"Jolly by the Fraim Brothers"

Jolly Blackburn has obtained college diplomas in three fields of study: Anthropology, History, and Classical Cultures. Combining these three disciplines, he has mastered the art of observing one very unique race: the people who play roleplaying games.

Jolly began at first by founding a gaming magazine called Shadis. It is in this same magazine that he decided to block a hole and put a small "strip" in, which he had drawn very quickly. And so, the Knights of the Dinner Table was born.

But why has this strip had so much success? After all, the drawings are essentially the same computer generated pictures over and over. However, the text is always amusing. Probably this success is due to the fact that roleplayers see themselves, or others they've gamed with, in the players that Jolly has created. 

Whether it's B.A.- the GM (gamemaster), Bob- the compulsive player, Dave- who kills and asks questions later, Sara- the only true roleplayer, or Brian- who knows all the rules by heart. These characters are a reflection of almost every aspect of gaming.

All of the Knights (except Sara) are based on people that Jolly once knew. In fact, some are based on his former group of players.  Naturally, B.A. is based on Jolly himself. As for Sara, Jolly introduced her into the group because of the demand for a female gamer by the readers. She reflects the personality of several people that Jolly has known. Had this project just been Jolly cranking out cartoons without much feedback, the Knights would have ceased to exist very quickly. At the time, he was the editor and publisher of Shadis, and served full-time in the U.S. Army, which left him little time for writing and drawing the Knights. Seeing the demand of his readers, however, he decided to make it a monthly comic magazine, which has exploded in popularity in the gaming community, primarily due to word-of-mouth advertising. Also, many on the fringes of the gaming community are continuing to discover this gem. The future looks good.