Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (11/4/09)

For all the times I’ve seen it referenced in popular culture, I’ve still yet to watch Ingmar Bergman’s classic art film, The Seventh Seal. According to critics, it’s a powerful and austere meditation on mortality that is genuinely thought-provoking. According to almost everyone else, it’s an impossibly pompous piece of cinema that’s ripe for ridicule. I suppose I should rent the film and judge for myself, although I’m not sure I’d be able to watch it without conjuring up images of Hungry Hungry Hippos.

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (9/3/09)

The thing I find funniest about this strip is the fact that all the drones in panel two are propped up vertically. This makes them appear somewhat human, considering that that their wings resemble outstretched arms. The only question I have is whether these drones are advancing toward their human superior in an aggressive manner, or whether they are backing away slowly in an effort to escape her scowl. It may only be a small hint, but the woman’s arched eyebrow of displeasure in panel two makes me think these drones are plotting a mad dash for the door.

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (8/7/09)

The standard lament of the harried and the overworked is that they can only be in one place at a time. “If only there were two of me,” their wistful wish goes, “then I could finish all of my menial chores and still have time to relax.” So I’m confused as to why Dr. Mel would want to use his clone as a teacher’s assistant when he could easily find a first year med student to do the job. That way, Dr. Mel could force his cloned twin teach the class while he sat back on the couch with a bag of tortilla chips and a jar of black bean dip. Or salsa. Or guacamole. The choices are endless, really.

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (7/14/09)

Today’s Brewster Rockit reminds me of the recent cyber attacks allegedly carried out by North Korea against South Korean and American websites. While the sabotage seemed to focus on government websites, there’s always a danger of this sort of thing spreading. Fortunately, Brewster has come up with a brilliant plan for foiling such an attack in the future. Simply dangle a ham in front of any computer that might attract a Stalinist hacker. This should be doubly effective given the criminal food shortages plaguing North Korea. And who knows, these meat-based tactics might lead to bigger and better things. Nothing has come close to spurring reunification of the Korean peninsula; maybe it’s time we gave ham a chance.

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (6/23/09)

While I appreciate the notion of a sarcastic Yoda whose cynical quips balance out those of his more famous counterpart, Toada’s claim in the first panel, that “dreams are like delicate bubbles that send you off with the breath of hope,” doesn’t sound like anything that the old Jedi master would say. Despite his philosophical musings, the little green man proved time and again that he was no sentimentalist. One need only watch Yoda admonish Luke Skywalker to “do or do not” while reminding him that “there is no try” to know that he wasn’t they type of cat who had his head in the clouds.

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (5/27/09)

Negotiators have been known to “press” their counterparts for painful concessions, but I always assumed that this phrase was diplomat slang for “pressure” and not a euphemism for physical abuse. I’m sure that’s still the case in high-level negotiations between nation states, but today’s Brewster Rockit shows just how quickly that sense of decorum can deteriorate when dealing with a whacked-out waffle iron. The captain in this strip emerges from his session looking like a sheet of walking, talking graph paper who’s lucky not to have been topped with blueberry compote and whipped cream.

Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! (3/15/09)

Being swept to your death by a martian rock slide might sound like an exotic way to go in 2009, but it’s probably pretty pedestrian in the futuristic world of this strip. If space travel came to be so commonplace that a dullard like Brewster Rockit could lead a space station, then I think we could assume that Mars expeditions would carry all the luster of community service in Rockford, Ill. (no offense to Rockford). Under those circumstances, Brewster’s confused response in the final panel might seem appropriate.