25 Questions : Joel Buxton

I'm happy to present a Q & A with my Awesome Marcus Ninja co-creator & good friend Joel Buxton.

Joel is a great writer, awesome stand up comic, & well, I've never seen him play bass, so I'll say, an ok bassist.

Check Joel's super helpful/entertaining stand up comedy blog. Trust me, it's better than the blog you are currently reading

Here we go,

1) Who are you & what do you do?

My name's Joel Buxton.
I'm a stand-up comic based in Toronto. I do a lot of writing, including a webcomic called Awesome Marcus Ninja, and a blog called Premise PUNCH Tag. I play bass in a rock band called Apple Pi.
I also have a day job, but who cares about that?

2) Seen any good movies lately?

I only watch good movies because I have the attention span of a gnat. Recently I enjoyed checking out True Grit (with you), Insomnia (late, I know, but it was the one Christopher Nolan film missing from my repertoire), and the Scott Pilgrim movie which I thought didn't get the props it should've.

3) What are you listening to?

For pump ups on the way to sets, I like Marc Ronson, Daft Punk, NIN, and stand-up comedy albums from comics I admire. For relaxing, I love Zero 7, Jose Gonzales, Metric, Soul Coughing, and my fundamentals, The Beatles and Radiohead.

4) What do you do to relax?

Sleep, read, chat with pals, or murder people in video games.

5) What's your favourite book?

Tough call, books are awesome. Tie between Atlas Shrugged (no I'm not an Objectivist), Breakfast of Champions, and Moby Dick (I'm not bullshitting you, I actually have read it and love it).


6) You order a pizza all to yourself, what toppings do you get?

If there's no topping limit, everything that doesn't have eyes. If there's some kind of arbitrary cap, I'd say broccoli (the King of vegetables), feta cheese, sundried tomatoes, and artichokes.

7) What's your favourite fruit?

Fruit is bullshit, I don't eat it. But technically a green pepper is a fruit 'cause it's got seeds. So I'll say GP.

8) Favourite junk food?

Poutine fo sho. I used to make my own gravies I was so into it.


9) What's the best concert you've ever been to?

Zero 7 at Phoenix in Toronto. They just killed it. And my friends when I wasn't looking talked a techie into giving them the night's setlist for me. Good times.

10) Biggie or Tupac?

They both make really valid points about bitches, popping caps, and the game. Who am I to choose?


11) Who's your childhood crush?

This is embarrassing. I really liked Larisa Oleynik. She's this obscure actress who never went anywhere that was in a kid's show called "The Secret World of Alex Mack." I'm over her now, and finally ready to love again.


12) If you could travel anywhere right now, where would you go?

On earth? Probably London or Moscow.

Off earth? Oa, son.


13) Any TV shows you're watching right now ?

Always Sunny, 30 Rock, The Office, Deadwood, and I'm about to get heavy into The Pacific.

14) What's your guilty pleasure?

I get sincerely into things that nobody likes. It starts off as kind of an ironic thing, but always evolves into real, joyful love. Right now that thing is yo-yo tricks. Seriously, the yo yo has gotten crazy in the last ten years.


15) Favourite super hero(es)?

Judge Dredd. So underrated in North America. Spidey was my fave growing up. These days I'm really getting into Jack Kirby's Fourth World stuff. Scud the Disposable Assassin, The Tick, and Grendel are also all awesome characters.


16) What pisses you off?

Rude people, and arrogant people. Also people who have a mean streak, you can see it from a mile away. Aside from that I try to stay pretty zen, dude.


17) Rank these hairstyles from best to worst, fauxhawk, comb over, mushroom cut, mullet.

All of those are great haircuts to a bald man such as myself. You bastards should be happy you've got hair to abuse.


18) Favourite Saturday Night Live cast member (past or present) & why?

If we look at sheer number of awesome sketches I gotta go with Phil Hartman. The guy was unstoppable. I also love Horatio Sanz, just looking at him cracks me up.


19) Saturday morning cartoon you had to watch?

That X-Men cartoon I thought was the boom. I also really enjoyed Care Bears. Not 'cause I'm a priss, but even at a young age I found it hilarious that these cuddly bears that were all about love would gang up at the end of the episode and shoot a beam of love out of their chests, disintegrating the villain violently. The best mixed message ever.


20) Craziest place you've ever done the 'no pants dance' ?

You got me. I've never done the 'no pants dance.' And it's too late for New Years Resolutions, too.


21) Beverly Hills 90210 or Saved by the Bell?

Both amazing with amazing theme songs. Saved by the Bell by a hair, but only because of Max's Diner, the episode where Slater becomes a cook, and the line, "I'm so... I'm so... SCARED!"

22) Favourite artist(s)?

Frank Quitely, Carlos Esquerra, John Romita Jr., Gabriel Ba, Moebius


23) If you were on death row what would your last meal be?

The poutine routine, bro! I'd have to make the gravy though...


24) 20 years from now, you will be _____________?

Laughing at my younger self's predictions


25) How awesome are you? Feel free to use a scale of 1 - 10.

These go to eleven.

Thanks Buxton. Keep on keepin' on.