Comic:Torio
From CGWiki
Torio is a comic written and drawn by Simon "Luprand" Shepherd, and inspired by Nathan "Andante" Reich. It centers around Trevor LaGiaconda, who is a student at Campus State University and resident of Torio Hall in Apartment Dorms.
The Cast
Trevor's life is on the border between the real and the surreal; he's as likely to be sitting bored in class as to be tarred and feathered for suggesting an unpopular viewpoint. His role seems to be mostly that of the observer, though he does take time to point out minor absurdities in day-to-day life. Fortunately for him, people rarely notice. Trevor is a student in CSU's information technology department.
Trevor's pet, a puppy named Woof, seems for all intents and purposes to be a normal dog. He has shown some signs of higher intelligence, such as knowing which Dungeons and Dragons (tm) figurine to pick up when a certain character or creature has been killed; otherwise, his only claim to abnormality is his ability to make any canine sound except his name.
M'Kystral Larson would probably have lived a much happier life if her parents had just spelled her name properly. Instead, she spent her childhood having to explain over and over that "It's pronounced Crystal" and eventually came to hate her name (and, by association, her parents). She'll do pretty much anything she thinks would severely annoy her parents, as long as she doesn't end up in physical danger. Trevor currently dates her, but she's made it clear that she's only his girlfriend until she can find a better guy to unman. M'Kystral is currently double-majoring in political science and sociology.
Umberto Garcia is that unheard-of phenomenon, the sociable gamer. Despite his hobbies of tabletop roleplaying games and Invader Dragonmon DX Lapis Lazuli Version, Umberto still manages to have a smile for most people he talks to - and somehow get his homework done, too. He is wheelchair-bound, but has yet to reveal the reason why. Umberto studies physics as a hobby, but is majoring in computer animation.
Crispin de la Croix is shy. Terminally so. In a comic where no one has a nose, he goes one step beyond that and lacks even a mouth, unless he's singing. He covers his eyes with reflective lenses so as to avoid eye contact and seems to have a permanent blush. Though he has spectacular vocal ability, he chose to major in accounting.
Trevor's first flatmate refused to divulge his name or his major, fearful that an old crone from a Studio Ghibli movie might steal it. His entire life seems to revolve around a perpetual fear that anime would eventually steal his soul; to prevent that from happening, he wears a respirator mask to seal his mouth off from the world, jade goggles to ward off seizure-inducing strobe effects, and a set of holsters with ... a pair of unripe bananas. Apparently the housing department forced him to leave his guns, daggers, and stun grenades at home.
Basil Ignatius Jean-Baptiste Rutherford Nessundorma II was Trevor's second roommate, replacing the anti-anime one. As his name would suggest, he was the youngest in a line of "old money" and never failed to flaunt it. He spoke with a snooty accent, tended to ignore others' opinions and needs, and generally only seemed to care about his aging butler, Winthrop. Because Winthrop was staying in the apartment with Basil, Trevor was forced to sleep on the couch. On the other hand, Basil positively spoiled Woof, whom he called "Poopsie." His mother, however, bought him a house and staff off-campus, and he hasn't been seen since.
Jimmy Benson is Trevor's third roommate so far, and he's a Texan. He's very Texan, and like any Texan, he wants to make sure everybody knows it. So he dresses the part, with hit T-flag T-shirt, TX belt buckle, and enormous accent. He ain't just arrogant, he's proud of it.
Minor Characters
Mrs. LaGiaconda: Trevor's mother, whom he tries to call at least once a week. Referred to as "Ma," but not yet seen in person.
Umberto's roleplaying group: several college students who happen to have a common interest and a surplus of strange-looking polyhedral dice. Umberto is currently dating Kelly, a member of the group.
Kayne, LaWeeza, Khort'nee, and Rachel: members of the Yuppie Name Support Group, which M'Kystral attends. Rachel's case is particularly severe; his parents were over-enthusiastic about gender equality and chose to give their son a "unique" name.
Claire Nightowl: Trevor's study-buddy for his writing class. Majoring in clinical psychology.
Dr. Wanda Mtengi: Umberto's faculty advisor in the visual arts program.
Sayaka Tajiri: President of Campus State University's anime club. Always dresses in a traditional fuku and attempts to pronounce everyone's names in the most Japanese manner possible. When she's corrected on pronunciation, her usual response is "Hai, hai ..."
Dr. James Wellfargo: Teaches several physics courses at CSU. Notable for his taste in sweatervests, jovial personality, and being the head of the physical science department's D&D group.
Bits of Trivia
Torio's site (http://torio.comicgen.com) was originally meant for a side comic that Luprand wanted to do back in 2002, but that fell to the wayside as school and his other comic NeTrek took priority. Over the course of three years, it was used mostly as an image-dump site - using an image viewer page so as not to waste bandwidth without ads, mind! - and later as the site for several other abortive efforts at side comics.
There are a number of cameos and hidden references to characters and authors of other comics occasionally hidden in the background, and occasionally on some people's clothing. Many of them have been recorded here.
