New Comic 08 - Insurance Policies

Maus taxes the schools insurance policy.

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New Comic 07 - Disorientation

Orson loses his bearings. Bad move, Orson.

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Review - The Foot Fist Way

So, I picked up this movie because I couldn't stop laughing at the trailer. If you've ever taken any Tae Kwon Do, you'll certainly get a kick out of this, and if you've ever ragged on Tae Kwon Do practitioners, you'll get maybe twice the kick. That said, if you're just going for pure comedy and back-to-back gags, you'll probably find it pretty sparse, in terms of laughs.

In "The Foot Fist Way", Danny McBride (Pineapple Express, Eastbound and Down,) plays Fred Simmons, an overweight, egotistical Tae Kwon Do instructor at a strip mall in the middle of nowhere. As his marriage falls apart due to the efforts nymphomaniac wife, he undergoes a massive existential crisis, and the man he turns to to validate said existence, Chuck 'The Truck' Wallace (read: Chuck Norris,) turns out to be a huge prick, and helps only to ruin his life even further. Not that it was so great to begin with.

There's a bundle of laughs, mostly involving men bullying children, and occasionally there is a little unexpected introspection on the part of our megalomaniac antihero. All in all, a 5 out of 10, for a comedy.

But, here; let me offer an alternate interpretation, which will unabashedly contain spoilers.

This film is actually fantastic, though not as a comedy. What it COULD be, however, is a stark and brutal portrayal of the shattering and rediscovery of the meaning of martial arts in the life of someone who has carried his budo in entirely the wrong direction for too long. The leader of a clearly franchise-style dojang, Simmons (McBride,) has based his life around the idea that 'mastery' (The black belt around his waist,) is meant to impart invincibility, bad-assery, and a personality above reproach. He is generally abusive to his students and wife, and insecurely condescends to everyone, even when he brushes up against the truth of his own mediocrity (He nearly breaks his elbow trying to break concrete with an awkward downward elbow).

Not until his wife is blatantly unfaithful does he look into the mirror and maybe actually see anything approaching reality. Seeking some kind of redemption in a friendship with his hero, he instead is emotionally and physically demolished (Seriously, beat to shit). Right there, at the absolute bottom of his ego, he finds something inside himself. He returns to face Chuck again, at the promotion test of his school, in front of his students. Instead of fighting Chuck literally, they race in a display of classic Tae Kwon Do prowess: Board breaking and flashy kicks. When he wins, (Yeah, I spoiled it and don't give a fuck,) his students embrace him, and it seems he's realized that he doesn't have to be the most bad-ass jerk out there to be inspirational to those around him. He just has to try his best, and care about those around him. He compels a shy student to finally fight back against the class bully, in the first display of concern for the well-being of his students throughout the entirety of the film. Huzzah! Redemption!

Ultimately, if you can imagine it, The Foot Fist Way COULD be a great movie about martial arts being a path not to physical superiority and social dominance, but to quiet confidence, and earnest leadership, even in the heart of a martial arts system (the McDojo, not TKD as a whole, relax...) which is stocked with action-packed windbag heroes, where hard-working role models ought to be.

That, or it really is a 5 out of 10-ish comedy. Whatever.

-Rey

New Comic 06 - The Legend of the Giraffespider

Orson recounts a tale of true and endless horror.

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News - New Site!

Heya folks, sorry for the relative quiet. I've been working away on a new site to host OMRH, and my web design skills are a far stretch from what they once were. I mean, honestly. What the hell is a stylesheet? Despite the curses shouted from my desk over the past few days, I'm making a lot of progress and I aim to have it up and looking sleek soon soon!

Tomorrow we got a real nice comic coming your way, so be sure to stop by!

-Reynard

Hi! I'm the shallow one!

Now that we've got that out of the way, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Orson, and it is unclear what exactly (if anything) I contribute to this comic. Nevertheless, I find myself a willing participant. This is my first web comic as well, and I'd like to go on record promising you even less than Reynard. He and I have known each other for a few years now, so whatever we end up producing... Well, at least we can guarantee it will be... posted, if not funny. Between the two of us there is a strange sense of humor, often times spawned from violently opposed viewpoints. With any luck this means that our comics will run the gamut from wildly sucessful hilarious laugh-athons to really obscure martial-arts nerd jokes.

I suppose its only fair to give you a little background on myself, latecomer that I am. I have been dabbling in martial arts since the tender age of 6, starting first with Judo, then many years later sampling Tae Kwon Do, Tang Soo Do, Capoeira, and Kungfu. Needless to say, I'm a little eclectic.

I practice martial arts because I find it more entertaining and rewarding than other athletic activities I've tried, and the skill set it builds is second to none. Also, that whole "extending the lifespan" thing really does it for me. As an added bonus, every once in a while I am lucky enough to meet some people like Rey and Ash, who share the same interests and seem to tolerate me well enough.

Anyway, that's enough for now. I hope you enjoy reading One More Roundhouse.

-Orson

New Comic 05 - Maus' Arrival

The hardest working man in class makes a late arrival!

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