For six years, Sun-scribers have been brightened by Brian Colley’s weekly comic that reflects upon the big and little moments of this unparalleled life. Colley’s comic, “The Unparalleled Universe,” has become a weekly joy for him to create and for readers to relate to. His dedication and craft built up enough material to print, and Volume I was released three years ago. Now, Volume II has been printed and is ready to be released into our universe.
“I think that’s the joy of having a comic that’s called ‘The Unparalleled Universe.’ I care about what I’m putting out there, but I don’t feel like I have to be on one path because, if it’s a whole universe, it can be so many things,” Colley said.
When Colley first started out, he was inspired by the political climate and the pandemic. He had never done a weekly comic before former Sopris Sun Editor Will Grandbois recruited him to contribute in March 2020. Colley said he wanted to make something that people could relate to, so he started with current events.
“Well, since it started out in COVID, that was a heavy inspiration. There’s stuff about being quarantined, there’s stuff about toilet paper and getting haircuts,” Colley said. “I can also see myself zooming out, thinking about the bigger picture.”
However, Colley said there are only so many COVID cartoons a person can do, and that readers will enjoy, so he shook it up. Thankfully, the freedom in the comic’s name allowed Colley to walk in any direction that felt right; he has access to a whole unique universe after all.
“I was thinking about the freedom I could have from making a parallel universe and then doing a play on words with the ‘unparalleled,’” Colley said. “In an unparalleled universe, it’s like something that’s unparalleled is incredibly rare.”
Recently, Colley mentioned he has been drawing comics that are lighter and humorous. His art style has also evolved with his work. At first, it was primarily in black and white, however, he began adding color and has enjoyed that even more. He said Volume II has very little black and white.
“It is a fun challenge to try to mix it up and do different styles or themes,” Colley said.
His comics range from more realistic to psychedelic, from loud and vibrant to peaceful and quiet. The process of making the weekly comic takes about two to five hours. Colley shared how his artwork starts out and comes to life by connecting ideas.
“This is from a college teacher; in a drawing class he said, ‘One plus one doesn’t equal two. For artists it equals three,’ because you are taking one idea and one idea and making a third separate idea,” Colley explained.
Colley said that the comic has become a special practice for him and a good challenge. After six years of creating comics, Colley has no intention of stopping. He has plans to dive even further into this vast cosmos and wants to collaborate with more artists inside the universe.
“If people are still into it and The Sopris Sun is willing to keep it going, I’m into it. I haven’t missed a single week since I started,” Colley said.
Colley explained that while not every weekly comic has been dazzling or relatable, saying some have been off the wall, he feels overall that they represent the experiences of the world and reflect local issues as well.
“It’s like a time capsule to look through the past three years,” Colley said. “That’s what this rollercoaster of this comic is. Looking back through the years and the moments.”
Colley teased that volume three is already in production as he nearly has a third of the book done.
Physical prints of “The Unparalleled Universe Volume II” will be available soon at Bonfire Coffee, White River Books, Carbondale Arts and online. Visit Colley’s website for more information: briancolley.com