Just a little 7.62mm abdominal surgery. Because we are all about the subtle nuances.
We kinda had fun with this page. Maybe you can tell. I got to use some of my blood and gunfire effects (including the Blood Pumpkins.) Max actually did his own thing with the acting of the querulous hostage and left it to me to come up with dialogue to fit. Always down for a challenge.
Speaking of challenges, he and I have also written a spec one-hour live-action Countdown/Crisis Strike TV pilot script. We deliberately retconned our own work so that we could get fun characters like Letoa and Cricket into Episode One, hint at Max’s backstory motivations, and set up Sophie’s character a bit more. A great exercise, even for our own webcomic purposes. The fact that we’ve written it means nothing at the moment; the script is a spec, and it is currently off with my agent who will (hopefully) submit it to places that can handle a brutally violent subtly nuanced series like this.
VOTEY! (This latest is another of Max’s Life Painting studies, and while tastefully done, it is somewhat NSFW.)
And more below!
Dude, Our Skywhales Are Way More Majestic Than That
Just as a bit of a mindbending transition from the page above, I wanted to share Max’s latest commercial project. It’s for Travel Oregon and looks very Studio Ghibli-esque; though it definitely has Max’s own art style in the human characters. (With the yellow Fiat 500 being a nod to Lupin III.) Max confesses that he was a bit argumentative during the boarding phase – he being a Miyazaki fan from way back (I believe he and his brother played our VHS versions of Valley of the Wind (Nausicaä) and Castle in the Sky (Laputa) about nine million times apiece) he felt they were getting a bit too Ghibli at a few points and he wanted to be a little less obvious. But the clients were insistent that it was a homage, not a ripoff – and they were the clients. So he did it as they wanted, and to judge from the audience reaction they turned out to be right. And he has to admit he was pleased with the result. (Although sad that Isao Takahata just passed away: RIP to a genius.) Check out the commercial below!
Bobservations
Judge, Jury, and Executioner
Annnd speaking of shooting people directly in the forehead, I was on call for Jury Duty this week. Don’t know about where you live, but here in California they’ve made it almost impossible to get out of Jury Duty, and it’s annoying as heck. My daughter-in-law is an medical professional and she cleverly reschedules hers for the periods around Thanksgiving or Christmas. She theorizes that no judge or lawyer will want to start getting a trial underway during the holidays, and since many other people also pull this ploy, this means the jury pool is huge during that time, reducing the risk that she’ll actually be called.
I had no patience for such antics, but I also had no desire to actually go into a courthouse. The last time I was on call they made me physically show up on site and crammed me in a room full of people, at least 80% of whom had some sort of foul disease involving phlegm. It was worse than airline travel. Hell, it was worse than a convention. The fact that I was not actually chosen to be on a jury did not stop me from coming down with a massive cold that lasted weeks.
This time I registered online, and each day after 7PM I had to check to see if they were going to drag me in. I cringed every time I hit the button for Reporting Instructions, and exulted each time it said I did not have to physically attend the next day.
Until Thursday evening rolled around and I clicked the button – I did not have to report on Friday! I was done! I was free! Yay? So what is this strange feeling…?
You got it. I realized I was actually offended. What the hell? Why was I not chosen? What was wrong with me? I WANT TO BE ON A JURY, DAMMIT! I WANT TO PLAY GOD WITH PEOPLE’S LIVES!
Maybe next time.
— Bob out
RIP badass mustache doctor, you punched a murderous gunman in the face.
“You almost broke my glasses!” Kerrist. This guy made me think of a panel Freakangels where the FA’s are trying to decide where to interrogate one of their own Kaitlin(“Proper Cop”) shows them a water-filled pit that sets them all off: “It’s HORRIBLE!”, “It’s TORTURE!”, etc. to which Arkady says “IT SMELLS OF POO!” Hee, hee, hee. That “Arson, Murder, Jaywalking” moment just made me crack up. (Here’s the TVTropes link for those who are interested: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ArsonMurderAndJaywalking )
Dude, MAX is behind those ads? I actually thought it WAS Studio Ghibli. We’ve been getting practically bombarded with them in Tacoma. Seriously, I prefer them to those damn ads that got that ‘cottage cheese’ song STUCK in my head
Yeah, when the bad guys have already started executing hostages to prove their resolve, that is not a good time to call attention to yourself.
Anyone else wondering if this situation is going to result in another tankport?
Please don’t be dead Dr. Rhodes. Please don’t be dead Dr. Rhodes. Please don’t be dead Dr. Rhodes. Please please please.
Two-three rounds from an AK at point blank range. If he isn’t dead now, he will bleed out in another minute or so.
Maybe they can get him to a hospital in time.
I mean Max can stop his heart, maybe he gets saved in some kind of scientific way or becomes a ghost that follows Max around. I don’t know. I just really like the Dr. Rhodes.
I’m thinking he’ll probably come back as a ghost to help with this situation but then I’m betting that he’ll move on to the afterlife.
The forehead action, and your comment, reminded me of a highly effective, but fa less aesthetically advanced, commercial about foreheads – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_SwD7RveNE
indeed, another one of the all-time great commercials…
Bob, you have to understand the way a US jury trial works:
Lawyers hate experts, or anyone who is going to ask questions. The ideal juror is someone that can be swayed with a nice argument, never mind the facts. Ask around. When was the last time a doctor, lawyer, or really any professional was on a jury? It’s pretty rare, not even including how valuable their time is (ie likely to call jury a financial inconvenience) because the law HATES jury nullification and hates dealing with jurors asking tough questions about the case. The ideal jury is lower middle class and blue collar. They can be steered.