Fanbruary Day 1: Widdershins.

Good day to you all, and a happy first of Fanbruary. As I mentioned before, it is my intention to bring to you all some fine recommendations of independently created media, one per day until the end of the month. Today, I am pleased to bring you one of my very favorite webcomics and adventure stories of all time; Widdershins.

Widdershins is a wild and magical romp through an alternate Victorian-era Britain where wizards are real, spirits can be bound to make the trains run on time, and there is considerably less racism and sexism. Who can say which of those three things is the most remarkable?

The story follows the adventures of a wide cast of diverse and interesting characters, from the gruff and serious treasure hunter, Harry Barber to her best friend, the enthusiastic failed wizard Sidney Malik, or the reluctant hangman Vincent "Knotty" Knott. Each chapter shows a complete adventure in its own right, although I would strongly recommend starting at the first story and going chronologically. Right now, we're on chapter eight, so there is rather a lot of catching up to do. However, so quickly does the story take you in that catching up is a delight rather than a chore.

Widdershins is written by the talented Kate Ashwin, who also wrote the fantasy comic Darken, and is an absolutely delightful person in general. I really can't recommend this entertaining, ongoing comic highly enough. It updates every Tuesday and Friday, and it's usually the first thing I check online every Tuesday and Friday morning.