Today is a great day for 2D art (Patreon)

... but a sad day for all the 2D artists.

This morning, I woke up, grabbed my phone for my usual social media scroll, and BAM! A tidal wave of internet memes, all dripping with that unmistakable Studio Ghibli magic. My first thought? "Wow, that's actually pretty damn good." Seconds later, the gut punch: all generated by Open AI (ChatGPT)'s new toy, "4o Image Generation." Apparently, it's so good at turning real photos into Ghibli-esque masterpieces that it's gone completely viral.

Imagine the shock, the little stab of disgust I felt. Even though I've been screaming from the rooftops for years that AI art was coming for us, this still hit me hard. Mostly because of how ridiculously good the quality has gotten, and how the general public has finally caught on and is using it en masse.

It's not just a nerdy artist thing anymore; it's a mainstream thing, right now.

I hate being that "I told you so" guy, but damn it, I have to. I publicly, repeatedly, on my socials, said AI was winning, AI was coming, AI was going to eat us artists for breakfast. Maybe it was time to jump on board, use it to our advantage. I got laughed at. A lot. Hated on. A lot.

Now, anyone with a half-baked idea and a ChatGPT subscription can generate (let's use that word, shall we?) a comic strip in seconds. How the hell am I supposed to compete with that?

I consider myself a fast drawer, but even at my best, one page of a simple four-panel comic takes a day or two. A normal comic book page? At least a week. Facing this AI image generator, I feel like I'm bringing a knife to a gunfight.

Don't fight it. Adopt it. Use it. And pray you can stay ahead of the curve.

So, I used ChatGPT to recreate one of my old comics. And it did a great job. Not perfect, not quite me, but damn near close. Maybe you're not scared. Maybe you're still fighting the good fight against the inevitable. Let me tell you, I'm pretty damn scared, and I'm diving headfirst into learning everything I can about AI generation tools. Because at the end of the day, AI is just a tool. It's not a magic wand. It's not as simple as hitting a button and getting exactly what you want. Nope, you still have to learn the rules, the prompts, the policies. It takes work, a lot of time, a lot of trial and error.

My goal has always been to create better art for my fans, and for myself. AI can't do my job yet, but I'm going to incorporate it into my workflow, and hopefully, it'll become the assistant I've never had, making my comics even better.

I know the shitstorm is coming. I know some people will shame me, hate me for it. One thing these "morally superior" folks love to comment on my posts is, "You're a gay artist. Be on the right side of history."

Well, I think I am on the right side of history: I'm using a tool to make my art better.

But the question I want to ask them is: are you sure you're on the right side of history? Because history changes sides pretty damn often. As a gay artist (often the target of censorship online), I have to adapt to survive.

So, just let me say this to those few individuals who keep shaming me for experimenting with AI art: I'm sorry, honey, bless your heart, but your right side of history is a sinking ship right now, and I'm not going to stay on it and drown just to make you feel better about yourselves.