#38 Art & Comics

Sayin’ G’day to Games

Madeleine Karutz

Panel 1: A hand drawn illustration of a young girl playing a game of ‘hoop rolling’. The illustration is made with a limited colour palette of yellows, greens, and black – the green highlights give the image an almost neon feel. The text reads: In Australia, post colonial games were often simple with a particular flare.The girl is wearing a wide-brimmed hat, her plaited hair flowing behind her as she walks. She’s wearing a long-sleeved dress and black boots. She’s smiling as she carries a stick—holding it out in front of her. She appears to be rolling a hoop, which is actually a hoop snake. Its eyes are angry as it swallows its own tail, making itself into a circle. Panel 2: The panel is coloured with a green background, still using a palette of pale yellow, green, and black. The main text of the panel reads: We were the pioneers of many games. Ol’ Neddy tried to popularize a more lethal version of paintball in 1880. Ned Kelly appears in the centre of the image, emerging from trees and bushland. He is wearing his infamous armor, with only his frowning eyes visible. In the bottom corner of the image a policeman is looking at Ned through the trees. He is wearing a vintage/traditional-style police uniform, and his speech bubble reads: ‘well someone is getting an ‘A’ in metalwork’. Panel 3: The panel features a drawing of the ocean, against a pale pink sky. The water is black with light blue highlights, a rocky outcrop appears on the horizon. The main text reads: In 1967 we lost a Prime Minister when a game of Marco Polo went unfinished. In the centre of the image, a man is floundering in the water with his eyes closed, calling out Marco? Marco? MARCO?!? HAROLD?!? Panel 4: The panel features some pixelated computer game imagery on a blue gradient background. The game is titled ‘Rum Rebellion Rumble – only on Atari Jaguar’, and features a white person in colonial uniform/attire standing on a ledge, throwing barrels of rum. On the other side of the image, another character hides under a bed while the barrels bounce toward them. There is some text that reads: Gov Bligh with two heart icons. Underneath these ledges, two characters with brown skin stand on a hill, watching the commotion. Their speech bubble reads: Hm. Of course WHITE resistance to colonial rule is mythologized and celebrated…

Comic from The Suburban Review #38: GAMES by MADELEINE KARUTZ.

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Cover Art

Cover art of The Suburban Review #38: GAMES by Maggie Johnson. An animalistic figure appears in the foreground. It’s drawn in side profile, with a pointed face and sharp teeth, almost crocodile-like.

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