The Adventures of Simone & Ajax, by Eisner Award-winner Andrew Pepoy, is the story of Simone, a fun-loving 20-something girl, and Ajax, her friend who happens to be a small, green dinosaur. Together they find themselves in a series of strange and wacky adventures, a buddy comedy taking the dauntless duo to many different lands, times, and places. Their adventures are "a bit like the best issues of Cerebus, and a mood that harkens Bone" (Toph, Overstreet's Fan #21) and has been described as "the look of an Archie comic but the sensibilities of a Marx Brothers movie." Their adventures have appeared since 1990 in various indie anthologies, their own title, and been serialized in chapter-form online, these last also having been collected into book form. In 2010 they were honored to have been nominated for the Harvey Award for “Special Award for Humor in Comics.”
Simone is not so much the leader of the duo, but is more the instigator, looking to have fun and often acting before she thinks, getting herself and Ajax into trouble and so into their adventures. She's not dumb, just over-zealous. She's actually quite smart and particularly clever and is well-versed in a variety of subjects of her own choosing. While she is feisty (she has no problem punching someone who's done wrong in the nose) and occasionally thoughtless, sometimes in regard to Ajax's feelings, she's a good person who stands by her beliefs and her friends and doesn't put up with mean or malicious people.
Ajax is the more pragmatic of the two. While deep down he loves adventure, too, he'd rather ponder and worry before leaping into the fray. Simone is his best friend, and he follows her not only for the adventure but also to keep her out of too much danger. Ajax puts an element of stability and common sense into Simone's life, much as Simone lends an air of fun and excitement to Ajax's otherwise uneventful life. Perhaps some of his timidity stems from being a small, green dinosaur in a predominantly human world. And while Ajax looks up to Simone for her spontaneity, they are just good pals hanging out together.
Simone and Ajax live together in the ruins of Rene de Chartres Cathedral, a combination of renovated, modern rooms and crumbling stonework, statues, and stained glass. Surrounding the cathedral are extensive, grassy, ruin-cluttered grounds littered with toppled pillars and half-overgrown walls, a pond, and a stream. Around all of this is the woods, which by walking through Simone & Ajax can exit to any time or place, be it Atlantis, Pompeii, 16th-century England or the grocery store. And walking into the woods wherever they are will usually bring them back home. Yet even while living quietly at home, listening to New Wave and Swing music, reading pulps and comics, somehow adventure comes calling.
Simone & Ajax's adventures take them around the world, and off it, as well as through time. Over the course of their travels Ajax, who was the first to live in the abandoned cathedral, and Simone are joined by a number of friends who come to live with them around the grounds. The most prominent of these is the Lemming Squad, who occasionally take part in an adventure. Also... Lemmings Always Know! Bela and Boris, the twin bats, lurk about the grounds trying to be creepy but are actually harmless. And Santa makes an annual appearance, having a run-in with Simone, who repeatedly tries to get more presents. And still other visitors of many kinds!
Simone & Ajax first appeared in a series of short stories in the '90's, then online, plus a collection from IDW publishing gathering those first online adventures, and now in a new collection from Andrew Pepoy's own Spicy Tomato Studios.
All in all, The Adventures of Simone & Ajax is a fun and exciting comics series for readers of all ages looking for exciting adventure stories. Fans of Bone, Leave It To Chance, Carl Barks' Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge, Sparks!, and more, please be sure to keep up with Simone & Ajax by joining their newsletter.
Simone & Ajax Checklist
Simone & Ajax have appeared in the following publications:
The Adventures of Simone & Ajax: Lemmings and Tigers and Bears! Oh, My!
The Adventures of Simone & Ajax: What's Black & White and Read All Over? (Coming 2023)
Arrow Anthology #2-4
Arrow Spotlight #1: The Adventures of Simone & Ajax
Even More Fund Comics
Mythography #1-6
Negative Burn #48
Ragmop #4
Tapestry Anthology #1
Learn more about Andrew Pepoy and his work and other projects at www.pepoy.com.