Ozy and Millie
Encyclopedia
Ozy and Millie is a webcomic
, created by D. C. Simpson, which debuted in January 1997. The comic was part of Keenspot
from 2001 to 2003, going independent for several years before returning to Keenspot in November 2006. It follows the adventures of assorted anthropomorphized
animals. New strips were released on most weekdays, though the comic is currently on hiatus as the 'daily strips' have ended. The comic centers on Ozy and Millie, two young fox
es attending North Harbordale Elementary School in Seattle, contending with everyday elementary school
issues such as tests and bullies, as well as more surreal situations. On April 24, 2008, D.C. Simpson announced the end of the daily strip by the end of 2008 on the O&M home page.
The strip concentrates on character interaction, but sometimes veers into commentary based on Simpson's political views. Simpson also airs her political views in her other comic, I Drew This
. Most of the strips have been reprinted in book form. Five collections were released through Plan 9 Publishing
, but they have all gone out of print; currently a complete set of the strip's archives is available through Lulu.com
. The strip is listed in the top 200 most read webcomic on The Webcomic List.
, Calvin and Hobbes
, The Simpsons
and Pogo
. It became an irregular webcomic in early 1998. In June 1998, it became a Monday-Friday daily strip. In the same year, Simpson won a newspaper syndicates' college cartoonist award. When the strip began, Simpson's artistic style was similar to that in Calvin and Hobbes. In 2000, the strip went on hiatus and returned with a new, unique style. The strip also went on hiatus several times. It was once on hiatus for five months, between August 23, 2003 to January 22, 2004. On January 30, 2004, Simpson began a new strip, I Drew This, a political webcomic which contains Simpson's political views, which also appear in Ozy and Millie. In 2002, the strip won the Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards for "Best Anthropomorphic Comic". The strip also won the 2006 and 2007 Ursa Major Awards for "Best Anthropomorphic Comic Strip".
(also called an 'Adolescent Gray Zen Fox") who attends North Harbordale Elementary School in Seattle, together with his friend Millie. He was originally supposed to be a wolf, until a fan showed Simpson a photo of Arctic fox cubs, that Simpson claimed were "absolute ringers" for Ozy. However, Ozy retained his whisker marks. Ozy's full name, Ozymandias Justin Llewellyn, is a reference to the poem Ozymandias
by Percy Bysshe Shelley
:
Ozy is recognised by his large top hat, which he got from his father Llewellyn when he adopted Ozy. The only other clothing he wears is a vest, which makes him the target of some of Millie's practical jokes. He is adept at letting Millie's pranks pass by without effect, but he does suffer bullying at the hands of the school jock, Jeremy, who likes to stuff Ozy into rubbish bins. Ozy also suffers from annual baldness, usually through either a freak accident or because of Millie. Although it is caused by a gypsy curse (later revealed by Llewellyn to be a myth) which has passed on through Ozy's adoptive father's heritage largely unnoticed, it does affect Ozy badly since he is the first Llewellyn with any hair to lose. Ozy is also quiet and serene, usually playing the "straight person
". Under Llewellyn's guidance, Ozy also practices Zen
; or rather a humorous version of it.
Ozy is told by Llewellyn that his birth mother's name was Shelley and that she disappeared after discovering perfection when she created the "perfect" ice cream flavor, but since absolute perfection is incompatible with the world, she ascended to a higher plane of existence.
Ozy's father left before he was born and become a monk. The pair met when the monk came to town for a visit, though Ozy decided to stay with Llewellyn, whom he considered his "true" dad.
girl who is Ozy's best friend. Millie is usually seen wearing a set of blue denim overalls. Unlike Ozy, who is calm, Millie is chaotic and manic, both in the destruction she leaves behind and the ways she devises of avoiding work. She is a rebel and is opposed to any form of authority, which regularly leads to confrontations with both her teacher, Ms. Sorkowitz, and her mother, Mililani Mudd. Her destructive and rebellious habits not only get herself into trouble, but Ozy too.
Although she is normally manic, she also has a strong sense of justice, facing the inexplicable wrongs of life and the world she sees. However, her rebellions are mostly limited to annoying her mother, playing jokes on Ozy and disrupting the peace at school. None of which matters any less to her, as long as she has fun doing it. Millie says aloud what others think, and does what others, for fear of reaction from the people around them, would not dare. She, like Ozy, often tries to answer the most important questions in life, but her method of finding the answers makes her unique.
father, known only as Llewellyn, is a red dragon
. Llewellyn and other members of his dragon family have been responsible for running several secret conspiracies. He also lends both Ozy and Millie advice, although his advice tends to be nonsense. He has also tried to run for U.S. president
- first under the "Rainbow Peace Party" in 1968, the "People With Nothing Better To Do" Party in 2000, then under the "Zen
Party" in 2004 and 2008. He also runs his house as a separate nation: Greater Llewellynlland. His favourite pastime is playing the "House Rules Parcheesi
", a game which has many, very complicated rules, that is claimed to be rather opposite to Calvinball. Llewellyn married Millie's Mother at the end of the Daily Strip. Of all the characters in Ozy and Millie, Simpson has claimed that Llewellyn is her favorite.
, who is as an older, wiser, more temperate version of Millie. She was like Millie in her childhood, and as a result knows how to deal with any trouble caused by her, much to Millie's annoyance. While Ms. Mudd knows how to deal with Millie, she is also the first to lend her support if there is anything amiss. She married Llewellyn at the end of the strip's run in a storyarc from November–December 2008. Her full name was revealed on October 1, 2008.
friend who constantly tries to be "cool," even ditching his "uncool" friends such as Ozy. Ironically, his friend Stephan the aardvark
is the nerd
iest character in the strip. Avery's younger brother, Timulty, constantly undermines his coolness. The two major antagonist
s are Felicia the sheep, a "popular girl
" who teases Millie for being too individualistic, and Jeremy the jock rabbit
who bullies Ozy.
Other minor characters include Ms. Sorkowitz, Ozy and Millie's kangaroo
teacher and Principal Beau Vine, the bull
principal of the school who allows bullying believing that, "Repeated exposure to unprovoked assault squelches unhealthy nonconformist tendencies." Dr. I. Wahnsinnig (German for insane or mad), is a ring-tailed lemur
psychiatrist of the school who fights with Vine over school issues. Ozy's dragon cousin Isolde is another character who, like Llewellyn, is in charge of various conspiracies. Another character is Pirate Captain Locke, a child pirate
from an alternate dimension on the other side of Llewellyn's couch
, in which people age backwards. Locke, currently the same age as Millie, is also her biological father.
is one of the main supporters of the strip. In 2001, he wrote that the strip was, "a gently humorous fantasy with a liberal political philosophy." In 2006, Patten still claimed that, "Ozy and Millie is one of the top anthropomorphic cartoon strips on the Internet," although he did also comment negatively about the loss of colour in between changes of printed editions of books. The comic is also popular because of its relatively inoffensive content, with one person writing that it was, "Suitable for readers of all ages, really."
included six pages of interview illustrated with Ozy and Millie strips in Attitude 3: The New Subversive Online Cartoonists
.
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
, created by D. C. Simpson, which debuted in January 1997. The comic was part of 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:...
from 2001 to 2003, going independent for several years before returning to Keenspot in November 2006. It follows the adventures of assorted anthropomorphized
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
animals. New strips were released on most weekdays, though the comic is currently on hiatus as the 'daily strips' have ended. The comic centers on Ozy and Millie, two young fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
es attending North Harbordale Elementary School in Seattle, contending with everyday elementary school
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
issues such as tests and bullies, as well as more surreal situations. On April 24, 2008, D.C. Simpson announced the end of the daily strip by the end of 2008 on the O&M home page.
The strip concentrates on character interaction, but sometimes veers into commentary based on Simpson's political views. Simpson also airs her political views in her other comic, I Drew This
I Drew This
I Drew This is an online political cartoon created by Dana Simpson, the creator of Ozy and Millie. The strip is primarily about politics and is of proudly liberal orientation...
. Most of the strips have been reprinted in book form. Five collections were released through Plan 9 Publishing
Plan 9 Publishing
Plan Nine Publishing was a small press book publisher known for publishing webcomics in printed form. The first series published, and perhaps its most famous, was Kevin and Kell....
, but they have all gone out of print; currently a complete set of the strip's archives is available through Lulu.com
Lulu.com
Lulu is a company offering publishing, printing, and distribution services with headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina. Since their founding in 2002, Lulu has published over 1.1 million titles by creators in over 200 countries and territories and adds 20,000 new titles to their catalogue a month...
. The strip is listed in the top 200 most read webcomic on The Webcomic List.
History
Ozy and Millie originally started as a print comic strip in a Washington college newspaper, the Copper Point Journal, in 1997 using ink and brush as drawing implements. Simpson claims to have been influenced by comics and cartoons such as Bloom CountyBloom County
Bloom County is an American comic strip by Berkeley Breathed which ran from December 8, 1980, until August 6, 1989. It examined events in politics and culture through the viewpoint of a fanciful small town in Middle America, where children often have adult personalities and vocabularies and where...
, Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes
Calvin and Hobbes is a syndicated daily comic strip that was written and illustrated by American cartoonist Bill Watterson, and syndicated from November 18, 1985, to December 31, 1995. It follows the humorous antics of Calvin, a precocious and adventurous six-year-old boy, and Hobbes, his...
, The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
and Pogo
Pogo
Pogo is the title and central character of a long-running daily American comic strip, created by cartoonist Walt Kelly and distributed by the Post-Hall Syndicate...
. It became an irregular webcomic in early 1998. In June 1998, it became a Monday-Friday daily strip. In the same year, Simpson won a newspaper syndicates' college cartoonist award. When the strip began, Simpson's artistic style was similar to that in Calvin and Hobbes. In 2000, the strip went on hiatus and returned with a new, unique style. The strip also went on hiatus several times. It was once on hiatus for five months, between August 23, 2003 to January 22, 2004. On January 30, 2004, Simpson began a new strip, I Drew This, a political webcomic which contains Simpson's political views, which also appear in Ozy and Millie. In 2002, the strip won the Web Cartoonist's Choice Awards for "Best Anthropomorphic Comic". The strip also won the 2006 and 2007 Ursa Major Awards for "Best Anthropomorphic Comic Strip".
Ozy
Ozymandias Justin Llewellyn is a ten-year-old arctic foxArctic fox
The arctic fox , also known as the white fox, polar fox or snow fox, is a small fox native to Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and is common throughout the Arctic tundra biome. The Greek word alopex, means a fox and Vulpes is the Latin version...
(also called an 'Adolescent Gray Zen Fox") who attends North Harbordale Elementary School in Seattle, together with his friend Millie. He was originally supposed to be a wolf, until a fan showed Simpson a photo of Arctic fox cubs, that Simpson claimed were "absolute ringers" for Ozy. However, Ozy retained his whisker marks. Ozy's full name, Ozymandias Justin Llewellyn, is a reference to the poem Ozymandias
Ozymandias
"Ozymandias" is a sonnet by Percy Bysshe Shelley, published in 1818 in the January 11 issue of The Examiner in London. It is frequently anthologised and is probably Shelley's most famous short poem...
by Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley was one of the major English Romantic poets and is critically regarded as among the finest lyric poets in the English language. Shelley was famous for his association with John Keats and Lord Byron...
:
Ozy is recognised by his large top hat, which he got from his father Llewellyn when he adopted Ozy. The only other clothing he wears is a vest, which makes him the target of some of Millie's practical jokes. He is adept at letting Millie's pranks pass by without effect, but he does suffer bullying at the hands of the school jock, Jeremy, who likes to stuff Ozy into rubbish bins. Ozy also suffers from annual baldness, usually through either a freak accident or because of Millie. Although it is caused by a gypsy curse (later revealed by Llewellyn to be a myth) which has passed on through Ozy's adoptive father's heritage largely unnoticed, it does affect Ozy badly since he is the first Llewellyn with any hair to lose. Ozy is also quiet and serene, usually playing the "straight person
Double act
A double act, also known as a comedy duo, is a comic pairing in which humor is derived from the uneven relationship between two partners, usually of the same gender, age, ethnic origin and profession, but drastically different personalities or behavior...
". Under Llewellyn's guidance, Ozy also practices Zen
Zen
Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
; or rather a humorous version of it.
Ozy is told by Llewellyn that his birth mother's name was Shelley and that she disappeared after discovering perfection when she created the "perfect" ice cream flavor, but since absolute perfection is incompatible with the world, she ascended to a higher plane of existence.
Ozy's father left before he was born and become a monk. The pair met when the monk came to town for a visit, though Ozy decided to stay with Llewellyn, whom he considered his "true" dad.
Millie
Millicent Mehitabel Mudd, better known as Millie, is a ten-year-old red foxRed Fox
The red fox is the largest of the true foxes, as well as being the most geographically spread member of the Carnivora, being distributed across the entire northern hemisphere from the Arctic Circle to North Africa, Central America, and the steppes of Asia...
girl who is Ozy's best friend. Millie is usually seen wearing a set of blue denim overalls. Unlike Ozy, who is calm, Millie is chaotic and manic, both in the destruction she leaves behind and the ways she devises of avoiding work. She is a rebel and is opposed to any form of authority, which regularly leads to confrontations with both her teacher, Ms. Sorkowitz, and her mother, Mililani Mudd. Her destructive and rebellious habits not only get herself into trouble, but Ozy too.
Although she is normally manic, she also has a strong sense of justice, facing the inexplicable wrongs of life and the world she sees. However, her rebellions are mostly limited to annoying her mother, playing jokes on Ozy and disrupting the peace at school. None of which matters any less to her, as long as she has fun doing it. Millie says aloud what others think, and does what others, for fear of reaction from the people around them, would not dare. She, like Ozy, often tries to answer the most important questions in life, but her method of finding the answers makes her unique.
Llewellyn
Ozy's adoptiveAdoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
father, known only as Llewellyn, is a red dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
. Llewellyn and other members of his dragon family have been responsible for running several secret conspiracies. He also lends both Ozy and Millie advice, although his advice tends to be nonsense. He has also tried to run for U.S. president
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
- first under the "Rainbow Peace Party" in 1968, the "People With Nothing Better To Do" Party in 2000, then under the "Zen
Zen
Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
Party" in 2004 and 2008. He also runs his house as a separate nation: Greater Llewellynlland. His favourite pastime is playing the "House Rules Parcheesi
Parcheesi
Parcheesi is a brand name American adaptation of the Indian Cross and Circle game Pachisi. Created in India perhaps as early as 500 AD, the board game is subtitled Royal Game of India because royalty played using color-costumed members of their harems as pieces on large outdoor boards. Such a court...
", a game which has many, very complicated rules, that is claimed to be rather opposite to Calvinball. Llewellyn married Millie's Mother at the end of the Daily Strip. Of all the characters in Ozy and Millie, Simpson has claimed that Llewellyn is her favorite.
Ms. Mudd
Ms. Mililani Minerva Mudd, Millie's mother, is a lawyerLawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, who is as an older, wiser, more temperate version of Millie. She was like Millie in her childhood, and as a result knows how to deal with any trouble caused by her, much to Millie's annoyance. While Ms. Mudd knows how to deal with Millie, she is also the first to lend her support if there is anything amiss. She married Llewellyn at the end of the strip's run in a storyarc from November–December 2008. Her full name was revealed on October 1, 2008.
Other characters
Other characters in Ozy and Millie include Avery, a raccoonRaccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
friend who constantly tries to be "cool," even ditching his "uncool" friends such as Ozy. Ironically, his friend Stephan the aardvark
Aardvark
The aardvark is a medium-sized, burrowing, nocturnal mammal native to Africa...
is the nerd
Nerd
Nerd is a derogatory slang term for an intelligent but socially awkward and obsessive person who spends time on unpopular or obscure pursuits, to the exclusion of more mainstream activities. Nerds are considered to be awkward, shy, and unattractive...
iest character in the strip. Avery's younger brother, Timulty, constantly undermines his coolness. The two major antagonist
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
s are Felicia the sheep, a "popular girl
Social status
In sociology or anthropology, social status is the honor or prestige attached to one's position in society . It may also refer to a rank or position that one holds in a group, for example son or daughter, playmate, pupil, etc....
" who teases Millie for being too individualistic, and Jeremy the jock rabbit
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
who bullies Ozy.
Other minor characters include Ms. Sorkowitz, Ozy and Millie's kangaroo
Kangaroo
A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...
teacher and Principal Beau Vine, the bull
Bull
Bull usually refers to an uncastrated adult male bovine.Bull may also refer to:-Entertainment:* Bull , an original show on the TNT Network* "Bull" , an episode of television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation...
principal of the school who allows bullying believing that, "Repeated exposure to unprovoked assault squelches unhealthy nonconformist tendencies." Dr. I. Wahnsinnig (German for insane or mad), is a ring-tailed lemur
Ring-tailed Lemur
The ring-tailed lemur is a large strepsirrhine primate and the most recognized lemur due to its long, black and white ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of five lemur families. It is the only member of the Lemur genus. Like all lemurs it is endemic to the island of Madagascar...
psychiatrist of the school who fights with Vine over school issues. Ozy's dragon cousin Isolde is another character who, like Llewellyn, is in charge of various conspiracies. Another character is Pirate Captain Locke, a child pirate
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
from an alternate dimension on the other side of Llewellyn's couch
Couch
A couch, also called a sofa, is an item of furniture designed to seat more than one person, and providing support for the back and arms. Typically, it will have an armrest on either side. In homes couches are normally found in the family room, living room, den or the lounge...
, in which people age backwards. Locke, currently the same age as Millie, is also her biological father.
Reception
Critic Fred PattenFred Patten
Frederick Walter Patten is known for his work as a historian in the science fiction, anime, manga, and furry fandoms, where he has gained great distinction through a substantial contribution to both print and online books, magazines, and other media....
is one of the main supporters of the strip. In 2001, he wrote that the strip was, "a gently humorous fantasy with a liberal political philosophy." In 2006, Patten still claimed that, "Ozy and Millie is one of the top anthropomorphic cartoon strips on the Internet," although he did also comment negatively about the loss of colour in between changes of printed editions of books. The comic is also popular because of its relatively inoffensive content, with one person writing that it was, "Suitable for readers of all ages, really."
Collected editions
Two series of Ozy and Millie books have been formed, the first of which was discontinued and replaced by the second. Simpson wrote that she would "be condensing the first five books into three that will be larger but cost the same, and making them as comprehensive as I can make them." Editorial cartoonist Ted RallTed Rall
Ted Rall is an American columnist, syndicated editorial cartoonist, and author. His political cartoons often appear in a multi-panel comic-strip format and frequently blend comic-strip and editorial-cartoon conventions. The cartoons appear in approximately 100 newspapers around the United States...
included six pages of interview illustrated with Ozy and Millie strips in Attitude 3: The New Subversive Online Cartoonists
Attitude: The New Subversive Cartoonists
The Attitude series of books is a series of anthologies of alternative comics, photos and artists' interviews edited by Universal Press Syndicate editorial cartoonist Ted Rall. The books were designed by J. P. Trostle, news editor of EditorialCartoonists.com. Two sequels and three spin-off titles...
.
Discontinued books
| Name | ISBN |
|---|---|
| Ozy and Millie | ISBN 1-929462-11-5 |
| Ozy and Millie, volume 2: Never Mind Pants | ISBN 1-929462-20-4 |
| Ozy and Millie, volume 3: Ink and White Space | ISBN 1-929462-43-3 |
| Ozy and Millie, volume 4: Authentic Banana Dye | ISBN 1-929462-56-5 |
| Ozy and Millie, volume 5: Om | ISBN 1-929462-69-7 |
Current books
| Name | ISBN | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Prehistrionics: Ozy and Millie, 1997-2000 | ISBN 1-84728-773-5 | Contains Cartoons from Ozy and Millie and Never Mind Pants |
| The Big Book of Ancient, Semi-Coherent Wisdom: Ozy and Millie, 2000-2001 | ISBN 978-1-4303-1505-6 | Contains Cartoons from Never Mind Pants and Ink and White Space |
| Zen Again: Ozy and Millie, 2001-2002 | ISBN 978-1-4303-1508-7 | Contains cartoons from Ink and White Space and Authentic Banana Dye |
| Perpetual Motion: Ozy and Millie, 2002-2003 | ISBN 978-1-4303-2116-3 | Contains cartoons from Authentic Banana Dye and Om |
| Tofu Knights: Ozy and Millie, 2004-2005 | ISBN 1-84728-772-7 | Contains cartoons from Om and also never-before printed material |
| Closer to the Void: Ozy and Millie, 2006-2007 | ISBN 978-1-4357-0504-3 | Contain bonus strip - The ABCs of Ozy and Millie |
| Never Grow Up - One More Ozy and Millie collection | ||
External links
- Official site of Ozy and Millie
- Define "Cynical" - Fan site and discussion board
- House Rules - Ozy and Millie colored by fans
- Ози и Милли - Ozy and Millie translated into Russian.