Squee (character)
This article needs additional citations for verification. (June 2009) |
Squee | |
---|---|
Johnny the Homicidal Maniac / Squee! character | |
First appearance | Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, No. 1 |
Created by | Jhonen Vasquez |
In-universe information | |
Gender | Male |
Todd "Squee" Casil is a fictional character in Jhonen Vasquez's comic book Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, who was later featured in his own four-issue series, published by Slave Labor Graphics. This was eventually collected as a Trade paperback (TPB), titled Squee's Wonderful Giant Book of Unspeakable Horrors.
Squee
Todd Casil, better known as Squee after the noise he makes when frightened, is a young boy who first appeared in issue #1, living next door to the title character, Johnny C. His parents neglect him (especially his father, who works long hours) and his only shown friend other than Johnny is a small teddy bear that he carries around named Shmee. Shmee tells Squee in a dream that all his fears and nightmares are inside him. Squee is also friends with Satan's son Pepito, with whom he attends school. He later had his own series called Squee!, which was collected in Squee's Wonderful Big Giant Book Of Unspeakable Horrors. He also had another friend named Andy, but he was attacked and killed by a dog.
A quiet, introverted child who is frequently targeted by bullies, Squee has been forced to mature a bit more quickly than his peers. He is fond of writing, but only receives criticism from his teacher and taunting from his classmates. Any attempts he makes to deflect these hostilities only result in being shoved into the dirt or otherwise humiliated. Squee's mother is addicted to some form of a pill and spends a lot of time lying around in a nearly incoherent state. She often forgets who Squee is, or that she even has a child. Squee's father loathes him and never misses a chance to blame Squee for 'ruining' his life, claiming that he "hasn't smiled once since [Squee] was born." Having little patience for anything Squee says or does, he eventually becomes convinced that Squee is mentally unstable, and by the end of the series, has him committed to the "Defective Head Meat Institute." Squee's grandfather claims to keep himself healthy and young by consuming his children's first-borns, and subsequently attempts to devour Squee, only to reveal in a horrifying fashion that he is in fact a cyborg and quite possibly insane.
Squee's next-door neighbor is
Shmee
Squee carries around with him a dilapidated teddy bear he named Shmee. Often, Squee talks to Shmee like a real person, confiding in the stuffed toy, who apparently responds even though their dialogue is non-readable, the one exception being a strip in which Squee has a conversation with Shmee in his dreams. Shmee claims to be a 'trauma sponge,' soaking up all the negative feelings and experiences and storing them inside himself for Squee. He says this will prevent Squee from becoming like Johnny C. During the silent exchanges they share on various occasions, Shmee often suggests that Squee do something violent, such as arson, in retaliation for some wrong committed against him. Squee laughs these suggestions off, assuming that Shmee is joking, though to the reader it is fairly obvious that he is not.
See also
- Johnny the Homicidal Maniac
- Characters of Johnny the Homicidal Maniac
- I Feel Sick
- Johnny C.
- Jhonen Vasquez
- "Invader Zim"
References
- Squee's Wonderful Big Giant Book of Unspeakable Horrors (1998) SLG Publishing (ISBN 0-943151-24-4)