James sums it up nicely above.
Well, mixed feelings here.
This is obviously the end of Man-Man, after nearly a decade of Internet-driven madness. I probably shouldn’t say “the end,” because James and I may well decide to revisit the world and its characters, but knowing my own track record for following up on dropped projects, I have to be honest and say that there isn’t a huge potential for more runs at ol’ Drake.
It has, obviously, been a lot of fun working on this, and I’ve learned a lot as a writer: the most important thing I think being economy — writing a strip comic that adheres pretty rigorously to a four-panel format means there are no words to waste, and since I’m a terribly sprawling and self-indulgent writer that was a massive, massive challenge.
I’ve also learned that I’m not terribly funny — funny enough,, I suppose, but not Kristopher Straub funny or Ryan North funny. Funnyish. It sounds weird to say that one thing I learned from writing a comedy strip for seven years is that writing comedy strips is not my forté, but there you go: I can do the funny, but doing the funny every fourth panel, every day, year in and year out is a rare and amazing gift, and I definitely recognize that talent far more now than I ever have before.
James has poured heart and soul into it, and if you go back to the earliest strips you can see the growth there (it’s easier with artists!) and now he’s rocking his own daily strip at Pitabow Comics, which everyone should bookmark and visit daily. Man-Man got me in touch with Roy Boney, which led to Dead Eyes Open, which has in turn led to a lot of little comics sidelines that are starting to bear fruit for me, so I owe this strip for all of that.
On the whole, warts and all, I think the strip has been a success. It started from a very simple premise, and from there James and I built a full-functioning world, a huge cast, an internal logic and a massive through line: a story arc that starts off being about Paul, but kind of ends up being about Man-Man. I like the way this wraps up. It’s open-ended and inconclusive and weird and uncertain, which is a lot like life.
I think I’ll miss Gutsy and Vivisectus the most.
So what can you do when there’s no Man-Man around? Well, James’ daily strip is excellent (see link above), and I’m going to be MUCH more diligent about posting at my blog. I’ve got two comics coming out in ‘09, one an adaptation of the novel Captain Blood from SLG, the other a sci-fi/adventure series from Ape called RPM. Rise, Kraken! has sort of hit a stall, but hopefully we’ll pull out of it and get that book out there this year as well. Updates will always be at my blog, so please do pull and RSS feed out of there and keep in touch.
Thanks for reading.
February 20th, 2009 at 3:47 am
NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!
man-man is one of the few comics i check every day for up-dates! its been so funny!
whyyy? WHHYYYYYYY????
February 20th, 2009 at 4:21 am
Sorry… CCC. With the new baby coming in less than a week, it’s been tough keeping up with everything.
But keep checking Matt’s Blog, or my site for updates… I’m sure Matt & I will do other projects together!
You can’t keep a good team down!
And everyone join me in saying, congrats to Matt on his upcoming wedding!
James D.
February 20th, 2009 at 5:29 am
Well, I’m bummed on the one hand to not have this strip as part of my daily routine. I came here originally to wait for an update on “The License” but was very quickly hooked on the comic. I’m going to miss your teamwork on this.
On the other hand, I’m pleased to hear about the new baby, James, and Matt, I’m excited for you on your wedding!
Best wishes to both of you and I’ll keep following your work.
February 20th, 2009 at 6:03 am
WHAT!!!!!!!!! TODAY!!!!!! You gotta give people more time to let them down softly! just cut off like that!!!!!!!! I think I’ll have to throw small kittens off a bridge as a protest!!!!!
Every day without man-man will be like a day without sunshine! If suicide rates jump you’ll know why!!!!!!!!!!!!!
February 20th, 2009 at 5:07 pm
Well thanks for entertaining us all these years ! It’s been really fun !
I’ll miss Man-man, and… huh, how to say this…
Next time you need a french-speaking character, don’t hesitate to ask a french person (me, for example) to check if what he’s saying actually looks like french ! A real living person beats babelfish any time !
February 21st, 2009 at 2:36 am
Well it’s done, thanks for for good times guys and can I just say, thanks for not doing something crazy for the last strip, like say just fading to black.
February 21st, 2009 at 4:40 am
Heya Wood,
James and I are both bilingual (or close to it), being from Quebec, and well aware that Frenchy is awful… his mangled “French” was an extended meta-joke about how bad super-hero comics are with foreign languages. Most of his swears don’t even back-translate back into English — “cochon du merde du lac” is “poop lake pig,” which is crazy in any language!
February 21st, 2009 at 12:37 pm
It was a real thrill and honour being a guest villian in Man-Man. (Very, very long-time fans will know what I’m talking about — and will also tread carefully around me, lest I reveal their embarrassing middle names TO THE WORLD!!!)
Sorry to see Man-Man is riding off into the sunset, but here’s hoping your other projects take off!
February 22nd, 2009 at 2:03 am
I know I use my pseudonym (which is a word I’ve become way too fond of) on these boards, I have to tell you seeing this end was something I’m actually none too pleased about. (I never got my WarCat storyline), but I think James is ace, obviously, and I think my Matt is also ace. I like Man-Man. Man-Man means to me initial courtship. Matt would say that he sent me the link to woo me, and apart from the fantastico of this strip, it worked. He “wooed.” And I learned a lot about James, which has totally make think that, despite his sweet insecurities (which, James, Matt shares with you!), I love him and appreciate James all the more.
James, I cannot wait to meet you, Francine, and the kids. It will be so nice.
Matthew, I cannot wait to be your wife.
February 22nd, 2009 at 11:45 pm
I’m gonna miss you guys too. I’ll have to bookmark your other stuff, and keep an eye out for future appearances of Manny and Company.
James, I still have that comic strip that I won in that one forum contest (and the card, I’m surprised it didn’t get lost). I shall treasure it always!
I think I’ll have to go through the archives again. “God Is My Roommate”’s, too.
MEAT TOOBZ FOREVER!!!!
February 23rd, 2009 at 9:29 pm
Just remember… there’s always the 2 archives… Man-Man’ll never die, there’s still years work of strips to go back over!!
We’ll be seeing you soon Kali!
February 25th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
I’m sad to see the strip end.
Good luck with new babies, new jobs and future projects.
Funny thing, it started with Vivisectus as the main antagonist, but over time he retreats as a whole gallery of lunatics join in. Still, he was one of my favourites, as was Basilica. I think I said once before that he must have the most ludicrous power ever invented. Others that stick in my mind are the maple-shooting Canadian hero, and “Dan Nouement” and “Andy Climax” appearing after the story was finished.
February 25th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
Mazelotov (to y’ both).
Meat-In-A-Straw(TM)