Comic Book / Myth Adventures

Myth Adventures is an eight-part graphic novel by Phil Foglio, adapted from the first of the Myth Adventures novels by Robert Asprin. It was originally published in eight issues by WaRP Graphics (publishers of ElfQuest) in the mid-80s, and subsequently as a collected edition book. Starting in 2010, it was serialised as a webcomic on Foglio's website, but was removed later.

The plot involves Skeeve, a hapless apprentice magician, and Aahz, a demon (which is short for "dimension traveler," no moral alignment implied) as they attempt to track down the person who killed Skeeve's teacher.

Phil Foglio's adaptation of Myth Adventures provides examples of:

• Analogy Backfire: Inverted — Aahz tells Skeeve, "We'll be famous for this! Like Napoleon at Waterloo - Custer at the Little Big Horn - the Light Brigade at Balaclava..." The inversion is that Aahz presumably knows that those battles didn't end well for the named person, and thus is fully aware of what he's saying, but Skeeve doesn't know, and is genuinely encouraged by the analogy.
• Adaptational Explanation: The comic actually explains how Garkin lost his powers in the first place and why his former friends actually stopped hunting Isstvan.
  • It's further covered why such a group of obviously competent people stopped hunting Isstvan too.
• Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: In this version, Garkin and Tanda were a couple before he lost his powers and split from the group.
• The Cameo:
  • One of the Law Machines from Foglio's Buck Godot: Zap Gun for Hire can be seen featured during a major plot point.
    Aahz: That was our introduction to...the Law Machine. We were all dimensional travelers...I haven't seen a Law Machine before or since.
  • Cutter from ElfQuest appears briefly in Possiltum, ducking to avoid being trampled when Aahz turns and bellows at the folks following him and Skeeve. Later at the Bazaar on Deva; Cutter, Skywise, and Strongbow also get trampled by a fleeing Skeeve in the Bazaar, who yells "Out of my way, kids!" as he runs them down. This results in a woozy hurricane of elf-references as the trio debate carving holes in Skeeve's anatomy, culminating in "Aye, this is our Elf-Rest!"
  • Phil & Dixie and the pink Growf dragon(s) from Foglio's What's New? with Phil and Dixie make an appearance during the Bazaar sequence.
• Chain of Deals: This is how the Deveels make their fortunes. An example is given of a chain of deals that begins with a coat hanger and concludes with a giant ruby.
• Complete Immortality: The evil sorcerer Isstvan has been cursed with immortality. You can blow him up and all the bits will just squelch together again (fortunately along with his clothes).
• Death Seeker: Isstvan is cursed with immortality. Virtually everything he does is leading up to finding a way to cancel that spell.
• Easter Egg: people and objects show up that have even less bearing on the plot then cameos.
  • Darth Vader is in the crowd that follows the disguised Aahz and Skeeve. Also Bruce Springsteen.
  • Godzilla is for sale at the dragon emporium.
• Explosive Breeder: There is a Running Gag in one chapter involving small dragons that reproduce on contact with water (which originally appeared in What's New? with Phil and Dixie). One of them happens to get into a market stall demonstrating umbrellas, and after that they keep showing up everywhere, until at the end of the scene the original owners are forced to round them all up.
• Extreme Omnivore: Aahz, in a visual Running Gag, is occasionally seen snacking on various objects not usually considered food. However, considering the content of Pervian food, this may be entirely justified — or just Foglio's sly way of pointing out Aahz's scenery-chewing ways in the novels.
• From a Single Cell: Isstvan gets blown up by a spell, and then rather squishily reconstitutes.
• Gagging on Your Words: Aahz has a problem with the word "give".
• Heart Symbol: Parodied with signs saying "I ♥ NY"; "I ♣ Seals"; "I ♠ Cats" and "I ♦ ..." and the end of that sign is covered. Years later, Foglio was asked how the last sign ended, and replied "It was cleverly blocked for a reason."
• Immortality Hurts: The villain Isstvan has suffered through this for (presumably) centuries. The whole plot is set in motion because he's trying to get himself killed. In a bit of a subversion, it's hinted he was crazy even before all this happened to him.
• Lame Rhyme Dodge: At the end, when Aahz is explaining why he chose to stick around and continue Skeeve's education:
  Aahz (very quietly): ...besides... I like you.
  Skeeve: What was that?
  Aahz: I said "Have a brew!" I will allow you one night of celebration, and then, bright and early, tomorrow morning, we start teaching you real magik!
• Magick: Following the lead of the novels, "magik" is spelled with a k.
• More Teeth than the Osmond Family: Aahz, natch. Various dragons and other beasties that show up.
• Noodle Incident: We never hear what Isstvan did that led to him being involuntarily "blessed" with immortality.
• Shout-Out:
  • Garkin's assorted belongings include, among other things, a The King in Yellow paint-by-numbers book.
  • The Bazaar sequence includes shops named "Robert Asprin's Pharmaceuticals" and "Richard Pini Sexual Novelties And Prostheses", amongst others. (Richard Pini was the RP in "WaRP Graphics". Robert Asprin presumably needs no introduction.)
  • It seems like Lessa has cashed in and lent her name to an entire line of dragons.
  • Godzilla can be seen amongst the dragons for sale at the same Bazaar.
  • When Skeeve temporarily thinks Aahz is dead, he resolves to fight evil using a rat as an omen and "strike terror into the hearts of criminals...(a cowardly, superstitious lot)".
• Those Two Guys: Walking in from Rocky and Bullwinkle, though what they're wearing is anyone's guess.

  Chauncey: Now, there's something you don't see every day, Edgar.

  Edgar: What's that, Chauncey?

  Chauncey: A restaurant you gotta run to catch up with.

  Edgar: I dunno, I hear fast food restaurants are becoming mighty popular.

• Who Wants to Live Forever?: Suprisingly Isstvan.

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