🐉Changing the Guard🐍

A Belated Lunar New Year 2025 Comic

What if the shoe doesn’t fit??

I actually made this silly comic before the lunar new year (which was on January 29th this year). But I forgot to take a pic before submitting it at the January DUNE Mini-Comics Night event (no relation to that Dune), so I wasn’t able to take a pic until I got the art back last week.

The January DUNE event was on 1/28, so the timing primed me to think of a LNY themed comic.

Are you familiar with the Chinese zodiac animals?

Random fact (that I, and probably everyone, never thought about until I was ideating for this comic because why would you?): the snake is the only zodiac animal without four limbs! Or any limbs for that matter!

The DUNE events are great: community comics jams where anyone can come and create a comic or illustration and it gets included in a printed anthology with a copy for everyone who contributed. All natural (not digital) media, created that night. You get a wide variety in the end result.

This one was the first one I’ve ever attended (well, I only first heard about them last year while they were on hiatus), but the 86th DUNE to be held. It’s been running for years. I’m going to try to make it out every month.

Here’s a look at DUNE 86—one of my panels was chosen for the back cover! I was stoked.

The connection crisis caused by our hyper-individualistic society is a big concern in recent years. It’s definitely one of my preoccupations, too, and I’m someone who is very comfortable spending time by myself (but I also enjoy being with people, too).

So not just making my art in my hermitage but doing it in community is one way that I’m pushing back to rebuild our connections to each other.

I think I lot of artists can relate to this comic. (Comic by Marko Raassina @markoraassina.bsky.social)

Has the connection crisis touched you? What’s worked well for you to connect with others around you?