TIMES ARE HARD. THE ECONOMY SUCKS. HAVING A JOB SUCKS. NOT HAVING A JOB SUCKS. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT DOESN'T SUCK? THIS BOOK!
—From the back cover
I've been a fan of Odd Todd's website and Flash cartoons for a while now, so when I heard that he was putting a book together, I knew that there was still hope left in the universe. But maybe you guys don't even know who Odd Todd is, and thus don't care that he has a book? Well friend, that's why I'm here.
Todd was an ordinary guy who got laid off from his job at a failed dot.com business in 2001. The unexpectedly rapid decline of the American economy was a slap in the face to the noble twentysomething, who suddenly found himself sitting around his apartment all day with no work, no money, and nothing to do. He couldn't find a decent job, and didn't really want to anyway, so instead he started a website: oddtodd.com. The site features "The Daily Fact I Learned From the TV," letters from people who mailed Todd a dollar, and of course, Flash cartoons. Wonderful, hilarious Flash cartoons. The cartoons parallel Todd's real life, and let me tell you, I had no idea you could have so much fun watching a guy sitting around his apartment eating Pringles and fudge-striped cookies and watching TV. Todd is joined by the nagging voice in his head, as well as his imaginary friends: Mep, a weird furry thing; and Elf-Up, a jolly elf that reminds Todd not to be too discouraged.
There's something really cool about Odd Todd. It's not just that his cartoons are funny, it's that he's a really nice guy. You can just tell. He's the sort of guy that makes you want to send him a dollar and a box full of stolen office supplies, if that makes any sense. The major recurring theme of Odd Todd's adventures is the life of the unemployed, and more specifically, the shock and confusion of the suddenly-unemployed. For example, his third cartoon starts out like this:
"So I've been unemployed for like a year... and when I think back on this year, I think about how I ate a lot of cookies and how I watched tons of TV and how I had to rely on my parents for stuff and how I hung out with like imaginary friends and took a lot of naps in the afternoon... I haven't a year like this ... since I was like ... since I was like three. And when I think back on where I was a year ago to where I am today, I think, like... what the fuck happened?!"
Continuing his mission of providing hope and solace for the unemployed, The Odd Todd Handbook is a special guide for anybody who has absolutely nothing to do all day. He has ideas, games, recipes, schemes, tips on finding free food, touching tributes to TV and boobs, and even useful guidelines, like Todd's Rule #1: Staying inside saves you money.
This certainly isn't solid literature, but it's a lot of fun; particularly if you're unemployed or just really lazy, and particularly (again) if you like his cartoons. Yeah, actually, what am I wasting my time for? Here's what you do: go to www.oddtodd.com and watch Odd Todd's Flash cartoons. They're free, and I recommend downloading them to your PC rather than waiting hours for the damn things to stream. If you like the cartoons, you'll like the book. If you don't like them, then you're probably one of those people who are cheerful in the morning and jog and wear a tie. And if you're that sort of person, what are you doing here?
Originally posted by Horatio on June 4, 2003.
The Odd Todd Handbook: Hard Times, Soft Couch
