''Van Von Hunter'' is a weekly hand-drawn parody

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

started in 2002 by Mike Schwark and Ron Kaulfersch of Pseudomé Studio, based in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

.Giddens, Tharon (July 9, 2006). "Vampire hunter has stake in paper". ''

The Augusta Chronicle ''The Augusta Chronicle'' is the daily newspaper of Augusta, Georgia, and is one of the oldest newspapers in the United States still in publication. The paper is known for its coverage of the Masters Tournament, which is played in Augusta. Hist ...

'', Pg. G3. It has been published in newspapers, books, and as a

webcomic Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on the internet, such as on a website or a mobile app. While many webcomics are published exclusively online, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or ...

. The story takes place in the land of Dikay, a country fraught with zombies, and focuses on the warrior Van Von Hunter and his "never-ending fight against evil...stuff".

Publication history

In the Summer of 2006, ''Van Von Hunter'' started a six-month run of Sunday newspapers. It was syndicated by

Universal Press Syndicate Universal Press Syndicate (UPS), a subsidiary of Andrews McMeel Universal, was an independent press syndicate. It distributed lifestyle and opinion columns, comic strips and other content. Popular columns include Dear Abby, Ann Coulter, Roger ...

and published in approximately 30 papers in North America (and one in Sweden), including the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'', ''

The Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in the Denver metropolitan area. it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 13 mil ...

'', the ''

Seattle Post-Intelligencer The ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'' (popularly known as the ''Seattle P-I'', the ''Post-Intelligencer'', or simply the ''P-I'') is an online newspaper and former print newspaper based in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. Th ...

'', ''

The Detroit News ''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United S ...

'', ''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the West Coast of the United States, U.S. West Coast, founded as a weekly by Tho ...

'', ''

The Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, and is the larg ...

'', and the ''

Toronto Sun The ''Toronto Sun'' is an English-language tabloid format, tabloid newspaper published daily in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The newspaper is one of several ''Sun'' tabloids published by Postmedia Network. The newspaper's offices are located at Pos ...

''.Memmott, Carol (December 29, 2005). "Comics pages make room for manga; Newspapers target the young". ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

'', Pg. 1D.Chin, Richard (February 5, 2006). "Funnies fans, prepare to meet manga". ''

St. Paul Pioneer Press The ''St. Paul Pioneer Press'' is a newspaper based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It serves the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. Circulation is heaviest in the east metro, including Ramsey, Dakota, and Washington countie ...

'', Pg. 1E. ''Van Von Hunter'' was the second Tokyopop manga to be syndicated to newspapers, the first being '' Peach Fuzz'' by Jared Hodges and Lindsay Cibos.

Characters

*Van Von Hunter – The protagonist, Von Hunter is a jovial and easygoing adventurer who is dedicated to battling evil. While not particularly intelligent, Von Hunter makes up for his shortcomings with his strong sense of justice and armed-combat skills. His original name was Van Von Vaughn, but he changed it to suit his profession. *Van Von Hunter's sidekick – A young woman whom Von Hunter rescued from Count Disdain. Before being able to introduce herself, she was struck on the head and lost her memory. She travels with Von Hunter because she has nowhere else to go. She does not do much fighting, but her common sense saves Von Hunter on occasion. *Prince Lesley Mortimer Lamorte – He is better known by his chosen title, the Flaming Prince (he forgot the implications at the time). Lamorte rules over Dikay Kingdom at the wish of his more malicious father. He is Van Von Hunter's self-proclaimed sworn nemesis, though is even less intelligent than Von Hunter himself. The Flaming Prince employs monster minions to dispose of Von Hunter. *The Man in the Dark Glasses – The Flaming Prince's right-hand man. He provides the prince with encouragement, thoughtful advice, and random things to crush in his hand. He is secretly the glue that holds the kingdom together. *The Archmage Ariana Rael – An adorable young girl who destroyed her village when they tried to feed her to a dragon, she was hired by the Flaming Prince as a secret weapon. When Von Hunter arrived to do battle with the Prince, Ariana was supposed to destroy him with her powerful pyromancy, the Mega-Destruction Flare. Instead, she simply burned everything surrounding him. "Ari" ended up traveling with Von Hunter for a time. *Vengeance Joe – An easily-angered antagonist with no known past. His defining feature is that once he is angered, nothing can stop him from finding his revenge. His list of enemies is long and varied, ranging from a staircase (for tripping him) to the ignorant Von Hunter (for not introducing himself as they passed each other on the street). He is now working to destroy all that Von Hunter cares for. Joe is allergic to walnuts.

Monsters

There are many types of monsters in Von Hunter's world. *

Zombies A zombie (Haitian French: ; ; Kikongo: ''zumbi'') is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. In modern popular culture, zombies appear in horror genre works. The term comes from Haitian folklore ...

– Zombies seem to get appointed for the jobs that no one else wants in Von Hunter's world, from lawyers to accountants. They also display lower than average intelligence which makes them more harmful than useful. Wanted posters in zombie-infested woods can be seen as "zombie deflectors". *

Orcs An orc (sometimes spelt ork; ), in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy fiction, is a race of humanoid monsters, which he also calls "goblin". In Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'', orcs appear as a brutish, aggressive, ugly, and malevol ...

– Large and dangerous creatures, which comprised a large portion of the Prince's army (before being wiped out by Ari). *

Goblins A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous humanoid creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances dep ...

– More cute than deadly, goblins wear hats and outfits that make them resemble Christmas elves. They are by far the most useful of the Prince's forces (despite his apparent dislike for them) as they fill some of the menial chores (such as bartending), can be bizarrely versatile, and were able to restore the kingdom's finances through bake sales. They are talented chefs, and mesmerized Von Hunter's Sidekick with brownies (in the print version). *

Vampires A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

– Vampires are

undead The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if they were alive. A common example of an undead being is a cadaver, corpse reanimated by supernatural forces, by the application of either the deceased's o ...

beings, though not always humans, with fangs and pointed ears. They feed on blood and turn to dust when staked through the heart. Vampires are the rulers of the unnamed country where the webcomic opens. *

Ghouls In folklore, a ghoul (from , ') is a demon-like being or Monster, monstrous humanoid, often associated with graveyards and the consumption of human flesh. In the legends or tales in which they appear, a ghoul is far more ill-mannered and foul t ...

– Ghouls are bald, and have pointed ears, fangs and nails. Ghouls eat humans and founded the unnamed country where the webcomic opens. *Pollywacker – A monster in the mysterious forest of the accursed valley of the Twelve Severed Heads, who terrorized the Valley until Von Hunter killed it. * Gargoyles – Large winged monsters called "stoners" by the Prince. The Gargoyles of Von Hunter's world behave similar to stereotypical stoner teenagers. *Bugs – The Insects (and most likely arachnids like spiders) are

sentient Sentience is the ability to experience feelings and sensations. It may not necessarily imply higher cognitive functions such as awareness, reasoning, or complex thought processes. Some writers define sentience exclusively as the capacity for ''v ...

creatures with their own society. They are still just as small, however. Their leader, Lord Chitin, was inadvertently killed by the Flaming Prince early on. *

Demons A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in folklore, mythology, religion, occultism, and literature; these beliefs are reflected in media including fiction, comics, film, t ...

– The only

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in folklore, mythology, religion, occultism, and literature; these beliefs are reflected in Media (communication), media including f ...

seen in the webcomic is a large and ferocious-looking monster, similar in appearance to the

Balrog Balrogs () are a species of powerful demonic monsters in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. One first appeared in print in his high-fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings'', where the Company of the Ring encounter a Balrog known as Durin's Bane in ...

. However, it is comforts the Beast when The Flaming Prince scolds it and is used to serve hot drinks. Additional monsters include

Trolls A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human be ...

Leprechaun A leprechaun () is a diminutive supernatural being in Irish folklore, classed by some as a type of solitary fairy. They are usually depicted as little bearded men, wearing a coat and hat, who partake in mischief. In later times, they have bee ...

Dragons A dragon is a magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in Western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depict ...

Werewolves In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (from Ancient Greek ), is an individual who can shapeshift into a wolf, or especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf–humanlike creature, either purposely or after bei ...

Sasquatch Bigfoot (), also commonly referred to as Sasquatch (), is a large, hairy Mythic humanoids, mythical creature said to inhabit forests in North America, particularly in the Pacific Northwest.Example definitions include: *"A large, hairy, manlike ...

, and

Mummies A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and Organ (biology), organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to Chemical substance, chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the ...

Live-action movie

In 2010, Van Von Hunter was adapted as a

live-action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games or ...

film directed and written by Steven Calcote and Stuart J. Levy. It stars

Yuri Lowenthal Yuri Lowenthal (born March 5, 1971) is an American voice actor known for his work in cartoons, anime, and video games. Some of his prominent voice roles in video games include Peter Parker / Spider-Man in various video games associated with t ...

, Heather Marie Marsden, and Lucas Bridgeman. It won Levy and Calcote "Best Director" at Mockfest 2011.

Collections

Starting in 2005,

Tokyopop Tokyopop (styled TOKYOPOP; formerly known as Mixx Entertainment) is an American distributor, licensor and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa and Western manga-style works. The German publishing division produces German translations of licens ...

published a series of graphic novels set in the ''Van Von Hunter'' universe, taking place several years after the conclusion of the webcomic's plot. * ''Van Von Hunter volume 1''. . TOKYOPOP. 2005-05-10 * ''Van Von Hunter volume 2''. . TOKYOPOP. 2005-09-13 * ''Van Von Hunter volume 3''. . TOKYOPOP. 2006-12-12

Reception

In 2003, the webcomic won the first-place trophy at

's inaugural

Rising Stars of Manga ''Rising Stars of Manga'' (RSoM) was an English-language comic anthology published by TOKYOPOP from 2002 to 2008, and a contest held by the same company. It was originally semi-annual, but switched to annual beginning with the 6th volume. Each vo ...

contest.Publishers Weekly Staff (March 17, 2003). "Rising Star Winners; Battle Royale Ahead". ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'', Pg. 28.Levy, Stu (Publisher) (April 2003). ''

, Vol. 1'', Los Angeles: Tokyopop. Pg. 32 Carlo Santos of ''

Anime News Network Anime News Network (ANN) is a news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, video games, Japanese popular music and other related cultures within North America, Australia, Southeast Asia and Japan. The website offers reviews and ot ...

'' stated: "For those who have grown tired of the fantasy genre's ridiculous self-importance and constantly recycled

cliché A cliché ( or ; ) is a saying, idea, or element of an artistic work that has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning, novelty, or literal and figurative language, figurative or artistic power, even to the point of now being b ...

s, Van Von Hunter is the antidote, attacking these clichés with irreverent fervor. However, in doing so it becomes something of a cliché itself, relying on a predictable comedic approach and putting its characters in overused situations—not to mention that the whole adventure-comedy thing has been done plenty of times before." Reviewing the webcomic, Dani Atkinson of ''Sequential Tart'' stated that the black and white artstyle of ''Van Von Hunter'' is initially fairly "crude", but evolved into a more crisp tone as the series continued.

References

External links

* {{Official website, www.vanvonhunter.com
''Van Von Hunter'' manga
at Tokyopop
''Van Von Hunter'' live-action film
at Tokyopop
''IMDB entry for the 2010 film'' website
2000s webcomics 2002 webcomic debuts Anime and manga inspired webcomics American comedy webcomics Fantasy webcomics Original English-language manga Tokyopop titles Webcomics in print