So it seems like after only 65 chapters of nifty comics, Pete decided that new readers might need an introduction.

Make sure to remember that if you want to drag new daily readers in, safehouse 2 is the chapter to begin with.

This may seem like an unusual suggestion, but I would suggest to anyone who wants a taste of Sluggy Freelance's serial storytelling style before jumping into deeper waters should start with Oceans Unmoving 1 and 2. In my opinion, they represent a perfect median between being completely disconnected from the main story (my main complaint with Torg Potter, ironically), and being too deep in spoilers. Also its from a later period in Pete's storytelling evolution where the stories got longer and thus more like a novel than a short. Almost everything explains itself because the setting demands it to, and it stars only 1 of the comic's usual main characters while still fleshing out the cast very effectively. The only potential spoilers in the story actually serve to peak the reader's interest in previous stories, because it only amounts to hints of stories that a long term reader would know about. Re-reading it is acceptable, and will only heighten one's appreciation of the arc.

And of course, it helps that the story is (SPOILERS FOR OCEANS UNMOVING AND HOLIDAY WARS) literally taking place outside of time.

Yeah, I'm not sure I'd agree with that suggestion. I don't think they'd get a real feel for the comic from OU (and although it certainly has proved to be important to the overall sluggy plot, and I should probably go back and re-read it now, i know way too many people who quit the comic during OU)

True, the comic isn't like that All The Time. But it isn't consistent All The Time anyway save for its style and characterization. But more to the point, if you need to put up a sample story arc that can stand more or less on its own yet remain readable, OU is much better than Torg Potter. I think the sense of humor and drama are both encapsulated pretty well by OU; but all Torg Potter has is parody, which is only a fraction of what makes Sluggy *Sluggy Freelance*. Most of the people I know who dislike OU dislike how long it is and that Bunbun is the sole link back to the normal world, but everyone I know who dislikes Torg Potter finds it outright unfunny save for a few moments. And yes, that's my opinion of it as well.

Its kind of hard to find good self-contained story arcs in Sluggy that retain the element of drama, especially after the first couple years. Stories which I can point new readers to and say "basically this is a spinoff, see if you like it". Oceans Unmoving is like that. Torg Potter and Years of YarnCraft are both like that, but I question the quality of both and would recommend new readers to avoid those story arcs unless they are specifically interested in seeing a parody of Harry Potter and World of Warcraft respectively. If you can think of any other stories like them that don't rely on overly narrow parody, I would be welcome to hear about them (it has been a while since I've touched some parts of the archive myself).

Hmm... the one where they go to north carolina beach (Nag's Head?)? There's a good 'here's who is who' at the beginning of it if I recall correctly. But it's very old school.

Reading through the archives, i think http://www.sluggy.com/comics/archives/daily/020408 might be a good place to introduce someone...