Hello everybody! I usually post these a little later in the evening, but I’m going to be out so here’s a “sneak preview” of tomorrow’s cartoon. It deals with the GOP’s desperate attempt to spin possible indictments as not worth the trouble, or “technicalities” as Sen. Hutchison called them (especially since Cheney’s name has come into the mix). The only thing they’re spinning now is their wheels (which are going to come off the cart if the indictments do come down).
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Political Animals – Featuring an All-Nude Cast!
Oh my! You nailed it.
You are getting better! This one was pretty good!
Can I ask for some different political animals, or at least some different poses. The two animals are always in the same positions. Otherwise, I really look forward to the latest strip!
to represent the two US political parties. 😉
Hey there! Thanks for the feedback.
I get asked a lot why I just stick with the sheep and goat and I actually did kick around a few different animals before I settled on them.
DuctapeFatwa’s sorta right – Rob the Goat represents not just Republicans, but conservativism of all sorts. Woolly the Sheep is a liberal.
Believe it or not, a lot of people think I chose a goat for conservatives because a goat’s head appears on some versions of the pentagram, and with so many on the Right in league with the Dark Lord I could see why they would think that.
But the real reason conservatives are represented by a goat is because most goats will eat anything presented to them without questioning it and I feel like that’s how so many people fall into the trap. There was originally supposed to be a second goat named Fab. Rob and Fab were named after Milli Vanilli, because they mouthed someone elses words, too.
Liberals are represented by a sheep because the left is stereotyped as weak. Only this sheep goes against that grain. He doesn’t just lay down and take it. He thinks for himself – just like a true progressive. I also thought that of all the animals I drew, he looked the funniest and seemed to have the most attitude. Here’s a big one: I knew anyone who wanted to attack what I said in the cartoon (but couldn’t come up with anything to counter it) would immediately seize on the sheep as an object of sexual perversion. So in a way, Woolly’s bait for the ignorant.
If you look at a lot of political cartoons, like Tom Tomorrow and Slowpoke, they basically don’t so much tell a joke as they satirize current events. I figured I’d be different and make a cartoon that just tells a joke or points out an absurdity. Set-up and punchline. I keep the characters kind of vague so I don’t limit the jokes I can tell. If you create a character trait, it develops that character but it also creates a restriction. Garfield can never do a joke where he hates lasagna. I’m trying to follow “The Far Side’s” model of keeping the characters somewhat vague, although I think their personalities come through somewhat. Otherwise, I may as well just write the joke, but I feel the characters add something. Jokes can be a little sharper without seeming mean when told by a bug-eyed sheep.
As you pointed out, I generally keep them in a lot of the same poses (didn’t Peanuts do a lot of that?). That’s on purpose, too, but I plan to expand that out some when I’m not so restricted for time.
Well, I didn’t mean for this to turn into an essay but I was so appreciative that you took the time to give me your thoughts that I wanted to make sure I gave you a good answer.
Glad you liked the cartoon!
Thanks for the explanation Spike, and good luck with your work!