Uti vår hage (comic strip)
Uti vår hage (English: Out in our pasture, named after a Swedish folk song) is a Swedish comic strip, created by Krister Petersson. It originally appeared in Svenska Serier in 1981.[1] It then began a long run in 91:an (1983 - December 2001). On 5 December 2002 Uti vår hage became a bi-monthly comic, published by Egmont. It also ran briefly as a daily strip in Dagens Nyheter.
The comic strip
The main character is Faló, an immature and self-righteous man in his mid-30s who lives in the small, fictional Swedish town of Mjölhagen, loosely based on a town in Småland. Lacking any obvious source of income, he nevertheless lives in his own detached villa with large garden and drives an old Volvo Amazon. He has an extremely high opinion of himself and his own abilities, which fails to reflect the realities of his personality. For example, he considers himself to be a talented poet.
Petersson has stated that Faló is inspired by Einar Lindberg's character Sympatiska Filip, from the strip Filip och Kaspersson. Sympatiska Filip was in turn based upon Elov Persson's character Kronblom. Petersson derived the name Faló from the Argentinian singer and guitarist Eduardo Falú.[2]
The comic strip contains black humor. For example, in one strip Faló´s neighbour Lydén was depressed and wanted to commit suicide. Instead of talking him out of it, Faló helped him tie a noose since he knows how to do it right. However, Lydén changed his mind after the first attempt was interrupted.
Other characters in the burlesque depiction of small-town Sweden include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Yvette. Faló's long-suffering girlfriend/fiancé.
- Olaf. Faló´s stunted, thick and occasionally criminal brother.
- Konrad Bärnevik. The municipal commissioner and Faló´s love-rival.
- Torsten Lydén. Faló´s neighbour who is a military officer. He has recently undergone a sex-change much to his wife Lydia´s chagrin. He now goes by the first name Totta.
- Stryp-Enok. Faló´s other neighbour who has been a chain smoker for decades.
- Börje Phyllerin, last name later changed to Finkelspiel. The town drunk. He changed his last name because people kept calling him "Fylle-Börje" ("Drunk-Börje") which is derived from Phyllerin.
- Desirée Rosenquick. A dim-witted little old lady who is often seen driving on her moped.
- Blirger Bidén. Faló´s friend. Blirger, Faló, Olaf and some other friends often play poker together.
- Alfred and Albert Hansson. Two brothers who are carpenters and run their own business together.
- Brunte. Faló´s dog.
The comic book
The main strip, Uti vår hage, features in both newly-drawn stories and in republished material. In addition, the comic book includes several subsidiary strips, a crossword and a letters page ("Tyckt å tänkt Uti vår hage").
Current subsidiary strips
- Axplock, by Tobias Sjölund
- Baldo, by Hector Cantú and Carlos Castellanos
- Elvis, by Tony Cronstam
- Folk & Fä
- Gaston, by André Franquin
- Lindström
- Moppe och mobilen
- Tristan
Previous subsidiary strips
- This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
- Kid Paddle
- Nilsson & Bengtsson, by Magnus Knutsson and David Öqvist
- Quarantän, by Camilla Eriksson
- Toftaligan
- Vi å pappa, by Krister Petersson and Gert Lozell
- Zorillerna
- Älskade hund, by Uli Stein
References
- ↑ "Krister Peterson (b. 1956, Sweden)". lambiek.net. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
- ↑ Uti vår hage (in Swedish) 2011 (1). Missing or empty
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