Job done for another week. Jesus christ am I ever glad I replaced my old computer. No more waiting around for seven hours in Paint Shop while the processor leisurely eases itself off its bar stool and slowly crunches a few numbers here and there in between schooners of absinthe. It’s all lightning-quick and molasses-free now. Or something. Look, I feel obliged to type something here, so there you have it: another snapshot of an International Man of Action, coloring his weirdo comics with a little magic box. Until next time…
–Rowntree
June 29, 2008 at 6:57 pm
first?
love your stuff, but i didn’t quite get this one except that the file name of the strip could be ade’s answer to his girlfriend in the last panel
June 29, 2008 at 9:16 pm
Brilliant again. I’d say more, but Cubby’s been prowling outside my window and I’m trying to keep a low profile.
That Torres is some kind of player. It’s only a matter of time before one of the big clubs picks him up…
June 29, 2008 at 10:14 pm
Mr. Rowntree, you are on a roll. Both this week’s comic and last week’s left me laughing out loud for several minutes. “Running Time: Approx. 3 sec.”, a little while ago, was also outstanding.
I’m not sure why the last week’s was so funny except for the sheer absurdity of it- I think the message of ‘children’s wishes usually go unfulfilled’ was secondary to the idea a novelty rap metal band called the Generals, and a kid who wanted to be in it when her grew up.
This week’s, though, is brilliant. For me the punchline is entirely contained in the sixth panel, and the last two panel’s aren’t even really necessary. To anyone familiar with Walter Mitty, the idea of a man trapped in a boring life and a loveless relationship who copes by escaping into absurd fantasies and *realizes it* and _is_able_to_turn_that_very_state_of_being_
_trapped_*into*_one_of_his_fantasies_ …. that’s f-ing epic, man. That’s the metahumor equivalent of Neo realizing he’s The One and taking over Agent Smith’s body. To be so pathetic, so desperate, that that pathos and desperation become legitimate meaning for carrying on… there are no words. I can’t describe how twisted this comic is. It’s twistyness overflows the third dimension and spills out into hyperspace. I don’t even know what it means.
Does Dorothy Gambrell read your comic? I’m going to e-mail her. She has got to see this.
June 29, 2008 at 10:43 pm
Holy shit, I want a Urban Monster shirt like Ade’s. Great work on the comic, Rowntree.
June 29, 2008 at 10:49 pm
This is pretty damned awesome. More of this please!
June 30, 2008 at 1:43 am
That comment totally gets a high-five, assuming that you know he plays for Liverpool. (subtext: Liverpool suck).
Robin Moshe: Yeah, the last two panels aren’t really necessary, but I kind of got carried away, as usual. Besides…karate!
June 30, 2008 at 5:17 am
I, also, want a Sphinx shirt.
June 30, 2008 at 6:19 am
+1 Sphinx shirt
June 30, 2008 at 6:38 am
Very cool strip this week….and the Sphynx shirt is a nice touch. (By the way, I think the Sphynx logo pic with the SUBNORMALITY block title below it would make a great shirt. I’d certainly buy one.)
But I sure hope your actual life is nothing — nothing whatsoever — like any of your comics. Your characters tend to have it rough.
June 30, 2008 at 12:09 pm
Brilliant! Also, a bit sad. But who never did this?
Loving the “comix with too many words” by the way xD
June 30, 2008 at 2:31 pm
awesomesauce.
100% rub-on-da-funk awesomesauce.
June 30, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Although this one is clearly satirical, i thought it was quite sad. And it also (surprinsingly) contained a bit of truth.
June 30, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Same, too much truth. Too many relationships for the sake of being “not single”.
July 1, 2008 at 3:02 am
Yeah, I definitely meant it to be at least a little sad. Two solitudes and all. Balls, chains, limited opportunities for karate.
July 2, 2008 at 1:01 am
Very well done, as always. I vaguely recall doing something like that as a kid when I used to have to wait in the car as my dad ran various boring errands; going to the bank, etc.
My only problem with this one was that I kept reading Cubby as “Chubby.” But that’s probably my own weird hang-up…
July 3, 2008 at 5:35 pm
Fantastic. This one hit home, or at least, a home i had once. Easily my favorite.
July 4, 2008 at 4:26 pm
Love the comics, this weeks was really super! Bill’s ok, but that Suzanne should be left in a ditch.
BTW I am Sphinx smit…
July 4, 2008 at 6:21 pm
I got a new project rolling. first page is up.
http://dancinksamurai.blogspot.com
July 6, 2008 at 9:49 pm
I heartily recommend his new project…
July 11, 2008 at 6:39 am
This one was funny, thanks for the laugh!
August 1, 2008 at 9:51 am
have you ever been in Bucharest/?
August 4, 2008 at 12:13 am
This isn’t a bad comic, but I have to say something with as much respect as possible. I really don’t think the writing is good enough to go on for so long. While you share views that are often entertaining and thought provoking, a lot of it could be trimmed as it’s a lot of filler. You spend an awful lot of time setting up a one frame punchline and the ends don’t necessarily meet the means. I mean this with respect as a fellow cartoonist, you’re good, you just gotta rope it in better, no matter how good the drawing.
August 27, 2008 at 3:29 pm
Oh, sweet pang of sorrow. Reminds me of my ex-wife….same damn hello kitty shirt, same damn nattering, same damn takes-you-for-granted-but-i-cant-leave-her-or-else.
The operative word is ex, so thats a good thing. Your comic does what a GOOD comic does….it kinda depresses you but you enjoy the scenery.
Thanks a lot for the trip down memory lane
PS>KARATE!
September 6, 2008 at 11:48 am
you are very talented. I love your comics.
greetings from italy
September 15, 2008 at 7:38 pm
oh wow, your comic is amazing, intelligent, hilarious. you are extremely talented, thanks for giving us a webcomic that isnt just a bunch of poo jokes and cartoon violence. i think my favorite of the ones i’ve read was the magazines one…so pathetically true…
October 13, 2008 at 6:52 am
Wow… my mind just kind of shuts down when I’m off doing something unenviable. Not enough energy to be totally insane when I’m not working or drunk.
November 12, 2008 at 11:23 pm
I’m surprised nobody’s yet made a comparison to bill watterson, because I can definitely see the influence. he was the fuckin man, man.
November 22, 2008 at 12:29 am
Well, this comic struck home with the force of a thousand pound bomb. I was trapped in such a relationship for years and completely understand the fantasy. When it is really bad and you cant leave you do live a separate internal life.
Unless you have actually been there you will miss the final point of this comic. Even when you have moments of absolute clarity and realise the truth of the situation you are in, it is easier to slip back into the fantasy and ignore the truth than to change and leave.
December 1, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Very Thurber. A bit wordy, but wonderful!
March 10, 2009 at 6:00 am
Congrats to Lt. Alex for his recognition of this comic’s “Secret Life of Walter Mitty” inspiration.
Awesome comic, but I think knowing the source material makes it even more appreciable.
June 24, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Great stuff, don’t change a thing.
And to Mr Hamilton: with all due respect and I don’t mean this with any anger at all, don’t FUCKING TELL PEOPLE WHAT TO DO WITH THEIR VISION!!!
You condescending twat, you…
Love and Dumplings
December 6, 2009 at 7:47 am
Your comics are amazingly. Seriously, I would read them even if you couldn’t draw worth a damn, but it’s so much better because you can. Thanks for putting them up here to share.
January 10, 2010 at 12:24 am
Fantastic. Great art, sharp humor, and all around good storytelling. Not to mention the fact that I actually teared up while reading the comic about “the line” (Sophie Scholl and all). Well done. This comic is the best thing I’ve come across in a while, and I have high standards.
August 18, 2010 at 3:06 pm
This is the most awesome thing ive ever read. Keep soldiering on!
November 16, 2010 at 10:46 am
Where can I get Ade’s sweatshirt?
November 27, 2010 at 9:07 am
I can totally relate to what he was saying on the 6th panel (or are the text individual panels themselves?). I like the comic, despite being hardcore text heavy. (But it’s worth it, when we find gems in the sea of text.)
August 16, 2011 at 5:59 am
For some reason this made me think of the Blackcollar.
September 7, 2011 at 12:39 am
Thank-you.
You make everyday so much better.
September 19, 2011 at 7:05 am
You can only stretch my attention span so much. Stopped reading halfway through.
August 9, 2012 at 10:46 am
well then you missed the best part