Odd-Fish Webcomic

Kidnapped! [part two]

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 18:59:06 +0100

And so it is revealed exactly whom those dastardly ungulates are after! But why Howard? Surely it's Lovecraft who has the vendetta against them and yet there he is, sleeping peacefully and unmolested while his friend is carried off to who knows where!
Gosh. Exciting isn't it?

I had one hell of a job getting the Zebras' antics to show up against the background of Lovecraft asleep on the couch. It's a kind of limitation to my ballpoint pen crosshatch drawing style that everything gets a bit "busy" when attempting to illustrate more than one plane.
Many webcomics opt for the 'out of focus' look to indicate depth of field and to highlight the foreground, but it doesn't really look right with my style at all. In the end I opted for a white outline on the foreground elements and a slightly lower contrast on the background. I think it works reasonable well and I hope you can tell what's going on. Especially in the middle panel.

Several people have asked for a progress report on the Lovecraft plushies I'm developing. There's not been much progress for while due to other commitments but the project has not been abandoned and will get finished soon. Exactly how many plushies will be available depends on how fiddly they are to make, whether they work out to be cost effective (I have to at least break even!) and of course how much time I can commit to making them.
Another project in the works is the first volume of Odd-Fish in printed format. Yes, there's an Odd-Fish book on the way, packed to the gills with Odd-Fish strips including previously unseen comics and other bonus stuff!

Kidnapped! [part one]

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100

No gag in today's strip because it sees the start of a multi-episode story spanning several updates.
This is a fairly major departure from the usual Odd-Fish style of a joke or pun per episode (with only a couple of exceptions where things overlapped onto more than one date) but I felt it was time for a change and to expand the Odd-Fish universe and perhaps challenge myself with the artwork and storyline.
So the Tiny Tinned Zebras are once again making an appearance but what are they up to? What is that they intend to do that makes it so vitally important that Lovecraft is asleep? Are they going to kidnap him? The title of the story certainly hints as such but to what end? Am I making things up as I go along or do I know where I going with this story? Come back next time and find out!
As yes about 'next time...

I'm moving Odd-Fish from its current Wednesdays and Saturdays slots back to Tuesdays and Fridays instead because it's more convenient now that Odd-Fish is drawn at home instead of at work.
I used to draw a substantial amount of Odd-Fish during quiet times at work but growth and logistic changes in organisation I work with have meant that there are no longer any such things as quiet shifts. I can't complain of course, I'm there to work for them, not draw cartoons, but it does rather feel like the end of an era. The whole original purpose of first Biro-Art and then later Odd-Fish was built on doodling for something to do during quiet shifts at work and now that's over. Ah well. Shit happens.

Odd-Fish TruFax IV

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0100

Number four in the occasional series of Professor Lovecraft's Odd-Fish Fact File this time featuring a couple of tidbits about eyes.
The eyes of the common scallop are bright iridescent blue and number over sixty arranged along the edges of its shell where they watch out for threats such as starfish. Any eye that gets damaged can be regrown in a matter of days!
This particular scallop seems to be a reincarnation of Old Blue-Eyes himself, the late Frank Sinatra.

The Anablep, quite apart from having a wonderful comedy name is a very odd-fish indeed. It's eyes are horizontally divided and have two pupils and two retinas each, giving the fish individual views of above and below the water from its preferred vantage point at the surface. The upper eye even has an iris adaptation to shade the eye from the glare of the sun on the water.
But that's not the only thing that makes the Anablep odd. Each individual has it's genital opening on either its left or right side, forcing it to seek for a partner with the matching opposite before it can mate. And you thought being left handed could cause difficulties!
On top of all this the Anablep doesn't lay eggs but instead gives birth to live free-swimming baby Anableps!

Odd fish has been privileged to have received a couple of reviews in the last few days, one from The Webcomic Digest and one From Webcomic Asylum. Both are favourable and I'm very grateful to JonEric and Jack for their kind words and constructive feedback. Thanks guys!

Howard's Birthday

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:10:00 +0100

I was a little concerned that some people might find today's strip a little offensive, but then I thought of the myriad of 'comedy Irish' in the media and decided that what I'd portrayed was a very mild stereotype based on a couple of spoken phases rather than going with 'diddly-diddly' music, silly hats, leprechauns, shamrocks and a Guinness fixation like the Irish are usually lumbered with.
Of course, this mild lampooning was necessary on order to make the punchline work, so at least it's not gratuitous. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.
Oh, and in case you're wondering, Howard's birthday is August the 19th.

Last update on the Status of Ziggy's 'wrist.'
It finally seems to have healed completely and he no longer has even the hint of a limp. He's off his analgesia and anti-inflammatories and doing just fine.
Once gain, a huge thank you to those of you who donated to help with his vet bills, it was an emormous help.

In Your Dreams

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 23:10:00 +0100

Apologies again for today's strip being 36 hours late, as you can see, there's more inkwork than normal in this one as an little environments into fully rendering indoor environments which takes quite some time to draw. This, coupled with a visit to the dentist (£200!) is the reason why it's so late.
I've drawn internal environments a couple of times before, notably on the very first Odd-Fish back in November 2007 and on the last strip that we saw Lovecraft's bedroom in Episode 10.
As you can see, Lovecraft still has his Akira poster. I'm continuity's bitch, me.

On then, to the winner of last Saturday's guess why I chose that name challenge.
I got the biggest response so far to one of these challenges, but almost everyone came up with the same few answers, all of which were very good reasons for naming a mudskipper 'Hesper' even though they were not the reason I was thinking of!
Hesper is not named after the Greek Goddess of the evening or the evening star, nor is she named after various boats and ships or even a variety of soil or mud, however relevant that may be!
No, Hesper is a Mudskipper. A Skipper is a type of butterfly of the family Hesperidea. It's that simple! The first person to send me this answer was TomJ who will receive his fab Odd-Fish button badge as soon as he sends me his address. Well done TomJ!

Hesper

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 16:32:33 +0100

Today's Odd-Fish is one of the occasional departures from documenting the hectic lives of our two heroes, Lovecraft and Howard and instead features an Odd-Fish from a different walk of life (and I do mean 'walk' in this case!)
Meet Hesper. Hesper is a Mudskipper and as such spends as much of her time out of the water as in it. She lives in brackish water swamps in the tropics and loves nothing more than a belly-full of moth.
Now here's another chance to win an Odd-Fish button badge by being the first person to tell me by email why she's called Hesper.
The challenge will end at the next update on Wednesday when I will announce the winner and the answer.
Please don't use the comments board to guess, I'll only have to delete it.

The winning prize for the previous challenge, to come up with the best fish-friendly Shakespeare quote as voted by you, the readers of Odd-Fish, goes to JohnEric for his epic and completely nonsensical quote from Romeo & Juliet. Well done JonEric!

When Ungulates Attack

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 00:45:58 +0100

Another three-rower for today's update and another appearance from the Tiny Tinned Zebras.
Have you ever been so wrapped up in a book that you pay little or no attention to what's going on around you? Well be warned, because that's what Howard was doing when this happened to him. So be alert! you never know when the striated little equine demons are watching.

The little contest I initiated in Saturday's update was a little bit of a washout to be honest. All but three people didn't read the instructions properly and posted their suggestions on the comments board instead of emailing me which means that if they win I'll have no way of contacting them.
Obviously I could ask them to email me with their address, but what if some dishonest person claims to be the winner but isn't? Oh I know it's just a little button badge that's up for grabs, not an all expenses paid holiday to the famed marshmallow mines of Glutaniizstan, but I'm sure that whoever wins would still rather they got their badge rather than some pikey lying gimp. No?
Anyhow, here's the finalists in no particular order:

From Hamlet: "Something is rotten on this plate of damn shark" (Helen)
From Twelth Night: "Some are born a great white shark, some achieve great white sharkness, and some have a great white shark thrust upon them." (James)
From Julius Caeser: "Beware the tides of March..." (Spinksy)
From Twelth Night: "If molluscs be the food of love, play on..." (Dai)
From Romeo & Juliet: "Two trout-holds, both a pike in epignodae,
In fair favonia, where we lay our stream,
From ancient perch break to new mutin-eel,
Where civil mullet makes civil bass un-bream,
From swordfish the fatal sea-lions of these two roe;
A pair of carp-crossed guppies take their life;
Whose mollusk-ventured piteous grouper-throws
Do with their death bury their pomfrets' strife." [Reference here] (JonEric)

To Vote, simply go to today's comic and you'll find it there in the blog.

Willful Intent

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 04:34:08 +0100

A highly cultured Odd-fish for you today, paraphrasing one William Shakespeare, no less.
Still, at least the low-brow puns are still present and correct!
Can any of you come up with any more fish puns in famous Shakespeare quotes? I'm sure there must be more.
How about "A pound of fish" from A Merchant of Venice? Or perhaps "A bass, poor Yoric" from Hamlet, or maybe even "A seahorse, a seahorse, my kingdom for a seahorse" from Richard III.

Can you do better?
If I get enough suggestions, I'll pick the best five and put them to the vote. The winner gets an Odd-Fish button badge! Oooo!
Send your suggestions to me via email

Baby on Board

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 05:45:34 +0100

Brace yourselves for an Odd-fish strip that's actually on time!
I hope the double-pun in this one isn't too subtle, but as usual I ran it by the Official Odd-Fish Gag Tester (Mrs Nobody) who got it straight away and without prompting.
If you don't get the joke, at least can fall back on the fascinating fact that with seahorses it's the male that carries the eggs in a special pouch in his belly, effectively becoming pregnant until they hatch. He then continues to care for the hundreds of babies while their mother goes off shoe-shopping or watching Sex and the City or whatever it is that female seahorses like to do.

Unlucky for Some

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 03:56:58 +0100

Here it is, only thirty six or so hours late, the second part of the story started in Tuesday's episode. I hope you like it because the special effects were quite expensive!
I'm sure that most of you expected the satellite to hit Hugh, am I right? But no one expected an anvil!
The tardyness of this strip is down to two things. Firstly the size of the damn thing. I thought I was never going to get to the end of it! Just when I thought is was time to draw the anvil hitting Hugh I realised I needed another panel first. It would have been so much simpler if it hadbeen the damn satellite that hit him.
The second reason was because for the last few days there has been an invisible midget standing on my shoulder with a baseball bat hitting me repeatedly as hard as he can in the mouth, cheek and ear. That's right, it's that unbearable trauma called toothache. I have an appointment to see a dentist on the 24th but in the meantime I can do nothing but suck down vast quantities* of paracetamol, ibuprofen and codeine in an attempt to sedate the evil bat-wielding midget.

*without exceeding the stated dose, because that would be daft

Magnet

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:25:16 +0100

No punchline on today's Odd-Fish because it's a two parter, the second part will go up on Saturday (time allowing as always!)
I hope it's clear what's happening here with the beam of magnetic force going up to the satellite, not something being beamed down from it. It took me quite some time to decide in the effect for the magnetic force and I hope it works ok.

The Lovecraft plushie has moved no further forward since last update because I've only just got my hands on some decent fabric to try and make a 'beta' version now that I'm reasonably happy with the prototypes. Sewing is very new to me so it's very much a learning experience as I try to work in three dimensions instead of my usual two and at the same time try to avoid impaling myself on pins and sewing my fingers to Lovecraft's tentacles as the sewing machine runs away from me. I swear, the damn thing has a mind of its own!

Did you know, you can help Odd-Fish by transcribing a strip in the Odd-Fish Forums?

Nut-hatch

Sun, 8 Jun 2008 02:27:27 +0100

Today's strip follows directly on from Tuesday's and continues the sillyness with the 'Monkey Egg' and also references some earlier Odd-Fish mythos. Well, if they can fit in a can, why not a coconut? It's probably a good thing (at least from their point of view) that new genetic stock is being introduced to the herd too, we wouldn't want the stripy buggers dying out now would we?

I've finished the Lovecraft Plushie Mk3 prototype and it's definitely not perfect but getting a lot closer to what I'm aiming for. I've yet to start the Mk4 prototype because I want to try a different fabric this time, felt just isn't right and tends to split very easily. It'll have to wait until I get some fleece or fur fabric before I start again though and the soonest I can get to the shops to do that is Tuesday.
In answer to several emails from people, yes, once Lovecraft is done I will be trying a Howard as well.

The Odd-Fish Forums! are waiting for your input right now!

Coconut Shy

Wed, 4 Jun 2008 01:58:34 +0100

Hmm. Is this one too silly? Every since I was a little boy I used to think that coconuts looked like monkey eggs. I mean, it all fits so well with coconuts coming from trees and being brown and hairy just like monkeys.
Ok, I know that's it's a classic piece of broken logic. Are chicken eggs yellow and fluffy? No of course not, but I think it's a nice conceit anyway.
There will be more about Howard's find next episode. Is it really a monkey egg? Is it just the seed of a tropical tree? Or is it something much more sinister?

Seen here is a photo of the 20% finished Mk3 Lovecraft plushie prototype. It's a fair bit bigger than the Mk1 as seen in Saturday's update, has proper Lovecraft bulging eyes and captures the look of the character a lot better than the Mk1 or 2 versions. There's still a fair bit to work out on this version (if I can get the plague of zebras I'm having under control) but so far I'm very happy with it.
More updates soon.

Call Me Ishmael

Sat, 31 May 2008 03:13:08 +0100

They say "Write what you know," well I've broken that golden rule with today's comic. I don't know Amy Winehouse's music at all but sometimes things become part of the public conciousness like this one line from one of her songs (possibly because of its beautiful irony) and it was far to good (or bad) a pun to pass up!

The new management script that runs Odd-Fish seems to be holding up nicely with only a few minor glitches, all of which were my own doing such the 24 hours that the Archives page spent with no styling because I'd forgotten to update the path on that page when I moved the CSS!
I've also worked out a way to automatically update the RSS and to add the title of each comic to the title of the page instead of having every page titled the same. Things are coming alone nicely.

I'm working on a prototype soft toy of Lovecraft the octopus. If I can get it to work, they'll be hand made by me in a very limited edition because they're going to take freakin' hours to make and will be sold through this site. Keep your eyes peeled for updates and announcements on this exciting project.

Feeling The Pinch

Wed, 28 May 2008 12:46:23 +0100

Wednesday's Odd-Fish was inspired by these unbelievably cute pictures that I found while looking for reference photos.
Apparently, young octopuses (which bear the wonderful name of 'Inklets') really do hide inside shells as protection from predators. So cute.
Today also marks a change in the script I use to manage Odd-Fish. I was using ComicShout, a nice simple SQL-based content management system made by a webcomic creator for webcomic creators.
I was very happy with its ease of use and the way I could modify it to get pretty much exactly the look I wanted.
Then about a week ago I noticed some odd search terms turning up in my stats and on investigation it turned out that my site was being probed for vulnerabilities because ComicShout, it seems, is wide open to a devious hacking technique called SQL Injection putting not only my site at risk of hijack, but the very server it runs on!
Needless to say I went straight over to the ComicShout site to see if there was an update only to find it abandoned and closed down. ComicShout is no longer updated and no longer supported. Bummer
I tried in vain to find an alternative simple script that did what I wanted with as much adaptability as ComicShout but the only thing out there seems to be the WordPress modification, ComicPress. I tried ComicPress when I first started Odd-Fish and didn't get on with it. It seemed overly complicated and I had trouble getting the look that I wanted.
So then I found another little script but I couldn't get it to work properly so I asked on th t bastion of helpfulness that is b3ta and one b3tan called Tony came up trumps.
First he attempted to fix the script that I'd found, but it was so badly written and so confusing that he decided that it would be quicker to simply write something from scratch. Which he did. In two hours flat!
So what you see now is the new script running Odd-Fish. It's even simpler than ComicShout so I was able to simply strip out the ComicShout code and drop Tony's code in the spaces. It's flatfile instead of SQL-based, so no risk of SQL Injection and it's tiny. Only about 15 lines of code in all.
Because it's flatfile there are a few changes that have had to be made such as the loss of the 'most recent 5' list on the sidebar, strip titles as page titles and the random button. I honestly don't think that any of those where very important anyway so it's no great loss.
Thank you Tony!
You can visit Tony's site at Rantings of a Madman

That Snot Nice

Sat, 24 May 2008 15:06:00 +0100

The drawing of Lovecraft in the first frame in this strip was a bit of a challenge. I wanted to capture the look of a heavy head cold and it look a fair amount of time staring into a mirror to achieve. I'm fairly pleased with the results though.
I was going to have Lovecraft speak his line as though severely congested, "I'b god a derrible gold" but being the first panel in the strip I was worried that people might not pick up what he's saying despite the (hopefully obvious) clues in the artwork. I'm still learning what does and doesn't work with this comic lark, I've only been doing it six months and it's a steep learning curve!
I also wasn't sure whether to explain that it's a stream of inky snot that Lovecraft's sneezing in today's comic so as usual I tested the artwork on Mrs Nobody before I'd added any dialogue and she 'got it' immediately. I'd considered having Howard saying something like "Eurgh! Inky snot!" in the second panel but didn't think it'd really flow as natural dialogue so I was glad when Mrs Nobody said the same thing almost word for word without prompting!
This comic also breaks new ground in that it's the first time we get to see Lovecraft's underside, although because of the circumstances his beak isn't visible. Apparently, an octopus's beak is the only hard part of its entire body. (Except in situations like this of course!)

Once again, I'm going to plug the Odd-Fish forums as a place where you can make suggestions, discuss Odd-Fish and indulge in a little light-hearted personal abuse.

Mantle Force

Wed, 21 May 2008 18:10:00 +0100

It's Wednesday afternoon and today's Odd-Fish is on time! It's a freakin' miracle!

This is the second strip featuring the Star Wars Squid, who thinks he's a Jedi and speaks in nothing but Star Wars quotes. (here's his first appearance.)
He also appeared on New Years day in the Auld Lang Syne line up but because the lyrics to the song are not in Star Wars I don't consider that strip to be Odd-Fish canon (If Odd-Fish could be said to have such a thing!).
The title of this strip is a three-way pun. Can you get all three references? As usual, the first person to email me with all three references correctly stated wins an Odd-Fish button badge.

I had a little help drawing today's strip from a little green friend of mine. Well I say 'help' but although I'm sure she thought she was helping, it's very difficult to draw with and extra half-kilo of green fluff attached to the end of the pen!

Don't forget, if you have something to say about Odd-Fish, the Odd-Fish Forums are the place to say it!

Once Bitten

Sat, 17 May 2008 06:12:00 +0100

Two days late, but here it is and boy, what a whopper it is! Three rows of Odd-Fish adventure featuring those all-time fan favourites, the Tiny Tinned Zebras (First appearance here). Such a lot of hard work and a long, long build-up for such a very old punchline!
I't hasn't escaped my notice that I could have posted this over three updates instead of all at once and thereby got ahead of myself. As it is I've got to do another strip ready for Wednesday, only the day after tomorrow!. I really do punish myself, I hope you appreciate it!

The Odd-Fish Forums seem to have got off to a nice start. There are only a handful of members so far making tentative posts but everyone seems like great people and it's all very friendly.
No one has attempted to transcribe any of the Odd-Fish archives in the specially dedicated forum thread yet but I hope that it's only a matter of time before someone with a love for prose takes up the challenge.
So if you have something to say about anything to do with Odd-Fish or just want to say 'Hello,' why not pop over and join in?

Let's Rock

Wed, 14 May 2008 06:45:00 +0100

I apologise to any fans of the artistes mentioned in today's strip. As mentioned before, I'm a bit of a freak when it comes to music and have no interest in it at all. I don't listen any music of any kind and as a result have very limited musical knowledge. So when it came to choosing a band for the punchline of today's strip I had to get some help.
I went to the b3ta talk-board and asked the deranged members there to name a rock band that is universally well known... and universally derided. there was a fair bit of argument over what is or is not a rock band but the general consensus was between the one mentioned in this comic (who I'd heard of) and a band called Toploader (who I hadn't.).
In other news, I have an announcement to make.

I've decided to see if O d-Fish can support a forum. I've seen other webcomics with them with varying degrees of success, some with healthy thriving communities (Weebl), some that tick over nicely (Beaver & Steve) and many, many that have a handful of members and less posts than the fingers of one foot.
I've added all the usual stuff; avatars, signatures, a 'general' area and all that stuff but I've also made it practical by including areas for suggestions (Win a button badge!) and a section to post transcripts and reviews of each Odd-Fish episode.
So if you like translating comics to prose, if you have an opinion of Odd-Fish to share, if you have a suggestion to make about the site, the strip or an idea for a future story or gag, or if you just want to say 'Hello,' pop on over to the Odd-Fish Forums and get cracking.

Truth, Justice & Narcissism

Sat, 10 May 2008 06:09:00 +0100

It's back to the terrible puns for Odd-Fish number fifty-seven. I know that some of you love the puns and some of you, well, not so much but hey, I like 'em and it's my comic!
Some may say that I have a childish sense of humour and maybe I do and maybe I don't but it's a comic about talking fish for goodness' sake!

At some point on the next twelve months I'd like to get out there and attend some more comic conventions as an exhibitor. This means using the intervening time to build up stock, a little each month, of various bits and bobs of Odd-Fish merchandise to peddle to anyone interested.
It hasn't really gone to plan (when does it ever?) with the sudden unexpected expenses of Ziggy's injury, the dead car and the change of ISP but I have managed to find enough pennies to order some button badges featuring my pastel artwork of Lovecraft with Mr Potato Head.
After ruling out CafePress as stupidly expensive for badges (100 for forty quid and then import tax and Royal Mail's 'handling charge' on top, possibly as much as another £20) I shopped around until I came across AmpsBadges who were offering 100 badges for almost half the cost of the nearest competitor, just £18. Bargain! I ordered some and just three days later a pack of one hundred top quality button badges arrived in the post.
So if there are any other British based webcomics reading this and you'd like some top quality badges for a damn good price and very fast, I heartily recommend AmpsBadges. Oh yes.

Life's a Beach

Wed, 7 May 2008 06:50:00 +0100

Today's strip is one of those rare ones that features neither Howard nor Lovecraft. Instead it has my very first attempt ever at drawing a cartoon girl.
Those of you who are regulars to Odd-Fish know my well documented dislike of drawing humans so I'm sure you can appreciate the amount of effort that went into getting this character looking halfway attractive. Hell, it's hard enough for me to get humans to look human!
So I like to think of it as a step forwards, a sign of my artwork, and just as importantly my versatility, improving as time goes by.
Another first on this strip was my attempt to render the patterns of reflected light you get just below the surface of water in bright sunlight. There it is on the whale's back in the last panel. Does it work? I'm not sure. I think I may have to work on the effect more in future strips to get it right.
I've been reviewed by two members of a site bearing the wonderful name Caught Stealing Brains. The general consensus with both of them is that they love the artwork and the characters but find the humour a little too hit-and-miss. One doesn't like puns, which rules out about two-thirds of my strips and the other doesn't seem to like the childishness of the gags.
Fair enough, I say! I can certainly understand that the humour isn't going to float everyone's boat but their reviews are generally positive and I've certainly taken on board their constructive criticism. Why, I've already added a new archives link to the main menu at the top of every page because one of them said he had a hard time finding them.
Thanks for the feedback, guys!

And now on to last Saturday's competition, why was the Hammerhead Shark called Stan? I had a lot of wrong, but nonetheless very good answers to this. It seems that Stan is a very popular name for sharks generally with at least seven different references sent to me! The correct answer was because Stan (or Stanley) is the real name of that paragon of parachute pants from the 80s, MC Hammer.
The winner was 'Phil' from Newcastle who was the first of four people with the correct answer. Thanks to all of you who wrote in and better luck next time!

Lastly, Ziggy the cat is now well on the mend and is finally using his foot to weight-bear. He's still limping badly but things to seem to be improving. Hurrah!

Woah-oh Camouflage

Sat, 3 May 2008 06:42:00 +0100

So here we are with the first Odd-Fish strip of May and it's another biggie.
Once again Lovecraft has got himself in trouble. It's lucky for him that octopodes really are masters of camouflage and are not only able to change their skin's colour but its texture as well! An octopus can make itself look like a smooth, sea-worn grey rock and then change to being indistinguishable from a bright red outcrop of gently swaying seaweed instantly at will!
Bloody amazing beasties those octopodes.
The Shark's name is Stan. Can you guess why? First correct email wins an Odd-Fish button badge featuring Lovecraft and his favourite toy, his Mr Potato-Head.
Last time I did this I got over 150 replies so be quick! The answer will be revealed in Wednesday's update whether it's guessed or not.

Edit: Here's a couple of wrong guesses I keep being sent:
Stan is not named after Stanley, the tool manufacturer who make, amongst other tools, hammers.
Stan is not named after Stan Ridgeway, who did the song ,Camouflage in 1986 which the title of this strip alludes to. I didn't even know that until I started getting emails, it's a total coincidence!
Keep 'em coming!

Odd-Fish Trufax III

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 06:57:00 +0100

This number three in my occasional series of strips detailing the bizarreness that can be found below.
The first one is truly very very odd indeed, and not a little bit creepy either, a small woodlouse-like crustacean that actually becomes a functioning body part of another animal!
The second one of today's facts is really just an excuse for a cheap gag, but it's still true nonetheless!
Starfish have no central brain but instead have all their control systems spread out over their entire bodies.

An enormous thank-you to those lovely people who dropped a little something in my tips far over the last few days. It helped a lot!
Our cat, Ziggy seems to be out of the woods (more about that here) but still requires ongoing treatment, medication and regular visits to the vet until his limb has healed, and now, it never rains but it pours, we've got to find some money from somewhere to pay for a replacement car since our crappy old Skoda (yes, I know) gave up the ghost.
Normally I'd say 'sod it' and spend the summer cycling to work while we save up a little to buy another crappy old jalopy but with Ziggy having to go the the vets regularly over the next few months that's not really an option. I really don't fancy carrying a terrified 12 pound cat in a bicycle basket!
So if you haven't already, and you enjoy reading my humble scribblings them please throw a few pennies my way if you can.

To Be Frank

Sat, 26 Apr 2008 06:16:00 +0100

Holy crap! Look at the size of that comic strip! We're going to need a bigger ~~boat~~ webpage!
Yes, today is a landmark day for Odd-Fish not only is it the first ever two-row strip but it's also the first strip to be posted in Odd-Fish's new schedule of Wednesdays and Saturdays instead of the old Tuesdays and Fridays. Pah, Tuesdays and Fridays are so 2007.
Why the move? Well it's mainly down to my day-job work rota which makes it difficult to get a strip done for Fridays so I needed an extra day, hence the move to Saturday. That left Saturday and Tuesday too close together so Tuesday got moved to Wednesday. I'll give it a few weeks to settle in and see how it feels.

Todays strip (Lovecraft is such a metrosexual) became a double-rower simply because I couldn't squeeze the whole plot (plot? who am I kidding?) into the usual three or four panels. It didn't start out that way but I just couldn't see any way of getting a coherent story into that space. I considered doing it as a two-parter, posting the top half today and the conclusion on Wednesday but it would have left the first part ending without a gag and I'm still not confident enough to do that.

Another change you may have noticed is the appearance of the Tips Jar up there on the comic navigation bar. Usually I'm not too keen on asking for donations, but circumstances are forcing my hand.
Several UK Internet Service Providers including the one I'm with, Virgin Media, are installing spyware called Phorm on their servers in order to track its customers we habits, read their email and generally look over our shoulders in or er to give us 'more relevant advertising.'
I have nothing to hide but I do resent being spied on like this without my permission. Oh they do have an 'opt-out' option but it only opts you out of the targeted advertising not the capture and analysis of your personal information as it passes through their servers. You can read more about this here.
So I'm moving ISP to a small company who have pledged that they will never implement Phorm or anything like it. Unfortunately, moving ISP involves the purchase of a new telephone line and new broadband modem and router, an expense I really don't need right now because of my other, more important reason for the tips jar.
My cat, Ziggy, an eleven year old huge tabby tomcat has developed a lump on his 'wrist' and is now only using three legs. The Vet says it might be a tumor (hopefully benign) but he has to go for an x-ray and possibly other tests then surgery if it can be removed. The x-ray alone is going to cost between £100 and £300 ($190 to $580) so I am throwing myself on your mercy.
If you enjoy my little corner of the web, if Odd-Fish makes you smile, please leave a couple of pennies, whatever you can afford in the PayPal tips jar so that I can still eat once Ziggy's vet bills are paid.
Thank you in advance.

Edit:28th April - Ziggy update here.

Where Paddlers Fear to Tread

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 06:27:00 +0100

Many many many years ago, I remember seeing something on TV about someone out snorkelling in shallow water who stood on a stone fish and was rewarded with unbelievably agonising pain and eventual death! I can't remember if it was a documentary or a drama but and I must have been less than six years old at the time and it stuck with me. Ever since then I have never ever been in the sea without some kind of foot covering. Isn't it strange, the events in life that shape you?
Anyway, it's plainly obvious from that what the inspiration for today's strip is!
I did actually do a little bit on research on this and it seems that what I saw as a kid was no exaggeration, the stonefish's venom is so painful that people actually would rather have the injured foot cut right off than bear the pain!
I shall continue wearing shoes at the beach, thank you very much.

Choose Odd-Fish

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 06:27:00 +0100

This has got to be the oldest gag I've used to date on Odd-Fish. It's just possible that it was this joke that got our ancestors out of the trees when they fell off their branches laughing!
But as old as it may be but it's still fun and very silly, and we here at Odd-Fish do like a bit of sillyness.
Talking of silly, things don't get a lot more silly than trainspotting.
I just don't get the thrill of standing in a draughty railway station in a cagoule with a thermos of weak lemon drink making a note of the engine number of each train you see. I mean, what's the point? If it's to collect the numbers to impress your trainspotting friends then why not stay in the comfort of your own (or more likely your parents') home, look them up on Google and pretend you've spent hours in the rain and wind writing them down in your little book. Your tears of impotence sprinkled on the pages may help to add verisimilitude.
Harsh? maybe. Fair? Absolutely.

Cl-l34P V149R4!

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 06:43:00 +0100

I can only apologise to you all for missing last Friday's Odd-Fish update. Pressures of work meant that there simply weren't enough hours in the day to work, rest and play so I had to give it a miss. I glad I put 'Updated most Tuesdays and Fridays' in the header and not 'every Tuesday and Friday!'
Of course if anyone feels like donating a year's salary any time soon, I'd be happy to have a career break from my day job and instead put in a full eight hours a day, five days a week to ensure that Odd-Fish is updated without fail every Tuesday and Friday. Hell, I'll make it three times a week! Contact me for my PayPal details if you are that wonderful person. (Hey, I can dream can't I?)
What passes for humour in today's Odd-Fish is a little more coarse than I usually do and possibly even breaks the 'PG-13' feel that I usually aim for but I liked the gag and it's my comic so I thought, 'What the hell.' and did it anyway. Apologies if you find it offensive but seriously, if you do, you really should get out more.

A little late to mention it but you may have seen my efforts at doing a guest strip over at Beaver and Steve. The fantastic James Turner kindly invited me to submit my effort for his unfeasible comic when I met him at the UK Webcomix Thing convention in London last month.
So pop on over to Beaver and Steve and have a rummage through the archives while you're there. I'm sure it'll tickle your chortle-bone as much as it does mine!

Hatch

Tue, 8 Apr 2008 06:13:00 +0100

Todays' strip features a comic strip technique called Breaking the Fourth Wall which for those of you who don't know is when the characters in the strip (or stage play or movie etc) interact with the real world in some way that reveals that they are in fact fictional characters.
The phrase Fourth Wall originates from theatre where the stage is set with a room with four physical walls; left, right and back with the imagined fourth wall being transparent to allow us, the audience to see what's going on in the room.
Apparently it's terribly gauche for a comic creator to break the fourth wall these days because, I'm told, it's been done to death. Well sod them. I've always liked it when characters talk to the audience or otherwise acknowledge their existence like in some Warner Brothers cartoons so I'm doing it too. Nyah.
So be warned, Lovecraft can see you right now as you're reading this. Put some damn clothes on! Have you no sh me?

edit: A big thank you to James Turner of Beaver and Steve for the opportunity of doing a guest strip for him was great fun and I even managed to shoehorn Lovecraft into it! Thanks James!

Great Scott!

Fri, 4 Apr 2008 06:59:00 +0100

Argh. Another strip that required me to draw a human. Oh how I hate drawing people. On top of that I had to draw him in full Scottish traditional Piper's dress. Bloody nightmare.
A welcome return from OCTOBOT today and as you can see, Lovecraft has made some modifications allowing him to control his creation directly. Possibly to overcome the problems he's previously had with programming.
As Odd-Fish evolves and my ideas and gags get more elaborate I'm finding it increasingly difficult to squeeze Odd-Fish into the 850x300 pixel size that I chose way back in November when the comic was born.
You may notice that this strip has extra narrow borders and is taller than usual. That's because I had one hell of a job to get the four frames I needed for this strip into the available space. It's possible that if things continue like this I may have to go to two or more lines or perhaps spread stories over more than one update more often.
Anyhoo, Enjoy.

Not As Described

Tue, 1 Apr 2008 06:16:00 +0100

Lovecraft's terrible illiteracy gets him into a scrape once again in today's Odd-Fish strip.
I started this strip a few days ago when the weather turned suddenly very very cold and the gas ran out on our space heater here at Nobody Towers just as the Easter holidays struck and all the shops were shut.
Mrs Nobody and I damn nearly froze our socks off.
I'm just glad I'm not a brass monkey or I'd be singing in the church choir by now. Falsetto.
Of course sod's law meant that by the time I'd finished this strip only a couple of days later, the cold snap was over and now I'm sitting here in a pool of sweat.
An Englishman complaining about the weather? Whatever next!

I got a very nice write-up from Austen at Gordian Algebra which is a strange but rather good webcomic about the adventures of an un-named man in a world full of faceless people. I highly recommend you read it from the beginning. I think you'll enjoy it. I know I did.

Obtuse Angel

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 06:30:00 +0000

Sometimes I have real trouble thinking of something to write in this bit so today I tought hey, why not write about not knowing what to write about!
I used to use this blog section to describe the comic in written form in the hope that all the lovely keywords would be picked up by Google to increase my site's ranking. T en I realised that for anyone reading this in my RSS feed, the joke was spoilt before the comic was viewed so now I'm trying to limit spoilers and write about other stuff instead. But what to write about?
Anyway, I hope you enjoy today's strip as much as I enjoyed drawing the new fishie.

Raving mad

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:30:00 +0000

I thought long and hard about using today's strip and did a fair bit of research and Googling to try and find out if anyone will actually get this joke. I do hope so, but it is rather niche
I'm also going to break with previous habits and not going to explain the joke here because you'll either get the reference or not.

Well I went to the UK Webcomix Thing 08 last Saturday and met lots of wonderful people including one lovely lady who professed to be a fan and had actually sought me out just to tell me so. She said she was there on behalf oh her boyfriend (Hello Simon!) but I know it was my boyish good looks, otherworldly charm and skilful ways with a ball-point pen that lead her to me. (hey, let me have my delusions, please)
While I was there I bought loads of badges, one badger, recorded a cheer for a future cartoon soundtrack from BolloxComix, handed out loads of my little minicards and in turn was given a shed load of cards from other contributors. Oh, and I lost a tooth. Yes it was that exciting.
I shall definitely go again next year but this time as an exhibitor which gives me a full year to build up stocks of loads of Odd-Fish and Biro-art goodies to sell, handout and pimp to my adoring fan- or hopefully by then, fans
See you there!

Caviar Lector

Fri, 21 Mar 2008 06:30:00 +0000

So it seems that Hugh did indeed survive his shark attack, at least as far as the hospital but perhaps the shock of hearing dangerous and uncontrolled punning in his vicinity was too much for his poor, ravaged heart.
For those of you who are curious about the title of this strip, it's a based on the Latin phrase Caveat Lector which, for those of you whose Latin is not all it could be, means reader beware and refers to the dangerously terrible pun found within today's strip.
The caviar part of course comes from the fact that the best caviar is harvested from the Beluga Sturgeon. (Hence Dr Beluga's name)
Will Hugh be back? We'll have to wait and see about that...

Tomorrow I shall be attending the UK Webcomix Thing 08 in London. I shan't be exhibiting this year, just visiting to scope the territory and meet some of the wonderful people who make my favourite webcomics.
If you're going and you see me wandering around aimlessly, be sure to stop say 'hello.' I'm the chubby guy with short brown hair carrying a folder with Lovecraft on handing out Odd-Fish Moo Minicards, drinking tea and looking lost.
See you there!