Kristofer Straub
Encyclopedia
Kristofer Straub is the creator of webcomics Checkerboard Nightmare, Starslip, Time Friends, Origin Story, and more recently chainsawsuit and F Chords. He is also the co-founder of webcomics collectives Blank Label Comics
and Halfpixel. Straub voiced the character of Brent Sienna in PVP: The series and co-creates Blamimations with Scott Kurtz, for Penny Arcade
. He also manages and writes for the horror fiction site Ichor Falls.
, until Straub split away from Blank Label to merge Starslip with his new collective, Halfpixel, in November 2007. The comic initially ran under the name Starshift Crisis. The nearly identical Starslip Crisis appeared early in the strip's run, with its own website and associated content, differing only in that the term "starslip" replaced "starshift". The two ran in parallel, until a strip in August 2005 which definitively ended the plot of Starshift Crisis, but which played out differently in Starslip Crisis. Reportedly the name change was caused by a legal issue.
Starslip Crisis was first set in the 3440
s, aboard the starship
IDS Fuseli,
named after painter Henry Fuseli
. The Fuseli was a former luxury warship which has been converted into a starship museum. It is still capable of military activities. The Fuseli travelled from system to system with its exhibits (using a faster than light "starslip drive"), the comic chronicling the adventures of the crew. Much of the art featured upon the Fuseli dated from the 20th or 21st centuries.
Much of the strip centers around the exploits of, and relationships between, the three main protagonists:
On January 12, 2009, Straub rebooted the artwork and modified the name of the strip after a storyline where the Fuseli, the ship the comic is set on, escapes from a Universe destroyed by the Future.
Starslip Crisis was nominated for five Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards in 2006: Outstanding Newcomer, Outstanding Black and White Art, Outstanding Use of Flash, Outstanding Web Design, and Outstanding Science Fiction Comic (which it won).
Kristofer Straub was also nominated in 2006 for Outstanding Writer in the Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards. The strip was nominated for three Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards in 2007: Outstanding Black and White Art, Outstanding Science Fiction, and Outstanding Web Design.
for a time, before becoming one of the founding comics of Blank Label Comics
. During 2006, it appeared monthly on the webcomic news site Comixpedia. The strip is self-aware, using metahumour extensively, and the title character, Checkerboard Nightmare (Chex) is obsessed with gaining fame as a webcomic character and is willing to do anything necessary to achieve it. The setup of the strip does not change beyond 'Chex wants new readers and concocts a hare-brained scheme to get them', satirising the strict adherence to format exhibited by, for example, sitcoms. Its targets expanded as the strip progressed, and shifted from satirising webcomics to the search for fame in general with the move to Keenspot
.
Checkerboard Nightmare storylines have included Chex physically attacking other webcomic creators (drawn in each creator's art style) in an attempt to gain fame by getting rid of the competition, and a one-shot comic in which a character from Queen of Wands
, which had just ended, was run over by Chex and another character in a car as a parody of a similar gag in the webcomic Something Positive
.
Checkerboard Nightmare received an Honorable Mention in the Comedic category at the 2005 Cartoonist's Choice Awards, Honorable Mention in the Comedic category.
Its topics range from current events to pop culture. Recurring characters include Chainsawsuit, a man with a series of chainsaws strapped to his body for self-defense against zombies, Lazy Cat, an ultraviolent send-up of Garfield
; Two Cops, a police officer
who was accidentally enrolled in the academy twice and is regarded by all characters as two separate people; H. P. Wuvcraft, a cuddlier version of Lovecraft; master pickup artist
Huntyr Chase; and Straub himself, who appears in some autobiographical comics.
-area studio musicians
who also play in an unknown local band named "Soft Operation" -- have gone on to make cameo appearances in both Starslip and chainsawsuit.
In May 2011 F Chords was relaunched as a daily comic. Its setting has been relocated to Los Angeles
, and follows Ash and Wade's continued efforts to popularize their band.
characters.
Also in 2006 Straub launched the Halfpixel site, as a location for a variety of creative projects. The Time Friends series has proved popular with fans, with many making their own strips which are displayed on the site via a "creative framework" named Web You.0.
On Feb. 22, 2007, episode of Kurtz's PVP Livecast podcast, Straub announced his plans to relocate from Los Angeles to Dallas, Texas, to join Kurtz as office and creative partners.
In a Daily Affirmation, a joint podcast between him and Scott Kurtz, Straub mentions being an ordained minister of the Universal Life Church
.
Straub also hosted, along with David Malki, the podcast "Tweet Me Harder".
In 2007, to coincide with his move to Dallas, Straub repurposed the Halfpixel site to serve as a hub for his and Kurtz's joint creative projects. Halfpixel later expanded to include webcartoonists Brad Guigar
and Dave Kellett
of the comics Evil Inc. and Sheldon, respectively.
The four published How To Make Webcomics through Image Comics
in the first quarter of 2008. The book covers a variety of topics of interest for beginning and intermediate webcartoonists.
Blank Label Comics
Blank Label Comics is a collective of web comics whose creators have banded together for mutual assistance and promotion. The Blank Label Comics website officially went online on May 23, 2005.All of the comics had previously been hosted on Keenspot...
and Halfpixel. Straub voiced the character of Brent Sienna in PVP: The series and co-creates Blamimations with Scott Kurtz, for Penny Arcade
Penny Arcade
Penny Arcade may refer to:* Penny arcade, a venue for coin-operated devices* Penny Arcade ** Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, a series of video games based on the webcomic...
. He also manages and writes for the horror fiction site Ichor Falls.
Starslip
Starslip is a daily independent science fiction/comedy webcomic. Starslip Crisis was part of the webcomics cooperation collective Blank Label ComicsBlank Label Comics
Blank Label Comics is a collective of web comics whose creators have banded together for mutual assistance and promotion. The Blank Label Comics website officially went online on May 23, 2005.All of the comics had previously been hosted on Keenspot...
, until Straub split away from Blank Label to merge Starslip with his new collective, Halfpixel, in November 2007. The comic initially ran under the name Starshift Crisis. The nearly identical Starslip Crisis appeared early in the strip's run, with its own website and associated content, differing only in that the term "starslip" replaced "starshift". The two ran in parallel, until a strip in August 2005 which definitively ended the plot of Starshift Crisis, but which played out differently in Starslip Crisis. Reportedly the name change was caused by a legal issue.
Starslip Crisis was first set in the 3440
35th century
The 35th century of the anno Domini era will span from January 1, 3401–December 31, 3500 of the Gregorian calendar. It will be the fifth century of the 4th millennium.-Astronomical events:*3412: Expected return of Comet McNaught-Russell...
s, aboard the starship
Starship
A starship or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for traveling between the stars, as opposed to a vehicle designed for orbital spaceflight or interplanetary travel....
IDS Fuseli,
named after painter Henry Fuseli
Henry Fuseli
Henry Fuseli was a British painter, draughtsman, and writer on art, of Swiss origin.-Biography:...
. The Fuseli was a former luxury warship which has been converted into a starship museum. It is still capable of military activities. The Fuseli travelled from system to system with its exhibits (using a faster than light "starslip drive"), the comic chronicling the adventures of the crew. Much of the art featured upon the Fuseli dated from the 20th or 21st centuries.
Much of the strip centers around the exploits of, and relationships between, the three main protagonists:
- Memnon Vanderbeam is "the fussy, arrogant curator of the Fuseli." He tends to be self-centered, often putting the lives of his crew at risk, while acting in his own self-interest. He constantly abuses Mr. Jinx, and suffers from "Space Affective Disorder". He is wholly devoted to art and his beloved museum, valuing it more than anything.
- Cutter Edgewise is an "ex-pirate, drunk, and the Fuseli’s pilot acting on behalf of the Terran military." (ibid)
- Mr. Jinx is the "alien operations assistant to Vanderbeam. Like C-3PO without all that raw courage." (ibid) Jinx is cirbozoid, an asexual incectoid race that has repeatedly faced extermination at the hand of others.
On January 12, 2009, Straub rebooted the artwork and modified the name of the strip after a storyline where the Fuseli, the ship the comic is set on, escapes from a Universe destroyed by the Future.
Starslip Crisis was nominated for five Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards in 2006: Outstanding Newcomer, Outstanding Black and White Art, Outstanding Use of Flash, Outstanding Web Design, and Outstanding Science Fiction Comic (which it won).
Kristofer Straub was also nominated in 2006 for Outstanding Writer in the Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards. The strip was nominated for three Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards in 2007: Outstanding Black and White Art, Outstanding Science Fiction, and Outstanding Web Design.
Checkerboard Nightmare
Checkerboard Nightmare was originally hosted independently, it moved to KeenspotKeenspot
Keenspot is a webcomics portal founded in March 2000 by cartoonist Chris Crosby , Crosby's mother Teri, cartoonist Darren Bleuel , and Nathan Stone.-History:...
for a time, before becoming one of the founding comics of Blank Label Comics
Blank Label Comics
Blank Label Comics is a collective of web comics whose creators have banded together for mutual assistance and promotion. The Blank Label Comics website officially went online on May 23, 2005.All of the comics had previously been hosted on Keenspot...
. During 2006, it appeared monthly on the webcomic news site Comixpedia. The strip is self-aware, using metahumour extensively, and the title character, Checkerboard Nightmare (Chex) is obsessed with gaining fame as a webcomic character and is willing to do anything necessary to achieve it. The setup of the strip does not change beyond 'Chex wants new readers and concocts a hare-brained scheme to get them', satirising the strict adherence to format exhibited by, for example, sitcoms. Its targets expanded as the strip progressed, and shifted from satirising webcomics to the search for fame in general with the move to Keenspot
Keenspot
Keenspot is a webcomics portal founded in March 2000 by cartoonist Chris Crosby , Crosby's mother Teri, cartoonist Darren Bleuel , and Nathan Stone.-History:...
.
Checkerboard Nightmare storylines have included Chex physically attacking other webcomic creators (drawn in each creator's art style) in an attempt to gain fame by getting rid of the competition, and a one-shot comic in which a character from Queen of Wands
Queen of Wands
Queen of Wands is a webcomic that began on July 22, 2002, and ended on February 23, 2005. The comic is a loose adaptation of events in the life of the artist, Aeire. The story's tone shifts back and forth from comedic installments to more serious and dramatic chapters...
, which had just ended, was run over by Chex and another character in a car as a parody of a similar gag in the webcomic Something Positive
Something Positive
Something Positive or S*P is a webcomic by R. K. Milholland, which debuted on December 19, 2001. The comic is characterized by a cynical tone and off-beat humor, including its portrayals of geeks, gamers, and goths....
.
Checkerboard Nightmare received an Honorable Mention in the Comedic category at the 2005 Cartoonist's Choice Awards, Honorable Mention in the Comedic category.
chainsawsuit
Formerly titled indie comic, chainsawsuit was launched in March 2008 as a parody of badly drawn gag-a-day strips. Straub soon renamed the comic after one of its recurring characters so that it could expand beyond mocking indie comics. It ran for a few months on a Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule, then began to update every weekday starting in August 2008.Its topics range from current events to pop culture. Recurring characters include Chainsawsuit, a man with a series of chainsaws strapped to his body for self-defense against zombies, Lazy Cat, an ultraviolent send-up of Garfield
Garfield
Garfield is a comic strip created by Jim Davis. Published since June 19, 1978, it chronicles the life of the title character, the cat Garfield ; his owner, Jon Arbuckle; and Arbuckle's dog, Odie...
; Two Cops, a police officer
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
who was accidentally enrolled in the academy twice and is regarded by all characters as two separate people; H. P. Wuvcraft, a cuddlier version of Lovecraft; master pickup artist
Pickup artist
Pickup artist describes a man who considers himself to be skilled, or who tries to be skilled at meeting, attracting, and seducing women.The use of pickup in this context, slang for making a casual acquaintance with a stranger in anticipation of sexual relations, dates from at least the World War,...
Huntyr Chase; and Straub himself, who appears in some autobiographical comics.
F Chords
F Chords ran from July 29, 2008 to December 5 of the same year, ending along with its first story arc. Its main characters -- Ash and Wade, two AustinAustin
Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas.Austin may also refer to:-In the United States:*Austin, Arkansas*Austin, Colorado*Austin, Chicago, Illinois*Austin, Indiana*Austin, Minnesota*Austin, Nevada*Austin, Oregon...
-area studio musicians
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
who also play in an unknown local band named "Soft Operation" -- have gone on to make cameo appearances in both Starslip and chainsawsuit.
In May 2011 F Chords was relaunched as a daily comic. Its setting has been relocated to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, and follows Ash and Wade's continued efforts to popularize their band.
Projects
In December 2006, Straub was named co-writer and co-producer on PvP: The Series, a series of animated shorts featuring the PvPPvP
PvP, also known as Player vs Player, is a webcomic, written and drawn by Scott Kurtz, with around 100,000 unique visitors per day . On February 1, 2007, it became the subject of its own animated series.-Themes:...
characters.
Also in 2006 Straub launched the Halfpixel site, as a location for a variety of creative projects. The Time Friends series has proved popular with fans, with many making their own strips which are displayed on the site via a "creative framework" named Web You.0.
On Feb. 22, 2007, episode of Kurtz's PVP Livecast podcast, Straub announced his plans to relocate from Los Angeles to Dallas, Texas, to join Kurtz as office and creative partners.
In a Daily Affirmation, a joint podcast between him and Scott Kurtz, Straub mentions being an ordained minister of the Universal Life Church
Universal Life Church
The Universal Life Church is a religious organization that offers anyone semi-immediate ordination as a ULC minister free of charge. The organization states that anyone can become a minister immediately, without having to go through the pre-ordination process required by other religious faiths...
.
Straub also hosted, along with David Malki, the podcast "Tweet Me Harder".
Halfpixel.com
Brad Guigar
Brad Guigar is an American cartoonist who is best known for his daily webcomic Greystone Inn and its sequel Evil Inc. ...and his laugh-Biography:Brad Guigar was the eldest of five children and grew up in Bad Axe, Michigan...
and Dave Kellett
Dave Kellett
Dave Kellett is the creator and cartoonist of two webcomic titles, Sheldon and Drive, and the co-author of How To Make Webcomics. He is one of a small but growing group of webcomic artists who are self-sufficient.-Early Years and education:...
of the comics Evil Inc. and Sheldon, respectively.
The four published How To Make Webcomics through Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
in the first quarter of 2008. The book covers a variety of topics of interest for beginning and intermediate webcartoonists.