Welcome to Chapter 16 – Invasion, Pt. 3: Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun. This promises to be a big, bold chapter taking us right through SF 500. You just know that one’s going to be HUGE. I can say no more right now. Newer SuperFans may be unfamiliar with Soviet Sam’s story. He’ll be telling [...]
Archive for ‘Chapter 16 – Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun’
One of the unique things about Soviet Sam is that before he became part of the main cast, he received an extensive introduction in SuperFogeys Origins. Most of you are familiar with his story from there, but my initial concern in introducing him to the Valhalla story was that there was just too much to [...]
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Feb 26, 20 | 834 – Percy Makes a Choice |
Jan 16, 12 | 378 – Things Fall Apart |
Nov 11, 13 | 547 – Lashing Out |
Nov 30, 16 | 715 – Master and Student |
Apr 23, 18 | 780 – Don’t Be a Jerry |
On the surface, this doesn’t look like a terribly personal strip, but I put a secret part of myself into Sam here. As some of you already know, my father was killed in an armed robbery some years ago, when I was just making the transition into adulthood. I was in no way responsible for [...]
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Nov 25, 10 | 286 – Duty and Retirement |
Aug 6, 18 | Swifty Origin, Pg. 10 “The Heart” |
Dec 12, 16 | 718 – What is Deserved |
Feb 12, 18 | 762 – Jerry vs. Soviet Sam |
Jul 10, 15 | 654 – An Honest Conversation |
Castro! The last time we saw our friendly neighborhood dictator was a long, long time ago. His appearance proved so popular he even inspired a T-shirt! (Did you get one? If you have a photo of you in it, I’d love to post it.) I think there’s a whole ‘nother story to be told about [...]
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Feb 5, 20 | 830 – Literary Twist |
May 26, 15 | What You’ve Been Waiting to Know… |
Sep 26, 06 | 5 – The Urine of What!? |
Feb 7, 07 | 97 – The Return |
Sep 30, 10 | 278 – The Others |
The alien invaders have desired Dr. Rocket for quite a while that they might make him answer for his crimes. As far as the SF Universe is concerned, there’s no one who has done more damage or more wrong than Dr. Rocket. He is an out and out villain. Never pretends to be otherwise. And [...]
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Nov 6, 06 | 34 – Introducing the Healer! |
Dec 25, 13 | How Dr. Rocket Stole Christmas |
Jul 8, 11 | Pg. 13 “A Tree Falls in the Forest…” |
Oct 2, 08 | 168 – Tangerine Gets His Mad On |
May 20, 08 | SF Collection #4 Cover |
Last week was good stuff. It’s good to be reminded now and then that SuperFogeys has one of the most engaged and smart readerships out there who are always thinking–not just about the latest twists and turns, but about character. I the variety of opinions on the issue of what makes a character likable or [...]
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Jan 14, 07 | 69 – Swifty’s Computer Problems |
Mar 11, 20 | 838 – The Situation |
Feb 4, 13 | 477 – The Most Annoying Kid in the World |
Aug 5, 15 | 665 – All Out of Coffee and Goats |
Nov 11, 19 | 811 – Attack Pattern |
There’s no way to overstate how big a domino just fell in today’s strip. Soviet Sam and Space Pig are just catching up to a valuable piece of intel that was dropped on you, the reader, waaaaaaaay back in strip 100. I made a choice back then to reveal something to the reader that none [...]
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Aug 5, 15 | 665 – All Out of Coffee and Goats |
Aug 25, 14 | 620 – Her Husband’s Keeper |
May 26, 15 | What You’ve Been Waiting to Know… |
Nov 25, 08 | 182 – Someone Steps Forward (Bubbles of Light 3) |
Oct 4, 06 | 12 – Introducing Space Pig! |
It’s been a long, long time since a strip has been tagged as “Bubbles of Light.” What the heck are Bubbles of Light? Here’s a tip: click on the tag below to see a good compilation of all the most important strips involving the Bubbles of Light. Once you’ve done that, come on back here [...]
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Jun 16, 22 | 898 – Palace Falls |
Dec 14, 16 | 719 – It’s Easy When You Know How |
Jul 9, 18 | Pg. 6 “Date or Fight?” |
Sep 9, 10 | 275 – A Moment of Silence |
Dec 26, 11 | Guest Strip by Will Boyer! |
I hate giving Marc strips with five panels. Believe it or not, I try to strip these things back as far as I can. If I can get it down to one panel, I will, but as you all know that almost never happens. Marc had a real challenge here. He had to set up [...]
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Oct 3, 06 | 11 – The Power Dampener |
May 29, 13 | 508 – Slightly More Conclusive Evidence |
Apr 18, 11 | 308 – Time Displaced/Erased/No Taste |
Nov 10, 06 | 38 – The Good Ol’ Days |
May 11, 11 | 315 – Dr. Rocket’s Space Journey, Pt. 4: The Pilatian Power Crystal |
I was just looking back at Marc’s first work on SuperFogeys yesterday and it really stuck me not only how far along his line work has come, but also how much his method for coloring has changed. There’s just far more shades and details in his coloring now–things that aren’t even in the drawings themselves. [...]
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Today kicks off a short, long overdue flashback showing just what the heck happened to Dark (Star) Maiden after she left Las Vegas. While the 400th strip played out as a fun reveal, I really did see it as a promise of an untold story I’d have to tell one day. Enjoy. Why do you [...]
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I was reminded this past week that not everyone shares the encyclopedic knowledge of SuperFogeys I have. That brain in the jar? That really is Star Maiden’s father, she’s not THAT crazy. This flashback is a bit of a sequel to both Star Maiden’s origin and the flashback that showed her trip home. If you’re [...]
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Oct 16, 17 | 738 – Old Lady McGoth |
Aug 14, 13 | 526 – Stolen Away |
May 25, 11 | 319 – The Plans of Dr. Klein, Pt. 2 “Isn’t Everybody?” |
Jan 13, 14 | 562 – Violent Amputation |
Sep 22, 14 | 625 – The Edict of Chaos |
There were two issues that plagued this strip kind of from the get-go. One was what Percy was going to eat in panel two. I originally scripted it as the femur of one of Zurida’s palace guards, but after seeing Marc draw it I realized that was just one cannibal too many for SuperFogeys. Plus, [...]
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May 29, 13 | 508 – Slightly More Conclusive Evidence |
Oct 15, 20 | 847 – Macho Verve and Vigor |
May 4, 11 | 313 – Dr. Rocket’s Space Journey, Pt. 2: A Lovely Woman |
Jun 4, 12 | 417 – Guess Who’s Back? |
Apr 13, 10 | SF Origins: Star Maiden, Pg. 1 “Troubled Birth” |
Here’s a tip to writers of comics: Wanna go easy on your artist? Script a bunch of head shots. Writing comics is often about balance. I can’t load up the detail and the backgrounds for multiple strips at a time or I’m gonna wear Marc out, so I’ve gotta also write stuff that it’s a [...]
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I don’t know when we’ve ever fit so many characters into a panel so small. I’m not even sure who all of those guys are! That’s exciting. Cami Fans: The real life Cami had her eighth birthday on Monday. On Saturday, we held our 4th Annual Birthday Ball Party in her honor–a half hour party [...]
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Dec 10, 09 | 237 – A Surprise Visitor |
Oct 23, 19 | 806 – Space Pigs in the Forest |
Nov 26, 14 | 640 – Jerry Must Come Back |
Jun 28, 22 | 901 – Vanished |
May 17, 08 | SF Collection #3 Cover |
Okay, I kind of love how Marc draws Spy Gal when she’s in bad@$$ mode. That door never saw it coming. Last week was basically Cami week at my house as we celebrated her 8th birthday. My wife and daughter spoke at a school assembly about the damage the R-Word does and why it’s a [...]
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Jul 23, 12 | 429 – Shenanigans |
Aug 15, 14 | Pg. 7 “Kill ‘Em All” |
Oct 17, 06 | 24 – Too Little Too Late |
Jan 1, 14 | Guest Strip by Crystal Murphy, 4! |
Dec 6, 06 | 55 – A Mysterious Figure in the Wings |
One of the things that’s really hard to achieve in the strip format is any sense of scale. A comic book page gives you that vertical space that really allows you to expand the visuals out that a strip just doesn’t. True, there’s nothing saying we HAVE to do this in strips–that’s a self-imposed restriction–but [...]
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May 21, 14 | 597 – Him Who? |
Nov 13, 17 | 746 – The New Maid |
Mar 19, 12 | 396 – Give Tom a Chance |
Last Wednesday’s strip generated some great discussion about what Dr. Rocket and Zurida are up to. Today’s strip should provide those answers handily. Those of you with good memories should recall that Zurida saw Jerry quite clearly when she “visited” Valhalla in the previous chapter. Zurida’s invitation to Dr. Rocket to enter her palace kicks [...]
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Sep 24, 06 | 3 – Escape From the Carpathian Bug People |
Mar 31, 07 | 130 – When Pigs Fly |
Nov 13, 17 | 746 – The New Maid |
May 11, 11 | 315 – Dr. Rocket’s Space Journey, Pt. 4: The Pilatian Power Crystal |
Mar 24, 14 | 582 – The Discomfort of Dark Maiden |
I’m starting to find some unique joys in having a long-running webcomic. One of them is scenes like this. There’s a huge gap between how Cap and Doc related to each other at the beginning of the strip and how they are now. I believe firmly in change. People don’t stay one way through their [...]
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Oct 23, 08 | 174 – Big Mistake |
Nov 8, 17 | 745 – The Song of Rocket’s Loyalty |
Jan 19, 10 | SF Origins: The Six Wives of Captain Spectacular, Pg. 2 “Homewreckers” |
Jan 6, 09 | Guest Strip by T.L. Collins of “Bullfinch!” |
Nov 5, 06 | 33 – Why Walk When You Can Fly? |
I derive an unexpected amount of satisfaction from this interaction between Dr. Rocket and Captain Spectacular. Even more than the hug last week, I just love that they’re so simpatico here. Maybe this is born of my secret desire for Superman and Lex Luthor to knock back a couple of root beers and work their [...]
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Dec 3, 09 | 236 – You Have to Be Careful Who You Let Into Your Life |
Nov 26, 14 | 640 – Jerry Must Come Back |
Dec 8, 09 | SF Origins: Harvey the Science Rabbit, Pt. One, Pg. 1 “Dr. Rocket Wears a Dress” |
Aug 6, 14 | 616 – One of Zurida’s |
Jul 22, 15 | 659 – Wasting Time |
I know I can be a wordy sonuvagun (though I’d like to think I’ve gotten better with time and experience), but I really do love strips like this that are more about economy of storytelling than how many words I can stick in a panel. Marc nailed the emotion in a big way, putting the [...]
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Sometimes you just have to slow things down to give them their proper weight. I know if you’re following the updates on the days they come out there’s not much new here, but I think for future readers who get to experience this chapter in book form or all at once, this will be a [...]
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Apr 8, 11 | Cover |
Dec 2, 06 | 52 – What Captain Spectacular Wants |
Feb 25, 10 | 245 – One Week Later |
Dec 18, 13 | 558 – Sokol Steps Up |
Dec 9, 13 | 555 – She’ll Kill Them All |
Marc did such a great job pacing this strip and conveying the emotion that you almost don’t even need words to get what’s happening here between Cap, Zurida and Michelle. In fact, I was able to get rid of a little bit of dialogue, and it’s a stronger strip for it. Next week we’ll be [...]
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I wish I had a lot more space to give over to Percy as I think he’s a pretty fascinating dude with some real identity issues. Hopefully, tidbits like the ones you’re getting today are enticing. I’d love to do a SuperFogeys Origin with Percy someday. I mean, with a hot, despot mom and a [...]
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If we’ve done our job right, today’s post is not quite what you were expecting. I’ve been touting SF 500 for weeks now as a gigantic update–and it certainly is at quadruple the normal size–but the scope of the tale is actually quite intimate, not unlike SF 300 a couple years back. This is, simply, [...]
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Jul 30, 18 | Pg. 9 “Who is Talking?” |
Oct 1, 06 | 9 – How to Turn Dr. Rocket On |
May 15, 13 | 504 – A Striking Mustache |
Sep 29, 11 | Chapter 6, “Funeral for a Frenemy” Recap by Crystal Murphy |
Sep 2, 08 | 159 – Strange Dreams and Wedding Plans |
Welcome back, everyone! Last week’s break was, I’m sure, completely unwelcome, but we both appreciate your patience and understanding. Your response to SF 500 was overwhelming and so, so positive. 107 comments and counting. For a webcomic with a modest readership like ours, Â that’s a big friggin’ deal. That makes today’s update sort of long-awaited. [...]
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Dec 2, 11 | Pg. 3 “Enter The Space Pig” |
Dec 2, 06 | 52 – What Captain Spectacular Wants |
Aug 27, 14 | 621 – Jerry’s Powers |
Sep 14, 12 | Pg. 6 “Who Could Have Done This?” |
Jan 6, 11 | Guest Strip by Marjorie Rishel |
This strip is a Marc Lapierre special. I’ve learned that with action scenes the less scripting I do the better. Marc has references to pull from that I can’t touch and a much better visual mind for the choreography and how it should play out across panels than I do. Even in the last panel, [...]
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Feb 13, 12 | 386 – The Papanazi Report: Vegas |
Jan 25, 11 | SF Origins: The Thrice Evil, Pg. 9 “We Can Work With That” |
Apr 13, 12 | Pg. 8 “Enter: The Thrice Evil” |
Jan 15, 14 | 563 – Wreckage |
Mar 12, 14 | 579 – The Romantic Smell of Blood and Suffering |
I imagine when you’re older you have to really conserve your movements. Think about it: energy reserves are lower than in the past and maybe the bones don’t work as well. So, you don’t do anything that requires more energy than necessary. Money Man has obviously learned this lesson well. Lots of great, (sometimes) crazy [...]
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Mar 19, 14 | 581 – Gorgeous Guy Has Feelings |
Sep 30, 08 | 167 – Captain Spectacular’s Shame |
Jan 6, 12 | Pg. 7 “Space Pig the Sidekick?” |
Dec 28, 09 | Guest Strip by Don Oskowski of “Conduit Flux!” |
May 3, 09 | 206 – The Valhalla Basement Dungeon |
I don’t think you get to strike the pose Money Man is OWNING in the first panel and not be considered a total bad@$$. Like, he’s not even gonna give you his front. Naw, you gotta look at him from the side if you wanna admire him after he takes out the bad guy (or [...]
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Feb 1, 12 | 383 – Jackpot. |
Jun 17, 11 | Pg. 10 “Lost Faith” |
Sep 27, 12 | GUEST STRIP by Crystal Murphy, Summer Fun Pt. 3 |
May 26, 22 | 892 – Ejection |
Jan 8, 09 | 191 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 8 “The Process Explained” |
This is probably the week you’ve been waiting for. Maybe you’re like Cap and you want to know how Money Man is back, but is that really the question you should be asking? Money Man says no. And when Money Man says no, that’s it. He’s rich. He can do what he wants. In other [...]
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Jun 30, 22 | 902 – Devastation |
Dec 23, 08 | 190 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 7 “Test Subjects” |
Mar 13, 13 | 488 – A Pale Queen Commands Them |
Jan 6, 14 | 560 – Lifeless |
Feb 5, 20 | 830 – Literary Twist |
I’m gonna be honest with you guys–I did not plan on introducing this story thread in this chapter. I mean, there’s an alien invasion going on. How many more threats do the Fogeys need to deal with? This isn’t the same as saying this is an unplanned story. What Money Man is talking about is [...]
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Jun 1, 11 | 321 – Unified By a Common Purpose |
Sep 12, 14 | Pg. 10 – Breaking Free |
Apr 8, 07 | 137 – The Operating Blues |
Feb 17, 10 | SF Origins: The Six Wives of Captain Spectacular, Pg. 7 “Two Years” |
I think I mentioned that I’ve been rereading SF lately as I prepare files for Comixology. In the course of that, I’ve noticed that one thing I have a tendency to do is cut rapidly between simultaneously occurring scenes, jumping from character to character sometimes after only one or two strips. That’s fun and it [...]
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Nov 6, 08 | 177 – Lay Some More On Me |
Aug 22, 14 | Pg. 8 “The Captor Revealed” |
Feb 2, 21 | 870 – Spy Gal’s Patience Runs Out |
Nov 27, 13 | 552 – Is Jerry Really Such a Bad Guy? |
Dec 5, 16 | 716 – Boy Haircut |
Some expert storytelling from Marc in this strip. It looks deceptively simple, but there’s really a lot going on across these four panels and fitting all the beats in and choosing just the right angle is no mean trick. I honestly didn’t know how Marc was going to interpret the script, but he did a [...]
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Jun 20, 11 | 326 – Air Valhalla |
Oct 27, 20 | 850 – Grand Entrance |
Nov 26, 12 | 461 – He Escaped |
Oct 23, 19 | 806 – Space Pigs in the Forest |
Mar 13, 07 | 112 – Budapest ’68 All Over Again |
While it may not have seemed like it at the beginning, this chapter is, I think, aptly named. Every single character has got so many different secrets and agendas and a rule of storytelling (at least one of my rules) is that nothing that is hidden remains so forever. True, new mysteries have been introduced [...]
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Jun 29, 11 | 329 – Ear Twist |
May 27, 13 | 507 – Telling Off Skunk Head |
Feb 25, 13 | 483 – Bubbles of Light 8 |
Oct 8, 06 | 15 – Introducing Swifty! |
Oct 2, 08 | 168 – Tangerine Gets His Mad On |
New to SuperFogeys? Then you’ve come on the right day. Though the invaders first arrived at Earth in SF 400, this is the first time their overall plan has been spelled out. We’ve known their motivation–Dr. Rocket made a genocidal sweep of the universe in a merciless act of vengeance–but their goal has been somewhat [...]
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Aug 21, 13 | 528 – Spy Gal vs. Jerry |
Sep 12, 11 | 350 – Great Things Ahead |
Oct 25, 17 | 741 – Scumbag Jerry |
Nov 6, 17 | 744 – The USZ is Truly a Wondrous Place |
Aug 19, 10 | 273 – All Is Revealed |
I confess the speculation last week’s strip inspired caught me unawares. It didn’t even occur to me that Zurida’s words in the last panel might be construed to mean that she was suggesting another mastermind behind everything. Obviously, that’s not exactly the case. Of course, there IS another mastermind lurking somewhere and we’ll meet him [...]
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Apr 8, 11 | Cover |
Jan 11, 12 | 377 – The Blue Light of Revelation |
Oct 22, 12 | 451 – Will Tangerine Help? |
Mar 17, 14 | 580 – The Pleasure of Conquering |
Jan 3, 11 | Guest Strip by Javier Del Villar, Part One |
The end of a chapter is my favorite part. It’s when everything comes together and the design of the thing is made clear. The chapter basically has three endings. You’ve seen one already, but this next one coming up should be obvious to longtime readers with good memories. But it’s the third ending I’m REALLY [...]
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Oct 23, 19 | 806 – Space Pigs in the Forest |
Nov 24, 20 | 858 – She Brewed Beer Yesterday |
Sep 6, 22 | 921 – Obedience is Key |
Mar 7, 12 | 393 – Impasse |
Jan 14, 10 | 239 – How Captain Spectacular Knows The Third Man |
If there’s something you want that you’ll do just about ANYTHING to have it… then what would you do to keep it? I feel like the tide is always shifting on Jerry. Sometimes you guys love him, sometimes you hate him. I wonder if today’s strip will garner reactions just as divisive. Huge kudos to [...]
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May 13, 13 | 503 – Money Man vs. Zurida |
Apr 9, 09 | 203 – Shame, Shame |
Feb 7, 18 | 761 – Rolling Peas |
Apr 8, 07 | 137 – The Operating Blues |
…and Swifty saw it all. Speculate at will. Next week will be a lot of fun. Hey, quick note about an update to the website. There is now a handy dandy “Like” button for The SuperFogeys Facebook page on the left side. SuperFans on Facebook not only get the privilege of being admitted to Valhalla, [...]
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Jun 22, 11 | 327 – The Buddy System |
Feb 14, 18 | 763 – Serious Issues |
Jan 16, 12 | 378 – Things Fall Apart |
Mar 12, 18 | 770 – Bumps in the Road |
Oct 29, 12 | 453 – Buried Weapons |
UPDATE 2! Since this time travel business has been woven so much into the background of the story of the SuperFogeys (and time travel can be kind of confusing), I want to help point you guys towards the right places as much as possible. Some of you are wondering WHY this is happening, and I [...]
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Sep 11, 15 | 681 – Man Child |
Sep 30, 11 | Chapter 7, “Visiting Day” Recap by Rossana Bugini |
Nov 6, 08 | 177 – Lay Some More On Me |
Sep 1, 14 | 622 – Portalmaker |
Jan 2, 12 | 374 – A Spy Gal Shaped Hole |
I’ve been much encouraged by the way Soviet Sam has been accepted by the majority of you since his proper introduction to the strip in SF 322. In a story with A LOT of characters (seriously, the cast is getting too big. I gotta kill a few off), he’s managed to come in fairly late [...]
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Nov 5, 09 | 232 – It’s Insane Here |
Jan 16, 17 | 726 – Harrison Ford Finger of Doom |
Feb 7, 18 | 761 – Rolling Peas |
Oct 7, 10 | 279 – Gina Galloway |
Sep 8, 22 | 922 – The New Normal |
This is it! The Penultimate strip of Chapter 16 – Invasion, Pt. 3: Secrets, Secrets are No Fun. It’s all been building to what happens on Wednesday. There was a seed planted a long, long time ago that is finally gonna pay off–one I don’t think anyone has ever noticed. My mind has already turned [...]
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Mar 11, 10 | 247 – Not a Busload of Strangers |
Aug 18, 14 | 618 – Thanks to Money Man |
Oct 18, 06 | 25 – Pee On Swifty |
Oct 5, 16 | 704 – Ankle Biters |
UPDATE! Have some fun and read Chapter 16 from the beginning all the way through right here! Secrets, secrets are no fun Secrets, secrets hurt someone Here’s the deal, the title of this chapter is a lie. Secrets are really fun. It’s fun to have them, it’s fun to keep them and, in storytelling, they’re [...]
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Sep 21, 10 | SF Origins: Spy Gal, Pg. 4 “The Best Day Ever, Ever” |
Jan 12, 10 | SF Origins: The Six Wives of Captain Spectacular, Pg. 1 “Sweet Samantha” |
Apr 13, 11 | 307 – T-Magus |
Mar 31, 14 | 584 – Once He Was Mighty |
Oct 2, 08 | 168 – Tangerine Gets His Mad On |