61 thoughts on “Chapter 5: Lit, page 101.”

  1. Got a real Edward Hopper thing in the first panel. Just beautiful.

    More and more I think of TAZ as a storyboard for the types of films that SHOULD be made.

    1. I like how the Veritas guy is the same one the Jakes leaned on to find out where Biggs was hiding out….

      1. I like how the Veritas shop has a little note behind the counter saying “Do not smile unless you are happy”. I know it’s the truth place. I like that it’s actually a truth place. I want to work in a place like that.

  2. Aww! So THAT’S why Ben wanted a look at a Pastimes shop! That’s awesome! Also, I take it that since Thoth was the Egyptian scribe deity, the Thoth Copy Shop is Nile?

    1. I. just. love. sincerists. I should be wearing my heart patch on my sleeve, but it’s been in my wallet for 2 years now :)

  3. … isn’t that Biggs in the sincerists’ cafe? Perhaps he feels safe there because the Jakeskin are insincere? ;)

  4. Panel two: the Viking and the Indian from the Vinland Pemmican box, yes? I have to wonder whether the Viking toy even came with a head in the first place. ;-)

    1. I bet it did, it just seems like the velcro attaching limbs are old since you can see that the arms are slightly detaching at the shoulders. And I think you can see the head being held in the ‘Indian’ plush’s arms.

      I’m assuming that the plush toys are a bit second-hand, of course.

    1. I have a friend who needs to work in this coffee shop, on this logic. Ten years straight in fast food….. the poor guy still says have a nice day to everyone.

      1. 10 years straight in fast food? I thought if you lasted that long, they made you CEO of McDonalds or some shit.

    2. Nah. McDonalds et al have the same “Do not smile unless you are happy” policy.

      It comes up in the employee manual right after the “Always be happy” policy.

  5. Wickerhead-shunning Veritas guy! Relentless Coffee! Master Wu! Indians and Vikings! Falkyn! I feel all observant, now. Though my recognition probably comes from rereading the archives like a maniac.

  6. Magic 8 Ball! They still sell those in my company’s gift shop – with the company logo imprinted. Irony is not a strong point of my superiors.

    1. Come to think of it, isn’t it dishonest to say “Veritas PROUDLY serves Relentless Coffee”? Seems to me an honesty fanatic might be more than a little peeved to have his mood dictated by a poster.

      1. You know what that means. The coffee is actually RELENTLESS in its caffiene/taste/flavor. How the heck do you define that? There must have been quite the argument over that.

        “It’s fucking anthropomorphism, man! That shit ain’t real!”

        “No no no, David, I understand your point but you got it all wrong. It’s the BUZZ that is relentless. Like those awful ads for gum, only it’s the TRUTH, man. Have you had relentless coffee? It’s hella strong.”

        “All in favor?”

  7. Ooh – and I just noticed the 3D photo viewer – what did we used to call those things? I forget. Mus’ be gettin’ old…

  8. I want to work at the coffee shop and visit that 80’s store. stupid real world stores are boring to me now.

    1. Just move to New Orleans. We have TONS of shops like that all next to each other in “The Quarter.” You’d dig it the most. It’s the number one place for angsty peoples looking for slick times, TAZ reminds me of it constantly.

    2. I can see my job interview at the Sincerist coffee shop now. “I want to work here because I’m unemployed and need money. My qualifications are that I’m not acting chipper and blowing smoke up your ass about how fulfilling I’d find it to work here, because if it weren’t for money, who the hell in their right mind would go out of their way to find a job?”

        1. I submit to you that the television reserved for news and documentaries is displaying the antics of one Mister Collision. If that is a news program, then a colloquialism can be Sincere.

  9. WUVVY PUFFS. There is no way those are not the Templarverse version of Puffalumps, and I love them already. I’ll take the whole box.

  10. There are two items below the leg warmers you can’t try on and one of them starts with “J”. Any guesses?

  11. Hey. Wait. The Viking / Indian toys are from the ’80s? But wasn’t Ben eating their cereal and watching their cartoon earlier? I can’t think of a single cartoon with its own toys and cereal having that kind of longevity IRL. I can see the cartoon hanging around what with nostalgia reruns and reboots, and maybe even the toys (though different toys e.g. transformers), but not the cereal.

    Or maybe that’s why Reagan complained the cereal was stale. It was REALLY REALLY stale. ’80s stale. Like left in Ben’s apartment by all previous tenants as a sort of bequest / dare for the next renter. And then Ben comes along and finds it and doesn’t know how these things go and eats it. Shudder. Sometimes TemplarAZ makes from some really disturbing icebox realizations.

  12. @george spelvin: maybe they’re part of a firmly established franchise. You know, like looney tunes.

    1. And when was the last time you saw any Looney Tunes themed cereal?

      I wouldn’t trust any box with Bugs Bunny on it. Not even that lame-o technicolor anime-wanna-be Bugs reboot. Even that would be stale at this date.

  13. So what was wrong with, “…the Hell, dude?” I was really liking that extraprofessional editorial tone.

  14. OK now I see two pages on she’s just getting wound up here: Such an immediate dismissal would have detracted from the righteous crescendo she’s building toward… Good edit.

Leave a Reply to diTaykan Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *