8 1/2 by Eleven, a comic about you: by Lucas TdS

MAJOR CHARACTERS (note: The character pictures make excellent MSN Messenger Icons!)
LEYLA DUMONT	LEYLA DUMONT Leyla is the love of Nillan's life, and an adventurous good-natured soul. Nillan calls her "my raven-haired friend," because of she had long black hair when they met. In a bid to look sophisticated (or, in a somewhat spur-of-the-moment bid for hair-cut craziness glory), Leyla had her long locks chopped off and has sported a stylish-looking bob ever since. Usually, during the summer, she grows her hair a little longer, only to cut it off once school begins. Leyla moved to Vancouver from the the English-speaking part of Montréal in September 2003, and enrolled in second-year at UBC, where she is majoring at Earth and Ocean sciences. She has considered doing her MA in California after graduating, but still has no pressing plans. She's not really the planning sort of person anyways. Although from a financially-secure family, Leyla works in a coffee shop called "World of Coffee" to make sure she has disposable cash. Before she moved to Vancouver, Leyla accepted a marriage proposal from a boyfriend she had named Joseph Vioget, only to have her heart broken when he broke off the engagement and dated a number of different girls. THE BASICS BIRTHDATE: December 19, 1984. LIKES: Nillan, dancing, random outdoor spazz-walks, interesting noises, fun, parties and Les Canadiens. DISLIKES: Whining. FAMILY INFO: Originally from Montréal. Her parents have a fair amount of money. She has a brother named Oliver, who she loves to kid around with. UNIVERSITY MAJOR: Earth and Ocean Sciences LIVES: Alone near Burrard and 12th, in a bachelorette suite.
NILLAN McMILLAN	NILLAN McMILLAN Given the choice between a free trip to an exotic foreign country and a warm cup of tea, Nillan would likely choose the latter. He likes things simple and uncomplicated, but often overcomplicates simple situations by overthinking them. "Adventure" is as far from Nillan's middle name as Peru is from Mars, yet somehow he still ended up dating one of the more spontanious ladies he knows (Leyla). As his first true love, Leyla has pushed Nillan outside of his comfort zone and into a whole new realm of experience... a realm he hopes not to leave any time soon... although deep down he wonders if someday her love of adventure may take her off into the world and leave him behind. THE BASICS BIRTHDATE: September 15, 1984 LIKES: Reading, writing, playing piano, sentimental jazz ballads. DISLIKES: High adventure. FAMILY INFO: Nillan's father's side of the family is from Saskatchewan, his mother is from B.C. They live in Vancouver. Nillan has an excitable younger sister named Zöe who is finishing high school and a five-year-old brother named Nick who cries a lot. Someday, he is certain that he will move out from his parent's place. In the meantime, it is the source of some angst. Of which he has much. UNIVERSITY MAJOR: Political Science LIVES: East Vancouver
SAM JEFFERSON	SAM JEFFERSON Sam is Nillan's best friend. His family immigrated to Canada from Trinidad while he was a child, and he still has a bit of the accent left over once in a while. Sam is well-liked by almost everyone, and is a pretty nice guy. But he's got a mean streak and a backbone when provoked, somethings that Nillan lacks. In the past, Sam had an on-going crush on Jessica Cheng, but that seems to have disappeared with the passage of time. He's now dating a quiet Asian girl named Madeline. Sam has a weekly hiphop radio show on the underground university radio station CiTR. Sometimes, the other characters in the strip enjoy meeting with him while he's DJing on his radio show. THE BASICS BIRTHDATE: May 11, 1984 LIKES: Hip Hop, analyzing things, wearing caps of many varieties DISLIKES: Bling, fakeness and cocky people FAMILY INFO: Originally from Trinidad. Sam lives with his mom and his dad and has two younger sisters who are non-identical twins. UNIVERSITY MAJOR: Political Science LIVES: East Vancouver
ZÖE McMILLAN	ZÖE McMILLAN Zoe is Nillan's little sister. She is a very cheerful person, because she looks at life like an "optomistic octopus," instead of a sourpuss. She plans to one day be famous. Maybe, she will be an actress or something. One of her best features is that she gives Nillan advice all the time. Usually, it is advice he should follow. Occassionally, however, he wonders if she has her head on straight. THE BASICS BIRTHDATE: February 19, 1989 LIKES: The beach, having fun. DISLIKES: Sour people. FAMILY INFO: Younger sister of Nillan. UNIVERSITY MAJOR: Not quite in university yet. She is finishing high school soon. LIVES: East Vancouver
JESSICA CHENG	JESSICA CHENG Jessica is an only child and her parents are both doctors. Both of them never really wanted to be doctors though, and, consequently, they are really unhappy and fight a lot. So Jessica tries to stay out of the house as much as possible. She used to play a lot of sports and was a star athlete in high school, but now the only games she plays involve toying with people to get what she wants. This often involves hitting people. University life has led Jessica to party a bit, and she smokes way too much as well. She likes to chase boys and shop. Despite her worldly ways, in high school she was a good friend of Nillan's, although they are drifting apart as their lives change. Her best friend is Cinn, who is almost her exact opposite, lifestyle-wise. Jessica is an Art History student. Also, quite randomly: she's got a tattoo that says "truth" in Chinese characters on her lower back. Or, at least she thinks that's what it says. She's not 100% sure. THE BASICS BIRTHDATE: January 14, 1985 LIKES: Fun, whining, shopping, drinking wine, cigarettes, boys, and many other 'vices'. DISLIKES: People who have more relationship success than her. FAMILY INFO: Only child UNIVERSITY MAJOR: Art history. LIVES: with her parents in Richmond.
SCOTT FARSON	SCOTT FARSON Scott is half-Asian and half-white, a combination of genes that gives him an "exotic" set of looks and makes him infinitely appealing to women. He is quite aware of this, and has become quite the player. Scott has traditionally been both a nemesis and a friend to Nillan, and is found hanging out with Sam quite a bit as well. He often goads less-adventurous types into taking chances, and prides himself on being able to hook his friends up with women. In the past, Scott has hooked up with Jessica, made out with Leyla at a party (when she first arrived in Vancouver), and flirted quite unsuccessfully with Cinn. Scott is an Art History student, and can often be found tagging along with Jessica and chatting in class. Despite his macho personality, he also enjoys biking, but has had some bad luck while riding. THE BASICS BIRTHDATE: July 4, 1984. LIKES: Having fun, hosting parties, meeting ladies, biking DISLIKES: Wimps FAMILY INFO: Scott has an older brother named Paul. His parents live in East Vancouver, but he has moved out of the house to live in a downtown loft. UNIVERSITY MAJOR: Art history. LIVES: Downtown Vancouver in a condo across from the Central Public Library
CINN MADISON	CINN MADISON Cinnamon (or "Cinn," as she's called by most people) is Jessica's closest friend. Until recently, she hadn't even met the rest of the cast at all, so she's mostly outside of their social circle. She's frequently working the in Student Art Gallery with Jessica, putting up paintings and stuff. There, they chat about things affecting their lives. Cinn usually gives Jessica solid advice. Jessica doesn't usually follow it. Originally a minor character in the comic, Cinn's role has grown and we have learned a bit about her family life. She is the product of a single mother and her father left the family when she was very young. She grew up in poverty, but is somewhat successful these days, winning scholarships and working hard... concepts that her best friend (Jessica) doesn't quite understand. She's perhaps a bit too serious, but someone's got to be an anchor for the craziness in the world, no? THE BASICS BIRTHDATE: March 27, 1985. LIKES: Quiet, thinking, writing, walking, talking, and hugs from good huggers. DISLIKES: Loud parties that lead to awkward social situations, being around lots of people she doesn't know well. FAMILY INFO: Cinn's mother raised her on her own. UNIVERSITY MAJOR: General Science. LIVES: East Vancouver, with her mother.
MINOR CHARACTERS
JOSEPH VIOGET	JEPH (JOSEPH) VIOGET Jeph is Leyla's former fiancé. He asked her to marry him right after they finished CEGEP, in 2002. She said yes, but six months later, he started wanting to pursue other women, and realized that, at age 19, he was too young to get married. He broke off the engagement and did his pursuing, leaving Leyla heartbroken. To make matters worse, everytime she visits Montréal, he attempts to rekindle their childhood romance... something she will have no part in. Currently, Joseph lives in Montréal and apparently plays in a band of some sort.
DANIEL ALEXANDER GAUTHIER	DANIEL ALEXANDER GAUTHIER Daniel is a friend of Leyla's from Montréal. They went to high school together, and Daniel helped Leyla through many personal heartbreaks. He always stood silently by, providing hugs when hugs were needed, and never told her of his true feelings for her. Now that Leyla lives in Vancouver, his opportunities to tell her that he loves her are rarer still. Daniel lives in an apartment in Montréal with three of Leyla's childhood friends: Lisa Valente, Anthony Péloquin and Brian Cardin.
MADELINE SHU	MADELINE SHU Madeline is Sam's girlfriend. We still haven't met her enough to really know much about her.
HERBERT SMITH	HERBERT SMITH In high school, Herbert was a geek. He excelled in every subject, played on the high school badminton team (in fact, he is still ranked as one of the top badminton players in the country) and could add 7-digit numbers faster than Bruno could punch out younger students. In University, Herbert became bored of excelling at everything except being popular. He vowed to change that. A new haircut and cooler clothes gave him the confidence to become one of the most important fratboys on campus. "Kappa Rho Alpha Pi!!!!" Unfortunately, the new lifestyle hasn't done wonders for his GPA.
	BRUNO BRILL In high school, Bruno was a bully. He beat up Nillan, he beat up Sam, he beat up Herbert. When Bruno managed to get into University (no one really knows how... yet), he vowed to change his ways. He's become quite well-liked by all, especially the members of his frat: Kappa Rho Alpha Pi!!! Unfortunately, he is a bad influence on Herbert, who would otherwise be a good student.
	SNAKE GUY A weirdo who owns a snake and a small dog that looks like a rat. Drives a test-animal delivery truck for a living. Lost a monkey.
	MONKEY A monkey that escaped from Snake guy's test-animal delivery truck. Happens to be the only animal character in the strip. May reappear at times. Who knows.