Actual Factual Data

The Apple of Discord is an experiment in webcomickry by me, Adam Smithee.

The Comic began in March 2008 inadvertantly when links were posted on TWCL in an attempt to get input on site design.  The few first test comics weren’t originally meant to actually be comic-comics, they were proof-of-concept comics for what was to come later, but the initial positive reaction to them forced my hand and I started the comic about a month earlier than I meant to.

The comic shuns almost all traditional methods – I draw a very rough version of it by hand on paper to work out blocking and dialog, but for the final version, I use nothing but digital.

I have a Wacom tablet, which I am very appreciative of my former roommate for not noticing I stole it when she moved out.

The comic is primarly drawn in Paint Shop Pro and PainterX, using their paint and digital art medium tools in ways their creators never intended them to be used.  It’s drawn at 1000×1500 by 300dpi, and then reduced to 500×750 and compressed to about 10% for JPG export.

The original website was all hand-encoded by myself, but lack of blog integration and ie6’s propensity to freak out every time I changed my design forced me to switch out to Wordpress/Comicpress.  I don’t like it as much, but am making the best of it.

Infrequently Asked Questions

About The Comic

What is “The Apple of Discord” anyway?

The real actual technical Apple of Discord comes from Greek history… it was a golden apple that started it’s life innocently enough as a wedding present from Eris, the Goddess of Chaos. Unfortunately, Eris neglected to specify who exactly The Apple was intended for, instead inscribing it to Kallisti, or “The Fairest One” and chucking it into the party from a distance. The resulting fight between the various goddesses had to be settled by a mere mortal, Paris (The Prince of Troy). Aphrodite (The Goddess of Gettin’ it On) offered him the most beautiful woman alive as a bribe and Paris, being no fool, opted for the nookie. Unfortunately, this eventually led to The Trojan War.

Right, I get that… but why is the comic named “The Apple of Discord”?

Well, since those days, the term “Apple of Discord” has gone on to mean a lot of things… in addition to it’s historical meaning, it also has entered common language to represent a point of arguement that holds the arguement together, sort of like the keystone in an archway of discontent and strife… much like the original apple did to Paris, Troy, and almost everyone else who came in contact with it.

To me, I view The Apple as an engine of change. Historically, apples have brought about a great number of changes for those who they’ve touched the lives of – from Adam and Eve to Steve Jobs and Snow White, being tied to and/or assosciated with an apple (let alone taking a bite of one) has been known to have some unpredictable effects.

The ‘premise’ of the comic, such as it is, is that after centuries of being more-or-less dormant, the Apple of Discord has once again been loosed upon the Earth, and is slowly and subtly making changes, causing discord and disharmony between our established world view and reality and in our perception of it… causing things to happen which make us question.

That said, the whole thing is more or less a pretext to let me draw wacky stuff happening to people.

So the Apple of Discord causes chaos?

Technically, I suppose, however I view Chaos and Discord as two very different things.  Chaos is wild, uncontrollable, unpredictable, and unescapable. Discord, while similar, is more… subtle, less drastic, but in the end far more effective as an engine of permenent change.  Discord is replacing your neighbor’s lawn gnomes with eroticly posed blow-up dolls in the middle of the night… chaos is just setting their house on fire.

Or your own.

That’s the problem with Chaos… it can get out of hand very quickly.  In some ways, Discord acts as a breaking mechanism for Chaos, slowing it down to just the right speed.  If Chaos was gravity, than Discord is a parachute.  You’re still falling, but instead of dying at the end… you feel fantastic.  Unless, of course, you do fall… then probably not so much.

Some of these comics aren’t really about Discord.

Yes. You’ve noticed. Also, that’s not a question.

There are other webcomics that are about chaos.

There are other webcomics about apples too.

I have decidedly too much free time on my hands and have attempted to locate this “Apple Valley, Ohio” that your comic is set in.  Does it exist?

Not really, no.  The name is taken from a sign for a failed planned community on I-75 between Dayton and Toledo.  I can’t tell you where exactly to find it – once you leave Dayton, OH heading north, start wanting Taco Bell.  Pass the first one because it’s too hard to get off that express ramp, but then start looking – there’s a second Taco Bell in the abject middle of nowhere… when you get off there, the Taco Bell is on the left (it shares its space with a gas station)… but if you go right instead, there’s a big abandoned gas station that was the start of the now non-existant Apple Valley.

Coincidentally, there’s another Apple Valley in Ohio – a manmade lake with a resort and a bunch of time share condos.  This one is not a ghost town, it’s very real and apparently people do live there, so it’s best to be left alone.

The “Apple Valley” in my comic is actually based off of a few different locations – see, everything in this part of Ohio is identified as a “valley” of some sort… Cincinnati and surrounding areas are the “Ohio Valley”… Dayton is the “Miami Valley”, etc.

About The Author

Who is Adam Smithee?

Oh, good, you remembered that whole “Question, Answer” format thing again.  And in answer to your question, I am.

Smithee – that’s not your “real” name, is it?

I can neither confirm nor deny that fact at this time.

Are you Discordian?

Well, yes and no. I’m technically an Omnitheist, which is sort of like an anti-atheist. I believe, literally, in everything. While it’s impossible to follow all paths of faith at once (you’d starve to death, for one), I do my best to honor and learn about the magical rainbow that is our varied belief in God, gods, demons, life, death, and all the fiddling little bits that come in between. It was my embracing of the plethora of faiths that first introduced me to Discordianism, and while I won’t pledge my whole self to it, I am rather fond of it.

I’m also a Discordian Pope, not that that means anything.

Do I know you from somewhere else?

Chances are no.  I had a webcomic years ago, but it wasn’t that good, so I’m disavowing all knowledge of it’s existance.  Actually, just to be safe, I’m disavowing all knowledge of my own existance too.  There is no Adam Smithee.  The webcomic is drawn by pixies, and they leave it at the back door to the internet three nights a week, where monks find it and raise it until it’s old enough to be posted.

About The Site

I can’t load ___________ page you’ve linked to. Is it missing?

It may be. Have you looked under the couch?

Can you link to my site/comic?

Yes.

WILL you link to my site/comic?

Eh… maybe.

Why are you being such a jerk?

Because nobody ever reads the “About” page on a webcomic anyway.  Besides, I’m funny when I’m snarky.