LOE 010 LIQUIFIED!!!

The color version of this strip is pretty straight forward, with the exception of the last panel. In the last panel I used Photoshop's "liquify" feature to give the effect of water outside the window. Plus I would imagine Allen is looking thru some pretty thick glass, so I seemed like that was the thing to do. I'm fairly happy with the effect. It looks pretty cool.

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LOST ON EARTH 010

This was the first comic I did during the first 'funk' I hit in the writing of LOST ON EARTH. Nine comics in, I was very satisfied with the direction (and ideas) that I had put into the strips, and written onto paper. However...for every idea that I had, I really didn't have a clear direction on how to get there. I think I mentioned this in a previous blog post. I knew where I was starting, and I knew my destination, I just didn't have a clear path on how to connect those two points.

So...this ultimately became the first 'filler' comic. It doesn't progress the story at all, and relies solely on comic relief and a visual punchline. I've taken the exit off of 'story highway' and have opted to explore a back road. I think this comic and the next five or so are really 'filler' stories as I slowly get the characters back into getting off of this ship and hoarding the Earth's supply of Twinkies.

And...if you're a fan of LOE, you may notice that this strip offers a HUGE contradiction. In an earlier comic there was mention that they couldn't open the doors to the ship without flooding the ship, thus drowning. So...how in the world did Fishtarr get out into the water to eat the little fishies if he couldn't open the door. Well...it's never clearly addressed as a story point in the upcoming few comics, but eventually...comic 17 or 18...you'll have your answer. I'll try to remember to bring that back up when we get that far!

I'll have the color version of this one up on the blog by the end of the weekend. Happy Friday!!!
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LOST ON EARTH LOGO/POSTER

The all new, super-cool, totally rad (what...people don't say totally rad anymore? Huh??? Who knew?) mega-spectacular LOST ON EARTH LOGO. I'd like for it to be a poster as well, but it's not really in poster-format. Wouldn't be too hard to lengthen it a bit though. Hmmm....

Have a great beginning of summer!
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Hilarity in Color!

There's been quite the debate on the IDD Facebook page (link to the right) of what exactly Fishtarr is saying. I even had a few fans decipher it by using the clues in the comic and other comics that Fishtarr has spoken in. And...to their surprise...he doesn't really say anything funny. And that's the humor in Fishtarr's character! The joke is that you CAN'T understand him.

Again...I may just be humoring myself in this comic. I certainly think it's funny. As I begin to draw and write Allen and Fishtarr's adventures 'top side' it's getting more and more challenging for them to have a conversation and at the same time retain a level of understanding for you...the reader. But, it's a welcome challenge.

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LOE 009

I'm going to start by saying I think this is one of the most hilarious comics I've ever written. I love...LOVE...the fact that Fishtarr says nearly all the dialog and that you can't understand a bit of it. Allen's "Oooh" at the end is perfect! And...I've included a little hint to Fishtarr's language in the Galaxapedia.dot entry at the beginning of the strip.

I think that deep down this comic comes from my love of Star Wars. Han's Wookiee sidekick, Chewbacca speaks in all manners of grunts and groans, yet Han knows each and every word that he's saying, and ultimately becomes our translator. In Lost on Earth, Dr. Swkidd and Allen have also become translators for Fishtarr, but we've only seen Fishtarr speak in one word, or few word sentences. For the first time, Fishtarr's been cut loose!

Now...IF you've been paying attention, there's a really good chance that you could decipher this comic. MOST of the alphabet is there in the Galaxapedia.dot entry. There have been plenty of clues in past comics. So...give it a shot. Take a look at the past comics, take a good luck at the first panel, and try to figure out what Fishtarr is saying.

Color version...and translation coming later this week!
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008 in COLOR!

WHOO-HOO!!! Color!!!
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LOE 008

This might be the last LOE that contains the "Galaxapedia.dot" information file at the beginning of the strip. As I continue to write, I am finding that the "Galaxapedia" stuff, while creative and relevant to the strip, is becoming more and more forced. I think it has served its purpose in explaining certain elements to the characters, but it's a section of the comic that you'll begin seeing less and less of as time goes by. I'll certainly use it on occasion when I feel that I can use it properly. But for now...it's going to slowly disappear.

"008" continues Dr.Skwidd's story of no longer being able to problem solve. That's really the reason the "Galaxapedia.dot" fact file is there. So that you...the reader...know that Dr. Skwidd comes from on the most highly intelligent species in the galaxy. But that's not exactly what you're seeing in the strip, is it? Something is amiss inside that superior intellect of Doc Skwidd. And he mightjusve have enough brain power to probably figure it out, but what's he going to do then? ...snicker... You'll just have to wait to find out!

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007 in COLOR!

The LOST ON EARTH strips certainly add a challenge when adding color. As I continue to draw more and more little details into the strip, it becomes more and more tedious to actually color them in Photoshop. Not that I mind...I'm just saying.

This particular strip took roughly an hour, and 35-40 minutes of it was the first two panels. And there are a few sections where I think I probably could have added even MORE detail, but opted not to. Those extra little details would have been miniscule as you look at the entire strip, and would have to be magnified multiple times to really see. So...I opted to keep it simple.

Sorry for the length of time between updates. It's been a crazy few weeks, and they don't seem to be getting any less hectic. With the end of the school year rapidly approaching and all the stuff we got going around the house, all the cartooning stuff quickly gets relegated to the back burner. I'll get to "008" around mid-week after giving this strip a few days to settle in.

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LOE 007

LOST ON EARTH 007 is the first strip in which we see that something may not be entirely right with Dr. Skwidd. Thus far I've written him as the level headed leader of the group. And...I know there's only been six comics up until now, but I think that even in that short amount of time, it's been established that Doc Skwidd has been the brains of the group.

Here we see that he has an idea, a great idea in terms of hiding themselves from Earth society, but the idea ultimately has a flaw. They've hidden themselves on the bottom of the lake, but now can't open the doors without flooding the ship. The brains of the group, who is highly intelligent, has suddenly made a mistake. It's something that I'll be playing with, and you'll see Dr. Skwidd's antics get goofier and goofier, and you'll get the explanation as to why this is happening. It wasn't something I originally planned...but as I began to write and write and rewrite, it's something that just started to take shape, and I love it!

Finally...I will admit that sometimes I write without thinking about little details. I know the grand scheme of my story. I know where "Point A" and "Point C" are...but sometimes I get to "Point B" and I've written myself into a corner that I have to get out of. This comic was "Point B". I knew I wanted the characters to land on Earth. I knew that I wanted them to go after Earth's Twinkies. Without giving too much away, I know the overall story of what happens when they leave their ship. But, how are they supposed to leave their ship if they'll flood the ship by opening the doors. See the problem? I wrote myself into this corner. Don't worry...I figured out how to get out of it, it's just something I wanted to share in regards to the writing process and in particular this comic.

ENJOY!!! I'll post LOE 008 this weekend, and then maybe a few more pages of "Graduation Day" next week as well. Hmmmm....maybe I'll even get around to doing some coloring in Photoshop. Probably not this week...but you never know. :)

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"IDD: Graduation Day" PAGE 01...FINALLY!

Okay...so I've been promising you a sneak peek at the second I DIG DUG graphic novel that I'm tentatively titling "Graduation Day" for weeks now, right. Well...here it is. FINALLY! This first page is based off of an OLD IDD comic where Dug is working on his paper and the cat unplugs the computer. I kind of expanded the three panel comic into a full first page, and changed the cat (good 'ol Brucie) to a dog (good 'ol Kramer). And you may be saying to yourself..."Self, Waitaminute! If the dog unplugs the laptop, the screen wouldn't go 'blink'. The battery would keep the computer on, so this is just ludicrous!" Well...if you did find yourself saying that, then I'd like to introduce you to a MAC book we have in the house that DOES go 'blink' if it gets unplugged.

So there it is. Page one in all of it's eternal glory. Page two is actually done now as well, and page three is half inked. Between this, keeping up with new LOST ON EARTH strips AND the new cartooning adventure I just 'signed on' for (more info coming) I should be pretty busy for the remainder of the year. I have to tell myself...don't start anything new!

Happy April Fool's Day!!! Probably should have posted an April Fool's comic, huh? Oh well...that can by my April Fool's joke...no April Fool's comic. HAHAHAHA!!!

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