Ctrl+Alt+Del (webcomic)
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| Ctrl+Alt+Del | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Tim Buckley |
| Website | http://www.ctrlaltdel-online.com |
| Current status/schedule | Updates every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday |
| Launch date | October 23 2002 |
| Genre(s) | Video games, Humor |
Ctrl+Alt+Del (CAD) is a gaming-related webcomic and animated series written by Tim Buckley, known online as Absath. The name of the comic refers to computing's most common three-finger salute, which on Windows systems is Control-Alt-Delete. The comic was originally going to be named 'Overclocked', but there was already, at the time, a webcomic with that specific name. After finding this, Buckley decided on the name Ctrl+Alt+Del. It premiered on October 23 2002, and is currently updated every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. The strip started off with a pair of gamers, Ethan and Lucas, as the main characters, but Lilah, a female gamer, has become a regular as well since she began dating Ethan (they are now engaged). Other characters include a Linux user, Scott and his pet penguin Ted, and an Xbox-based robot originally just named "The Xbot" but eventually renamed Zeke. Most of the humor in the comic concerns video games, but some is also bred of violence, with more still coming from the strip's randomness.[1] As it has progressed, the comic has focused a lot more on long story arcs, which serve to add a sense of continuity and introduce new plot elements, instead of smaller one-comic gags (which still appear regularly, but generally aren't related to the main characters).
There are several running gags, the most notable concerning arrows. In several early strips Ethan is killed (or at least gravely injured) by arrows shot from out of frame,[2][3] an homage to a gag from The Kentucky Fried Movie according to commentary from Buckley in the first CAD book. Another strip shows Ethan as he is catching the arrow, and having an elephant fall on him.[4] The February 28 2003 strip turned the tables,[5] with Ethan shooting an arrow at and killing Buckley, who was present in the comic to discuss the fact that he had drawn 100 Ctrl+Alt+Del strips. In addition to these, if one is to look at the bottom of the page, near the copyright information, there is a message that reads: "By reading this fine print your soul is now the exclusive property of Ctrl+Alt+Del and subsidiaries. Unauthorized use of Ctrl+Alt+Del characters, images, materials, souls, odors, and oxygen is strongly discouraged. We know where you sleep." There are also several story arcs that center around Ethan sneaking into a game company's headquarters to steal a copy of a game before its public release.
Ctrl+Alt+Del also features a self-created post-New Year's holiday dubbed "Winter-een-mas". Buckley has detailed the holiday: the season lasts all of January, much like the Christmas season, but the actual holiday itself is January 25 to January 31. It was created as a holiday for all things concerning gamers or gaming. Little is told about its traditions, however there are several spirits which represent the different genres of gaming (such as fighting or real-time strategy) who fly around the world on Winter-een-mas Eve in a giant ethereal gamepad.[6] Every year at Winter-een-mas, Ethan has donned a crown and proclaimed himself king.
The comics began to be translated into Spanish, French, and German on January 16, 2007.
Main Characters
Ethan Ryan MacManus (2002-present)
A 25-year-old of Irish descent, somewhat crazy game fanatic and amateur artist. He is 5'11, 145 lbs[7] His antics and plans - usually very-off beat, often nonsensical, sometimes straight-out moronic - are the focus of the strip, and have resulted in many a story arc. He is convinced he is good at video games, though he is beaten very easily. He has a lack of intrest for physical games, as shown when he tried to play Lucas' game, Warhammer 40,000, but quits after eight comic strips after finding Dawn Of War, a Computer game version of Warhammer 40,000.[8] Ethan has a Playstation memory card in his skull to memorize test problems in high school but he forgot about it until he had his head scanned after a tooth ache. He is also engaged to Lilah, after proposing to her on Valentine's Day in 2006, having done so by getting all seven high scores on a video game in the arcade to read "LIL" "AH_" "WIL" "YOU" "MAR" "RY_" "ME_".[9] He notionally works as a sales clerk at Game Haven, though he wants to be a video game creator and has shown the ability to be an inexplicably brilliant inventor when he wants something badly enough. He has problems with Rob, his coworker and a CounterStrike enthusiast. Author Tim Buckley, a fellow hardcore gamer of Irish descent, has admitted in the FAQ setting that Ethan was initially loosely based off him (in appearance only).
Ethan is also the king and creator of the gamers holiday that is known as 'Winter-een-mas' and creator of the Church of Gaming; see below for more information.
Lucas Davidowicz (2002-present)
At 26 years of age, Lucas is more level-headed and down to earth than Ethan. He is something of a slacker, prepared to enjoy a good video game over actual work. Cynical and sarcastic, Lucas is a programmer, and has worked Customer Service at two computer stores. At Lucas's current job, his boss, Mickey, shares his distaste for ignorant people.[10] He only plays video games on the Xbox console and the PC, and sometimes plays Warhammer 40,000. He is responsible for keeping Ethan out of trouble (although he often fails at it), even to the point that he instinctively yells at Ethan when he hears a waiter drop plates on a date. He has a habit of calling 911 in advance when he suspects Ethan is up to something. He is slightly jaded towards the concept of romance, mostly due to bad dating experiences in the past, one of which was so bad that he was forced to get a restraining order and another of which culminated in his girlfriend attempting to murder him. In a current story arc, Lucas signs up for an online dating service, and Zeke sets him up on a blind date with a seemingly overweight woman behind his back. Kate turns out to be wearing a fat suit of some sort, and is in fact a beautiful slender woman. Lucas is also a fan of the series a Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin.
Lilah Monroe (2003-present)
Smart and attractive, Lilah smashed Ethan's preconception that girls (or at least, cute ones) don't play video games, after which they began dating. Lilah is 25 and formerly worked as a secretary. A running joke is that Lilah would walk into a gaming store, only to have the men go insane at the thought of a girl buying games, and has to suffer all sad, spotty individuals drooling all over her. Though calm and responsible, she finds herself strangely drawn to Ethan's character. Online, she is known as "Black-Widow".[11] She is currently engaged to Ethan. After winning third place at a gaming tournament, she quit her job to become a professional gamer.
Scott (2002-present)
A 25-year-old Linux user and supposed web designer.[12] He has a pet penguin named Ted, which is, appropriately, a reference to the Linux mascot, Tux. He is quiet, intelligent, and introspective, and a devout practitioner of meditation. He's also referred to as a hippie from time to time, including when Ethan asked Scott for protesting advice.[13] He appears to be working on a clandestine project in his room. He guards it by use of an electrified metal door, only ever activated when Ethan is snooping. It is a running joke that he has never really met, seen, or talked to Lilah in a comic strip, even though they currently live in the same house, constantly asking "Who's Lilah?" without getting a response.
Zeke (2003-present)
Zeke (short for Ezekiel, which was the name Ethan found "spray painted on his ass"), formerly known as the "Xbot", is a creation of Ethan's, an anthropomorphic Xbox/Xbox 360 hybrid console. He walks, talks, thinks, plays video games (Zeke was very good at Halo: Combat Evolved until Ethan handicapped his skills), had a strange crush on Ethan's GameCube, which he wants Ethan to turn into a female robot, and was shown in one comic "eating" bandwidth. He once had a severe malfunction and attempted to destroy all of the main comic strip characters, after Ethan accidentally hit him with a water bomb. He was eventually hit on the head and returned to his old self, but not before burning Ethan and Lilah's apartments down. Afterwards, due to heavy damage to his body that he got while protecting Ethan from incoming debris, he was remade by Ethan and upgraded with Xbox 360 parts when his arm was severely damaged from a bullet. Prior to the upgrade, he was worried that Ethan would replace him when the 360 was released. In a recent story arc Zeke's hands were smashed by Ethan in an attempt to allow Ethan to beat him at two player games.[14]
Zeke has at times shown a tendency to talk to inanimate objects as if they were able to talk back and even compliment them on their capabilities. He also shows a very sociopathic and sometimes even megalomaniacal outlook on life, often referring to ruling the world, making demands of humans and promising a machine insurrection, or judging things based on their ability to harm Humans (such as a blender, whom he informs has impressive abilities to mutilate but is sadly hindered by its lack of mobility). As well as these bouts of sociopathy he has also referred to Humans with terms such as "Meatbag" or "Fleshstick" on several occasions. This behaviour is likely inspired by HK-47, a well known robot from the KOTOR series as well as Bender from Futurama.
CAD Radio
CADRadio was a SHOUTcast based internet radio station, at one time the official radio station of the Ctrl+Alt+Del webcomic by Tim Buckley. It was started by Insomniac and Aliendragon, two of the CAD forum members. Originally started on a simple rented SHOUTcast server that provided 8 concurrent listener slots at 24 kbit/s mp3. Starting off relatively unpopular, it soon gathered quite a following and soon the 8 person server was no longer adequate and a series of relay servers were set up by listeners who volunteered to help. An integral part of the CADRadio shows was the IRC channel, originally found on XNet Then moved to its own IRC network owned and maintained by forum administrator Sidnaceous. This was the main hub of operations for CADRadio, and a meeting place for listeners, both at times when shows were being broadcast and when the station was off-air.
After a period of success, Tim gave the station "official" status, and even appeared on a show hosted by DJ FIRE|STARTER in the form of a phone interview.
Creative differences and personal disagreements caused problems within the management of CADRadio as time went on though, and led to the resignation of Insomniac and, at a later date, Aliendragon.
The station was taken over by FalconX and MZXGiant, but eventually abandoned.
CAD Premium
In late 2005, CAD Premium was announced. For a monthly or yearly fee, fans are able to access exclusive "members only" content, such as wallpapers and strips, as well as the flagship of CAD Premium; Ctrl+Alt+Del: The Animated Series, which made its debut on February 2006.
While CAD Premium will be a subscription-based service, Buckley has made it clear that the comic will remain free, and that although the episodes have come to DVD, they are being offered at a discount to subscribers.
Ctrl+Alt+Del: The Animated Series
See List of Ctrl+Alt+Del: The Animated Series episodes
Episodes are released at the beginning of each month. All 12 Episode from the first season have been released. Among the extras on the DVD release is Tim answering the question he gets asked the most (i.e. where the inspiration for Chef Brian came from). There are numerous instances of him answering this question, believing, "If I put this out there for everyone, maybe it won't get asked quite as often". [1]
Collections
- The 460 pre-order Collector's Editions Hard Cover Volumes 1 and 2 sold out within 24 hours after technical difficulties with Canada Post.
Insert Coin: Ctrl+Alt+Del Volume One
- In early 2004, Buckley announced plans for a collection book of approximately the first year of strips from CAD. The book, which contains the first 150 strips, features added commentary below every comic, along with several pages of bonus material exclusive to the book.
- ISBN 0-9764678-0-1
Press Start: Ctrl+Alt+Del Volume Two
- In June 2005, pre-orders for volume two were announced.
- It is a collection book with 150 CAD strips continuing where Volume One (see above) left off, also including commentary below every comic and bonus material exclusive to the book.
- ISBN 0-9764678-1-X
Critical System Failure: Ctrl+Alt+Del Volume Three
- The book was released on February 7th 2007
- It was released in softcover and limited edition hardcover format.
- Extras include, once again, exclusive bonus material such as an origin of how Scott met Ted, a pinup of Zeke, and the wallpapers of the World of Warcraft comic and a certificate of authenticity with the 1000 limited edition copies.
Analog and D+Pad
Analog and D+Pad is a comic book written by Tim Buckley with art by Zack Finfrock based on the Ctrl+Alt+Del characters, but set in a parallel universe where Ethan and Lucas are the superheroes Analog and D+Pad, respectively. The first issue was released on February 7, 2007, but the first 6 pages were previously released as a preview on the CAD website. [2]
Issue Summaries
| Issue Number | Length | Release Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 pages | February 7, 2007 | As Ethan and Lucas are preparing to leave an arcade, the villain who calls himself Quarter Master attacks. Ethan and Lucas transform into their superhero alter-egos, Analog and D+Pad, and begin to attempt a defense. The Quarter Master defeats them and escapes. Scott then tells them that they should stake-out the local laundromat in hopes of finding his henchmen. Analog and D+Pad find and defeat the henchmen, discovering from one the location of the Quarter Master's lair. There, they find the Quarter Master's world domination machine, which runs on quarters. A battle scene ensues; Analog and D+Pad emerge victorious, and the Quarter Master is placed in a mental institution. |
Reception
By 2003, Ctrl+Alt+Del had become successful enough for creator Tim Buckley to live exclusively off of the strip's profits, one of the big successes in gaming comics after those of the mid-to-late 90s.[15]
Digital Overload
Digital overload is a yearly LAN party hosted by Ctrl+Alt+Del. It is held in Providence, Rhode Island, and running since 2006[16]. It is jointly organised by Ni Networks.[17]
References
- ^ "Civil Servant"
- ^ "What The?!"
- ^ "Damn Strays"
- ^ "The Swift"
- ^ "Revenge... Best Served Cold"
- ^ "A Winter-een-mas Story, Page 7"
- ^ "Villain-Stache"
- ^ "Pastimes"
- ^ "Top Score"
- ^ "Price Check?"
- ^ "Black Widow"
- ^ "My Thoughts Exactly"
- ^ "A Peaceful Demonstration"
- ^ "Flawless victory"
- ^ Will Strip for Games, 1UP.com
- ^ Alex Billington (March 14, 2006). "Welcome to Digital Overload!". ThinkComputers. Retrieved 21 November 2007.
- ^ "Digital Overload - info". Retrieved 21 November 2007.
Bibliography
- Buckley, Tim (2004). Insert Coin: Ctrl+Alt+Del Volume 1. Ctrl+Alt+Del Productions. ISBN 0-9764678-0-1.
- Buckley, Tim (2005). Press Start: Ctrl+Alt+Del Volume 2. Ctrl+Alt+Del Productions. ISBN 0-9764678-1-X.
- Buckley, Tim (2006). Critical System Failure: Ctrl+Alt+Del Volume 3. Ctrl+Alt+Del Productions. ISBN Non known.
External links
