Ah, the glory of 8-bit graphics. The blocky design, the simplified colors, the use of checkerboard shading. Young video gamers may not recognize the style, but those of us who grew up through the age of Atari and spent hours on the NES playing the first Legend of Zelda know the artform well. Just the change of a pixel here or there can make a face look happy or sad, irritated or amused.
That's the beauty of the webcomic Diesel Sweeties. Written by Richard Stevens, this witty 8-bit comic strip has grown a cult following online and just this past year has found its way into syndication. Start with a girl named Maura and her robot boyfriend Clango, add in a cast of characters that range from the lame Indie Rock Pete, the cynical Lil Sis, the optimistic Metal Steve, the always angry human-crushing Red Robot, a toaster and a couple cats, and let them talk about the ridiculousness of love and youth and rebellion (both real and staged).
Stevens takes on topics ranging from illegal downloading, the cliches attached to hipsters, dating online, and the occasional plot to take over the world, and does so with wimsy in comics that pay off with a solid punchline or clever twist of words every day. With an extensive archive of comics to check out, make a point to get started reading Diesel Sweeties sooner rather than later. You just never know when Red Robot will finally get around to Crushing All Humans.
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