'Achewood:' not the average online comic
Scott Raynor
Issue date: 11/12/08 Section: The Edge
Raymond Quinten Smuckles, the classy, overly optimistic lady-killer cat from creator Chris Onstad's successful online comic, is clad in an athletic track jacket and a man thong with that ever-present medallion hanging from his neck.
He picks up a phone and furiously dials Garfield. His best friend Cassandra "Roast Beef" Kazenzakis eggs him on, "Alright Ray, no mercy."
"Garfield, you gotta wrap it up, man. Lasagna, Mondays, people have it all figured out. You are kind of like an idiot who keeps pressing the same button."
"Uhhh thanks, but we're not exactly looking for your INput!"
"Say it! You don't even try anymore!"
"Ugh. What-ever. YAAAWN."
"Hey Garfield!"
"What?"
"Up yours, Garfield."
"Achewood" is the name of Onstad's online comic and the fictional southern California town where it takes place. "Achewood" is now celebrating its seventh anniversary and its first published graphic novel, and the Web site (www.achewood.com) is now approaching its 2,500th comic.
"Achewood" is nothing like other online comics, which is fitting based on what creator Onstad had to say about comic strips in an interview with The Black Table: "Comic strips suck, they suck so hard. They suck in the worst, most shameful way. Comic strips are such incredible formulaic garbage."
This is reflective of his work, as Onstad's highly dysfunctional group of Californian animated stuffed animals forgo comparisons with any other comic, and lend to a completely original and brilliant sense of humor absent in the medium.
Unlike most comics, Achewood's subject material is often highly adult, but unlike other adult comics, it isn't adult for the sake of shock value - it is more reflective of the broader themes and subtle humor.
In one strip, friends Roast Beef and Ray have an instant message chat where they discuss sexual "old high school terms" and Roast Beef has since written a few of his own.
"Achewood's" humor does not rely on a concrete punch line, and instead presents the everyday interactions of its deep and hilarious characters and the subtle reactions they have to their respective oddities.
He picks up a phone and furiously dials Garfield. His best friend Cassandra "Roast Beef" Kazenzakis eggs him on, "Alright Ray, no mercy."
"Garfield, you gotta wrap it up, man. Lasagna, Mondays, people have it all figured out. You are kind of like an idiot who keeps pressing the same button."
"Uhhh thanks, but we're not exactly looking for your INput!"
"Say it! You don't even try anymore!"
"Ugh. What-ever. YAAAWN."
"Hey Garfield!"
"What?"
"Up yours, Garfield."
"Achewood" is the name of Onstad's online comic and the fictional southern California town where it takes place. "Achewood" is now celebrating its seventh anniversary and its first published graphic novel, and the Web site (www.achewood.com) is now approaching its 2,500th comic.
"Achewood" is nothing like other online comics, which is fitting based on what creator Onstad had to say about comic strips in an interview with The Black Table: "Comic strips suck, they suck so hard. They suck in the worst, most shameful way. Comic strips are such incredible formulaic garbage."
This is reflective of his work, as Onstad's highly dysfunctional group of Californian animated stuffed animals forgo comparisons with any other comic, and lend to a completely original and brilliant sense of humor absent in the medium.
Unlike most comics, Achewood's subject material is often highly adult, but unlike other adult comics, it isn't adult for the sake of shock value - it is more reflective of the broader themes and subtle humor.
In one strip, friends Roast Beef and Ray have an instant message chat where they discuss sexual "old high school terms" and Roast Beef has since written a few of his own.
"Achewood's" humor does not rely on a concrete punch line, and instead presents the everyday interactions of its deep and hilarious characters and the subtle reactions they have to their respective oddities.
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