NEGOTIATED BRIEF: Burgundy & Green

I will be creating a series of daily newspaper style, four-panel comic strips entitled “Burgundy & Green”. The narrative style will be like that of “Peanuts” or “Calvin and Hobbes”. I want these comics to be presented as a risograph printed zine to be sold. These comics will be drawn in a style common of the 1930’s, based lightly on the short cartoon “Steamboat Willie”. I will be prominently using black and white due to the newspaper style, but will include some highlights, and the colours burgundy and green in keeping to the title to the story.

The plot of the comic series will centre on Mr Green and his fall into the underbelly of 1930’s New York society. Mr. Green is an alcoholic ex-cop who finds himself in New York after being kicked off the force due to his excessive drinking in the time of prohibition. After being left by his hard working, showgirl wife and young daughter, his alcoholism and unemployment swiftly result in the mounting of bills. As such, he quickly finds himself indebted to the biggest mob family on the lower east side. The notorious gang is lead by a Mr Burgundy - an eccentric young mob boss who has been rapidly been building his reputation throughout town. Although initially hostile the two swiftly become friends and partners in crime. This is due to Mr. Burgundy’s illegal manufacture and distribution of ‘Hooch’; an alcoholic, home brewed beverage popular during prohibition, and Mr. Green’s drink of choice. The stories will revolve around Burgundy & Green, and the rest of the mob family, and their adventures in selling illegal alcohol during prohibition. There is also opportunity to include stories of encounters with rival gangs, and the experience of running a speakeasy in the most cop filled city in America. The comic strips will be narrated in the style of “The Golden Age of Radio” - the days before television when radio stations would frequently broadcast live readings of Dramas. This idea is a reversal of the radio adaptation of the comic strip “Dick Tracy”. To represent this, the narration of the comic will occasionally feature a radio broadcaster, typically to introduce characters or to provide a brief outline of the situation.