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publish as a back up feature in another tiny black & white publication. "I was just happy to be getting published" Darick recalls. "I was just drawing a comic that I thought had a funny title and had made up the story to entertain myself in summer school." Rather than the Ninja Turtles, his big influences were more mainstream titles like "Rocket Raccoon" by Mike Mignola and "Captain Carrot and his Amazing Zoo Crew" from DC. "I didn't even know there was a black and white funny animal boom happening." (He apparently didn't recognize the euphemism in his innocent character based on the Beaver, either.) Tibor Sardy saw fool's gold in them thar pages, and offered to publish Space Beaver as it own title and pay Darick a salary. Darick leapt at the chance and Tibor humbly christened the company "Ten Buck Comics" based on the notion that, like all the other crazy hit Black & Whites that were tearing up the sales charts, the many TMNT knock offs and Fish Police, it would be no time at all before Space Beaver #1 would be worth ten dollars.
Darick drew and wrote and even painted a few covers (not the really good ones, those are by Ann Hatchett Sprague working over his drawings) as the book progressed into 11 issues over the next three years. Of course, the black and white boom was all but over by the time issue #3 hit the stands, and so by the time he'd reached #11, there was little point in struggling along with the title that had became a quarter bin warmer throughout the country. Darick was beginning to get mainstream work and Space Beaver was left in the midst of a cliffhanger ending in 1989. "I really didn't think anyone would care, but strangely, I had people asking me about it all through the 90's. I even came across a Space Beaver website!" Finally, Larry Young of AiT publications offered to collect the title with the now infamous missing chapter. In 2001 Darick went back and finished the series with fresh art and writing. "It was actually a great experience, and it's nice to be able tell people when they ask about it that it's finally done and out there. The ironic thing is that Larry, like Tibor, took a bath on the book. No one really seems to want Space Beaver; there's no demand for it. It's more of a curiosity than anything." Darick realizes "But occasionally, I get the kind letter here or there and I'll meet the one guy in a thousand that really dug it, like my 11 year old nephew, Alec."
Darick has no plans to create any more Space Beaver comics but he says he'll never say never. "It would have to be a time in my life where I have more money than time, and that certainly isn't now."
The Story: Space Beaver was the tale of a planet named "Anuthererth" that is ruled by anthropomorphic animals that are oppressed by a scientist turned drug czar hog, named "Lord Pork." Space Beaver and his buddies, Tog (a turtle and mentor figure) and Rodent (a punk rock rat), single handedly wage a private rebellion funded by Beave's dad, who owns the biggest machine manufacturing business on Anuthererth, Badger Motors. Space Beaver and his buddies raid Lord Pork's mining operations where they steal "Optimum", the key element in his drug manufacturing. In the midst of their ongoing battle, Beave has lost his rabbit girlfriend Jackie to Lord Pork's clutches, and Pork has brainwashed poor Jackie into a state of complete submission and obedience. What's a Space Beaver to do?
Lord Pork hires an assassin named Stinger, who's a Porcupine that talks and acts a lot like Wolverine* from the X-Men, to eliminate the ongoing nuisance of Space Beaver. Stinger and Beave cross each other's paths and fight a lot. Stinger eventually became more popular amongst the readers than Beave. (For a short time Stinger was going to get his own title "Crossbow Chronicles"!) How does it all resolve? Find out for yourself!
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