Exiern starts out fairly generic, but for a bit of gender swapping, which is Played for Laughs. It's amusing, but little more than that. After a while, however, it grows into a serious, intelligent examination of any number of issues, including gender dysmorphia, struggles with sexuality and internalised misogyny, married to a complex plot (don't dismiss the throwaway gags - you never know when they might carry a degree of Foreshadowing).
Also of note are the intricately woven subplots, and the story, though becoming more serious, never loses its humour, often drawn from a wry awareness of genre archetypes. Yes, it is full of copious amounts of T & A, which is not to the taste of some, but that tails off after a while (even with Peonie) after the sense that Naked People Are Funny wears off somewhat, but while the divide isn't perfectly even (the particularly fanservicey parts tend to end up with the women), both men and women end up naked.
To be honest, it mostly reminds me of a fusion of Questionable Content and The Order of the Stick, with the former's human touch and the latter's affectionate parodying of genre tropes, and in my view, it's worth sticking with, for a little while at least. That said, it's not going to be everyone's cup of tea.
Gets better as time goes on
Exiern starts out fairly generic, but for a bit of gender swapping, which is Played for Laughs. It's amusing, but little more than that. After a while, however, it grows into a serious, intelligent examination of any number of issues, including gender dysmorphia, struggles with sexuality and internalised misogyny, married to a complex plot (don't dismiss the throwaway gags - you never know when they might carry a degree of Foreshadowing).
Also of note are the intricately woven subplots, and the story, though becoming more serious, never loses its humour, often drawn from a wry awareness of genre archetypes. Yes, it is full of copious amounts of T & A, which is not to the taste of some, but that tails off after a while (even with Peonie) after the sense that Naked People Are Funny wears off somewhat, but while the divide isn't perfectly even (the particularly fanservicey parts tend to end up with the women), both men and women end up naked.
To be honest, it mostly reminds me of a fusion of Questionable Content and The Order of the Stick, with the former's human touch and the latter's affectionate parodying of genre tropes, and in my view, it's worth sticking with, for a little while at least. That said, it's not going to be everyone's cup of tea.