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Zits (comics)

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"Zits" redirects here. For the skin condition (of which "zit" is a slang term), see Acne vulgaris.
Zits
Jeremy Duncan and Hector Garcia—best friends
Author(s)Jerry Scott, Jim Borgman
Current status/scheduleRunning
Launch dateJuly, 1997[1]
Syndicate(s)King Features Syndicate
Genre(s)Humor, Coming-of-age

Zits is a comic strip written by Jerry Scott and illustrated by Jim Borgman following the life of Jeremy Duncan, a fifteen-year old high school freshman. The comic debuted in July 1997 in over 200 newspapers and has since become popular worldwide and received multiple awards.[1] As of 2007, it continues to be syndicated by King Features.

The strip is set in suburbia and centers on Jeremy as he tries to balance life while hanging out with his friends, developing an awkward relationship with his on-and-off girlfriend, struggling through school projects, practicing to become a rock god, and tolerating his embarrassing parents. The strip features a variety of core characters that surround Jeremy and supplement his adolescent character.

Origin

By 1996, Jerry Scott was already known for Baby Blues, a comic strip on raising children.[2] He realized, however, that his profession as an independent cartoonist was limited to whatever joke he could write up next. [3]. A friend suggested he begin a strip about a teenager and Scott heeded the proposition and began to draw. Unfortunately, he was unsatisfied with the characters he drew up, as they looked like ones he had drawn before. He mentioned the problem to his friend, Jim Borgman, and the two met to discuss the problem. Over the next few months, the artists corresponded with one another, and eventually hammered out the characters that would soon become the Duncans. King Features Syndicate, already distributing Baby Blues and Borgman's editorial cartoons, began running the new comic strip in 1997.[3]

Main characters

Jeremy Duncan

Jeremy Duncan
Jeremy Duncan

Named after Jeremy Clyde of the 1960s rock duo, Chad and Jeremy[4], Jeremy Michael[5] Duncan is an intelligent fifteen year old high school freshman who aspires to be a "rock god". He spends much of his time with his best friend, Hector Garcia and trying to impress his on again-off again girlfriend, Sara Toomey. When not at school or with his friends, Jeremy suffers the embarrassment and nagging of his parents, Walt and Connie Duncan. He is mortified of being seen in public with them, as can be seen in the following exchange:

Jeremy: "Mom, will you take me shopping?"
Connie: (With a tear) "You don't know how long I've waited to hear those words come out of your mouth!"
Jeremy: "To clarify: 'Take me shopping' means I shop, and you wait in the car."[6]

He has an uncanny knack for knowing who's on the phone and for what reason when it rings ("Caller ID is for wimps!").

He commonly wears his wrinkled purple shirt, blue jeans, and oversized sneakers. Jeremy spends time restoring a 1962 VW Type 2 van with Hector, which they hope to drive across the country when they turn sixteen.[7] Jeremy is also the lead singer and guitarist of his garage band, which goes by many names.[8] It was after the band debuted in a Battle of the Bands competition that Jeremy received his first kiss from Sara and the awkward relationship took off. Since then, Jeremy and Sara have endured countless arguments, breakups and reconciliations. For all of Jeremy's quirky, comical flaws, however, he retains a high sense of morality and integrity as can be seen in the story arc where he steals a signpost with his name on it. Jeremy immediately returns the sign to the police to free himself of the guilt he feels.[9] On another occasion, Jeremy is overwhelmed by a school essay he has to write and all the other commitments he has made. A fellow student, Phoebe, suggests he use a website to pull a bootleg essay off the internet. Despite being swamped by work and exhaustion, Jeremy's sense of ethics overcomes the desire to plagiarize and he spends the night writing the essay himself.[10] Jeremy recently received his learners' permit.

Connie Duncan

File:ConnieDuncan.png
Connie Duncan

Connie Duncan is Jeremy's forty-three year old[4] mother. She is a child psychologist, but worked only part time after Jeremy's birth, and her profession is rarely mentioned except in early strips.[11] She is also an aspiring writer, having begun work on a book titled: Coping Effectively with your Teen. Unfortunately, Jeremy constantly interrupts her work with menial requests or by being too loud and she has yet to even finish the first chapter.[4] Besides being the family homemaker, Connie acts the disciplinarian for Jeremy. She is frequently seen waking him up for school, berating him for not following directions, and driving him to various destinations. Though Jeremy does not share much with his parents, Connie is always more than willing to listen to him.[12] She describes a conversation with him as "trying to coax a smile out of a clam full of Botox".[13] In the strip, she is portrayed a few times as a forgetful airhead.[4][14][15]

Walt Duncan

File:WaltDuncan.png
Walt Duncan

Walt Duncan is Jeremy's father, an orthodontist who, like Connie, finds it almost impossible to hold a conversation with his son. Walt is absolutely clueless and old-fashioned about technology, especially computers. Despite Jeremy's attempts to explain how to use devices[16], Walt is unable to comprehend even the most basic functions.[17] Walt is shown as having problems with math, able to offer little or no help to Jeremy.[18][19] His interactions with Jeremy's peers cause intense embarrassment for his son, as Walt makes comments such as "What's up, dood [sic]?", not knowing the meaning behind them.[20] He is the designated clothes launderer, often getting into arguments with Jeremy over notes in pockets, socks inside-out, and other pet peeves. Walt constantly wears oversized blue pants, plain white T-shirt and black vest. Walt occasionally reveals memories that attest to a wilder youth. In one instance, Walt recalls how uninhibited he felt one night at a Moby Grape concert. This shocking recollection causes him to forbid Jeremy from attending a similar concert.[21] Another time, Walt reveals he has had a peace sign tattooed on his rear end since the late 1960s, which has expanded along with his rear end, and is described to now be the size of a stop sign.[22]

Hector Garcia

File:HectorGarcia.png
Hector Garcia

Hector Garcia is Jeremy's best friend and a guitarist/vocalist in Jeremy's band. The two spend a lot of their time hanging out, much of it trying to restore the VW van and dreaming about where their future road trip will take them.[23] In practice, the two have not gotten far toward repairing the van, as the boys usually end up lying on the roof of the van, talking. Hector dates Autumn, a radical vegetarian who refers to Jeremy as "carnivore", "predator", "vampire", and "flesh-eater" or the like whenever she sees him with meat.[24] Hector is from a Spanish-speaking family and lives with his parents, grandparents, and multiple younger siblings.[25]

Sara Toomey

File:SaraToomey.png
Sara Toomey

Sara Toomey is Jeremy's on-again/off-again girlfriend. Although Jeremy thinks the world of her, she apparently likes Jeremy a lot, but has thought of him as a "salvageable male".[26] Her parents are divorced and her behavior wavers between kindness and aggravation.[27] She and Jeremy have broken up many times, but they always seem to make up sooner or later.[28] Sara's genuine kindness and generosity is evident in one story arc where she cuts her hair short and donates her ponytail to a charity for children undergoing chemotherapy.[29]

Pierce

File:Pierce-Zits.png
Pierce

Pierce is another of Jeremy's close friends, and a member of Jeremy's band who, as his name aptly implies, has much of his body pierced. Unlike most of Jeremy's close friends, Pierce's last name has not been revealed and his parents (with the exception of his mother in a picture that he was forced to carry on his chest) have not been seen. He explains this early on, before realizing he has to get braces:

Pierce: "I have a stud in my tongue, posts in my lips, rings in my nose and eyebrows, and twelve earrings on each ear. I defy anyone to find a way to attach more metal to my head."
Walt: "Pierce, you need braces."[30]

Despite his rebellious appearance, Pierce is actually very courteous and often tries to help out, but usually fails due to his interests and ideals. Once, when Jeremy asked him to purchase a necklace for Sara for him, Pierce bought a necklace with a pair of jeweled skulls with intertwined snakes in the eye sockets, framed by a barbed-wire heart.[31] He began dating D'ijon after she went to see him get his tongue double-pierced.[32]

Supporting characters

Chad Duncan

Chad Duncan was named after Chad Stuart of Chad and Jeremy and is Jeremy's older brother by four years. He attends college, holding a 4.0 GPA, and is an overachiever and the object of much jealousy by Jeremy.[33] In his first few appearances, Chad was said to be the "perfect" child, having his face slightly obscured because of his "perfect" looks, and also having a more muscular build. He was later drawn to look like an older version of Jeremy.[34] Chad is an occasional character and rarely appears throughout the series, typically showing up during the holiday seasons and leaving abruptly.

Phoebe

Phoebe is one of Jeremy's classmates and is presented as a hyperbolic overachiever, using any means necessary to excel academically and enter a "high-power college".[35] She also consumes massive amounts of caffeine[36] and is constantly padding her college resume.[37] Interestingly, she has no pupils in her eyes, which she claims is due to selling her soul for a 4.3 GPA.[35]

D'ijon

D'ijon is Pierce's girlfriend and a friend of Sara's. She has a copy of Edvard Munch's The Scream tattooed on her tongue,[32] and occasionally wanders around with Pierce after connecting their respective earrings. Her real name is Dionne, but claims to have started doing an "apostrophe thing" in 7th grade.[32]

Autumn

Autumn is Hector's girlfriend and a strict vegan. She is noted for her extreme political and environmentalist actions such as freeing fifty-thousand live crickets in the school to spare them from dissection.[38]

Britanny

Brittany is another one of Jeremy's classmates and is notable for being the information pipeline for the freshman class. She is also noted for having the "great gift" of being able to critique the shortcomings of others.[39] Despite her negativity, Jeremy has several times sought her advice.

Tim Olsen

Tim Olsen is a shy, moody classmate of Jeremy's and the electric bass player of the band. His mother had breast cancer and, thinking the chemotherapy would make her hair fall out, Jeremy and Hector shaved their heads as a token of empathy and comfort. It was not until afterward that they discovered she still had all her hair.[40]

The Posse

The Posse is a trio of three girls: Zuma, Redondo, and LaJolla. The three have reportedly been "best friends forever" and "share the same taste in fashion…finishing each other's sentences."[41]

RichandAmy

RichandAmy are two characters in a movie that are obsessive and are gay. i dont like these people THEY ARE GAY > =(

Viral

Viral is another of Jeremy's classmates and friends. Viral is an over-achiever, tending to do many things at once (being class president, captain of the JV volleyball team, as well as many other activities) or better than normally expected. Viral is a bit like Phoebe (for example, Viral also has a G.P.A. past 4.0) but much more energetic and outgoing. Viral also has been perceived as a perfectionist, as well as attentive. [42] Viral first appeared in the comic strip on November 7 2007.[43]

Recognition and future developments

Zits has garnered a fair amount of recognition so far. The series currently runs in over 1,500 newspapers worldwide.[1] The author, Jerry Scott, received the National Cartoonists Society (NCS) Reuben Award in 2001.[44] The strip itself has been translated into at least seven languages, including German, Chinese, Spanish and Finnish."[45] Additionally, both Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman received the NCS Award for Best Newspaper Comic Strip two years in a row[46] as well as the Max & Moritz Medal for Best International Comic.[1] So far, the creators continue to portray Jeremy as a fifteen-year old and they comment that this fact will probably not change. Borgman comments that the strip is inexorably built around the humorous tension of Jeremy living under his parents' rules and that, without this tension, the strip would cease to be humorous. There is some disagreement among them, however, as to how deep the characters should develop. Borgman would like the series to tackle complicated issues such as AIDS, drugs, and premarital sex, while Scott prefers not to "see the 6 o'clock news…on the funny pages."[3]

Zits books come in two formats. The first is as a Zits Sketchbook and these are numbered sequentially. They contain approximately one year of collected Zits strips. The second format is as a Zits Treasury. This format combines the material from the two previous "sketchbooks".

References

  1. ^ a b c d "King Features Syndicate". Retrieved 2007-07-21.
  2. ^ Jerry Scott. "Archive: History of Baby Blues". Retrieved 2007-07-21.
  3. ^ a b c Jim Borgman. "'Zits' drawn from life". Retrieved 2007-07-21.
  4. ^ a b c d Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. pp. 122-123. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  5. ^ Scott, Jerry (2003). Zits: Supersized. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 103. ISBN 978-0-7407-3307-9. Connie: Are you listening to me, Jeremy Michael? / Jeremy: Yeah. Right. Whatever, mom.
  6. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 37. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7.
  7. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2. Hector: A van for the road trip we're going to take when we turn sixteen! Listen! 'For Sale: 1962 VW van. Fair condition. Needs body work, engine, wheels, etc.' / Jeremy: It sounds like a piece of junk. / Hector: 'Only $300.' / Jeremy: Then again what do I know about cars?
  8. ^ Scott, Jerry (2003). Zits: Supersized. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-7407-3307-9. Pierce: So, does this band I'm supposedly joining have a name? / Jeremy: Of course. It's Goat Cheese Pizza. / Hector: Jughead's Hat. / Tim: Chickenfist.
  9. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 192. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2. Hector: You returned the stolen street sign into the police?? Who-o-oa! / Jeremy: I had to! It was driving me crazy with guilt!
  10. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. pp. 235-238. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  11. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 100. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  12. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 239. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7. Connie: Why doesn't Jeremy talk anymore?…All I want is a teenager who communicates! / Walt: To you. / Connie: Well, yeah.
  13. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7.
  14. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 89. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7. Connie: Jeremy, have you seen my sunglasses?…Oh! Here they are, right here in my hand! I can be such an airhead sometimes.
  15. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 212. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  16. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7.
  17. ^ Scott, Jerry (2003). Zits: Supersized. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 221. ISBN 978-0-7407-3307-9.
  18. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  19. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  20. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 185. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7.
  21. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  22. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 36. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  23. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  24. ^ Scott, Jerry (2003). Zits: Supersized. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-7407-3307-9.
  25. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 19. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  26. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 225. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  27. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 174. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2. Jeremy: So, tell me—what's it like having divorced parents? / Sara: First stupidity, and now insensitivity…you're on a roll.
  28. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 143. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0. Jeremy: Wow! We just had our first argument, and we're still together!…I think this has been a real turning point in our relationship. / Sara: Speaking of turning points, my mom thinks I should see other guys.
  29. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. pp. 197-200. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7.
  30. ^ Scott, Jerry (2003). Zits: Supersized. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 240. ISBN 978-0-7407-3307-9.
  31. ^ Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7.
  32. ^ a b c Scott, Jerry (2004). Random Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. pp. 111-113. ISBN 978-0-7407-4669-7.
  33. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2. Jeremy: My brother Chad is in college. He's four years older than me and about a million times smarter. Plus, he was an All-State basketball star, valedictorian, student body president and voted 'most likely to succeed.'
  34. ^ Scott, Jerry (2000). Humongous Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-7407-0013-2.
  35. ^ a b Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 235. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  36. ^ Scott, Jerry (2003). Zits: Supersized. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 249. ISBN 978-0-7407-3307-9. Jeremy: What are you drinking there, Phoebe? / Phoebe: Grande latte. Want a taste? / Jeremy: What's in it? / Phoebe: Steamed milk…with six shots of espresso. They call it the 'retina rattler'. / Jeremy: And it's available without a prescription??? [sic]
  37. ^ Scott, Jerry (2003). Zits: Supersized. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 249. ISBN 978-0-7407-3307-9. Phoebe: I'm not going to eat my apple…do you want it, Jeremy? / Jeremy: Sure… / Phoebe: 'Organized a food drive for malnourished students' Yess! [sic] / Jeremy: Padding your college application again, Phoebe?
  38. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. pp. 177-178. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  39. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 127. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  40. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. pp. 39-41. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  41. ^ Scott, Jerry (2001). Big Honkin' Zits. Zits. illustrated by J. Borgman. Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC. pp. p. 128. ISBN 978-0-7407-1854-0.
  42. ^ Scott, Jerry. "Zits". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 2007-11-12. Jeremy: Hey Pierce, what do you think about Viral? / Pierce: You mean the 4.25 GPA, bar-raising, curve-ruining, club-joining, ubiquitous perpetual motion, super-achieving perfectionist? I have no opinion. / Jeremy: Yeah, I like her, too.
  43. ^ Scott, Jerry. "Zits". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
  44. ^ "NCS Awards". Retrieved 2007-07-22.
  45. ^ "Jim Borgman at The Cincinnati Enquirer". Cincinnati Enquirer.
  46. ^ "NCS Awards". Retrieved 2007-07-22.
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