Son Lux collaboration through hearing: The Art Assignment

The Toby Curse

It seems to me that people named Toby are cursed, within the realm of fiction. It is the same for any spelling variation. They simply have it bad. Is there a running joke among writers to doom people named Toby?
Consider America's The Office (2005- 2013). Spoiler Alert. The last episode everyone is seen to have a somewhat happy ending except for Toby. It is bad enough he consistently suffers throughout the show, but in the end he's even worse off! Funny? No. Then again I didn't realize he was cursed by his name.
Toby Wyatt Flenderson 


Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997) One of the funniest reunion comedies out there. Funny like the office and therefore it suffers from the Toby curse. In this female lead comedy the Toby is female. She mistreated throughout the film by a character named Heather Mooney. Played superbly and foul mouthed by Janeane Garofalo. Although this Toby does get her year book signed as her better ending. Far from happy though.
Toby Walters


Arrested Development (2003-) has likely more than one curse on the repeatedly canceled show. One of those curses is the Toby curse, or in this case the Tobias curse. Tobias has nothing but bad luck. Worse luck than the other members of the dysfunctional family. True he hasn't lost his hand or gone to jail, but every word he speaks betrays him. That's a 24/7 curse that can only be explained by one mean writers and two maybe just maybe the Toby curse.
Tobias Funke


Gravity Falls (2012-) is an animated show dedicated to the mysteries of the town Gravity Falls. One mystery they have is, you guessed it, the Toby curse. Their Toby is a sad pathetic man who serves as running joke of sadness. If only he knew to change his name,
Toby Determined


It is not even safe overseas. The anime Naruto: Shippuden (2007-) has its own tormented Tobi. I'll not get into plot details but this Tobi is seriously cursed. He has the misfortune to change his name to Tobi. That sealed his fate.
Obito "Tobi" Uchiha


What caused this curse to happen? Surely, this wasn't always the case in TV and cinema? No, I think something caused the curse. Someone with power. Someone with skill. Someone with great singing ability, and their own kingdom of goblins.


Labyrinth (1986) the forefather of the Toby curse. I think that future aspiring writers saw this Jim Henson film and decided all those named "Toby" must have bad luck. Perhaps it didn't' influence Naruto, but the rest I actually think it is a possibility. The poor baby boy named Toby kidnaped by the Goblin King as played by David Bowie. That's the source of the curse. We need Jennifer Connelly to be Sarah and set this right.


Can you think of any other bad luck people named Toby under the curse of David Bowie? Let me know.

Art Assignment #12 Imprint

An unfinished story about yet another castle

One loved fairy tales, and the other believed in them. One was a romantic and the others heart was bare. These two decided to grasp the last days of the 20th century. They were to explore to old remote places of Europe. They were determined to discover a ruined castle. (One that was not guarded.) There they'd have an adventure. Their expectations were realistic. Just roaming from place to place would be an adventure in and of itself. If no castle was found it would not have spoiled their trip. Finding a castle was merely a fanciful wish, but you what they say about wishes...




The above was the start of a thriller graphic novel I never finished.

Make a Rug The 10th Art Assignment

Ohborn Castle Finale

Eric ran among the broken rocks of Ohborn. He could discern small traces of color swiftly evaporating through exposure to the sun's light. There was no way he could be fast enough to capture it, or to even see it clearly. His mind raced. He realized that nearly seventy people were in OhBorn when it collapsed. Perhaps one of them lived. Perhaps one did not perish underneath the weight. He frantically began shifting through what rocks he could move.

“You are wasting your time Eric. They are all dead. Let the professionals remove them!” Cried Claude.

“I have to know! There was residue on the rocks. There must have been more to the image! I need to know!”

“You are mad Eric! Even if their was such an image it is gone now.”

“I have to know. I have to know!”

A small portion of a representative's robes could be seen beneath a movable bit of rubble. “Could it be?” Eric thought, and hoped. It was Bernard. Out of all the people Eric could have found,but fate led him to Bernard. His body did not appear to be mangled, but upon closer inspection one could tell that he was crushed. Eric fumbled over him. Painfully willing to see any traces of life.

“Bernard, tell me. Tell me what you saw! Bernard! You need to live and put an end to all of this! People need to know the truth! Bernard!”

“Shouting at a dead man is in bad taste, Eric!”

A small glimmer appeared in Bernard's eyes.

“Bernard. What can you tell me?”

Bernard's lips parted. Eric drew his head to them, in order to hear.

“You're mm-my friend.”

The pit of Eric's heart burst. No news of the wall or its image. Just faint words of friendship.

Ohborn Castle Pt. Ten

The documentary continued on as planned. Eric did not speak to Bernard again until the final day of shooting. They met face to face, but not eye to eye, in the round garden in front of Ohborn.
"So this is it then." Mumbled Eric.
"Indeed it is." Said Bernard with his eyes now fixed on Eric.
Eric's face drew inward as though Bernard's eyes placed pressure on his face.
"The interior footage has been reviewed. They actually managed to record some stuff, but-"
Bernard interjected. "It was too dark and grainy to use."
"Right." Eric chuckles lightly. "They had to try."
Bernard nodded.
"I know it hurts you that I no longer follow The Artist, but-"
"All is well between us Eric. Except, I will try to persuade your return and you in turn will anger, and withdraw from me, and-"
Eric interjected. "You are obligated to bring me back to the Artist. I know, but did you ever consider..."
"Yes? Did I ever consider? You trailed off there."
"Never mind. I know the answer. Goodbye Bernard. I doubt we shall meet again." Eric offered his hand to shake.
"Goodbye Eric. We'll see each other again one last time. The walls will fall soon and then you will return. You will want to know." Bernard shakes Eric's hand.
"Goodbye Bernard." Said Eric gruffly releasing Bernard's hand.
With that, Eric left Ohborn castle. That afternoon he boarded a train with Claude headed for Paris. He was to fill a post at an art institute there.
"I am dead! Please keep the sun out of my face. I want to sleep." Moaned Claude.
"No one is stopping you from pulling the shade." Said Eric annoyed.
"Are you kidding? Whenever we take this route you must see the castle as we pass by, or did you forget?" Argued Claude.
Eric angrily pulled at the shade. In his wrath he failed several times to successfully pull it down ,but once it was done his frame and face relaxed. Eric was not tired, but the dark was soothing. His eyes would never see Ohborn again. He would leave it as the ruin it is, but then a strange rumbling twanged beneath his feet.
"Claude, do you feel that?"
"Hah?" snorted Claude."
"The floor is rumbling."
"We are on a train, Eric!"
"That's not it! The metal..."
Eric gasped as iron rivets began to tremble. No sooner did he observe that did the train screech to a halt. Eric listened out his carriage door. "The rails!" "There is something wrong with them." The rumbling beneath his feet grows, and terror strikes Eric's heart. One thought and one thought alone  permeated his thoughts. Ohborn Castle. Quickly he leaped back to the carriage window and ripped off the shade he so wanted closed moments before.
"We've gone too far I can't see Ohborn!" Eric shouted.
"Ah I knew you couldn't stand it." Hollered Claude after Eric.
Eric didn't stop to respond. He had to see if it was true. He had to run to get a view of Ohborn. He raced against a tide of people trying to make their way to the front. Each one of them furious with the engineer. None of them considering what was happening outside. Eric pushed and forced his way past. He found an exit and kicked it open, and out in the distance Ohborn still stood as small and ugly as ever. Eric laughed a breathless laugh. He hadn't noticed but even the ground beneath him had stopped trembling. He smiled at the castle, as one smiles at a friend who has played a prank, but his smile faded and his brow furrowed and his eyes squinted. The pitched walls of Ohborn were crumbling, and a great cloud of dust swallowed it from view.
"Claude!" Shouted Eric as he freely ran back to his carriage. "We need to get off this train Claude, now!"