Zbeng!
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| Zbeng! | |
 The cover of Volume 15 of "Zbeng!" |
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| Format | Ongoing series |
|---|---|
| Publication date | 1987–today |
| Creative team | |
| Creator(s) | Uri Fink |
Zbeng! is an Israeli comic series created by the Israeli cartoonist Uri Fink. It is a humorous comic which features a group of fictional Israeli teen characters. The characters' personality traits are all based on common stereotypes (the geek, the bully, the queen of the class, the wicked teacher, etc...). The comics follows the quirky adventures which evolves around a gang of "typical" highschoolers. The comics is somewhat similar in the main concept to the Archie Comics.
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[edit] Overview
"Zbeng!" was published for the first time in the popular Israeli teen magazine "Ma'ariv La'noar" on August 17th, 1987 and immediately gained an unprecedented success.[citation needed] Very quickly the stories were expanded from one page to a number of pages. Occasionally "Zbeng!" used to spoof other regular columns in the magazine.
Part of the success of "Zbeng!" was due to the author's decision to make different changes in the comics throughout the years - such as the characters' appearance according to the latest fashions and trends. Fink stated that he usually examines the way that his young readers react to the comics and he decides on making the changes in relation the critique he would get from the readers. Despite the great successes and the large fan base which the comics has gathered through the years, "Zbeng!" has also been frequently and heavily criticized through the years by many concerned Israeli parents and educators. The main reason the criticism has been due to dealing too much with sex, contempt to authority and to adults and the use of stereotyped characters.
[edit] Published works
Except for the steady section in the popular Israeli teen magazine "Ma'ariv La'noar", Fink has published 19 different "Zbeng!" comic books through the years and many different booklets. Fink has also published two books which teach how to draw the Zbeng! characters. Additional publications Fink include a series of "Zbeng!" student diaries, "Zbeng!" notebooks, A series called "Zbengale" which featured the characters of "Zbeng!" as children, A series which spoofed "Harry Potter", Zbeng Manga, A series called "TsvaZveng!" which featured the characters of "Zbeng!" as soldiers, and a monthly "Zbeng!" magazine.
The book "Zbeng! Gold" summarizes the first ten years of the series. The book includes new drawings of 30 comics chosen by the readers, specials such as drawings of the neighborhoods where the characters live, Zbeng! in English and more.
A following book called "Zbeng! Platinum" which summarizes the second decade of the series was released in 2007.
[edit] The TV series
In 1998 "Zbeng!" was adapted into a live-action TV series broadcast on the Israeli Channel 2. The show was based loosely on the plot and the characters of the comics with slight changes from the original. The show lasted for two seasons.
[edit] Computer game
In 2007, Corbomite Games announced the production of a computer game based on the comics. [1]
[edit] The Characters
[edit] The veteran characters
- Gal Tichon (גל תיכון) - the average teenager and the main character of the series. Gal is popular and adored by all the other characters. He loves to surf and to play the electric guitar. He is a member of a rock band called "my limpy sister" (אחותי הצולעת). Gal is Sigal's boyfriend.
- Jinji (Ronen Sagiv) (ג'ינג'י) - Gal's red headed friend. Jinji is an ugly, insane, sex maniac that is hated by every woman he meets. Surprisingly Jinji actually became the most popular character of the series.
- Sigal Sagi (סיגל שגיא) - Gal's feminist-left wing-vegetarian girlfriend.
- Yaron Tichon (ירון תיכון) - Gal's brother, a book worm nerd, who became a computer expert
- Asher Killer (אשר קילר) - A hot tempered and not so bright bully which tends to be very possessive about his girlfriend.
- Yosefa Rozenblum (יוספה רוזנבלום) - Asher's girlfriend which has Russian origins. It is always mentioned that she lacks talent in the cooking field.
- Maya Shalit (מאיה שליט) - The drop-dead beautiful yet manipulative blond. She is a model and is considered to be the class queen.
- Golan Penis (גולן פינס) - A handsome attractive guy. He is the masculine version of Maya.
- Ido Ramon (עידו רמון) - The singer of the rock band "my limpy sister". He has an exteremly limited vocabulary. When he doesn't sing, everything he is capable of saying is "sex, intercourse and Rock 'n' roll!".
- Osnat Tichon (אסנת תיכון) - Gal's sister.
- Ziv Ochovski-Robinson (זיו אוחובסקי-רובינסון) - The drummer of the rock band of "My limpy sister". homosexual.
- Anuga Zaafani (ענוגה זעפני) - The gang's monstrous teacher and the ultimate nightmare for every student.
- Principal Zvulon Chartzueli (המנהל זבולון חרצואלי) - The principal of the high school which is stuck in his Childhood. He is a big fan of cartoons and loves to play with action figures of super heroes.
- Yitzhak "Tzachi" Hamburger (יצחק "צחי" המבורגר) - A morbidly obese teenager with an unhealthy appetite for food.
- Hana/Sara/Rachel Tichon nee Reshef (חנה\שרה\רחל תיכון לשעבר רשף) - Gal, Yaron and Osnat's mother. Portrayed as the stereotypical polish mother. She is a big worrier. She tends to obsessively color her hair.
- Yizhak Tichon (יצחק תיכון) - Gal, Yaron and Osnat's father. He is of Iraqi origin and is very proud of his heritage. He constantly tries, without much success, to bestow the Iraqi heritage to his children. He is hot tempered although most of the time he is just apathetic.
- Mordechai "Moti" Galil (מרדכי "מוטי" גליל) - Osnat's boyfriend. He appeared though many years as the eternal soldier whom comes for short visits whenever he gets vacation from the army.
- Avishai (אבישי) - Gal's sport teacher.
- Nezek (נזק) - Gal's dog.
- Nir Lacost (ניר לה-קוסט) - A rich narcissist snob. He looks down on his class mates which are inferior to his socio-economic status and inferior to him by his own beliefs. He also looks down on all Israelis in general. He enjoys trips abroad, mainly to London.
[edit] The newer characters
- Gili "Magili" Yefe-Nof (גילי "מגעילי" יפה-נוף) - An ugly grotesque teenager whom is a big horror movie enthusiast. He loves disgusting things in general.
- Herzel Hazon (הרצל חזון) - the ultimate Ars. Dark skinned teenager, which later on bleached his hair, dresses with form fitting clothes and wears jewelry.
- Sivan Bar-Ratzon (סיוון בר-רצון) - A liberal teenage girl which has a sexual addiction.
- Noga Cnaan (נגה כנען) - A dark skinned girl with curly hair and glasses. Sigal's friend.
- Stav Harov (סתיו חרוב/תאני) - A dark gloomy gothic teenage girl.
- Gveret Za'amon (גברת זעמון) - A substitute teacher. She is a less extreme version of Za'afani.
- Gershon Za'afani (גרשון זעפני) - The pierced husband of Za'afani.
- Sharon Zelig (שרון זליג) - A teenage girl whom is highly interested in fashion and is always up to date with the latest fashion trends.
- Ron Rockafeller (רון רוקפלר) - A compulsive troublesome pesterer.
- Aisha Sivan Raichel (אעישה סיון רייכל) - A teenage girl from Ethiopian origin. She is very spiritual and has a great interest in matters of the soul.
- Shay (שי) - A religious teenager. He is a right-wing activist. He was the Sigal's boyfriend for a short while after she separated from Gal.
- Asaf Netanyahoo (אסף נתניהו) - A homeless but optimistic teenager.
- Shvartze Tichon (שוורצה תיכון) - Gal's new dog.
