Es Pep, Es Funny: The Story Behind the Beloved Peperoni
Story by Josue Ramirez
Edited by Abigail Vela
A black and white doodle of a weenie dog with an attitude and penchant for relational humor is how I would describe Peperoni. Better known as @Es.Pep, the comic is the artist, Asayne Malto’s ode to her pet Peperoni, the inspiration for the hilarious strip. I got to chat with Maltos, who shared more about herself as an artist, her love for her dog, and how it has translated into a popular online persona.
Born in McAllen, Texas, Maltos spent her childhood with her extended family in Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas. She visited on weekends or in the summer and helped out at her cousin’s piñata shop. “I learned how to do all of my paper mache work at my family’s piñata shop,” she mentioned. As a multimedia artist, Maltos works in several mediums but particularly focuses on mache sculpture in her fine art work. She was one of the fantastic artists in the Cuates de La Casa Exhibition. She is a student at UTRGV and hopes to be an arts instructor after graduating. Additionally, Maltos spends time sketching and doodling, drafting the latest adventure of Peperoni.
Healing and Love through Comics
While not a big fan of a particular comic other than those in the newspaper, Maltos considered comics the only feasible medium to tell the story of her pet, the weenie dog that took her heart. “She was my first dog, where she was just mine, and I took care of her completely. I just wanted people to know how much I loved her and how cool she was,” she stated.
Maltos began drawing Peperoni for fun right after she got her puppy and started sharing online. The comic underwent several iterations, from its storyline to its illustration style. One version portrayed herself as the main character and Peperoni as a sidekick. Another was drawn from the perspective of a dog thinking about dog things.
The drawing style also began with fully detailed, colored illustrations that were later reworked and transitioned to a black and white format. The comic style now feels loosely controlled, as the line work doesn’t always connect and seems thoughtfully rushed. She credits this change to a workshop she attended in 2022 with Mexican comic artist Iván Mayorquin, who inspired her to hone her style.
Although she stopped making comics for a spell, she began again after starting therapy. This led to the comic’s context combining Malto’s personality, as characterized through her dog. For Maltos, the doodles became a mindfulness technique she uses to be more present or to understand how she feels, particularly when she is feeling anxious. “It’s just like, scenarios that I’m in where I think certain things or I want to really make fun of a situation, but it is not appropriate, I guess,” she laughs.
Her Notes App is full of instances, ideas, or quips that she notices throughout her day, whether she’s laughing with friends or going to school. Maltos says it is therapeutic because, “It’s being in the moment.” This healing practice has also helped her share her love for one of her biggest inspirations, her pet dog Peperoni.
La Perrita del 956
With a refined style and voice, Peperoni took over as the main character, which added a barrier to the realness of the situations Maltos was portraying. “It made it a lot easier to see the different perspectives of things when I’m not seeing myself,” she shared. This combination results in an adorable comic strip that highlights some of our daily urges in situations that are genuinely the comedy of life.
The comics are shared online and range from single frames to longer strips. Some are humorous illustrations, such as the one showing Pep concentrated on a game of Five Finger Roulette, while others are story-based and biographical. A strip pinned on her Instagram account, for example, recounts the story of an elementary entrepreneur who found a niche among peers drawing big boobed cartoon characters and is caught by school staff. It is such a specific, absurdly unique situation with wonderful illustrations—it just screams 956 without proclaiming it!
Peperoni says what we all think and are too afraid to, which is why they’ve accumulated a large following online. Although there is no consistent scheduled release of her strips like the Sunday Comics, primarily due to her scheduling as a student, Maltos plans to create more comics and merchandise, including blind bags with stickers, during her summer break from school. She plans to continue Peperoni’s adventures and share her puppy’s persona in different ways, perhaps in a published book format.
Whatever the plan, Maltos is comforted by the public’s reaction to her comic because it makes her feel less alone about the awkward situations she finds herself in and the feelings they might encounter. Es.Pep is sure to bring a smile or lighthearted chuckle to your day and will only gain more notoriety for being such a badass. Follow them on Instagram at @Es.Pep—you won’t wanna miss what that lil weenie dog is up to.
