And an uncomfortable observation at the end. You have been warned.

• There’s a new design over at the Dayfree Press site, which includes a new sketchblog.
• Alien Loves Predator creator Bernie Hou would like you to check out his new (previously hinted-at) project: The Burgg. Much like Time Friends, this one is driven by readers — do up some art that depicts a movie scene, post it, and people try to guess what you were thinking of. If they don’t guess, hope it’s because you were all obscure, and not because your art sucks.
• Everybody catch A Girl And Her Fed yesterday? Eyes!
• T Campbell’s recap of the “web comics” panel at NYCC is up; his report confirms my suspicions that it was entirely aimed at “lets put whole comic books into a digital distribution channel”, and not “let make content for the web on a continuous basis”.
• All this, and he’s an actor, too? Dave Kellett will be hitting the New York City stage as part of a production of one of his wife‘s plays. I’m so there.
• One of these things is not like the others.
• Man, Hastings and Eli’s mom — that outfit with revealed drooping navel is just … disturbing.

Couple of quick things, as there’s a lot on my plate at the moment.

• Bad news from Amsterdam, as Liz Greenfield reports a dead computer, severely limiting her ability to do comics for an adoring Internet public. If you’re going to The Thing in London on the 17^th, she will be bringing sketchbook-type material to sell (sadly, the hoped-for books 4 and 5 are on hold ’til the hard drive gets restored). It is your duty to buy lots of these sketchbooks so that Liz can get a new computer, please.
• The McCloud Family Trek continues unabeted, with new dates for the leg that takes them from the reaches of the Midwest all the way to the Atlantic Ocean and back (with a small side trip to California). Tomorrow: Clarksville, TN.
• Related question: what do you call kids whose godfather is Neil Gaiman, and whose father will officiate at the wedding of Amy Kim Ganter and Kazu Kibuishi? Fangirls. Of the Year.
• Does two years count as a Grind? Yes. Yes, it does.
• Longtime webcomickers Chris Daily (and formerly schoolmate/roommate/collaborator of both Jennie Breeden and T Campbell) has teamed up with fellow vet Aerie for Punch an’ Pie. It just launched Monday, but based on pedigree it’s worth a gander.
• And, naturally, Achewood. I think I need my name on that thing, and some god damned peanut butter.

I was roaming around the interweb when I came across a link on the Patches website titled Mr. Toast. I curiously clicked and was transported to a world of quirky foodstuffs. The comic is written and drawn by Dan Goodsell who hails from L.A. His website is full to the brim of fun thingy things to click on and enjoy.

The comics are one –panel drawings that focus around a main character aptly named Mr. Toast. His best friend is Joe the Egg, and they are found in many non-adventures, such as magical tic-tac-toe games and doing hard time. It may seem ordinary, but when you are dealing with a toast and egg duo, there is no telling what will happen. Mr. Toast and his friends are a light-hearted bunch, and appeal to the child-like innocence that is buried underneath our adult, real-world exteriors.

The website is bright, fun, and simple to navigate. There are a wide variety of items to enjoy, from animations to storybooks about the solar system (which is quite informative). He is working on his own store, where he will sell Mr. Toast dolls, books, and hopefully some original artwork. He has some great fans, which send in some fantabulous drawings and pics of themselves posing with their Mr. Toast doll. I might buy a Mr. Toast doll myself, because I’ve decided that Mr. Toast is the balls.

If you would like to see why Mr. Toast is the balls, go ahead and click here. And if you like Mr. Dan Goodsell’s artwork, then check out his art shows or his personal gallery. And if you really like Dan Goodsell to the point of weird obsession, here is a link to his very own bloggy blog. You’re welcome.

If, on the off chance, anybody reading this knows anybody at Reed Exhibitions, could you please smack them? For a company that’s trying to go from zero to San Diego scope in the space of three years, they really need to rethink their entire approach to comic con management. From the floor layout to bizarre, unworkable line-wrangling, it was pretty badly done. That being said, even a poorly-executed convention (“Extrosion”, anybody?)can be a lot of fun, depending on who you’re hanging with. Random thoughts to help you get a feeling of having been there:

• The Digital Strips crew are commandos. In, get an interview, camera rolling, done, fwoosh! Gone in the blink of an eye. Can’t wait to see the footage.
• Speaking of DS, they spoke to old school indy creator Wendy Pini about her upcoming webcomic plans; interesting writeup, as I spoke to her husband, old school indy publisher Richard Pini on Saturday morning at the Dumbrella booth. He was very excited to see Diesel Sweeties make the leap to syndication, having looked at that route himself once upon a time. He also bought an Old School shirt, thus completing the theme.
• Had a tough time finding BLC representatives Brad Guigar & Paul Southworth, as the sign over their tables inexplicably read Dave Kellett. But they did well for themselves, with Brad having sold just about everything he brought, and Paul’s new Medieval Friday kicking ass. Oh, and confidential to Brad Guigar’s kids: Don’t get in the suitcase, no matter what Daddy tells you!
• Likewise, I missed meeting up with Jennie Breeden, but via the magic of email, the promised interview will go on.
• Ironic moment of the weekend (as reported by Chris Hastings): During the “web comics” panel Friday morning, a question from the floor touched upon the ads-and-merch model of revenue, practiced by so many independent creators. The panel (all corporate types) thought it wasn’t a good model, in part based upon their reading of T Campbell’s A History Of Webcomics. Ironic part: the question in question came from T Campbell. I’m sure that T will tell the story better, so keep an eye out for his report.
• I met a Dr McNinja cosplayer and the man who gave Paul Southworth lube. I did not get a picture of either. I did, however, purchase a handmade, alcoholic zombie cat, which is creeping my dog out.
• There was also the thing about Genital’s Discount Tittery and crying pterodactyls, but you had to be there.

But Rich Stevens managed to give me a link, no matter how tenuous, to the awesomeness that is This American Life. And if you read this page regularly, I have a feeling that you are (or should be) a fan of TAL, which is the best thing in any medium, ever.

If you live within a day’s forced march of in Boston, LA, Minneapolis, Seattle, or Chicago, you must (must, must, must) make your way to the appropriate venue, obtain a ticket by whatever means necessary, and attend the current live tour, Things I Learned From Television. Those of you in the New York area, you missed out, ’cause Ira Glass and the gang were here last night, and they killed. Now make your arrangements (and hop to it, Bostonians, the tour rolls in tonight), or we can’t be friends anymore.

Two strips worth talking about this morning. On the one hand, this from Chris Baldwin:

I have a favor to ask.

For two months I am not going to post Little Dee here at littledee.net.

My contract with United Media ends May 1st, so I will either be syndicated, or probably be moving Little Dee back here permanently.

So, I’m asking if you’ll excuse this and continue reading Little Dee at comics.com.

Anybody that’s read Fleen for more than about a week knows that I believe a few things strongly:

1. Syndication of comic strips is, in the main, horribly screwed up;
2. Little Dee deserves to be in front of millions of readers every day

In theory, item #2 can be achieved solely by Power of the Internets, but practically speaking? Most people will never find it if it’s not in front of their nose. United Media, to be fair, seems to be trying to shake things up and bring in new strips (as evidenced by their pickup of Diesel Sweeties, plus I hear interesting rumors of other webcomics as well), and in a right-thinking world, one of those would be Baldwin’s. BUT:

I know many of you prefer reading Little Dee here, so I hope you don’t feel this is too much of an inconvenience for two months. The thing is that I’ve received some vague hints from the syndicate that my stats numbers aren’t high enough on their site.

Keep your fingers crossed for me.

I actually do prefer reading at Baldwin’s site, because comics.com is a buggy, slow-to-load, popup-spawning horrorshow that hates non-IE browsers, but to help him I will brave the hideous design. And, in case you were wondering (like I was), you can still purchase Little Dee originals by looking to the left-hand side of the comics.com page for the picture link. I think I might call dibs on that one of Vachel’s harem.

In other news: GIRLFIGHT! This can only end in tears. Sexy, sexy tears.

People coming to NYCC have a little too much cool stuff for sale. Jeff Rowland is rumored to have brought 15 plush Joannas (and I heard tell of a cheerleader outfit that she likes to wear), Paul Southworth is unveiling the first Ugly Hill t-shirt (it’s a secret design that you can only get in person), Jon Rosenberg has that swanky Science Is Satan Spelled Backwards shirt on pre-order, but all that pales in comparison to the coolest new piece of webcomics merch.

Jennie Breeden continues her quest to drag webcomics into new product categories; having brought us the kilts/leafblower calendar and the playing cards, she now adds a picture puzzle. 500 pieces, full color, detailed art, and a punchline (plus boobies). Add that to her ongoing Devil’s Panties comic book, which is up to issue #9 in the direct market where it’s common wisdom that:

1. humorous,
2. black and white,
3. independently published,
4. non-superhero comic books
5. by/about women

don’t sell. But she’s releasing regularly & on schedule, while massive corporations can’t get their marquee books out the door without months-long delays. Breeden is doing something really cool, and I’m going to do my best to talk with her about it this weekend.

Editor’s note: Another guest piece from Anne Thalheimer; she’s continuing her explorations through webcomics, bringing a newbie’s eye to all and sundry. You can submit these too, you know. Contact link is over there to the right.

Now, I like writing critical pieces as much as the next person, and, as I’ve said before, I’m a little new to the webcomix party. So I thought I’d alternate the more critical pieces with something a little more, well, fannish. I’m trying to read widely in the field (so, you know, feel free to point me in the direction of one of your favorites if you want; I’m open to reading suggestions).

I’ve made mention of some of my favorites in earlier columns, like Natalie Dee and Exploding Dog and, of course, this. I’m a fan of Cat and Girl, which I first read in minicomics form, not on the web (it’s weird to be admitting that being a comix geek kind of turned me on to webcomix in the first place, especially in still thinking through David Malki !’s recent article.

I have a few webcomics that I read on a regular basis; I started out reading Overcompensating because I’m a bit of a fan of the autobio. Even if it’s fake. Or kinda fake. Hell, he draws tattoos on his comic self the same way I draw mine on me! Then I got sucked into reading Diesel Sweeties, which I like (especially in airports), in large part because of the weird titles that R Stevens uses for each of the installments. (Full disclosure: these two work down the hall from me and made my company’s wacky holiday party way more entertaining, so I’ll probably always be nice when I write about ‘em).

But when I think of Diesel Sweeties, I think of t-shirts. In an earlier column I advocated supporting the webcomics you read by buying merch (or sending fun party favors), and so I naturally thought of the only other webcomic whose t-shirt I’ve bought: John Allison’s lovely little Scary Go Round. It’s one of my current most favorite things online as well as from Old Blighty (other favorites in that category being Ribena, chocolate vending machines in tube stations, and my friend Lesley).

Scary Go Round is one of the few multi-panel webcomics where I can read loads of the archives and not feel like my brain’s been sucked out through my eyesockets. Part of this is no doubt because I find that the art and the text are both really compelling; vivid, unique art with grand coloring and catchy dialogue (snappy English-isms! Yeah!. I want to keep checking in to see what happens to the characters — the pacing’s perfect and the narrative’s delightfully weird. I’ve been thinking about the folks who report problems forgetting to click and check in on updates of their favorite webcomics; Scary Go Round just isn’t one of those for me. It’s actually one of those webcomics where I linger, looking at the background details (the posters, for example, in the background are especially nice touches). I’m still working through all of the chapters, but I fully intend to make good and read the whole thing. It’s also interesting to see the difference between the work that’s hand-drawn and the work that’s done on the Wacom tablet, since I find the hand-drawn work more visually captivating. One of these days I’ll just suck up the shellacking the US dollar is taking and buy one of his books, because I’d just love to see how Scary Go Round looks in print.

In addition, the website also has a hugely amusing “aboutâ€? section (called “the true truth”) as well as this little gem from the Extras section — you have to admit he’s got killer taste in music).

And I love my t-shirt (& just for you, Mr Lowrey, it’s bloody great!).

Fleen thanks Anne once again for her contribution. Hey, am I the only one that sees a girlfight of Wgnerian proportions coming? Wicked Bob has bewitched both Dark Esther (who has a mean right) and the formerly mini-Winters (who has a five-star gun show and a temper to match); once great friends, they’re now at each other’s throats due to malevolent forces and love of The Boy. Add in a little Armageddon, and nothing good can come of this — except more great storytelling. Also! Remember when I said that Esther had the sweetest smile? Her sorrow here absolutely breaks my heart — Allison’s ability to express emotions continues to astound.

Unshelved hits the Big Five-Null today; take away some of the more explicit trappings of library and it’s fundamentally a workplace comic, just with lots more books around than most workplaces. But even if that was all that Unshelved was (and it’s not), you’d still have to give big “ups” (as the kids say) to Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes (a noble fellow, to be sure) for two things:

• They really, really want you to know about good books; if you’ve never checked out their Sunday strips (which take the form of short book reviews, and form a suggestion list for book clubs), do so. Great variety of stuff there.
• They really, really want you to appreciate what librarians do. Far from the cliche of the shhhshing lady with the hair in a severe bun, modern librarians engage in a wide variety of services and programs, across all media, forming an invaluable resource in any community, and it’s free to you. And Ambaum and Barnes get ’em to pimp up their book carts for shits ‘n’ giggles.

So congrats to Ambaum and Barnes; next time you drop by your local library, make sure the local staff knows about the boys and give ’em some love.

First off, a few of you had contacted me regarding it, so I’ll mention that my NYCC press credentials came through officially making me something resembling a hack journo, now. I’m so proud. I that vein, we have some news for you.

Tim Demeter, editor/T II of Graphic Smash and Clickwheel, informs us that Clickwheel has been acquired:

Clickwheel Ltd, the comics to iPod company, has been acquired by computer games super-developer, Rebellion, developer of such video games as Alien vs Predator and Rogue Trooper.

A videogame developer seems an odd bit of synergy, until we realize what else Rebellion owns: 2000AD. A company that exists to put comics on the iPod, one the most elegant pieces of consumer electronics engineering ever, is now owned by JUDGE DREDD. If Demeter approaches you and declares that HE IS THE LAW, don’t argue with him.

In gentler (but no less ass-kicking news), Whitney Robinson of Alma Mater has told us that she’ll be making an announcement on Monday — she’ll be holding a contest with an iPod up for grabs. Be sure to check out Alma Mater on Monday for the full deal, and if I were you, I’d start reading the strip very closely, paying attention to small details.