Bendy Comics

See Bendy (disambiguation) for other related uses.

Few Bendy comics from Crack-Up Comic Collection book's release announcement image.

The Bendy comics are a series of American comics of varying mediums based on Joey Drew Studios' popular Bendy cartoons, created and released between 1931 and 1946. The identity of the original artists of the comic strips currently remains unknown, other than that they may be Canadian, as one of the comics not only takes place in Canada, but also contains numerous references to popular Canadian culture.

History

Bendy was first adapted into a comic strip in late 1931, under the premise that Bendy and Boris the Wolf are down-on-their-luck vaudeville performers who spoon for food and warmth, even going as far as to con passersby out of their hard-earned money (their most frequent target being Boswell Lotsabucks), and stealing pies from Ruby Goldberg's house, often resulting in hilariously punitive consequences. Two subplots in the comic strips include Alice Angel being portrayed as a singer who has made a name for herself as an entertainer in her own right, and Boris indoctrinating a trio of mischievous sheep in the mischievous ways of Bendy's pranks.

In 1935, due to the repercussions of the Great Depression, much of the United States had fallen into an immense state of anguish, to the point where they did not want to be reminded of their destitution, ultimately resulting in the Bendy comic strip being canceled.

The following year, the Bendy comics were resurrected in the format of more traditional "Dime Store" type comics. Unlike the comic strips, these comics had varying plots and situations, as opposed to a single plot as depicted in the aforementioned comic strips. Bendy was depicted as a prankster with an occasional charitable side (mostly catering to those who have treated him nicely in the past). Boris the Wolf is depicted as a close friend to Bendy, serving as the "patsy" of Bendy’s antics, and as such, often ends up with the short end of the stick. Alice Angel holds a reasonable deal of respect for both Bendy and Boris but serves as the foil to Bendy's pranks, and therefore tries to keep Bendy in line, but the latter hardly ever listens to her.

In 1940, the Great Depression has subsided, only for the United States to be drawn into the fray of World War II, in the wake of the Battle of Pearl Harbor. Many of the writers of the Bendy comics were unable to continue writing, due to the mass drafting to aid in the war effort. As a result, the printing presses were scrapped, save for one, with their remains being repurposed to aid in the war effort.

One year later, Joey Drew used the aforementioned printing press to publish comics to promote the Bendy cartoons. In 1946, the Bendy comics were canceled entirely. As a result of a burst pipe, untold amounts of ink ruined some of the Bendy comics.

In 1972, Nathan Arch, along with several employees of Archgate Films (many of whom, including Arch himself are avid Bendy fans), led an effort in salvaging any Bendy comics that they could. They managed to find several comics of all three previously described mediums. In an attempt to educate future generations about Bendy, he published a collection of these comics and even included a brief history of these comics, as well as his plans to revive the Bendy franchise after the closure of Joey Drew Studios, after allegedly purchasing the Bendy franchising rights from Joey’s estate.

List of Comics

Syndicated Comic Strips

A list of comic strips released from 1931 to 1935. The comic strips' color tone is usually yellow/brown-based sepia, and all characters mostly do not speak other than emitting sounds except on few occasions. Each strips contain 4-8 panels. As of 1972, only 36 comics are known to exist.

Title	Publishing Date	Notes
Barnyard Opry	November 3, 1931	Earliest known comic strip; Bendy and Boris' earliest known comic appearance.
Sole for Supper	December 4, 1931	None
Pie and Pop	December 18, 1931	Ruby Goldberg's earliest known appearance.
Up in Flames	January 13, 1932	Boswell Lotsabucks' earliest known appearance.
What Crumbs Around, Goes Around	March 2, 1932	None
The Artist	March 17, 1932	None
Cats and Dogs	May 4, 1932	None
Two for One	September 22, 1932	None
Rain, Rain, Go Away	October 2, 1932	None
Bright Idea	October 3, 1932	None
Counting Sheep	November 10, 1932	The Woolly Triplets' earliest known appearance.
Hands Off	November 16, 1932	None
F for Effort	January 3, 1933	None
How Not To	January 10, 1933	None
On Cloud 9	January 10, 1933	Alice Angel's earliest known comic appearance.
Rocks Cream	February 10, 1933	None
Mice Try	February 14, 1933	None
Pig Sty	April 5, 1933	None
Batter's Eye	April 12, 1933	None
Opening Act	May 6, 1933	None
Stink or Swim	June 7, 1933	None
Bon Appe-Sneak	June 10, 1933	None
Ode to Reuben	July 10, 1933	None
True Love	July 23, 1933	None
Mutt Cuts	October 5, 1933	None
Sticky Situation	October 8, 1933	None
Encore	November 6, 1933	None
Fleas and Z's	February 18, 1934	None
Nothing is Free	May 18, 1934	None
Three for One	June 16, 1934	None
The Money will Roll Right in	August 10, 1934	None
Poor Yorick	November 20, 1934	None
Graduation Day	December 5, 1934	Final known comic appearance of the Woolly Triplets.
Pie and the Sky	March 10, 1935	Final known comic appearance of Ruby Goldberg.
Automo-Steal	May 3, 1935	None
Opposites Attract	May 11, 1935	Final known comic strip.

Dime-Store Comics

A list of comic strips released from 1936 to 1940. The color is changed into mostly black and white, and the characters (even the main cast) speak in complete sentences. Each comics are 14-pages long. As of 1972, only 5 are known to exist.

Title	Date	Notes
To the Moon	1936	Charley's earliest known comic appearance.
Papa Pluto's Pitchfork	1937 (estimated)	Papa Pluto's earliest known appearance.
Yukon Bendy	1938 (estimated)	None
Souper Boris	1939 (estimated)	None
Alice the Aviator	1940	Barley's earliest known comic appearance.

Promotional Comics

A list of comic strips released from 1941 to 1946. The comic strips are adaptations of the pre-existing Joey Drew Studios cartoons. Each comics are 4-pages long. As of 1972, only 6 are known to exist.

Title	Date	Notes
Construction Corruption	1941 (estimated)	Based on the Construction Corruption cartoon. Edgar's earliest known comic appearance.
Showbiz Bendy	1942 (estimated)	Based on the Showbiz Bendy cartoon.
Train Trouble	1943 (estimated)	Based on the Train Trouble cartoon as well as Boswell Lotsabucks' final known appearance.
The Devil's Treasure	1944 (estimated)	Based on The Devil's Treasure cartoon, and the final known comic appearance of Papa Pluto.
All Washed Up	1945 (estimated)	Based on the All Washed Up cartoon.
Giddyup, Bendy!	1946	Possibly based on the idea by Daniel Lewek and Dot, as well as the final known comic.

Trivia

• Most of every comic strips (if not all) are available to view in the compilation book Crack-Up Comics Collection.
• The "Syndicated"-era comic strips are illustrated by Mady Giuliani, while the "Dime-Store" and "Promotional" comics are done by Ciro Cangialosi.
• The unseen comics that has yet to be revealed include: The Adventures of Souper Alice, Champion of Chowder, the unknown follow up to Alice the Aviator and the supposedly controversial Logger Bendy the Axe Juggler.