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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Aug 7, 13 | 524 – Cracked |
Oct 7, 11 | Chapter 12, “Jackpot!” Recap by Steve VanDyken |
Apr 30, 12 | 407 – Spy Days Are Over |
Apr 21, 14 | 588 – In the Dark, Where He Thinks He Belongs |
Apr 5, 07 | 135 – The Tale of How Captain Spectacular Met Dr. Klein, Conclusion |
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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Aug 20, 18 | Swifty Origin, Pg. 12 “Party Hard” |
Dec 25, 08 | Merry Christmas From The SuperFogeys (2008) |
Aug 5, 10 | 268 – Sick and Unflattering |
Aug 13, 14 | 617 – 4 Seconds Earlier |
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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Jan 11, 12 | 377 – The Blue Light of Revelation |
Nov 15, 17 | 747 – The Popped Grape |
Nov 11, 10 | 284 – Pairing Off |
Jun 17, 11 | Pg. 10 “Lost Faith” |
Oct 29, 09 | 231 – The Greatest Revenge Plot Never Imagined |
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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Dec 9, 08 | 186 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 3 “Going Up” |
Oct 7, 19 | 801 – The Next Best Thing |
Oct 22, 14 | 530 – The Long Arm of the Universe |
Jun 22, 11 | 327 – The Buddy System |
Apr 2, 09 | 202 – He Started Stuttering |
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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Jul 13, 10 | SF Origins: The Life and Times of Soviet Sam, Pg. 8 “Sweet Dreams” |
Dec 10, 06 | 59 – Will Captain Spectacular Stay or Will He Go? |
Dec 19, 16 | 720 – Thank You for Making Me Angry |
Jul 4, 11 | 330 – Swim City |
Dec 2, 11 | Pg. 3 “Enter The Space Pig” |
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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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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May 14, 14 | 595 – Gotta Get Some Internet |
Apr 2, 09 | 202 – He Started Stuttering |
Jun 23, 22 | 900 – Protected |
Apr 18, 12 | 404 – President Superknocker |
Jun 28, 22 | 901 – Vanished |
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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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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Apr 23, 12 | 405 – Comparing Death Counts |
Feb 3, 20 | 829 – Too. Far. |
Jul 11, 11 | 332 – Captain Spectacular’s Buds |
Sep 21, 11 | Five Years of The SuperFogeys |
Dec 5, 12 | 464 – Cuffed |
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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Mar 2, 20 | 835 – Because of the Struggle |
Jan 14, 10 | 239 – How Captain Spectacular Knows The Third Man |
Jun 29, 15 | 649 – Can You Take a Punch? |
Nov 30, 16 | 715 – Master and Student |
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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Aug 15, 12 | 436 – Bigger in Person |
May 16, 11 | 316 – Dr. Rocket’s Space Journey, Pt. 5: The Last Place Anyone Would Think to Look |
Apr 4, 07 | 134 – Driving Everybody Off |
Sep 12, 12 | 444 – A New Mission |
Jun 11, 12 | 419 – Adrenalin |
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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Jun 10, 13 | 511 – Zurida’s Plan |
Apr 10, 13 | 496 – The First Condition |
Apr 15, 13 | 497 – Michelle |
May 13, 13 | 503 – Money Man vs. Zurida |
May 2, 11 | 312 – Dr. Rocket’s Space Journey, Pt. 1: The Real Cause of Dr. Rocket’s Suffering |
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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Oct 3, 06 | 11 – The Power Dampener |
Nov 15, 06 | 43 – The Healer Approaches the Captain |
Apr 7, 07 | 136 – CENSORED! |
Mar 21, 07 | 120 – Swifty’s Losing? |
Nov 4, 06 | 32 – Bingo Night Begins |
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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Jan 27, 12 | Pg. 3 “The Trial of Space Pig” |
Sep 1, 14 | 622 – Portalmaker |
May 5, 08 | 102 – WebSpace Page: Swifty |
May 26, 15 | What You’ve Been Waiting to Know… |
Oct 20, 14 | 629 – Freaky Differences |
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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Jan 19, 10 | SF Origins: The Six Wives of Captain Spectacular, Pg. 2 “Homewreckers” |
Aug 24, 12 | Pg. 3 “Crybabies” |
Apr 25, 12 | 406 – Spy Gal’s Wall of Evidence |
Nov 14, 11 | 362 – Robots Don’t Sleep |
Feb 6, 13 | 478 – What If Money Man Had Lived? |
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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Mar 26, 14 | 583 – The Captain is Not as Alone as He Thinks |
Jan 21, 10 | 240 – ZAP! |
Nov 16, 06 | 44 – Beginning the Tale of How Captain Spectacular was Paralyzed |
Sep 24, 09 | 226 – The Deal is Off |
Oct 14, 11 | Pg. 3 “Enter: Jimmy-Go-Dead” |
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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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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Feb 18, 10 | 244 – Locked Away |
Jan 28, 07 | 88 – Who Smells Like Fish? |
Nov 16, 06 | 44 – Beginning the Tale of How Captain Spectacular was Paralyzed |
Sep 14, 15 | 682 – Milk and Cookies |
Jun 15, 11 | 325 – At Captain Spectacular’s Door |
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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Oct 17, 18 | HUGE NEWS! SuperFogeys Volume One—Inaction Heroes now on Kickstarter! |
Oct 15, 09 | 229 – Father and Tom |
Nov 26, 09 | 235 – In His Shadow |
Oct 16, 08 | 172 – The Superhero Code |
Mar 18, 13 | 489 – Change in Plan |
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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Apr 29, 10 | 254 – Why Kill An Innocent? |
Nov 18, 13 | 549 – Zurida’s Visitors |
Nov 11, 10 | 284 – Pairing Off |
Oct 4, 06 | 12 – Introducing Space Pig! |
Dec 23, 08 | 190 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 7 “Test Subjects” |
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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Feb 8, 07 | 98 – The Wedding of Captain Spectacular and Star Maiden |
Nov 7, 16 | 711- Fallen Son |
Sep 26, 06 | 5 – The Urine of What!? |
Mar 16, 07 | 115 – Star Maiden Flattens Dr. Rocket |
Dec 7, 12 | Valhalla Fight Poster – Spy Gal vs. Zurida! |
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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Sep 18, 08 | 164 – Why “Tangerine?” |
Sep 27, 12 | GUEST STRIP by Crystal Murphy, Summer Fun Pt. 3 |
Mar 12, 18 | 770 – Bumps in the Road |
Aug 7, 08 | 152 – Best Man |
Jul 19, 22 | 907 – Where is Sam? |
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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Apr 15, 11 | Pg. 1 “A Sudden Meeting” |
Nov 14, 12 | 458 – Quite An Entrance |
Aug 7, 15 | 666 – When He Can Smell You From in There, It’s a Problem |
Jun 22, 12 | Pg. 2 “Doppelgangers” |
May 21, 09 | 209 – Coming to Jesus |
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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Dec 29, 08 | Guest Strip by Scott Gallatin of “Madscott!” |
Dec 1, 09 | SF Origins: When Tom Met Ms. Missile, Pg. 2 “Creepy Cute” |
Nov 28, 12 | 462 – Favoritism |
Dec 25, 08 | Merry Christmas From The SuperFogeys (2008) |
May 7, 09 | 207 – Not My Story to Tell |
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 28, 09 | Guest Strip by Don Oskowski of “Conduit Flux!” |
Feb 10, 09 | SF Origins: The Money Man, Pg. 2 “The Bat” |
Oct 10, 12 | 448 – Thinking Like a Hero |
Jan 4, 12 | 375 – In The Zone |
Sep 6, 22 | 921 – Obedience is Key |
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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Apr 3, 13 | 494 – Hugging in the Throne Room |
Apr 29, 10 | 254 – Why Kill An Innocent? |
Aug 23, 22 | 917 – The New Valhalla |
Dec 2, 08 | 184 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 1 “Laban and Amram” |
Aug 20, 14 | 619 – The Repentant |
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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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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May 25, 11 | 319 – The Plans of Dr. Klein, Pt. 2 “Isn’t Everybody?” |
Jun 2, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 16 “Eagle vs. Bear” |
Sep 21, 16 | 10th Anniversary BONUS STRIP 2! |
Mar 25, 10 | 249 – How to Prove Your Love |
Nov 17, 20 | 856 – Grab That Rabbit! |
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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Mar 12, 07 | 111 – Forgive Dr. Rocket |
Nov 17, 09 | SF Origins: Spy Gal vs. Star Maiden, Pg. 3 “The Last Punch” |
Aug 31, 16 | 695 – The Mighty Money Man |
Sep 6, 22 | 921 – Obedience is Key |
Nov 18, 08 | 180 – The Many Crimes of Dr. Rocket |
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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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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Feb 26, 20 | 834 – Percy Makes a Choice |
Dec 21, 16 | 721 – Requiem for Money Man |
Feb 1, 11 | Pg. 1 “Who You Callin’ Cow?” |
Feb 5, 20 | 830 – Literary Twist |
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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Jan 29, 18 | 758 – No One Else He Can Think Of |
Sep 10, 09 | 224 – The Race |
Aug 20, 18 | Swifty Origin, Pg. 12 “Party Hard” |
Jul 29, 11 | Pg.2 “Bio Signature Giveaway” |
Jan 23, 17 | 728 – Oh, Brucie… |
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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Jan 14, 10 | 239 – How Captain Spectacular Knows The Third Man |
Dec 6, 06 | 55 – A Mysterious Figure in the Wings |
Dec 11, 13 | 556 – Sisters Rule, Pilatius Drools |
Aug 25, 22 | 918 – Not Going in There |
Sep 21, 11 | Five Years of The SuperFogeys |
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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Sep 9, 10 | 275 – A Moment of Silence |
Aug 4, 22 | 912 – Jerry Speaks |
Sep 25, 06 | 4 – Who is Coming to Valhalla? |
Jul 11, 11 | 332 – Captain Spectacular’s Buds |
Jan 21, 13 | 473 – Monkey Rain |
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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Sep 18, 08 | 164 – Why “Tangerine?” |
Feb 28, 18 | 767 – Done Pretending |
Sep 6, 22 | 921 – Obedience is Key |
Mar 24, 07 | 123 – The Box is Opened |
Jul 23, 12 | 429 – Shenanigans |
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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Aug 26, 11 | Pg. 6 “The Missing Spark” |
Oct 27, 14 | 631 – Two Decisions |
Aug 21, 15 | 672 – To The USZ! |
Jan 7, 21 | 865 – Balance |
Sep 14, 16 | 699 – How Captain Spectacular Takes Care of Business |
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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Nov 15, 17 | 747 – The Popped Grape |
Sep 21, 11 | Five Years of The SuperFogeys |
Jun 28, 22 | 901 – Vanished |
May 7, 18 | 784 – What is Jerry Missing? |
Jul 30, 18 | Pg. 9 “Who is Talking?” |
…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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Apr 24, 13 | 500 – What Should Not Be |
Apr 11, 11 | 306 – He Looks Like He’s Dying |
Jun 2, 14 | 600 – Earth-Avalon |
Feb 7, 18 | 761 – Rolling Peas |
Oct 1, 12 | 445 – I Don’t Know What I’ve Been Told |
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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Oct 7, 06 | 14 – Watchin’ TV |
Dec 14, 16 | 719 – It’s Easy When You Know How |
Jun 27, 11 | 328 – Pairing Off |
Jun 10, 13 | 511 – Zurida’s Plan |
Oct 12, 11 | 354 – Snap Out of It! |
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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Jun 8, 10 | SF Origins: The Life and Times of Soviet Sam, Pg. 3 “Valhalla” |
Dec 9, 10 | 288 – Fill Me In |
Jun 3, 09 | The SuperFogeys Free Comic Book Day Page! |
Jul 14, 22 | 906 – He Looks Different |
Feb 26, 09 | 197 – Requiem |
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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Sep 12, 16 | 698 – Good Thing or Bad Thing? |
Feb 20, 13 | 482 – The Disappearance of Dr. Klein |
Oct 26, 16 | 708 – Don’t Worry, He’s Okay |
Aug 25, 10 | SF Origins: Operation: Valhalla, No. 2 “Interrupting Tea Time” |
Feb 16, 21 | 874 – The One True |
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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Nov 18, 19 | 813 – Villains Landing |
Jun 22, 11 | 327 – The Buddy System |
Oct 18, 06 | 25 – Pee On Swifty |
Aug 5, 15 | 665 – All Out of Coffee and Goats |
Sep 10, 18 | Pg. 15 “Something Missing” |