The Meek is a fantasy webcomic written and illustrated by Der-shing Helmer since 2008. Taking place in a fantasy world, The Meek focuses on protagonist Angora, a young girl with a magical ability to control plants, as she is trying to reach a place she refers to as "the center".^[2] However, The Meek follows multiple narratives with several different characters from across the world. Each chapter separately follows one of these narratives.

Development

Der-shing Helmer is a trained biologist and educator,^[3] writing The Meek in her spare time.^[4] In a 2009 interview, Helmer stated she draws inspiration from biology when designing the world of The Meek.^[5] Helmer created the first draft of her webcomic entirely with a mechanical pencil and marker, but quickly switched to Photoshop CS2 for the final version. She uses a Wacom Intuos tablet to create the comic, and her creation process has become more streamlined since she built a template for her pages.^[6]

Plot

The Meek follows multiple narratives with several different characters from across the world. Each chapter separately follows one of these narratives. The main characters are:

• Angora – The protagonist, an enthusiastic 15-year-old girl living alone in a jungle, aided by her plant manipulation powers, until she embarks on her quest to save the world. She has little use for clothes, and will only wear a pair of cut-off shorts.
• Luca – An emperor and leader of a group of people called the Pasori. Murder drives him to switch from peaceful negotiation to war against another country.
• Soli – A bandit who is searching for her ex-boyfriend, so she can kill him.^[7]
• Pinter – Angora's companion, a wandering, alcoholic cartographer who meets Angora and, out of concern for her safety, travels with her.
• Rana, Suda and Hyla – Luca's children.
• Alamand – Soli's companion, a skilled young boy.

The plot of The Meek concerns a war that is brewing between several of the world's nations, notably the Carissi and the Pasori people.^[4]

Reception

Caitlin Rosberg of The A.V. Club recommended The Meek as one of the best comics of 2016.^[8]

In 2017, The Meek won an Ignatz Award in the "Outstanding Online Comic" category.^[9]