Review: ‘The Sea In You’ by Jessi Sheron

Corinth, an introverted goth girl, picks up trash alone on the seashore when she hears a voice and almost drowns. That’s how The Sea in You starts off – and it’s beautiful so far. With only 23 strips, it’s still a young story, but it’s filled with promise and a tantalizing narrative that’s only just begun to unfold.

THE SEA IN YOU: WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

So far? Mermaids, and human relationships. Corinth is troubled, but not in the ways you expect a “goth girl” to be troubled. She’s shy, with a domineering boyfriend (who uses some very, very questionable tactics to keep her attention), but she has a determination that shines through on every page she’s in.

The mermaid character is an unknown so far. However, if you like good mermaid designs and suspiciously dangerous mythical ladies, she seems like a good bet.

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The Sea in You, Corinth
Corinth meets the mermaid.

THE SEA IN YOU: THE ART

This comic’s art is fully-coloured, and intricately stylized. Webcomics are usually known for simplistic or cartoony art, and while there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s lovely to see art that has so much time and detail afforded to it. It’s a change, and one that suits the subject matter beautifully.

It’s even more breathtaking once you realize that Jessi Sheron does all of the art herself – sketching, lining, shading and coloring. (Apparently a flatter was hired for one page, but that’s all!) Normally on comics with art this intricate a different person is hired for each stage. A notable example is FreakAngels by Warren Ellis, where they go into detail about the process and people involved.

The downside is that the update schedule is slow. The comic started in 2015, and the pages have been released in spurts since then. I’m excited to see where the story will go, but it’ll be great to see the entire comic as a cohesive whole.

THE SEA IN YOU: THE ARTIST

Jessi Sheron is a freelance illustrator and comic book artist, who previously worked on The Evil Queen. Her website is here, and she also has a very entertaining Tumblr and Twitter account. The Sea In You is her second comic.

Have you read The Sea In You? What do you think?

Elliott Dunstan
Elliott Dunstan
Elliott Dunstan is a semi-professional Canadian nerd with a special talent for reading way too fast, spouting weird trivia, and latching emotionally onto that minor character with a one-liner in the second episode. Elliott was born in 1995 and is mildly annoyed by this.