The original
Umlaut House
was a
Furry Comic that started out with grad student Saundra Bifrost's
bickersome friend Volair Lee moving in to replace her roommate, their
mutual ex-boyfriend Jake Miller, when he begins working for, and before long, seeing quasi-
Flamboyant Gay Mad Scientist Rick Hundecoph, whom Volair is tracking in his job as an international spy.
The comic could be said to mix a number of genres. Other characters are:
- Liz Parker, Volair's partner and general voice of reason. Also the straightest cast member. Really. She swears.
- Amanda Cartwright - "Queen of weird," Volair's Distaff Counterpart plus some grade points and dignity and minus some international espionage.
- Calvin Gauss - A nerdy classmate of Saundra's who develops a crush on her.
- Ascii - You don't want to know. He's an amnesiac android created by Rick, by UH 2 he's gone rogue and is attempting to create a Hive Mind using Eye-Fi's
In 2004, the comic ended after four years, and after some randomness, gave birth to a sequel,
UH2, set some time later and moved from grad school to high school, primarily about Volair's son, Jake's daughter, and Rick's protégée. Yes, that's vague, but this
is a sequel comic, so for the more detailed character list (aside from, of course, the ones above), spoilers.
- Pierce Lee, son of Volair and Saundra. Recently realized his bisexuality.
- Rhonda Hundecoph, daughter of Jake and Rick.
- Eliza, Rick's apprentice.
- Alice and Lain Gauss, classmates of Pierce and Rhonda, twin daughters of Amanda and Calvin.
- Alex, a football jock, Pierce's boyfriend.
- Dr. "Sissy" Sisyphus, a Mad Scientist, target of Rick (well post-Heel Face Turn) and Eliza...the latter in more ways than one.
This comic provides examples of:
- A God Am I: Let's just say that by UH2, Saundra and Sissy are playing on another level.
- Alternate Universe: Where everyone's sexuality is reversed, except Volair's.
- Anything That Moves: Volair Lee, who cheerfully claims he's only bisexual to score 5% more nookie."
- Art Evolution (compare the first strip of UH to the corresponding first strip of UH2, a little under five years later.)
- Artificial Gravity: Invented by a transsexual horse named Peggy, uses gyroscopes with ridiculously precise control circuitry.
- Artificial Limbs: Rick Volair and Eliza.
- Brain Computer Interface: Casual cybernetic implants are commonplace in UH2, especially the "Eye-Fi".
- Cerebus Syndrome: UH2 is substantially plottier than UH1, though most of the time he still remembers a punchline.
- Cut Lex Luthor a Check: Even before reforming, Rick had made a fortune off of his patents.
- Dating Catwoman: Eliza and Sissy (just look at their Halloween costumes), Sappho and Liz.
- Designer Babies: Rhonda, according to the Word Of God.
- From Beyond The Fourth Wall: The author will occasionally interact with the characters. In continuity during the first series but largely just in filler strips with the second.
- Gender Bender: Volair, briefly and accidentally; the same technology has been put to good use, particularly with minor character Dr. Pegasus.
- Heel Face Turn: Rick, future Sissy.
- Hive Mind (Ascii has created a gestalt consciousness formed from the unconsciousnesses of over 800 people, unfortunately their combined Ids have created a monster)
- Homosexual Reproduction: Rhonda, apparently there are genetic engineering companies that can make kids for gay couples.
- Huge Schoolgirl: Lain.
- Kid from the Future
- Mad Scientist: A mad scientist convention.
- Meaningful Name: Hundecoph means "dog's head"
- Some have suggested that Dr. Pegasus' real last name (Seus, one letter removed from Zeus) is a hint to the outcome of Sissy's attempt to seize the Staff of Time from her.
- Nano Machines: A specialty of Dr. Lyse in the second series, he even replaced his cells with foglets.
- N.G.O. Superpower: The agency that Volair, and in the sequel Rick and Eliza, work for. Also Moire Dziva.
- Official Couples: confirmed by Spin Offspring.
- Remote Body: Moire Dziva.
- Science Related Memetic Disorder: While Rick is reformed from his criminal career, he remains a mad scientist. He's hardly the only one in the main cast, at that.
- Saundra started on her path to Mad Science after seeing one of Rick's giant robots, lending credence to the "memetic" aspect.
- Screw Yourself: Attempted by Saundra's lesbian Alternate Universe counterpart.
- Swiss Army Appendage: Rick kept several bodies on hand for various purposes before finally getting a new, permanent organic one.
- The Mad Hatter: Volair, Amanda.
- The Power of Love: The Power of Love + Applied Phlebotinum = Dating Catwoman.
- The Singularity: Though not clear what it will mean so far.
- Time Travel: Accidentally invented by Saundra, also Sissy's speciality.
- Twenty Minutes into the Future: Sort of; not our future, which lacks the furry animals, but about two decades ahead nonetheless. The sequel is, of course, about two decades further ahead.
- Transsexual: Peggy Seuss, aka Dr. Pegasus; Rick's Gender Bender Transformation Ray was created on her behalf.
- Wacky College: Quickly abandoned.
- Will They or Won't They?: Volair and Saundra.
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