Character: Nikki Aidale
A secondary ed/english major at Edona College who enjoys medieval fantasy stories. Is a storm spotter for Forth County and works for Sheriff Whitebucket. Has a guinea pig(?) named Ichabod. Dating Percy. Fun Fact: All of her outfits have her trademark “swoosh”.
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Potential Problems Posed In Pajamas
This would be a minor flaw in Percy’s grand plan. I’ve been sketching my characters in different outfits to help kind of standardize my drawings, and this is the result of some of that. I like the look of Nikki letting her hair down at night, and her nightgown is nice and fuzzy. It wasn’t intended to look like a Santa outfit (in my mind it’s a pastel blue), but it kinda turned out that way. Percy is in simple flannel, fitting for his character, but of course he has his Santa hat and elf shoes for the holidays. Oh, and FYI, while it looks like Nikki and Percy are going to the same place, Nikki is going to the guest room while Percy is going to his bedroom. Both just happen to be on the second floor. They don’t want to be on the naughty list!
Have fun!
~Stretch Longfellow~
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Awkward Hugging
Ref 1: John Whitebucket’s first appearance | Ref 2: “Watch out for Communists”
Of all the recurring secondary characters in the strip (Peanut Butter, Jelly, John and Susan Whitebucket, Holly, Ichabod, Chad the Edona College Do-It-All, and Sheriff Whitebucket have been shown so far), John is my favorite hands down. He was one of the first characters created, and came about as a sketch protesting Communism in my History class while we were discussing McCarthyism. I liked the design of the dented helmet over the eyes, the big nose, and his regal posture (the ponytail came later), as well as his absolute terror of Communists, so I looked for a way to incorporate him into the strip. He was originally going to be Percy’s roommate (Jorocks was Chris’s age then), but I scrapped that idea on account of not many college students nowadays have much fear of Communism and I was already struggling with how to introduce the main four. I then realized that I could make a bit of a running gag out of not being able to see a Whitebucket male’s eyes (and thus the joke with Sheriff Whitebucket was born), and thus he became Percy’s father. So there you have it: the origins of John Whitebucket. Expect more Communist paranoia in future strips involving him.
Have fun!
~Stretch Longfellow~

















