140Kviews
If You Like Dark Humor, You Might Like These 30 New Comics By Ryan Mason
Interview With Artist
Are you ready for a hearty dose of laughter, dear pandas? This time, we’d like to present a hilarious series by Ryan Mason, titled 'At Random Comics'. As you might remember, a couple of years ago, the artist shared his strips here on Bored Panda. Now, we’re excited to feature some of his new single-panel cartoons, showcasing characters who encounter absurd situations, often filled with dark humor.
The artist told us how he first became interested in comic art: “My 5th grade teacher had a shelf full of books that you could borrow after completing your classwork, where I was first introduced and inspired by The Far Side. I was familiar with comics my dad and brother had (Calvin & Hobbs, Garfield) and appreciated them, but I resonated with the single-panel format and Gary Larson’s humor. I eventually looked up cartoonists who inspired him and found a great appreciation for Charles Addams.”
Scroll down to view Ryan's most recent works, and learn even more about him in the later part of our interview.
More info: Instagram | patreon.com | Facebook | atrandomcomics.com
This post may include affiliate links.
Mason shared with us more about his initial inspiration to pursue comic art professionally: “In high school a friend who worked for the paper pressed me for content where I first began drawing public-facing comics. It was nerve-wracking at first but I liked the feedback and became hooked on trying to make people laugh. I then worked for several college papers and have been drawing a new webcomic weekly since 2007.”
Asked how he comes up with ideas for new comic strips, the creator of ‘At Random Comics’ answered: “Most ideas occur while listening to music and simultaneously focusing and letting my mind wander. Some comics require a lot of reshaping while others spring up intact. During the day I write down spontaneous ideas for future drawing sessions and sometimes if enough time passes, the prompts can become undecipherable mysteries. Lately I’ve been using voice-to-text memos, while making sure I’m not within earshot of others who will think I’m a weirdo.”
Ryan’s told us more about the strips he creates: “I like the limitations of using a single panel to tell a joke and the flexibility of exploring any topic. Some of my favorite comics to draw are the ones that may take a second or two for the joke to land. I also like ones that are purely visual.”
Then, we wanted to find out how the artist would describe ‘At Random Comics’, and he said: “Awhile back a reader described my work as ‘Happy sad’ and it stuck with me. My work often leans towards schadenfreude humor, but I don’t believe I’m overly pessimistic. I like to use humor to confront and take the steam out of difficult topics like death and disappointment.”
You know the worst thing about betrayal? It never comes from an enemy.
Lastly, Ryan Mason shared with us: “My hope for At Random is to continue steadily growing an audience and making people laugh. I am a freelance illustrator/designer and the more Patreon support I receive, the more time I can dedicate to drawing comics and increase their frequency. I recently tried unsuccessfully to appear in The New Yorker, but made lemonade by compiling a new ebook, ‘At Random Comics’: The New Yorker Rejects for Patreon supporters.”
We have survived... unbeknownst to you all, hiding in plain sight. We were recently uncovered though 🫤🐔🦖
as long as they stay contained i dont mind, as long as he doesn mind my newly started flame-thrower collection
