A webcomic
centering on Gav A. Van Darin, a megalomanical perpetual grad student in Nuclear Engineering, and his entourage. Running from 1997-2022, one of the founding comics of Keenspot (which it's long since left), and the source of that blue-haired Gav who keeps showing up in other strips (especially Schlock Mercenary)— the author, not the main character.
This webcomic series provides examples of:
- A.I. Is a Crapshoot: Teri.
- Animal Wrongs Group: Gav sics the giant, nuclear powered, robot ant on a group of protestors objecting to animal testing. In order to "introduce them to the benefits of modern medical science".
- Augmented Reality: The GavCam in Gav's glasses was like Google's Glass years before they started working on it, and Teri had the lenses replaced with LCD screens so that she could manipulate his perceptions. He's currently using them to implement an anti-virus program that works like an AR combat game and defeat Teri's various sub-programs infecting computers across the planet.
- Characterization Marches On: Danny's habit of never using contractions unless agitated is a relatively late addition to the character - not only does he freely use them in early strips, but there's one in his very first line.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Helen. Lampshaded when Danny goes over to the EECS department and finds her "trapped" there.
- Closer to Earth: Suzy, Helen, Shea.
- Cloudcuckoolander: King Luca, and Danny.
- Cecilia is a rather dangerous version.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: Carl Oz.
- Depraved Bisexual: Cecilia.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Cecilia manages to get 52% support (of course, not including any major character but her) for "Prop-NA," which uses arguments similar to those against gay marriage to keep atheists from marrying.
- Easy Evangelism: Cecilia has managed to whip California into a frenzy to ban atheists from marrying.
- Everything Is Online: Subverted when Gav orders Teri-n to hack the city's CCTV cameras. "What definition of 'closed circuit' are you using?"
- Funny Background Event: Often, especially in strips where the main joke is especially geeky.
- Fun T-Shirt: Cecilia to all appearances has an entire closet of tank tops with variations on "boys lie" for whatever situation she might come across, including "boys lob" and "boys bluff."
- Hypocritical Humor: To protest Prop-NA, Gav and Suzy enter into a sham marriage, while Gav has stronger love interests in a Wiccan high priestess, an evangelist, a goddess, and the bill's chief proponent.
- In Love with Love: Cecilia.
- Insistent Terminology: "That's King Luca!"
- In-Universe Factoid Failure: Invoked. A Running Gag in one costume party storyline is that no one can think of a female scientist "of yore" other than Marie Curie, even though not only is one of the girls invited an EECS major, but Teri actually shows up as the Difference Engine, and Danny even comments that "the Analytical Engine would have been more appropriate."
- The Madness Place: Danny sometimes goes into a fugue state where he does nothing but write equations across every available surface, his office is walled with whiteboard for that reason.
- Manic Pixie Dream Girl: Cecilia certainly tries to present herself this way, especially to potential love interests. It has... mixed success.
- Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: Nearly every significant character (especially Gav) is an atheist or agnostic, but Gav's near-death experiences both center on knowledge he didn't consciously have, and in the second case, something he couldn't possibly have known.
- Measuring the Marigolds: This kind of thinking leads Danny to eventually start a religion.
- Not So Above It All: When Suzy moves back to Michigan, it becomes clear just how far from "above it all" she really is.
- Out-of-Character Alert: They pick up on an impersonator of Danny in the asylum when he uses a contraction.
- Perky Goth: Rita, Chris, and Julia
- Put on a Bus: Shea.
- Room Full of Crazy: Danny fills an entire asylum with an equation based on a question the unbalanced doctor had asked.
- Shout-Out: Oh so many.
- The "Danny's Inferno" arc is one long shout out to The Divine Comedy, with the EECS department being built like Hell.
- The comedic roasting of one character is the witch scene from The Holy Grail almost word for word.
- She can't be bargained with, she can't be reasoned with, she doesn't feel pity! Or remorse! Or fear! And she absolutely will not stop ever, until we can't wed!
- Spider Tank: GRAnt.
- Spock Speak: Danny.
- Take Over the World: Gav, especially after Ma'at tells him it's his destiny. He finally seems to pull it off when it seems to be the only way to stop Cecilia.
- Viewers Are Geniuses
- Whole-Plot Reference: "Danny's Inferno," a visit to EECS built around parodies of memorable scenes from The Divine Comedy.
- Yandere: Cecilia. Her first major storyline ended with her kidnapping King Luca (it's suggested they prearranged it, but she's clearly having more fun with it than he signed on for), and just got crazier from there.
- You Just Told Me: "Peace be with you." "And also with you."
