Ava's Demon is a webcomic written and drawn by Michelle Czajkowski alongside her second-in-command, Vanilly Cake. The comic, which has been ongoing since 2012, is known for its painted art style and animations. The first physical publication of Ava's Demon was released in 2013 after a successful Kickstarter project.
Content
Ava's Demon is set in a universe of interplanetary travel and advanced medical science, where certain people have obtained god-like powers through science. The comic follows Ava Ire, a 15 year-old that has a personaldemon urging her to commit suicide throughout her childhood. After Ava has an encounter with death, she makes a pact with her demon, Wrathia, in order to gain a second chance at life. On Ava's journey across space in order to complete the other end of her pact with Wrathia, she meets other teenagers who have their own demons as well. The comic primarily make use of single panel pages- inspired by movie storyboards- through which a reader can advance by either clicking the "next" button or the panel itself. Furthermore, Czajkowski refers to Ava's Demon as a "multimedia sci-fi fantasy comic," infrequently featuring animated panels and music streamed through Vimeo and YouTube.
Development
Czajkowski has known since childhood that she wanted to become a cartoonist. She veered off to 3D animation and worked for both Pixar and DreamWorks. While interning at Pixar, she was taught the process of creating successful stories. Czajkowski started working on Ava's Demon during her spare time while working at Dreamworks - at the time, she did not expect it to make a sustainable career. Ava's Demon was influenced and inspired by The Fifth Element and Alien, as well as films directed by Stanley Kubrick. In 2013, Czajkowski started a crowdfunding project through Kickstarter to self-publish the first volume of Ava's Demon. Besides a full-color book, Czajkowski offered downloads for the animated comics. The webcomic successfully raised $217,036 USD by June 2013. In 2015, another Kickstarter campaign was launched to publish the second volume of Ava's Demon, as well as to re-print the first volume. Along with donation perks, an animated chapter video would be created by Studio Yotta, known for their animated videos for internet comedy groupStarbomb. The campaign was successfully funded. Czajkowski has opened up a shop for Ava's Demon where the first two books can be purchased, alongside a variety of printed art and novelty items. Czajkowski is active on a variety of social platforms including Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, and Discord. On her Twitter, Czajkowski posts update announcements as well as any notices about hiatuses the comic will take. The art of Ava's Demon is created by Czajkowski and five official colorists, two of whom also run their own webcomics.
Reception
Lauren Davis of io9 said that the multimedia experience compliments Czajkowski's sense of humor and that she enjoyed the surreal aspects of Czajkowski's storytelling. Davis described the comic as "gorgeous," but specified that Ava's Demon is "more than just a pretty face." Paste Magazine rated Ava's Demon among the best webcomics of 2014 for the way it combined "gorgeous panels with an intriguing story," and in 2015, Juliet Kahn of Comics Alliance described Ava's Demon as "one of the most luminously lovely comics currently produced." Kris Straub, creator of various webcomics, praised Ava's Demon for its animation and its painted look.
