As 2024 comes to an end, people tend to reflect on what they’ve done over the past year. In my case, it’s the same thing I’ve been doing for the last six years: Chuck’s Devils.

It feels weird now that it’s finally over… although in a way, it isn’t. The spin-off comic, Chuck’s Mini-Devils, is still in progress. For Easter 2025, both casts will meet again and wrap the two series up in a nice little bow.

Before that happens, I thought it’d be fun to go over three episode ideas that didn’t make the cut, and explain the reasons why.

Lost Episode 1: Totally Devils!

I thought it was pretty obvious that Chuck’s Devils was a loose parody of Charlie’s Angels. Then again, I’m in my mid-40s, so younger generations may not be familiar with the source material. This became clear when this comment was left on my series trailer, referencing a different TV series starring three female characters.

Would an episode where Candace, Yu-Ri, and Lily meet Sam, Clover, and Alex work? Maybe, but I didn’t know enough about Totally Spies! to write it. Basically, one of the Devils’ heists would have been disrupted by the Spies. Not wanting to fight a group of teenagers, the stalemate would have been resolved with everyone eating pizza or going shopping or whatever.

Lost Episode 2: Catnapping

In each of the first three parts of the story, the Devils kidnap someone: a young woman, a baby girl, and a crude dude. Part four focused mostly on the characters ending their life of crime and achieving a happy ending, so there wasn’t room for another captive. If there was, it would have been an old woman’s pet cat.

The kitty acted cute and cuddly around Candace and Lily, but was a real menace when only Yu-Ri was present. They wouldn’t believe her until they walked in on a battle that would rival Laurie Strode versus Michael Myers in Halloween H20. The Devils finally corral the cat and return it while covered in scratch marks.

Lost Episode 3: Beach Bums

I’ve groused about Chuck’s Devils not gaining many readers, which again is all my fault. If no one knows I exist, they certainly wouldn’t know my comic does either. The easiest way to increase viewership would have been to depict the cast naked. Those lewd artists make lots of money on Patreon, after all.

Chuck would have sent the Devils to the beach to take candid photos of a female celebrity. Unbeknownst to them, she’s on a nude beach. They’d undress in changing tents and use their hair and other items to hide the sensitive areas. When they finally reach the target, they realize she’s not the least bit shy, meaning any pictures would be worthless.

They try to change back into their bathing suits, but find that the shrewd starlet has snatched them. The Devils are forced to leave the tents, exposing their backsides and leaving them completely em-bare-assed. I never had the nerve to strip Candace, Yu-Ri, and Lily of their dignity. However, the idea was used when animals stole the Mini-Devils’ bikini tops.

So there you have it. Three episodes that were left on the cutting room floor, which was probably for the best. More new minisodes of Chuck’s Mini-Devils are coming in 2025. I hope you’ll like them. Happy New Year! :)

Chuck's Devils may have ended, but the Mini-Devils will stick around for a few more months. In their latest episode, they overindulge on their Thanksgiving dinner. New minisodes won't be released on a regular schedule, but will arrive about every two weeks or so until Easter 2025. I hope you're looking forward to them.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I want to thank everyone who has been reading my comics. It may be a small audience (the finale only has 17 views, and a couple of them are probably mine), but knowing at least a few of you got some enjoyment out of it makes all the time and effort worth it.

I have only myself to blame for the limited exposure of Chuck's Devils. I have virtually no social media presence, and I can't expect people to read the comic if they don't even know it exists. So I hopped aboard the Bluesky bandwagon to keep folks updated on what I'm working on. You can follow me there if you're interested.

I know I need to communicate with other artists, too. But complimenting their work which is so much better than mine has always been intimidating. This shyness dates back nearly thirty years, when I was the quietest student in my high school yearbook, as well as the shortest. Hmm, I wonder if those two “honors” are connected somehow...

I know what I should do today. I should tell myself that was a long time ago. Things change. I can be more outgoing. The best revenge would be to move on and build a better future for myself. Maybe that can be my New Year's resolution. Until then, thank you for checking out the comic. You may not realize it, but it means a lot to me.

After six years, 48 episodes, and 432 pages, Chuck's Devils is complete. The comic comes to an end with Episode 48: The Honeymooners.

The newlyweds travel to Yu-Ri's homeland, where they finally consummate their marriage. Back in L.A., Chuck has a change of heart, and Tyler has a question for Candace. At long last, with their troubles behind them, the Devils can live happily ever after.

I hope you've enjoyed following the story of Candace, Yu-Ri, and Lily. Their tiny twins, the Mini-Devils, will stick around for a few more months before wrapping up in April 2025. Stay tuned!

The penultimate chapter of Chuck's Devils, Episode 47: Walk Into the Light, is here! The Devils fend off the uninvited guests, but Candace loses her shades in the melee. Unwilling to admit defeat, Jae gains the upper hand and threatens Lily's life. Thankfully, the bride is saved in the nick of time by a surprise visitor.

Meanwhile, the Mini-Devils origin story is showing how they became best friends. It's quite different than their big sisters.

Chuck's Devils comes to an end on October 25th, six years after it started. I hope you'll like the finale! :)

When I started making Chuck’s Devils, I thought I could complete each episode in a month, and be done with the entire comic after four years. Well, it ended up taking an extra two. What happened?

There are simple reasons, such as writer’s block. Condensing a long story into tiny word balloons that still makes sense wasn’t always easy. Also, some episodes required more background scenery, extra characters, and complex poses that were tricky to figure out.

Then there are the mental blocks. I’ve always had trouble focusing on one task for an extended period of time. My website reflects this with many different things I’ve done over the years: smilies, domino toppling, graphic design, games, animation, comics, and more.

If I stuck with one of those and got really good at it, I’d probably have a thriving career right now. But I don’t, which haunts me while I’m toiling away at my real day job. I can’t afford the testing to find out if I’m technically experiencing depression, but it damn sure feels like it.

With no treatment, these funks can put me in a bad state for a while. The worst was the time I started packing up my stuff so my family could clean out my apartment quickly after I was gone. But after three days, and with too much junk left to box up, and got exhausted and gave up.

Strangely, I think the struggles the Devils were going through also had an effect on me. I knew things would eventually work out for Candace, Lily, and Yu-Ri, but I shared in their suffering a little bit.

With all of that working against me, it seemed like I’d never finish my comic. I felt like a marathon runner: sweaty, tired, and in pain after ten miles… then realizing I had another sixteen left to go.

But I came up with an idea. What if I made a one page comic instead of 432? A comic with simple artwork that I could finish in a day, not weeks. And the characters would be adorable and fun, without any drama…

And so, the Mini-Devils were born. The non-canon spin-off allowed me to put the characters in silly situations that I couldn’t do with their tall twin sisters, like finding a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow or playing football in their own unique fashion.

Another unexpected benefit was expanding on Candace’s relationship with Tyler. The main comic was structured around Yu-Ri and Lily’s evolving love story, and the other couple didn’t get as much attention. Even though they’re not the originals, I like to think they’d both behave in a similar way.

I didn’t plan on adding Rose because her personality was the exact opposite of what the Mini-Devils were all about. But reworking her as a harmless prankster who gets her comeuppance at the end added a mild antagonist that fits into the mini-verse pretty well.

Drawing these chibi cuties cuddling and kissing each other helped raise my spirits, and actually completing something, even if it was just a short story, motivated me to work on the larger tale. I don’t think I would have finished Chuck’s Devils without the Mini-Devils lightening my mood.

If you’re overwhelmed by a large project, a fun diversion may alleviate some pressure for you, too. Also, breaking it up into smaller segments could be beneficial as well. Taking my comic one episode, one page, or even one panel at a time helped me.

Going back to my marathon analogy, as long as you keep putting one foot in front of the other, you’ll reach the finish line. It may take a lot longer than the professionals, but you can do it.

And while I’m on the subject of the Mini-Devils, it occurred to me that I haven’t explained how they met. We know how the tall trio became best friends, but not their small siblings. To correct this, I came up with an origin story that will begin soon. I hope you’ll enjoy it. :)

In a complete coincidence, Episode 46 of both Chuck's Devils and Chuck's Mini-Devils debut on the same day! Of course, Mini-Devils comics are just one page, so it's not too impressive...

First up, Episode 46: Wedding Crashers! Jae interrupts the wedding, and he isn't alone. He has brought along all of the enemies the Devils have made seeking revenge. Fortunately, the Devils have plenty of allies on their side who come to their rescue and help them save the ceremony.

Then in Chuck's Mini-Devils: Candy Kisses, Candace is caught in the act and guilt is written all over Tyler's face. I could probably come up with flimsy excuses to show both couples kissing forever, but I've tried to be more creative lately. And yet, Kiss and Tell has been more popular than most minisodes lately. Perhaps I need to be lazier...

My last retrospective talked about the good (and bad) ideas I came up with while I was developing Chuck's Devils. Next, I'll talk about what helped me keep going when it felt like I'd never finish the comic. 46 down, two to go...

Chuck’s Devils… How did I come up with that title for my comic? All I remember is that one day I randomly realized that the opposite of Charlie’s Angels would be Chuck’s Devils.

To this day I’ve never watched an episode of the show or any of the movies. All I know is it stars three beautiful crime-fighting women directed by the unseen Charlie.

I took the title and main elements from the series and parodied them without straying too far from what made the original work. So far, so good. That was almost where the decent ideas ended.

In the comic, Yu-Ri served as the second-in-command behind Chuck, but can you believe Lily was originally in that role? That’s because she was the only one who would’ve spoken normally. Candace communicated solely in catchphrases (“Solid”, “Right on”, “Dy-no-mite!”), and Yu-Ri only recited southern slang (“Butter my biscuit”, “Madder than a wet hen”).

The concept of the Devils trying and failing to steal things remained constant, but each attempt would have ended with them somehow losing their clothes, perhaps even naked. I probably would have gotten more viewers if I went down that route, but several questions entered my mind that changed everything…

Why are these women stealing? What made them decide to become thieves? How was Chuck able to persuade them?

Hmm… they would probably have some kind of past trauma that would leave them susceptible to Chuck’s influence. As social misfits, they may not have friends or family who could guide them down the right path. They’d only have each other to lean on.

That's when I decided to treat Candace, Yu-Ri, and Lily more respectfully. If the Devils were going to grow and improve themselves, they all had to speak like normal people. Expanding their vocabularies also helped eliminate stereotypes and make them better three-dimensional characters.

Instead of a bunch of botched crimes that could be read in any order, a four part story was constructed spanning 48 sequential episodes. This had a bonus side effect of the comic more closely resembling the format of the TV series it's based on.

Some of my original dumb ideas still crept into the final comic. The Devils end up in their undies a few times, and Yu-Ri says “y'all” every now and then. But I’m glad I chose to make the characters more relatable. Even as their creator, it made me want to see them overcome their problems and reach a happy ending.

Episode 45: Dearly Beloved is here! Yu-Ri and Lily's wedding day has arrived, and their maid of honor Candace has pulled out all the stops to make it special. The former Devils welcome the friends they've made, but a few unexpected guests threaten to disrupt the ceremony.

The Chuck's Devils four-part finale has begun. Meanwhile, the Mini-Devils just concluded their own miniseries at the beach. Now they're engaging in a little role playing as they play Mazes & Monsters!

I hope you've been enjoying the behind-the-scenes posts about Chuck's Devils. I've shared the original model sheets, and explained why I made the comic in the first place. Next, I'll get into my original ideas for the series, and the moment that inspired me to make major changes.

In mid-2017, I applied to a local company that sells masonry products. They needed someone to help with video production for how-to guides and restoration projects. I didn’t get the job, but the owner had a bunch of other ideas.

One of them was a comic highlighting his interest in preserving old buildings. Perhaps the main character could be a gargoyle you typically see atop such structures. I thought it was an interesting idea and heard him out.

The one thing that gave me pause was that I would be uncredited. My potential employer wanted me to serve as an underground cartoonist, with readers unsure of the comic’s source. I told him it seemed a bit shady, and he said he’d think about it after I left.

I never heard back from him, but that turned out to be the best outcome. I worked as a graphic designer from 1999 to 2007, fulfilling the wishes of various clients instead of my own. If I wouldn’t be hired to draw a comic for someone else, then I’ll just make one for myself.

The freedom to write my own story and illustrate it with original characters without anyone ordering me to make changes has been liberating. Of course, no boss or patron also means no money, but that’s less valuable to me than the creative freedom I’ve enjoyed.

Inventing an imaginary world populated with unique people with issues they need to resolve has been an imaginative endeavor. At the very least, it’s been a welcome distraction from the drudgery and problems I muddle through in the real world.

I think Bob Ross can sum up my whole experience with something he used to say: “In painting, you have unlimited power. You have the ability to move mountains. You can bend rivers. But when I get home, the only thing I have power over is the garbage.”

Episode 44: Memory Lane is here! The Devils have been pushed too far and they demand Chuck to end their arrangement, but he is unwilling to let them go. After reminding Chuck of their past struggles and hopes for the future, he finally relents and dissolves Chuck's Devils.

With only four episodes left, I'll be posting behind-the-scenes details of how Chuck's Devils came into existence. I recently shared the original model sheets of the three main characters. Next, I'll tell the story of why I decided to make a comic in the first place.

I'll also be adding more Mini-Devils comics every Sunday. To celebrate the beginning of summer, Candace, Yu-Ri, and Lily head to the shore. I hope you'll enjoy the four part beach series.