It has become a minor Linneman tradition to spend the morning of July 4 on Liberty Island, taking part in the 5k around the statue.
With all the ways that American iconography has been co-opted to represent division, opposition to "outsiders," and denying others the benefits we enjoy simply for being born in the right place at the right time (and if some folks get their way, to the right people), I love that the Statue of Liberty has been a tough symbol to peel away from its representation of a promise made to anyone who sincerely wants to take part in the American DreamTM.
On the ferry, with Ellis Island in the background
Laura's mom has a true-to-archetype immigrant story, arriving in the United States by way of New York Harbor, being greeted by Lady Liberty and processed through Ellis Island. I hope we...and future generations...can maintain sight of this as representative of a foundational American value. The American ExperimentTM has obviously had some pathways in need of course correction, but I thought this was one most of us could agree on. Unfortunately, I don't hear many self-proclaimed patriots saying "Give me your tired, your poor..." anymore.
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But I can save some of that fretting for another day. As it pertains to the usual fare of this blog, I should also celebrate the Statue of Liberty's role in this masterpiece of animation...
And here are Mutt and Junkyard enjoying a photo op on her massive left foot:
(I'll let you in on a secret, though. That isn't really the foot of the Statue of Liberty.
It's a replica in the museum on the island. I've had my picture taken with it too...)
I'm sure any scaling issues are...a perspective thing...
Hmm.
Anyway, happy Fourth, everyone! I think I'll bring more Mutt and Junkyard to the blog this upcoming week. Enjoy your weekend!
Okay...so, I don't have kids, so I need to be clear that the following has not been proofread by an expert. However, I'm pretty sure I have most of the details correct regarding these IPs that have caught my attention over the past several years (and that I'm actually a little surprised I've never mentioned on the blog).
Laura likes to find aggressively pleasant children's programming to throw on the TV every once in a while. She likes how it can be calming, centering, and oblivious to the shitshow that is the world right now (and maybe has been forever...?), and it usually does its job well. As I felt with Pokémon Concierge, most of the time these shows are best described simply as delightful.
Two of the programs Laura has found that have really drawn me in are the British show Peppa Pig...
...and its Australian companion show Bluey (all images from their Facebook pages btw)...
I write "companion show" not because it's almost a dog joke, which I just realized, but because -- as far as I can tell -- these two programs are parallel views of a future post-apocalyptic Earth in which anthropomorphic animals have become the dominant species on the planet.
Peppa Pig (the show) is quite a bit older than Bluey (the show) and gave us our first look at a world rebuilt by walking, talking nonhuman (or maybe partially human?) animals. It seems to take place in what used to be the UK and features a pretty wide variety of species.
There are very few humans. It definitely looks like a Kamandi type situation. And of those people that have been shown, I suspect that Father Christmas may actually be a spirit that simply chooses to take human form, and another -- Queen Elizabeth II -- is most likely a clone that was created to raise morale and provide leadership in the post-apocalyptic world. While it wouldn't be a trivial undertaking by those in power, making copy after copy of one of Earth's more beloved 20th and 21st century leaders would probably be worthwhile to give an extra measure of hope to the survivors, especially when she's commonly seen doing things like having fun in the mud with her subjects.
Bluey, meanwhile, is seemingly set in Australia, and it appears that on this continent, all of the sapient creatures that remain after the global catastrophe are dogs, usually of recognizable breeds. Bluey, her sister Bingo, and parents Chilli and Bandit, are a family of Australian cattle dogs known as the Heelers (seen three pics up)...clearly a surname given to them in the recent past simply based upon their phenotype.
I think other animals show up only in non-anthropomorphic form, and as far as I know, there are no humans. It's unclear if these differences between the shows are a matter of geography or focus, or if they might actually reflect that the programs depict different eras of post-apocalyptic Earth.
And really, that's part of what's so intriguing about these shows: the mystery. We don't even know what caused the fall of humankind! Was it bombs? Aliens? COVID-29? And is it possible that these are animated documentaries, sent back from a desperate future with the hope that we'll change our ways? If so, I think they're failing on that front. Honestly, life in Peppa and Bluey's world seems pretty spectacular. Families love and accept each other and enjoy spending time together. There's very little fear and nothing that even resembles hate. I wouldn't mind falling asleep in a bunker and waking up to that world.
And of course, as a Yank, I wonder what America looks like in that future time. I believe there's a possibility that what we know as an early animated short, Steamboat Willie, may actually be a similar documentary showing life on the Mississippi River early in Earth's rebuilding stage. This would be an interesting set of information to add to our knowledge of the post-apocalypse, especially since it appears that some non-anthro animals have undergone other genetic alterations in that timeline. (A goat whose tail can be cranked to make it sing like a phonograph is probably the best example of this.)
As with Peppa Pig and Bluey, though, specific details are scarce. It is entirely possible that other "fictional" works we have encountered (including the proto-Kamandi story by Jack Kirby that I wrote about here several years ago) are similarly influenced by actual messages from future sources. However, it's going to take some real effort to separate truth from myth. I will be keeping my eyes open for clues toward laying out an accurate future history of Earth. If you have any insight, I would love to hear from you.
I started 2024 with -- relative to my usual blogging output -- a bit of a bang. And then I fell off...for a variety of reasons, one of which I'm about to mention...but I'd like to get rolling again. There's one item I absolutely need to talk about first, however.
Celery and her custom blanket (thanks Joan!)
I've involved our girl Celery in my geek stuff on this blog before. HERE she is statted out as a Super-Pet for Light City (as Princess Celery), for example...and HERE she is with her siblings and couple of my 'mons. And depending on how you're reading this, there may be a picture of her, with a cap on backwards, over to the right as my profile pic.
Princess Celery
On Wednesday, 2/28/24, we had to let Celery go...crossing the rainbow bridge, as they say...to a well-deserved peaceful final rest. Not knowing exactly where this little tribute is going to go, I'm assuming I'm going to ramble...so I want to lay out my thesis: The world is a better place because Celery was in it. The world is a worse place without Celery in it. Celery did more for the happiness of the universe than most humans; when my end comes, if I can feel like I brought half the goodness to the beings of the world that Celery did, it will be a life well spent.
I have never seen an animal have the impact Celery had. I realize, of course, that I'm biased...she was part of our family for about 13 years and during that time became arguably the "flagship" dog of the Linneman household. Our love for Celery is unbounded. It's been especially hard on Laura, who truly was Celery's primary partner in almost every adventure. But...Celery's impact went way beyond that.
And now, I guess I'll just brag about my dog for a bit. But where to start?
Okay...see that picture at the top of this post, with the Celery blanket? About five years ago, when Laura and I worked at the ASPCA's Behavioral Rehabilitation Center in North Carolina, a highly fearful dog who came through the program (a little Chihuahua-thing named Helen) got away from her new family and was lost in New Jersey. Because Laura was Helen's favorite person in NC and Celery was one of her favorite dogs, the two of them made a trip to Jersey to help secure her return. They stayed with a very kind person connected to the animal rescue that Helen was adopted from.
A little while after returning to NC (with Helen eventually recovered safely not long after they returned!), a package arrived at work addressed to Celery Linneman.
As you might imagine, this was unusual. Inside was the blanket above, sent by her wonderful new NJ friend that they stayed with. Our girl had such an impact that she had a blanket made especially for her by someone she only met for a few days!
(Also, know how many pieces of mail came to me at the Behavior Rehab Center? Zero.)
With Ruffles, who was absolutely obsessed with Celery...
The Behavior Rehab Center (or BRC, as I'll call it now that I realize I'm going to be typing it out repeatedly) was truly a place for Celery's gifts to shine. She came to work with us often and served as a "helper dog" in treatments for others who were profoundly frightened of humans. It's amazing how much scared dogs can learn from situations where they're with a dog that they love who also happens to love all the big scary people around. Sometimes, it was determined that these extremely fearful animals had little opportunity for a reasonable and happy life in this world built for humans (or would potentially be a danger to people or other animals). While they were certainly the saddest parts of her job (for us), there were a number of times that Celery's companionship was enlisted to make the euthanasia process as comfortable as possible, by providing support in the dogs' final hours or minutes. I mean...that's angel stuff.
Celery with goodest boy Goliath at the BRC
There are plenty of really happy stories of Celery's good deeds at the BRC, however. Her friend and extended Linneman family member Lily Jane, for example, was highlighted by the ASPCA's media team for an article and video about her story. They had Celery tag along for the photo shoot to support Lily Jane (you can catch her at the end of the video in that link). And Ruffles, pictured a couple of images up, was a fairly tough nut to crack with her fear. She eventually had a very happy ending with a foster mom who adopted her and gave her a great life. And while she was learning to trust people, I'm sure you can guess who her favorite friend and greatest source of comfort was.
Celery with my sweet Tulip (left) and BRC graduate/Tulip's biological mom Lily Jane (middle)
Looking back through some of our pictures of Cel-Bell (did I mention that we often called her Cel-Bell?), I'm realizing that I could talk ad nauseam about Cel's impact (and of course we called her Cel) on other dogs. So...here's a sampler...
I think maybe we were in NC in this pic...?
I've also mentioned our girl Sunny...who had some profound behavioral issues of her own and needed a good friend such as Celery...before here on Monstrous Matters. Sunny and Laura took part in nosework competitions. Celery was her tournament companion and equipment manager. (I was junior eqipment manager.)
And...oh yeah(!)...Cel also qualified for competitions by passing her odor recognition test for birch! She truly was a Renaissance dog. We actually have a video of her passing the test. (I love how it gets cut short because Laura is so happy for us while filming...)
The Celery/Sunny relationship was a really interesting one to get to observe. Sunny wasn't a dog who could get along with everyone, canine or (especially) human. For Celery, meanwhile, a defining feature was the ability to get along with anyone and everyone...canine, human, feline, lupine, musteline, you name it. She wasn't always a fan...but she was always respectful, a real live and let live type of girl with a tendency to bring her own idea of fun to just about any interaction.
Cel was Sunny's best canine friend (and probably best friend other than Laura)...but over time, Sunny's internal struggles cast a longer and longer shadow over their relationship. They almost became "frenemies"...Sunny clearly loved her but was also easily tipped into jealousy. Celery did all she could to defuse the tension and always had 100% trust from us that she wouldn't escalate a situation. Just...an angel.
A quick look at a few more of her friendships:
With Murray, another behavioral oddball who found some stress relief in nosework
With previous Linneman flagship dog Angel, whose need for a playful friend was the reason we brought baby Celery home in the first place
With Suki, another sometimes-unpredictable dog picking up life skills at the shelter. Celery often didn't completely trust her, and I like how in this picture, you can see a tiny bit of concern in Cel's mannerisms, but she was still the kindest girl imaginable.
I guess I could go on forever about what a dog's dog Cel-Bell was, and how much she helped so many other canines, and how amazing it was to watch such a beautiful being's innate gifts move the world in a positive direction. At some point, though, I have to mention just how great Cel was with humans. And she was really great with humans!
Celery was a bona fide love from the moment we met her, but as her confidence grew over the years, she reached a whole other level of friendliness. It's hard to describe what made Celery Celery...she loved attention but was just a cool dog who was willing to let everyone else do their own thing, without judgment. To the extent that she judged, she usually tried very hard to keep it to herself.
Celery was a certified pet-assisted therapy dog. In Atlanta, I got to be her handler for most visits we made with the group Happy Tails Pet Therapy. Here we are on a happy Saturday in September 2011, after both Laura and I qualified with her:
Fall Saturday in the South...so of course that also meant college football...
We would visit a local behavioral health and rehab facility, typically me with Cel and Laura with our girl Dishy (who was certified with Laura but not with me...). Those are truly some of my best memories with her. I enjoyed watching her change from a curious-but-kinda-nervous puppy (she was around a year old when we took her home) into a confident working dog ready to take on the tough job of having people tell her how cute she is. She developed a method of swinging her butt around into a new person's legs when she was introduced to them. She knew she was there to be petted.
So, a couple of the best memories from her therapy work...the first was once as we were leaving, when she got to meet an extra resident outside as we headed to the car. She stole a sandwich out of his pocket and ate it. So much about that memory...that the guy randomly had a sandwich in the pocket of his scrub pants...that she sniffed it out and ate it with no hesitation...and that the dude took it so well...I love it.
The other best memory doesn't even directly involve Cel. In NC, only Laura was qualified to handle Celery for therapy visits. One day we were at one of the little touristy sort of stores in downtown Asheville, and the woman behind the counter looked at Laura and said, "You're Celery's mom!" Having been a resident at the behavioral/rehab facility where Laura and Cel would visit, she happily remembered Laura from her interaction with Celery...maybe months before...even though Cel wasn't even around at the time. The fact that our girl made that sort of impression...well, of course that made us pretty happy.
Oh, we also discovered pretty early on that Celery was really good at wearing costumes (especially headwear), so we took every opportunity we could to dress her (and Dishy) up. I know some people hate this...but I don't care, it was adorable, people freakin loved it, and Cel loved the attention. Here are a few pics from those days:
For Easter
For Halloween, with Dishy
For the potentially problematic celebration that traditionally starts the Holiday Season
From an Atlanta Christmas parade we took part in each year with Happy Tails
Yeah, we were often amazed at how willingly she wore this stuff, too.
At this point, I've paused and restarted the writing process for this blog post so many times that I'm not even sure I've left a coherent thread to be followed from beginning to end. If you're looking for one that I haven't succeeded in writing...the best I can say is to just take a look at that precious little yellow Labby girl shown in these pictures, and try to imagine a world where we all live up to her standards. Always happy to see you. No judgment. Up for anything. And just a very, very fun girl.
I know it'll never come as naturally to me as it did for Celery...and that I'm so lucky I got to see it all firsthand. Man, do we miss this dog.
Being the bestest girl on a train ride
Posing in front of her own advertising photo...maybe Celery's most baller move ever
And here's that photo...the profile pic for "Lydia" as she was shown on the Atlanta Pet Rescue and Adoption website back in 2011. On the ride home from the shelter, she ducked her head whenever we went under an overpass. What a gift to get to see this girl grow...
I'm not sure why consistent blogging is such a difficult thing for me to do. I mean...it's probably the same reason that consistent anything is difficult for my ADD-inclined mind to keep up with, seeing as how I jump all over the place with my interests on a day-to-day (and sometimes minute-to-minute) basis. Blogging does seem like it's a great fit for a brain like that, since I can literally write about whatever the hell I want on here and figure that someone with a similar interest may eventually come upon it.
For whatever reason, though, it doesn't quite work that way, and so I once again find myself a few weeks into a new year with a renewed interest in keeping up with this blog, but without the confidence that I'm actually gonna see it through. While I'm here, though, maybe I can at least talk about some of the biggest deals in gaming, for me, over the course of last year...
First of all, in 2021, I finally dove into Pokémon GO. It was late in the year, so I guess I was about...oh, 5.5 years later than the rest of the world in discovering how much fun this game is. I did sign on a few years back and catch a few monsters, but my phone, data plan, and coverage in the rural area I lived in meant it didn't really catch my attention.
Of course, I've made no secret of my love for Pokémon, and so upon downloading the app to my new phone, here in crowded New Jersey...well, dang this is a good game. There are just so many options to it...whatever your specific interest in Pokémon, you can probably channel it in Pokémon GO. I'll admit that I enjoy the battling...y'know, the most ethically problematic aspect of the Pokémon franchise...but my biggest goal right now is simply filling out my Kanto Pokédex (especially evolving that Jigglypuff I've been holding onto since 2018). Other than that, it's the augmented reality aspect of the game that might be the most intriguing. Pokémon Snap is probably the coolest Pokémon title of them all, and the chance to take that photographic angle into the real world is pretty fun.
For example, here's my Houndour named Zuko, fitting in perfectly with the dogs of the Linneman household:
Here's Matty, my Alolan Ninetales, out enjoying the New Jersey winter with Celery and Tulip (and Laura and me):
I work with a bunch of scientists, and one of them told me that picture is the nerdiest thing she's ever seen. I take that as quite a compliment.
Speaking of work and nerdy pictures...uh-oh, is that a Flareon getting near the flammables cabinet...??
Of course, you might just have your pics bombed by other monsters, as this Smeargle did:
...or this Squirtle:
Ah, so...my buddy Zuko. He snagged his 50th Houndour candy earlier this week, so while he looks like this for now...
...he will be evolving into a Houndoom soon. My buddy won't be a puppy much longer.
How about some gaming content?
I actually think that the setup of Pokémon GO fits perfectly with the theme of Underground Elemental Beastfighting that I've mentioned before on this blog. Our world...with a hidden layer where people take these magical creatures captive and force them into battle...still seems like it's worth exploring on the tabletop.
Way back when, I had a little system for turning old Pokémon TCG cards into OSR monsters. I think I'll continue that, although I'm in more of a multiple polyhedral mood now, and I'll make an adjustment or two since I'm looking at more recent cards that have been subject to the card game's power creep (and since some things just require ad hoc translation rules...). Here are the latest editions of Houndour and Houndoom (I think):
Houndour 1 HD (6 HP), AC 13 Attacks: Bite +3 (1d4 damage)
Training: Single Strike Weakness: Grass
Houndoom 3 HD (13 HP), AC 12 Attacks: Darkness Fang +4 (1d10 damage)
Training: Single Strike Weakness: Grass
Single Strike Roar: At the beginning of each combat round, you may choose one of your monsters with Single Strike training. That monster takes 2 damage and gets +1 to all attacks for the rest of this combat.
Tulip came from a hoarding situation in which around 80 dogs were living together trapped in a barn. Laura and I worked with a number of these kids in a program to rehabilitate highly fearful dogs, and they are some of the most amazing beings you could ever hope to meet.
We adopted Tulip in 2019. For the last year and a half, she's been my unofficial emotional support animal. She deserves everything good that comes to her in life. She has unicorns on her collar and tag because she is our barnicorn.
Like her sister Celery, Tulip deserves to be made into an RPG character. Here she is using Justin Isaac's awesome Super-Pet class for Light City. (I'm not sure that I've noted it on the blog, but as I've looked back over this class, I've come to love it even more than when I first read it. It's solid and modular, and the "Tricks" are such a nice approach!)
Level 5 Super-Pet First appearance:Tales From the Barn (limited series) #1 STR 8 DEX 11 CON 15(+1) INT 8 WIS 6 CHA 14 4+4 HD (18 HP) Saving Throw 10 Move 12 ft. (flight 24 ft.) AC 9[10]
Attack: Bite or Horn, +3 to hit, 1d6 damage
Super-Pet Tricks: Speech (yeah, why not, we seem to assume that all of our pets have this...) Those Eyes (Too Cute) (Charm 1x/day) Hero Support x2 (Cure Wounds I 2x/day) Flight (again...why not? she's got the horn for it...) Getting the Hang of This (Tool Use) (+2 to saving throws to use human technology)
With one magic canine word, Tulip is transformed into even more of a Wonder Dog. She has a horn.
(A note: I realize that playing up the "barn" thing with Tulip may seem like a weird celebration of something terrible in her past, but with all of the precious kids we worked with from her case, "barn dog" has practically become a synonym for an amazing dog for some of us. It is almost a badge of perfection.)
So, why am I just rambling about Tulip? Well, besides the fact that she absolutely deserves to be rambled about, she's especially on my mind these days because of this girl:
This is Helen. Laura and I fostered her around the end of 2018. She is from the same fearful dog program as Tulip, and is another survivor of a hoarding situation.
One thing that has become clear over our time connected to these exceptional pups is that when they are separated from their families, they often don't react like you might expect a typical "lost dog" to react. The fear kicks into overdrive at times. Heck, we saw it with Tulip during our move, when we walked her at a rest area. The interstate traffic was in her head, and she tugged on her leash with a look in her eyes that made me worry that if she were to get free, she might run for a while before even taking stock of where her loved ones were.
We found out about two weeks ago that Helen went missing from her home due to an unfortunate but understandably human mistake on the part of her family. After at least one initial sighting, things went quiet for over a week before she was finally spotted again, more than once, and hope picked up. Then...right when a major breakthrough seemed almost inevitable...we got this insane winter storm, and the effort has become more difficult.
I'm not the sort that questions the seemingly absurd unfairness of reality, but for some reason, this just doesn't fit the way I need the world to work.
If you are the sort that goes in for any sort of thoughts, prayers, or positive vibes for others...or even if you're not, actually...I would ask that you keep Helen in mind. I know that we live in a world that's filled with pain, cruelty, and injustice, and it might be offensive that I ignore so much of that but take the time to fret over a lost dog. If you feel that's the case, I'm sorry.
I just think Helen deserves a happy ending to her story, and I wanted to share it. Thank you for reading.
I am actually very lucky in that I have a job that has to continue, working for an organization that's established enough to weather some tough times, in a capacity that doesn't require a lot of face-to-face interaction with humans (just canines).
But working with a skeleton crew...keeping my distance from the few other folks around...and not knowing what restrictions tomorrow might bring...well, it's all pretty weird.
Inspired by early D&D's use of cheap plastic beasties for what would become iconic creatures of the game, James wants to see monsters based on...well, cheap toys! Here are the bullet points of the rules from his announcement: 1. Find a cheap toy 2. Let your imagination work 3. Write up your monster 4. Submit your entry 5. Vote for the finalists! 6. Finalists go to the judges 7. Win fabulous prizes! Oh, and the deadline for entries is today, November 30. I have a feeling the flood of emails he gets after people read this blog post will encourage him to extend it (again), though... ;) Now, around my house, the most common cheap toys to be found are those belonging to my dogs. I've been wanting to use some of them in (human) gaming for a long time, so here's my contest entry (statted for generic OSR gaming)!
Aetherwurm
HD 9 (36 HP), AC 14 (base 10, ascending), Attack: 1 Bite (3d6 damage)
Special: The Aetherwurm is immune to damage from fire, electricity, and lasers, and actually absorbs their energy. For every 5 damage the Aetherwurm would endure from these sources, whether from attacks, spells, or other means, it gains 1 HD.
Aetherwurms are spacefaring creatures known to many inhabitants of the outer worlds. They are typically around 30 feet long and covered with fuzzy nubbins (that's what the astrozoologists call them, anyway) that seem to both guide their movement (through space and on solid ground) and enable them to drain power from energy-rich objects and locations. These may include sources of both conventional energy and that of a magical nature.
An Aetherwurm seeking a meal.
Feeding on a power station.
Aetherwurms are generally quite docile but are known to be stubborn. Once they are set on their "prey," they usually are not deterred without force. They are also fiercely protective of one another on the rare occasion that a group is encountered.
May want to think twice about using that raygun...
Skilled mechanics have been known to use the bodies of slain Aetherwurms as batteries for spacecraft. Aetherwurm corpses may maintain harnessable energy within them for up to six weeks after death.
Oh, and they have one natural predator, the Megacolossal Spacepup:
Now...you still have a few hours...head over to the Monster Man contest and see what you can do to get an entry in...!
Not a straight-up fight, cuz we know who would win that one. (Sorry, pups.) BUT...a little over a week ago, I got a message from Rika over at DiscoverGeek.com pointing out that my readers and I might enjoy the map they put together on tendencies within states to Google up the Caped Crusader or...well, puppies.
Now, I know I am but a pawn in the Game of Clicks that is internet commerce, but if someone is willing to both (A) do some research on two of the main reasons life is worth living, and (B) point it out to me in such a way that implies I have a significant readership (I'm talking numbers here, people...I appreciate EVERYONE who's willing to take a moment to look at my random thoughts on here!)...well, then I sure as heck am gonna plug it on Monstrous Matters...!
So if you're so inclined...go check it out over at DiscoverGeek...and I'm definitely interested if anyone has an interpretation they'd like to share!
Considering that Light City currently occupies a prominent position in my gamer brain, I think it's time I start statting up some of the characters I've been going over in my head. First up is a darling little heroine built using +Justin Isaac's excellent Super-Pet class...
Princess Celery
Level 7 Super-Pet First appearance:The Yellow Planet Chronicles (limited series) #1 STR 8 DEX 16 CON 12 INT 7 WIS 8 CHA 18 5 HD (18 HP) Saving Throw 8 AC 8[11] Attack: Bite, +4 to hit, 1d6 damage
Super-Pet Tricks:
Speech (yep, she has a whispery voice not unlike the bell in this classic video)
Super Speed: Run x2 (96 ft)
Swim + Super Speed: Swim (48 ft)
Too Cute (Charm 1x/day)
Hero Support x2 (Cure Wounds I 2x/day)
As a puppy, Celery was rocketed from her birthplace on the Yellow Planet to Earth to serve as a defender of Terran human- and caninekind. Little is known of her early days on the planet, but she eventually found herself at an animal shelter in Georgia and was given the name Lydia. Soon after being adopted by her unsuspecting foster parents, Celery's heritage as Yellow Planet royalty was revealed to her, and she began to tap into the powers granted by her alien physiology.
Celery works a job as a pet-assisted therapy dog, so she gets to spend a lot of time walking around and having people tell her how awesome she is. This also helps her keep her paw on the pulse of her adopted hometown of Dogwood City and know where she is needed the most.
While I'm "working" on getting more traditional archetypes figured out for Light City, +Justin Isaac of Halls of the Nephilim has been thinking outside the box on what should be included in Swords & Wizardry Light-based supers. His first Light City One Shot has just hit OneBookShelf, and it's awesome! You should go check out The Super-Pet!
Apparently Justin's thinking of changing up the cover. I dunno...I like it!
Given my love for both comic book heroics and my own super pets, this is actually a class that I knew was going to have to happen at some point, and Justin's done a great job with presenting a broadly useful (and fun!) character option (that can even handle robot assistants!).
Look for a character or two to be statted up here later in the week...!
I think the topics I hit on this blog probably make it clear that I'm a fan of ridiculous anthro charactersandsettings, so I was pretty darned happy when I found this old SF anthology comic story. (I had probably read about it, as it's even referenced on the Kamandi Wikipedia page, but I didn't realize it was in the public domain until I happened upon it here.) Here's a Kirby story from way back in 1957 (15 years before Kamandi's debut!) that shows some clear roots for the later series. Interestingly, this story also predates the novel upon which the film version of Planet of the Apes was based, so it's very cool to see that the basics of The Last Boy on Earth were laid out with no Apes influence.
The full story is below, and you should really check out all of Alarming Tales #1 (lots of free Kirby!)...but I don't think I'll give too much away by sharing a bit of opinion before continuing. (But please feel free to skip to the good stuff below!)
The "resolution" to this story is kind of weird. And I know that "weird" is a silly observation when the story is about time-traveling to the future to find a world of interspecific warfare among anthropomorphic animals, but I can't help but feel that this is one of those story seeds that would have really benefited from expansion beyond the short-story anthology setup of so many of these '50s SF/horror/monster/etc. comic series. This panel toward the end of the story seems like it should have a lot of weight...
...but, just six pages into the world, it just seems silly.
Not that I mind all that much...it's still pretty awesome overall! And in this future world of 2017, we get the benefit of Kamandi to expand the scope of the story.
Side note: This Wasteland Wednesday is also an appropriate time to return to "real" blogging on here, as I've left Monstrous Matters to be a bit of a wasteland lately as my life undergoes a soft reboot. I hope to be back in the blogosphere to visit for a spell, now!
