COMIC - File #76: "Tech Support," Part 3

So Mainframe hooked up with some chick. But what kind of girl is she?


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Arbco Islands - They Built This City On Rock & Roll

Cobra's settlement in the Cayman Islands grows more powerful with each passing day! Here's what a local newspaper had to say:

THE PLANETARY BUGLE
Saturday, 23 January, 2009. Late Edition.

"Cobra Sinks its Fangs into Cayman Islands," by Clark Parker

One of the newest settlements has already become one of the most powerful. Cobra Command (Stock Symbol: FJoe) established a base on the islands in December and the influx of Cobra followers has resulted in an industrial revolution of unheard-of speed and tenacity.

Throughout the colony, known as the "Arbco Islands," Cobra's followers busy themselves with agriculture, industrialization, building a transportation system, and other "surely nefarious schemes," according to an unnamed U.S. Military General. What began as a few log cabins has escalated into a downtown core of high-rises with houses resembling those of Springfield, USA, and a pair of factories, presumed to be fuel processing plants for Cobra aircraft.

The Arbco Islands settlement is currently the 73rd largest city in the Cayman Islands, with a population estimated at around 120 devoted Cobra followers. Cobra Command's intentions are at this point unknown. International forces have yet to react.


Cobra's little town is growing, and is currently the 73rd largest city in the Cayman Islands. Will it reach #1, conquering the Cayman Islands and the hidden riches they possess? If they're going to, Cobra will need YOUR help! Visit the Arbco Islands today! Each time someone goes to http://arbco.myminicity.com, the town's population will increase and the city will develop. When the population gets high enough, more development options will be available, such as improved transportation and new factories. So if you want Cobra's new overseas base to survive, visit it and/or send the link to some friends! Maximum of one visit per person, per day. COBRAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

COMIC - File #75: "Tech Support," Part 2

Last time, Mainframe found out that doing tech support isn't all bad. But how good will it get...?


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Q & Ages 25 & Up #13: January 2010

Welcome to another Ages 25 & Up Q&A session, the FIRST of 2010! Resident quizmaster Monkeywrench recurited some of the comic's loyal readers from HissTank.com and together they will get their questions answered. I couldn't keep them waiting as I really enjoyed these questions. Here goes!

Question #1 - Monkeywrench asks:
What can we expect in 2010? Can you share some thoughts on some of your plans for the 1st quarter?

1337W422102 answers:
I don't want to say much due to potential spoilers, but I will say this: the list in the final panel of File #72 is accurate. Those are all things I'd like to do this year. We will see new characters, we will see familiar ones, and we will have crossovers. There will also be some "different" stuff, so be ready for the occasional experimental strip now and then!


Question #2 - Monkeywrench asks:
In File #71 we saw the first appearance of Helix and there was 2 of them! Will the Helix twins get a introductory story?

1337W422102 answers:
Strictly speaking, that final panel was more of a fanservice than anything. I mean, a lot of the characters haven't been introduced yet, and others show up more than once! And don't get me started on the Combat/Robot Heroes!

But to answer your question in a way that's pretty much avoiding it, we might see more of the Double Helix. Maybe. Stay tuned to find out!


Question #3 - FlyingFigg asks:
How do you keep track of your upcoming storylines? Do you have it all written down on paper or do you make it up as you go? For example: on a multi-part comic, is it all scripted before you start or do you figure it out when you get there? Also how closely does the finished product compare to your initial ideas? Does it tend to vary away drastically or is it fairly close to what you intended? I’ve done some dios in the past and even though I had everything written down I found myself making revisions right up to the completion. I’m curious as how you do it.

1337W422102 answers:
I have crap written down everywhere: notepads on my desk, notes scribbled onto my calendar, emails I sent to myself from school when I got an idea, and various .txt files on two computers.

What I do is, once I come up with an idea, I try to develop it a bit. Is it do-able? Do I have the figures to make it work? How long would it last? Would it be funny? Once I've fleshed it out a bit, I start to think of other elements: would it be a single-issue, or span a few? I'll begin thinking of dialogue. At any time during any of these processes, I'll write down/type up a few notes.

That being said, I'm also constantly changing stuff. What I come up with in my head isn't always what ends up being posted - different characters are used, dialogue changes, etc. When doing multi-part stories, not every issue is written when I start. I normally have the story divided up into parts (issues) in my head. Then I write each part as I need to. Also, sometimes due to time limits, what I've written as one issue gets split into two. That's why a lot of the comics from the Captain America story were real short.

Not everything I come up with gets used. I've been fleshing out arcs in my head for months which don't get anywhere.


Question #4 - G.I.Eddie asks:
Have you ever thought of giving the Numbers character at least a small cameo in every comic? Ya know, like how Stan Lee does in all his movies.

1337W422102 answers:
You mean like a "Greetings, True Believers!"-type greeting as seen in the '90s Marvel cartoons? I hadn't considered that. And if I did, it wouldn't be every comic. I'd probably get tired of seeing myself. Maybe if I looked like Stan Lee, I could pull that off!


Question #5 - G.I.Eddie:
Have you ever considered sponsors in your comics? Maybe subtle product placements.

1337W422102 answers:
If someone's serious about giving me money to plug their product and/or service, I'd probably be down for that (as long as it was kept within reason). A tongue-in-cheek infomercial comic could be funny, too.


Question #6 - G.I.Eddie asks:
Have you seen the trailer for the new The A-Team? If so, what are your thoughts on them producing a movie that stays very true to the source material?

1337W422102 answers:
Holy crap, I didn't know they released a trailer yet! I'll have to check that out.

I'm all about staying true to the source material. If you're not going to, there's no point of bearing the name of whatever it is you're pretending to re-create. With that in mind, I'm real excited for the upcoming Kick-Ass movie. If you haven't read the comics, stop reading this now and get to a comic shop.


Question #7 - G.I.Eddie asks:
Do chicks dig your work, your comics? Not just members, but maybe girls who know nothing about Joe.

1337W422102 answers:
I honestly have no idea. Besides for the occasional HissTank.com member, I don't know of any ladies who read this.


Question #8 - TU482 asks:
I think you should make an arc out of “Rip Cord's revenge on the Wayans.” You could make it “noir-ish” if you're so inclined, or just a straight up bloody “Rambo 1 vs. many" battle. What do you think?

1337W422102 asks:
I don't have any Wayans brothers figures I won't get any of them. Rippy will just have to settle for a 25th Anniversary body for the time being.

That being said, I AM planning a film-noir Joe story which will be dark and serious. Writing it is hard but damn, it is fun! I really want to get started on it, but I'm still writing it and thinking about the sets. When the current arc is done, though, maybe I'll bring on the noir.

The rain came down like angels' tears, each drop a lament for long-forgotten sins.
As long as there were sinners in this town, the rain would fall.
The pavement was always wet. The puddles reflected the city's dark heart.
It rained in Springfield. It rained every night.

I have a feeling the Photoshop desaturation tool and rain effects will come in VERY handy.


Question #9 - TU482 asks:
Will we be seeing a team-up/battle between Cap and the Americans and the Canadians? I know we only have Wolverine and Guardian so far but it’s something I think would be great. Keep up the good work and thanks for the laughs.

1337W422102 answers:
Thanks! And don't forget, we have Deadpool, too!

I'm not planning anything like that just yet, though. In the A25Universe, the Cap is roommates with Union Jack and Guardian. They probably just assume he went to get groceries, or something.


Question #10 - Sparhawk asks:
When will there be a full on Cobra/Joe bar fight? You can’t have a successful strip without a bar fight.

1337W422102 answers:
I've been meaning to do something like this for a long, long time now, but I'd have to build an entire Joe-scale bar set with tables, chairs, the bar itself, shelves of drinks, etc. I'll have to get around to it one day.


That's it for now! Thanks to everyone for taking part in this month's session! Report back on Saturday for a new comic. See you then!

COMIC - File #74 - "Tech Support"

It's time once again for a comic!


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COMIC - File #73: "Flint Teach's Sum Lesson's"

Welcome to Ages 25 & Up 2010! This is the first comic of the new decade, and I hope you guys like it. Please bear in mind that it is not aimed at anyone/any site in particular.


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Happy New Year

2010 has arrived. Another year, another decade, etc. Hope it's been good to you so far.

If you haven't seen it, Penny Arcade has put up a comic about New Year's resolutions, a theme I also used in File #72, which I posted yesterday. I know, it's not Saturday yet, but I felt it wouldn't be right unless I posted the comic in 2009. It's the final comic of the decade!

All the best, gang. See ya next week.

COMIC - File #72: "G.I. Joe: Resolutions"

This is it! The last comic of the decade! Hope you all have a fantastic 2010.


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COMIC - File #71: "Merry Cobramas"

It's that time of year again! Time for the second annual Ages 25 & Up Christmas issue! Last year's Christmas issue didn't go so well, so let's hope there's nothing to ruin the Joes' holiday THIS year!

I hope you all have an excellent holiday season and a fantastic New Year. I'll make a New Year's post before the month is over, reminiscing about what Two Thousand & Nine had in store for Joe fans (and for the comic!), as well as mention a few of my plans for 2010. Wow, "twenty-ten." Just saying that makes it sound like the future!

Here's the comic! Stay frosty, gang.


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Q & Ages 25 & Up #12: December 2009

This is a milestone, ladies and gentlemen! This is the 12th Q&A we've had here at the Ages 25 & Up blog. January 10, 2009 marked the first Q&A, so while it hasn't exactly been a whole year, it's close enough! And this is the final Q&A session for the year, too! Once again, a huge thank-you to Monkeywrench and everyone else from the HissTank.com forums who helped with our online discussions!

Here's what Monkeywrench said, and the questions. Enjoy!
It's time for the December Q & A! This being the busy time of year we only have 6 questions this time. This is probably the most personal Q & A to date as none of the questions have anything to do with the current or past storylines. Anyway, here're the questions. Thanks to G.I.Eddie and to Topside for helping.

Question #1 - Monkeywrench asks:
Do you follow or pay attention to any other Joe comics/dios? There is a few others that pop up on the Tank from time to time. I’m wondering if you pay attention to other people’s work? Or do you try to ignore others to keep your ideas fresh?

1337W422102 answers:
It's not that I purposefully ignore other people, it's just that I work on my own comic and... well, I'm an introvert. I used to follow COL Abernathy's Axis Power over on the HissTank.com forums, which is incredible by the way. It makes my dinky little comic look like the dinky little comic it is!


Question #2 - Monkeywrench asks:
Will we be seeing a story involving Ripcord? I think you would write a very interesting story involving the different incarnations of him. I think it would be a classic.

1337W422102 answers:
The only Rip Cord figure I have is his v1 figure, who appeared in File #30 "Rip Off". I had chance to buy his 25th Anniversary version, but I decided instead to buy a 25th Clutch for my best friend. Can you blame me?

I want him to show up again, but I think it will have to wait until I get his 25th version. And I am NOT buying any of the Wayans brothers.


Question #3 - Topside asks:
Have you ever seen Kelly Heroes? Comic gold! I’d love to see you work some of that into a A25U story!

1337W422102 answers:
Kelly's Heroes, the wartime heist comedy? I haven't seen it, but it sounds awesome. I don't think anything that has Clint Eastwood in it needs to be remade, either!


Question #4 - Topside asks:
Don’t know if it’s the same thing in Canada as it here in the States, but why is Star Wars more popular than G.I. Joe? Do they get a larger line because they’re more popular or they are more popular because of a better managed line? Your opinion?

1337W422102 answers:
Well, with stuff like Clone Wars aimed at kids and Star Wars collectors having the chance to buy figures of every single z-grade character who's ever appeared on-screen ever, there's a hell of a lot of Star Wars stuff out there to buy. I think that franchise is popular because, well, it's great. Plus, it's not hard to see why the fantasy worlds of Star Wars seem to have more appeal than stuff like army dudes from something kids've never heard of before, you know? I'm not sure where I'm going with this, but we have a lot of Star Wars stuff up here in Canada, too. But not enough, I tell ya - I can't wait for that Slave Girl Leia figure to kneel to Clutch.


Question #5 - G.I.Eddie asks:
Seriously, how much fun do you have making these strips? It’s like playing with your toys, but grown up style… what’s the most fun part? The setup, story creation, or the dialogue?

1337W422102 answers:
It's a LOT of fun to make the comic, but sometimes it does become a chore. During school weeks, my week would often break down like this: Type up scripts on school computers between classes and e-mail them to myself. Edit the comics at home after/instead of homework. Saturdays would usually be dedicated to the comic, shooting and editing, which would halve my weekend. It's a lot of work, which is why some issues were a measly 4 panels because I just couldn't dedicate more time to the comic and manage to finish my assignments. Take for example Files #65 and #66. They were originally written as a single comic but due to real-life, I had to split it up into two.

But yeah, every week, I get to play with toys, take silly photos, and dick around in Photoshop. I love it. If only women and money were involved!

The most fun part, I find, it talking with you guys, the readers, over at the A25U thread on the forums. Getting your reactions and interacting with you is the best part of making the comic. Knowing that someone had a good laugh to start the weekend makes it all worth it!


Question #6 - G.I.Eddie asks:
Do you have help with your comics? I can imagine how fun it would be to have a couple guys bouncing ideas off each other, posing the figures in positions that aren’t exactly kid friendly, lol.

1337W422102 answers:
Sometimes I talk about the comic with friends and toss around ideas, but the only time I've had someone else around when shooting a comic was for last year's Christmas special. My friend let me shoot a scene in the Christmas village. Other than that, I shoot them all alone at my place. I launch WinAmp, blast some tunes, and shoot that crap. I really don't want other people around as I spend hours moving toys around and photograph them, because I'm sure they'd get bored out of their minds.

There you have it! Hope the I was able to answer your questions! Join us again next month!