Bluntman and Chronic are characters appearing in a fictional eponymous

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

series seen in the movies ''

Chasing Amy ''Chasing Amy'' is a 1997 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Kevin Smith and starring Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, and Jason Lee. The film is about a male comic artist (Affleck) who falls in love with a lesbian woman ...

,'' ''

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back ''Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back'' is a 2001 American satirical stoner buddy comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, the fifth to be set in his View Askewniverse, a growing collection of characters and settings that developed out of h ...

,'' and '' Jay and Silent Bob Reboot''. Actual ''Bluntman and Chronic'' comic books based on the fictional movie comic book series were published after the release of ''Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back''. Both the movies and the comic books were created by writer and actor

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film '' Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, ...

. Comics creator

Mike Allred Michael Dalton Allred is an American comic book artist and writer most famous for his independent comics creations, ''Madman'' and ''iZombie''. His style is often compared to pop art, as well as commercial and comic art of the 1950s and 1960s ...

designed the costumes for the characters.

Movies

In the film ''Chasing Amy'',

Banky Edwards This is a list of major and recurring characters in Kevin Smith's fictional universe known as the View Askewniverse. ''Clerks'' (1994) Dante Hicks Dante Hicks, played by Brian O'Halloran, is 22 (33 in ''Clerks II, 49 in Clerks III''), works at ...

(played by Jason Lee) and Holden McNeil (played by

Ben Affleck Benjamin Géza Affleck (born August 15, 1972) is an American actor and filmmaker. His accolades include two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards and a Volpi Cup. Affleck began his career as a child when he starred in the PBS education ...

) create a comic book series based on their infamous stoner friends,

Jay and Silent Bob Jay and Silent Bob are fictional characters portrayed by Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith, respectively, in Kevin Smith's View Askewniverse, a fictional universe created and used in most of the films, comics, and television programs written and produ ...

. The first three issues of the series sell out quickly. At one point, MTV offers Banky and Holden McNeil the option to make an

animated series An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have eith ...

. Banky is willing to do it, but Holden McNeil declines for "artistic reasons". Soon after this, Holden passes the reins of power over the comic to Banky, and their partnership is disbanded. In the film ''Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back'', Banky Edwards has sold the rights to ''Bluntman and Chronic'' to Miramax, who begin production of a film adaptation of the comic due to the recent success of ''

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in 1970 due to lo ...

''. Miramax's production is directed by Chaka Luther King (played by Chris Rock) and stars

Jason Biggs Jason Matthew Biggs (born May 12, 1978) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing Jim Levenstein in the '' American Pie'' comedy film series and Larry Bloom in the Netflix original series ''Orange Is the New Black''. He als ...

as Bluntman (referred to as the pie fucker throughout the film), James Van Der Beek as Chronic, and Mark Hamill as the villain Cock-Knocker. However, filming is interrupted by the comic's inspirations, Jay and Silent Bob, who arrive hoping to stop the film, as they worry that it will damage their reputation (after having been upset by comments made by

Internet trolls In slang, a troll is a person who posts or makes inflammatory, insincere, digressive, extraneous, or off-topic messages online (such as in social media, a newsgroup, a forum, a chat room, a online video game), or in real life, with the in ...

on a movie gossip website about the film and the characters). Mistaken as Biggs' and Van Der Beek's stand-ins at one point, Jay and Silent Bob are filmed in some of the scenes. Months later, the movie is released. One character in the film, Hooper X, referred to the movie as "a ninety-minute long gay joke," and felt it was "just like watching '' Batman & Robin'' all over again." Jay and Silent Bob then use their royalties to track down and beat up everyone who bashed them on the internet. In an extended scene in ''

Clerks II ''Clerks II'' is a 2006 American comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, the sequel to his 1994 film ''Clerks'', and his sixth feature film to be set in the View Askewniverse. The film stars Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Rosario Daw ...

'', Dante Hicks and Randal Graves were wondering where

got the money to loan them to reopen the Quick Stop, and Jay asks "Doesn't anybody remember they made a movie using our likeness?"—referencing the Bluntman and Chronic movie made in ''

''. Bluntman and Chronic also appear in the 2013 animated comedy '' Jay & Silent Bob's Super Groovy Cartoon Movie!''.

Comics

Trade paperback

A comic book based on the fictional movie was published in trade paperback form by

Oni Press Oni Press is an American independent comic book and graphic novel publisher based in Portland, Oregon. In 2019, it became an imprint label following the company's merger with Lion Forge Comics. The merged company, Oni–Lion Forge Publishing Grou ...

in 2001. The book is portrayed as a collection of the three issues written by Banky Edwards and Holden McNeil in ''Chasing Amy''. It was written by Kevin Smith with art by

Michael Avon Oeming Michael Avon Oeming is an American comic book creator, both as an artist and writer. Career Oeming is a fan of ancient mythology, having written or drawn several projects centering on the Norse gods. He frequently collaborates with long-time f ...

and Neil Vokes. In the first issue, after encountering several comic book references, Jay and Silent Bob win the lottery and decide to become superheroes. After Bob handles most of the gadget work, the two don the names Bluntman and Chronic. In the second issue, some of the nemeses of Bluntman and Chronic, such as Cock-Knocker and Dickhead, reveal their origins to fellow supervillain inmates and a psychiatrist. The psychiatrist turns out to be the Lipstick Lesbian, a newer supervillain, who helps the criminals escape. The five villains, consisting of the aforementioned three along with the Diddler and Newsgroup, form The League of Shitters. In the third and final issue, Chronic nearly throws out his costume, feeling that he's become "the sidekick". He changes his mind, however, when he realizes Bluntman "has all the weed". Meanwhile, the League of Shitters discover that the Doobage Duo's Bluntcave lies beneath the RST Video/Quick Stop. The five arrive at the stores, only to have Cock-Knocker go into the Quick Stop and buy some snacks. The four others, however, are crushed to death after RST's front wall falls over, allowing Bluntman and Chronic to ride the Bluntmobile into the Bluntcave. Cock-Knocker then exits the Quick Stop, only to step in Dickhead's spleen. Cock-Knocker breaks into the Bluntcave, where he slices Chronic in half with a Bluntsaber. Bluntman slays Cock-Knocker and weeps over his dead friend. The cover of issue three features Bluntman holding Chronic's corpse the same way Batman held Jason Todd's in '' A Death in the Family''.

Other comics

Two other Bluntman and Chronic comics were published, both with art by comic book artist and Madman creator

. The first was seen in the opening titles of ''Chasing Amy'' and was published in the Clerks/Chasing Amy screenplay book. The second was published in Oni Double Feature #12. Both have a design style that is very different from that which is seen in the trade paperback. Their style echoes the comics of the 1940s and is visually more similar to the comics seen in ''Chasing Amy''.

References

External links