The Characters
Name: Tanuki [tuh-noo-kee] Gender: Male
Tanuki is Bob’s pet raccoon. He is named after the Japanese raccoon-dog god for food, drink, and mischievousness. Tanuki is energetic, meddlesome, and a bit bipolar. He is young and has many childlike characteristics like being easily excitable and having an over active imagination. Don’t be fooled by his cute exterior, he is a feisty ball of striped fur!
Name: Bob [bob] Gender: Male
Bob is Tanuki’s owner. He is a little awkward and sometimes tries too hard, but his heart is always in the right place. He is single, a product of not being the best at dating. He tries to be the mature adult, but often finds himself getting sucked into Tanuki’s wild fantasies. Bob is a smart guy. He likes to try to best Tanuki’s antics but is rarely successful. He has his hands full with Tanuki, but at least he can say that life is interesting.
Name: Fuzzy Bunny [fuhz-ee buhn-ee] Gender: Toy
Fuzzy Bunny is Tanuki’s favorite toy, a stuffed bunny. Although inanimate, Fuzzy Bunny joins Tanuki on many adventures and is very faithful. Fuzzy Bunny is a lot like a security blanket, and when missing, causes Tanuki much stress.
Name: Grandpa [gram'pa'] Gender: Male
Grandpa is Bob’s dad. He takes care of his grandchildren Billy and Susie. He is nuts. He would be considered senile except for the fact that he has always been nuts and age has nothing to do with it. He is not married. When he isn’t embarrassing Bob or his grandchildren, he is often telling wild stories.
Name: Billy [bil-ee] & Susie [soo-zee] Gender: Male & Female
Billy and Susie are twins. They are Bob’s nephew and niece. They live with their Grandpa, which is more of a chore than it seems. They are both very smart children. They really like it when they get to stay over at their Uncle Bob’s house. They especially like to play with Tanuki.
The Comic
Drew Johnson started drawing Tanuki and Bob when he was in high school. He would sketch comics on assignments, folders and scraps of paper.
Originally the comic was just about a guy named Bob. Bob was Drew’s favorite name, and he would often create cartoons, stories, and comics about characters named Bob. Bob was the sarcastic, humorous observer designed to use his clever wit in any situation. The strip became stagnant and difficult with only one recurring character, so Drew decided to create a co-star.
Raccoons are Drew’s favorite animal so he awarded Bob a pet raccoon named Tanuki. Tanuki was made to be childlike and mischievous. He is very smart and you always know how he is feeling. This character’s personality pairs well with Bob’s. Together they create a duo fit for comics.
In the first few years Tanuki & Bob was published in a multi-school, student made, newspaper called The Scribble. Soon it was published in Drew’s high school paper and a few Community newspapers. Drew made a website to expand his audience and continue the fun after his graduation. The comics were very well received and as time went on demand continued to increase.
Even though the comic’s fan base was growing, Drew’s life was quickly changing. Due to life’s demands, Tanuki & Bob stopped its circulation in 2005. Even though they weren’t in front of the public, Tanuki & Bob never died. Drew would still doodle comics during his free time. He was waiting for the day that he could release them to the world once again. That time is now.
The Artist
Tanuki & Bob is drawn and written by Drew Johnson. Drew is a commercial artist who works from home. He grew up in Austin, TX where he had dreams of being a professional artist since the age of 5. After High School, Drew went to Gemini School of Visual Arts and Communications in Cedar Park. At Gemini, Drew spent 4 years training in traditional and digital mediums to become a commercial artist. After graduating he got a job with BioWare Games working as a concept artist on their upcoming Star Wars game. Over the next year Drew got married and moved to Portland, OR.
After settling into his move and his job, Drew finally had the long awaited free time he needed to work on Tanuki and Bob. Drew has the eventual goal of syndication of the comic, or some other long term publishment. If you want to learn more about Drew and his freelance career, check out his web site at www.drewjohnsonstudios.com where you can see examples of his works and resume.
If you want to support the comic, visit our shop or support our advertisers. You can even make a donation at the bottom of our home page. Drew hopes that you enjoy his comics, and wishes you a great day!