SuperFogeys 22, 23 and 24 - SuperFogeys: The Sitcom
Commentary for SuperFogeys, Episode 22
“Wait a minute…aren’t episodes 21 and 22 the same strip?”
I don’t blame you for thinking that. They do look a lot alike. Okay, they’re almost the same. More on that in the commentary for episode 23.
As for the story here, this strip was important to me because I had a very real fear at the time that it was going to be perceived that I had a hatred towards women. Dumb, right? I mean, Dr. Rocket is a character, he doesn’t speak for me, but just in case anyone had any questions about it, Spy Gal gives you the lowdown on what love and respect is. Over two strips. With essentially the same art.
The last panel was entirely inspired by the Michael Scott character from the US version of The Office.
Commentary for SuperFogeys, Episode 23
This was a pivotal episode in the development of the SuperFogeys in a number of ways, but before we get to that I just want to say that, for me anyway, 22 and 23 are at least funny enough to give me a smile months after I originally did them.
Too bad the art doesn’t support them properly.
At the time, I thought I was being a genius. Look at how much time I saved! Two strips in a row where I didn’t have to draw a thing, all I had to do was take pieces from previous strips and put them together and BAM, instant strip! What a time saver! I could do 3 or 4 a week this way!
Except that…the joy of doing the strip went right out of it. But isn’t that what webcomics do? The truth was: yeah, they do. The bad ones. It was easy to see why I was suddenly getting criticism when previously people were nothing but enthusiastic–I had stopped a vital part of the creation of the strip.
I was defensive at first. I wanted to do things my way and if it helped get the jokes and the story out, wasn’t that the most important thing? Except…as I went back through and read the strips, I found myself barely able to look at the ones I had so obviously made from spare parts. They weren’t fun to read, no matter how good a job I thought I might have done on the dialogue.
Oops.
From Episode 23 onward, things began to change.
Commentary for SuperFogeys, Episode 24
I do believe this strip marks the first close-up I’d ever done in the Superfogeys. After 23, I began looking for ways to change the camera around and push the framing into the storytelling more. It was just one panel, but it was a start. It would take a few more strips before I really figured out how to shake the strip up.
This episode marks the end of the Three’s Company shenanigans in Chapter 1. Just in time, too. I don’t think I’d want to push it much further than I did in that last panel. Seriously, people…don’t cross Spy Gal.