McCloud credited Astro Boy creator Osamu Tezuka as a major influence on the book, making it one of the first manga-inspired American comic books.
After the premiere of his mime solo "Vlaas is zot" (Vlaas is crazy) in 1983, Hoste was approached by the BRT (Belgian Radio and Television) with the request to cooperate on a new children's programme for Sesame Street.
(The particular word *ZOT* may be a reference to the comic strip B.C. Alternatively, it may be an allusion to Walter Karig's 1947 novel entitled Zotz!, in which a person could point at anyone or anything, say "Zotz!" and make that thing or person instantly disintegrate.