Today’s comic, “Claire” by Alex Krokus, is about a bike courier not keeping it mellow.

This comic was originally published in As You Were, Vol. 5: This Job Sucks, featuring 44 new comics about crappy jobs.

Buy a copy in our store.

Interview with Alex Krokus by Natalye Childress for Silver Sprocket

Can you tell us more about the job you share in the comic?

I used to live with a trans girl who worked as a bike courier. She’d come home from work and need to vent about how bro-y and misogynist her coworkers were. It then reminded me of other lady friends of mine who worked male-dominated jobs and how alienating it was for them. Never knowing that feeling firsthand, I wanted to try to make work from it. I never met her coworkers, but we lived with plenty of other dumb punk dudes that I could draw influence from.


What is the BEST job you’ve had?

What I’m doing now feels pretty good. I do freelance animation so it varies a lot. It’s hard for me to feel stagnant when I’m always working in different places with new people.

What is the value or purpose in making art?

Finishing stuff makes me feels good, so I try to keep my output high. However, art-making, in my opinion, is pretty egocentric, so I think it’s good to ask yourself if your work is gonna benefit anyone else.


Do you think artists have a social responsibility?

It’s not mandatory, but artists that do will make stronger work because they’re more conscious to context. And even if it’s not intentional, narrative work will always say a lot about how the artist views the world and other people. Also, folks who exclusively indulge in themselves often make boring stuff.

What are you working on now?

Right now, Krystal Downs and I are working with Ben Passmore on turning his comic Your Black Friend into an animated short film. We hope to have it done some time in the summer.

If someone liked your comic in As You Were, what would you recommend they check out next?

I would recommend Daygloayhole by Ben Passmore and Please Keep Warm by Michael Sweater. Eleanor Davis is one of my favorite comic artists right now, so check her out too.


For more from Alex Krokus, check out his website and follow him on Instagram.