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 [...]
Posts Tagged ‘spy gal’
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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Mar 12, 14 | 579 – The Romantic Smell of Blood and Suffering |
Jul 26, 22 | 909 – Get Outta Town |
May 3, 08 | 86 – WebSpace Page: Jerry |
Feb 2, 10 | SF Origins: The Six Wives of Captain Spectacular, Pg. 4 “Zurida, Mistress of Worlds” |
Jun 17, 13 | 513 – Devil’s Bargain |
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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Sep 5, 14 | Pg. 9 – Like Other Men |
Dec 27, 10 | Guest Strip by Crystal Murphy, Part One (2010) |
Aug 6, 18 | Swifty Origin, Pg. 10 “The Heart” |
Jul 11, 11 | 332 – Captain Spectacular’s Buds |
May 5, 12 | Pg. 11 “Fly Away” |
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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Feb 3, 14 | 568 – Old Biddy |
Feb 1, 12 | 383 – Jackpot. |
Jul 10, 08 | Guest Strip by Lucas Turnbloom of “Imagine This!” |
Jun 29, 15 | 649 – Can You Take a Punch? |
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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Aug 27, 14 | 621 – Jerry’s Powers |
Feb 3, 11 | 294 – Funny Ya Should Mention That |
Apr 1, 07 | 131 – Spy Gal Cares |
Dec 23, 08 | 190 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 7 “Test Subjects” |
Mar 23, 21 | 884 – No Good at This |
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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Mar 10, 07 | 109 – WHO THREW THIS!? |
Dec 2, 08 | 184 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 1 “Laban and Amram” |
Aug 15, 14 | Pg. 7 “Kill ‘Em All” |
Mar 14, 12 | 395 – The Stink of Captivity |
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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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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Jan 16, 13 | 472 – The Stink of the Space Monkeys |
Sep 12, 12 | 444 – A New Mission |
Jun 22, 11 | 327 – The Buddy System |
Nov 20, 17 | 748 – Good Enough |
Oct 10, 12 | 448 – Thinking Like a Hero |
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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Jan 2, 12 | 374 – A Spy Gal Shaped Hole |
May 30, 12 | 416 – Alcohol is His Kryptonite |
Apr 1, 13 | 493 – Dr. Rocket’s Game |
Dec 7, 06 | 56 – Dr. Rocket Will Have His Revenge |
Aug 24, 11 | 345 – Taking a Pill |
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Apr 9, 09 | 203 – Shame, Shame |
Jan 18, 07 | 73 – It’s FUN to Share |
Aug 2, 22 | 911 – The Savior of the World |
Jun 23, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 19 “Did You Save Him?” |
Feb 5, 18 | 760 – OG Thrice |
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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Nov 7, 06 | 35 – Healer Q&A |
Aug 24, 11 | 345 – Taking a Pill |
Feb 26, 09 | 197 – Requiem |
Nov 23, 06 | 50 – And the Actual Winner of Bingo Night is… |
Feb 19, 18 | 764 – Meanwhile, Inside Dr. Rocket’s Bedchamber |
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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Aug 18, 10 | 272 – GET OUT! |
Nov 9, 11 | 361 – The Whole Place is Coming Down |
Dec 2, 06 | 52 – What Captain Spectacular Wants |
Jan 8, 18 | 752 – Like Jerry |
Sep 2, 15 | 677 – His Greatest Creation |
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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Jul 23, 09 | 217 – Jerry’s Family? |
Oct 7, 08 | 169 – Faker! |
Jul 1, 11 | Pg. 12 “Comic Book Clothing Physics” |
Nov 13, 17 | 746 – The New Maid |
Dec 10, 12 | 465 – Lip Lick |
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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Jul 1, 11 | Pg. 12 “Comic Book Clothing Physics” |
Oct 3, 11 | Chapter 8, “The Captain and the Spy” Recap by Nick Perkins |
Jul 3, 08 | 144 – Jerry Wakes Up |
Jan 29, 18 | 758 – No One Else He Can Think Of |
Jul 31, 15 | 663 – Pandora’s Box |
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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Jul 8, 11 | Pg. 13 “A Tree Falls in the Forest…” |
Nov 20, 08 | 181 – The Thrice Evil |
Apr 10, 13 | 496 – The First Condition |
Oct 9, 06 | 16 – Spy Gal Wakes Up |
Sep 9, 08 | 161 – Tangerine’s Arrival and Dr. Klein’s Return |
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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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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Aug 17, 12 | Pg. 2 “Youthfulenergysupersurplus!” |
Oct 5, 16 | 704 – Ankle Biters |
Jul 7, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 21 “Sayonara, Sucker!” |
Nov 15, 06 | 43 – The Healer Approaches the Captain |
Sep 14, 16 | 699 – How Captain Spectacular Takes Care of Business |
I love Spy Gal. It’s probably the adolescent schoolboy in me, but I have a lot of fun teasing her and putting her in some horrible situations. It’s always fun to see what she’ll do. Gene is the stand-in for my fifteen-year-old self. And, in case you can’t make it out, the book Spy Gal [...]
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Dec 19, 11 | 372 – She’s His Sister |
Aug 3, 10 | SF Origins: Spy Gal’s Secret Mission, Pg. 3 “Hitting Bottom” |
Oct 4, 11 | Chapter 9, “Head Games” Recap by Eric Merritt |
Aug 18, 10 | 272 – GET OUT! |
Oct 8, 12 | 447 – Enemy Target Identified |
Some people thought Dr. Klein’s look in the third panel coupled with his German name mean that Dr. Klein is evil. I won’t comment on the prejudices of my readership, but I will say that I did not have that in mind when I drew it. I was just experimenting with what I could do [...]
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Aug 19, 10 | 273 – All Is Revealed |
Jul 8, 11 | Pg. 13 “A Tree Falls in the Forest…” |
Sep 29, 09 | SF Origins: Herman’s Story, Pg. 5 “Time to Move On” |
Jan 10, 18 | 753 – What She’d Like to Know |
Oct 24, 12 | 452 – Book of Mormon Story |
Ugh. This is my failed experiment. Like Strip 25, I had two ideas for a strip and tried to make them into one. As drawn, panel 3 preceded panel 2, but at the last minute I got the idea to integrate them more. It didn’t work. Not helping matters is the last panel. For the [...]
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Aug 18, 22 | 916 – Restoration |
May 27, 11 | Pg. 7 “In the Future” |
Dec 4, 08 | 185 – The Origin of Captain Spectacular and Dr. Rocket, Pt. 2 “Babylonian Invasion” |
Aug 6, 18 | Swifty Origin, Pg. 10 “The Heart” |
Oct 13, 14 | 628 – Earth-Abbadon |
The SuperFogeys are so stiff and immobile, it was fun to cut loose a little on a character like the Healer. I made it double-sized because I wanted the figures to breathe a little and see what I could do with a character who is real expressive. There’s some good lines in this one (Dr. [...]
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Dec 16, 11 | Pg. 5 “Full Power, Harvey!” |
Nov 12, 09 | 233 – She Was Undercover |
Nov 10, 14 | 635 – The Blame Game |
Jul 9, 08 | Guest Strip by Rufus Edge of “comicdeoxyribonucleicacid!” |
May 7, 08 | 74 – WebSpace Page: The Healer |
I hate the first panel of this one. CS and Spy Gal just don’t look right and I don’t know what I was thinking. The entire point of this strip was to establish that Spy Gal is attracted to Dr. Klein. I don’t do anything more with it for the whole of Chapter 2, but [...]
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Nov 2, 11 | The 2nd SuperFogeys Free Comic Book Day Page |
Oct 21, 10 | 281 – Expected |
Aug 30, 22 | 919 – The More Things Change… |
Dec 19, 12 | 468 – Jerry’s Savior |
May 5, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 12 “Date or Fight?” |
Jerry was late to the party because I needed to remind the audience of his feelings for Spy Gal. I’m sure there was a better way to do that. Not a favorite of mine.
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I had been looking for an excuse to do a single-panel strip for a long time and this conclusion of the Healer’s interviews with all the SuperFogeys was a good excuse for it. Originally, the dialogue on this one was vastly different. It was a back and forth between the Healer and the Captain; none [...]
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Oct 28, 11 | Pg. 5 “Knife in the Mouth” |
Sep 7, 10 | SF Origins: Spy Gal, Pg. 2 “Cats at the Back” |
Jun 18, 14 | 602 – The Legless Speedster |
Jan 9, 12 | 376 – Beaten But Not Broken |
Apr 13, 11 | 307 – T-Magus |
I absolutely love this strip. This is a case of art elevating the script. On paper, this one didn’t seem like it would be much. If anything, I felt like I was trying to do too much. However…I think it works. Bingo Knight was a character name given to me by a reader of my [...]
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Mar 18, 07 | 117 – Dementia |
Mar 4, 13 | 485 – To The Stars |
Mar 16, 07 | 115 – Star Maiden Flattens Dr. Rocket |
Jul 1, 15 | 650 – GAH! Feelings! |
Oct 14, 08 | 171 – Hello, Karma |
Bingo Knight’s design came from the idea that he is essentially a super accountant. I mean, a super hero who settles Bingo scores? How could he be anything BUT an accountant? Once I knew that, all I had to do was put a dorky guy in a Knight costume and the idea sold itself.
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Dec 29, 08 | Guest Strip by Scott Gallatin of “Madscott!” |
Nov 7, 06 | 35 – Healer Q&A |
Jan 21, 10 | 240 – ZAP! |
Sep 30, 13 | 539 – Spy Gal Beats Up Somebody |
Dec 17, 12 | 467 – Spy Gal Kicks Butt |
I don’t know how much this strip actually adds to the plot, but it makes me laugh and sometimes that’s enough. A genuinely well-drawn Spy Gal in this strip, I think. She’s a tough one to draw just right and I always have a hard time with her hair.
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Dec 25, 08 | Merry Christmas From The SuperFogeys (2008) |
Oct 1, 15 | Chapter 21 Teaser! |
May 30, 12 | 416 – Alcohol is His Kryptonite |
Mar 4, 20 | 836 – Keep Away |
Nov 21, 11 | 364 – Comrade |
I tried and tried to not make this one a double-sized. I had just done one and I didn’t want to take the time to do another one, but there just wasn’t any other way to make it work. Too many characters all interacting with each other. It has been said that this is one [...]
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Dec 16, 19 | 819 – Time for a Refill? |
Sep 4, 19 | 797 – Squishiness in the War Room |
Nov 7, 06 | 35 – Healer Q&A |
Mar 24, 14 | 582 – The Discomfort of Dark Maiden |
Apr 29, 11 | Pg. 3 “Lucky” |
I love Gene. He’s such a jerk and yet, I think, you feel sorry for him. I don’t really know why. Maybe it’s just me. I broke my rule of having Spy Gal being tough enough to defend herself because I couldn’t pass up the joke. I hope no one minded.
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Oct 15, 20 | 847 – Macho Verve and Vigor |
Mar 8, 11 | Pg. 6 “Area is Secure” |
Apr 7, 14 | 586 – The New Percy |
Apr 7, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 8 “Ticking Bomb” |
Jul 31, 13 | 522 – A Favor for Spy Gal |
This is an important call back to the end of Chapter 1. I had to keep Jerry’s unrequited love alive somehow and it seems particularly harsh that it’s now Spy Gal herself who is diminishing him. Jerry’s just fun to mess with.
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Jan 21, 07 | 81 – Jerry Denied! |
Feb 23, 10 | SF Origins: The Six Wives of Captain Spectacular, Pg. 8 “The Return of Zurida” |
Jul 11, 12 | 428 – You Know Who You Sound Like? |
Mar 24, 07 | 123 – The Box is Opened |
Sep 4, 19 | 797 – Squishiness in the War Room |
Finally we’re back to the Fogeys. It was a conscious decision on my part to not have the Fogeys enter the stage for so many strips—six, to be exact. I wanted to try something new. Re-energize myself. I found I really missed them and the strip seems to come alive when they’re “on screen.” I [...]
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Jan 19, 14 | 564 – One Year Later |
Jul 9, 08 | Guest Strip by Rufus Edge of “comicdeoxyribonucleicacid!” |
Jul 4, 11 | 330 – Swim City |
Jun 21, 22 | 899 – Apocalyptic Lovers |
Dec 28, 11 | Guest Strip by Crystal Murphy! |
Visually, this is one of my absolute favorites. You can see I’m trying something new with the background. I first used the “faded background” technique in a guest strip I did for Wes Molebash’s strip “You’ll Have That” Once I did it there, I knew I needed to try it for SF. More copy/pasting [...]
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Oct 22, 12 | 451 – Will Tangerine Help? |
Mar 29, 07 | 128 – Only Two People in the World… |
Dec 4, 13 | 554 – Not In a Way That Matters |
Jun 27, 11 | 328 – Pairing Off |
Apr 4, 11 | 304 – Catchy and Mysterious |
The first panel shows a depth of field we haven’t really seen in SF thus far. My goal was to do a drawing that would also work well as a group shot and, possibly, a wallpaper. Plans are in the works for just such a thing. Obviously, this is a huge change of pace for [...]
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Apr 1, 07 | 131 – Spy Gal Cares |
Sep 5, 11 | 348 – The Wheel of Fortune |
Oct 2, 06 | 10 – Why Spy Gal Came to Valhalla |
Sep 24, 09 | 226 – The Deal is Off |
Apr 30, 14 | 591 – About That Thing… That One Time |
Gene’s closing line in panel one was originally something like “Give her your utmost respect.” I quickly discovered at the lettering stage that I didn’t have enough room for that. Thank goodness. I love that he just shouts “Respect!” Kinda’ thing that makes me laugh. Spy Gal threatening violence on a little girl makes me [...]
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Jun 30, 22 | 902 – Devastation |
Mar 16, 20 | 839 – What What |
Mar 3, 09 | SF Origins: The Society of Heroes, Pg. 3 “The Captain and Jerry” |
Oct 12, 06 | 19 – Back From the Colonoscopy |
Oct 13, 09 | SF Origins: JA – Tom’s Story, Pg. 2 “Not About My Dad” |
I don’t remember if this strip was done this way out of laziness or because I wanted to shake things up. Honestly, if I had to guess I’d say I was trying to shake things up. I think I was trying to create the feeling of overhearing the conversation before you really see who is [...]
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Nov 24, 14 | 639 – What She Had to Do |
Mar 23, 07 | 122 – Who Will Jerry Fight? |
Nov 13, 08 | 179 – Reverend Space Pig |
Mar 9, 12 | Pg. 3 “His Old Flame” |
Mar 4, 20 | 836 – Keep Away |
Another “colorful” strip. Seriously, this is just ugly. I never pull off the silhouetted figures thing as well as someone like Mike Witmer over at Pinkerton. I try but…no. Still, Jerry getting rejected by Spy Gal…that’s always gold as far as I’m concerned.
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Jul 20, 10 | SF Origins: Spy Gal’s Secret Mission, Pg. 1 “Entry” |
Nov 22, 17 | 749 – Caught in the Act |
Aug 1, 12 | 432 – Tea Time, Interrupted |
Jul 10, 15 | 654 – An Honest Conversation |
Nov 26, 14 | 640 – Jerry Must Come Back |
I think my ink line is too thick in these middle Chapter 3 strips. Also, the camera is just a little too tight, a constant problem of mine overall. Knowing what I wanted to do with Dr. Klein by the end of this chapter, it was important to keep him present in the story. That’s [...]
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Feb 28, 18 | 767 – Done Pretending |
Mar 2, 20 | 835 – Because of the Struggle |
Jul 3, 15 | 651 – Duplicity |
Sep 10, 18 | Pg. 15 “Something Missing” |
Nov 7, 11 | 360 – Decision |
I love the panel with the close-up of the hands. From the drawing to the colors, it just works. Too bad the rest of the strip doesn’t. A lot readers asked me what those sparks near Spy Gal’s wrist were in the last panel. Then answer: My feeble attempt at visually depicting her arthritis. …I [...]
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Sep 23, 10 | 277 – Judging the Future |
Feb 22, 11 | Pg. 4 “Ruined Her Show” |
Jul 4, 14 | Pg. 1 “One Month Later” |
Oct 12, 06 | 19 – Back From the Colonoscopy |
Feb 3, 11 | 294 – Funny Ya Should Mention That |
Swifty coming in at the end was kind of cheap. I didn’t have a real gag for this one, and he usually does in a pinch. It was an important Dr. Klein moment though.
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Sep 1, 22 | 920 – …The More They Stay the Same |
Apr 1, 11 | Pg. 9 “Always” |
Jan 21, 07 | 81 – Jerry Denied! |
May 21, 14 | 597 – Him Who? |
Jan 8, 10 | Guest Strip by Cory Thomas of “Watch Your Head!” |
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Mar 1, 11 | Pg. 5 “Couture Fashion” |
Mar 18, 20 | 840 – Twice the Thrice |
Sep 6, 22 | 921 – Obedience is Key |
And now we see the real plan. Get the Captain on the computer to see his ex-wife. In the end, it’s kind of weak. There should have been something extra on the plan, or a bigger reaction from the Captain. It bears fruit, sure, but I think the Captain’s reaction could have been stronger and [...]
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Mar 3, 11 | 298 – Vile Villainous Vole |
Sep 24, 06 | 3 – Escape From the Carpathian Bug People |
Nov 19, 14 | 638 – The Man Who Sold the World |
Jun 29, 11 | 329 – Ear Twist |
Mar 2, 07 | 105 – Dr. Klein is Leaving? |
That last panel of Star Maiden is something I’m really pleased with. I wanted a really fluid figure and I often have a hard time drawing women. I surprised myself here. For some reason, readers really latched onto the phrase “Spill it, Gramps!” I have no idea why. I didn’t think it was particularly funny. [...]
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Jan 1, 09 | Guest Strip by Mark R. Engel of “Prematurely Disappointed!” |
Dec 27, 13 | Guest Strip by Crystal Murphy, 1 |
Sep 27, 06 | 6 – Introducing Spy Gal! |
Oct 7, 10 | 279 – Gina Galloway |
Feb 5, 20 | 830 – Literary Twist |
93 – Beginning the Tale of How Captain Spectacular Met and Married Star Maiden
by Brock Heasley on February 2nd, 2007The genesis for this flashback came from Daniel Woodhouse, artist on “Thog Infinitron” and sometime artist of “Beaver and Steve.” I asked Dan to do a short backup story for the second SuperFogeys book and asked him what he wanted to draw. He said “Captain Spectacular fighting in the skies above a city. Maybe a [...]
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I don’t know why Mr. Crook is in there. It doesn’t really add anything to the story to have him there. Great Dr. Rocket moment though. I had a lot of fun drawing that tongue and making it as yucky as possible.
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Aug 21, 19 | 793 – The Hero He Hates to Be |
Oct 10, 12 | 448 – Thinking Like a Hero |
Aug 31, 12 | Pg. 4 “Crib Cage” |
Jun 20, 12 | 422 – Whoof! |
Aug 10, 16 | 689 – Zurida, the Mother |
The obvious signified of a flashback is to do the art in black and white. That gray shading I add in there is an effect I wish I had time to do on all the SuperFogeys strips. Plans are for that effect to be added to the strips for the trade collections. Once that happens, [...]
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Nov 13, 19 | 812 – Spy Gal Dual Wields |
Jul 13, 11 | 333 – A Word with Her Fiancee |
Dec 19, 12 | 468 – Jerry’s Savior |
Feb 8, 11 | Pg. 2 “New Designer in Town” |
Nov 18, 06 | 46 – The Winner of Bingo Night…? |
Obviously, something big went down in that other dimension. For the whole story, check out the backup tale “Captain Spectacular and Star Maiden in the Inevitable Dimension” in the second SuperFogeys book. It’s drawn by Julio Molina-Muscara, artist on “Omega Chase.” I wanted a “no bad guy” break-up here. I think you get where everyone [...]
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Jun 20, 12 | 422 – Whoof! |
Feb 26, 09 | 197 – Requiem |
Jul 29, 08 | 149 – Santa Rocket |
Sep 30, 11 | Chapter 7, “Visiting Day” Recap by Rossana Bugini |
Oct 28, 11 | Pg. 5 “Knife in the Mouth” |
Kind of a weird way to start a chapter. You could argue that this really belongs in Chapter 3 (as it’s mostly old business), but I knew Dr. Klein was going to be disappearing for the bulk of the chapter and wanted to make sure he got in there in some way so that things [...]
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Dec 2, 10 | 287 – GAH! |
Dec 7, 16 | 717 – The Fury of Soviet Sam |
May 16, 12 | 412 – Calling Valhalla |
Oct 5, 11 | Chapter 10, “Bubbles of Light” Recap by Danny Burleson |
Aug 10, 11 | 341 – Stop |
After the reveal of the last chapter that Dr. Klein is the Third Man, everything he says is just a little more sinister. This is my playing with that a bit. Artistically, this strip is bunk. Nothing looks right and that third panel is atrocious.
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Jan 28, 13 | 475 – Too Old For This |
Dec 16, 10 | 289 – Not Yet |
Dec 21, 11 | 373 – SWAT! |
Oct 13, 14 | 628 – Earth-Abbadon |
Sep 14, 11 | 351 – Dreams Come Crashing In |
Another ugly, ugly strip. An important one though. This is one of those that I think people read and then didn’t ask the right questions about. Jerry’s tears are a leftover plot thread from Chapter 3. The last time anyone talked about him it was in Episode 88 when Captain Spectacular mentioned that Jerry had [...]
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Jun 17, 11 | Pg. 10 “Lost Faith” |
Mar 5, 12 | 392 – …Secrets, Secrets Hurt Someone |
Apr 1, 10 | 250 – To Be So Stupid |
Nov 15, 06 | 43 – The Healer Approaches the Captain |
Oct 4, 11 | Chapter 9, “Head Games” Recap by Eric Merritt |
Slapsticky? Yes, definitely. But I still love it. Shoot, I love it because it’s slapsticky. Obviously, I’m riffing on the Nintendo Wii here, notorious for it’s flying game remotes. I got a Wii in December of 2006. Love that thing and with all the reports of the sytem being used in nursing homes across the [...]
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Jun 28, 22 | 901 – Vanished |
Oct 9, 08 | 170 – There Will Be Blood |
Sep 23, 08 | 165 – Not a Villain? |
Sep 23, 10 | 277 – Judging the Future |
As bad as the art was in the firs few strips of this chapter, I think it got that much better once the Wii stuff came in. Spy Gal’s jumping pose was something I was nervous about doing (I’m not good with the action), but I’m really pleased with how it turned out. All of [...]
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Dec 3, 20 | 859 – Snakes on a Swifty |
Sep 14, 16 | 699 – How Captain Spectacular Takes Care of Business |
Apr 2, 09 | 202 – He Started Stuttering |
Apr 25, 18 | 781 – Everyone in the War Room! |
Jan 20, 07 | 77 – Headed for a Time-Out |
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Some readers thought Jerry was out-of-character here. In my mind, Jerry is basically a decent guy, but even decent guys can be pushed too far. If it’s Swifty talking, then you can be sure that Jerry is being pushed too far. I labored and labored over the wording of Dr. Rocket’s apology. It had to [...]
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Jul 11, 12 | 428 – You Know Who You Sound Like? |
Sep 22, 09 | SF Origins: Herman’s Story, Pg. 4 “I Am Dr. Rocket” |
Feb 8, 11 | Pg. 2 “New Designer in Town” |
Jan 28, 21 | 869 – A Wonderful Side Effect |
Oct 7, 06 | 14 – Watchin’ TV |
And now you see the entire impetus for the Wii storyline. I knew I wanted Star Maiden to be so deranged that she actually sees the Fogeys as their younger selves. With that in mind, I thought her interpretation of “air boxing” would be hilarious. Turned out to be more dramatic, but what are you [...]
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Oct 17, 06 | 24 – Too Little Too Late |
Oct 20, 14 | 629 – Freaky Differences |
Jul 23, 12 | 429 – Shenanigans |
Jul 29, 10 | 267 – Without Pants, Nothing is Possible |
Oct 16, 06 | 23 – The Incontinent Duo |
Some pretty loaded dialog here, and one of my favorite CS/Jerry conversations at that. I like the talky stuff. Action is fun and I understand the need for it, but I always see the core of the SuperFogeys being the interplay between the characters. That’s where the meat is. Love the promise of the last [...]
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Sep 28, 12 | GUEST STRIP by Crystal Murphy, Summer Fun Pt. 4 |
Oct 6, 06 | 13 – How About a Kiss? |
Mar 28, 07 | 127 – Entralean Slime Pellet |
Nov 11, 06 | 39 – Jerry Arrives Late |
Nov 18, 08 | 180 – The Many Crimes of Dr. Rocket |
I did it. I did a strip with no males in it. In one sense, I really like writing women. It’s different and it’s fun to get outside of myself like that. On the other hand…I”m no woman. There’s a lot going on here. Star Maiden is obviously not on the same page as Spy [...]
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Jul 23, 18 | Pg. 8 “Better When She Was a Villain” |
Sep 29, 06 | 7 – Turnip Turnip |
Nov 11, 06 | 39 – Jerry Arrives Late |
Apr 18, 11 | 308 – Time Displaced/Erased/No Taste |
Nov 14, 11 | 362 – Robots Don’t Sleep |
Some readers misunderstood this strip to mean that Spy Gal is upset at Star Maiden again. Not my intention at all, something I hope becomes clear in the next strip. Swifty’s line at the end came from trial and error. All of his dialog in the last panel went through many iterations. I think the [...]
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Feb 11, 21 | 873 – Against the Wall |
May 9, 12 | 410 – Attack of the Space Monkeys |
Nov 18, 11 | Pg. 1 “The Usher” |
Sep 21, 15 | 685 – Doom Comes to Abbadon |
Jul 4, 11 | 330 – Swim City |
The rare one-paneler! Very rarely do I have an idea for a strip that lends itself to this. The challenge is the layout. Getting all those characters into one frame isn’t easy for me, but well worth it, I think.
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Oct 22, 20 | 849 – Break a Hip |
Apr 16, 09 | 204 – Florida Beckons |
Oct 13, 06 | 20 – Worse Than He Thought |
Mar 31, 12 | Pg. 6 “Find the Sharp Metal Instrument” |
Jun 19, 13 | 514 – The Handover |
There’s a kid with a gun. The kid’s a villain though, so I’m asking you to go with it. There’s not much funny about gun violence. This isn’t the place to really get into it, but my life has certainly been affected by gun violence on more than one occasion. My feeling is that if [...]
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Aug 29, 16 | 694 – Soviet Sam Crackdown |
Jul 30, 14 | 614 – The First Lady |
Nov 26, 09 | 235 – In His Shadow |
May 28, 14 | 599 – Bubbles of Light Sideways |
Jan 19, 21 | 866 – Who Wants to Be Safe? |
Did Swifty go too far? That’s what some readers thought. I admit that I had second thoughts about this one as well, but knowing what I know about Swifty and Jerry’s relationship, I think he is justified. True, I haven’t actually REVEALED why Swifty hates Jerry so much, but still… The second panel with Spy Gal’s [...]
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Dec 27, 10 | Guest Strip by Crystal Murphy, Part One (2010) |
Oct 15, 20 | 847 – Macho Verve and Vigor |
Jun 18, 14 | 602 – The Legless Speedster |
May 17, 08 | SF Collection #3 Cover |
Aug 31, 15 | 676 – Jerry, Meet Thrice Evil |