Crikey Duck: A Webbed Comic

Cannarsa Simple Question

Mon, 08 Jan 2007 22:24:42 GMT

Cannarsa Simple Question: The plot thickens! Our three reprobates now have a rather forbidding (and unfortunately named) wall of Mafia muscle on their feathery tails!

Our style has subtly changed once more: we've dispensed with inking altogether and are now simply using cleaned-up pencils. It was meant to be rough pencils with color underneath, but like me, V often finds it easier to be precise than to be messy. In art, anyway. :D

In other news, a sexy print of Zakiya is now for sale over at DeviantArt:

~Tania

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Cashes to Cashes

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 21:00:28 GMT

Cashes to Cashes: Three ducks. One sharehouse. A bag of buried cash. Endless waiting as the weeks tick by... It sounds kind of like a reality tv show, one of those "the guys at NBC were scraping the bottom of the barrel" ones.

This is the end of the second major Crikey Duck arc. In the next issue, things take a turn for the worse...

Crikey Duck's journal will now be 'friending' back everyone who watches it. So watch away, guys!

Please help us spread the word by recommending the comic to your friends in your LJ. Alternately, we adore those who link to us here at www.crikeyduck.com with any of the following link banners:

~Tania

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Stashing the Cash

Tue, 14 Nov 2006 20:55:54 GMT

Stashing the Cash: Crikey Duck is back on track! I'll let the comic speak for itself today, but just to keep y'all updated, there've been a few behind-the-scenes changes and there are more to come!

I've handed over pencilling of the comic to Vicki, and as you can see, she's done an amazing job. Having grown up drawing together, we're lucky that our styles are so similar!

I'm retaining writing and thumbnail / planning duties, and I help Vix out with parts of the pencilling when she requests it. icefox has retired as inker, so for this issue and the next, pseudo_manitou has taken over.

The next issue is the last one in the "Stashing the Cash" story arc. After that, we plan to dispense with inking altogether, and go for a much more organic style - colour under sketches. The colour palette of the comic is likely to become slightly less vivid, as it'll need to stylistically merge with the gentler lines we'll have.

Exciting changes on the horizon, guys! Thanks for sticking with us; you won't be sorry. With the two establishing story arcs out of the way, we can start having fun.

Incidentally, I've removed both the explanatory entries between the previous comic and this one. Now when you hit "previous comic" and "next comic" you should see a smooth, uninterrupted flow of comic-y goodness. If only real life were that easy to wrangle. ;)

Also, Crikey Duck's journal will now be 'friending' back everyone who watches it. So watch away, guys! And please help spread the word; I'm not sure but I suspect we lost a few readers during our downtime, and I'd like them to know we're back up and running!

~Tania

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Laundry Time

Mon, 01 May 2006 09:05:36 GMT

Laundry Time: Ranger Stormwing, man of steel. Darrell's face lends itself well to blank looks of horror, doesn't it?

Another late page, and once again I have good reasons which I'm sure you're not remotely interested in, so let's just say we'll try our darndest to get the next page out speedily, and hope for the best. To the person who donated $30, thank you very much! Donations can be made on the info page (http://www.crikeyduck.com/info).

In apology for the lateness of page 19, I offer you Marian's profile at long last!

Lots of news today, so please forgive me if I go on a bit here!

Other milestones to celebrate include the comic's first birthday. It was started in April 2005. Everything and everyone that is awesome is born in April, don'tchaknow. ;) Those with basic mathematical skills will note that next issue will be our twentieth, and that we're exactly eight LJ-watchers away from having 400 of you most excellent folks watching the comic through your journals on a permenant basis. Anyone else who is interested in having the comic feed into their friends-list can add it by going to the Info page, as linked above. Thank you so much for all your support!

I've entered into a business venture with a couple of my closest friends, sigmoidal_suseq and inc_b. Tasujo is the name - twenty Cool Points if you know me and mine well enough to work out why - and creating and screenprinting original boutique shirts is our aim; we want to become a Threadless.com for Australia, only with a really, really bizarre sense of humor. Essentially, we want to print and sell shirts for oddball people like us. I'm coming to realise there are more of us out there than I thought.

We've got the equipment, we've got our designs and the blank shirts are on their way; what I'm doing now is a little market research for the lovely Susan, who wants to know if there'd be a market for Crikey Duck t-shirts sold through this site. Any takers? If you're one of those who'd be interested in buying a shirt, what kind of thing would you like to see on it?

~Tania

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He Had His Fingers Crossed

Wed, 22 Mar 2006 15:39:03 GMT

He Had His Fingers Crossed: One week away at a gruelling trade fair... A move that took place over four days... Three weeks without the internet... And one FREAKING LONG GAME OF MONOPOLY later... we present, finally, the next page of Crikey Duck!

Please welcome our new inker, Karen K, who has a doomful surname but wicked inking skills!

Also, a special thanks goes out to the fan who donated $50 to keep Crikey Duck running. You, sir, are a legend. (Should anyone else feel so generously inclined, the donation button is here: www.crikeyduck.com/info - not that I'm soliciting donations or anything. Oh, wait, I am. Well screw it, we do this for free, you can all bite me.

Ooh, yeah... a little lower... thaaaat's it.

~Tania

PS: I won Monopoly with a $10450 lead. All shall love me and despair!

The Webcomics List: The Webcomics List seems to be temporarily down. But if you see that little numerical button turn up, please chuck us a vote!

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Priceless

Tue, 21 Feb 2006 13:06:28 GMT

Priceless: The punchline for this one changed three times. Indeed, this was an issue fraught with peril. I seem to have finally hit my stride as an inker... just as I have to give it up, because if there's one thing I learned from trying to get this page done, it's that I just don't have the time to write, thumbnail, pencil AND ink this darn thing.

From next issue, you'll have a brand spanking new inker, and we're hoping this will mean we can keep our pages coming out in a more timely fashion.

Things to remember:

1. You can 'friend' the Crikey Duck journal and have it feed into your Livejournal Friends Page whenever it's updated. Simply go here: http://www.crikeyduck.com/info

2. As soon as I reorganise the layout of this journal, I'll be adding back everyone who 'friended' it. There are now 285 of you, and we really appreciate your support. :)

3. I've updated the Archive page, for all your back-issue-navigational needs! (Click here!)

4. A better site update is coming soon, along with Marian's profile. Having an inker will really speed things up around here!

This whole description is a little lackluster... I seem to have misplaced my funny tonight. Erm... *sweats* Uh... HEY, look over there! *runs!*

~Tania

The Webcomics List: Now, I know you're all just itching to come back here daily and hit the 'vote' button, right? ....right? Thanks to your votes, we managed to spend a few rosy days in the top ten of the webcomics list, peaking at number seven!

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WHAT??

Mon, 23 Jan 2006 16:37:39 GMT

WHAT??: Can't write description. Distracted by panther butt.

~Tania

The Webcomics List: Now, I know you're all just itching to come back here daily and hit the 'vote' button, right? ....right? Thanks to your votes, we managed to spend a few rosy days in the top ten last month, peaking at number seven!

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Crikey Duck: Splash Page #01

Mon, 09 Jan 2006 13:29:52 GMT

Judging by Vix's expression, I'm guessing they're watching a zombie movie. But which is more worrying? What's in front of them, or what's behind?

Yes, it's just a splash page. Don't lynch me, I did warn you! More story coming soon.

At this point I should apologise for the slowness in updates these past couple of months. My fiance, who features in this comic as the dashing slacker Robbie, is away at boot camp getting the slackness dashed right out of him. Without him around, I'm responsible for feeding, housing and generally looking after myself and the gecko while still working fulltime, and it leaves me with very little spare time.

So now you know who REALLY deserves thanks for the comic. It's the guy who does the mowing and the laundry for me while I sit around drawing. (Sorry, girls, he's taken.)

Onto a brighter note: if you're interested in having custom plushies made of any of your characters, furry or otherwise, look no further than the amazing uneide over at http://uneide.deviantart.com. She's fast, reliable, and incredibly talented (and here I can't even sew a button!)

Don't take my word for it - check out these amazing Crikey Duck plushies she made!

And while we're on the subject of amazing artists, the lovely wicked_sairah made us a Crikey Duck themed sculpture out of the blue!

She takes commissions, and has a table at FC 2006. In fact, this sculpture will be on display there! If you're going to FC and you see Sairah, please tell her Tania says hi!

Enjoy the splash page, guys - there's something meatier coming your way soon.

~Tania

The Webcomics List: Now, I know you're all just itching to come back here daily and hit the 'vote' button, right? ....right? Crikey Duck for the top ten!

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Welcome Home

Thu, 15 Dec 2005 09:06:07 GMT

Welcome Home: After a slight (read, very large) delay, the final issue of the first arc of Crikey Duck is DONE! Let us never speak of this delay again.

As you can see, I've drawn my inking back to a slightly thinner line - the thickness of the line I was using was starting to bother me. There's quite a bit going on in this comic, too, and it was difficult to draw.

Pre-Christmas, you can expect to see a splash page for the series; then we'll plunge into the next arc! When you've got a duffel bag full of cash, what do you DO with it? (That was a rhetorical question, by the way).

~Tania

The Webcomics List: Now, I know you're all just itching to come back here daily and hit the 'vote' button, right? ....right? Thanks to your votes, we managed to spend a few rosy days in the top ten this month, peaking at number seven!

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Skinsuiting

Thu, 17 Nov 2005 14:00:23 GMT

Skinsuiting: And so we reach the penultimate page of the first story arc! Only one more to go... and then things start getting real interesting.

This issue was a bit late, hindered by sleeplessness, lost thumbnails (of the drawn kind), and a power failure. I missed most of 'War of the Worlds' to get this up tonight.

I know at least three kiwis who'll have something to say about Tanipus's throwaway line in panel five. Fortunately I'm hoping to distract everyone via panel seven - yanno, the big one with two pop-culture references. I should've included a sheep...

~Tania

The Webcomics List: Now, I know you're all just itching to come back here daily and hit the 'vote' button, right? ....right? Thanks to your votes, we managed to spend a few rosy days in the top ten this month, peaking at number seven!

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One of a Kind

Sun, 30 Oct 2005 09:12:36 GMT

One of a Kind: Everything you ever wanted to know about Thylacines / Tasmanian Tigers: http://www.naturalworlds.org/thylacine/

Unfortunately, I neither studied them nor used any reference pictures when designing Marian; but the surprising number of you who guessed her species last strip is comforting. The sheer ludicrousness of the phrase "I'm a greyhound with stripes!" appeals to the same part of me that giggles at the Duck Season / Wabbit Season cartoons. "I'm an elk! Shoot me! Shoot me!"

Also, I request that you all 'ooh' and 'ahh' over the exceptionally awesome backgrounds supplied by the lovely quillblade!

Next time: More GeckoVix, and a Furry In-Joke (TM).

~Tania

The Webcomics List: Now, I know you're all just itching to come back here daily and hit the 'vote' button, right? ....right? Crikey Duck started at around #700 and has since reached the top 30. Our next target is the top twenty.

Plus, if you vote, you get to see PORN on the thankyou screen!

...well, no, not really. But please vote anyway.

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"Marian"

Sun, 16 Oct 2005 11:42:24 GMT

Marian: ...and here's the final member of the household. Meet Marian. There's not much I can tell you about her that you can't already figure out from the very first panel, but there's one thing I'm keeping to myself 'til the next strip - her species.

Here's a few hints, though. She's Australian, and a carnivore by nature. There's one other big hint I could blurt, but that'd give it away completely. :)

Marian is a hippie, a vegetarian, immensely good-natured and prone to fits of disgusting cheerfulness. Like all the Crikey Duck characters, there's more to her than meets the eye, but you'll just have to wait and see.

Ranger is all "OMG single female whee!" in this page. That manwhore.

~Tania

The Webcomics List: Roughly a week ago, I put a button up here and on my journal and asked for people to toss in a vote for Crikey Duck, to help us rise up the list into the top 100. We started around #700, and less than a week later, we were at #37. Thank you so much for your votes, guys, and remember, the Webcomics List ranking is an ongoing thing! You can vote daily, and the vote starts from scratch each month. If you have the time and inclination, please drop a vote our way!

Having cracked the top 100, we're trying to reach the top 10. ;)

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"Enter the Victionary"

Fri, 30 Sep 2005 14:16:14 GMT

Enter the Victionary: I'm high on flu meds right now, so don't expect this to be the best commentary I've ever written. (However, I did write Vix's character profile while on this high, and it turned out... well, really weird, but that kind of works for GeckoVix.

Welcome to page eleven! We're almost through with introducing characters now. In fact, we're getting very close to the end of the first story arc. New profiles are up in the Characters section: Robbie Roo and GeckoVix! Follow the link on the right to check 'em out.

My apologies for the lateness of this issue; it was delayed a week due to the Trade Fair I went to in Sydney. I had a ball doing this issue, though, and making Darrell do a lot of lower-eyelid-acting... somewhat more subtle than his usual scowl. I think he narrowly escaped a change in the wind.

I'm still working on pinning down Vix's design; expect to see that improve in further issues.

Brain... so dead...

PS: For those wondering what Vix is carrying, all will be revealed... soon. ;)

~Tania

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"The Lazy Arm of the Law"

Thu, 08 Sep 2005 13:00:57 GMT

The Lazy Arm of the Law: Meanwhile, at the Ranch...

All that stands between Robbie and world domination is laziness, and a tendancy to be placated with fast vehicles and/or chocolate. Note how he wields that white cat like a true (but slightly overenthusiastic) Bond villain.

Speaking of the cat, she's an amalgamation of the two cats we actually own, Tsunami and Sawyer. This kitty has Nami's frame and personality, and Sawyer's coloring (and a couple of his quirks). We've got enough character introductions to get through without dragging the cat into it, so the bat-eared menace will simply pop up in the background now and then.

Incidentally, Robbie is a kangaroo. The floppy ears may cause some confusion, but our reasoning is that he's so laid back, even his ears are relaxed.

Also, Crikey Duck has just reached it's first landmark - ten strips! Huzzah! *tosses a hat in the air*

~Tania

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"Booty and the Beast"

Wed, 17 Aug 2005 13:47:33 GMT

Booty and the Beast: Tale as old as time... Boy meets girl, girl and boy arrange fake kidnapping of girl, girl lusts after boy, boy is chronically oblivious...

Thanks to Jaffa (jaffa_ferel) for the verbal slip that gave us the title for this strip!

Don't let Darrell's obliviousness fool you; he's actually very bright and an excellent con artist. Provided his mark isn't a prowling female.

He would like all in sundry to know that his surname is pronounced "EVENfeather" to rhyme with "seven". Definitely not a "call me whatever you want, just call me" kinda guy.

To clear up a bit of confusion from last issue, tengukun isn't inking Crikey Duck just yet; she's hopefully going to start within the next few issues. We need to find time to train her up first. In the meantime, I continue to make friends with Illustrator. This time round, I tried thickening up the inking.

Onto the inevitable question: Who is Mr Rogers? You'd probably have to be either a pop-culture afficionado or over the age of thirty to know this one; thankfully in this modern age we have the internet, so I don't need to dwell on the terrifying spectre that is Mr Rogers for any longer than necessary. Go here: http://pbskids.org/rogers/

I'm not going to type his name again. They say if you say it three times in a row he comes out of your mirror to kill you in your sleep.

~Tania

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"Not That There's Anything Wrong With That..."

Mon, 01 Aug 2005 22:30:14 GMT

Not That There's Anything Wrong With That...: The attitudes of Darrell Evenfeather in no way reflect those held by the management. Oyy.

This is the first-ever issue of Crikey Duck inked fully in Illustrator. It's the beginning of a segue to a new inker, the lovely tengukun - a project isn't complete unless all three of us gals are pattering away at it around the globe. This move also comes so I can concentrate more on the cleanup (which is very much a seperate process from inking; I'll put up a "making of" one day and show you why) and writing. Let me just say at this point that I love Illustrator and want to have its babies... and this comic is one of them. ;)

~Tania

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"Blue Rooms and Room Blues"

Tue, 19 Jul 2005 09:48:53 GMT

Blue Rooms and Room Blues: Let the games begin. ;)

You can now link to Crikey Duck with either of these two banners:

Please upload the banner to your own server. The link is www.crikeyduck.com. Thank you! We'll have link buttons soon too, when Vicki's GIF animation program stops spazzing out on her. Also, I'm still working on getting the links / link-to-us page into a publically viewable state, rather than the hideous shambles it is right now.

~Tania

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"The Secret Order of the Looming Ducks"

Thu, 23 Jun 2005 13:11:51 GMT

The Secret Order of the Looming Ducks: Better late then never! Aheh...

Meet Tanipus, who, as the name suggests, is a platypus. From this point on, there will be elements of Crikey Duck that are unashamedly autobiographical. This character is based on me - but a very exaggerated version of me. Pure self-insertion isn't funny; mocking the shit out of yourself, however, is. There'll be a profile up for her in the profiles section within the next few days. As we introduce the remaining couple of cast members, their profiles will go up too.

I'm still not used to drawing her, so her design varies wildly all through this. She's by far the most on-model in panel three and the final panel. But you guys didn't come here to listen to me nitpick.

The bottom row of panels still has the power to tickle me pink - from Tani's sheepishness to Ranger's blatant breast-staring to Darrell's complete indignation, I had great fun, even if said fun took place at one in the morning.

It's late again tonight, hence the unusual degree of pointlessness in this commentary. Go forth and enjoy the comic!

~Tania

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"Bloody Americans"

Tue, 07 Jun 2005 13:48:46 GMT

Bloody Americans: Something tells me Zakiya's still slightly pissed about the whole 'diseased' incident. Our con artists are so mature.

By the way, here's a behind-the-scenes factoid for the curious and those with nothing better to wonder about: the newspaper is actually in Latin, painstakingly typeset and generally screwed around with by Vicki. Grovel at her feet, 'cuz she's a total champion. :3

I'm really getting fond of this taxi driver, which is a shame because this is his final appearance. Y'know, before this, I absolutely hated drawing koalas. There's another koala on the horizon though. Like the writers of "Lost", we plan waaay ahead.

And no, I'm not telling. Nyah nyah. ;)

~Tania

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"...In A Flash"

Wed, 11 May 2005 10:15:41 GMT

...IN A FLASH: Three issues in and Ranger is already taking his clothes off. Typical.

I assure you, he has a good reason... but you'll have to wait 'til next week to find out. ;) In the meantime, he will continue to struggle with the realisation that tight shirts, beaks, and hurried public shirt-removal do not go hand-in-hand.

~Tania

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"Inconspicuous"

Tue, 10 May 2005 01:19:59 GMT

INCONSPICUOUS - Here we meet our three con artists by name. Incidentally, Zakiya and Darrell are not dating. She just does that to everyone.

Still working on those profiles.

~Tania

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"Just the Necessities"

Mon, 09 May 2005 12:28:46 GMT

JUST THE NECESSITIES: Welcome to Crikey Duck dot com! The site is pretty bare-bones right now, but keep your eyes peeled - we have character profiles and an art gallery on the boil. In the meantime, there's, um... *looks around* ...well, there's a comic. And if all goes well, a new one-page comic should pop up here every week on a Saturday (Friday night for you Americans).

"Crikey Duck" is a weekly comic with a semi-ongoing storyline about three American criminals who, having conned and robbed a Mafia boss, have gone to ground in the least likely of places - an Australian share-house full of geeks, freaks and temperamental marsupials.

Bear with us, because the first few issues are establishing the setting. The paint is still drying. Don't touch, it's sticky.

All art and writing comes from the busy brains of Tania Walker and Vicki Eden, who share duties on this thing to the point of being some sort of multi-limbed gestalt entity. You can track us at our main haunt, FurTales.com.

Email is welcome - try tania@crikeyduck.com. No, really, try it - I just set it up this morning and it totally needs a test-run. ^_^

~Tania

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