The Obscure Gentlemen

Ladies and Gents,

Eleven years ago, I was a homesick Angeleno living in Texas and talking to my siblings daily. My little sister Alexis talked to me about Buffy the Vampire Slayer. My brother Nick and I traded inside jokes and typical sibling ball-busting. My baby brother Aaron and I, we mostly talked about our shared love for comics.

One day, Aaron showed me a blog he was creating with friends and a comic strip he’d drawn. I was impressed. But more than that, I was inspired. Aaron wanted my feedback. A lot of it. I knew he looked up to me, and trusted my thoughts. We started talking on another level – as creative collaborators, not just brothers. Eventually, I said we should create something of our own. A comic that blended our sensibilities and created an outlet for our perspectives on popular culture. The Obscure Gentlemen was born.

The comic became more than a creative pursuit. As we worked with Nick and eventually a larger group of friends, it became a way for us to connect with one another across distances and the demands of adult life. Aaron was an artist newly coming into his own. Soon, he grew tired of the cartoon style of our first run. We decided to end it.

But my brother was a creator at heart. Eventually, he missed the joy of making something of our own and sharing it with the community of creators online. The Obscure Gentlemen was reborn with a more mature style of illustration and more focused subject matter. A podcast and social media presence followed.

Many of you became Obscure Gentlemen fans. Me? I was a fan of my brother Aaron. It brought me joy to watch him honing his craft and gaining confidence, cultivating new friendships and eventually earning paid commissions. Coming into his own.

Growing up, Aaron was a character in “my” story. The baby brother who followed me around, begged to watch me play video games and tag along with my friends. But the Obscure Gentlemen was Aaron’s own story at its heart. And I loved being a character in his hero’s journey from comic fan to storyteller in his own right. I was his cheerleader and champion. And I loved every moment.

As the commissions and requests rolled in, I asked Aaron to stop doing the Obscure Gentlemen to focus on his paying career. His answer was always the same. “No way, Jim. I’ll always have time.” Aaron made time for the comic, for social media promotions and contests. For friends in need and family in time of emergency. But always, no matter what, he made time for the characters and stories at the heart of THE Gentlemen.

For 11 years, I got to collaborate with a young artist of great talent and greater humility and heart. Seeing his work on t-shirts, in publications and on storefronts will always fill me with immense pride. I will always cherish the time that the Obscure Gentlemen afforded me with Aaron, and the connections we’ve created as a result of this little thing we made together.

My brother was irreplaceable, and so, there will never be another incarnation of the Obscure Gentlemen. But I will make sure that Aaron’s work lives on in the form of this website. One day, it may inspire another young kid with a head full of stories and a heart full of love for his fellow human beings.

We lost Aaron, but we’re grateful to have the universe he created where his voice lives on. And I am personally so grateful to each of you who have become a part of our lives through the Obscure Gentlemen. Thank you for your support, encouragement, ideas and advice. Thank you for your friendship.

See you in the funny pages, baby brother. And of course: Excelsior!

Thanks to 2 of my best friends and brothers Joe Van Fossen and Yama Rahyar for helping me create this final comic and blog.