Doc and Raider
Encyclopedia
Doc and Raider is a Canadian
comic strip
, created by Sean Martin
. Published in newspapers and magazines for LGBT
audiences beginning in 1987, the strip's main characters were Doc and Raider, two gay men who began the series as roommates but eventually became a couple. Doc was a writer, while Raider was a construction worker.
The strip was usually drawn as a single panel, although for some more complex stories Martin used a multipanel format. Some scenes were set in Toronto's gay village, such as the steps of the Second Cup
at Church and Wellesley
. In others, they Raider takes part in a rodeo.
The series, while primarily humorous, also addressed serious issues in the gay community. During the strip's run, Raider was gay-bashed
, and Doc tested positive for HIV
. Towards the end of the strip, Doc's HIV status became a strain on their relationship, and a fight between the two erupted into domestic violence
. In the final strip, Doc and Raider had reconciled and Raider asked Doc to have unprotected sex
, although it was never revealed whether this in fact happened.
In addition to the regular strip, Doc and Raider appeared in safer sex education campaigns in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The strip's appearance in newspapers and magazines around the world also allowed it to underwrite gay-related causes, everything from an arts festival in Scotland to a hospice in New Zealand, thanks to an arrangement Martin had with each publication: they were free to run the comic as they wished, but they had to put something back into the local community as compensation. It's estimated that Doc and Raider raised somewhere in the neighbourhood of $750,000 during its run. Two books were also published, Doc and Raider: Caught on Tape in 1994 and Doc and Raider: Incredibly Lifelike in 1996.
The regular strip was retired in 1997, although in 2002 Martin created two standalone stories featuring the characters, which were published in two anthologies sold to raise money for the Little Sister's Defence Fund
. More recently, he has redesigned the characters in a more contemporary cartooning style, and has worked on an animated
cartoon starring the redesigned characters.
Recently, Martin has begun releasing new strips as a webcomic
on his blog. As of September, 2011, due to continuing troubles with Blogger's new image handling, Martin moved the blog to WordPress.
Filmmaker Randy Riddle released Raider in Canada: A Portrait of Sean Martin, a documentary film
about Martin and the strip, in 1998.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
, created by Sean Martin
Sean Martin (cartoonist)
Sean Martin is a Canadian cartoonist, set designer, and graphic designer, best known for the Doc and Raider comic strip series which appeared in LGBT publications in the 1980s and 1990s....
. Published in newspapers and magazines for LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
audiences beginning in 1987, the strip's main characters were Doc and Raider, two gay men who began the series as roommates but eventually became a couple. Doc was a writer, while Raider was a construction worker.
The strip was usually drawn as a single panel, although for some more complex stories Martin used a multipanel format. Some scenes were set in Toronto's gay village, such as the steps of the Second Cup
Second Cup
Second Cup is Canada's largest Canadian-based specialty coffee retailer, operating more than 360 cafés across Canada. Its headquarters are in Mississauga, Ontario. Founded in 1975 by Tom Culligan and Frank O'Dea, Culligan eventually purchased O'Dea's shares. After building it to a 150-store chain,...
at Church and Wellesley
Church and Wellesley
Church and Wellesley is an LGBT-oriented community located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is roughly bounded by Gerrard Street to the south, Yonge Street to the west, Charles Street to the north, and Jarvis Street to the east, with the core commercial strip located along Church Street from...
. In others, they Raider takes part in a rodeo.
The series, while primarily humorous, also addressed serious issues in the gay community. During the strip's run, Raider was gay-bashed
Gay bashing
Gay bashing and gay bullying is verbal or physical abuse against a person who is perceived to be gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender . Such abuse is used also to bully heterosexual persons and persons of non-specific or unknown sexual orientation.A "bashing" may be a specific incident, and one...
, and Doc tested positive for HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
. Towards the end of the strip, Doc's HIV status became a strain on their relationship, and a fight between the two erupted into domestic violence
Domestic violence
Domestic violence, also known as domestic abuse, spousal abuse, battering, family violence, and intimate partner violence , is broadly defined as a pattern of abusive behaviors by one or both partners in an intimate relationship such as marriage, dating, family, or cohabitation...
. In the final strip, Doc and Raider had reconciled and Raider asked Doc to have unprotected sex
Barebacking
Bareback is a slang term to describe acts of sexual penetration without the use of a condom.The term comes from the equestrian term bareback, which refers to the practice of riding a horse without a saddle...
, although it was never revealed whether this in fact happened.
In addition to the regular strip, Doc and Raider appeared in safer sex education campaigns in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The strip's appearance in newspapers and magazines around the world also allowed it to underwrite gay-related causes, everything from an arts festival in Scotland to a hospice in New Zealand, thanks to an arrangement Martin had with each publication: they were free to run the comic as they wished, but they had to put something back into the local community as compensation. It's estimated that Doc and Raider raised somewhere in the neighbourhood of $750,000 during its run. Two books were also published, Doc and Raider: Caught on Tape in 1994 and Doc and Raider: Incredibly Lifelike in 1996.
The regular strip was retired in 1997, although in 2002 Martin created two standalone stories featuring the characters, which were published in two anthologies sold to raise money for the Little Sister's Defence Fund
Little Sister's Book and Art Emporium
Little Sister's Book and Art Emporium, also known as Little Sister's Bookstore, but usually called "Little Sister's," is an independent bookstore in the Davie Village / West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, a predominantly gay community...
. More recently, he has redesigned the characters in a more contemporary cartooning style, and has worked on an animated
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
cartoon starring the redesigned characters.
Recently, Martin has begun releasing new strips as a webcomic
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
on his blog. As of September, 2011, due to continuing troubles with Blogger's new image handling, Martin moved the blog to WordPress.
Filmmaker Randy Riddle released Raider in Canada: A Portrait of Sean Martin, a documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
about Martin and the strip, in 1998.