WHEEEEEEE!!!

(From Todd and Penguin. Click on image to see full-sized image.)

*ahem* Er, sorry about that...

SHE WANTS TO MARRY HIM! SHE WANT TO MARRY HIM NOW!!!

Excuse me while I do my happy dance here...

In case you're new to this comic... partway through this rather delightful comic, David Wright went and developed a storyline on us. The comic went from gags to a delightful story that slowly grew and evolved. We met Holly, a girl whom Todd really liked from before, a girl who was successful and pretty and smart and liked Todd, and who was not unnerved by his being Penguin's guardian. (Really, I can't say he owns Penguin... their relationship is close to father and son, or maybe older and younger brother, than pet owner and master - er, I mean pet.)

And then Todd decided to ask Holly to marry him. But before he could ask, she told him that she was planning on moving to London for a job opportunity. He held his tongue... and but for the innocent slip of Penguin, she very well could have left without knowing just how much Todd loved her. She was upset, and reasonably so. It was too late to change her plans, her life, just because Todd had finally asked her. But after some time, she realized that she did love Todd that much, and that she did want to marry him. So she moved back home and said "yes."

This is what finally got me to read, by the way. I'd read about this comic in several Websnarks, and just resisted reading it. I didn't want another strip. Hey, I'm stubborn. It took me five years to be reading over 40 comics (not including those that have ended). But this one moment... of a dream coming true, of happiness realized... this is what brought me to Todd and Penguin.

But things were not all rosy. The building that Todd lived in was being sold, and Todd and Penguin had to move. Nor did Holly want to live with Todd before marriage... and she was upset when he initially implied getting married earlier. But... Holly's been thinking. (A dangerous pastime, you know!)

If you only wait to do something when you can afford it... then you'll never do anything. I mean... what couple ever can afford to have a child? What couple can truly afford to have a house? We always do these things and make due with what we can. And while maybe we can't have everything we want... we can at least still have our dream.

So Holly wants to get married. Right away. Because what she wants... what she needs... is Todd. Not a big wedding, but the man behind the wedding. And from there, they can build their dreams.

This is a huge step for Todd and Penguin. I mean... Holly has, until now, been more of an incidental character. We occasionally see her, she's big in the background... but once they're married, once they live together, Holly will be there everyday. Penguin will have to get used to her and Todd being together constantly, and her decisions will affect how they live their lives, what food they eat, how the household is run.

The story itself will change. It'll no longer be about Todd and Penguin. It'll be about Penguin's family, which includes Todd, Mr. Bear, Oscar, Dark Tan Item Code, and now Holly.

Change is always scary... but this is a path we embarked upon when Todd first asked Holly to marry him... and when Holly came home and said "I want this to be my dream as well." I look forward to seeing where it goes.

Robert A. Howard
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Elf Life Needs Women! Er, I mean money!

I thought I'd link this request that Carsonfire has posted. It seems his computer is dying and he needs some funds to help either repair the existing one or maybe acquire a new system.

I figure that helping a web cartoonist in need is always a good cause, especially one as talented and with a unique story as Carson has. I'll be checking my own finances and seeing if I can send $5 his way. Hey, even $1 is more than what he had before. Every little bit helps.

In the meanwhile, here's hoping that Carsonfire is able to get his computer up and running again soon, so that we can continue with a most interesting and enjoyable storyline.

Take care!

Robert A. Howard
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And while we're at it...

I also recently received word from Glych, of No Stereotypes, that she is searching for archives of the original No Stereotypes that ran on Keenspace, especially the flash finale of her crossover with Framed! If anyone can help, please let me know on the tagboard below, e-mail me at Looniewolf [at] Hotmail [dot] com, or contact Glych herself if you know how.

Take care!

Robert A. Howard
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You Spin Me Round

Recently I mentioned a URL found by Joey Manley and mentioned on the Websnark site, in connection with a recent exodus of Keenspot cartoonists from that collective. Well, it appears that it was not a joke. Blank Label Comics is in fact a reality. And it appears that old-time Keenspot critic (okay, let's be honest here, this boy so hates Keenspot that he starts foaming at the mouth almost every time he starts talking about Keenspot), Scott Kurtz, is behind the creation of this new collective.

Scott plays down his connection to Blank Label Comics, claiming to be just an advisor and instigator. I wonder, however, just how much influence he has over this new collective, and if he is continuing to work his bile against a company that has, more often than not, been polite and respectful toward him. (I do not count Bobby Crosby as part of Keenspot as he does not have any decision-making powers in the company. Nor is his comic a part of Keenspot. The hate fest between Bobby Crosby and Scott Kurtz should have no bearing in relations between Kurtz and Keenspot. (In fact, most of the conversations I've seen written from Chris Crosby and Darrel Bleuel toward (or in response to) Scott Kurtz have been polite and respectful.))

I do find it distasteful that Scott called Joey Manley, owner of Modern Tales comics, an ass because he found the URLs for Blank Label comics with information linking Wapsi Square, Melonpool, and other comics to this site. It is not Joey's fault that Blank Label hadn't adequately coded their website to keep anyone from viewing the site, nor is it his fault for mentioning this newsworthy item on Websnark. Sure, it stole Kurtz's thunder in revealing his little coup d'etat against Keenspot, but that is no reason to be offensive against Joey Manley.

I find this line, by Kurtz, to be amusing and ironic as he tries to cover his bases:

A lot of people are going to try to put a spin on this story: Keen management will publicly say that they are happy for the guys at BLC but they know they'll be back. Keen loyalists will say this is my further attempt to destroy Keenspot and anti-Keen people will claim this is the first nail in the coffin for Crosby and crew. Don't buy into the spin.

How can we distinguish it from our garden variety of evil, though?

(From College Roomies from Hell. Click on image to see full-sized image.)

Mike has been the evil manipulative jerk for years now in CRfH. Outside of the first few months of the comic, the general theme among the guys is that Mike was the jerk, Dave was the nice one, and Roger was the weirdo.

So the last couple of comics have had fans scratching their heads. Mike actually started NOES, Nobody's Organization for the Eradication of Satan (because Dave opposed naming it Mike's Organization for the Systematic Eradication of Satan... well, not quite that, but still...), pooling the knowledge they all had concerning Satan, what he was planning, and their own victories against ol' hornhead. And after the meeting is over... he meets the guys at the door with Satan's staff, the same staff he wrestled away from the Devil when he first directly encountered the Devil.

Dave has good reason to fear the staff. It's tried to kill him before on Mike's command. This time it's used for more... comedic purposes, stuffing Dave under the bed with moldy socks (though I'm sure Dave wishes he were dead after that). But you have to wonder... is Mike's actions just random cruelty, or a harbinger of something greater? Is it even Mike, or someone... something else masquerading as him?

Roger suspects, of course, that Mike is trying to get him to transform into a were coyote again. (What? You don't know about Roger's family curse? And it is a curse...) It's interesting to watch Roger's evolution as a character... not only of his personality, but of his ability. Early on Dave went from being able to zap things with his laser vision to being able to make popcorn and the like. He was able to push things with this gift. He learned how to manipulate it, and even that exhaustion makes it useless. Mike also learned that his tentacle could do more than just crush things or stick to glass... it could also change colors, and even communicate with octopuses.

With Roger... well, what can you do with an eye? Well, he saw into the "real world" with it during the Mad Science crossover with Fans. But outside of that, there wasn't much for him to do. His being a were coyote went from a joke to an ability... and then a curse, and a dangerous one at that. But now... he's learning control. He can partially transform.

Often, College Roomies seemed to be stuck with Margaret and Dave's stories. They are, in many ways, the most provocative. Margaret's fight against the Devil is so overreaching and important that naturally it flavors the rest of the comic. Dave's quest to help her was also very touching... and it was fascinating to watch as Margaret finally won. She finally pushed Dave away, using her rival for Dave's affections to do so. Sometimes it feels like characters like Roger, Marsha, and April were being ignored.

Recent developments have helped make CRfH into the ensemble cast that it is, with the characters all being important. As such, they are all growing, whether it is Marsha's reining in of her jealousy and anger, April becoming a selfish self-centered girl, or Roger losing a bit of his innocence and learning just who and what he truly is.

Maritza, you've done extremely well. You deserve this nromlicious homemade oatmeal cookie. *smile*

Robert A. Howard
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