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Alvin Juano, a talented comic artist from Jakarta, Indonesia, is the creator behind "The Square Comics," a popular series known for its dark humor and unexpected twists. Alvin has over 611k followers on Instagram where his easy-to-digest, bite-sized comics deliver a punch of comedy in just a few frames. His characters, often square-shaped people or talking animals, share a pessimistic but relatable view of life that makes readers laugh and think.

Despite his simple drawings, Alvin's comics touch on deep topics like trauma and societal expectations. His humor, though dark, connects with many people and makes tough subjects easier to understand. "The Square Comics" is perfect for anyone who enjoys finding humor in life's unexpected moments.

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Bored Panda reached out to Alvin again to learn more about his creative process and himself. Beyond his daily life and personal experiences, we asked the artist where else he finds inspiration for his comic narratives. Alvin replied that for inspiration, he likes taking walks and people-watching in cafes—imagining their backstories and interactions. "There are some ideas that will appear randomly. Having a notebook or a phone to write them down helps!"

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    #2

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Mimi La Souris
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    one of my childhood question. who made the first "star" like that

    Kitty 🥀
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Someone with astigmatism, I assume. LOL

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    J
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I was disappointed as a kid when I found out the sun was a star but not star shaped.

    Monster738
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    what the heck is a star fruit

    Doofnuts
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah, but without the twinkle.

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    #3

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Kristal
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Haha omg this is hilarious! The last theory I heard was about how the moon is made from earth because a crazy fast object flew into the earth and tons of debris went in all directions and created the earth's spin with the moon being a big piece of earth debris

    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The Moon started as a zit when Earth was in its celestial teens.

    Shueman81
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Wait..... so its not cheese?

    WindySwede
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Wallace told us it was! Even live footage from cheese moon! 🙀

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    Many artists encounter challenges throughout their careers, so we asked Alvin if he experienced something similar. He shared that he often has writer's block, which he finds usually happens when he can't realize an idea or when he's burnt out. "I'm still struggling with it, but my usual approach is to take a break and continue sketching afterward."

    #4

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Danish Susanne
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I don't think that is the reason, but maybe it is.

    #5

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Rinso The Red
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    And he won. Chickens everywhere, not a single T-Rex

    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Existing makes you a winner now? So that's why nobody tries their best anymore.

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    Karina
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Looking for some "aha" here: who came first, the chicken or the egg..

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I mean, it's an answered question, but it depends on if you believe in evolution or creationism.

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    Are you curious how the creative process of "Square Comics" looks? Alvin revealed to us that usually, he'd have a glass of whiskey, a stack of papers, and a pencil at hand. "I would spend an hour or two sketching, churning out a bunch of quick sketches, and then deciding which ones I thought would work."

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    #6

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I think she's ranking him a bit below friend with this one

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    Westy
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If you can't say something kind, dont say anything at all. While not always appropriate, seems applicable here.

    MalibuClassicMan
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why don't you just call me a loser then, would have been easier

    Aliyan Jawaid
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's because they don't just want to be a d**k, they also add extra BS to make themselves look like some sort of victim

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    #7

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

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    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    For the sun, it's super easy, barely an inconvenience.

    Jose Vazquez
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Oooooooh using witty catch phrases as a reference is tight!!!!

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    Abel
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yes Sun, do something actually useful for me!

    Looking ahead, we asked Alvin what his aspirations for his comic series are. "I hope the series can continue to evolve and people will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed making it."

    #8

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Given modern taxonomy rules, turtle was right the first time (toads are types of frogs, same way that birds are dinosaurs). Tortoises are a type of turtle, but I assume that this turtle is not a tortoise.

    TheElderNom
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    He looks more like a tortoise than a turtle though.

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    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Deeper than it seems.

    Felix Quinones
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I was searching for a word in Spanish for tortoise and found it was the same for turtle, Tortuga.

    Doofnuts
    Community Member
    1 year ago

    This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

    Damn Liam, way to take the gas out of a post supposed to be amusing.

    #9

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Would* (I'm going to die alone)

    Sasha C
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    My brain just changed it to "would" and I read it that way, didn't realize it said "will" untill I read your comment

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    Abel
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Watch what you desire...

    John L
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Be happy, you got your wish! Oh, right....

    Danish Susanne
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I read somewhere that you should be careful what you wish for.

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    #11

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Hence the term "lucky dog".

    #12

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    ... and here are 200 pix of fancy food I've eaten.

    Abel
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "And now look the 500 photos of my last trip to Vietnam" OVERKILL.

    David Henry
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    ....does this mean we just witnessed a hamster murder?

    #13

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Mimi La Souris
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    well, technically, it's not the first to arrive who wins

    Anička
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Actually true: They're discovering that the egg is making some sort of selection about which sperm it will accept, as well... Edit: i didn't remember the fact further down (sperm collective effort) but perhaps it's not the first to break through then

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    Melody Barrens
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sperm come with a little acidic packet on their front side that they use to dissolve the egg's thick outer layer before they can enter. This kills them in the process. It takes about 300 sperm to break though, and the next one takes all the glory.

    John L
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I've heard this as an insult to a person's child.....

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    #14

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This little boy is projecting his trauma and covering it up as empathy.

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Life is suffering, if the Buddha is to be believed.

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    #15

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Karina
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Its also called "childless by choise".

    #16

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Doofnuts
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yeah Vegans, my food (Deer) poops on your food.

    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    A well deserved fate.

    #17

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The downside was not being able to tell their kids about it.

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    #18

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Rinso The Red
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sometimes, the light at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming train.

    el pro man galileo
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    as said in "No Leaf Clover" by Metallica: "Then it comes to be that the soothing light at the end of your tunnel / Was just a freight train coming your way"

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    #19

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Kristal
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Lol I like how the baby looks like an egg

    Ziggle
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Weebles wobble but they won't fall down.

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    John Smith (he/him/xy/️)
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's usually how society molds us. Dating life is s**t at any age, some are fed up with the nonsensical games.

    #20

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Dear writer, if this is your family, you should not see them anymore.

    Ziggle
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is my parents; I don't see them anymore.

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    #21

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    thesquarecomics Report

    Lewis KR
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I thought it was the light at the end of the tunnel, but it was just some arsehole with a torch bringing me more work

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    #22

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Ziggle
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    My dog lets me know when it's break time and time to clock out for the day. I'd otherwise be a workaholic as I hyper focus on a task until it's completed.

    #23

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    #25

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Moral of the story: you will achieve great things through spite.

    Harry Rey
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Also a way to turn something negative into something positive I suppose. Except if the mountain they climb is a mountain of d***s...

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    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Just turn around and look the other way

    Jelly.Bean
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    it is important to accept ypur progress. Green has a much longer fall where as blue has so much more potential

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    #26

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Karina
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is my mood today, and it helps to see it 😂

    Ryan Mercer
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Okay, but to be fair, it's clearly depicting a mechanical failure. That's not the pilot's job. Just say'n.

    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Time is a spiritual attribute. Like love or truth. It's all movement in space.

    #27

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Preity
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If I can go back in time, I will find this fish and trap it in an aquarium like submarine and sink it with the weights.

    Ann Murray
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    But then you wouldn't exist, so couldn't go back in time to trap the fish...

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    Ryan Mercer
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There's an animated story about a gold fish that wants to be human. It's surrealism, obviously.

    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Question? Why did the human in this cartoon stop evolving? Seems kinda stupid.

    #28

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Hey, you know what they say: the friend zone is the second best zone

    #29

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Karina
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Going from fresh food to ashy, litteraly ashy kebbels.. i think we can all understand ❤️ my dog had cheese yesterday and eggs today

    NancyandCharlie Miller
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The Cheese 🧀 Tax! (If you don't know this song, Google/YouTube it!)

    John L
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    TOO TRUE, and I mean for people....

    Liam Hay
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's called having standards, and not being desperate

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    #30

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    thesquarecomics Report

    #31

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    thesquarecomics Report

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    #34

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Karina
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Couples sometimes forget that single people manage every ducking little thing in life, by them self and often alone. That is a very different and overlooked challange

    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Don't compare yourself to others.

    Lotekguy
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    But it's OK to compare others to other others.

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    Lewis KR
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Comparison is the thief of joy

    #35

    Funny-The-Square-Comics-Alvin-Juano

    thesquarecomics Report

    Rienk Kroese
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Chicken and beacon on the same plate? Imma continue the fight!!

    Kitty 🥀
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Learnt is a proper spelling of the past tense of the word learn. It’s actually British English, and they, you know, sort of invented the language.

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