new finn website

well folks, from now on, please check out the finn comic strip line at the new website www.finncomics.com. see you all there!

- johnny nguyen

deep trench

wow, finn has been going thru some rough times (as some of you commented to me!). well, this week we finally see finn start to make progress in moving on. and as some of you know, moving on is no easy feat. perhaps if finn had gone in a bit more guarded, he wouldn't have recover from such a deep emotional trench. but then again, in order to have that truly deep relationship, don't you need to let down all your guard, leaving yourelf exposed?

i think i'm getting kinda comfortable with the panels within panels look. just seems to keep to have more action than the breaks in the panels. what do you think?

-johnny
(click to enlarge)

do something

so, our character finn is still struggling with his recent breakup. and although we each prob deal with it differently, it's probably a proven fact that with time, things get easier. whether that's chilling on the couch watching a friend's marathon with ross and rachel or spending time in the gym working muscles suffering from atrophy, the progression of time seems to having a numbing effect on the memories.

and don't worry, we'll see finn moving on starting next week! enough of this sad sad stuff!

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

self inflicted

why do we like to torture ourselves? i mean, here we are just suffering through a heart wrenching breakup - and we do things to remind ourselves of how awful we feel! there's prob some sort of psychological diagnosis for that type of behavior and maybe it's therapeutic, but somebody needs to snap him/her out of it. true it hurts, but there's just so much to do in life, like maybe get a playstation 3 and play the hell out of it!

hope you like the dance moves!

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

reminders everywhere

what's harder than going thru a breakup? well, in the moment, prob nothing much. and undoubtedly, almost everything is a reminder to the way things were. but i'd venture to say teh best way to deal with it is to simplystay busy and let time do its thing. and hopefully, we'll realize things happen for a reason and we're better off for them.

ahhh, the animated tv. gives it more life don't you think?

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

It's a Wash

Hey guys! I know I've been away for while. And I'm sorry to disappoint my fans...all 3 of them. I kind of fell off the comic strip wagon. But I'm back baby!

This week's strip deals with a topic I'm definitely familiar with: washing the car. And by that I mean FINALLY washing the car. So, our guy Riley is finally getting around to it. What's the occasion? You have to read on my friends!

-Kevin

(click to enlarge)

emotional impact

breaking up is never fun. and everything about it is so much about perspective. maybe she's not getting enough time. maybe he feels like he's not being appreciated. maybe she doesn't like comic books. maybe she wants 10 kids. they're all valid excuses and the bottom line is that needs and expectations just aren't being met.

hmm, not sure how well i succeeded in drumming up more emotional impact with that darker panel. hopefully you can feel the empathy towards finn.

- johnny
(click to make larger)

tecchnology!

ahh, how technology infiltrates every part of our lives. and when it comes to relationships, has technology helped or hindered? with so many ways now to communicate and meet people, such as online dating services (match, eharmony, plentyoffish, etc.), have we just become lazy with what we say? instead of saying one sentence that really means something, maybe we really on 5 text messages, instant messaging, and then a phone call to convey what we mean. i think there's a way to maximize the technology to maximize the message - that whoever you're talking to is special.

in terms of artwork, it's all about perspective!

- johnny nguyen
(click to enlarge)

IM

with the advent of techonology, there's just a slew of ways to communicate with each one offering just the right amount of personal touch. there's text messaging, which lets you communicate without the time investment. there's instant messaging, which is great for updates and joking (or flirting) but not so great for long, deep conversation, which requires reading of tone. and of course, there's the classic, very personal phone call.

i had the dialogue for this week's strip proofread and the reaction i got was, "ehh. but it's genuine." so, i'm gonna have to amp up my comedic skills but at least i got the sentimental parts down pat.

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

long distance communication

i was thinking about long distance relationships and how that would affect the communication. maybe because you're further apart, unable to see each other anytime, there's a need to talk more often. just to make sure you two are in sync. whereas if you're living close geographically to each other, you communicate less and depend more on the actual dates. ehh, just a thought.

this week's strip is my second foray into the sunday comics format. taking a cue from calvin and hobbes, bill watterson had strips where there were basically no text. just the images alone were enough to evoke the reaction he desired. well, i cheated a lil.

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

inner voices

ever get so close to a person you can start hearing their voice inside your head? or maybe you're right next to someone and it's like they're the furthest person away? it's amazing how that dichotomy could exist for the same person, but it's prob what makes it so exciting at the same time. we'll see how finn starts to deal with a long distance relationship.

what do you think about this week's humor? i'll tell you this, as i was discussing the punchline with friends, it gave us a good laugh!

- johnny
(click to blow it up!)

ramifications

oh no, what will happen between finn and elle?! it's a tough question really, will elle take the job offer and move away? if so, does that mean a long distance relationship? how will finn handle all this? usually a relationship will start off as being long distance and evetually one moves close to the other, so it's not that bad. but going from a close relationship to bein further apart? that could hurt.

in today's strip, trying to use a tactic where i intentionally have a large panel with not much going on to depict the passage of time. the reader's eyes will relax, as if to slow down and give the illusion of more time passing. did it work?

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

Book It

Hey guys! Sorry, I've been away for a while. And by "away" I mean vegetating on the sofa and and totally slacking off. But I'm back with a new strip this week!

Anyway, I recently booked an airline flight for an upcoming vacation. I've got to say that I was surprised by some of the fees. I know times are tough. But geez! The airlines seem to be tacking fees on to everything!

-Kevin
(click to enlarge)

i'll hear what i want to hear!

assumptions are killer! i've done my share of thinking i know what people are thinking and man, have i been wrong. and the consequences in a romantic relationship could be huge! so, despite what we hear, what we see, sometimes it's best to just simply ask, "hey, what's up?"

this week in artwork, we make small steps, small steps. further use of the eyebrow, playing of the panel layouts and the non-bubble for dialogue. small steps.

- johnny
(click to, well, you know what happens...)

foundation

i found last week's poll results to be pretty interesting. when asked what's the most aspect to a successful relationship, it was almost a tie between love, trust, and communication. surprisingly sharing a common set of belief didn't get any votes. so i guess as a continuation of last week's strip, in order to deal with jealousy in a healthy way, you just gotta have love, trust, and communication as the foundation.

and continuing my inspriration from calvin & hobbes, played some more with the panel layouts. also, i gave in and used eyebrows. it was so hard sometimes to convey emotions correctly but add in two tiny lines for eyebrows and BAM, instant emotion!

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

Picture Perfect

Picture it, Sicily, 1945...Oh never mind. I was whipping out the old Golden Girls reference, but roughly 2 people would get the joke! So, I'll just cut my losses now. haha. Anyway, this week our guy Riley takes a picture of Rob. But what happens next?

-Kevin
(click to enlarge)

no limits

within any relationship, there's always a certain level of jealousy. the key i think is to keep at a healthy level of jealousy, when you know both people are that into each other without limiting any freedoms. and of course, there's got to be a strong foundation of trust.

continuing to draw inspiration from calvin and hobbes, i've layed around with the panel layouts. hopefully it adds to the storytelling.

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

Shake it Up

I've been enjoying these two or three-strip story arcs. Each time I think I'm getting better at utilizing the sequential stories. The trick is to make it so that the audience can understand the current story without having read the previous one. I think I'm doing a pretty good job of it. Of course, let me know if you think otherwise!

This week's strip continues the story in the sports nutrition store. Our protagonist Riley is still looking at buying a protein shake. But he has a few concerns...

-Kevin
(click to enlarge)

louder than thots

i've gotten feedback for my strips both way - they're too sappy or they really like the emotional content. this week, we go the way of sappy again. my goal for the Finn comic strips is to make it both humorous and relatable. so, i don't know how many of you do what's stated below, but every so often i get those thoughts in my head and it a question of whether they should truly ever be uttered out loud.

in terms of artwork, i really wanted to portray finn's emotions through body language. so, take away the words, does the first three panels still work with the 4th panel's dialogue?

- johnny
(click to enlarge)

Way Good Whey Protein

I've started hitting the gym more frequently as of late. And by "more frequently" I mean more than once a week! It seems like I end up lumping all my workout sessions into the weekend though. I should really spread it more evenly over the week. Anyways, I've also been using protein powder as part of my regiment. I've always hesitated in the past, because I wanted to make sure there weren't 't some unsavory ingredients in the mix! Anyways, that's a long-winded way of talking about the inspiration for this week's strip. Hopefully, my creativity and my muscles will continue to grow as one! haha! As always, enjoy!!

-Kevin
(click to enlarge)