Steve Jobs, superhero: Graphic novel meets iTunes service terms
Kapow! An artist turns the dull iTunes ToS nobody reads into superhero-level entertainment with homages to the Simpsons, Charlie Brown and Wonder Woman.
"Terms and Conditions" makes Steve Jobs the superhero in a comic written in legalese.
No one likes reading the software terms of service document. It's hard to understand, full of legalese and, well, painfully boring.
Steve Jobs looks right at home as Wonder Woman's sidekick in this page from "Terms and Conditions."
Artist R. Sikoroyak decided to make the iTunes Terms of Service document far more interesting by illustrating all 96 pages in the style of classic comic book and cartoon characters.
Sikoroyak transformed the lengthy document into the graphic novel "Terms and Conditions," published by Drawn and Quarterly. The novel hits shelves this week.
"The idea for this project was to play with the long form of the graphic novel, which has become so ubiquitous," Sikoroyak told Newsarama. "And it struck me that the iTunes Terms and Conditions would make a very unlikely comic. It's (in)famous for being very long, which is surely why it popped in my head. I loved the idea of using a well-known text -- in its entirety -- that everyone has heard about, but very few people have actually read."
Each page is drawn in the style of a well-known illustrator, from "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening to legendary comic book artist Jack Kirby. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs stars as the main character, which means he shows up as everyone from a bearded Snoopy to a Smurf.
Wearing his iconic glasses, black turtleneck shirt and blue jeans, Jobs can be seen as Golden Age Wonder Woman's sidekick; a thoughtful "Ziggy"; a small bearded child in "Family Circus." He even talks to My Little Pony characters.
Some references are easy to spot, such as Sikoroyak's nod to Garfield and Snoopy. Others -- like the artist's take on "The Gashlycrumb Tinies" artist Edward Gorey or "Brenda Starr" artist Dale Messick -- might take more of a comic book connoisseur to detect. The page done in the style of classic romance comics drawn by Don Heck and John Romita is downright hilarious.
The range of artist tributes here is impressive to say the least. After taking a look at Sikoroyak's comic, you may never read a company's terms of service the same way again.
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