Delays Ahead

My dear readers, I am afraid that Lepus Studios is going to have to take its first hiatus.

I've just spent my last two weeks teaching a very extensive digital arts class, which left little time for comic drawing. I've used up my buffer on both Draconis Wicked and Urban Underbrush.

To complicate matters, I have to leave town for a week and there will probably be no internet where I'm heading.

Expect Urban Underbrush to return on August 2. Draconis will return on August 13 at the latest.

Thanks for your patience and understanding.

Pearls Before Pittsburgh

A few weekends ago, I had the opportunity to see Stephan Pastis at the Pittsburgh Toonseum (That’s “cartoon museum” for you out of towners.) Stephan Pastis is the cartoonist behind, Pearls Before Swine – one of my favorite newspaper comics. He was giving a lecture on cartooning. I had to be there.

 

I didn’t know what to expect from Mr. Pastis. What do cartoonists talk about? Would he discuss his drawing methods? His writing methods? The advantages and disadvantages of digital distribution versus print distribution? (Would anyone else find that interesting?)

He kept it light and gave a talk that everyone could appreciate. This was good because there were a lot of kids in the audience (kudos to the parents who brought them there – you are parenting right.) Stephan talked about his characters, his inspirations, and how he started his cartooning career. He even shared some favorite complaint letters.

The lion’s share of his lecture was a “book reading.” How does a cartoonist do a book reading? He picks out some favorite comic strips and reads the dialogue out loud while a large screen projection of each panel is displayed on the wall behind him. Usually, he didn’t even have to read the last panel. As soon as the punchline went up, the crowd was laughing too hard to hear him anyway.

Stephan puts a lot of himself into his art, but it’s hard to get a sense of who he is as a person just from reading his work or listening to his talk. He presents himself in an accurate and straight-forward way, but then he wraps that presentation in a thick layer of self-deprecating humor. (Regular “Pearls” readers know that he beats himself up quite a bit.) Trying to know the man through his work is like looking at him through water, but then that self-deprecation is like that handful of dust thrown in that water, keeping us from getting a clearer look. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not criticizing him for it. I think this method allows him to be honest about himself without becoming too intense. If he didn’t cloak himself in a little self-abuse, he’d be too exposed.

A very memorable and poignant moment of the talk was when a kid in the audience asked Mr. Pastis to tell us which Pearls strips were his favorites. Stephan didn’t just talk about the funny ones. He mentioned the thoughtful, sensitive comics a well. He told us that if a cartoonist tries to be touching too often, heartfelt comics lose their power. But if the profound moments are used carefully, they can be magic.

Thanks for visiting us in Pittsburgh, Stephan. Come back whenever you like.

-Marjorie Rishel
lepusstudios.com

Farewell to Starslip

I just read the final Starslip comic today. Most of you shouldn’t need me to tell you about Starslip (aka Starshift Crisis or Starslip Crisis), the popular sci-fi comedy webcomic which has been running for seven years.

In case you’re not familiar with the comic, Starslip told the story of Memnon Vanderbeam, a foppish art curator turned space captain, and his crew of engineers, ex-pirates, robots, aliens, and giant insects. They traveled the galaxy spreading culture during times of peace or joining space battles in times of war. I did mention that the story takes place in the distant future, didn’t I?
I have a lot of fond memories of Starslip. Like the time I broke down and bought a plush Jinxlet from the Starslip store (Dr. Snuggleton is right here with me as I write this blog).

Or the time Starslip author Kris Straub sent me an autograph from PAX East (I couldn’t go because of work. Stupid gainful employment).

But I think that the time Starslip meant the most to me was in the summer of 2008. Ever since I graduated college, I’ve had a standing summer job teaching art classes for kids and teens. In July, we assemble a gallery of the students work and display it at Duquesne University. It’s always a challenge to put the gallery together while teaching the classes, but in 2008 we had a new obstacle. The university had turned its gallery space into offices. Other suitable spaces were under construction, so they gave our art gallery a temporary place in the second floor lobby. It was a difficult transition. Most of the staff, including myself, put in a lot of extra hours to make the necessary adjustments. As the most senior member, I was also managing the staff, tying up lose ends, getting three-to-five hours of sleep each night, and becoming increasingly irritated with the whole situation.

But I still found time to read Startslip each morning.

As luck would have it, Starslip was telling a story about Memnon Vanderbeam setting up an art exhibition. All of the artwork disappeared over night and Memnon and his crew had to track it down and re-assemble the exhibition in the few hours before the museum opened. I can’t stress how perfect the timing was. We’ve all had occasions when pop culture stories match up with events in our own lives, but they’re usually out of sync with us by a few weeks or months. I was reading this story exactly as these things were happening to me. And I found myself thinking, “If a clown like Vanderbeam can fix his gallery, then clever folks like us can get our gallery put together.” And we did.

In all fairness, we would have fixed our problems without Starslip cheering me on. But I wouldn’t have enjoyed it nearly as much.

So today we say goodbye to a saga that has meant so much to so many people. Thanks to Mr. Straub for giving us Starslip. If nothing else, it could be quite a pick-me-up.

And thank goodness I was able to squeeze a Jinxlet into the last Easter Egg Gallery. I would have been disappointed if I had missed my chance to do that.

 -Marj
lepusstudios.com

Mega Projects

Hey, do you like the new main page? I'm trying to make the site a little more friendly for new readers by putting the comics on the front page too. The latest Draconis Wicked will take over the home page on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Urban Underbrush appears on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

I've been a lot of places lately, but mostly places on the internet. In the past few months, I've drawn guest comics for Edmund Finney's Quest to Find the Meaning of Life and Bearmageddon.

But my biggest guest appearance is just getting started.

I've been working on a short comic for SuperFogeys Origins. For anyone not familiar with what that arrangement of words means, SuperFogeys is a webcomic about retired super heroes and villains. Their adventures run on Mondays and Wednesdays. On Friday, readers are treated to "origin stories," tales of the heroes back in their heyday. Here's the twist: while the Monday/Wednesday episodes are always written by Brock Heasley and drawn by Marc Lapierre, each origin story is drawn by a different guest artist. It's a nice touch that makes each origin seem like someone's memory, influenced by recollection and point of view.

Now it's my turn. I'm drawing the story of Mega Matt, a powerless "hero" who is a bit of a klutz. I'm working from Brock's script, which has been a bit of a challenge. It's a fun, goofy story, but it may be a bit intense for some of the younger readers.

I'd love to tell you a little bit about my experiences drawing this crazy thing, but I don't want to give anything away just yet. I guess you'll have to come back when the story's over. "SuperFogeys Origins: Mega Matt and the Ballad of the O'Hara Family" will run on Fridays for the next five weeks. It's a crazy ride and I hope you'll take it.

-Marj

Axe Cop Volume Three and the Truth About Box Turtles

Part One: Axe Cop Volume Three
I just got my copy of Axe Cop Volume Three and it is the best Axe Cop book yet.

Axe Cop, as I'm sure you recall, is the story of a hardcore, super-powered police officer. The stories are written / play-acted by a seven-year-old boy (Malachai Nicolle), then distilled and drawn by his adult brother (Ethan Nicolle.)

Volume Three includes some of my favorite stories, including the Dr. McNinja crossover, The Power of Christmas, tons of extras, and an introduction that is worth the price of admission. Also included is a wide variety of short comics and pin-ups from amazing artists like Doug TenNaple, Kris Straub, Jason Brubaker, and Rob Schrab.

And if that wasn't enough I GOT TO DRAW A PAGE OF IT! The guest comic, "Does Axe Cop Play Video Games," was made by me. It's based on various childhood stories that my brother, two sisters and I used to invent and act out. (This is actually the first time I gave credit to my siblings as part of the inspiration for that comic. It's probably one more credit than they would have wanted.)


I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to appear in a book like this. It feels like a greater honor than my silly comics and I deserve.

Part Two: The Truth About Box Turtles
In a very popular Axe Cop interview, Malachai launches into a discussion about how turtles would join in a fight:

" I don’t know how the turtles would help but I think they would get in their shell then tell a guy with a golf club to bang them into the grizzly bears. Wait... how come they call a box turtle a box turtle?  My dad thinks it’s because they are good boxers.  The sea turtles couldn’t really help, but the snapping turtles could snap at them like weapons. (trails off into talking about every kind of turtle...)"

(From MTV's Geek News: http://geek-news.mtv.com/2012/03/22/axe-cop-malachai-and-ethan-nicolle-interview/)

Usually, when someone famous asks a question like this, their inbox instantly becomes crammed with hundreds of answers from self-proclaimed experts. The trouble with this (aside from a bursting inbox) is that only one person gets to hear these answers and the rest of us readers are left scratching our heads or doing our own dang research. So, as a thank-you to Malachai for liking my comic, I am going to answer the Box Turtle Question right here for all to see. I will be aided by my lovely assistant and box turtle expert, Noko Noko.

(Here's Noko!)

Box Turtles get their name from the hinge on their plastron (their belly shell.)

(There's that hinge)

That hinge allows part of the shell to fold up over the turtle's head when he withdraws - like the flaps on a box.

(See, he's closing up the opening to protect himself)

Bonus Trivia: Box turtles make great pets, but many of them are endangered animals. Don't collect them from wild. Adopt them from breeders or pet shops instead. But don't release pet turtles either. They can carry diseases that are harmless to pet turtles, but deadly to wild turtles.

Also, box turtles are known for being highly intelligent by reptile standards. (See Figure A.)

(Figure A)

I hope this has answered all of your questions. Now go read Axe Cop.

-Marj
lepusstudios.com

Spring Cleaning 2012

It seems like I feel a need to clean up my website at least once per year. As you can see, I've changed some colors, removed/reduced some patterns, and removed some useless code so the site will load more efficiently (you probably can't see that last part.)

Actually, I've was pretty happy with the old design. Of course, I needed to rearrange some buttons and add a link to my new Deviant ART account. What pushed me over the edge was a something I found in my documents folder. Apparently, I had archived an old version of my site from 2010. It ain't pretty




 (Eep.)

Sure, some of the pieces aren't bad on their own and you can sort of see how this mess evolved into the current version. But the amount of clutter... How did I not notice all the clutter? And if I was blind to the clutter back then, how do I know I'm not blind to terrible amounts of clutter right now? So, with paranoia as my guide, gave the site a little overhaul. It's now leaner and cleaner than ever before.

I may be making some minor tweaks as the new site settles in, but, for the most part, you can just enjoy the new site...at least until next year...Maybe.

-Marj

Urban Underbrush Readers' Poll Results

A few weeks ago, many of you took part in the Urban Underbrush Readers’ Poll to share what you liked (or didn’t like) about the comic. Now, I’m giving you the results. Here are the answers you voted for, ranked by popularity. I’ve also included some commentary.


1. Who’s your favorite character?

First Place: Maxwell (40%)
Second Place: Dynamite & Detonator / Vincent / Scatter (15% each)
Third Place: Leslie (10%)
Fourth Place: Cassidy (5%)

I’m not surprised that Max is the favorite. He’s a nice guy who gets the best pop culture jokes. I’m glad that Dynamite and Detonator made a decent showing since they often carry the stories. Vincent was a surprise. He’s so quiet I was wondering if you even noticed him. The rest of the cast did about as well as I expected.

2. Which settings would you like to see?

First Place: House and Roof Garden (45%)
Second Place: City (40%)
Third Place: Visit other places (15%)

Actually, these results reflect how often I intended to use these settings anyway. About 50% to 60% of the story will take place in the house, 40% in the rest of the city and 15% in some other locations.

3. Explosions?

First Place: There are enough explosions (60%)
Second Place: We need more explosions (40%)

Everyone likes a good explosion, but you guys clearly understand that they probably can’t happen all the time. Urban Underbrush has continuity. It’s not the kind of cartoon where everything falls apart one week, and then it’s inexplicably fine the next week. Plus, the characters make a big deal over how important their home is. So I can’t be blasting pieces off of it every other week. I do promise to blow things up whenever I can get away with it.

Not surprisingly, no one voted for fewer explosions.

4. Human Stories or Animal Stories?

First Place: Mix (90%)
Second Place: humans only/animals only (5% each)

I’ve always liked stories with both animal and human characters interacting. I really don’t see the point in keeping them apart.


5. Romance Stories

First Place: Keep doing what you’re doing. (45%)
Second Place: More stories where Vincent and Leslie do couple things. (25%)
Third Place: Vincent and Leslie are creepy. Make someone else hook up with someone. (20%)
Fourth Place: Keep it to a minimum. (10%)

I kind of screwed up this question. That line about Vincent and Leslie being creepy was based on something a friend of mine had said about my comics many years ago. I thought it would be funny to include it in the survey. But many of you like seeing Vincent and Leslie together but ALSO want to see other characters hook up, so I couldn’t get an honest answer from that line of questioning.

Most of you seem interested in some light romance stories. Not a lot of people flat-out objected to them anyway.

6. Favorite Chapter?

First Place: Ch 5 - Bicycle Ride (42%)
Second Place: Ch 2 - Storage Problems/Ch 4 - Grass Roots History (16% each)
Third Place: Ch 1 - Rabbits Move In (11%)
Fourth Place: Ch 6/ Ch7/ “I haven’t read all the chapters” (5% each)
Fifth Place: Ch 3 - House Warming Party (0%)

I hope to do more wacky stories like Chapter 5. It’s easier to write this kind of story now that we’ve settled in and met everyone.

I’m not surprised that Chapter 3 received the fewest votes. It’s the shortest, most uneventful chapter. Its only real function is to transition into Chapter 4. Some of the individual comic strips are pretty funny, but, as a whole, it can’t compete with the longer stories.


7. How often do you read Urban Underbrush?

First Place: “I check every update” (75%)
Second Place: “I check every few weeks” (25%)

My sponsors should be glad to hear this.

8. Least Favorite Character

First Place: “ I can’t answer this” (40%)
Second Place: Caius / Blair (20% each)
Third Place: Clive (10%)
Fourth Place: Cassidy / Scatter (5% each)

I’m genuinely surprised to learn that people don’t like jerks. That’s not sarcasm. I honestly thought people loved selfish, cynical, mean characters in cartoons.

I’m not planning on making any changes based on these results. The least favorite characters only “won” by a small margin. Not enough of a negative reaction to cut them or change them. Besides, we’d have a pretty boring story with no antagonists.

Oddly, Clayton and Slasher are the only characters who received no votes for “Favorite” or “Least Favorite.” Cassidy and Scatter are the only characters who received votes for both “Favorite” and “Least Favorite.”

So there you have it.  That’s what people think of Urban Underbrush (as much as we can trust an internet survey.) My thanks to everyone who took the time to share their opinions. Maybe next time, I’ll give you a free wallpaper or something.

-Marj