Hello, queer zine lovers!
I must admit, I’ve been having a hard time with creative output lately. As the last semester of my senior year of undergrad comes to a close, I’m under a lot of pressure – I’ve been having trouble writing anything that makes much sense, I’m worried about my last ever undergrad finals (yikes!), and everyone keeps asking what I’m up to post grad (double yikes!)
And, of course, all of these things are on my plate at a time when I’m less motivated than ever. Well, I have a zillion things sure I would like to do, but oh my god, I’m exhausted from making senior thesis, and I’m also exhausted from the 4 years of nonstop 2 – to – 4 – week art project turnarounds! (…which can’t get me anymore! Hooray, graduation!)
This perfect storm has been a) leaving me unsure what to write about for Zine of the Gay, and b) walking into the archive every other Thursday afternoon looking like roadkill. Upon hearing all of this from me (and seeing me in roadkill-mode,) Milo asked if I could use some guidance on what to write about, and I was more than happy to hear what suggestions they might have.
Milo told me to check out today’s zine: Raptor Fancy. They mentioned to me that they thought it might be the perfect thing for me to read right now, so I pulled it out and gave it a read.
Raptor Fancy is one of the silliest things I think I’ve stumbled upon in the archive. For those who may be unfamiliar, as I was until Chris mentioned it to me, the title is a play off of Cat Fancy, a magazine catered towards cat lovers (one of many animal lover magazines no longer in print). Issue one of Raptor Fancy is a collection of many, many, many 2000’s-style Raptor Jesus memes (images in which the head of Jesus Christ has been replaced with that of a velociraptor, often accompanied by snarky or downright silly captions). Along with Even More Raptor Jesus Memes, volume two of Raptor Fancy includes several text excerpts detailing Raptor Jesus’s extended lore, including information about his licensure to perform miracles, his ability to turn water
into diet Fresca®, his position within the traditional biblical canon, and several other prayers, chants, and religious texts (several of which I have also found on online meme wikis such as Encyclopedia Dramatica.) Many of these are parodies of common religious songs or chants, such as:
Our God’s a Jurassic God
He reigns from 4chan above
With wisdom, power and lulz
Our God’s a Jurassic God
(I’m so sorry to be that guy, but I must note that, while they do star in the film Jurassic Park, the velociraptor was, in fact, alive during the Cretaceous period, which came after the Jurassic.)
This about sums up the contents of Raptor Fancy — Pages and pages of memes, spoofing paintings of and quotes/teachings from the Christian biblical canon. 
This zine was a really good comedic break from the world for me – each page had me giggling. It’s all just so weird! And, while reading Raptor Fancy, for just enough time, I forgot all about what has been stressing me out, everything weighing down on me. How can you be upset when looking at pictures of a velociraptor giving a sermon?
One other thing I want to touch on are the origins of Raptor Jesus. The phenomenon of Raptor Jesus memes began circa 2005, when the 
first Raptor Jesus edit was posted to the /b/ 4chan page, where it took off both on the basis of being a ha ha funny random picture, and as a criticism of Catholicism and Catholics. Although I have a lot of complex (and often negative) feelings about 4-chan, the people who frequent it, and the way in which 4-chan users tend to go about critiquing religion, I think it’s definitely interesting to think about freedom of expression and the freedom to create and enjoy “shocking imagery” (stay with me).
To many, seeing the head of a Velociraptor on the head of Jesus Christ was offensive and shocking. However, when the separation of church and state functions properly, there’s (thankfully) no way to ban anyone from making any silly images they please, and harmless images of Jesus with the head of a velociraptor, amongst many other things, can be born.
I think humor can be a really important tool for criticism, and it’s important that we retain our rights to do whatever we want to pictures of Jesus (and more broadly, to say and do as we please as we move through the world.) In volume 2, several memes deviate from the traditional religious Raptor Jesus format, instead utilizing the iconic uncle sam posters, alongside other traditional stars-n-stripes imagery with captions such as “Raptor Jesus for President” and “I want you to worship Raptor Jesus! Lol.” I’m thinking about the world right now, and looking back at Raptor Jesus makes me think about what I can do to images of people or icons I find distasteful, and poke fun publicly while being able to hind behind the “I’m kidding! What’s so wrong with Velociraptors, anyway? It’s just a picture!” shield.
Here is my own rendition of Raptor Jesus, spreading the good word and combining church and state.
Bam! Look ma, I just made queer art!
I think humor and low stakes creativity is something I need/want to focus more on right now, and I think that as we all move through the world, we should all strive to make whatever we can. Sometimes, you take on the biggest project yet of your entire career, and sometimes, you collect all of your favorite Velociraptor Jesus memes into a zine, and make yourself and those you love laugh. Both are vital! And a great thanks to @raptor_fancy, for curating a beautiful, hilarious, and thought provoking collection of sacred depictions of our lord and savior, Raptor Jesus!
Rowan (He/it/they) is an intern at QZAP in spring of 2026, focusing on Zine of the Gay posts specifically. He is completing just completed his final semester at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, and is a sculptor, zinester, and library lover. In their free time, Rowan likes to read, play puzzles and word games, and care for his concerning number of houseplants.
