May 17th, 2011

Wayno World

by Wayno & Piraro

Today’s Bizarro is brought to you by A Guest Caroonist.

A few months ago, I employed my good buddy and favorite collaborator, Wayno, to do a week of cartoons for me as a guest cartoonist. He refused at first but then I showed him the pictures I had a private investigator take of him and Jim Davis frolicking together on a nude beach in the Caribbean, and he relented. This kind of trickery is the only way a cartoonist like myself can get time off. Syndicated folks like me have to provide 365 cartoons each year for decades on end without rest. If I were to submit reruns for a week and take some time off, many of my client editors would run replacement strips instead, thus risking losing my place in that paper permanently. In this economy (and with my meager income) I can’t risk that.

So my pal from Pittsburgh was willing to help me out and thus begins the week he created: All of the cartoons from today until next Sunday, May 22 (or 22 May, if you’re reading this in Europe) were written, drawn, and colored by Wayno. He tells his side of this story about the guest week underneath this ruffly skirt. Ruffly skirt. And, if you care what the Pittsburgh Gazette has to say about this guest week, check the lemur’s tonsils. Lemur’s tonsils.

So let’s kick the week off right by thoroughly critiquing and deconstructing his first gag.

Here, Wayno seems to be dealing with his fear of eternal damnation, which, considering the life he’s led, is not completely unfounded. But does my esteemed colleague fear fire, brimstone, branding irons or busting rocks with a sledge hammer? No. It seems that Wayno’s greatest fear is that of long meetings in which he is not the center of attention.

And what of his artwork? Does this look like the kind of devil that strikes fear in the heart of the superstitious? Hardly. This is a devil you can be afraid of. Wayno’s devil looks more like a Tea Party candidate who is not presently hiding his horns. But I suppose that is exactly the point.

I hope you enjoy this week’s cartoons by Wayno. I enjoyed my time off and think his cartoons this week are top notch!

Bizarro cartoons on products galore, listed by date, can be found here, daddio!