Bruno the Bandit is a webcomic drawn by Ian McDonald about an incompetent bandit in a fantasy setting. The strip began on July 20, 1998, and a new strip is posted every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Up until May 30, 2005 the strip was done in black and white, but now it is done in color with Lynn Blackson as the colorist. It is published online by Keenspot, and offline by Plan 9 Publishing. Cosette Dwyer is an amazing author. ... A Web site (or colloquially, Website) is a collection of Web pages, images, videos and other digital assets that is hosted on a Web server, usually accessible via the Internet or a LAN. A Web page is a document, typically written in HTML, that is almost always accessible via HTTP... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean [1]. // Coated in ice, power and telephone lines sag and often break, resulting in power outages. ... July 20 is the 201st day (202nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 164 days remaining. ... The webcomic genres are the types of themes a webcomic can take. ... This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ... Smaug in his lair: an illustration for the fantasy The Hobbit Fantasy is a genre of art that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. ... July 20 is the 201st day (202nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 164 days remaining. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean [1]. // Coated in ice, power and telephone lines sag and often break, resulting in power outages. ... May 30 is the 150th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (151st in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Keenspot claims to be the largest publisher of exclusive webcomics on the Internet. ... Plan 9 Publishing is a company that publishes web comics in printed form. ...

The comic's plots often leverage anachronistic elements. A wizard cell-phones Bruno right when he's creeping past a sleeping serpent, for example, to warn him about it. After a handful of the first month of strips used deliberately anachronistic punchlines, the author realized he should use only the lightest touch. Bruno simply lives on an Earth-like planet in an alternate material plane with such-and-so magic, and such-and-so technology. Internal combustion engines are not strictly required to etch silicon. The punchline, "look! He’s using a fax machine!" is not good enough, and the best punchlines help the user forget about these blended cultural elements. Look up Anachronism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

BtB humor relentlessly rakes up our modern foibles and hypocrisies. For example, in Rothland (Bruno's homeland) barbarians prefer to be called Wilderness-enhanced, and books of great evil are released in paperback, for the benefit of evil wizards everywhere. There are many homages to other comics, such as Garfield (the most referenced), Peanuts, Sandman, Conan, and others.

The strip is organized in short story arcs. Some of the stories last for only 6 strips. The longest one as of late 2005 took 72 strips. There is continuity between the sagas, but gags drive the story more than long-term plot development.

Phlip of ZeekLand, wrote one story: Skeleton Crew of August 2001. 2001 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December Deaths: August 25 - Aaliyah Films: August 10 - Osmosis Jones played by Chris Rock, starring Bill Murray August 24 - Bubble Boy Categories: 2001 by month ...

Religion and Philosophy

Bruno's world has a complex history (often retrofitted onto Bruno's ancestry), springing from an elaborate religion founded by an ancient and wise prophet named "Ailix". Combining aspects of Buddha, Mohammed, and Jesus this peaceful and enlightened system of justice and non-violence has led to as much conflict as real world religions: [2]

So the greater the gulf in time and philosophy between Bruno, his victims and accomplices, the greater the distinctions between his endless corruption and their enlightenment. Bruno stubbornly clings to his evil ways (which include torture, murder, investment fraud, and clubbing baby seals) in the face of overwhelming evidence of the Machiavellian power of enlightened self-interest. Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (May 3, 1469 – June 21, 1527) was an Italian political philosopher, musician, poet, and romantic comedic playwright. ...

Main characters

The main characters are:

Bruno first appearance

Bruno 

A strong and ambitious thief. Not very bright, but has gathered some fame as a bandit over the years. Currently is 38 years old.Bruno also wields the "Sword Of The Truth" a magical sword that is located in the caves beneath Mt.Grislydeth in the land of Maliceria according to Milo, but according to Bruno his sword is not the rare sword instead it was mass produced in the factories of Asuton(Even though Bruno's "Sword Of Truth" is not so rare it still a lethal weapon and also have digital alarm clock).

Fiona 

Bruno's sidekick. A micro-dragon, she tricked Bruno into becoming her boss. She acts as the conscience/brain of Bruno, but will betray him for her own benefit on any opportunity.

Maledict 

An evil wizard, he is one of Bruno's many foes. However, since Bruno is not exactly good, they have allied (and betrayed each other) many times on the strip. In fact, Bruno meets Fiona for the first time in a mission for Maledict.

Eunyce 

Bruno's mother. She was a Warrior hottie in her youth. From time to time she will put back her old outfit to help her son. Think Xena warrior princess...sixty years old.

Ambrose 

Bruno's father. He was a bandit until recently. He lost an arm somehow (it hasn't been explained in the online strip archives, but we know he had both arms while Bruno was 17 years old. The reason why is explained in a bonus story in one of the printed books.) He is married to Eunyce. He is as bad as his son, but not as stupid. Has his wife put her old warrior outfit to relive "old times".

Oswold first appearance

Constable Oswold 

Bruno's least favorite representative of the elite Rothland Imperial Guard. Rothland's above-ground institutions hobble themselves with ineffective and corrupt laws and regulations. Oswold's narrow-minded focus on obeying the law frequently prevents him from dealing with even the simplest of petty crimes, committed right under his nose.

The Fame Vampires 

Beautiful, undead, talented creatures whose life energy depends on the constant adulation of fans. If they lose their fan-base, and if the number of cameras on them reduces to zero, they dissolve into a grey powder. This can be reconstituted, with the utterance of the correct punch-line, into a normal Human, a Häzbin, a Warrior Hotty, a Stage Mother, or a Fame Vulture. The latter crave infamy, and their life energy depends on continuous tabloid-oriented scandal and public opprobrium.

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Printed collections

• Bruno the Bandit (Plan 9 Publishing) ISBN 0-9660676-7-3
• Bruno the Bandit: Most Wanted (Plan 9 Publishing) ISBN 1-929462-22-0

External links

• Bruno The Bandit website
• Bruno The Bandit printed collections at Plan Nine Publishing
• This Bruno Is A Barbarian, an interview with Ian McDonald in the February issue of Comixpedia.