097

Sorry, I'm not translating this one. Not worth it. But you can click the pic to see it in a readable size, as usual.

This one was also a sample for the Comics School. I decided to do a really text-heavy strip for some reason; I probably overdid it. Part of it was the ambition to do something very different from the Mystery Man pages. Part of it might have been that I'd just read about a year's worth of Martin Kellerman's Rocky strips, which are often pretty text-intensive.

096

(click the image to see it in a readable size)

Translation:

"Where am I?"

"This is your stop, sonny. If you're getting off, get off."

"What?"

"I stumble into town"

"You told me to make sure you get off at this stop."

"Oh. Okay."

"like a drunken clown"

"Sorry, but we're behind schedule as it is."

"(Why am I here?)"

Here's the second page of Mystery Man. I had the script done for another four pages, but with the artist's block I mentioned yesterday, I only managed to get these two done in time to send off as samples to the Comics School. I'd like to think I would've gotten in if I'd just had a few more pages in my portfolio. Three story pages was probably just not enough (Yes, there's another page coming tomorrow, but not part of Mystery Man).

Admittedly, there are some iffy parts here... The faces are kind of inconsistent, and I probably should've inked this with a brush instead of a pen. I can also see how people would find the captions a little mystifying. They're meant as a counterpoint to the main story, almost like the soundtrack to a movie. It was an unusual experiment, and with a few more pages to get used to it, I think it would've made more sense and been pretty cool. As it is, it just confuses things. Oh well. Better luck next year, right?

095

Earlier this year, I decided to apply for the Comics School of Malmö. This is one of the pages I sent as my "audition" samples. It had been quite a while since I had done any story pages, so for whatever reason, I had this enormous artist's block, and it took a really long time to get started.

About a week before the application deadline, I attended SPX09 - the Small Press eXpo - and got the chance to meet some of the Comics School's students, past and present. The charming and talented Frida Ulvegren made me realize just how much fun attending this school could be, and the very gifted Niklas Asker (debuting his graphic novel Second Thoughts) gave me a glimpse into what kind of future the school could lead to. Spurred on by this, I ended up drawing most of my samples in the week between SPX and the deadline.

094

Translation:
EVERYDAY CRUELTY #211
"No one will ever love you more than I love you right now..."
"(Shit! That's probably right! It's all downhill from here.)"

Like I said, unintentional cruelty = comedy gold.

093

Translation:

EVERYDAY CRUELTY #237

"What an awesome sunset! Damn shame you can't see it."

"(Asshole.)"

As I said before, these were random throwaway sketches drawn at work, done directly in ink with no pencils beforehand. Having said that, I'm pretty pleased with it. The body language (relaxed vs tense), the details (the cane and the dog explains the context without spelling it out) and the composition (the open space on the right side which seems to imply a sunset). I like it a lot. This all came together very nicely, I thought.

Also, I guess this is where I realized: unintentional cruelty = comedy.

092

Translation:
EVERYDAY CRUELTY #117
"Hey! Who took the last cereal and put the box back in the cupboard?"

Once again, categorizing the mean, petty things people do to each other is good for a laugh. But wow, that perspective is pretty weak... In my defense, this was done straight to inks, no pencil underdrawing, not even a preparatory sketch. But who cares, it was just a funny little gag to put up at the bulletin board at work. Until now.

091

Translation:

EVERYDAY CRUELTY #543

"I'm fat, you're stupid - I can diet! Ha ha!"

"He's right!"

Drawing while at work, just to pass the time... The tagline "Everyday Cruelty #543" is what made this a keeper. The notion that every possible act of cruelty had been (presumably scientifically) catalogued and assigned a numerical value cracked me up. There are more of these to come...