Let the insanity begin!
One of the most popular comics on Smackjeeves, Alternate
is a comedy that follows an Insufferable Genius named Skye McGregor who is determined to be the BEST. His goal goes untarnished until he encounters Xin and Bailey, a happy-go-lucky pair of best friends who seize Skye's plans of academic success and promptly proceed to screw it up. Add in a cult-like newspaper club to the mix, and Hilarity Ensues.The comic is by Nozmo and was updated for four years, but is now on hiatus on its third chapter. Also see her other work, Todd Allison & the Petunia Violet.
This comic contains examples of:
- Affectionate Parody: Of various anime/manga cliches.
- Anime Hair: Jing is described as having it:Xin: And his hair is supposed to stick up like a DBZ character!
- Angry Eyebrows: Bailey does this when she's trapped in the photography room with Camilo. It hurts her face.
- Asian Airhead: Xin, although it would be wise not to challenge him to a game of cards.
- Fanboy and Fangirl: Xin and Bailey, respectively, over the series Zombie Stabbers.
- Filler Strips: Mostly for any landmarking number of registered fans.
- Intelligence Equals Isolation: Justified, namely because Skye chooses to be alone.
- Locked in a Room: The fate of Bailey and Camillo in chapter 3
- Lost Wedding Ring: Humorously subverted, seeing how there was no ring to begin with.
- My God, What Have I Done?: A variant said by Xin in chapter 2.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Xin getting angry in chapter 2 is a sign that things have gotten serious, as is Bailey's newfound solemnity toward the end of chapter 3.
- Polar Opposite Twins: Paris and Francis.
- Power Trio: "Trio. Isn't it such a rad word?"
- Say My Name: chapter three, amusingly paired with the Right Behind Me
- Serious Business: Skye and Xin's biology project.
- Even more so, the photography battle.
- Shout-Out: to various anime such as Lucky Star and Hell Girl.
- Show Within a Show: Really Comic Within A Comic, but Zombie Stabbers.
- Shrinking Violet: Victoria. She hides behind furniture if she's feeling especially uncomfortable.
- Slap-Slap-Kiss: Parodied in the souffle comic (between Andrew and Florida).
- Speech-Bubbles Interruption: Happens to Skye at the end of chapter 2.
- This Is My Side: In chapter two, Skye uses a dissecting knife in biology class to claw a line through the table he and Xin share in order to illustrate this point.
- Title Drop: At the end of chapter one, in which Skye theorizes that he must be trapped in an alternate universe.
- Two-Teacher School: So far, only Mr. Kouklakis and a woman who might be the librarian have been shown.
