HomeInterviewsInterview: Purpah on SUITOR ARMOR, fantasy and creating stories

Interview: Purpah on SUITOR ARMOR, fantasy and creating stories

K-Comics Beat talks fantasy, anime, and webtoon creation with Purpah, creator of Suitor Armor.

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New York Comic Con ’24 has come and gone, but among the many highlights, K-Comics Beat was given an amazing opportunity to meet and interview many creators behind hit Original series read by many on the WEBTOON platform. One of those creators is Purpah, the creator of the WEBTOON original, Suitor Armor.

We asked Purpah about how she got into creating webcomics, the influences behind Suitor Armor and

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.


Purpah smiling from the WEBTOON booth as she is doing autographs and signings during new York Comic Con 2024.
The creator of Suitor Armor herself, Purpah!

JUSTIN GUERRERO: What got you into creating webcomics/Webtoons?

PURPAH: It was a bit of a happy accident actually, ’cause me and my partner kind of took a leap of faith and moved out to L.A. I was looking to get into animation at the time, that was sort of my whole goal for the longest time: to do character design in TV and animation.

I was putting out application after application, and I wasn’t hearing anything back, and it was very discouraging. So I don’t exactly remember how I found WEBTOON. I think it was through typical advertisements, but, I discovered that they have CANVAS as an option. So I thought, “I will just create a story of my own and this will be a fun side project to keep my spirits up while I try and find work.”

So it was just something that I started to do for myself. And it was like a bi-weekly thing and it was just a little story idea that I had come up with. I was doing it just on the fly, and then it just turned into its own thing.

It kind of exploded in a way that I didn’t expect, and I kind of just fell into doing comics. Which is funny because one of my teachers in college was pushing me so hard to do comics and I was like “No, No! Character design, animation, I’m going to do that!” So I must face it that he was right. So I’ve been there ever since.

Lucia and Modeus from Purpah's webtoon, Suitor Armor.
Modeus and Lucia

GUERRERO: What inspired the idea and story behind Suitor Armor?

PURPAH: The original base idea of girl falling in love with dark suit of armor was from a dream that I’ve had. I have a lot of weird dreams sometimes and I just keep a journal next to my bed and jot them down if it’s coherent enough.

I feel with that base idea in mind, I just started tacking on things that I really enjoyed, like making Lucia into a fairy (because I really like fairies and there wasn’t a lot of stuff for it outside of the cute Tinkerbell-type stuff).

I remember loving big fairies that are super graceful, kind of like how Elves get treated in Lord of the Rings, except with big wings. I’ve just started putting other things that I really liked.

I wanted to see more fantasy, drama and stuff like that ’cause as much as I’ve enjoyed growing up in the “Age of Avengers” and everything, I really missed when more fantasy stuff was coming out. So I just started creating and tacking things on that I wanted to see, that I wasn’t getting. If no one just makes it, make it yourself, I guess.

GUERRERO: Are there any artists or works which have been influential to your style?

PURPAH: A lot of it was formed from my intent to go into TV and animation. So a lot of TV shows influenced it. Avatar: The last Airbender, Steven Universe, shows like that where there is a very cute style but a lot of substance to the story.

Definitely that era of TV animation inspired the style. As I got more involved in comics, I kind of kept being more detailed and illustrated versus the super simplified thing I needed  if I was going to do TV animation.

It started off there and kind of evolved as I started to do my own thing.

Lucia with her fairy wings from Purpah's webtoon.

GUERRERO: Considering the setting for the story of Suitor Armor, is there any fantasy media that inspired the world building and lore from your WEBTOON?

PURPAH: When it comes to the world building, I am kind of loosey-goosey. There is a running joke amongst my readers that I haven’t named the kingdom it takes place in yet. And I’ve never made a map because I don’t want to paint myself into a corner.

I don’t busy myself with details that never come up, but when it comes to things like the war and the fairies, I definitely grew up on things like Lord of the Rings and any fantasy that was created by Guillermo Del Toro. I really loved his movies, so his darker take on fantasy definitely influenced some of my stuff.

Lucia with her fairy wings visible from a dramatic scene in Suitor Armor by Purpah.

GUERRERO: Are there any fantasy games you’ve played which also were an inspiration? Or was it just shows and movies?

PURPAH: Definitely Skyrim. I’ve played a lot of Skyrim when my brother would allow me to play on his XBOX. Baldur’s Gate 3 came a little later, but it has definitely influenced me in future things that I want to do, ’cause I haven’t finished it.

We’re definitely entering a renaissance of fantasy games and content that is breathing life into me and others. That’s definitely been an influence on how I want to move forward with certain things.

GUERRERO: On the topic of influences, I am curious if the design of Modeus is based off Al from Fullmetal Alchemist?

Modeus from Purpah's Suitor Armor series on WEBTOON.
Modeus rockin’ that drip!

PURPAH: I had no idea what Fullmetal Alchemist first was until I published my story and everyone in the comments said “Oh, he’s like Al” and I said, “Who is Al?” So it wasn’t necessarily inspired by that, but now that I know what it is after researching it a little bit, I can understand why a lot of people draw those comparisons. Except for the fact that Modeus is definitely not a little boy.

It was definitely a fun way to discover it. I think I had heard of Fullmetal Alchemist, but I didn’t know that the armor I was seeing was empty and had a soul attached to it. I didn’t draw anything from that as I never watched it before.

A lot of the anime that I watch was more like Ouran High School Host Club and Princess Jellyfish; definitely not that brand of anime.

GUERRERO: Did you ever expect Suitor Armor to even achieve the success that it did on the platform?

PURPAH: No! Like I said, it was a side project for me and if it happened to do well… I was like, “Oh, well people will enjoy it if they enjoy it.” I think that’s one of the reasons why there wasn’t so much pressure attached to it, because I wasn’t making it for anyone else.

Even when it moved over to Originals, I don’t read the comments. I don’t look it up online. So it’s hard for me to realize that sometimes people do read it because I don’t look it up online and see that people are reading it.

But, no, I did not expect it to reach the level that it has. It’s really cool and really humbling, and i think that it’s just a testament that if you make things that you love and want to see more of that you’re not seeing, there’s other people that have been looking for it too. Now you’re the one filling that niche that they were looking for as well, which is really cool!

Purpah finishing an autograph and handing it to an excited fan during New York Comic Con 2024.

GUERRERO: As an artist, do you feel like there is anything in your series you’d wish to go back and fix or improve upon?

PURPAH: Definitely! There’s shortcuts that I’ve learned from my assistants who’ve been a huge help that I wished I could go back and utilize a lot of. I did a lot of free hand sketching for things that could have been cut down time wise.

Story-wise, I do wish that I had been a little more organized. Not that I haven’t been organized in my story, but it might be the perfectionist in me, but I’m constantly re-reading my story because I’m fearing I’ve written a loophole or something.

The longer you go, the more worried you: “Okay, I’ve kept track of everything, right? I didn’t miss anything, right? Did I cover everything? There’s no loose ends? Every character arc is wrapped up and stuff?” I don’t know, I would keep a dedicated binder of everything, like a bible for my own story so I can go back and then check easier.

But I think it’s hard not to feel that way about your first big project. It’s hard to look at past art because your style has changed so much. You’ve become wiser where you’re at now, so you could have spent less time doing this and more time doing that. But, I think that’s also the fun of it, because whatever project I am going to do next, it’s going to go much smoother since I’ve learned so much.

GUERRERO: Speaking of other projects, any stories or ideas you have once you eventually finish the story of Suitor Armor in the future?

PURPAH: Yeah! I have a backlog of stuff I want to work on. I have four ideas that I’ve already started fleshing out and it was sort of like, what is the most interesting one to you guys? And then you pick it and I’m like, “Okay, I’ll work on that one.” A lot of them are still based in fantasy, some inspired by certain fairy tales or retellings of stories that I wish were done differently that are open domain.

GUERRERO: Do you feel like your assistants will be brought onboard with your future stories and projects?

PURPAH: Most likely! I have actually asked them like, would you be in continuing with me on a different project? I’d want to make sure they’re actually happy working for me. And if they want to continue, I’m like, “Okay, Cool! I’m a good boss!”

They’re fantastic and they make my job so much easier. I don’t know if I’d be able to breathe, let alone do things outside of work, if I hadn’t had them helping me.

GUERRERO: Lastly, any word of advice to any aspiring artists and WEBTOON creators out there?

PURPAH: When it comes to jumping in and making your own stuff, I would advise them to just do it. Because you’ll get stuck in the planning phase forever! Don’t overthink it.

Your art style is going to change over time, your writing and characters are going to change over time. It’s never going to be at a place where you’ll be 100 percent happy with it. So I would definitely just say jump into it, let the change happen. You’ll learn from it along the way, and your next project will be all the more better for it. As opposed to just sitting in the concept and planning phase forever with your work never seeing the light of day.

It’s terrifying, but it’s the only way you can do it. I don’t know anyone who has ever started a project and said, “I was 110% confident going in and I had no changes that I want to make afterwards.” Yeah, just get to a point where you have a story and characters ready, and just take that leap. You’ll learn from it and it will develop over time. It’ll be worth it.


Suitor Armor can be read for free on WEBTOON. Volume 1 is published by Penguin Random House and available now in bookstores near you.

Follow Purpah on Bluesky or Instagram, and check out her Webtoon Creator’s profile for art, Suitor Armor related news and more!

Justin Guerrero
Justin Guerrerohttps://justinguerreroillustrations.weebly.com
NYC based Illustrator and Writer. History Nerd, Video Game modder, and Illustrator/Writer behind The Ravenblack Court on Webtoon Canvas. The Adorable Birb Nerd!

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