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Schlock Mercenary #5
The Scrapyard of Insufferable Arrogance
Captain Tagon and Admiral Andreyasn need payroll and parts before their little fleet falls apart. But when they finally do locate honest work and military surplus equipment it may all prove to be far, far more trouble than it was worth.
This is the fifth print collection of Schlock Mercenary the epic space opera delivered four panels at a time.
80 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2009
1 person is currently reading
53 people want to read
About the author
Howard Tayler
48 books169 followersHoward spent most of his happy childhood in Florida where he was on the swim team in grade school, and in a rock band in high school. He graduated in 1985 and moved to Utah to attend Brigham Young University.
After two years there, he served two years as a missionary for the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons), after which he returned to school at BYU and decided to move to Provo permanently after graduating and getting married.
He currently works full-time as a cartoonist, writing, drawing, and coloring Schlock Mercenary , as well as doing comics for assorted corporate clients.
He is married to author and editor Sandra Tayler.
See the author page on Schlock Mercenary website
After two years there, he served two years as a missionary for the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons), after which he returned to school at BYU and decided to move to Provo permanently after graduating and getting married.
He currently works full-time as a cartoonist, writing, drawing, and coloring Schlock Mercenary , as well as doing comics for assorted corporate clients.
He is married to author and editor Sandra Tayler.
See the author page on Schlock Mercenary website
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
March 25, 2015
Petey is back! Woo Woo! As I read these my grin stays on my face pretty much constantly now. Either I'm getting into the humor as it was meant to be had, or the writer is getting much better with time. Perhaps its a little of both. Plus I got myself a printout of the 70 maxims (or such as has been written, yet) to stare at whenever I need a little pick me up. I'm becoming a fanboy. This is cool.
August 27, 2011
Superb and full of snark as usual, and with the added bonus of one of my favorite characters returning towards the end!
October 14, 2012
I enjoy Schlock Mercenary more than any other comic. Even in its early days it had great stories that were both humorous and interesting. That being said, however, it is fun to see how much Howard Taylor has grown as a writer over the phenomenal length of this comic. The early comics feel haphazard and thrown together. The art is barely good enough to not hurt the eyes, the writing is barely good enough not to feel awkward. The saving grace is the fact that the characters are entertaining, likeable, and hilarious.
In The Scrapyard of Insufferable Arrogance I start to catch a glimmer of the story teller that Howard Taylor will become. His current comic is in the middle of the only interesting zombie story I’ve ever read and his ability to tell a story has grown exponentially since those first comics. This book shows us a sort of transition phase on his path to become the storyteller that he is now.
But it’s still just a glimmer. It’s somewhere in between that crazy time of just flinging comic strips about in a sort of controlled chaos and his current method of tightly plotted character dramas (with guns, action, and humor… in every strip).
Because of that the story feels weak. It lacks that intensity of craziness that early Schlock has and it hasn’t yet gained the depth and character that later Schlock has.
However, a weak Schlock is still stronger than most everything else. I enjoyed this book — especially the bonus story in which Schlock basically condenses the entirety of economics into a three page comic strip, with hilarious results. I would even recommend this book.
Which brings me to the next ‘problem’ I have with these comics. When I tell people that the main character is an animated pile of peat they seem to lose interest right away — this is what actually made me start reading the comics. If this fact concerns you please note that there is only one animated pile of peat and many humans (and other aliens).
If you read Schlock Mercenary sooner or later it will make you laugh and then, if you stick around long enough, it might even make you cry.
In The Scrapyard of Insufferable Arrogance I start to catch a glimmer of the story teller that Howard Taylor will become. His current comic is in the middle of the only interesting zombie story I’ve ever read and his ability to tell a story has grown exponentially since those first comics. This book shows us a sort of transition phase on his path to become the storyteller that he is now.
But it’s still just a glimmer. It’s somewhere in between that crazy time of just flinging comic strips about in a sort of controlled chaos and his current method of tightly plotted character dramas (with guns, action, and humor… in every strip).
Because of that the story feels weak. It lacks that intensity of craziness that early Schlock has and it hasn’t yet gained the depth and character that later Schlock has.
However, a weak Schlock is still stronger than most everything else. I enjoyed this book — especially the bonus story in which Schlock basically condenses the entirety of economics into a three page comic strip, with hilarious results. I would even recommend this book.
Which brings me to the next ‘problem’ I have with these comics. When I tell people that the main character is an animated pile of peat they seem to lose interest right away — this is what actually made me start reading the comics. If this fact concerns you please note that there is only one animated pile of peat and many humans (and other aliens).
If you read Schlock Mercenary sooner or later it will make you laugh and then, if you stick around long enough, it might even make you cry.
January 10, 2010
Hmm, Toasters! This one fits a bunch in it's pages, CSI parody, Kreelie Conspiracy, The ever present battle of the toilet seat, not to mention stealing from the psycho bears. Hey, Psycho Bears would be a good name for ship.
Oh and the bonus story is a Economics lesson, Shlock style. I need Howard Tayler to translate my textbooks for me. A little foooooom would go a long way.
Oh and the bonus story is a Economics lesson, Shlock style. I need Howard Tayler to translate my textbooks for me. A little foooooom would go a long way.
August 15, 2013
There we go. Back to the awesome, "stand up and shout" surprise saving grace and introduction to epic storyline. This one ended with a bang, and there is even a panel of faux-fan reaction which mirrored my own. Good job, Howard.
April 2, 2020
The series continues to be fun. I'm enjoying the ride. Only 6 more years to catch up. :)
November 13, 2011
Awesomely good fun! Love the snarkiness and the intrigue.
December 31, 2013
I have enjoyed the online comic and found this at the library. I enjoyed reading and re-visiting the Schlock universe.
July 6, 2015
I don't often read these collections, but Howard Tayler's talent for humor never disappoints. I usually buy them when I see him at conventions. They're worth it.
February 5, 2024
Mercenaries doing mercenary things. These guys will do pretty much anything if there's money at the end of it. And this book has them doing some unexpected things, like attempting to beat a murder charge, stopping a group of alien slave-traders, and dealing with semi-sentient (and bad tempered) toasters. Add in an encounter with megalomaniacal koalas and you have yourself a very good time.
October 10, 2020
Incredibly intelligent and (as always) amusing.
January 20, 2024
Loved this so much! Just a good romp in a sci fi universe with a blob for one of the characters. Going to read some more of these!
September 20, 2021
The plot in this one was less interesting and less exciting than some of the past ones, but it led up to something that promises to create a lot more fun in future stories to make up for it, so I suppose it was worth it. :)
8/9/17 Review
I tried exploring other web comics after discovering Schlock Mercenary, but I think it's ruined me. None of them seem quite able to measure up to this one.
2/27/16 Review
I love that, of all the characters who've died, Petey's the one we missed the most.
Anyway, I found this one to be just as enjoyable as the last one's. Fantastic characters, great humor, legit science, and there's even a fun storyline to back it all up. It's far and away more than your average comic!
8/9/17 Review
I tried exploring other web comics after discovering Schlock Mercenary, but I think it's ruined me. None of them seem quite able to measure up to this one.
2/27/16 Review
I love that, of all the characters who've died, Petey's the one we missed the most.
Anyway, I found this one to be just as enjoyable as the last one's. Fantastic characters, great humor, legit science, and there's even a fun storyline to back it all up. It's far and away more than your average comic!
November 14, 2021
This is, in many ways, a turning point in the series. It really kicks into full gear the major plot arc for the rest of the comic (which is still ongoing). Fun, fast paced, plenty of humor, a couple of tugs on the heartstrings, well written characters and strong world building.
August 12, 2011
Classic name.
April 20, 2013
Amazing!!! It gets better and better.
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February 7, 2017Schlock Mercenary never fails to make me laugh.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews