Brendan here. It’s time to talk about one of the biggest concerns we faced while considering GIL for mainstream newspaper syndication. Gil’s dad, Frank. Some of you may recall Gil’s dad (who I don’t believe Norm had named Frank yet) from the web comic version of the strip. When GIL was running online, Norm had fewer concerns with how far he took the behavior of Frank and how he depicted him, knowing that his audience was one that opted to come to his website. The daily newspaper reader is a little different, and we have to step a bit more carefully.
The newspaper comic strip readership is broad and represents many different types of people with many different sensibilities. When we use language that is questionable by some or choose representations of characters and/or their world that might be received negatively, the readers definitely let us hear about it. Or they will let the editor of the newspaper hear it – and frankly, they don’t want to hear it, so they often eliminate the problem before it can occur by not buying a comic or asking for a replacement.
There was no doubt that Norm’s original treatment of Frank would present problems in succeeding in syndication – we would not be able to get past those editors who don’t want the negative feedback from their readership. We didn’t want to compromise Frank’s situation as a somewhat neglectful father, divorced form Gil’s mother, but we also know that we needed to paint a picture of him that would somehow thwart the perception that reduces him to a “deadbeat dad”.
Frank is still an underachiever who had he taken a drivers test on fatherhood would not have passed, but we’ve softened his portrayal a bit, and even injected his character with some pathos.
Rather than get too deep into this myself, I’ll allow Norm to detail some of the specific differences between Frank in the old web comic and Frank as he now appears in the fully developed version for mainstream syndication.
Norm here. Newspaper comic strips are all about boundaries. They are restricted both in content and physical dimension. They have to be drawn in a specific size, they have to be brief, and they have to be family friendly. You can argue whether those restrictions are a good or bad thing, but if you want to sell a comic strip to newspapers, those are the rules.
I’m of the opinion that a quality comic can be made in any format, under any content restrictions. Making a G-rated comic strip that is also funny and relevant isn’t impossible – it’s just hard to pull off. I’m up for the challenge!
After I made the decision to give GIL a second crack at newspaper syndication, I had to figure out how to handle Gil’s dad within this new paradigm. I poured over the old web strips that Gil’s dad appeared in. and asked myself a question that I usually rely on instinct to guide me through. What am I trying to say with this character?
The answer: I’m trying to convey a sense of what it’s like when the only male role model you have growing up is a broken one.
My parents divorced when I was very young, and my sister and I were raised by our mother. I have no memory of our father actually living with us. He’s battled his share of demons throughout his adult life, and has remarried a few times. Throughout my childhood, the time I spent with him was really just time spent playing with his other kids. As a result, we’ve never really bonded, and he’s always been kind of a stranger to me.
Most of my friends growing up had similarly absent fathers with varying problems. Some were drunks, some were racists, some were violent, and some were all three. This is what Gil’s dad was in the original version of the strip. He was a conglomerate of all the damaged fathers I remember from my youth.
The trick now was to remove some of those harsh elements from Frank without neutering his character altogether. I needed to humanize him, but keep him flawed. I chose to do this by putting myself in his shoes and trying to imagine myself as a derelict father. I took all of the personality flaws and bad habits I’ve ever had (or still have), exaggerated them to the point of dysfunction, and then gave them to Frank as the new catalysts for his poor decisions in life. The results were a pleasant surprise.
In many ways, the web version of Gil’s dad was just a Frankenstein of the typical ignorance and crudeness I witnessed growing up. Replacing that with the extrapolation of my own old demons not only made Frank more palatable to a general audience, but also created some credible depth to his character, and I’m happy with the direction the character has taken as a result. Not only did it allow me to preserve the dynamic between Gil and his dad, but it helped me better understand who Frank is as a character and why he acts the way he does.
For me, limitations often spark my creativity. They force me to focus in on what’s important – whether it be a drawing, or a character, or the wording of a joke. Restrictions aren’t necessarily negative things.
Please feel free to share your feelings on this topic. Next week we’ll start talking about how we put together the sales brochure that the syndicate sales reps show to prospective clients. See you then!
Good Luck.
I liked where you had gone with Gil’s Dad on the web strip. I felt he was a pretty accurate reflection of a “deadbeat” Dad. You offset him pretty well with other male influences in Gil’s life. I understand why the change is necessary, and I trust your writing skills, but it makes me cringe a bit hearing that an editor would drop a strip because it became to much work to deal with it in an adult fashion.
I know that seems a bit harsh but I edited out the bits where I rant about the current state of newspapers.
Sorry you caught me before coffee. I’m not normally a crab. I really just like comics that take some risks and challenge my thought process and set me sideways from time to time.
Hey Scott,
Don’t apologize. Your thoughts are adding to the dialog! Besides, I didn’t think your comments came across as crabby.
In a way, this particular post is a bit unfair, because I’m asking you to accept my conclusions based on a body of new work that hasn’t been seen yet. I can stand here all day and tell you how good the new strips are, and how the spirit of the dad character is still very much alive, but until you see it for yourself you can’t know for sure.
Truly, I feel like GIL is the strongest it’s ever been, and is the best work I’ve produced as a cartoonists so far. Hang in there with me. Only two months to go before the launch, and you can judge for yourself.
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It’s an interesting conundrum and one I’ve long imposed on myself for a long time. I’ve always written for adults with the notion that my 11 year old son will want to read my work (which he does) so, I want to keep it “newspaper safe”.
Some cartoonists use “grawlix” to emphasize gruffness without outright profanity but there are certain necessary characters that are meant NOT to be liked at all. I think of “Paulie” from the “Rocky” movies, this is a character with absolutely no redeeming qualities until maybe the fourth movie or the greatest petty villain of all time, Biff Tannen.
I’ve always looked to the past to see how other cartoonists dealt with wretched characters, I mean if I use past standards and things are much more permissive now, I should be safe… right? I think of strips like “Lockhorns”, “Andy Capp” and “Bloom County”. All contain seriously flawed humans who drink, smoke, swear, carouse etc yet all were in newspapers. I think part of it is that the characters are clearly not admirable so the behavior isn’t being glorified.
The flawed male role model is something I am using as well, but they do have a softer more likable side (they’re not pure evil) that makes for an easier write-around. Being Gil’s Dad, I think Frank will “weather” the transition from repulsive to unsympathetic successfully.
Much success to you Norm!
Wow Norm, that was a really ernest and heartfelt post. I’m even more excited for Gil’s return now. It is harder to do things in sydicated comic strips than other mediums, especially something with as much freedom as webcomics, but if anyone can pull it off it’s you.
Jan Eliot has dealt with this subject to some degree in her strip Stone Soup. That character is a recurring one however, not a central character like Frank. I’m sure you’ll find a way to make him work. Although I bet we won’t see him teaching Gil to huck the ol’ bango!
I’m thrilled to see you bringing this strip back–best of luck, Norm!
Restrictions, both in subject matter and in form, can be very liberating. I understand Richard E. Hughes felt relieved when the Comics Code came in.
I love the thought process behind the evolution of the Dad character, Norm. Very personalized and well-thought. The best comics characters have many layers, even the silly ones. To make the Dad a little more understandable and accessible will give you great opportunity for comedy and real pathos. It never made sense to me to rail against the newspapers or the syndicates about the restrictions on comics. Sure, it’s nice when they push the edges, but at the same time, they are what they are. Those are the rules, and the good news for us as artists is that now, more than ever in history, we have other avenues to follow such as the web or self-publishing. But it’s great to see the real care and thought that both Norm and Brendan are putting into the development of “Gil.” This blog is worth its weight in gold to anyone starting out in the biz for sure. (I know that a blog doesn’t weigh anything, per se…it’s still meant as a compliment.
Journalling the journey through the process of creating a syndicated strip has been huge and help and inspiration to cartoonists like myself.
Thank you Norm and Brendan.
Keep the posts coming please!
ROLFE
Thank you for sharing the process of restructuring of a character.
made me think that maybe with your tips I need to restructure my webcomics even before submitting any sydicate and be willing to give whatever it takes to find a good product.
I think that rules help to show the right direction.
the more open, more options, more easy to get lost.
With the declining circulation of today’s surviving newspapers, I understand the reticence of editors to run anything that might ruffle a subscriber’s feathers. Given that the comics section is not the sales driver it was many decades ago, easier to drop a strip that may be considered provocative and thus problematic. I suppose it is progress that in our sensitivity to political correctness a strip which features as its namesake a lazy, philandering alcoholic who abuses his wife both verbally and physically and which ran for many years would most likely not even be considered suitable for syndication today.
That said (cue music: Louis Armstrong singing, “What a Wonderful World”), wouldn’t it be nice if a cadre of visionary editors would take a chance once in awhile and try something that pushes the envelope and might actually prove beneficial to increasing readership?
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It is definitely a challenge to create characters that seem real yet do not offend – human nature is not perfect – sometimes you end up making characters a little harsh on each other and you must try to make them a little nicer without compromising the integrity of the strip – which is difficult. I’m glad to see that a lot of comic strips are veering away from the traditional family dynamic – there are all kinds of families these days and they should all be represented in the funny pages.
Methinks you worry too much about what readers will/will not accept. I’ve seen what the competition is doing; Good lord, it’s as if there’s a competition on as to who can get the raunchiest/most scatalogical juokes out there (& I love it!)
I do have this question: Frank was originally in jail when GIL ran online. Is that even going to be alluded to, as in something he did once & learned his lesson from, or just bypassed altogether?