It is with a bitterness in my mouth and a pang of desperation in my heart that I concede the possession of webcomics to Mr. Ryan Estrada, the owner and purveyor of RyanEstrada.com, and newly minted site, Cartoon Commune. This new site celebrates the fact that Estrada is now a full-time artist. The venerable artist celebrates this milestone by stealing the position as new artist on the soon-to-be-relaunched poker webcomic, Life’s A Bluff, right out from under my nose and whipping up guest comics for every strip on the Web. Don’t believe me? Read this.

Yes, in a frantic, frenzied race for the new artist’s slot on Life’s A Bluff, I found myself to be one of the lucky finalists. I did not, however, know that I was up against Estrada for the valued spot. Had I known, I probably wouldn’t have even tried, or at least not as hard. And this isn’t just any artist’s credit; the relaunch of LaB will see a backer for the site in the form of Phil Laak, a.k.a. The Unabomber, a.k.a. Very-Very-Very-Rich-Guy.

With the assistance of one of the top poker players in the world, the site is sure to become even huger than it already is, and that is one ride this artistically talented blogger wanted tickets to. Still, with a consummate pro like Estrada on the strip, I can at least sleep comfortably knowing that LaB creator, Frank Frisina, got the very best to carry the strip into the very bright future.

Cartoon Commune is Estrada and John Campbell‘s play at getting even more money and fame and this venture will draw it straight from the audience. With Commune, the duo will create a comic strip or comic book about anything your commission-paying heart could possibly desire. $15 will get you a custom-made comic strip while a comic book can be yours starting at $200. I’m not certain exactly what the market for such a service might be, but if two creators can make it work, it’s these guys.

As the sun sets on this approaching-Autumn Virginia Monday, there looks to be a chance that tomorrow will not be as Estrada intensive for regular ‘Net denizens. But really, would it be such a horrible thing if it were?