“Why did you draw yourself like Gollum?”
That was the first question Cami asked me when I showed her the artwork for today’s strip. I noticed it myself after I inked it and I think it works! Old Tom should look like of goblin-like, don’t you think?
I’m really happy with the way this comic turned out. Pretty much once I decided that future-Tom should live in an environment reminiscent of The Jetsons, things started falling into place. Sometimes I think of a point I want to make first and then wrap a joke around it. This is me just being silly. It feels good.
Of course you know I had to throw in a Futurama reference for good measure.
As for The Bucket List? I don’t know. In real-life, I’m not all that excited about it. While I’m attracted to any movie that stars Jack Nicholson or Morgan Freeman, I’m not attracted to a film whose main conceit is “Hey! These guys are gonna die soon!” I don’t need to be reminded of that. Basically, to me, The Bucket List looks like Grumpy Old Men with a mortality twist and I don’t trust director Rob Riener to be capable enough of reigning in the schmaltz.
That’s it for now. I know I talked about getting you my Best of 2007 list today and I still want to make that a reality. I just have to delay it for the time being. I’m going to try and get it done over my lunch hour, though. So come back this afternoon!
See you then!
Writing the comic, I became kind of paranoid and thought to myself “I hope people don’t think I’m making fun of cancer.” I’m not. I’m making fun of the “cancer movie” as a trope.
Cancer sucks. That much is clear. I’ve lost people I’ve loved to cancer. It’s not fun. But I kind of roll my eyes at the way Hollywood treats cancer. As if having cancer gives you some kind of wisdom or clarity that will help you resolve your personal shortcomings and interpersonal relationships.
I haven’t seen 50/50 yet, but based off the reviews I’ve read, it seems to do a good job of deflating everything that is serious and self-important about the cancer trope in mainstream entertainment. Frankly, I think that’s a good thing.
Yeah, cancer is scary and should be considered seriously. But it also doesn’t make you a mystical wizard with extra-sensory perception about the fragile nature of our being. It’s more than one thing, you know?
Lemme get off my soapbox and talk about something else for a second. If you follow the Theater Hopper Facebook page, you already know what it is. (So maybe now you’ll click that “Like” button?) But for the rest of you, here it is:
I AM NOW SELLING PRINTS OF ALL MY COMICS!
Here’s how it works…
- Comb the archive for your absolute FAVORITE Theater Hopper comic or comics. Use the search box if you’re having trouble finding it.
- Look at the navigation just below the comic, you’ll see a little dollar sign that says "Buy Print" below it.
- Click on the link and it will take you to a page with the comic in question on it and a PayPal link that you can use to send me money in exchange for goods and/or services.
- Incidentally, you don’t need a PayPal account to purchase a print. You can use a credit card as well.
- I will send you a copy of the comic printed on a sheet of 8.5 x 11" high quality card stock in full-color from the original digital file. It’s gonna look SHARP. And – because I love you – I’m gonna sign it as well.
- I’m going to mail it flat in a reinforced envelope and stamp it "DO NOT BEND" so the Post Office doesn’t muck up your investment.
- When it arrives, you are then free to frame it and admire it longingly.
This is something that I’ve wanted to do for a while and thanks to the magic of Comicpress, is now possible. Big thanks to Philip Hofer for making it possible.
Since this is a new feature, it’s going to take some work to get the kinks out. I think I still have to figure out shipping on this bad boy as well, so bear with me.
But, yeah… I have almost 10 years of comics in the archive and I know you guys have some favorites. I knew it was time to open up the flood gates and make them available to you. So have at them! Order away – and thank you for your support.
Have a great week, everyone!