Westward (webcomic): Difference between revisions
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[[File:WestwardResized_109.jpg|frame|Meet [[Haunted Heroine|Dr. Wells]], [[My Brain Is Big|Phobos]], [[The Captain|Captain Carter]], [[Number Two|XO Santana]], and [[Intrepid Reporter|Lamont]].]]
A [[Sci Fi Webcomics|Science Fiction webcomic]] by Elliot Toman, ''Westward'' is an old-fashioned [[Space Opera]] and [[Adventure]] story about humanity's first [[Faster
Set in an [[Alternate History]] where the [[Cold War]] never ended and humanity reached [[
Read it [http://westwardcomic.com/ here], start from the beginning [https://web.archive.org/web/20131101234838/http://westwardcomic.com/comic.php?itemid=3 here], or view the entire first episode (caution -- may take a bit of time to load!) [https://web.archive.org/web/20130919133404/http://westwardcomic.com/comic.php?special=episode01 here].
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{{tropelist}}
* [[Alternate History]]: [[World War II]] ended when a (presumed) Soviet superweapon destroyed Berlin and ignited the Earth's atmosphere, devastating much of Europe; the Cold War continues into the 21st century; a manned mission to Mars happens in 1974, and attempts to colonize it are made by the 1980s; [[Faster
* [[Art Evolution]]: The [https://web.archive.org/web/20130920024725/http://westwardcomic.com/comic.php?itemid=10 earlier pages] have a simpler and rougher appearance than [https://web.archive.org/web/20130920025518/http://westwardcomic.com/comic.php?itemid=889 later ones], though [https://web.archive.org/web/20130920021948/http://westwardcomic.com/comic.php?itemid=6 many of them] have a certain charm precisely because of that cleaner, simpler approach.
* [[Black Box]]: [[Faster
* [[Clarke's Third Law]]: [https://web.archive.org/web/20130920024641/http://westwardcomic.com/comic.php?itemid=18 Evoked by Rex and Captain Carter] early on in the strip.
* [[Cold War]]: In ''Westward'''s timeline, it never ended. Initially it's just an interesting part of the background, but eventually the implications become quite important to the plot, and personally to some of the characters...
* [[Cool Starship]]: The Westward itself is humanity's first starship, a giant colony-ship that can leap across the galaxy in a second under the guidance of a [[My Brain Is Big|big-brained]] Martian scientist. And it packs enough power to shift the orbits of planets or create a mini super-nova if you aren't careful with the controls...
* [[Dreaming the Truth]]: Mr. Townsend's dreams aren't always consistent with his conscious memories of his traumatic past...
* [[Faster
** An interesting detail is that while the jump itself is instantaneous, many weeks of space travel using conventional engines are still required as part of every trip, to ensure that the ship is at a safe distance from any massive astronomical body before and after the jump.
** Everyone aboard must take shelter in special "normalization booths" during the jump; the author has stated that this "creates a good separation between travel that's normal — adhering to the laws of physics — and travel that's abnormal, unnatural, and dangerous."
* [[Frickin' Laser Beams]]: Spratt's "Ruby Ray" -- it seems he's ''invented'' Frickin' Laser Beams in this timeline.
* [[Going Critical]]: The starship Westward is driven by the most powerful nuclear reactor ever built, so it's only natural for this trope to make an appearance sooner or later.
{{quote|Nuclear reactors don't blow up on account of the safeguards, which [were] ''disabled'', so it makes sense, see? It's just like if somebody went and disabled all the safeguards on your, uh, toaster. ''Boom''.|Elliot Toman responds to reader questions about the potential explosive meltdown.}}
* [[Insufferable Genius]]: Spratt, the brilliant engineer, is not a people person.
* [[Intrepid Reporter]]: Lamont Townsend is an unusually cynical example.
* [[
* [[The Multiverse]]: It may be possible to view parallel universes, with the right technology. "We're always so close to the end..."
** The concept of parallel worlds starts to play an increasingly important -- but still mysterious -- role in the story as the comic goes on.
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* [[Starship Luxurious]]: The Westward contains Frontier Town, an entire little community for space colonists. This is fairly justified, since the ship must sustain a fairly large population of civilians for months and years before a planet suitable for colonization is found, all while keeping them happy and stable. However, even purely utilitarian parts of the ship, like the engine room, are quite spacious.
* [[Time Stands Still]]: One character seems to be able to play tricks with time.
* [[Trauma
* [[Vehicle Title]]: ''Westward'' is the name of humanity's first starship, and also fits the comic as a whole, with its themes of frontier exploration and adventure.
* [[Wagon Train to
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Sci Fi Webcomics]]
[[Category:Westward]]
[[Category:
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