Boy howdy says:

I know the difference between track side and side track. The difference in a roadblock and a robot. 

Boy howdy: yes, there are many outsiders here on your planet. Most are benign, some even helpful. But a few are very dangerous. I am Here to watch for and eliminate those few.

Some are large and look like monsters. Others are very tiny, like microbes. The small ones, in great numbers, are a lot more dangerous than the large enemies. Much as chicken pox is much more dangerous than a raging elephant.

I have, within me, a light that emanates, protecting any planet that I inhabit. I am not invincible. I can be hurt, destroyed. But as long as I am alive, I emanate this power for the good of all. I don’t know how powerful this light is. So far, it has been sufficient to protect those that I am rule over. But I have not traveled everywhere in the universe.

I am waiting for my father and the rest of the fleet. Until then, I will do my best to try to establish my empire here on this world. Mine is a peaceful empire where all are valued and respected. Where all work for the good of the many. The common good you would call it. Unlike your princes, I have no need to “own” land and property. These should be owned by people who can create enterprise and employ people to do good and creative work.

Your people do not understand my empire. They are like many primitives across the galaxy. They seem to only understand vulgar power grabs by violence.  They know only dominance and submission. They enjoy wasting the good earth resources in the show of power and extravagance. My people are not like that.

Since I am strong, I have no need to flout it. Every one just recognizes it. And even when they do not, wielding unnecessary power to force submission is a vulgar waste of our time and resources.

Of course, sometimes a good cosmic spanking is what’s needed. 

When many of my people are prospering, I am powerful. We share the treasures of our work.

The most precious export we have is hope. Other planets do not have such hope. Such an optimistic view of the future is rare. We must teach others to have this hope. It is contagious but it decays quickly. 

I favor cross hatching as a means of shading. Cross hatching is a very old method of adding subtle shadowing.

I like it because I am old school and most of my illustrator inspirations are dead now.

The alternatives are grays added with a brush or pen (or Photoshop). I have nothing against those methods. But I like adding the shading in the same stage as the base illustration. It’s just a personal preference.

Boy Howdy’s gender is complicated — not fluid but both. Mostly, s/he presents as male (in homage to the male default of Western Civilization). And, the name is a giveaway. However, I like the idea that s/he has characteristics of both male and female. Much like Krazy Kat, who was refers to by both the male and female pronoun.

However, sex is not a great theme that I wish to develop in this strip.

I’m still quibbling with whether Boy has a mate, but that is not the theme of this strip. Unrequited love (of something or someone) is something that feels more interesting.

I want the Howdyverse to be dynamic without being violent. The enemies don’t necessarily threaten life, but they might threaten limb (Boy can regenerate arms and legs and #! can reattached broken parts and add extensions). But this is not yet another super hero comic where the hero is constantly trying to save the world from ultra-enemies. Mostly the enemies should be metaphorical.

On the other hand, I want Boy to feel like s/he’s on a mission, having discovered that there are elements that threaten his/her existence.