Big thanks to Marc for the Division Sword. I had that panel as silent and swordless, but Marc snuck the sword in earlier in the chapter (unbeknownst to me) and brought it back here to great effect. He even created an elaborate back story for The Sacred Steel of the Ancient Warrior Accountants and it’s awesome. I love what it does for what is essentially a transition strip.
Collaboration!
It’s that time of year again when SuperFogeys takes a bit of time off and you get to step in to fill the gap!
Now, we just had the 5th Anniversary Celebration. You all were fiercely participatory during that time and I couldn’t have been more pleased with the chapter recaps. Because of that, I don’t expect this year’s Guest Strippin’ Xmas to be quite as big as in year’s past, but I suppose you never know.
What I do is that one of the few ways I can reward Marc for all his hard work is by giving him a bit of time off during the holidays to spend with his family. Plus, you guys always come up with such great stuff! So, if you’d like to submit, here’s the specs:
• Submissions can be in either strip or page format. Valhalla years or SuperFogeys Origins–it’s up to you! (Just bear in mind that your stories won’t be canon.)
• Funny is good.
• Strips will run at 900 pixels across. Please send that size or larger. I can always scale down, but never up.
• Spy Gal naked is bad.
• Please include “SuperFogeys (copyright symbol) 2011 Brock Heasley” underneath the strip.
• email to: bwhheasley (at) gmail.com
• Include your name, name of your comic (if you have one) and website url (if you have one) and whatever biographical information you’d like to see posted with your strip. Promoting you is my thank you, so please make sure I have my facts straight!
• Deadline is Dec. 20th
Have at it, folks! Please send any questions you have my way in the comments below.
Not the actual dogs, but this is EXACTLY what they both looked like.
I’m a cat person. Dogs are needy and slobbery and they all think we’re in a romantic relationship. (How else to explain my dog’s frequent attempts to insert his tongue into my mouth?) Still, when I see a dog in trouble, I can’t resist trying to help him out.
This morning it was my wife who noticed the two boxers running through the busy, busy street right outside our home (our kids aren’t allowed to play in the front yard it’s so busy). It was ten minutes before I needed to drop Elora off at school, but still I put on my shoes and ran out in my PJ’s.
Luckily, a nice family stopped and was already trying to corral the dogs. One of them they had, but the other one was skittish and the closer we got to it, the more it did its best to kill itself by running back out into traffic. I grabbed some dog treats to try to coax it over and they worked well enough for one of us to grab her by the collar and secure her. Luckily, the dogs were super nice and didn’t try to bite us.
Now knowing what else to do, we dragged both dogs over to my house and secured them behind the gate on my porch. The runner I tied up with a leash for extra security, but the other one was content to just lay down and enjoy the scenery. My wife set out pumpkins a month ago and they and the leaves that had recently blown in from the terrible wind that had kicked up earlier that morning were still there. I thanked the nice family for their help and sent them on their way. I took Elora to school and then came back to call Animal Control.
The animals looked resigned and unhappy. They were gaunt. Ribs were clearly visible and there was not an ounce of fat on them. I brought out some of my dog’s food and a bowl of water. They attacked both with enthusiasm and I went back inside to wait half an hour for someone to talk to me. Watched the new John Carter trailer. Checked email. When I finally got a live person on the line, they told me I’d need to sign for the dogs to release them.
Me: What? Why?
Lady on the Phone: Because you have them secured behind a gate and we can’t open the gate.
Me: Sure you can. It’s not locked and you can open it and let them out.
LotP: No, sir, we can’t. We cannot open a door or gate to get the dogs unless someone at the house is there to give us permission and sign for them.
Me: I’m giving your permission right now.
LotP: I’m sorry sir. If you were to leave the gate open then we could get the dogs without you there.
Me: If I open the gate they’ll run out into the street and get hit by a car.
LotP: I’m sorry. The only way we can get the dogs is if the gate is open.
Me: Are you telling me you’d rather they get hit by a car than come and open a gate?
LotP: No, that’s just legally all we can do.
Me: Well, when are you coming by?
LotP: It could be anytime from when you call to when we close. It really depends on where the driver is when he gets the call.
Me: This is ridiculous. I have to go to work!
LotP: When do you go in?
Me: A half hour ago.
By now my wife has taken note of our conversation and I ask her when she’ll be home.
Me: Okay, my wife will be here this afternoon. Can you come then?
LotP: I think we can do that, yes.
That settled, I went back out to check on the dogs. They stunk. Bad. The food I’d left for them was all gone and there was dog vomit all over the porch. Dog vomit, I’ve concluded, smells much worse that human vomit. It didn’t just smell like fermented carrots. It smelled like fermented carrots dipped in rotten egg juice. Nasty bad.
I grabbed the hose and washed off the porch. I was careful to not hit the dogs and they were surprisingly good-natured about the intrusion. They were probably just grateful to be rid of the stuff so they could lay down again.
Now the vomit was all over the driveway. So, I spent another ten minutes clearing it off. I was way late for work, but that’s the gig, right? It’s almost impossible to help anyone (or any animal) without also putting yourself out.
Everything cleared out, I said goodbye to the dogs and got in my car. My car smelled like fermented carrots dipped in rotten egg juice. Sure enough, the bottoms of my shoes were covered in it. I got back out of my car and went over to the hose again, hopping on a foot at a time to the amusement of the passing cars and cleaning off the last evidence of my ill-advised attempt to feed some starving dogs.
Animal Control is a still a couple hours away from even considering picking up the dogs. I hope they do okay in the meantime. They’re sure not getting any more food.
**UPDATE**
The dogs spent all morning on our porch and the one I had tied up broke the leash (sorry, Oz. I’ll buy you a new one tonight) but did not escape. SPCA came by and picked them up at about 1:30pm. Neither were microchipped. They had to be escorted individually to the van and they whine and cried for each other when they were separated. I hope they find a good home together. Even more, I hope we spot some “Lost Dog” signs that can lead us to the owner.
Well…. Judging from Jerry’s nonchalant happy expression it’s obvious he’s not manually controlling the robot from up on top. If only he wasn’t technically the villain…. I mean I’d like to see him get the girl. Really…. Which is equally insane because they’re both old enough to be my parents.
Cool jump tho!
This is called growing. You’re learning how to empathize with old people. Congrats!
Was it this strip that Marc sneaked the sword into? http://superfogeys.com/2011/07/13/333-a-word-with-her-fiancee/
I dunno. I feel like the first panel, as much as I love the dialogue, is too crowded. Too much going on. The sword is an awesome idea. But I think that piece of exposition that explains what and where the sword came from is something that should have been mentioned in passing earlier on instead of crammed into such a tight space. It just feels forced to me, is all. But, you know, I think I’ve made this same exact mistake myself at some point though. Can’t remember where, but the mistake seems familiar.
Note: The more I read it… Nah, maybe it’s not that bad after all. I feel like it’s a jump because we weren’t shown Bingo Knight fighting – which we would have seen, but Marc’s idea for Spy Gal pulling out her bobby pin was much better – and there’s too much exposition in that one little panel. Maybe not, though. We were away checking out Star Maiden and Swifty, so a jump is to be expected, I suppose. That’s where the “meanwhile” comes from. And I suppose the exposition isn’t too awful much or too out of place.
By the way, I LOVE how we can clearly see that it was a stray shot of Space Pig’s pee what took ye olde Bingo Knight out of action.
I do believe you found the sword!
As for the crowding in the first panel… that was kind of the point for me. Crowded for sure, but to ridiculous effect!
I also noticed how Star Maiden looks younger in the previous strip, but now Spy Gal looks younger as well. What the heck is going on?
Anywho, I like this design for SG better. With her hair let down, she looks downright sexy and ready to go. Great artwork. No doubt about it.
See Scott’s comment below. Logic fits.
I think Marc does some of this unconsciously. He’s always drawn the Fogeys with more age than I ever did, so when he changes things even slightly, it’s more noticeable.
@Javier — ever see “Buba Ho-tep”? Same sorta deal; when an elder enters butt-kick mode they seem more youthful, doubly so for stylized artwork. Although SpyGal does have impossiboobs; she’s had children, so either she has the best bra in the world or she’s cheating. (Granted, it could also be she’s got dead world super-powers but still)
There are some things we don’t talk about around here, and Spy Gal’s “impossiboobs” is one of them. She does not tolerate discussion of her chest of any kind.
this may sound wrong…BUT with all jerry has done in life…has anything been TRULY evil…SURE captain “Thinks” he killed his son but he actually made sure NO harm came to him. the only person that was injured when he was “Dr. Klein” Was jerry himself when he was shot by dictator tot…
All jerry has ever wanted was to be the hero and get the girl…the girl whom it’s obvious that the captain never really deserved in the first place.
Call it rooting for the underdog but i’m anxious to see where things go from here.
WITH that being said jerry is STILL the villian and i’m sure this all plays into his grand plan so it’s a catch 22 you cheer for who he used to be knowing who he is, is a man wanting to ruin everything and everyone that ever wronged him…
Jerry not a villain? Interesting… and solid evidence to back it up. Anyone else agree with this?
Ends don’t justify means in the hero business. Jerry definitely thinks he’s the hero of his own story, though.
Also, Herman may have a different opinion on the number of residents harmed under Dr. Klein’s care.
Perhaps in all of this.. Jerry has forgot one thing.. Right makes Might… if he could remember that.. and look back, can he say that anything he is doing really right? If the answer is.. it is right for him, he has then definatly gone to the dark side.
Regardless….. GO JERRY!
Wait, you think he’s probably evil and you still root for him? “Go Jerry,” indeed.
If I were to categorize Jerry in an alignment, Id say he is Neutral Good. He does what he feels is the morally right thing to do, but not necessarily what is “Legally right”. Even if his moral compass is not pointing him in the right direction, he is still trying to do what he feels is the right thing to do
Just want to jump in again because I just noticed that the reason why Bingo Knight is down is because Space Pig accidentally pee’d on him. Ew.
As to whether or not Jerry is a villain — he’s not. He’s an anti-hero. He pretty much well fits the anti-hero description perfectly.
When you’re old or broken down, you need a reason to live. “To be a hero” isn’t enough. You need to feel that your heroism is *necessary* and *right*. Cap feels useless from two directions, his own feelings of inadequacy AND the fact that he feels REPLACED — don’t forget that there’s a “Captain Spectacular 2″ out there, however useless that hairpile may be, he’s still supposedly the replacement.
Jerry, for all his actions may appear to be villainous, is giving his friends a *purpose*. Feeling you have a reason to be doing what you are doing, and that someone cares that you are doing it and appreciates it, can be more rejuvenating to the spirit than a century of gerontologists. Perhaps that’s why some are appearing to get younger?
My father once said that he always felt younger when he felt he was doing things he loved, when he felt useful. It was only when he finally succumbed to feeling broken and unable to DO that he started really looking OLD. It was when he gave up.
Oh, and what happened to the sword when Spy Gal was jumping to the top of the robot? Did she stuff it in an extra-dimensional scabbard somewhere?
Oh, nvm. I see it. It’s hard to see because it’s semi-transparent when she’s throwing it.