HOW TO READ THIS COMIC: This site hosts, technically, two comics. The navigation was custom built to accommodate this and is a little different from what you may be used to, but still pretty easy to understand. The simplest way to navigate is to just click on the strip itself. That will take you immediately [...]
Archive for ‘Chapter 01 – Insane Romance From Hell’
This is one of those that’s a favorite of a lot of people (or so I’m told) but that I’ve never really liked much. Bathroom humor always feels cheap and forced to me. On these early strips I was drawing at a smaller size and using paper and pens that were quite a bit different [...]
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Jan 4, 17 | 723 – Ascendant |
Mar 19, 18 | 772 – Showdown at the New California Coast |
Oct 13, 14 | 628 – Earth-Abbadon |
Jun 3, 13 | 509 – Villain to Villain |
May 9, 11 | 314 – Dr. Rocket’s Space Journey, Pt. 3: The One He Truly Hunts |
After I did the first 10 SuperFogeys strips on my blog at MySpace, I decided to try to find a place to get the strip hosted and see if I could produce something like it on a regular basis. When the SuperFogeys did find a host site (pre-Th3rd World) I decided to start the strip [...]
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Feb 6, 13 | 478 – What If Money Man Had Lived? |
Apr 1, 13 | 493 – Dr. Rocket’s Game |
Oct 2, 06 | 10 – Why Spy Gal Came to Valhalla |
Oct 31, 16 | 709 – Gina Galloway to the Rescue |
Jan 15, 09 | 192 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 9 “Supposed to Be Me” |
This is the first strip where I’m really demonstrating the perverseness of Dr. Rocket, an aspect of his personality that would come to define him later. It’s hard writing a perverse character in what is essentially an all-ages strip, but I think this strip is a good example of how it can be done. It’s [...]
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Jun 15, 10 | SF Origins: The Life and Times of Soviet Sam, Pg. 4 “Pantsless” |
Apr 17, 13 | 498 – Zurida’s Conditions |
Oct 9, 19 | 802 – Nothing More Important Than Loyalty |
Sep 23, 08 | 165 – Not a Villain? |
Jan 16, 17 | 726 – Harrison Ford Finger of Doom |
I knew I wanted Dr. Rocket’s monologue to be about how he got Spy Gal unconscious, but I wanted his means of accomplishing that to be something humorous, brief and unique. I thought he might drug her, but just any ol’ drug wouldn’t do. It had to be something exotic. Boom: Space Pig Urine. It [...]
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Oct 7, 11 | Chapter 12, “Jackpot!” Recap by Steve VanDyken |
Mar 19, 09 | 200 – Where is He!? |
Nov 12, 13 | 548 – Of Course He’s Working with the Aliens |
May 6, 13 | 501 – New Age Nitwit |
Dec 10, 20 | 861 – tink tink tink |
There are essentially two ways to do a comic strip (as I see it): with or without a continuing story. The intro of Spy Gal is when I realized that I just wasn’t capable of doing one-off jokes. I ALWAYS have a story to tell. Spy Gal was originally supposed to be a character named [...]
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Nov 26, 14 | 640 – Jerry Must Come Back |
Sep 12, 12 | 444 – A New Mission |
Jan 12, 07 | 67 – Dr. Rocket Draws a Webcomic? |
Jul 6, 11 | 331 – Paradise |
Sep 20, 16 | 10th Anniversary BONUS STRIP 1! |
For Spy Gal’s intro, I wanted to push the boundaries of good taste a little. Is it right to make light of the dementia that all-too-often takes over the minds of older people? …Depends on how you do it. Turns out Spy Gal was faking, but it’s a theme I plan on revisting. Why Turnip? [...]
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Dec 10, 20 | 861 – tink tink tink |
Mar 10, 14 | 578 – A Different Kind of Torture |
Jul 11, 08 | Guest Strip by Sean Conchieri of “Pixel!” |
Dec 31, 09 | Guest Strip by Scott Gallatin of “Madscott” – The Sequel! |
Jul 22, 15 | 659 – Wasting Time |
It still pains me to look at the art in a lot of these early strips. Where the crud are the frickin’ wheelchairs? The only answer I have is that I was lazy and was trying to draw as little as possible. I really saw the strips as more of an exercise in pacing and [...]
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Mar 12, 12 | 394 – The Bottom Drops Out |
Nov 13, 19 | 812 – Spy Gal Dual Wields |
Oct 9, 19 | 802 – Nothing More Important Than Loyalty |
Mar 14, 12 | 395 – The Stink of Captivity |
Aug 3, 12 | Pg. 6 “Inevitably Betrayed” |
his is the second of the additions I made to the original 10 black and white strips I did to kick off the SuperFogeys. Originally, episode 8 went into what is now episode 10 without this minor stopover to make explicit what was once subtle. She’s Spy Gal. Spy Gal is a spy. Duh. It [...]
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This is one of my favorites. I think it really brings home the idea that these guys are old. We don’t know how Mr. Crook died, but he was in a nursing home and that’s what people tend to do there so we don’t even wonder what the cause was. Maybe that’s a story I’ll [...]
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Nov 20, 08 | 181 – The Thrice Evil |
Feb 6, 13 | 478 – What If Money Man Had Lived? |
Oct 9, 13 | 542 – The Visible Man |
Jul 9, 14 | 608 – Gumdrops and Rainbows |
Apr 7, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 8 “Ticking Bomb” |
I had written myself into a bit of a corner. I had Spy Gal come to Valhalla, but she didn’t really need to be there. Somehow, I had to make her stay. Enter the Orderly (later named Gene) and the Power Dampener. Visually, Spy Gal would never be the same after this strip and I [...]
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Nov 25, 10 | 286 – Duty and Retirement |
Feb 1, 17 | 731 – Mr. Brightside |
Dec 9, 11 | Pg. 4 “Party Crasher” |
Sep 14, 11 | 351 – Dreams Come Crashing In |
Mar 21, 07 | 120 – Swifty’s Losing? |
This is one of my absolute favorites. I think it’s one of the funniest last panels I’ve ever come up with. So, of course, only about half the people who read it actually get it. This one gets knocked down by a lot of people for not standing too well on its own. I suppose [...]
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Mar 18, 20 | 840 – Twice the Thrice |
Nov 17, 09 | SF Origins: Spy Gal vs. Star Maiden, Pg. 3 “The Last Punch” |
Jan 23, 07 | 82 – Refuge in Dr. Klein’s Office |
Oct 17, 06 | 24 – Too Little Too Late |
Jul 9, 18 | Pg. 6 “Date or Fight?” |
Time between the creation of SuperFogeys 12 and 13: 2 months. This is the first strip that really sets the tone for what the SuperFogeys would be. The art is finally coming into its own, resulting in a strip that I’m really proud of. I love the subtle pacing of the camera zoom. It’s a [...]
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First of all: yes, they’re watching Jeopardy. The real point of this strip was to show Jerry’s concern for Spy Gal and Captain Spectacular’s utter lack of it. I wrapped that point in a Jeopardy joke recycled from Groundhog Day because I figured I’d better do this joke now and early in order to get [...]
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Apr 1, 07 | 131 – Spy Gal Cares |
Oct 28, 08 | 175 – My Pleasure |
Nov 30, 10 | SF Origins: The Death of Mr. Crook, Pg. 3 “A Man Dies, An Idea is Born” |
Dec 21, 12 | Guest Strip by Crystal Murphy! |
Nov 20, 17 | 748 – Good Enough |
What’s sadder than a guy who can run really fast that’s stuck behind a walker? The answer is nothing, my friends, nothing. That’s what makes Swifty so much fun–we all know exactly why he’s so bitter and grumpy and you just can’t blame the guy. For Swifty’s design, I couldn’t make him look too much [...]
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Jun 11, 12 | 419 – Adrenalin |
Nov 1, 06 | 29 – Introducing Dr. Klein! |
Jun 20, 11 | 326 – Air Valhalla |
Jan 1, 09 | Guest Strip by Mark R. Engel of “Prematurely Disappointed!” |
This is one of those strips I really, really struggled with. I knew the last thing I wanted was for Dr. Rocket to successfully take advantage of Spy Gal. I mean, this just isn’t that kind of strip. The simplest solution would have been to have Jerry or Captain Spectacular bust through the wall and [...]
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Dec 29, 08 | Guest Strip by Scott Gallatin of “Madscott!” |
Oct 5, 11 | Chapter 10, “Bubbles of Light” Recap by Danny Burleson |
Aug 26, 19 | 794 – 3,000 Miles Away |
Jul 8, 11 | Pg. 13 “A Tree Falls in the Forest…” |
Feb 28, 18 | 767 – Done Pretending |
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Sep 15, 14 | The Principle of Order |
May 26, 22 | 892 – Ejection |
Sep 8, 22 | 922 – The New Normal |
Sep 6, 22 | 921 – Obedience is Key |
Jan 19, 14 | 564 – One Year Later |
This one is just ugly. None of the characters look right, though I do love how the idea of Spy Gal kissing Dr. Rocket just rolls off Captain Spectacular. The man just does not care. Plus: sexy shoulder blades.
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Sep 11, 19 | 799 – Redemption is Possible |
Dec 29, 08 | Guest Strip by Scott Gallatin of “Madscott!” |
Jul 14, 14 | 609 – Humbled |
Oct 22, 09 | 230 – Cleaning Out Her Ears |
Jan 21, 10 | 240 – ZAP! |
Although I didn’t realize it at the time, this was a step in the right artistic direction for the SuperFogeys. The changing camera views were necesitated by the storyline and made for a much stronger reading experience. There’s a little easter egg in this one with the picture of the girl on the wall in [...]
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Sep 12, 12 | 444 – A New Mission |
Nov 9, 11 | 361 – The Whole Place is Coming Down |
Nov 14, 06 | 42 – Dr. Rocket Needs a Special Kind of Healing |
Aug 18, 10 | 272 – GET OUT! |
I love this strip. I think this is the one where you get the best sense of the relationship between Captain Spectacular and Jerry. The first panel alone–I think if the entire strip were just that panel, I’d be happy. I don’t think anyone else laughs at that first panel (That’s not where the joke [...]
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Apr 15, 13 | 497 – Michelle |
Sep 9, 08 | 161 – Tangerine’s Arrival and Dr. Klein’s Return |
Apr 15, 11 | Pg. 1 “A Sudden Meeting” |
Jun 29, 10 | SF Origins: The Life and Times of Soviet Sam, Pg. 6 “Being Friendly” |
Sep 7, 16 | 697 – No Fun Being Ignored |
Me: Hey, I’ve got a great idea. Me: What’s that? Me: You know how we could get a lot of strips done quickly? Me: How? Me: We could just cut/paste all the best bits from previous strips and add only minor alterations! Me: Genius. Future Me: I beg to differ.
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Dec 29, 08 | Guest Strip by Scott Gallatin of “Madscott!” |
Feb 2, 07 | 93 – Beginning the Tale of How Captain Spectacular Met and Married Star Maiden |
May 30, 12 | 416 – Alcohol is His Kryptonite |
Aug 6, 18 | Swifty Origin, Pg. 10 “The Heart” |
Jul 30, 09 | 218 – Good Friends |
My lazy self strikes again. As for the story here, this strip was important to me because I had a very real fear at the time that it was going to be perceived that I had a hatred towards women. Dumb, right? I mean, Dr. Rocket is a character, he doesn’t speak for me, but [...]
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Oct 7, 08 | 169 – Faker! |
Apr 30, 12 | 407 – Spy Days Are Over |
Nov 11, 11 | Pg. 7 “Nipped” |
Aug 25, 22 | 918 – Not Going in There |
Mar 16, 12 | Pg. 4 “An Unexpected Cellmate” |
This is the strip that finally broke me. I enjoy the dialogue here a lot, but the art is the (seemingly) umpteenth strip made out of spare parts. This is when I realized things had to change.
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Jun 19, 08 | 140 – The Kindness of His Heart |
Sep 7, 12 | Pg. 5 “Who Squished?” |
Mar 23, 12 | Pg. 5 “Where Are The Unicef Upstarts?” |
Jul 30, 12 | 431 – Blights of the Round Table |
Dec 21, 16 | 721 – Requiem for Money Man |
I do believe this strip marks the first close-up I’d ever done in the Superfogeys. I began looking for ways to change the camera around and push the framing into the storytelling more. It was just one panel, but it was a start.
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Mar 10, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 4 “Arrival in New York” |
Jan 15, 18 | 754 – Not Strong Anymore |
Jul 3, 13 | 518 – The Last Secret |
Jan 30, 07 | 90 – Introducing Star Maiden! |
Jul 23, 09 | 217 – Jerry’s Family? |
I love this little experiment. It’s two jokes, one the main plot and one a jokey subplot, that don’t work so well on their own but that compliment each other, I think, pretty well. Jerry’s frustration here is my own. Sleep, it seems, will always be denied me. I had no idea the Space Pig [...]
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Dec 24, 09 | Guest Strip by Rufus Edge of “Comicdeoxyribonucleicacid!” No. 2! |
May 6, 13 | 501 – New Age Nitwit |
Dec 31, 13 | Guest Strip by Crystal Murphy, 3 |
Oct 21, 19 | 805 – Across the Mountaintop |
Mar 5, 09 | 198 – Not Lookin’ Too Good Yourself |
Double-sized strips are always fun, but I’m not sure this is the best use of it. The flashback certainly was fun to do. The idea here should be clear: Jerry is Captain Spectacular’s sidekick. This is all set-up and revelation. You should be getting the idea by now that Chapter 1 is really Jerry’s story.
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May 25, 08 | SF Collection # 5 Cover (Unused) |
Nov 6, 19 | 810 – Meanwhile, In Las Vegas |
Mar 10, 14 | 578 – A Different Kind of Torture |
Sep 23, 08 | 165 – Not a Villain? |
This is the episode that almost never was. My original plan was to go from strip 26 to the last strip of Chapter 1–what is now strip 28. However, I realized fairly late in the game that I hadn’t really done anything to set up WHY CS and Spy Gal would get back together. I [...]
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Jul 31, 15 | 663 – Pandora’s Box |
Jul 19, 22 | 907 – Where is Sam? |
Feb 8, 12 | 385 – Tiger Dung |
Aug 15, 14 | Pg. 7 “Kill ‘Em All” |
Sep 21, 15 | 685 – Doom Comes to Abbadon |
The last strip of Chapter One is one that I had planned for a long, long time. Once I decided to do the SuperFogeys for real, I quickly came up with a grand plan. This plan extends far, far beyond this chapter, though this ending is the first touchstone in that plan. If you ever [...]
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Nov 17, 06 | 45 – The Tale of How Captain Spectacular was Paralyzed, Conclusion |
Aug 11, 22 | 914 – Time to Go |
Nov 5, 14 | 634 – Twin Plots |
Feb 12, 18 | 762 – Jerry vs. Soviet Sam |
Nov 17, 20 | 856 – Grab That Rabbit! |