User:Chillin'

Chillin'
Chillin', a webcomic running from 2004 to 2005, was created by Roy Blair and Ralphy Lemons, two teenagers residing in Arizona throughout the duration of its lifespan. Containing several inside jokes and alluding to a myriad of movies and video games akin to nerd and pop culture alike, the comic became a cult favorite of the members of the Sonic Fan Game Headquarters (SFGHQ) and gained notoriety for its random but complex humor.

NOTE: This document is a work in progress, updated exclusively at the leisure of the author.

From the Top...
In the Beginning

Chillin' began as a side-hobby of sorts by Lemons, who had simply sought to create a fictional environment featuring him and best friend, Blair, in hysterical but facetious situations which, just as in clichè cartoon shows, often required some form of a schmaltzy animus in order to rectify the characters' mistakes.

A torrent of ideas and choices cycled erratically through Lemons's mind on the night he conceived the basis for Chillin'. His ideas kept him working through the tedious hours of the night, he debating with himself on several details, minor and major: Should the cartoon entities of Blair and himself be left human? Should they be morphed to satisfy a more animated and fantasty based environment? Should the duo be the comic's only residing characters?

Though the comic was intended to simply depict the sense of humor which Blair and Lemons relished so much, Lemons recognized the need for an additional character in order to counterbalance the personalities and conflicting views of Hypa and Ducky, Blair's and Lemons's respective, cartoon alter egos. Thus entered DarthFettDude607 (DFD for short), who not only served Lemons's original purpose, but soon evolved into the comic's trademark and leading role. The three characters made their debut in Chillin's pilot comic, which quickly but effectively elaborated on the origin of DFD's friendship with Hypa and Ducky as well DFD's personality. The characters of Blair and Lemons, though having appeared in the comic, did not have their personalities exhibited fluently, primarily due to the fact that the comic had been viewable only by the narrow audience of SFGHQ. SFGHQ, which had already been well aqcuainted with the personalities of the two, did not require a formal introduction to Hypa or Ducky.

Blair and Lemons initially endured some confusion among fans, however, as there was no immediate, distinguishable evidence to dissertate the roles of the authors. Lemons, who had made the debut post of Chillin' on the SFGHQ forums, was assumed to be the sole producer of the comic. Fortunately, the confusion soon adulterated and it was clear that Blair was responsible for writing duties and Lemons for artistic ones. Blair, a persuasive and creative writer, spoke eloquently and with a verbose vocabulary and sharp wit, all of which displayed the same style as his comic scripts. Lemons, on the other hand, maintained a cool and casual persona, and also made a number of SFGHQ posts brandishing his artwork. While there was never any kind of tradeoff between artistic roles (as Blair was an incapable artist), Lemons and Blair lavishly shared the writing, only allowing jokes to make it into the panels of a comic if there was a mutual agreement between the two on the level of its hilarity. Even so, given the vast difference in diction between the two, one can still differ Blair's scripts from Lemons's scripts through lackadaisical analyzation.

In the Prime

Chillin' gained popularity at incredulous speeds, a feat all in itself given its slow progression and vanilla joke style. The series developed into a cult classic within the confines of the SFGHQ community, and in many instances was utilized as a random reference or citation by the denizens of the forums in order to throw off a quick joke or two in a post. Blair and Lemons recognized that Chillin's "off-the-charts" expansion in its popularity meant that a need for growth would inevitably ensue. As such, the duo quickly went abroad searching for reliable internet hosts willing to allot Chillin' webspace.

Thus entered one Rocky J. Raccoon, the alias of the ex-president of the "SonicVerse Team", a kind and caring "prophet-like figure" (according to Blair and Lemons) who unselfishly offered the boys web hosting, exonerated of any kind of monetary charge. After some sycophantic formalities on Lemons's part, Blair went to work on creating a layout for the would be website. Blair, stunted by his complete ineptitude in the field of visual art, was forced to scrap the project. After informing Lemons, the two embarked on yet another quest of business, this time one for a web developer. Thus entered Rocky a second time, once again presenting himself selflessly and creating a substantial and effective website layout for the comic. After graciously expressing their thanks, Blair and Lemons fell victim to a sudden affluence of motivation, venting their proverbial disease through abundant comic updates.

Chillin' continued on its steady course of acclaim, Blair taking each compliment on his writing with modesty and Lemons billowing with pride from the comics evolving success. It was during Chillin's prime that the comic began to slip into the familiar role it is most identifiable with today: the comic which weaved cliche and simplistic humor into intricate and detailed jokes; the comic that nudged pop culture satirically and venerated nerd culture monomaniacally; the comic which had subtlely stemmed armies of zealots and acolytes. It was, for SFGHQ, the comic of the era.

Controversy

Despite the impregnable dynamics of the teamwork of Blair and Lemons, Chillin' was not, unfortunately, elusive to the emotional intricacies of all of its fans. In January of 2005, Blair and Lemons unleashed comic #19, the comic which would exponentiate and yet collapse Chillin's popularity.

After being throttled into exile due to behavioral transgressions for nearly a year prior, SFGHQ member Wetflame made his return with a new and staggering development in his life: he was to have his anatomy altered to match the physiology of a female through a transexual operation. The immaturity and diminutive tolerance for such inconceivable occurrences which SFGHQ had hidden away for so long suddenly exploded in a boisterous semi-revolution. Gossip and discrimination rode abroad, criticisms and opinions emerging from left and right in a rapid fire procession.

Though Blair and Lemons remained neutral in the torrid and typically one-sided debates of Wetflame's big news, Lemons saw a chance to incite another exhibition of Chillin's mounting notoriety. Being rather precarious of any potential consequences, Lemons wrote and drew an independent Chillin' comic of his own design. After showing it to cohort Blair (who's initial reaction was laughter), he decided to post the comic on SFGHQ.

Blair, almost immediately following the submission of the new comic, began to feel sick. His sudden moral illness seemed concerned with the complexities that could unwravel as a result of the comics controversial atmosphere. Upset as he was, Blair remained laconic throughout the discourse of the readers' reactions. The only indication of his anxieties and insecurities about the comic were revealed through his refusal to speak of it; the more profound the refusal, the higher the degree of turmoil Blair seemed to be in. Lemons's emotions were originally dissimilar, but he soon became aware of the situations reality and the hefty ambivalence which complimented it.

The Legend of DFD
The Roots

DFD began as nothing more than a simple instrument for Lemons to create a balanced environment amongst the different characters in the comic. However, Blair and Lemons alike realized the boisterous potential which DFD's character boasted, and soon began to vent several jokes and ideas through him.

Lemons, being familiar (while not necessarily partial) to nerd culture, ornated DFD in attire which payed as a direct tribute to George Lucas's Star Wars series and submerged his personality in a proverbial pool of other nerd elements, namely those of Runescape, Dungeons and Dragons, and (in subtle cases) Star Trek. Blair too illustrated DFD's nerdliness and social ineptitude through his comic scripts. Many of Blair's jokes with DFD's character revolved almost exclusively around DFD being put into real-life situations, followed of course by the hilarious outcomes which the comic had gained so much ballyhoo for. Additionally, Blair also utilized DFD as a means to make satirical jabs at pop culture. DFD was used for jokes of a more simplistic persuasion as well, namely the classical and honorable fart joke plus a plethora of fat jokes.

The Speech

One of the most peculiar and eccentric aspects of DFD's complex (albeit nonsensical) personality is his use of two popular and simultaneously annoying forms of internet speech; netspeak and 1337 speak. In combining fragmented sentences and misspelled words with numbers and symbols amongst a gale of miscellaneous garble and acronyms, the language of DFD was created.

Blair and Lemons yet again recognized DFD's ample wherewithal in this department and adapted his speech to situational jokes and comedic timing within the comic. For instance, ensuing a fart from a fellow cast member, DFD would follow up with a quip such as "lol" after a brief interval of silence. Despite the simplicity of such ribs, the reaction from Chillin's audience proved to Blair and Lemons that it was indeed an effective strategy.

The Myth

There is an additional hempisphere backdropping DFD's person, one shrouded deeply in mystery and rumors. DFD's roots are believed to date back even further than his creation on the night Lemons conceived the foundations for Chillin'; this belief, however, was concocted moreso by Blair and Lemons than fans of the series.

DFD supposedly was inspired by an old real-life friend of the two authors, named Hubert (or Huey, as nicknamed by Blair). Though DFD and Hubert do indeed share the same real name, the last name of DFD's alleged real-life counterpart is unknown. In the comic, DFD's full name is Hubert Lemons; given this, one can assume that Lemons may have selected to give DFD his own last name as a connotation to himself being DFD's creator.

Huey also supposedly has an account on AIM baring the exact alias of his comic counterpart, DarthFettDude607. Blair and Lemons have assured fans that the man behind the screen name is indeed their real-life "friend", Huey, no matter how veritable his behavior may be to the comic. As quoted by Blair,

"That, despite popular opinion, really is our friend Huey; the leet and net speak is just for theatrics, I swear.  He even has a job at a hardware repair store." -Blair, in a random AIM conversation.

Regardless of whether these claims are genuine, DFD's roots have definetly become an enigma.