Fri, Apr 15 -- OH MY GOD!!!!
Well, we're coming up on the big moment, the moment when I make my attempt to cross the border and live as Americans do. This will likely be my last update for a bit, since I don't know exactly when or how I'll get my internet up and running in Seattle, assuming I manage to get there. So, here's this week's cartoon.

BattleCruiser Omega

Beyond that?
I don't know when this site will be up and running again. Many perils lie between this and that. I can only hope they work out okay. Next time I update, I'm likely to have a new e-mail address, so keep your eyes out. Yo.

Thur, Apr 14 -- APE Ass
Don't get me wrong -- I had a good time in San Fransisco, but the convention itself was a bit of a letdown, with weakish traffic and business. True, I didn't have a new book out, but it wouldn't have made that big of a difference. I wasn't alone, other cartoonists experienced slowness, and many theories were floated. Maybe it's because APE has traded places with WonderCon, so the first-of-the-year jump of APE was lost? Or maybe it was so nice out, nobody sane wanted to be indoors all day at a comic book convention? Who knows?

Still, good came of it all. Talked to the folks at Tachyon Publications  about doing the next book, and they even helped me out by taking some of my excess stock after the show. Thanks, Tachyon!

Tommy's Joynt food was eaten, the effusive hospitality of Keith Knight and his charming wife Kirsten was enjoyed, I went to a Pixar party, and I bought some good comic books, including a swack of Tom Beland's True Story Swear to God that I had to stop reading at points while I was standing there at my table cuz I couldn't be doing my pitch in my flower hat with tears dripping down my face. They're like these totally sappy sweet comics about how he got together with his wife and they're killers. The comics, I mean, not Tom and Lily.

Some galleries of people's APE photos: This one, linked from Penguino, and this one from LaughingSquid.com.

Soon Seattle
I'm fast appraoching the move, scheduled for next Tuesday, and in the runup to that event I now present a plea never before issued in years of operation of angryflower.com, to wit:

Don't Buy Books

You heard me. Hold off on buying stuff until I get settled and cuz I don't know how long that's going to take and I don't want to leave you hanging. The above link goes to the book page with all the ordering links removed. Rest assured, Bob fans, I will find a way to get your books to you soon enough.

Thurs, April 7 -- APEY WACKNESS!
I was so puttering around getting ready to go to APE I almost forgot to post this week's strip. Almost.

Pope Cap
See you folks at APE! Or not, if you can't make it. And don't forget my going-away party next week!

Tues, April 5 -- Interested Parties
For Bob fans, personal friends and anyone else in Edmonton who cares, this is when my big goin' away shindig will be. Attend.

No Mo' Notley Party

APE is almost upon us!
Yes, the Alternative Press Expo for 2005 is nigh. This weekend, in fact,  at the Concourse Exhibition Centerin San Francisco. Among the guests: Seth, Jhonen Vasquez, Keith Knight and of course, Stephen Notley. Among the places I'm gonna eat:  Tommy's Joynt. That's this weekend, April 9-10. Yo.

DNA?
Got quite a few responses to my question "What would happen if you injected yourself with a bunch of DNA?" prompted by my re-reading Breakfast Treat. Many people wrote in to point out that the DNA wouldn't be able to express itself genetically unless it had some vector into your cells, which I kinda knew, and was sort of the point of the cartoon. Others noted that your immune system would likely break it down, and that the rest would probably get filtered out by the liver. Severe allergic reactions were also considered possible. Thanks team!

Fri, April 1 -- Fool Day
And in honor of April Fool's let's have an autobiographical cartoon that depicts some foolishness.

Following Up

Movie Reviews
Only one, Sin City, and I'm not even getting paid for it.

APE
Or the Alternative Press Expo, as the plebes call it. Whatever it is, it's coming, next weekend in San Francisco at the Concourse Exhibition Center. Come see Seth, Jhonen Vasquez, Keith Knight and of course, Stephen Notley. It will be grand, comics-a-many, and I swear I'm not getting out of San Francisco again without a platter of beef brisket from Tommy's Joynt. I swear it. That's next weekend, April 9-10. Yo.

Tues, Mar 29 -- We're Back!
Well, I intended to get my apologetic update up on Monday, only to discover the whole site had gone down. It's back up now, it seems, so here's the update that would have been...

Also, while I was waiting for the site to come back up, I noticed a strip from the first book, Breakfast Treat, and wondered, what *would* happen if someone injected themself with pure DNA? Can any of you biologically-educated readers shed some light on this issue? E-mail me if you can.

Mon, Mar 28 -- Okay, so it's not Sunday
I know, I know. I said you'd get last Friday's update on Sunday, and here it is Monday. Sorry everybody. Here's the strip, anyway.

Team Building

Hey, I'm moving to Seattle
That's assuming my work visa application goes through, but I'm pretty confident it will. Why am I going? Well, basically I got a job working for Popcap Games doing their newsletter and various sundry writing and creative tasks. So, once my paperwork is completed, probably within two or three weeks, I'm up and out of here, leaving Edmonton and relocating in darkest America. After years beakin' off about the USA I guess it's time to put my ass where my mouth is. As it were.

What about Bob? No fear, dearest readers, Bob will continue. Sunday is my drawing day and that's not gonna change, and I'll keep putting them up here for you all to enjoy, or not, as your taste takes you. There might be a two-weekish gap in the site updates around the move, but Bob will still be around freaking out about stuff like always.

Reviews?
I promised that Ring 2 review last week and now I deliver it. Shame the movie is so lame.

Fri, Mar 18 -- Middlemarchy
A little past the middle of March, but why quibble?

Anyway, A strip for you all. Take it. Take it, I say!

Diplomatic Immunity

And?
Hmmm... No new movie reviews besides the ones I put up for the Wednesday update, though I'll be going to see The Ring 2 today, so maybe I'll put that up once it's written.

Then, I'm takin' off for a week, so if you look for an update next Friday, you will look in vain. But if you heed these words and look for that same update on the Sunday just two days later (March 27), I wager you'll find it.

Wed, Mar 16 -- As Promised
Most recent strip is Cookie Mines.

I said I'd have some movie reviews for y'all, and I do. We've got Stephen Chow's Shaolin Soccer followup, Kung Fu Hustle. We've got the devastatingly good Park Chan Wook film from Korea, JSA (Joint Security Area), awesome. And then there's a review of an oddball Canadian action-comedy bit of nonsense, Harry Knuckles and the Pearl Necklace, from the man who brought us Jesus Christ Vampire Killer back in '01. Three reviews! Astonishing!

Fri, Mar 11 -- Stuff Stuff
Well, it's Friday, dear readers, and I'm here for you just as I am every Friday, with a sportive cartoon for you, jape-filled, for the sake of your laughter.

Cookie Mines

Movie Reviews?
Not yet, not quite. I've got two reviews coming, one of Kung Fu Hustle, Stephen Chow's follow-up to Shaolin Soccer, and another of Chan Wook Park's Joint Security Area (JSA), a frightfully good little movie from Korea. Neither review is, at this stage, complete, so I'm not putting them up. But they're on their way.

Ummm...
That's it. Buy books!

Fri, Mar 4 -- Change in the Air
Well, here's a cartoon. It's got jokes! Kinda.

Ugly

Alternative Press Expo
Yes, APE is fast approaching. It feels a little weird, as this is the first year they're doing it in April rather than the end of February. It's still a ways off but I figured to start the early mentions early, which means now. So: I/Bob will be there, San Francisco, The Concourse at Exhibition Square, April 9 and 10.

Other Stuff?
Another low-intensity week for me means I don't really have too much else to put up at the moment. Since I know how much everyone loves, LOVES my Chicken Little America's-in-Trouble remarking, here's a hysterical little article from Maclean's called Is America Going Broke? (Hint: apparently the answer is "yes"-- and that's according to the Comptroller!). And while I'm at it I might as well throw up a link to the latest Paul Krugman article; he's always good for a laugh/shudder of fear.

And on a non-political note, the boys and girls at Channel 101 have another batch of ferociously produced 5-minute entertainments up and ready for download. If you haven't checked out Laser Fart or House of Cosbys, you're probably doing yourself a disservice.

Also...
It seems a big change in my life is in the offing. When I have more specific information I'll relay it, but for now let's simply say I may not be able to maintain my outsider's perspective on America for much longer...

Tues, Mar 1 -- Mini-Update times...
I know, I know, last Friday's update was unusually slim... just the comic, Trebuchet. I just wanted to get it done nice and early, but I ended up forgetting a few things I'd wanted to mention.

Moviestuff
I should've had this up on Friday, or indeed the previous Friday, but here's my review of Constantine, if anybody can still remember that there was such a movie.

Hugbot and PBF
Quite a few people have e-mailed me to mention that this Hugbot cartoon reminded them of Lovebot. Hugbot comes to us courtesy of the Perry Bible Fellowship, a scarily good cartoon by a gentleman named, it seems, Nicholas Gurewitch. I have no doubt the PBF will soon expand to fill all available openings for cartoons in magazines nationwide, leaving Bob in the dirt, like a rag. Oh well.

Michel Gondry
For anyone interested in having their minds blown, I highly, highly recommend taking a good hard look at the Michel Gondry Director's Series DVD. Gondry, of course, was the fellow who, after a career of creating insanely original and creative music videos for folks like The Chemical Brothers, Bjork and Cibo Matt, directed Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. There's a couple of videos in there, "Let Forever Be" by the Chemical Brothers and "Sugar Water" by Cibo Matto, that do stuff with time and space I'd never imagined before, and to which my only response can be a grin of delighted pleasure.

Fri, Feb 25 -- No Time, No Time!
A cartoon!

Trebuchet

Fri, Feb 18 -- Yibbety Yibbers!
Look out folks, it's the



Beyond that, I wish I had more to give you. I've been kind of a slug for the last couple of weeks. No movie reviews; a Thursday screening of Cursed evaporated and I've yet to see Constantine. I did do a couple of wee little cartoons for a condom outreach program, little folded Bazooka-Joe type dealies that will be handed out with condoms at rock shows. If you're interested, they're Rock Show Romance and Safer Sex: Why?

Electra
Just saw Electra this evening. That's the one with the "c", the play, the Greek one, the one without the ninjas. It was kind of strange. I found myself thinking, "Wow, this is a lot like Hamlet," before realizing no, *Hamlet* is a lot like *Electra*. Suddenly I pictured Shakespeare pitching his great new brainwave... "I've got this great idea for an Electra kinda thing. Same basic setup, the king is murdered, the murderer takes the throne and marries the queen, Electra's all devastated. Except -- get this -- Electra is a *guy*. He's like a combination of Electra and Orestes [Electra's brother], right? He can do all the carrying on about how great his father was and how terribly he's suffering, like Electra, but he also gets to kill the bad guy, just like Orestes! Bam! And let me tell you the ending. Forget all this stuff about punishing the wicked and rewarding the faithful. Picture this: Everybody Dies. Twice the gore, and we get a bunch of the moral ambiguity stuff that people are into these days. I'm tellin' you man, this Electra-As-A-Guy thing, audiences are gonna eat it up."

"Now give me some money."

Hey! Why Not
buy some books?

I haven't bugged you guys about buying books for a while, so I thought I'd take a moment to remind everybody that hey, fine books are available for purchase and yo, this is how I eat. No pressure or anything.

And besides, yeesh, an apallingly low percentage of you readers own The Ultimate Book of Perfect Energy!!! Don't you know it contains LoveBot Conquers All, the ultimate expression of LoveBot, of which the LoveBot cartoons available on the site are but a rudimentary prologue?

LoveBot Conquers All

Didn't you realize that? Don't you feel foolish for not having bought this book yet?

Oh Yeah...
Might as well throw up a link to a story about robot soldiers before my Inbox fills up with people telling me about it.

Fri, Feb 11 -- Cute Dogs Love Me

Steve Notley and Bentley

Christa Donner from the Perpetual Motion Roadshow sent along a CD with some pictures she took and I didn't think it right to let the world go on thinking I couldn't get along with an adorable dog. A few more photos appear on the revised Perpetual Roadshow page.

Anyway, a cartoon:

When Harpo

For those interested, the song is "When Harpo Played His Harp" by Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers, from the album Modern Lovers 88.

Movie Reviews
Well, "reviews" is maybe pushing it. I've got a review, as promised, of Ong Bak, a burst of fresh Thai kickboxing fresh air if there ever was one. Cool!

And!
Holy smokes! AtomicTank.com!

Fri, Feb 4 -- Thin...
Man, it's been a while since I went out and got drunk enough to interfere with updating the site the next day in a timely manner. Spring must be just around the corner!

Anyway, here's a cartoon of sorts...

What Are YOU in Denial About?

It's been thin on movie reviews for the last few weeks, so I don't have a lot. Just a short review of a forgettable Canadian "comedy", Phil the Alien, and a look at the upcoming singing-boys movie The Chrous. That's all in the movie reviews section, and next week I'll have something on that Thai-boxing movie Ong Bak. Bam! Throat punch!

Mon, Jan 31 -- Huh...
On Friday's update I had a sarcastic list of links to a bunch of discouraging things, including one to a fact sheet about the Iraqi election since I fully expected it to be a bloodbath. Man, am I glad to be wrong about that, even though Iraq's relatively peaceful elections end up making Dubya look good. We'll see how it turns out and how honorably the Bushites will deal with whoever comes out on top, but it's the first encouraging thing that's happened so far in this conflict.

Friday, Jan 28 -- Not quite as cold
Well then, looks like the first month of 2005 is almost over, things seem to be holding together okay. Except for maybe the diving US dollar. And the promotion of the architects of the Iraq debacle. And the gearing up for invasion of Iran. And the overall decline and shrinkage of the American Dream. And how about that Iraq election this weekend! Gonna be a doozy!

But besides that, everything's cool. A cartoon:

Quantum Computer


Friday, Jan 21, '05 -- COLD!
Man, it was cold when I got back from the Roadshow, cold for days, and then it started to look up, get a little warmer, and them bam! got cold again. What is this? Winter?

Here's a cartoon.
Plankton

What else?
Not as much as should be, I'm afraid, but here's a review of the newfangled Assault on Precinct 13.

Friday, Jan 14 2005 --So, how's it goin'?
First, a cartoon:

Back from the Roadshow
Whew. Quite a time. Where to begin? How about with the whole story on my Perpetual Roadshow page?


Previous updates? Here, fools!

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