The Duplex

The Duplex is a comic strip by Glenn McCoy, published by Universal Press from 1993. The Duplex has been published in numerous newspapers as daily comic strips and on the Internet. A collection of strips is also available in the form of a comic album. Although designed for the American readers, the Duplex enjoys popularity outside the USA.

Characters

The characters of the Duplex include:
*Eno L. Camino is the main character. He is an overweight, unemployed bachelor and owns 1982 primer-colored Gremlin. Eno is actually often employed but never seems to keep a job more than a day or so. He constantly gets fired for reasons such as stealing office supplies or making copies of his own butt. When he's not slacking with Fang, he hangs in the bar trying to make a move towards women. He's never successful and the conversation usually ends with him getting slapped in the face. Eno's hobbies include activities such as slacking, beer drinking, and seeing if one can eat 60 biscuits in a row without throwing up. Occasionally, Eno attempts to make dinner and the only thing sure is that a fire extinguisher will be needed. He's the master of Fang, although they more often seem like room mates.

*Fang is Eno's dog and best friend. He is clever, talkative and tries to lead Eno through life, teaching him the simplest stuff. These things include how to act in front of women, how to eat correctly at a restaurant and how to dress for a job interview. Fang often joins Eno in his daily slacking life at home and at the bar.

*Gina is Eno's and Fang's neighbor. She's educated, polite and works as a school teacher. She is the owner of Mitzi and those two are the quite opposite of Eno and Fang. She's also the only woman who can stand Eno's presence.

*Mitzi is Gina's poodle and Fang's object of affection.

*Elvin is Eno's neighbor and friend. He's just like Eno... lazy and likes beer.

Furthermore, a number of characters appear occasionally, including policemen and Eno's dates.

Plot

At the very beginning, the strips were mainly concerned with interactions between chauvinistic pair of Eno and Fang and gentle pair of Gina and Mitzi. Later on, Gina and Mitzi's presence diminished and the stories focused on Eno and Fang, often showing them in recurring situations (caught when speeding, watching football, discussing life) thus resulting in running gags.

Typical strip involves:
*Eno being stopped for speeding (often in strange circumstances, such as while playing computer racing games or running treadmill in a gym),
*Eno being rejected (sometimes with the use of force) by his dates or girls he wants to pick up,
*Eno and Fang discussing philosophical questions on the roof of their house.A number of strips is devoted to the current media events (mainly related to the US pop culture, such as American Idol show) or everyday life (such as popularity of Tivo video recorder and universal remotes). The purely surreal humour and ironic view of the American pop culture are rare, but still present.

Awards

In 2005, the National Cartoonists Society gave "The Duplex" the award for 2004's best Newspaper Comic Strip.

Books

One collection of strips has been published by Andrews McMeel Publishing.
*"Bad Habits" (November 2006) auto isbn|0|7|4|0|7|6|1|9|5|074076195

External links

* [http://www.uclick.com/client/mny/dp/ One of the websites publishing The Duplex]
* [http://www.amuniversal.com/ups/features/duplex/bio.htm Page on Glenn McCoy by his publisher - Universal Press Syndicate]