Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Beaver and Steve

Just in time for the holidays I bring to you Beaver and Steve, a comic suitable for the whole family. Well, suitable in that there aren't any naughty bits. It's still mildly insane and likely to be considered confusing by the average eight-year-old. The confusion isn't caused by metaphorical explorations of cultural and linguistic themes, however. No, it's caused by funny wrapped in nonsense. Pure. Comical. Nonsense.

Wowsers. This would be easier with less nonsense. It wouldn't be as funny... but I'm not really sure how to categorize writing that ranges from cereal munching panda infestations to Quiche vanquished daemons. The writing is good, clearly, because within this nonsense is enjoyment. Oh, so much enjoyment. It's like play-time for your brain. The story lines are generally brief, and often include completely unexpected twists and turns. Occasionally science laced, I certainly wouldn't consider the comic educational in any way - more "geek friendly". Most punch lines are a clever combination of slapstick and one liners, very few of which are groan worthy.

The artwork is as whimsical as the writing. Fluid outlines and bright colors abound, but the hues are tame enough to avoid being obnoxious. Most strips could be considered full comic pages, though they do very in size. I'm fairly sure that no other art style would support the writing as well as the one creator James Turner has developed here. A quick look at the first comic will show you just how far that style has come in the three years the comic has been running.

The site is great visually, and my only real complaint is the lack of an About page and navigation links at the top of each comic. Granted, the navigation beneath the comic is more than adequate, and the archive is nicely arranged by comic title and date, so I won't complain too much. The blog section is a must read, offering both humor and news. There's also the ability to post any comic on your own site, send a comic to a friend through email, and sign up for the newsletter and RSS feed.

Honestly - I'd be amazed if there was a single one of you that wasn't well aware of Beaver and Steve long before this farce of a review. If, for some bizarre reason, you haven't read it in a while - go do so now.