Meanwhile is my branchiest comic to date. It centers around the relationship between a boy and a crazy inventor with a labratory full of inventions. There's the time machine, the SQUID which can read minds, and the killitron 2000 a doomsday device capable of killing every human on earth.
Each panel in this story is connected to the next one in sequence by a thin tubular vessel. Sometimes the tubes branch off into two or more panels. Sometimes they lead off the edge of the page and onto a tab. At this point the reader turns to the tabbed page and continues following the tube to the next panel.
The inspiration for this comic came to me one morning over breakfast. I worked on the comic all day then went to sleep. The next morning I woke up and worked on it until 6:00. I had outlined the entire comic in two days! I also hadn't left the house for two days. When I walked out of the house, the sun was setting and it suddenly dawned on me... I was immortal! I immediately ran back inside to work my spiritual epiphany into the comic.
I created the Menwhile Matrix for APAture 2002. It was on display for one day. The Meanwhile Matrix is essentially the book version exploded onto a 5'x5' poster. The idea came about at SPX after I met Scott McCloud. Scott McCloud has been a lifelong hero of mine and I was a little nervous talking to him. But he did most of the talking and I mostly just smiled and nodded.
"Imagine," he said with his usual enthusiasm "Imagine your favorite comic."
"Uh..." I was drawing a blank.
"Okay let's say your favorite comic is 'It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken'." he continued, "Now imagine you took all the panels and layed them out horizontally on a huge strip of paper that stretched for miles. And let's say you took this strip of paper and twisted it and stretched it into the shape of a huge mural two stories tall and 100 feet across. Wouldn't the story be even more enjoyable!?"
I smiled weakly and nodded. I remained unconvinced. But later I thought about it and I came to the conclusion that it would be kinda cool. Thank you Scott McCloud for your enthusiasm and encouragement.
