Dyson Cube- (Actually, we don't think it's funny either)

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Rarely Asked Questions

Q: What the hell is a Dyson Cube?

A: It’s a non-existant phenomenon, inspired by the “Dyson Sphere” another non-existant phenomenon. I changed the name to reflect the style of my comic, and to show what I’m the kind of clever bastard who makes cunning wordplay based on theoretical astronomical objects.

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Q: Okay, so what the hell is a Dyson SPHERE?

A: In 1959 an astronomer named Freeman Dyson got this crazy idea that large platforms could be strategically placed around a star, harvesting solar energy and providing living space for people.
(Other people had suggested this stuff before, but most of them were not respected astronomers, therefore don’t count.)
Sci-Fi authors, who are always looking for new concepts to horribly mangle, re-imagined the Sphere as a hollow ball totally encapsuling a star. You can see one of these Spheres in the Star Trek Episode “Relics” (my favorite!).
For more information try the Dyson Cube FAQ

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Q: Is this Cube thing REALLY your idea.

A: Yes. I thought it up. Honest.
When I started this site, there were NO hits for “Dyson Cube” on Google…and you can’t need any more proof then that!!!
Interestingly enough, a googling of “Dyson Cube” today does bring up two other sites. One is a conspiracy-theories forum, and the other is a Star Trek message board, which had the following tidbit:

>     Me, I wish Riker had said Picard was killed by the Flarn.


>     "Who?"


>     "You never encountered the Flarn?  Man, if you get home, you 
      gotta tell

 your Starfleet- DON'T open the Tauzed Dyson Cube."

The author, one “Mr. Rob” swears he didn’t get the idea from me. Uh huh.

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Q: Most of your comics are like, flat. Why don’t you call it “Dyson Square”?

A: I refer you to the Megatokyo comic number 109.
Besides, “Dyson Square” sounds like a shopping center.

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Q: Why are all the characters squares?

Scott McCloud, author of “Understanding Comics”, devoted nearly a chapter of that book to examining the idea that when people see a simple picture, they become less aware of the “messenger” and more aware of the “message”. My squares allow me to take advantage of the flexibility of comics as a story-telling medium and let me give a basic sense of “humanity” to my characters, while at the same time being simple enough that people’s concept of how the character’s look comes almost entirely from their imaginations.

Also, I can’t draw.

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Q: Can I buy any nifty-neat tshirts or anything?

Why yes, yes you can. It’s all in the Cube Mart. Thanks for asking.

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Q: Can I get a stuffed Eskimo?

A: No.

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Q: Is this stuff like, real?

Some of it is. The names are all taken from real people (or did you think “Verbosity” was written by the voices in my head?). And some of the situations DO have some basis in fact. Jeff actually DID have an amazing transformation in high school, but it was from an overworked student into a hulking, unwashed caveman, and it ended after a few weeks of reduced stress.
The real Dash, however, wouldn’t be caught DEAD driving a Datsun pickup.

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Q: You use the royal "we" a lot. Is there really more then one person involved in this?

A: Yes and no. On one hand, I am Roman, creator of all, master of the Cube, who controls the continued existence of any and all characters, who decides who can write in Verbosity, and who brings the rains in the Spring and the snows in the winter. On the other hand, there are a bunch of other people who write essays, suggest strip ideas, and buy my T-Shirts so I don't feel like a loser. I use the "we" mostly when I want people to do something for me, and the "I" when they get all snooty and need to be reminded just how easy it is for me to put their character in a plane over the Sea of Japan...

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Q: Jeff is just sooooo cute with his little eyes on stalks!

A: Damn you! I was figuring on changing him back eventually. But if I do that several people (including Steph and quite possibly Jeff himself) may never speak to me again.

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Q: Okay, first you were working with line drawings, then you did flat color, then you did textures, greyscale, neon, and 3D. What the hell are you doing?

A: I’m having fun. People complained that the line art was sometimes hard to follow, so I added some color. Then I just started to goof around. I think that flat color is my new default, but I’m going to keep experimenting, just to keep things exciting.

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Q: Who are your influences as an artist?

A: Jim Bean and Jack Daniels mostly, although I find the work of Jose Cuervo inspirational as well

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