The idea for this came to me when I was thinking about how kids like to bring pets home (though usually, fortunately, they’re small things like caterpillars). Alligators seemed more Dee’s speed.
And I never stopped being amused by the blurred line of animals and sapient animals. The Alligator is merely an animal, until Ted addresses him in the last panel.
I’ve always thought the way you played with expectations in this one was brilliant.
Did you intend the alligator to become a recurring character, or was this a one-shot gag that got out of control?
That’s a hard question to answer. Pretty much all the characters were one-offs, and the best stuck around. :)