Finally, after more than a year of trying to get Tom Brazelton, creator of the popular web comic series Theater Hopper, to post one of my guest strips, he finally does!

This is a happy day for me, indeed.

Tom and I have been friends on the Digital Pimp Forums for several years now, and I finally got a chance to hang out with him at Wizard World Chicago 2007, and plan to hang out with him again this year for Wizard World 2008. I have previously created two guest strips for him, neither of which has ever seen the light of day on his website - and with good reason.

The first one was made upon the announcement that Heath Ledger would be playing the Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. Of course, at the time of the announcement, Ledger's last movie had been "Brokeback Mountain," and I made a comic about a gay Joker hitting on a very uncomfortable and perplexed Batman. Tom thought the comic was funny, but because his audience tends to shy on the younger, told me that he couldn't post it. Obviously, after the announcement of Ledger's untimely demise, it's now a very inappropriate strip, so I will not link to it (sift through my sketches section, if you're really curious to read it).

No problem. I made another one.

However, around this time I became the subject of some controversy on the DP forums, where some internet bastard was flamming my revised guest strip for Tom pretty hard-core. Almost flattering, really, because he actually re-did all of the text in the balloons that I had put into the comic. Unfortunately, interest in the comic was therefore lost and Tom never posted it. To be fair, it wasn't very funny, either. :P

Which leads us to this latest attempt, involving Tom's hatred for actor Shai LaBeouf! Years ago, Brandon J Carr had made a guest strip for Tom that dealt with a Theater Bouncer that had a crush on Tom - in fact, he had a room full of Tom's pictures that he liked to retreat to. Other guest comics followed that also called out a homo-erotic interest in Tom's character, culminating with Tom himself having a room dedicated to his prestine vistage.

I decided to revived that theme, focusing on Tom's latest hatred for the (sometimes) annoying LaBeouf. Knowing what kinds of movies that Tom liked, and seeing a correlation between that list and the list of movies that Shai was in, it was just too perfect an opportunity to pass on. So enjoy the guest strip:

Theater Hopper Guest Strip

Sorry it was late, but I haven't slept in 2 days. I had a huge project thrown on my lap at work, and have been taking it home ever since. I'm so freakin' exhausted.

I had this page done a little while back, but my internet at home is down currently.

In any case, you totally get the theme of what I'm going for here: gas prices suck right now. $4.00+ per gallon is OUTRAGIOUS! I remember bitching about $0.89 back when I started driving. It seems like gas just goes up a dollar every summer right now, and has been doing that very steadily for the last few years.

So when I was gasing up for the first time under this new price tag, I walked away looking at my receipt thinking, "I feel like I just got anally raped by a spiked club!" I mean, I drive a Cobalt...it has like a 12 gallon tank. I shouldn't be spending over $30 to fill it up...but I'm spending well over that amount with a $4 / gallon price tag right now. It's proposterous!

Anyway, again, sorry that it's late and enjoy your weekend.

My Site and Drunk Duck

The Legend of Abraham begins, with artwork by Olivia Kasle and original story by me, Trevor Mueller. This is the first prequel to the Temple storyline, and it will update weekly on Mondays. Friday will remain Fan Art Friday.

I hope you enjoy this fairy-tale ride, which will answer many questions left over from the original story.

My Site and Drunk Duck

Back from the con, and man was it a good time. If I took photos or video, I'll try to post a link soon.

So it looks like Seymour AND Shiri were the survivors of this story. Originally, only Shiri was going to make it - but then I just grew to enjoy Seymour too much! Also, the juxtaposition between Shiri / Seymour and Kimberly / Daniel was just too good to resist.

However, Seymour was originally going to be killed by Kidjo, aka the man with beady eyes, when Julian was killed. However, at that time I was still thinking that Seymour and Kidjo would be rivals - which never happened.

Anyway, one last page left and then we move on to the prequel: The Legend of Abraham with art by Olivia Kasle and written by me. It's going to be a very different kind of story from this, more of a fairy tale, explaining the story of Abraham and introducing some new characters / concepts.

Chapter 6.18

Last page...ready for the big shocker: I completed this story 5 years ago, art and writing, and had it hosted on my website (www.trevor.exilecomics.com) ever since. However, I was unhappy with a lot of the stuff in it, and decided to clean it up, fix the text and fonts, and release a Definitive Edition. Also, I made covers for it here.

Hope I didn't tick anyone off, but you could've found out the ending long ago. :P

I hope you all enjoyed this story, thanks for reading, and let me know what you thought.

What comes out on Monday will be completely brand new, never-before-seen pages! The Legend of Abraham begins with the cover, and then goes into a 25 pages weekly journey (updates Monday). You don't even have to fave a new URL, because it'll update right here! See you all on Friday for Fan Art, and then again on Monday for brand new stuff!

The sequel will answer some of the questions left by this story, such as:
1) Why didn't the portal to paradise open?
2) What were all of the keys, and what happened to them after this story?
3) Is Shiri a whole and complete person now, capable of independent thought? (This was kind of a Pinocchio story)
4) What does Seymour do now that his journey has ended, and his love is dead?
5) Now that there are no more leaders for the Holy Order of Abraham, what happens to it?

That'll get you thinking, while you wait a whole year or so for sequel information. How's that for a foreshadowed tease? :P

Chapter 6.19

Back to the Friday updates in color. I'm glad to hear that everyone enjoyed the 3x per week black and white story line for Laura's 21st Birthday - it was a ton of fun to work on, and I think I'll be doing another one before the end of the year...after a few months of Friday color updates, to take a break from that schedule and regroup myself socially.

About 3 months ago, we were looking at Susie (who had just landed the job at the coffee shop / cyber cafe), and her YouTube.com business of killing people. Well, now it's time to see the results of that, and then move on to the next story.

I'm at ACEN right now in Chicago, so if you're in the area come try to find me! I'll be the tall, bald guy walking around trying to avoid the 12 year olds dressed in Sailor School Girl outfits...and in the tight leather outfits from Underworld.

See ya next week!

My Site and Drunk Duck

First off, I was surprised to find that over the long weekend someone had some some kick ass Fan Art for Temple:

Fan Art Friday by patoborracho

Be sure to check out his comic, MAYA: The Legend of Wolf

Also, my likeness was featured in Pugnuggle Tales latest update. Check it out here. I'm in the bottom left corner.

Announcements, notes about ACEN, and updates that I missed mentioning are coming soon.

"Alright, someone's getting laid tonight," was the original ending...but I thought that maybe I should make it sentimental instead. Now, neither of them seem to be very fitting, but I'm still holding out hope that the situation will be resolved.

Friday will be a recycled page, to bring everyone up to speed on where we left off, and then updates will continue on Fridays! Thanks for reading through this 40+ page experiment, and it was a ton of fun to do. Future black and white updates might happen, but I need a little break for a while.

Once a week in color will be enough for me for now. :D

My Site and Drunk Duck

Another twist! The swordsman, although he has been mortally wounded, is still able to defeat his opponent (granted, with a little help).

I'm going to ACEN tomorrow in Chicago, so if you're in the are be sure to stop by. I won't be at a booth or anything, just wandering around the con - checking out the artist's alley set ups, and trying to get autographs and interviews from Power Rangers star Jason David Frank (Tommy)!

I'm a nerd, I know. :P

Chapter 6.17

Pete the Pet Rock was a character from another birthday comic I did for my friend Carl (yes, the same Carl who I did a wedding comic for, which started this whole @$$hole! web comic series). Pete was just a rock, but people would respond to him as though he had actually said something. If you want to check out the story, click this link for the first page (and navigate to the subsequent pages).

Laura basically reacted this way when I gave her the box (although she guessed what it was full of before I could give the speech). Here's your sappy ending. Only one more page left in this story arc, and then we go back to color updates on Fridays. I hope you've enjoyed the ride!

My Site and Drunk Duck

And we return full circle, to the very first page (seriously, go check it out). Clearly, this fight has not gone the way it was planned to go. If I could do it all again, I would make each of these panels a full page spread, though - more dramatic.

Three more pages to this story, and then it's finished. The ending will have been reached. And the very next update after that will be the first prequel, The Legend of Abraham, which will update on Mondays only (and we'll still have Fan Art Friday).

Chapter 6.16

"And I even punched a guy with a dictionary!" was a line from a film I shot in high school, and I really wanted to try to use something similar here. I don't think it worked as well, unfortunately.

This is a true gift that I got for Laura, and her reaction was about the same (see the next page). However, it was also accompanied by a stuff tiger (which she has named Le Tigre):



I also got her a bag of candy ring pops, because we have a personal joke about wedding rings. I always ask her, "Why would a woman want something as permanent as gold and diamonds, when they can switch out the color gem on their ring on a daily basis and have it match up to their outfits! Also, if you ever get that need for sugar, you can stuck on your ring!"

She didn't like the idea, but I still think it's funny.

My Site and Drunk Duck

People have asked for it, and I've been holding off (perhaps for too long), so here it is: Olivia's original character designs for The Legend of Abraham prequel. This is her artwork and coloring (water colors). The entire story will look like this, as I wanted it to have a fairy-tale like feel to it. Olivia hit the artwork right on the nose!

The Legend of Abraham will be 25 pages, and will update weekly on Mondays - and I'll maintain Fan Art Fridays. Enjoy!



You too can contribute to "Fan Art Fridays!" Fan Art will be displayed in the order that they are received, and each person who submits a piece of fan art will receive a mini-review like above. Please include a link to the comic you would like reviewed if you have multiple titles. Please send me fan art and links through a PM (or quack). :D


Fan Art Friday - By Olivia Kasle

Salt the Holy has created a page with my character from @$$hole! cameo. Check it out.

I apologize in advance, because the end of this story isn't funny...it's kind of sappy. Coming from a background in drama (and writing another web comic that escalates in melodrama), I couldn't think of too many ways to make this story be both poignant and funny. I do hope that it's at least entertaining, however.

We're on the last few pages of this story arc. It's been a wild and crazy ride, updating 3x per week. I think it's safe to say that I won the dare that Josh from TokyoPop put forth before me (the guy owes me a drink next comic con we go to, at the least), and hopefully you all enjoyed the ride.

I'm not opposed to going back to a 3x per week black and white update schedule if another story comes down that warrents it, but I'm thinking about going back to the Friday updates in color for now. Your thoughts?

My Site and Drunk Duck

This is getting brutal! Personal fights usually do, though.

In case you missed it from Monday, Laura and I split up over the weekend. I'm hoping that it's only a trial separation, while she figures out what she wants to do (and if she thinks we can work). A breath of fresh air can strengthen a relationship, and we can come out stronger because of it. It'll just take time. I'm hoping this is the case.

It could go the other way, too, though. And that would suck. I would lose my girlfriend and my best friend at the same time. However, I respect her wants and needs, and if she feels she needs this, then I have to accept it for now. She deserves that from me.

Thanks to everyone who has sent me e-mails, comments, and messages encouraging me and comforting me - it does mean a lot. I do ask that people not send her pressuring messages, though. This is just as difficult for her as it is for me, and she deserves and needs support as much as I do. Send her comforting comments, let her know that you're there for her - but please don't try to pressure her to get back together with me. If she feels that's what she wants, then it'll happen.

Enjoy the page, and Olivia artwork on Friday - showcasing some of the character designs from the first prequel!

Chapter 6.15

Jessica: the fictional imbodiment of the "perfect girl" from high school. Honestly, she's not based on anyone in particular, but the experience here is based on some that I've had over the years. Running into your old alumni years after high school (even after college) and seeing how the "popular kids" turned out really tends to put your life in perspective. I mean, no longer under the eye of mommy and daddy, the girls from my high school have tended to spiral down the social ladder and into a rut of deprivation and depression. Like, hard-core manic depression.

A few have moved on to bigger and better things, though, and will become very successful in their lives. These were the people that, although popular, were still human beings - and didn't treat anyone else like they were pon scum. Jessica here, is not one of those people. To brag about being the best part-time sales associate in a mall store 5+ years after graduating from high school is not something to brag about, in my book (unless, maybe, you're studying to be a doctor and just want some extra cash - which is not the case here).

The next page will be a nice long vent, as this 40 page story arc begins to come to a close. After this is done (in May), I'll go back to the color updates on Fridays again. Remember those? :D

My Site and Drunk Duck

The tried and true "Pha-Q!" line gets 'em every time (if you don't get it, trying saying it out loud). Here's just a vent, one well deserved after the day at the mall that Trevor has had (a day which, for us, has lasted almost 3 months). Everyone needs a good vent from time to time, especially when they've had a bad day.

And then Susie comes in with the zinger that makes the whole comic funny. I was thinking about adding a line from Jessica saying, "How could I have been so blind?" but it really just took away from Susie's line about poop.

And in the end, poop is more funny.

I did an interview with spiritmonkey, who does a fun comic called Timmy and the Bleach. Check out the interview by clicking the link above and let me know what you think, and / or just check out his comic.

My Site and Drunk Duck

The story's starting to wrap up here, with Trevor feeling defeated and Susie starting to offer some helpful advice.

...wait a second, Susie offer helpful advice? Isn't that a sign of the apocalypse?!?

Well, at least she made off with a good amount of merchandise. Her day's been busy - while Trevor was out trying to do something noble and sweet for his girlfriend, she was trying to line her closet with stuff!

Mmmmmmmmmmm....useless stuff. :P

In other news, I was interviewed the other week over at Drunk Duck on my two comics, and they finally got around to posting it. Be sure to check it out by clicking here.

My Site and Drunk Duck

It's funny that this page was writen a few months ago, because upon getting back from the NYC Comic Con, Laura was like, "You don't spend enough time with me." Here I was, thinking that I was doing something great but spending all this time making her a web comic, and I was actually doing the opposite of what I intended to - I wasn't spending time with her.

Granted, the issue exists on both sides. While I was busy trying to get this comic out on a weekly basis (3x per week, actually), she was also working on school projects and studying for finals. However, that's the only real time we were spending together for the last 3 months. It's sad, I know, but I've spent the last several weeks not even working on comics....just spending time with my lady.

In the end, that's what really matters. Time to start taking my own advice, damn it!

My Site and Drunk Duck

After a long dry spell, we finally hit some of the sweet stuff. Today's piece of fan art is marvelously rendered by JustNoPoint from none other than The Devon Legacy Prologue.

This piece is awesome, as it captures the pain, loss, an savagery of the swordsman early on and throughout this story. Also, there's a ton of carnage and gore on this image, and I always like a healthy dose of carnage and gore! ;)

JustNoPoint has been establishing his coloring style for the last few weeks, and it has improved by leaps and bounds! The artwork has always been impressive, though, with a very imaginative and colorful world inhabited by intelligent and interesting characters. Not only that, but the comic is on it's 5th issue currently, and the guy keeps giving all of these hints about things to come - like bad-ass characters that may bear some resemblance to the swordsman. :P

JustNoPoint has proved time and time again that there's a solid story with incredible characters in the epic tale that is The Devon Legacy Prologue. You should totally go check it out by clicking that link above.

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You too can contribute to "Fan Art Fridays!" Fan Art will be displayed in the order that they are received, and each person who submits a piece of fan art will receive a mini-review like above. Please include a link to the comic you would like reviewed if you have multiple titles. Please send me fan art and links through a PM (or quack). :D

Fan Art Friday - by JustNoPoint

Again, let me emphasize that the Cardinal is incredibly fun to write. This is the only time I let myself get away with using the f-word in this story, because I felt it was so fitting. I mean, this is a man of the cloth - a religious man - who should be the last person you hear a swear word come from. This, to me, is hilarious.

Also it looks like Shiri has lost an arm...not good.

Chapter 6.12

Tell me if the narration on this page flows well. If it makes sense where your eye should be going. I really like the narration on this page - the swordsman motivating himself and willing himself not to fail. He's failed so often before, doesn't he just deserve a break?

Remember early on when I said that the first page of this comic was one of the last pages? Well, you're about to come full circle here. Soon....

Also, I did an interview with spiritmonkey, who does a fun comic called Timmy and the Bleach. Check out the interview by clicking the link above and let me know what you think, and / or just check out his comic.

Chapter 6.13

BetaJess went above and beyond with her fan art submission, and actually did a guest comic! It's awesome and hilarious, and you can tell that she put a lot of time and effort into the research for the characters (and even simulated my line-art style, to a degree).

My favorite reaction is Amanda's, grabbing Seymour and dragging him to her room! Hilarious!

BetaJess contributes to the amazing comic Salt the Holly, which is a really cute comic that has multiple stories going through it, centering on the life of Lia and her roommate Daisey. My favorite draw with the comic is the creepy bald neighbor (being a bald guy myself, but hopefully not creepy). The really interesting part is that he's named Mr Travon - which is pretty damn close to my name...almost too close. He's been missing in action for a little while (which was made up for with the appearance of ninjas!), but he's recently made another appearance!

The artwork continues to improve by leaps and bounds in this series, as Jess and her roommate Amanda have been modeling for each other on some rather tricky and unqiue poses. The story had turned into a fast-paced action / fantasy tale, which was the last thing I was expecting from this comic, but has since simmered down again for some good laughs and awkward moments (but awkward in a good way).

If you like a good natured comic with interesting characters and some unexpected plot twists, you deserve to read Salt the Holly!

In other news, I was interviewed the other week over at Drunk Duck on my two comics, and they finally got around to posting it. Be sure to check it out by clicking here.

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You too can contribute to "Fan Art Fridays!" Fan Art will be displayed in the order that they are received, and each person who submits a piece of fan art will receive a mini-review like above. Please include a link to the comic you would like reviewed if you have multiple titles. Please send me fan art and links through a PM (or quack). :D

Fan Art Friday - by BetaJess

And that is how Shiri takes care of business - with what's left of the swordsman's old sword. With the Cardinal down, it's just the swordsman and Malukai - mano a mano.

We're coming up on the ending here, soon. Approximately 5 more story pages remain.

There will be death. There will be tragedy. There may not be a happy ending here.

Chapter 6.14

I was interviewed the other week over at Drunk Duck on my two comics, and they finally got around to posting it. Be sure to check it out by clicking here.