Schlock Mercenary

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Schlock Mercenary is in hard science fiction - genre of resettled and Howard Tayler drawn and written webcomic , which appeared from 2000 to 2020.

content

The plot follows the fictional story of the private mercenary team around Captain Kaff Tagon. The comic is named after the amorphous creature Schlock, who hires at the beginning of the story. The initially rather incoherent adventure stories about a violent and unpredictable team of mercenaries in space in the 31st century develop over time into sprawling story arcs that span several years and sometimes merge with one another or are taken up again. The Tough’s mercenary troops endure highs and lows in the picture stories and gain / lose assets, crew members and spaceships.

Often story arcs begin with a "simple" mission that escalates increasingly or turns out to be much larger than originally assumed. The respective stories are summarized in books. The central themes of the comic include: cosmic structures and artifacts (e.g. wormhole networks, Dyson spheres , art planets and hollow worlds, matryoshka brains ), strong artificial intelligences (as assistants, partners or masters of biological beings), genetic and technological improvements as well as eugenics on humans (in the comic strip, in addition to Homo sapiens and its "further developments", numerous "upgraded" intelligent mammalian species, such as great apes, elephants and bears), technical innovation (weapons, spaceships, nanomachines , clones , Immortality , hyperspace teleportation), the uncovering of political intrigues ( corruption , military-industrial complex , social engineering , impending civil war) as well as extraterrestrial peoples of all stripes.

These topics are usually combined and usually only sketched out superficially. Two examples: In an early story arc it is revealed that the highly developed and genetically self-improved species of the F'Sherl-Ganni have controlled the peoples of the galactic civilizations with the help of their wormhole network and kept them on a low technical level for decades, due to an intergalactic contract, while she practices torture and genocide in huge art worlds. In a later story arc, an artificial intelligence is elected head of government of a space habitat with millions of inhabitants, which was first developed by the unscrupulous government of mankind as a super weapon and then converted into a slum after its failure.

Quotes from “ The Seventy Maxims of Maximally Effective Mercenaries ” are a frequent motif - this fictional list includes wisdoms like “ (first) plunder - then pillage. “,“ There is no overkill , just 'open fire' and 'reload'. "Or" What doesn't kill you has made a tactical mistake. “It is implied that the military and mercenaries can only be successful in the fictional world by applying the 70 pieces of advice.

Protagonists and organizations

Important protagonists

The Tagon's Tough's private mercenary troop consists largely of psychopaths whose main concern is to make their living using sanctioned violence.

  • Sergeant Schlock: Blob-like, green creature and namesake of the comic. Schlock is always hungry, extremely fast and strong. He is portrayed as a loyal mercenary and more effective in conflict situations, albeit an unconventional mercenary, who, however, is at the same time childlike and not overly intelligent. He is passionate about food, physical violence, and firearms.
  • Captain Kaff Tagon: Commander and namesake of the mercenary troops Tagon's Tough's
  • Commander / Captain Kevin Andreyasn: Incredibly brilliant engineer and scientist
  • Admiral / Prime Tangent Breya Andreyasn: Former owner of the troop, sister of Kevin Andreyasn, later a high-ranking politician
  • Ennesby: Low-level artificial intelligence with changing tasks in the troop, i. d. R. adjutant
  • Commodore Karl Tagon: Father Kaff Tagons, General a. D. and later commander of the troops
  • Other (partly former) officers and crew members with frequent appearances: Jeff Bradley, Edward Bunnigus, Chisulo, Ch'vorthq, Michelle Diego-Garcia, Pel Ebbirnoth, Elizabeth, Kathryn Flinders, Theo Fobius, Ellen Foxworthy, Todd Lazcowicz, Leelagaleenileeleenoleela, Liz, Mac M'Conger, Alexia Murtaugh, Burt Nicholson, Shore Pibald, Byron Pontucci, Massey Reynstein, Jeremiah Shephard, Shodan, Flib Sh'vuu, Andy Thnempha, Gunther Thurl, John Der Trihs, Vog
  • Other recurring (partly antagonistic) colleagues, mostly US: Bala-Amin, Jevee Ceeta, Doyt-Haban Gyo, Manyara Emm, Gav, Kerchak, Kowalski, Landon, Hayley Sorlie, Para Ventura, Levaughn Matsui Xinchub
  • Other Artificial Intelligences: Bristlecone / Cindy, Eina-Afa / T'kkkuts-Afa / Iafa, LOTA, TAG, TAGII, Tailor

Important organizations

  • Petey / PD / Fleetmind: High-level artificial intelligence, later the most important power factor in the Milky Way and almost omnipotent ruler of the galactic center
  • US / United Nations of Sol: Interstellar great power of the terrestrial species, which is ruled by an opaque politico-military complex
  • Gatekeeper / F'Sherl-Ganni: Formerly a secret technically superior superpower in the galactic center, which appeared to the outside world as a benefactor
  • Tausennigan Empire: Empire of the extremely warlike Ob'enn, a koala-like species
  • Pa'anuri: Species made up of dark matter ; Ruler of the Andromeda Galaxy and enemy of all baryonic life forms for millions of years
  • Partnership Collective: community intelligence of serpentine lawyers
  • League of Galactics: Powerless League of Known Galactic Civilizations. The extraterrestrial intelligences of comics not described here (partly also great powers comparable to the US) include the Bradicor, Creethlings, Daehremmah, Enireths, Esspererin, Fendorian, Fobott'r, Frellenti, Golbwerians, Grahabbne, Gzeaul, Kreelies, Kssthrata, Metisoids, Mocgnkli, Nejjat, Oafa, Ozvegan, Polyflorians, Prabstdi, Schuul, Uklakk, Uniocs, Uuplechan, Vhorwed, Wogni, Yomingan and Ystreben.

publication

Between the first issue on June 12, 2000 and the end of the series on July 24, 2020, another comic strip appeared exactly every day, so that the archive extends over 7,348 pages. These usually consist of a row of 4 panels , but also at least once a week of up to three rows and sometimes special formats and splash panels.

Since 2007 there have been 15 printed anthologies of the comics, each with between 80 and 256 pages. Five more are to be expected.

Awards

  • The comic won an award for Best Cameo in the 2001 Web Cartoonists' Choice Awards and in 2004 for Best Science Fiction Comic. He was nominated for the award two more times.
  • Between 2009 and 2012, the newly published comic books were nominated four times for the Hugo Award .

Web links