Bella does Comics #5: PVP Online

In the comic strip game, there are certain names you just ‘have’ to know. Walt Kelly. Charles Schulz. Bill Watterson. Maybe one or two more – a Cathy Guisewite here, a Berke Breathed there. But in the webcomics world, there’s really only one name – Scott Kurtz.

Kurtz created PVP: Player vs Player in 1998, having fun with the gaming community by chronicling the staff at a video game magazine company. The strip, usually updated daily, was an instant hit. Maybe ‘instant’ is not factually accurate; it took time to build an audience. But by 2005 the website had over 100,000 dedicated visitors checking in every day for the continuing adventures of Cole, Francis, Skull the Troll, Jade and her ‘man-boy’ Brent (seen above).

My personal webcomic God – Brad Guigar – bows before no one except the Kurtz. To hear him tell it, there is no cooler guy in the webcomics game. And his success – popular website, animated series adaptation, legions of fans – has not gone to his head.

A reference from the person that I consider the coolest guy in the comics game period is enough for me. Mr. Kurtz – I salute you, sir!

Bella does Comics #3: CHARLIE BROWN

When I think back to how I started reading comic books, I have 3 touchstones cross my mind: a 100-page spectacular of World’s Finest, some Richie Rich comic with Richie surfing a wave of dollar bills and a Peanuts paperback filed with 1960s daily strips of the adventures of Charlie Brown, Lucy, Peppermint Patty, Linus, Snoopy and Franklin (once every 10 or so strips).

Peanuts was comic book for me before it was a newspaper strip, before it was a animated holiday tradition, before it was a Macy Thanksgiving Day balloon, before it was emblazoned on everything and anything that could be licensed.

And in every iteration of the story I waited and waited for Lucy to get what was coming to her for torturing Charlie Brown with what I think is his own football. Maybe creator Charles Schulz gave it to her and I missed it. But in case he didn’t get around to it, this one’s for you, Chuck.

You’re a good man, Charlie Brown.