Suburban Satanists

The ''Suburban Satanists'' is a comic strip that appears in

Herman Hedning ''Herman Hedning'' (lit. Herman the Heathen, known as ''Marwin Meathead'' in English editions) is a Swedish humorous comic strip, drawn and written by Jonas Darnell. History Herman Hedning first appeared in 1988 in '' Fantomen'', the Swedish editi ...

, a comic published eight times a year in Sweden and Norway. The strip began in 1997 in the comic ''

Geek The word ''geek'' is a slang term originally used to describe Eccentricity (behavior), eccentric or non-mainstream people; in current use, the word typically connotes an expert or enthusiast obsessed with a hobby or intellectual pursuit. In th ...

'' before restarting in 1999 in its current home. It is created, written and drawn by British cartoonist

Lew Stringer Lew Stringer (born 22 March 1959 in England) is a freelance comic artist and scriptwriter. Biography Stringer began his career from the late 1970s with a series of fanzines, many featuring his popular '' Brickman'' character; these were read by ...

. The Suburban Satanists are the DeVille family (the name is a spoof of

the Devil Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an entity in the Abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or falsehood. ...

), led by the father Stan DeVille, his wife Mavis, and including their grown up children Derek and Sharon. This mini-cult is rounded off with the inclusion of Sharon's son Damien (product of a tryst between Sharon and

Satan Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as Devil in Christianity, the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an non-physical entity, entity in the Abrahamic religions ...

) and the house lodger Benny. The local Vicar (as yet unnamed) is a regular supporting character, as is

himself, who is often depicted as a pompous and flawed buffoon. The strip doesn't promote

Satanism Satanism is a group of ideological and philosophical beliefs based on Satan. Contemporary religious practice of Satanism began with the founding of the atheistic Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States in 1966, although a few hi ...

, but rather sets it up for satire, along with

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

(so as not to favour either side). A typical strip might begin with a dramatic ritual, summoning forth

, only for him to be asked to change a light bulb or lend the family a cup of sugar. In another story Mavis is made Queen of

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

while Satan takes a

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

holiday, but when he returns he finds she's converted his domain into a

Nail Bar A nail salon or nail bar is a specialty beauty salon establishment that primarily offers nail care services such as manicures, pedicures, and nail enhancements. Often, nail salons also offer skin care services. Manicures are also offered by gene ...

. The humour is light-hearted and mostly inoffensive, although slight criticism has actually been received by both Christians and Satanists. 1997 comics debuts Swedish comic strips British comic strips Satanism in popular culture Fiction about the Devil {{comic-strip-stub