This is the last Happle Tea comic. Ever. I’m sick of doing this stupid comic and not getting any recognition! NOBODY LIKES ME OR MY COMIC AAAHHH!
JK, yo. April Fool’s! I love you guys.
I wrote this news post on April 1st, so technically it’s still legitimate. It’s not my fault if you read it on the 2nd!
April Fool’s Day has been around for a long time, but the first recorded instance of it was in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. For as long as it has existed, it has been a day devoted to tricks and tricksters. It stands to reason that the likes of Loki would appreciate such a day, albeit probably in a malicious way.
Loki is one of the most interesting characters in Norse Mythology, in my opinion. A trickster and a schemer, he was always up to something and most of the time it wasn’t good. While there is a general sense nowadays that he was an evil god, many Norse myths depict him simply as a clever troublemaker and sometimes a coward. There are many instances of Loki helping the rest of the pantheon, though his nature often gets the better of him and causes more harm than good.
There’s even a story about Loki dressing Thor up like a woman as part of a plan to get his hammer back. Here is a short and concise telling of that particular gem. It’s fairly without embellishment but you get the idea.
Tricksters have always played an important role in early myths and even Satan conforms to the role in certain ways. No pantheon is complete without one, and they will always remain some of my personal favourites. Without someone to laugh at us, criticize us, and point out our flaws in a humorous light, many of us would get too big for our own britches as the saying goes. The gods, characters, and monsters that fill this role are just as important as the shining hero.
The stories of Raven, Coyote and Ananzi were always my favorites, growing up. While many/most of their tricks may have been malicious, and they can be cowardly (especially Ananzi) they sometimes exhibited bravery and used their creative thinking to come up with solutions to problems others could not solve, and did some very great things (Raven steals the sun.)
I liked this comic very much.
Loki is my favorite Norse god (This is saying a lot, as Norse myths are my absolute favorite thing besides Korean/Japanese myths). I first read about him in a stupid fantasy book for tweens, where he was protrayed as the Evil Wolfy Villain. However, I sensed his inevitable awesome and looked into the myths that he appears in–since then I have read more things than can be healthy about him and his son Fenrir. He ranks up there with Anansi the Spider and Coyote in terms of cleverness and disgusting humor.
I did not know that Lil K had a puppy. Will we meet the dear thing? Have we already met him/her?
That lot said, a Norse god who is also a coward is about as close as you can be to being an evil Norse god. They are not exactly big on hiding or running away. Like Klingons.
Totally.
Loki cease reading the pretend newspaper,
You care not for the affairs of mortals. You hip hipster you ¬_¬
Will Death come to collect said puppy?
Will the puppy become a ghost, becoming a ghost puppy leading to all sorts of crazy situations, like running into a wall, and little k with the lead getting dragged into the wall.
A lot of the conception of Loki as evil came from later Christian writings on Norse mythology, which often served the church in saying, “See, look! Look! It’s an evil religion!” Loki was, of course, compared with Satan. It’s unfortunate, because we honestly have a very poor understanding of what the Norse actually believed, as even generally older texts such as the Völuspá have sections that scholars believe may have been added later by Christians (for example, a passage about a single god ruling after Ragnarök…).
In fact, some think the myth you yourself cited, where Þór is dressed up as a lady in order to get his hammer back, may have been concocted by Christians, or at the very least had the tone and details changed. After all, the whole point of it is to feminize (mock) the most masculine of the Gods, and the one that was the most widely worshipped.
Anyway, just some food for thought. But as always, loved your comic.
I’m glad you are going to continue, I enjoy this comic very much
hahaha I love this strip. Also I love the picture of Lil K and Sass on the wall. If that were a print I’d get it
I just felt like I should tell you a little tale here. I went to DC with some friends to have a great time seeing cherry blossoms and museums. Instead, my friend broke his foot and I had to hold everyone together as we spent hours trying to get a taxi, waiting for the news, and, finally, missing our train by less than a minute because my friend couldn’t get there fast enough due to his broken foot. By the end of the day, I was just about to break down.
Then I remembered that it was Friday, which meant that when I got home there would be a new Happle Tea, and suddenly I felt like I could manage all the bull that had been thrown my way.
teal dear version- You saved my day.
That said, tricksters are far and above my favorite mythical archetypes. Even when I was a little spit of a myth-reader, I always loved stories of Loki, Anansi, and their ilk.
Awe, i feel your pain Little K!
Although I don’t own a dog…
Last April fools my twin brother desided he would tell everyone i died. Sad thing, they believe him– I was just sick. But this year, I kept on my toes! ;}
And on another note, I really like they way you portrayed Loki. It seems like something he would do.. too funny!
Great webcomic. I see you’re over at AIB, yay for art school!!!
Kill him……..with fire.
I haven’t seen any owls in the past few comics. I require owls. I demand owls! [I have aparently turned into hedanism bot]
@nightingale
…cant overload on owls bro, that shits a gateway drug!
I always felt sorry for Loki. The other gods always treated him rough.
Lawl. the pic of K and sasquatch in the back. Is sasquatch in the ground? o.o
YAAAY!
I shall adore and worship you for eternity until Ragnarok.
Love Loki´s hat, and K´s face is just epic.
Loki is the only person in norse mythology i even know about. i should fix this!