HOMEMADE COMICS

Between the ages of 10 and 15, I created hundreds of homemade comic strips and comic books, most of which took place within a shared "universe" and stole heavily from already-existing licensed characters. I am posting them in relative chronological order for all the internet to see. Let the shaming begin.

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 15

So, to fill in one of the 16 pages in this comic, I reproduced three strips from the newspaper-style comic I started making around that time called "The Buckwheats." It was (as you can tell, I hope) a gag strip based on the real-life misadventures of me (in the black hat) and my then-best friend Bryan. Why was it called "The Buckwheats?" It's a long story, but basically we were really into the Eddie Murphy Buckwheat sketches from Saturday Night Live.

Although rudimentary, I actually think the strips were kind of funny, and this is more where my head was at regarding comics at the time. I'll share more of my aborted ideas for newspaper comic strips in the near future. Until then, we have one more page to share from this issue...next time.

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 14

I was really into color symbolism at the time, and gray was (is) one of my favorite "colors," so this all tracks.

Despite what the last caption says, this never was continued, not really. I think I started drawing a second issue, but as I've mentioned before (probably months/years ago), this was one of the last homemade comics I produced as a teenager. By 16, I was driving, working, dating, and soon would begin performing both poetry and music. Comics stopped being a hobby both as a reader and a creator.

But before we fall off that cliff, there's more to come in this issue ... And more homemade comics to unearth.

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 13

Aww, Agent Moore is getting a cuddly bear hug from the big evil Nemesis force.

This actually was a kinda interesting concept I don't think I really explored more in this comic, that maybe the Nemesis absorbs "evil" people to grow stronger. But when I drew it, I think the total thought I put into it was "this looks cool."

Next up (tomorrow?), this story concludes, but the issue does not! Stay tuned.

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 12

So, with everyone* seemingly flocking onto/back to other social media platforms in the wake of the great Muskpocalypse on Twitter, I’ve been KIND OF diving back into Tumblr. And, of course, realized I left off mid-comic / mid-story here on Homemade Comics, like a few years ago? So, we’re just gonna pick right back up in the middle of the first (and only) issue of Images (not to be confused with the series I made under the “Delta Comics” label previously), in which I reintroduced Jake Peters, the “Electric Man” -- and also apparently only half-finished coloring. Scroll back to previous posts to get caught up! Next page will be posted tomorrow.

*Well, so they say. They’re all still posting on Twitter like every day.

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Why did this make you happy? Why did you continue to draw these comics for so long?

I mean, what kid wouldn't be happy drawing comics all day? I only stopped because I turned that age where girls and music became much more interesting (and comic books weren't cool back in the early '90s). If I would have kept going, I'd probably have ended up doing it professionally. Maybe.

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 11

As a reminder, the “none” in question is “evil” energy, of which our boy Jake claims to have none, but of COURSE the guys in suits have in spades.

(Also: Did I really color 75% of the page and then just give up on the easy panel?)

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 10

OK, I kinda really dig that bottom panel. And who knew I owned a ruler?

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Can I buy physical issues of your comics? Even if they are just photocopies?

I have no idea if this was a recent question or an old question I never saw, but the answer is: Sure, if someone told me which ones they wanted, I could probably be convinced to produce new copies of these here Homemade Comics.

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 9

I mean, honestly, it sounds like hokey to me, too.

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Images #1, August 1992: Page 8

R.I.P. the Rippers. Get it? Rip the rippers? No?

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Images #1, August 1992: Page 7

Come on, for a 16-year-old kid, that design with the evil creature morphing between panels is pretty innovative, right?

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Images #1, August 1992: Page 6

“My first thought was to destroy the drugs” WHAT A NARC.

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Images #1, August 1992: Page 5

Ok, I have some questions for 16-year-old me:

1. “The Rippers?” Really? You couldn’t come up with a better gang name than that?

2. Did you not know that “bobbies” is English slang for “police?” Because why else would you name a rival gang the “South Side Bobbies” unless you were being ironic?

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 4

This page co-scripted by Clint Eastwood.

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Images #1, August 1992: Page 3

“The strange circumstances surrounding his birth” ... which never gets explained, at least not in this comic.

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 2

Oh boy, we’re just in time for the PowerPoint presentation!

[homemadecomics]

Images #1, August 1992: Page 1

It’s interesting (to me, at least) that some of the hallmarks of sequential storytelling I’d eventually use in my quasi-professional career were already in place at this age: overuse of silhouettes, extreme close-ups, terrible drawings of cars. But this is actually a pretty well-designed page, and though the artwork isn’t GREAT, it reflects the dual influences of Jim Lee and John Romita Jr., both of whom I was super into at the time.

Don’t get too excited about the coloring, though. Those colored pencils were added AFTER the comic was printed (I think I had one of my parents photocopy my original art so I could make one complete copy), and I only started but never finished, so throughout this comic, we’ll see some panels that are colored, others that aren’t. See previous post about competing distractions.