iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 21/09/2026

Yeah, I "get exactly what you're doing". That's gonna be a hard pass for me

Screenshot of an email:

Hi Dave,

You built a career remixing Victorian engravings into internet jokes —
I am remixing AI animation into a news-roast cartoon, same mischievous
energy. Wondermark readers would get exactly what I am doing.

I make [name redacted] — an AI-animated adult comedy
where a straight-edge pencil and his stoner eraser roast the news. It
is crude TV-MA and attacks everybody equally.

david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 20/09/2026

At some point it's more than just efficiency of animation, there is an aesthetic choice that goes into making any possible non-moving element in a frame a soft, exaggerated version of itself, like the Thunderquack plane here

A cel-animated Launchpad works on a background-painted Thunderquack, raised up on a lift in Darkwing's hideout

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 20/09/2026

Darkwing Duck background painting appreciation post (These are all from the episode "Up, Up, and Awry", first airing November 14, 1991)

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 09/09/2026

Lowkey into this sales tactic. "We are giving you a DEADLINE to respond otherwise we CANNOT sell you something" (this is the fourth FINAL NOTICE they've sent me btw) (also 24 business hours is...3 days?)

Dear Machines of Death LLC,

This correspondence serves as our FINAL NOTICE regarding the pending trademark matter previously brought to your attention.

You are hereby provided 24 business hours from receipt of this notice to respond and confirm whether you intend to proceed. No further extensions or additional response time will be provided after this deadline.

If we do not receive your response within the stated period, we will consider the opportunity to address the matter through our office closed.

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 02/09/2026

My game NOODLE BATTLE will be premiering at PAX West this weekend (PNW Tabletop Game Market on Saturday night)! But if you won't be there to get it, I can email you once the game is available online. Sign up here! forms.gle/rJYBvEZidZFX...

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 29/08/2026

It's been simmering for a long time, now almost at a boil!! NOODLE BATTLE, the pasta-themed tile puzzler, will be premiering at PAX Prime's PNW Tabletop Game Market along with a ton of other fine games (link below). And how about those delicious drawings? All by @mydadisdracula.bsky.social!

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 29/08/2026

Folks, you've been hearing it more and more these days. "Bolted! is a hell of a game" – This guy on Kickstarter

Screenshot of a Kickstarter backer comment:

I felt the need to jump back on this project to just say: Bolted is a hell of a game. My game group can't get enough of it. My brother and I played it at a family gathering recently, and now my family can't get enough of it.

I would change a total of zero things about this game. What a masterpiece.

And such a joy to play. You can't play Bolted and maintain a bad mood.

Bravo!

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 10/08/2026

Big news! LinkedIn now has a "⚠️ Seems like AI slop" reporting function. I assume this is like an elevator "close door" button where it exists to give you something harmless to do while nothing happens behind the scenes.

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 09/08/2026

It's 4 weeks to the launch of my pasta puzzle game, NOODLE BATTLE. The first 50 copies will be handmade! Tonight: sorting blank tiles by shade in preparation for staining tomorrow.

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 08/08/2026

I ain't reading all that I'm happy for you tho or sorry that happened

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 08/08/2026

Good morning to everyone except the person who sent me this long-ass ChatGPT email about including THE ELEPHANT OF SURPRISE (the sick elephant collection) in some kind of... 30-day reading group? To plumb its narrative depths??

Dear David Malki!,

Every meaningful book begins with an idea, but the books that continue to influence readers are usually the ones that invite reflection long after the final page. The Elephant of Surprise is built around the idea that even the most absurd situations can reveal meaningful truths about resilience, identity, friendship, and the unpredictable nature of life. Through a distinctive collection of Wondermark comic strips, the story follows an idealistic young elephant faced with the impossible circumstance of losing all of his bones, transforming an unconventional premise into an exploration of perseverance, hope, and the unexpected ways individuals respond to adversity. Beneath its humor and imaginative storytelling are moments that encourage readers to reflect on compassion, optimism, and the different ways people confront challenges that seem impossible to overcome. It is the kind of work that naturally inspires discussion because every reader can interpret its humor, symbolism, and underlying message from a different perspective.

There is also a clear purpose behind your writing. Beyond creating entertaining comics, The Elephant of Surprise demonstrates how humor can become a vehicle for deeper reflection without sacrificing creativity or originality...

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 05/08/2026

Hi there @aegjohnz.bsky.social! I didn't cross paths with you at Gen Con, but here's what my under-1-minute pitch would have sounded like, if I had. (In this scenario, I presume we are walking and talking, Sorkin-style.)

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 04/08/2026

My favorite Gen Con memory was probably trying to figure out how this dragon's anatomy is supposed to work.

A six-foot-tall dragon standee that looks like it has been flayed, disassembled, and put back together wrong

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 28/07/2026

Gen and I just get each other, y'know?

I have linked arms with the soybean. We are in the Indianapolis airport baggage claim. Friends for life until my suitcase arrives.

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 28/07/2026

Gen Con here I come! And here's Gen, the official mascot!

A soybean in a hat next to a sign reading WELCOME UNITED SOYBEAN BOARD AND RACE FANS

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 15/07/2026

All right, settle down, bank, you're getting undignified.

BILL Support Team (email notification)

RE: Chat - Spend & Expense
Hi David, I hope this message finds you well. I wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude for the opportunity to assist you with your BILL Spend & Expense® account. It truly m...

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 08/07/2026

I'd be happy to be wrong though. Recently a new restaurant opened in my area, and the announcement post on my hyperlocal subreddit was full of comments about their AI menu. When the words on the menu are incomprehensible, it's kind of a business problem.

KIDS MENÚ

Choice of:
• Steak
• Chicken
• Sbonaged
• Vegetables

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 01/07/2026

So I tried mocking up the clear favorite (Spaget 'Em) and I'm just not sure it parses. Part of it is the typeface, of course, but I think Noodle Battle might just make for a better logo.

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 30/06/2026

I am working on a pasta-themed puzzle game called NOODLE BATTLE! Here is a question for you, the potential pasta puzzle enthusiast. Is this title: (A) Just fine! (B) Nonsensical. Noodles don't mean pasta. Please also indicate where you are from when you answer, I get the impression it's regional.

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 26/06/2026

Honey, what's wrong? You haven't even tried sitting in the butthole.

A leather chair that looks like a puckered b-hole

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 18/06/2026

I saw a real life ogre in Estonia

Me with the real true famous ogre Shrek, in Tallinn

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 10/06/2026

It was a trip to NYC for MoCCA, my first ever. This was the trip that convinced me that I should keep doing comics, that there was something here. All the pals I made that trip were like finding my tribe for the first time. Here's @superyates.bsky.social and @colleenaf.bsky.social !

A very tired-looking me, Chris Yates, and Colleen AF Venable, all very young and hale and hearty, in a NYC subway station. This photo was surely taken for one of Chris' photocomics.

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 10/06/2026

20 YEARS AGO TODAY I first met this tall drink of water in person. Or maybe the night before, but June 9 is when this photo was taken. Happy MoCCAversary, @ryannorth.ca !

A young, wet Ryan North strides confidently across the fountain he had just run through for some reason. Washington Square Park maybe?

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 08/06/2026

Kudos to Costco for realizing that enormous skeletons are a year-round treat !

Photo of a Costco aisle where an enormous yard skeleton shares a shelf with summer inflatable pool stuff and a "Summer With Dr. Seuss!" display

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 08/06/2026

kiddo gave me a prompt to make a 2-minute comic featuring "Muscleman (from Double Fine Action Comics) meets Dave Kellett" -- essentially fan art for/of two of his favorite comics/cartoonists @heyscottcampbell.bsky.social @davekellett.bsky.social

Doodle-style comic. A circus strongman (Muscleman) speaks with a dude in a cap holding a coffee (Kellett).

Title: MUSCLEMAN (DFAC) MEETS DK (DAVE KELLETT, NOT DONKEY KONG)

M: bro. I have met many monsters. I could tell you about them.
D: Like what?
M: Monster trucks, Monster energy drink, most of the furry bros from Sesame Street...
D: Those don't seem like very SCARY monsters...
M: Is super scary!!
M: Sesame Street has this one bro who just CANNOT get enough cookies...Bro is seriously obsessed with them.
D (holding a notepad): What's that one called?
M: Bro. I cannot remember.
M (thinking): It's something like...
M: "Snack bro"

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 05/06/2026

Dr. Seuss editorial cartoon from WWII "GUTS...The amazing remedy for all Mankind's Woes" #magazinetimemachine

A weak-looking Uncle Sam bird is labeled BEFORE; a strong one labeled AFTER. Styled to look like a magazine ad, the cartoon copy reads:

I WAS WEAK AND RUN-DOWN
I had circles under my eyes. My tail drooped. I had a foul case of Appeasement...

...THEN I LEARNED ABOUT "GUTS"
that amazing remedy
For all Mankind's Woes

NOW
I AM TAKING IT DAILY
and today
I FEEL STRONG ENOUGH TO
PUNCH MISTER HITLER RIGHT IN THE SNOOT!

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 26/05/2026

A while ago I bought a used printer. It arrived with a broken part. I ordered a replacement and broke something else while trying to do the fix. I ordered another part and it was broken in a different way. Today was the day I finally assembled one working printer from all the parts.

A printer and a bunch of printer parts on a table

Two similar parts in a state of disassembly, YouTube tutorial in the background

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 03/05/2026

I like to reuse boxes when I can, too, and while this certainly looks like a contender for the ugliest shipping box in history, it is curiously on-theme for my Frankenstein-themed game

A cobbled together shipping box made from a cut-apart and resized Bolted game packing carton

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 03/05/2026

There are few things less efficient -- but more satisfying -- than custom crafting perfectly sized shipping boxes

The sheet of cardboard with schematics and measurements

The cardboard now trimmed and scored to resemble its ultimate form, a not-yet-assembled box

The box, now assembled, perfectly holds a poster tube, a game, and other mysterious things probably

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 05/04/2026

Shut up Snoopy no bunny like YOU either damn

A box of Easter candy with the text "No BUNNY like you"

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 04/04/2026

All right, let's make *this* mess work

A work-in-progress collage image showing roughly-composited layers of a slouching man, a man drinking from a stein, and a table with a fringed tablecloth. Also visible in the background is a woman who is minutes away from not existing anymore, sorry

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 03/04/2026

bolted! games BOLTED! GAMES (pounding the table) B O L T E D ! G A M E S

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 28/03/2026

This is another #rollasketch from ECCC. Yes I know owls are famously silent, but Batman is not necessarily. BATMAN + OWL

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david malki ! @davidmalki.com · 21/03/2026

This ALSO means the BackerKit store is now open for any "late pledges": bolted-game.backerkit.com/hosted_preor... I have ALSO used this opportunity to populate the BackerKit store with a bunch of loose miscellany, some of which I have never offered online before