Suburban Tribe
Encyclopedia
Suburban Tribe was a webcomic
written and illustrated by John Lee launched in January 2003. The comic alternates between story arcs that further plot and character development and stand-alone jokes. The comics tend to be relatively risqué, with bodily functions and sex often part of the humor. The longer plot arcs focus on the characters' love lives (usually failures), the frustrations of the corporate workplace, and the rivalry between Dave and Caesar, a super-intelligent cat.
A printed volume of the comic was released in May 2006. Lee originally tried to have the comic published in newspapers, but all five comic syndicates rejected it. A local newspaper ran a story on Lee and his comic in June 2006, and this was followed by an interview with a television outlet.
, foils the scheme. Along the way, Dave discovers Caesar is a literate genius.
Shortly thereafter, Dave loses a lot of money to an online casino, but he discovers that Caesar is responsible and refuses to pay him. After the enforcer he hired fails to disable Dave and Skip, Caesar plans to kill Dave by hijacking a satellite and making blue ice
fall on him. At the same time, Tiffany and Alan are chosen to chisel the Cheez Whiz
logo into the moon
's surface.
Dave arranges for Caesar to be kidnapped, but he escapes and hacks into a satellite to call in more blue ice. The satellite veers out of control towards Tiffany and Alan's space shuttle
, and Alan destroys it. Carol, who was attempting to rescue Caesar, ends up in the Arizona desert, where the wreckage of the satellite Alan destroyed lands on her.
Caesar hacks into the American military's database and steals an intelligent can opener, but is caught and The Pentagon
recognizes him as the result of an experiment they did many years ago. The head of the National Security Agency
arranges for Caesar to be kidnapped.
Meanwhile, Alan has become a big fan of a new music star, Haley Bhairavi. He obtains a backstage pass to her concert, and Haley is immediately taken with him. After she becomes Alan's girlfriend, General Armbuster calls Haley (an agent for the NSA) to take Caesar, his owner Tiffany, and her friends prisoner so they can be questioned. Distressed by the position she has put herself and her friends in, Haley resigns. It is revealed that she is actually Carol, rescued from the fallen satellite wreckage and transformed into Haley by means of a computer chip. The Pentagon releases her, her friends, and Caesar.
In the aftermath of the Haley fiasco, Alan is heartbroken and Carol's efforts to get his attention fail. Seeing that Haley is going on another tour, Alan buys tickets and falls in love with the new Haley while Carol watches helplessly.
Meanwhile, Dave and Skip release highly classified information, and the new Haley decides to kill them in order to plug the leak. General Armbuster arrives, explains to Carol that the new Haley is a rogue agent, and implants a copy of the Haley computer chip in her. Dave and Skip destroy the classified computer program, and Armbuster kills the other Haley with Carol's help.
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....
written and illustrated by John Lee launched in January 2003. The comic alternates between story arcs that further plot and character development and stand-alone jokes. The comics tend to be relatively risqué, with bodily functions and sex often part of the humor. The longer plot arcs focus on the characters' love lives (usually failures), the frustrations of the corporate workplace, and the rivalry between Dave and Caesar, a super-intelligent cat.
A printed volume of the comic was released in May 2006. Lee originally tried to have the comic published in newspapers, but all five comic syndicates rejected it. A local newspaper ran a story on Lee and his comic in June 2006, and this was followed by an interview with a television outlet.
Synopsis
Caesar and Dave first cross swords during Dave and Alan's attempt to market catfood to unsuspecting single men under the name "Bachelor's Bounty". Caesar, frustrated by the fact that Alan and Dave have purchased all the catfood in LouisvilleLouisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, foils the scheme. Along the way, Dave discovers Caesar is a literate genius.
Shortly thereafter, Dave loses a lot of money to an online casino, but he discovers that Caesar is responsible and refuses to pay him. After the enforcer he hired fails to disable Dave and Skip, Caesar plans to kill Dave by hijacking a satellite and making blue ice
Blue ice (aircraft)
Blue ice in the context of aviation is the frozen material formed by leaks in commercial aircraft lavatory waste tanks, a biowaste mixture of human waste and liquid disinfectant that freezes at high altitude. The name comes from the blue color of the disinfectant...
fall on him. At the same time, Tiffany and Alan are chosen to chisel the Cheez Whiz
Cheez Whiz
Cheez Whiz is a thick processed cheese sauce or spread sold by Kraft Foods. It was developed by a team led by food scientist Edwin Traisman and was first marketed in 1953....
logo into the moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
's surface.
Dave arranges for Caesar to be kidnapped, but he escapes and hacks into a satellite to call in more blue ice. The satellite veers out of control towards Tiffany and Alan's space shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
, and Alan destroys it. Carol, who was attempting to rescue Caesar, ends up in the Arizona desert, where the wreckage of the satellite Alan destroyed lands on her.
Caesar hacks into the American military's database and steals an intelligent can opener, but is caught and The Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
recognizes him as the result of an experiment they did many years ago. The head of the National Security Agency
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
arranges for Caesar to be kidnapped.
Meanwhile, Alan has become a big fan of a new music star, Haley Bhairavi. He obtains a backstage pass to her concert, and Haley is immediately taken with him. After she becomes Alan's girlfriend, General Armbuster calls Haley (an agent for the NSA) to take Caesar, his owner Tiffany, and her friends prisoner so they can be questioned. Distressed by the position she has put herself and her friends in, Haley resigns. It is revealed that she is actually Carol, rescued from the fallen satellite wreckage and transformed into Haley by means of a computer chip. The Pentagon releases her, her friends, and Caesar.
In the aftermath of the Haley fiasco, Alan is heartbroken and Carol's efforts to get his attention fail. Seeing that Haley is going on another tour, Alan buys tickets and falls in love with the new Haley while Carol watches helplessly.
Meanwhile, Dave and Skip release highly classified information, and the new Haley decides to kill them in order to plug the leak. General Armbuster arrives, explains to Carol that the new Haley is a rogue agent, and implants a copy of the Haley computer chip in her. Dave and Skip destroy the classified computer program, and Armbuster kills the other Haley with Carol's help.
Major characters
- Alan Woods is art director for the advertising firm Yesman & Puckerup. He is Dave's roommate, Jessica's ex-boyfriend, and Carol's crush. Continually frustrated in his quest for a girlfriend, he was introduced 20 January 2003.
- Carol Bradley is attractive but thoroughly stupid. At one point, she was Alan's girlfriend while disguised as Haley, but has been unable to attract his attentions as herself. She was introduced January 20, 2003.
- Tiffany Dawber is materialisticMaterialismIn philosophy, the theory of materialism holds that the only thing that exists is matter; that all things are composed of material and all phenomena are the result of material interactions. In other words, matter is the only substance...
and nearly nymphomaniacal. Alan's friend and Account Executive, she lives with her cat Caesar. Currently, she is estranged from her coworkers and friends due to her behavior in and out of the workplace. She was introduced along with Carol and Alan January 20, 2003. - Dave Jablonski is a computer programmer and Alan's roommate. A surly bachelor, he is considered crazy by his friends because he thinks Caesar is hyper-intelligent. He was introduced 29 January 2003.
- Caesar is Tiffany's ingenious cat. Literate and well-connected through the internet, Caesar drew the attention of the Pentagon (who originally made him super-intelligent via an implanted computer chip) when he hacked into its computer and stole the plans for an AIAiAI, A.I., Ai, or ai may refer to:- Computers :* Artificial intelligence, a branch of computer science* Ad impression, in online advertising* .ai, the ISO Internet 2-letter country code for Anguilla...
can-opener. Dave and Carol are aware of his intelligence. He was introduced 13 February 2003. - Skip Peters is Alan and Dave's friend. Coworker of Dave, he is a newlywed and a conspiracy theorist. Possibly bisexual, he is unhappy in his marriage, although that might change since he has seen the consequences of Roger Thornhill's continuous infidelity. He was introduced preparing for his wedding on 12 February 2003.
- Roger Thornhill is the boss of Tiffany, Alan, Carol, and Jessica. He is a middle-aged, philandering George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
supporter. Carol's boyfriend at one point in time, he lost his front teeth after he hit on Jessica and she responded by smashing a wine glass against his face. He was introduced 12 March 2003.
Minor characters
- Alice is a secretary for Yesman & Puckerup.
- General Armbuster is formerly the member of the United States military in charge of the National Security AgencyNational Security AgencyThe National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
. After being framed for the murder of his friend Dr. Sadarski, he lost his job and was imprisoned. He did, however, manage to escape and kill the true culprit with the help of Carol. - Britney was Alan, Tiffany, and Carol's boss at Yesman & Puckerup. She was known for doing ridiculous things, like firing Alan after she had made a mistake and attempting to find and clone a dinosaur after the characters in Jurassic ParkJurassic Park (franchise)The Jurassic Park franchise is a series of books, films, comics, and videos centering on a disastrous attempt to create a theme park of cloned dinosaurs...
. She was fired for sexual harassment of Jessica, and was last seen managing Alan's favorite coffee shop. - Candi is Alan's ex-girlfriend. She hired him as an employee for Victoria's SecretVictoria's SecretVictoria's Secret is an American retailer of women's wear, lingerie and beauty products. It is the largest segment of publicly-traded Limited Brands with sales of over US$5 billion and an operating income of $1 billion in 2006...
after Britney fired him. - Jackie Dallas was a stripperStripperA stripper is a professional erotic dancer who performs a contemporary form of striptease at strip club establishments, public exhibitions, and private engagements. Unlike in burlesque, the performer in the modern Americanized form of stripping minimizes the interaction of customer and dancer,...
who fell in love with Dave. She died when Carol unwittingly made her a dinner full of things she was allergicAllergyAn Allergy is a hypersensitivity disorder of the immune system. Allergic reactions occur when a person's immune system reacts to normally harmless substances in the environment. A substance that causes a reaction is called an allergen. These reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid...
to. - Haley Bhairavi is a classical cellistCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
, Alan's occasional girlfriend, and secret agent. In reality, "Haley" is a computer chip designed by the United States government as a secret agent. Currently, Carol Bradley is able to transform into her at will. - John Sadarski is the Pentagon's specialist in science and technology. He was murdered by Anna Kerruish after attempting to curb her behavior.
- Anna Kerruish is another secret agent for the American government. She replaced Carol as Haley, but she became a rogue agent. After murdering Dr. Sadarski and framing General Armbuster for it, she burned a priceless painting to impress Alan and attempted to gain control of a world-controlling computer program. After Carol prevented this from happening, General Armbuster killed her.
- Shaggy McWhiskey is a LeprechaunLeprechaunA leprechaun is a type of fairy in Irish folklore, usually taking the form of an old man, clad in a red or green coat, who enjoys partaking in mischief. Like other fairy creatures, leprechauns have been linked to the Tuatha Dé Danann of Irish mythology...
. He was captured by Caesar and Dave, but escaped when a potato gun smashed his physical form. He has since returned and is presently living with Dave and Alan. - Jessica Mancini is a former paleontologist and a shameless flirt, also Alan's former girlfriend. She has an uncanny ability to know when someone else is having a party. For a short time, she pretended to love Alan in order to get at his money. After she was fired from her paleontology job, she was employed at Yesman & Puckerup in spite of her lack of experience because Britney was attracted to her. She was introduced 14 January 2004.
- Alan's nephewNephewNephew is a son of one's sibling or sibling-in-law, and niece is a daughter of one's sibling or a sibling-in-law. Sons and daughters of siblings-in-law are also informally referred to as nephews and nieces respectively, even though there is no blood relation...
is an extremely sheltered boy. Every once in a while, Alan babysits him. On one such occasion, Dave told him that Santa ClausSanta ClausSanta Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
is not real. After seeing his nephew's distress, Alan forced Tiffany and Dave to kiss in order to "prove" Dave's earlier statement wrong.
Special features
- "Halloween Month" occurs once every year. During the month of October, the normal storyline is suspended and horror stories are told. Anything, including the deaths of characters, is possible in these stories. For example, Dave and Alan were sacrificed by two demons in 2003 and a possessed doll killed Jessica, Carol, and Tiffany in 2005.
- "Ask a Suburban Tribe Cast Member" is an occasional feature in which a single day's comic is devoted to answering a question e-mailed to Lee.