THE CULTUREPULP Q&A: 'Breakfast of the Gods' writer/artist Brendan Douglas Jones


As promised to readers of today's CulturePulp comic ....



One of my favorite cartoonists is moving to Portland. Brendan Douglas Jones writes and draws "Breakfast of the Gods" -- a totally unauthorized, "Lord of the Rings"-sized epic starring breakfast-cereal mascots. He posts it online, for free (by legal necessity), at Webcomics Nation.

"Breakfast" is a deadpan parody that follows Cap'n Crunch and Tony the Tiger as they battle the evil forces of Count Chocula. It's exhaustively researched -- there are dozens of cameos from throughout breakfast-cereal history. It's also hilarious. It pushes your nostalgia buttons. And it's -- dare I say it? -- kind of moving at times.

Jones and I had a two-hour IM chat last week about "BOTG," what drives a man to this level of obsession, plans for the rest of the "Breakfast" triliogy, why he's moving to Portland, and much, much more. An edited transcript follows the jump.


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MIKE RUSSELL: First question: How did you come to dedicate yourself to this fairly massive project? You've mentioned that it came out of some discussions with two friends, years ago...

BRENDAN DOUGLAS JONES: Yeah, it was back in art school (Parsons School of Design, NYC, 1988 to be exact). It started as a late night blather session amongst guys who were really tired and getting to that goofy stage of conversation. Basically, it was just "what if the cereal mascots had a fight -- who would be good and who would be bad?"

We all laughed. We would bring it up occasionally through school, adding new characters to the list and examining "motivations." And then we all went our separate ways at the end of the semester.

But I kept thinking about the idea. And it started fleshing out as an actual story, with histories and relationships, and dramatic beats. And it's always been there at the back of my mind for -- er -- 19 years.
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Q. After 19 years, what finally got you saying, "Hey, I think I'll finally really sit down and actually create the 'League of Extraordinary Gentlemen' of breakfast-cereal mascots"?

A. As for the progression, it wasn't so very sudden. I left art school before graduating because I kind of discovered my true calling was writing. So I wrote out the scripts for BOTG along the way over the years. Not knowing when or if I would ever find an artistic collaborator, I also drew and inked about 5 pages of issue one back in the early-mid-'90s.

And they just sat around. Until I started learning Photoshop. And I got excited about scanning in and coloring those old pages.

And then, last year, I discovered the Mac program called "Comic Life" that took care of all those nasty art chores I dislike (lettering, "straight lines" for the panels). And then I really had no excuse not to pick up where I'd left off. And I picked up the pencil and pens again for the first time in years.




Q. How does one go about fleshing out the inner life of a cereal mascot?

A. Well, sadly I suppose, I have a pretty vast backlog of pop-culture arcana stored in my grey matter. Comics (obviously), movies, TV, music, etc. And I watched waaaaayyyy too much Saturday morning TV.

In those little 30-second commercials (back in the '70s and '80s -- not so much these days), they actually gave these mascot characters real personalities and storylines, even. It was all just extrapolation for me.

For instance, Sugar Bear.

He's the ultimate Rat Pack-esque cool dude. Very laid-back. But there were commercials in the '80s where eating his own cereal would cause him to bulk up as the super-powerful "Super Bear." Anyone versed in comics could see how this is potentially (for Sugar Bear) unpleasant -- that there's this ultra-powerful, violent "beast" inside him ready to burst out. Very Hulk-like or Wolverine-like. And suddenly, you have a character arc for this lovable mascot for Super Sugar Crisp (now "Super Golden Crisp").
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Q. Reading that, I now, strangely, find myself relating to the angst of Sugar Bear, the smug bastard.

Part of what makes "BOTG" so funny is that it's played so straight -- rather than being silly or overtly spoofy, you actually play this tonally as a sort of "Crisis on Infinite Earths"/"Lord of the Rings" epic. I mean, my God -- you open with the brutal murder of the Honey Bunch Bee. How did you arrive at this tone?

A. Well, I have to admit I am deliberately aping the tone of the big event comics -- specifically "Watchmen." I mean, it's still valid now because DC and Marvel are still cranking out megaseries, but -- for me and my whole generation -- it's still all about 1985. "Watchmen", "Dark Knight Returns," "Crisis on Infinite Earths." There's a grand, serious WEIGHT to these projects, which are still, at the end of the day, focused on guys in tights beating the crap out of each other. Simple characters created in simpler times, for children, suddenly allowed to carry grander themes -- deal with adult issues -- all with a straight face.

So I'm doing the same thing here. Of course, I still try to inject enough winking satire to let the readers know I know perfectly well how ridiculous this story is.




Q. Part of the power of "BOTG" is that it taps into this crazy collective memory that everyone of a certain age who grew up watching Saturday-morning cartoons has -- we always imagined these endorsement characters having rich lives outside the cereal box.

A. Right. I'm lucky that the project works on so many levels. For a lot of people (even myself, early on), it's just about nostalgia -- rediscovering these great characters from our youths. And I've always been a fan of crossover stories.

(Again with Alan Moore -- as you mentioned previously -- "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" seemed like it was pulled right out of my subconscious heart's desire. I mean, dude! There's Captain Nemo chatting with Dr. Jeckyll! Get OUT!)
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Q. I was checking out BOTG's MySpace page, and I may have been reading this incorrectly, but did your Friends list include major creators from Marvel and DC like Bendis and Warren Ellis? You do know Bendis lives here in Portland, right?

A. I do know Bendis lives in Portland, and I got to speak to him once through my (former) day job with Final Draft (makers of fine screenwriting software). It was just a straightforward tech-support call -- but he was cool enough to let me geek out with him for a few minutes.

But the thing with MySpace is that these "celebs" will automatically accept your friend request, without ever knowing you or reading your work. In short, you too could easily have Geoff Johns as your MySpace buddy! (I don't think any of those big names on BOTG's page have ever glanced at the comic, but I'd love it if they did.)
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Q. Were you in any way surprised by the depth of the fan reaction -- you're pimped all over the Internet -- or did you kind of know you were onto something when you started this? (Personally, I'm a little surprised no one has tried to do this sooner.)

A. Well, yeah -- surprised and pleased. The thing is, even back in '88, I thought it was a simple, perfect idea. I was waiting for it to be stolen and done by someone else.

And it was, kind of. A year or two later (my timeline might be off), a guy named James Sturm did an independent (b&w) comic called "Cereal Killings" -- which was a grim, noir-ish series featuring stand-ins for the same mascots I'm using. It was certainly very different from my story, but it still put a damper on my enthusiasm.

But time has passed, and I'm finally putting out my story. And people are digging it. Posting it on Webcomics Nation opened it up for review and then the reviews were picked up on sites like BoingBoing, and then it snowballed.




Q. Have you read that cereal-character fan-fiction manga produced (and printed, and sold) in Japan starring Tony the Tiger?

A. Oh my God! No, I've never heard of that! I've got to track that down! (Of course, we all know that Tony would never do such a thing, but -- still-!)
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Q. Oh, and one other precedent I can think of for what you're doing is something Evan Dorkin produced that was sort of a "Where are they now?" piece on various product characters -- Mr. Clean was now out and proud, stuff like that.

A. Ha! Yeah, see, that's the beauty of such satire. Everybody knows these characters -- so you have this very solid base off which to exaggerate them or reinterpret them.

Actually, maybe it's a little too easy, creatively speaking. But nobody can deny that it's fun to see creators warp familiar characters.
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Q. If I may shamelessly continue these "League" comparisons: It strikes me that, as with "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," you could publish a companion book of annotations to go along with the strip -- I mean, you have a character from an early-1900s cereal called "Elijah's Manna" on page 17, right?

A. Yes, I do. And I did have a listing of each "cameo" on that page when the book was originally posted to my Blogger site (before I shifted it all to Webcomics Nation).

But I have to give all credit for the obscurities to a gent I only know as Topher, who has an invaluable website I have used flagrantly throughout the book. The site is: http://www.lavasurfer.com/cereal-guide.html

Without him, I would have never found picture reference for a lot of these characters.

I gave him an inside-front-cover credit, since I literally could not have done the comic (to my liking) without him.
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Q. I was going to ask you about that. Did you encounter any big surprises as you researched the history of cereal characters? How many characters of yore would be considered completely racist today?

A. Well, race doesn't tend to pop up too much (there's more talking animals than men represented, after all) -- but I'm sure to catch some heat for little bits like the "urbanization" of Dig'Em. I can live with that, tho, because , if nothing else, I finally showed the world what a bad-ass OG that frog really is.
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Q. Have you gotten any feedback from the holders of the official breakfast-cereal licenses? I mean, when you were linked off BoingBoing last December, that HAD to have gotten some official attention.

A. If it did, I heard nothing. I'm still safely under the radar, I think. One little non-profit webcomic doesn't amount to a hill o' beans in this great big world. I do hope I am able to avoid any cease-and-desists until Book Three is done.
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Q. Well, assuming that the strip will thrive, some questions about the next two-thirds of the series....

A. OK. But I'll try to keep it spoiler-lite.



Q. You've said: "there are some major baddies to come which owe their existence to Quaker." Surely not that buttahfaced, carb-loaded, rosy-cheeked oatmeal guy!

Q. Ha! No. When we see him, it'll be a very profound moment and he will be portrayed in anything but a bad light.
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Q. Are the book titles you revealed to Digital Strips in fact the titles of the next two books in the trilogy?

A. Yeah. Wasn't aware anybody actually read those responses, but I have no problem letting go public. Book Two is "O Cap'n, My Cap'n," and Book Three is "Apocalypse Yum."
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Q. Will we see the "good" and "evil" alliances of characters shift over the course of the saga? I'm of course thinking specifically of the Boo Berry ghost....

A. Boo (and I can call him that) is a wild card. Not a bad guy, but trapped in the heart of darkness that is Castle Chocula. He will be instrumental at a specific juncture in Book Three.

And, yes, some alliances will shift. There is a character yet to come in Book Two who will be the ultimate in betweener (like Switzerland) but even he will be swayed by a major event that will shake up all the "good" characters.

Wow, how vague was that?
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Q. You're positively Lucasian in that regard. Do you take any pleasure in planning the demise of certain historically annoying characters like the Honey Bee? Or in making similarly teeth-grating characters like the Crunch Berry Beast and the Cocoa Puffs bird completely batshit, homicidally insane?

A. Though it may paint me in a less than flattering light -- yes.

I specifically wanted the Bee to be the initial death because -- no offense to the makers of Honey Nut Cheerios (a fine cereal I have enjoyed on many an occasion) -- I have hated that bee since his inception. One of the most annoying advertising spokes-characters in history.

And we all knew Sonny was one sharp-edged blade away from doing serious damage from his first utterance of "I'm CUCKOO for Cocoa Puffs!"



Q. I am also suddenly aware, with a start, that we have not seen the mighty Toucan Sam.

A. No, we haven't seen Sam yet. I may have mentioned his upcoming role however, fairly recently in this Q&A, however. Really looking forward to his intro, though. It'll be a classic.
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Q. When do you think you'll hit your 90th or 100th page and concluding the saga? 

A. Ahhh, that's hard to predict. The art is the slowest part, obviously. And I have no idea what job and/or life responsilities await me. But I'm hoping by this time 2009.
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Q. Speaking of which: some life-related queries.

A. Ulp.
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Q. Why are you moving to Portland, OR?

A. Many reasons. First, I've been through a few times over the last couple of years, visiting a buddy and former bandmate of mine who lives there. And each time I visited that town, I've loved it more. Secondly, I've grown a little tired of the California "thing."

Thirdly --- no, I guess those two reasons are primarily it. Though I have come to understand that Portland is literally rife with pro comics folk (and Dark Horse is nearby, so that can't hurt.)
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Q. Dark Horse, and Oni Press, and Top Shelf are all headquartered here.

A. Well, then, hook a brutha up!
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Q. Do you have a follow-up project in mind? Something for-profit, perhaps?

A. Yes, I have a few original series that I'd like to pitch to a company like Dark Horse -- series that violate no registered trademarks -- but I have been hoping that BOTG will get me the buzz needed to get a foot in the door.
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Q. Your online profile suggests a rich, somewhat bohemian history -- screenwriter, musician... What is your "day job"? And do the people at your "day job" know about BOTG?

A. "Bohemian" strictly in the "haven't made cent one" sense.

The day job, up until recently, was a cubicle-bound tech support/customer service gig for a software company -- tech support for writers being paid to do what I have been pushing for years to do. Rather depressing. But, yeah, the folks at work knew of BOTG -- though most were of an "huh, this is what you do with your spare time?" kind of ambivalence.




Q. You're 37. Could you have produced something this sophisticated in your 20s?

A. Well, I kind of did. Meaning, with very few rewrites, the script for this book was done when I was 25 and the first few pages were inked back in my 20s.

But there's no doubt I've advanced quite a bit since then -- primarily as a writer. My other, original series are all (I think) much more ambitious and well-crafted than BOTG.

But, that being said, I've felt completely ecstatic FINALLY bringing BOTG to life after so much time.
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Q. Yes, this is a project that could only have truly existed as it does -- and found the audience it has -- in the last half-decade or so of the Internet.

A. Precisely. Back in the day, my plan (such as it was) was to produce and print all three books -- in full -- and try to have them released simultaneously to shops, so that no lawyers could cease publication of them before people had a chance to read them all. I have benefitted greatly from not worrying about the costs of print or distribution.

Of course, I'm still flat broke, but not as much as I would have been.
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Q. Are you in any way concerned that you will be the first webcartoonist in history to be sued by General Mills? Is what you do protected by Fair Use? (You've written elsewhere, "The only thing keeping the lawsuits at bay is the fact that I'm not making a dime off of this book.")

A. This is all based on "best guess." I'm no lawyer and I have no lawyer friends. I believe that Fair Use (and parody law) will be my umbrella should it start raining lawsuits.

Now, true, I did not "Mad Magazine" this satire -- I didn't alter the characters' looks or their names -- but I still think I'm in the clear. I have always credited the true ownership of these characters (even the background folk) and will continue to do so. But, honestly, I really don't know what could happen.
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Q. Is there any other major pop-culture universe that could be plumbed like you're plumbing the cereal-character universe?

A. Umm, there's always other characters that could be rescued from obscurity and "taken seriously."

If you promise not to laugh, I once thought up and wrote out a "springboard" for a serious comic series based on the '80s cartoon "Bravestarr." I mean, come on! A Western in space! I wanted it to be grittified and told in flashback, like "Little Big Man."

But I think the '80s toy/cartoon nostalgia train will probably die out after the "Transformers" movie.
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Q. Yes, and then Joss Whedon created "Firefly" and beat you to the punch.

A. CURSE YOU, WHEDON! ahem.
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Q. Will you offer a high-rez PDF download of the book when it's done?

A. Yes, plans are afoot to produce a downloadable archive of BOTG. But that will probably have to wait until after the move.
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Q. Right: You're asking for PayPal donations to help finance the move to PDX. How's that going?

A. Erm, okay. Truthfully, I may have thought too optimistically about that, based on page views. I thought I'd be ROLLING in dough! But, I am sincerely grateful that anybody has contributed (and some have) as every little bit helps.

I don't plan big things -- like interstate moves -- too well. So I'm still madly searching for a steady job and room for rent as we speak (my friend Jerry will put me up for a bit, but I don't want to cramp his style). So if you hear of any job openings or places to live, please let me know!





Posted: Fri - April 6, 2007 at 12:00 AM        

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