Scott DeLuzio: 00:00:03 Thanks for tuning in to the Drive On Podcast, where we talk about issues affecting veterans after they get out of the military. Before we get started, I’d like to ask a favor if you haven’t done so already, please rate and review the show on Apple podcast. If you’ve already done that, thank you. These ratings help the show get discovered so it can reach a wider audience. And while you’re there click the subscribe button so that you get notified of new episodes as soon as they come out. If you don’t use Apple podcast, you can visit DriveOnPodcast.com/subscribe to find other ways of subscribing, including our email list. I’m your host, Scott DeLuzio and now let’s get on with the show.
Scott DeLuzio: Hey everybody. Today, my guest is an Army Drill Sergeant, so I made sure I got up early to get my PT in. I shaved, got my hair and regs and showed up for formation 15 minutes early. Not really. Anyways, my guess is PS Barlow, who is not just a Drill Sergeant, he’s also the creator of the popular G. I. Low comic. So, Pete, welcome to the show. Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself, your background, and things like that?
P.S. Barlow: 00:01:10 Well, Scott, thank you for having me on the show. As mentioned before, I’m an active duty Drill Sergeant and I’m also the author and illustrator of the comic G. I. Low; I’ve been in the Army for 10 years and I just reenlisted for three more. So clearly, I’ve got a thing going. I had been writing the comic since I was in basic training. I had been sharing the comic online for about five of those 10 years. I have no intention of stopping.
Scott DeLuzio: 00:01:40 That’s awesome. And so, for those listeners who might be living under a rock and don’t know your comic, tell us a little bit about what the comic is about and where you came up with the idea for it.
P.S. Barlow: 00:01:55 The idea for the comic naturally was born of the fact that I joined the Army. As indicated by the title G. I. Low, the comic is a way of giving a shout out to the more unmemorable soldiers or at least the least qualified. I wanted to do an inverse of GI Joe, and that’s exemplified by the central character, Sergeant Low, who is out of shape, unqualified, overwhelmed by responsibilities. I don’t have any intention of making comic about super soldiers or the highest speed soldiers, because let’s just be honest, they’re not as funny.
Scott DeLuzio: 00:02:40 Oh, that’s true. Yeah.
P.S. Barlow: 00:02:42 So, the comic itself got started when I was in basic training. I had a notebook because when you first get there, you get your notebook, which you can use for studying, writing down notes or writing letters to your battle buddies who you got “killed” because of your negligence. That was actually a thing. I don’t know if that’s still a thing in BCT, but in AIT, we don’t do that. It’s probably too creepy. I had a notebook and I’ve always loved doodling. I’ve never been very good at it. People who read my comic all attest to that. I didn’t want to doodle because, I just thought everything going around with me, it was funny and I just made it into a little comic strip for the real fans, the full title used to be the adventures of GI Low and then everyone just called it G. I. Low.
P.S. Barlow: 00:03:35 So I figures that I would just drop the adventures part. Bam gone. The first comic strips that I did, there was no story. There was no character. Low was just this very loose looking caricature of me. I’d been used to doing little characters and as the comic has evolved, Low has been able to stand up on his own two boots, and he looks less and less like me as the comic has gone on just because I wanted him to be his own standalone character.
