Page 17 – We’ve Got Trouble!
UPDATE! 3.15.10
Once again, we have color, and for this one, I think it made all the difference. The only thing as a little continuity thing with Mike-One-Echo – I’ve never drawn him from this angle before, but as it turns out, none of the markings on his hull are visible from this angle, so he ended up looking rather plain. But that happens sometimes. The layout here was remarkably simple, and I think that the one- and two-color backgrounds in the first two panels were pretty effective from a graphic standpoint. I’m pretty happy with this page, overall. Note that Ryan Hoffman has been given the rank of Hauptmann in the Bundeswehr – the affiliation with Germany was per his request for his cameo appearance, and given that the UNA has a lot of exiles in its military, this was more than reasonable. And frankly, drawing in an actual person, though gimmicky, was refreshing, and so I think I may do it more often, probably on similar lines. Keeps the characters looking fresh. An appearance by Joost Haakman, author and artist of Semmie the Forest Gnome, is soming up soon, remember! And if you’d like to be in the comic yourself, well… just stay tuned, because futher opportunities will be coming up before you know it!
A little housekeeping is in order. First and foremost, I’m getting sick of the two-week system I’ve been forced to use the past few months. Granted, I’ve always posted an update on Monday of SOME kind, but with a full pencil-to-color process taking two weeks instead of my original one, it’s making the story drag, and so starting this week I’m making a real push to get back on the one-week schedule. Now, I’m fortunate that my acutal “Real World” job is doing pretty well, and is becoming a lot busier now, as that keeps the paychecks coming in, and those pay for the upkeep on my Secure, Undisclosed Location, wherefrom springs the joys of 6-Commando. However, it also stresses me out. But in spite of this, I’m putting in a real push to get this back on its original schedule, and to try to help motivate me, I’ve begun a small-scale bit of advertising for 6-Commando. Advertising on the web is exceptionally cheap, actually, and so I figured a few dollars to try to bring in a few more readers was worth a shot. If you’re reading this and have been directed here by one of my banner ads, welcome! I hope that you will a) enjoy the comic as much as I enjoy drawing it (which is a LOT!); b) vote for it on the comic lists at right, as ranking on these lists helps get the comic noticed, and c) come back often!
In any case, we’re coming up on a particularly dramatic bit in the story as we approach the climax, so stay tuned. I’m not in a position to make promises, but if all goes to plan we’ll be back on our weekly schedule, with a full colored page ready a week from now! Until then, the army keeps rolling along, and so do I. Be well, all – see you next week!
[Original Post 3.8.10]: Well, here we are. Page 17, and things have finally gotten out of hand with Mike-One-Echo, who seems ready to go off the reservation! Making a guest appearance on this page is Ryan Hoffman, artist of Guten Tag and Mega West, who, with Joost Haakman, kindly filled in for me while I was off whipping around the Swiss Alps.
But I’m back now, and 6-Commando soldiers on! Being one to make my cameo appearances appropriate to the person appearing, being as how Ryan drew me a guest portrait of Mike-One-Echo, I cast Ryan as one of Mike’s engineering team. At his request, he is from the U.N.A., and when in color, will be revealed to be a German exile. There’s something proper about a German tank expert, as well, especially given that, in the 6-Commando Universe, there was no World War II. And though Ryan’s cameo happened to come up first, Joost, one of the earliest and most vocal supporters of this comic, has not been forgotten, and his appearance is coming up soon, as well!
I’m actually fairly pleased with this page, given that my return and reintegration into North American society was not the smoothest one. I immediately had to deal with a lot of crises at home and at work, keeping the proverbial plates spinning on the sticks. I almost managed to get this to color, actually, but it just ended up being impossible, as I had a last-minute visit from my brother and sister over the weekend, and of course, given the choice between work and play, who wouldn’t choose play on a beautiful Sunday afternoon?
Storywise, we’re approaching the climax of the first chapter, and all seems to be coming together as I’d planned it. As I script things rather more loosely than many other artists, it’s always a challenge to pace the story, and keep it interesting page-to-page while coming in on the requisite number of pages per chapter. Although I’m not thinking about the specifics of editing this chapter right now (by sheer force of will and on the advice of some very wise friends) I am still concerned that this chapter may need to be extended slightly to get in all the action I want to, and have it end on the proper note, and with the proper scene. As it’s a graphic novel, not a comic series per se, I’m willing to extend it however it ends up being necessary, but I still find myself feeling attracted to those succinct, 24-page units the traditional U.S. comic book offers. There’s something about their discipline that appeals to me. But if I go for 28 or 32 pages to get the proper story told, it won’t kill me, nor break the bank on printing, for that matter.
Ah, well. I’m not sweating it for now. My next step is to color this page, and then move forward. This chapter is getting pretty exciting, I hope, and we’re moving ahead full steam, so keep on tuning in! Until next week, everyone!
What do you know, a tank with a heart!
Really nice page M.! Ryan’s cameo appearance is also really cool, I like the idea of these cameo appearances a lot.
As always can’t wait to see it colored!
I’m glad it reads that way, as it’s what I intended! It’s hard to make a two-kiloton tank seem like a sympathetic character, but I think Mike is managing okay so far. I’m also glad that the cameos are working into the story as smoothly as they are – it’s a gimmick, to be sure, but having a good source of people to base characters on does keep it fresh, I think. Ryan was interesting to turn into a 6-Commando soldier. And he does stand out pretty well!
Thanks also for the link-in! Much appreciated!
–M
Hey man, I love your new banner ads at TopWebComics! Those look really professional. I’ve noticed the last week TWC has had some major traffic based on how fast the banners are being eaten through. When mine was up there it too almost a week to go through 100,000 impressions. It looks like it’s blowing through that in a few days at the moment. I wonder why.
Well, just wanted to drop by an say they look awesome! Hope it really helps bringing in some new viewers!
Actually, they were a bit premature – the campaign wasn’t supposed to start until Monday. So you got a sneak peek in!
The banners are kind of a test run for me, to feel out which formats and runs seem to have better impact. And though I debated designing specific artwork for the ads, I opted in the end to use pre-made art from the story (albeit modified), mainly because I’ve had a lot of occasions on which I check out interesting-looking banners to find that the story art doesn’t match it at all. So with these at least, you’ll be getting actual art from the comic.
Glad you took a look, though, and I’m glad you like them! I used to do freelance graphic design on the side and there was some advertising in there, so I have a little experience with logos, selling points, slogans, etc. We’ll see if they prove effective!
–M
uh oh. i wouldn’t want to mess with a pissed off Mike…
ha, the German exile actually doesn’t look too far off from me. cool stuff.
thanks, man.
Well, I did my best. Glad you approve, though!
–M
Hey M. page is looking good in color! I like the white background in the first panel since major Rucker seems to have a “blanc” mind on the matter.
Thanks for the encouragement, as always, Joost! The effect in the first panel was precisely that, by the way – I was thinking about what it felt like to be in the moment where something gos totally and unexpectedly wrong, and it’s kind of like that – like getting socked in the head. You don’t really notice anything beyond about a few inches from your face.
Speaking of faces, of course, I’m still working on the eyes. They seem just a little too piercing on Ryan’s character in this page – I think because the iris is too small and that makes the whites of the eyes seem really huge and high-contrast. I’ll tweak that later, though. Onward and upward.
–M
Nice job! Urging to see how the story goes.
As for the russian – it is realy a nice touch (basically because “you actually aren’t meant to understand it…” -M.Moyen). I appreciate your effort, but the problem is I do actually understand it…
I could help you make it look more like a natural speach (for those who understand)
Well, I knew it would only be a matter of time before a Russian-speaker happened upon this comic, and so the depths of my ignorance of the language are probably laid bare. I do hope it’s not total gibberish, but it probably is extremely formal and poorly constructed. What’s here is a combination of what little I know of Russian (not much) and some help from translating software (which is never a good bet for making it sound “real.”
For now, I’m not worrying that much about it, but in the near future, when I go to edit this, I may take you up on your offer – It was always my intention to have the non-English languages actually be truthful, and working out the bugs would certainly help!
–M
Holy crap.
An AI with Samaritan Syndrome.
Chalk one up for the guys that designed HIM!