''Van Von Hunter'' is a weekly hand-drawn parody manga started in 2002 by Mike Schwark and Ron Kaulfersch of Pseudomé Studio, based in Cleveland, Ohio.Giddens, Tharon (July 9, 2006). "Vampire hunter has stake in paper". ''

The Augusta Chronicle ''The Augusta Chronicle'' is the daily newspaper of Augusta, Georgia, and is one of the oldest newspapers in the United States still in publication. The paper is known for its coverage of the Masters Tournament, which is played in Augusta. The ''C ...

'', Pg. G3. It has been published in newspapers, books, and as a

webcomic Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on a website or mobile app. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or comic books. Webcomics can be c ...

. The story takes place in the land of Dikay, a country fraught with zombies, and focuses on the warrior Van Von Hunter and his "never-ending fight against evil...stuff".

Publication history

In the Summer of 2006, ''Van Von Hunter'' started a six-month run of Sunday newspapers. It was syndicated by

Universal Press Syndicate Universal Press Syndicate (UPS), a subsidiary of Andrews McMeel Universal, was an independent press syndicate. It distributed lifestyle and opinion columns, comic strips and other content. Popular columns include Dear Abby, Ann Coulter, Roger Ebe ...

, published in approximately 30 papers in North America (and one in Sweden), including the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'', ''

The Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in Denver, Colorado. As of June 2022, it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 13 ...

'', the ''

Seattle Post-Intelligencer The ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'' (popularly known as the ''Seattle P-I'', the ''Post-Intelligencer'', or simply the ''P-I'') is an online newspaper and former print newspaper based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The newspaper was f ...

'', ''

The Detroit News ''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival ''Detroit Free Press'' building. ''The News'' absorbed the ''Detroit Tribune'' on Februar ...

'', ''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 18 ...

'', ''

The Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published si ...

'', and the ''

Toronto Sun The ''Toronto Sun'' is an English-language tabloid format, tabloid newspaper published daily in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The newspaper is one of several ''Sun'' tabloids published by Postmedia Network. The newspaper's offices is located at Pos ...

''.Memmott, Carol (December 29, 2005). "Comics pages make room for manga; Newspapers target the young". ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

'', Pg. 1D.Chin, Richard (February 5, 2006). "Funnies fans, prepare to meet manga". '' St. Paul Pioneer Press'', Pg. 1E. ''Van Von Hunter'' was the second Tokyopop manga to be syndicated to newspapers, the first being '' Peach Fuzz'' by Jared Hodges and Lindsay Cibos. The comic's anniversary falls on

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, thr ...

(February 14), which is jokingly referred to as "Von Hunter Day" on the site.

Characters

*Van Von Hunter – The protagonist, Von Hunter is a jovial and easygoing adventurer who is dedicated to battling the forces of evil. He always introduces himself as "Van Von Hunter, mighty warrior and hunter of evil... stuff!" While not particularly bright, Von Hunter makes up for his shortcomings with irrepressible optimism, a strong sense of justice, a certain degree of cunning, and excellent armed-combat skills. His original name was Van Von Vaughn, but he changed it to suit his profession. *Van Von Hunter's sidekick – A young woman whom Von Hunter rescued from Count Disdain. Before being able to introduce herself, she was struck on the head and lost her memory. She tags along with Von Hunter because she has nowhere else to go. This sidekick doesn't do much fighting, but her common sense saves Von Hunter on occasion. *Prince Lesley Mortimer Lamorte – Better known by his own ill-chosen title, the Flaming Prince, Lamorte rules over Dikay Kingdom at the wish of his truly wicked father. He is Van Von Hunter's self-proclaimed sworn nemesis, though is even dimmer than Von Hunter himself. The Flaming Prince, in his vendetta against Von Hunter, employs ghastly minions to dispose of his nemesis, including mummies, skeletons, goblins, and a fearsome Beast. *The Man in the Dark Glasses – The Flaming Prince's right-hand man. He provides the prince with encouragement, thoughtful advice, and random things to crush in his hand. He is secretly the glue that holds the kingdom together. *The Archmage Ariana Rael – An adorable young girl who blew up her village when they tried to feed her to a dragon, she was hired by the Flaming Prince as a secret weapon. When Von Hunter arrived to do battle with the Prince, Ariana was supposed to destroy him with her powerful pyromancy, the Mega-Destruction Flare. Instead, she simply blew up everything surrounding him. "Ari" ended up traveling with our heroes for a time. *Vengeance Joe – An easily-angered antagonist with no known past. His defining feature is that once he is angered, nothing can stop him from finding his revenge. His list of enemies is long and varied, ranging from a staircase (for tripping him) to a tree (for getting in his way) to even the blissfully ignorant Von Hunter (for not introducing himself as they passed each other on the street). He is now questing to carry out his vengeance on Von Hunter by destroying all that the righteous warrior cares for. He is allergic to walnuts.

Monsters

There are many types of monsters in Von Hunter's world. *

Zombies A zombie (Haitian French: , ht, zonbi) is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. Zombies are most commonly found in horror and fantasy genre works. The term comes from Haitian folklore, in wh ...

– Zombies seem to get appointed for the jobs that no one else wants in Von Hunter's world, from lawyers to accountants. They also display lower than average intelligence which makes them more harmful than useful. Wanted posters in zombie-infested woods can be seen as "zombie deflectors". *

Orcs An Orc (or Ork) is a fictional humanoid monster like a goblin. Orcs were brought into modern usage by the fantasy writings of J. R. R. Tolkien, especially ''The Lord of the Rings''. In Tolkien's works, Orcs are a brutish, aggressive, ugly, ...

– Large and dangerous creatures, which comprised a large portion of the Prince's army (before being wiped out by Ari). *

Goblins A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances depending on t ...

– More cute than deadly, goblins wear hats and outfits that make them resemble Christmas elves. They are by far the most useful of the Prince's forces (despite his apparent dislike for them) as they fill some of the menial chores (such as bartending), can be bizarrely versatile, and were able to restore the kingdom's finances through

bake sales A bake sale, also known as a cake sale or cake stall, is a fundraising activity where baking, baked goods such as doughnuts, cupcakes and cookies, sometimes along with other foods, are sold. Bake sales are usually held by small, non-profit organi ...

. They are talented chefs, and mesmerized Von Hunter's Sidekick with brownies (in the print version). *The Beast – Supposedly unleashed to kill Von Hunter, this minotaur-like monster, after being locked up for millennia, immediately began hogging a nearby toilet. Soon after he got stuck in a ''

brunch Brunch is a meal eaten between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., sometimes accompanied by alcoholic drinks (typically champagne or a cocktail). The meal originated in the British hunt breakfast. The word ''brunch'' is a portmanteau of '' breakfast'' ...

''-line, and was later set on fire by a demon, before the Prince's doomsday device turned it into a potted plant. In the book, he had a case of food poisoning. * Vampires – Vampires are

undead The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if alive. Most commonly the term refers to corporeal forms of formerly-alive humans, such as mummies, vampires, and zombies, who have been reanimated by supe ...

beings, though not always humans, with fangs and pointed ears. They feed on blood and turn to dust when staked through the heart. Vampires are the rulers of the unnamed country where the webcomic opens. *

Ghouls A ghoul ( ar, غول, ') is a demon-like being or monstrous humanoid. The concept originated in pre-Islamic Arabian religion, associated with graveyards and the consumption of human flesh. Modern fiction often uses the term to label a cert ...

– Ghouls are bald, and have pointed ears, fangs and nails. Ghouls eat humans and founded the unnamed country where the webcomic opens. *Pollywacker – A monster in the mysterious forest of the accursed valley of the Twelve Severed Heads, who terrorized the Valley until Von Hunter killed it. * Gargoyles – Large winged monsters called "stoners" by the Prince. The Gargoyles of Von Hunter's world behave similar to stereotypical stoner teenagers. *Bugs – The Insects (and most likely arachnids like spiders) are

sentient Sentience is the capacity to experience feelings and sensations. The word was first coined by philosophers in the 1630s for the concept of an ability to feel, derived from Latin '' sentientem'' (a feeling), to distinguish it from the ability to ...

creatures with their own society. They are still just as small, however. Their leader, Lord Chitin, was inadvertently killed by the Flaming Prince early on. * Demons – The only demon seen in the webcomic is a large and ferocious-looking monster, similar in appearance to the

Balrog A Balrog () is a powerful demonic monster in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. One first appeared in print in his high-fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings'', where the Fellowship of the Ring encounter a Balrog known as Durin's Bane in the Mi ...

. However, it is comforts the Beast when The Flaming Prince scolds it and is used to serve hot drinks. * Hybrids – To combat Von Hunter, The Flaming Prince had several combinations of monsters created. These were: a goblin-orc creature (a fat goblin), a weresasquatch (a very hairy creature that would get even hairier during the full moon), and a combination of five dragons (a five-headed dragon whose heads attacked one another). Additional monsters include

Trolls A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human bei ...

Leprechaun A leprechaun ( ga, leipreachán/luchorpán) is a diminutive supernatural being in Irish folklore, classed by some as a type of solitary fairy. They are usually depicted as little bearded men, wearing a coat and hat, who partake in mischief. ...

Dragons A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

Werewolves In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely ...

Sasquatch Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forest of North America. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including anecdotal claims of ...

, and

Mummies A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the recovered body does not decay furt ...

Live-Action Movie

In 2010, Van Von Hunter was adapted as a

live-action Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ...

film directed and written by Steven Calcote and

Stuart J. Levy Stuart J. Levy is a producer of manga and films and writer of manga. Levy founded the media company Tokyopop and established the manga market in North America. He was an executive producer on the major motion picture ''Priest'' in 2011 distri ...

. It stars

Yuri Lowenthal Yuri Lowenthal (born March 5, 1971)Birthday references: * * * is an American voice actor, producer and screenwriter known chiefly for his work in cartoons, anime and video games. Some of his prominent roles in animations and anime include S ...

, Heather Marie Marsden, and Lucas Bridgeman. It won Levy and Calcote "Best Director" at Mockfest 2011.

Collections

Starting in 2005,

Tokyopop Tokyopop (styled TOKYOPOP; formerly known as Mixx Entertainment) is an American distributor, licensor and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa and Western manga-style works. The German publishing division produces German translations of licensed ...

published a series of graphic novels set in the ''Van Von Hunter'' universe, taking place several years after the conclusion of the webcomic's plot. * ''Van Von Hunter volume 1''. . TOKYOPOP. 2005-05-10 * ''Van Von Hunter volume 2''. . TOKYOPOP. 2005-09-13 * ''Van Von Hunter volume 3''. . TOKYOPOP. 2006-12-12

Reception

In 2003, the webcomic won the first-place trophy at

's inaugural

Rising Stars of Manga ''Rising Stars of Manga'' (RSoM) was an English-language comic anthology published by TOKYOPOP from 2002 to 2008, and a contest held by the same company. It was originally semi-annual, but switched to annual beginning with the 6th volume. Each vo ...

contest.Publishers Weekly Staff (March 17, 2003). "Rising Star Winners; Battle Royale Ahead". ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'', Pg. 28.Levy, Stu (Publisher) (April 2003). ''

, Vol. 1'', Los Angeles: Tokyopop. Pg. 32 Carlo Santos of '' Anime News Network'' stated: "For those who have grown tired of the fantasy genre's ridiculous self-importance and constantly recycled clichés, Van Von Hunter is the antidote, attacking these clichés with irreverent fervor. However, in doing so it becomes something of a cliché itself, relying on a predictable comedic approach and putting its characters in overused situations—not to mention that the whole adventure-comedy thing has been done plenty of times before." Reviewing the webcomic, Dani Atkinson of ''Sequential Tart'' stated that the black and white artstyle of ''Van Von Hunter'' is initially fairly "crude", but evolved into a more crisp tone as the series continued.

References

External links

* {{Official website, www.vanvonhunter.com
''Van Von Hunter'' manga
at Tokyopop
''Van Von Hunter'' live-action film
at Tokyopop
''IMDB entry for the 2010 film'' website
2000s webcomics 2002 webcomic debuts Anime and manga inspired webcomics American comedy webcomics Fantasy webcomics Original English-language manga Tokyopop titles Webcomics in print