Insight

With fears of AI on the rise, we often forget about those who are doing the lower paying jobs, such as maids and gardeners. They must also be quite worried, and no one seems to be helping them get over these fears.

These beautiful pages you see would not have existed without the help of my friend, Lebohang Matlosa, an incredibly talented artist. He created the panels, while I did storyline and direction. The comic is only 8 pages long, but given the opportunity I would love to flesh it out into a more fully-realised story.

Credits

Concept

Comic book advertising is nothing new. It’s been done numerous times since the inception of comic books into culture. However, very few are actually centered around products that themselves are the focus of the comic. In this instance, Pastureman & Boy Thunder! are characters in their own right, with PM being a South African gardener and BT being a Gardena Sileno model robotic lawnmower. It is a satirical comic with a satirical storyline, ultimately leading the reader to rationalise that the main character is most likely mentally ill and living delusions of grandeur.

The most fun aspect of this idea is that it needn’t be a one-off. Because of the nature of the story, more sidekicks and villains can be added as needed. Perhaps caring for the pool becomes difficult, and PM adds a new sidekick to the fold in the Maytronics Dolphin M600.

Where did it come from?

I am something of a comic book enthusiast. I don’t read very many, but I am intimately familiar with plots, stories and characters within DC and Marvel. I find these characters and writings fascinating, and similarly, I am incredibly fascinated with the automation of our lives. It appears that every day, new tools come out to make our lives easier thanks to the marvels of AI. I also completely understand that these products are utterly terrifying to the average person, and could lead to an aversion to them. This comic aims to both alleviate fear of the working man, by showing the product as a tool, not a replacement, and makes the product “cute” to buyers. Pastureman is a Batman type, and Boy Thunder is meant to be Boy Wonder, or Robin, as they are more commonly known, Batman’s faithful sidekick.