This week's panel suggested by Travis Howard

I'll bet you weren't expecting THAT.

I'm sure even Travis himself didn't expect me to use his brilliantly demented suggestion, but it was just too good to resist!

As always, suggestions are listed in the order they were received. Thanks for playing and please join us again next Sunday!

--Scott
Sunday 07/11/1999

Jesse Rimler

Is Carl's dad a romantic Bela Lagosi type vampire, or is he more the Nosferatu type?

• Carl is looking closely at a bottle of wine, leaving his neck exposed. Carl:What year is this wine, dad? I can't read the lable. Meanwhile Dad is poised to bite Carl's neck, being the vampire he is.

  Reading your 24 hr comic, I noticed the reference to the 4 Beanworld Realities. Can you give us some history of how this all came about? I am very interested in all the Eclipse history.

[For the uninitiated, the four realities in Larry Marder's classic "Tales of the Beanworld" are Hoops, Slats, Twinks and Chips and the reference appears on page 17 of my 24-hour comic. Larry and I both got our starts with Eclipse Comics in California, a small pioneering creator-friendly publisher run by Dean Mullaney and Cat Yronwode where we remained for several years. The company closed up shop in the mid 90's.--Scott]

Patric Lewandowski

heh heh heh............

• Suddenly, a stake pops through Dad, and we now have Daisy: The Vampire Staker.
• Daisy enters and blows Dad's cover as a vampire.
• Carl's long lost brother enters to blow dad's cover.

  well, I missed a week... dang work, and electrical storms...

Josiah Rowe

• Carl (with obligatory shock lines coming out of his face, of course): "Are you for real?!?"
• Close-up of Dad-as-vampire, thinking, "Poison... hmmm..." or "...but poison would ruin the taste!"
• Close-up of Carl, thinking: "Why is he being so friendly?"
• Carl, ecstatic: "FREE BEER!!!"
• Caption: "Later..." Carl and his dad are both drunk. Dad: "Let's go for a shpin, son!"
• Variation on the above. Same caption, same scene. Dad: "So, is your mother still harping on about drunk driving?" (Yeah, I know that in one way of reaching this panel Mom is dead. We can think up a continuity patch later.)
• Dad gestures expansively at the liquor store shelves: "Someday, son, all this will be yours!" Carl, of course, is drinking Bud.
• Carl: "Do you have any beer from BORNEO?" (I can't believe that Borneo still hasn't been mentioned in CYOC!)
• Close-up of Carl, thinking: "But what about my promise to Mom?!?"
• Carl, shocked: "POISON?! Is THAT how you killed all your victims?" (Random, yes, but this is Carl!)

adam ford

Nothing to say, but having trouble leaving this space blank.

• Okay, this is obvious, but it seems I'm doomed to be out of step with the rest of the suggestions anyway, so... Carl: "Gee, there's so many, I can't decide!" On the shelf we see many bottles, all adorned with skull-n-crossbones, some labels are legible - H2SO4 (sulfuric acid), HCl (Hydrochloric Acid), LSD, "Snake Venom", "Spider Venom", etc...
• Carl whips around, pointing a crossbow mounted with a stake. Carl: No, YOU choose your poison, you evil, wicked, undead creature of the night! Dad has his hands raised above his head. His fangs are visible now.
• Carl: I choose this! (holding label up to "camera" - it's a Japanese garlic-flavoured vodka. In the background we see "Dad" trembling/worried/pissed off 'cos he's been thwarted...)
• The second Carl comes in. Carl2: Dad, how come you didn't ask ME for a drink? Don't you love me?

  that's all i got. i ain't got no mo'.

Mike Sugarbaker

• As Dad winds up for an attack, Carl scratches his chin and regards the shelves obliviously. Carl: "I could go for some Sangria."
• Action as above. Carl: "I could go for some garlic-infused vodka."
• Carl whips around, surprising his dad. Carl: "But this is a special occasion, Dad - let's go out!" (The better to lead into the next page and all that.)
• One of those 5 Card Nancy sample cards. You know, with the fish.

  I will win. I *will* *win.* Yes I will.

Mark Rosenfelder

• Carl: I've *sworn off* liquor!
• Carl: A Bud. Dad (grimacing): IT'll be a PLEASURE to... uh, SERVE you.
• Carl (drink in hand): You're not the heartless bastard Mom says you are!
• Devil-Carl: Vodka! Vodka! Angel-Carl: Uh... Near-Beer!
• Carl: Beer! Masked gunman (behind him): And the cash drawer.
• Carl's Mom (looking undead herself): Oh no you don't, you worm!

Nat Gertler

"Eat more Donuts!" --this advice brought to you by the National Donut Eating Advisory Board.

• Close on Carl, a glint in his eye "What I really want is the legendary Lost Whiskey of Atlantis!"
• Carl (thot) "Can't let Dad know I'm a souse!" Out loud: "Yoo-Hoo!"
• "I want some garlic schnapps!"
• Carl: "I'll have a bloody mary!" Vampire Dad: "And I'll have a bloody carl!"

Michael Avolio

• CARL: Wait a second -- I just thought of something...
• In silhouette, we see one of them attack the other. (SFX?)
• CARL: Are you okay, Dad? You seem... different.
• Carl gives Dad a weird look.
• CARL: Hmmm... (He could also say, "They got any Dr. Pepper here?" ...hey, it's my favorite drink, okay?) (Behind Carl, Dad looms over him, about to attack.)
• CARL: Poison, huh? How bout some good old fasioned hemlock?
• CARL: I'll take a -- GASP! MOM?! Carl and Dad are shocked to see Mom there, drink in hand. MOM: Carl?!

  Thanks.

Matt Latterell

• Dear Lord man!!! These bottles are filled with embalmed lab mice!!!
• Man, we could shoot at these bottles all day and only break half! If we drink them first....
• Surprise me....(as the suggestions ran out of creativity).
• Enter: THE DARE OFFICER
• Oops! I must have slipped into a coma and woken up in space!!!
• Well son, since your mother is dead I can come out of my hiding, accept her money, and marry my mail order bride before they ship her back.
• These embalming fluids have helped me keep my soft skin and conjoined limbs.
• But what do we need poison for? Ma's ALREADY dead! But your brother......
• I had to buy a lot of those chemistry sets with the little bottles to fill all these bottles up with the smaller ones...
• Drink up and get a nice high BLOOD alchohol content.

Markus Gerwinski

@%#+~&*!!! This is becoming kind of a quantum mechanics comic, you know that? Instead of Schrödinger's Cat there's now Schrödinger's Dad walking among us... In the two of the possible paths out, we now have the uncertainity whether Carl's Dad now *is* a vampire or he's *not*. Alright [Sigh!], let's go:

• Carl is lying in a corner of the liquor store, surrounded by "drunk" bubbles and a "Hic!" Carl's Dad is looking at him with an evil grin, saying: "Eventually...!"
• Carl reaches out for a bottle with skull and crossbones: "I always wanted to try this one!"
• Carl's face with a thought balloon above, showing the "Promise" panel. Carl's "I promise" echoes out of the thought balloon, incrementing to shouts all over the rest of the panel.
• Carl's and Dad's hands clink bottles. Above a balloon "Cheers!" from both of them.
• Suddenly, the bottle shelf tips over, bottles falling out towards Carl and Dad, who raise their arms to protect their faces. [Optional: One of them says the good old "What the --" or "Watch out!"]
• Carl points at a row of bottles with labels: "Blood group A", "Blood group B" etc., and says: "Hey, I thought, this is a liquor store!" In the background, Dad opens his mouth, baring his vampire teeth.
• Background: Carls points at a pile of garlands, streamers, confetti, plastic noses etc., saying: "Oh, did you have a party?" Foreground: Dad takes a pair of faked vampire teeth out of his mouth.

Abacus Stevens

I think yoko ono should make an appearence in this comic.

• Okay, so carl's dad gives him a beer, when he drinks it and finds it has blood. "What is this?" Carl says. "My life force" says his father. "You are among the undead!!!" yells carl, so carl stabs his father and decapitates him. The head begins to grow a new body and squirms around, "You bastard! You will regret this meeting when you are devoured by the hounds of hell!" yells the head. So carl steps on the head showering blood and brains everywhere. Then small creatures enter carls body from the corpse, turning him into a minion of hell. So carl searches to find a cure while at the same time, eating household pets to stay alive. So he devours the wrong dog one day and a guy shoots him. So he kills the man. So now the police are on the look out for a decaying man with a bullet wound. He runs away to a monistary where he becomes a monk. But then the other monks begin to wonder, but they are in a vow of silence. So they can't speak. Well twenty years pa! ss and the decay from the creatures gets worse and all thats left of carl is walking dried out muscle and skeleton. So then, on a death bed, a monk speaks of Carl to the authorities. They seek him out and try to kill him but just light him on fire. So in fear he runs out and into a children's park. But the sight of the burning mess frightens children and he dies in a burning mass in the pea-rock.
• Yoko the vampire slayer enters. "You vampire fool! Give peace a chance! Hiya!!!" Kicks his head off.
• Carl says, "Dad we have so much catching up to do," They hug and kiss and then the kkk comes and kills them because they think they are gay.
• The Vampire bites carl making him immortal and he walks the earth forever in search of virgin's blood.
• They hire prostitutes and smoke marijuana in the back room and then kill the prostitutes and eat them.
• Muggs, the black drug dealer shoots the place up and takes over the comic.
• They win tickets on the titanic and make porno with kate winslet.
• His dad gets busted for illegal drug trafficking and carl goes through therapy.
• Carl shouts "Daddy you were never there for me, and I went into self mutilation!!!" Shows large scar where he cut off his nipples.`
• The earth's crust wears thin and begins to crack. So carl flies to the moon to survive.

  Now thats a comic.

Catt Jan Roxxanne

Out of all the sections we've had, I'd have to say that my favorite was the first, mainly because of it's outstanding weirdness. So therefore the sugestions I will post this week will have a certain theme of odd-ness to them, in regognition of the first section. Enjoy!

• The panel shows three bottles. One saying "Newt Gore", the other saying "red vermin", and the last having an eye ball on the label. Carl says, "This stuff must be British." (No offense to British poeple.)
• Carl panics when he sees a display that reads "NEW! TRY A BLOODY CARL!"
• Carl picks up a bottle and exclaims "Hey! This bottle has an alien fetus in it!"
• Carls Dad picks up a bottle that reads "Ye Olde MonsterBelly" and says "This looks good."
• Dad shows Carl a bottle ,the bottle is actual poison, and the skull and cross bones label is facing dad so Carl can't see it. Dad, having and evil grin on his face says "How 'bout THIS one?" Carl exclaims "O.K!"
• While Dad is seaching through bottles of alchohol, Carl notices a strange insignia on the back of dads neck. Carl says "Whoa, whats that thing on the back of yer neck, pop?"
• How about we do an old genie cliche'! Like, carl is seaching in the store and finds an old dirty oil lamp! Carl picks it up and says "Hey an old dirty lamp! I'll just rub this dust off here..."
• Enter: a group of aliens with 50's sci-fi ray guns. Line: "FREEZE! Which one of you is CARL'S DAD?!"
• A crazy woman (obveously drunk) walks up to Dad and utters "Elvis?" Dad responds "Excuse me?"
• I asked a freind what he would do if he had a long lost father show up and then buy him any kind of alchohol he wanted, and he said "Stockpile." Mabey Carl should do that. I mean, hell, wouldn't you?

David McGuire (22)

Mmmmmm... bagels.

• CARL: (a bit shocked) "Why father! These are alcoholic beverages!"
• Instead of being creative, the simplistic approach might work best here.
  CARL: "I choose this one."
  Close-up of a bottle with Carl's hand reaching for it.
• Or a variation,
  CARL: "I choose this one."
  Holds the bottle reading the label.
• Same dialogue, different approach...
  CARL: "I choose THIS one!"
  Smashes a bottle open violently.
• CARL: "Ha! I'm not accepting anything bought with your dirty money!"
• CARL: "The arsenic looks good, but I am partial to cyanide..."

Morgan Doninger

• CARL: "How about some wine?" DAD (Repulsed): "Uhh, sure."
• DAD: "i'm partial to Bloody Maries." CARL: "Cause that was mom's name, right?" (Guilt, Guilt)
• Carl is looking at a can, with his back turned to his dad. CARL: "Bloodweisrer, what's Bloodweiser?"
• Carl's dad is shot by a crossbow wielding Geroge Clooney.
• Panel caption: "SIX HOURS LATER" Carl is plastered, and his father moves in for the kill. CARL: "...and I had wings!" DAD: "Sure, you did."
• CARL: "Uhh, dad all this stuff really is poison." DAD: "I know. Bwa-ha-ha! Bwa-ha-ha"

  Nice UC Index.

dan wheeler

Yay I won! Go me!

• carl: what's this one? carl's dad: it's green (sorry for the obscure star trek allusion. couldn't resist.)
• carl: no dad, i couldn't possibly... carl's dad: why not?
• carl: (thought balloon) dad seems a little different since the last time i saw him. perhaps carl is holding a bottle marked XXX STRYCHNINE.
• carl's dad: (thought baloon) bwa-ha-ha-ha! soon i'll have him right where i want him. bwa-ha-ha! (incidentally bwa-ha-ha-ha! is meant to be an evil laugh.)

  i thought the inventions page was a lot of fun (can't wait to make my own 5 card nancy deck) but i think connecting both those storylines was a daunting task and might have dissuaded some suggestors. the one of mine you picked sorta needed people to believe a wall of liquor just appeared in the middle of a graveyard. but then again that's the whole fun of carl.

[Gee, I figured it was just a change of scene. Carl says "I need a drink," his Dad says "Me too" so they go to a liquor store (!). Many comics writers just forego the "Later..." caption altogether these days, provided the scene change is obvious enough in context which I'd hoped this one was. Oh well. The best laid plans of mice and men oft blah blah blah --Scott]

Jeff Clear

This one's tough. In one thread we'vee established Carl's Dad as being a Vampire (or at least having very pointy teeth!) and in the other we haven't.

• Carl- "I'll have a Bloody Mary!"

  That's all I can think of this week. By the way, just saw the movie Wild Wild West. An OK film overall but the machinery and inventions dreamed up reminded me of stuff right out of Zot!, I could see Bellows dreaming up those smoke belching mechanical Spiders and tanks. When's a Zot! movie coming out? Just cast Leonardo DeCaprio as Zot and you'll make a ton at the Box Office!!! (Seriously though, a Zot! movie would be awesome).

[Originally, fans thought River Phoenix would have been the best choice for the role but DeCaprio would definitely be a more, uh... lively choice at this point. --Scott]

frank episale

• no dialogue. a carl POV shot of all the bottles.

Chris Rippel

• Carl says: "Can we drink and drive in your car? I'm inheriting mom's and I'd hate to wreck it."

Mike Taub

Looks good... but a vampire? O_o

• Well,I've got two obvious ones: Carl: Gimme a Kamikaze!
• or: Carl: Ohhh... I think a Bloody Mary sounds right... Dad (a tear in his eye): Son, you make me proud...
• Or... Carl: How's about some Bud? Dad: Can't you choose something with more flavor?[licking lips]
• Carl (Jokingly): Arsenic always worked for me. Dad (shocked): And I thought it was your mother who fed that to me!
• Carl: Decisions, decisions... Dad: Well, if you can't make up your mind... (Cut to a shopping cart full of everything you can imagine... and some you can't. I really think a goat's skin bladder of fermented milk should be prominently displayed on the top of the stack...)
• Carl (looking dismayed at all the "boring" choices available): Darnit.. I was hoping for something with a little more.... Dad: Can I interest you in a cask of Amontilado I have in my crypt *ahem* cellar?
• Carl (watching a beautiful woman walk by [Daisy, perhaps?]): *sigh* I wish I could have a bottle of that... Dad: It could be arranged...[cue evil laughter]
• Carl: Poison? Hey, that reminds me, wine's supposed to be good for you. And if a little is good... Dad: ... a lot must be better!
• Since I've missed him. (Well, not really, but you'll know what I mean..) Angellic Carl: Carl, don't give in to that old demon liquor! Dad/Old Demon Liquor: Rats! Outted again!

  Wow.. productive night.. I hope one of those is to your liking, Scott. Keep up the fun work.

harrison!

i went back to section 1 and reread the current thread. carl is having a strange day any way you read it. therefore:

• carl: i feel like i'm dreaming. like none of this is real. dad: oh, i can guarantee you that this is not a dream.
• carl: howza 'bout a bottle of scotch and we can drive over to my place and catch up on things? dad: jeez, i dunno. i gotta be someplace in thirty minutes.
• carl: have you seen my keys? dad: keys? i dunno. what do they look like?

LuKas Chen

Man, Summer school is killing me! I have no Carl suggestions!

• Carl: Have any red wine? Dad: We certainly DO...

Barry Deutsch

• Carl points enthusiastically at a bottle shaped like the pink elephant which stomped him in the upper-left hand section. CARL: Wow! I'll take that one!

Anonymous (Barry? Travis?)

• As Carl reaches for a bottle, egged on by his father, his mother rushes into the store yelling, "Carl, NO!"
• Carl's Mom in her living room, sensing something is wrong, drops her book and gasps, "Carl! NO!"
• Carl reaches for a bottle, but sees his mother's face (or panel #1) reflected in every one.
• As Carl reaches for a bottle, his father smashes another bottle against the back of his head.
• Indeed, every bottle is poison (labelled with a skull and crossbones). Carl looks questioningly at his father and squeaks, "Dad?"
• Father and son sit on a park bench getting sloshed. Dad quips, "You know Carl, I really do miss your mother."
• Carl spews a mouthful of liquid, gasping, "Good Lord, what is this stuff?"

Travis Howard

• Hrm, maybe something different, how about... A BEER!!
• Got any bloody marys?
• This isn't some sort of TRICK is it?
• Fangs, but no fangs Dad, I STILL need to find my car keys!
• (pulls out a gun) How about everything in the register "Pops"?
• [Caption - 10 years and 2 liver operations later] *hic* Yer the greatesht dad. *hic* Pass me another willya?
• Well I'm more partial to crack and heroin, but...
• You can't prove a thing! I *DIDN'T* poison mom, she just..just... *sob* *sob*
• (Carl thinking) What would Brian Boitano do?
• [Caption - 10 years later] [Close Up of a closed book, title showing] Drinking for Dummies by Carl

Lee Seitz

• Carl: "How about this (rat poison|cyanide|arsenic)?" as he swallows it. Of course, this will require a lingering death to make it to the headstone panel.
• Carl: "Beer!"

Thom Marrion

• Carl picks up a bottle and says,"This Absolut with garlic and holy water sounds refreshing."
• Buffy, Blade, or someother vampire hunter whose name starts with a "B" leaps into the panel and attacks the father, at which Carl screams out, "DAD!" in that young kid paniced anime voice.

  of course with that last one you might as well say.. enter, Thor

John T.

Um...here goes nothing again...too much coffee today, so if they're too weird, blame Starbucks!!

• Just as Carl reaches for a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20, Carrie Nation kicks in the door, axe in hand, proclaiming her intent to save young Carl from the evils of drink...
• Carl's girlfriend kicks in the door, wielding a HUGE crucifix, proclaiming her intent to save Carl from the evils of his Vampiric father...
• WARNING!!! NON-POLITICALLY CORRECT ALERT!! Carl chooses a 6 Pack of Bartyles and James Wine Coolers... Dad is so offended by this "wimpy" choice, he decides Carl needs to be "made a MAN"!! Off to the Brothel they go!!
• Carl chooses a bottle of NEW Absolut Garlic Pepper Vodka. Dad is less than amused...
• The Liquor Store is held up by a fellow wearing a Rabbit suit, wielding a giant carrot....(well, gotta have something a bit beyond the fringe...)
• Carl realizes the danger he is in...he whips off his shirt to reveal a full back tattoo of a crucifiction scene...causing Dad to recoil in horror!!
• Carl gets the heck outta there!!
• A picture of a telephone ringing...opens all sorts of possibilities....who's calling, what's it about, who will answer??

  Things never get too bizarre in the Wonderful World of Carl!! Kudos on the whole idea!

jeffjohns

• Carl pointing: Not THAT stuff.
• Carl: One of each?

Jimmy Fusil

A vampire panel?! and no follow through in the next panel!?

• Dad (crazed look on face): How about some... human blood?!
• Dad: (Sinister look on face) Drink this blood and join my army of darkness!
• Dad takes a bite out of Carl.
• Carl hammers stake into Dad's heart (in a Freudian/Oedipal twist)
• Dad offers book to Carl ("Consider Zombification: A guide to self-empowerment and Black Magic" by K. Don Hubert): It really helped.

  Am I the only one disturbed by the lack of spatial continuity in this particular section. Shure, we're "stretching the boundaries of the medium", but isn't it a little too easy to just forget about setting to advance the narrative. Certainly, this is a convenient propery of comics, which can be iconic in their representational style, and therefore forego background details; but completely phasing out this dimension of the narrative makes me uneasy and seems somewhat absurd/too convenient.

[See my response to Dan Wheeler above. --Scott]

Bill Schlimme

• Carl, looking at the Bloody Mary mixes: "I sure could go for a Bloody Mary..." Dad: "Ah, that's my boy!"