removed his account for promoting "sentiments of discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation".[24]

Following the Israeli invasion of Gaza in 2023, the Webcomics Review noted Sinfest began using antisemitic rhetoric and tropes from esoteric Nazism, including a "thousand years" reign of Hyperborea and the Zionist Occupation Government conspiracy theory.[7]

The site's forum, which had declined to minimal activity in recent years,[6] is no longer available as of May 2024.[25]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Rosberg, Caitlin (2016-11-11). "Required Reading: 40 of the Best Webcomics". Paste Magazine. Archived from the original on 2017-02-02. Sinfest has recently become a more specific and pointed criticism of the most toxic parts of American exceptionalism. […] [Ishida's] sharp use of The Matrix as a visual metaphor for the ways in which people are blinded has proven particularly poignant during this current presidential election cycle.
  2. ^ a b Orndorff, Patrick (2009-08-10). "10 Great Webcomics You Should Not Share With Your Kids". Wired. Archived from the original on 2016-12-22. This comic takes a very irreverent view of organized religion and should not be viewed by the overly devout or by the closed-minded.
  3. ^ a b c Ishida, Tatsuya (2018-07-01). "Notes from the Resistance: Take The Long Way Home". Sinfest. I'm launching a new forum for people who like the message of my comic. The new forum will be anti-pornography, anti-prostitution. It will favor the radical feminist perspective over a liberal or conservative one. So if you'd like to participate in a forum environment more in harmony with the comic, I invite you to join.
  4. ^ a b c Polo, Susana (2013-08-14). "40 Webcomics You Need to Read". The Mary Sue. Archived from the original on 2017-07-07. Over the past year or so, however, the strip has gone through a revolution of sorts, tackling numerous feminist concepts like slut-shaming, misogyny, problematic porn, and street harassment, sometimes requiring great personal adjustments from its main characters.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Broderick, Ryan (April 29, 2022). "The Long, Strange Journey of Sinfest". Garbage Day. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved May 4, 2024. Then, in 2019, Ishida publishes his first anti-trans comic, which seems to argue that transgenderism was created as a way for Big Pharma to prey on young people. And then, from there, all of Ishida's fascinations re-align around trans-exclusionary radical feminism.
  6. ^ a b c d e Kleefeld, Sean (April 8, 2024). "On Tatsuya Ishida". Kleefeld on Comics. Archived from the original on May 4, 2024. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Kelly, Daniel. "The Webcomics Review: Posts tagged sinfest". The Webcomics Review. Archived from the original on May 4, 2024. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Hudson, Laura (2009-06-09). "The Wages of Sinfest". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on 2009-06-15. The first seven years it was coffee and revenge. That's what kept me going. My attitude was, 'I'll show them. I'll show them all!'
  9. ^ a b Kleefeld, Sean (June 25, 2020). Webcomics. Bloomsbury Comics Studies. pp. 82–3. ISBN 1350028177. A more dramatic shift occurred in Sinfest when creator Tatsuya Ishida switched his focus after a decade from, as one reviewer described, "jiggly pimps-n-hoes humor" (Garrity, 2012) to a more overtly radical feminist message. The change in direction was fairly abrupt and unannounced, surprising many readers.
  10. ^ a b c d Carlson, Johanna Draper (2011-01-24). "Tatsuya Ishida Speaks on Sinfest, Jesus, and Fans". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on 2017-02-04. Less socializing means I can concentrate more on the strip.
  11. ^ a b Ishida, Tatsuya. "Tatsuya Ishida is creating Comics". Patreon. Archived from the original on 2018-03-10. Hi, I'm the creator of Sinfest, an online comic that's been running since 2000. Over the years it has gone through many changes, to the delight of some and dismay of others. I hope to continue polarizing audiences for many years to come. Your support is greatly appreciated.
  12. ^ "2004 Results". Web Cartoonists' Choice Awards. Archived from the original on 2014-10-27. Outstanding Black and White Art […] Outstanding Character (Visual) […] Outstanding Short Form Comic.
  13. ^ Garvik, Bodil (2005-01-14). "Debuterer i Tommy og Tigeren". Bergens Tidende (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 2011-06-11. Nå fremhever hun amerikanske Tony Millionaires Maakies og Sinfest av japanske Tatsuya Ishida, som går i Nemi [She now highlights the American Tony Millionaire's Maakies and Sinfest by Japanese Tatsuya Ishida, which appears in Nemi].
  14. ^ Griffith, Eric (2015-02-14). "The Best Webcomics 2015". PC Magazine. Archived from the original on 2017-10-09. Tatsuya Ishida's perfect line work is a beauty to behold […] as is his bravery to cover the topics of religion, patriarchy, sex, and drugs, all in a humorous fashion.
  15. ^ Ishida, Tatsuya (2018-01-08). "This Is My Winter Song To You". Sinfest blog. Hi. I made a patreon. Happy New Year!
  16. ^ "Tatsuya Ishida: Patreon Earnings + Statistics + Graphs + Rank". Graphtreon. Archived from the original on 2022-11-12. Launched Jan 8, 2018.
  17. ^ Ishida, Tatsuya (July 3, 2018). "Community Guidelines - welcome to the fest". Sinfest forum. Retrieved May 4, 2024. My priority here in the opening days of this forum is to establish a community that takes a strong stance against the sexual exploitation industries. And to foster an environment that's friendly to radical feminists and people who support radical feminism.
  18. ^ Ishida, Tatsuya (2022-09-21). "Twitter Lockout". Sinfest forums. Retrieved May 4, 2024. Just got locked out of Twitter for this comic [2022-09-03]. They say it's 'hateful conduct.'
  19. ^ Ishida, Tatsuya (2022-09-03). "The Amazing Woman-Man". Sinfest. Wears a dress feeling cute / Punches TERFs for speaking truth.
  20. ^ "Removed". Patreon. Archived from the original on 2022-12-22. This page has been removed.
  21. ^ "Tatsuya Ishida". Ko-fi. Archived from the original on 2022-12-08. Buy Tatsuya Ishida a Coffee.
  22. ^ "Tatsuya Ishida". Ko-fi. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10. 302 redirect.
  23. ^ Ishida, Tatsuya (2022-12-08). "Singing for my Supper". Sinfest blog. I got kicked off of Patreon so please support me at one of these platforms […]. Thank you!
  24. ^ Ishida, Tatsuya (2022-12-14). "Patreon removed my Account". Twitter. Patreon removed my account for promoting 'sentiments of discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.'
  25. ^ "welcome to the fest - Information". Sinfest forum. 2024-05-04.

External links[edit]

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