Two Websites I’m Glad Exist
The Internet provides many earthly delights. Here are two I’ve discovered, one old, one new.
Oglaf
Back when I wrote about webcomics you should be reading, I intended to include Oglaf. I even alluded to it in the third paragraph, but something made me chicken out and excise it from my final draft. I caught more than my share of crap for this cowardice from my friends, to whom I have incessantly sung the praises of this dirty, dirty webcomic. Let me be perfectly clear, Oglaf is often decidedly, ah… adult-oriented. By this I mean wee-wees and hoo-has are frequently depicted, as is all manner of sexual activity. Oglaf is also decidedly hilarious. Almost nothing is taboo. Bodily fluids are anthropomorphized, female bandits seduce virginal knights, and Ice Queens are satisfied so that Spring may come. There are recurring characters including the scantily-clad sorceress/dominatrix and her hapless apprentice, the aforementioned female bandit, the Lizard of Guilt, shape-shifters, vulgar dwarves, and the titular Oglaf the shepherd boy. Perhaps surprisingly, some of my favorite strips are actually safe-for-work (to use the parlance of our times): Fountain of Doubt, Ulric the Just, and Skulls. Often the writer is in the middle of a multi-comic narrative, so visiting only the main page is not necessarily the best way to experience Oglaf. If you decide to wade into this particular pool, do so at your own risk; but it’s best you start at the beginning.
Arrested Westeros
Brilliant in its simplicity, Arrested Westeros is nothing more than images from HBO’s Game of Thrones coupled with dialogue from the tragically short-lived Arrested Development. As can be expected, the gag works best if you are familiar with both shows but I think if you must know only one it’s best to know the Arrested Development dialogue. In most cases, the context of the image is less important than the punch line. While some images merit little more than a snort, others are gut-bustingly funny. Among my favorites are an exultant Khal Drogo holding two knives aloft and exclaiming “Steve Holt!”, and Bran Stark spotting Cersei and Jaime Lannister in flagrante delicto and responding with Buster Bluth’s confused “I heard zoo noises.” It is ideas like this that make me proud of humanity’s capacity for abstract thought and creativity.
