UPDATE: Now we all know that this comic is called DEATH TRANSIT TANAGER, but this post was created as I was working on the story and figuring everything out. These pages were posted one-at-a-time for monthly subscribers and they’re a bit different from the final pages. I redrew some panels for clarity, added some stuff, changed things like font size, sound effects, etc. So this post is a peek into the process. Enjoy!
I’ve been writing and re-writing and re-thinking and second-guessing a story for an original graphic novel over the last (it’s gotta’ be more than) a year, and it’s been frustrating. Frustrating to not have it figured out by now, feeling stupid and incapable and like a hack, and frustrating to have nothing to show for it. And then the other night as I was going to bed an idea for a short story popped into my mind, and it was simple and manageable and just made sense. There was nothing complicated to work out, plot-wise. And I started to write it and it made me happy.
And since I’m locked down here like the rest of you with the comics industry at a stand-still, I decided to just start drawing it and see where it goes. I think I’m learning that I work best this way–going with my gut and following strong ideas rather than fully fleshing out longer, more complicated things. My brain just doesn’t grasp the big picture when it comes to stories; I live in the small moments. Scene by scene.
I won’t spoil the upcoming story for you but it’s kind of a cross between Metroid and Hellboy. I know it doesn’t seem like it right now but that’s what its DNA is. It doesn’t have a title yet, either. I’ve got some ideas.
And I’m also doing something I’ve been wanting to do since I was in Japan and consuming a lot of manga, which is to work in black and white with a lot of tones. New territory for me. I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun making comics. Working on the next batch of pages now and I’ll post them for you guys when they’re ready. This is all exclusive to patrons until the story is done, and then I’ll post it for everyone to read, so thanks for your continued support! Your subscription allows me to do this kind of stuff and I want to do so much more.
Enjoy! Feedback welcome, as always!
And here’s a copy of the script I wrote for this issue (I didn’t think there would be subsequent issues-just a simple stand-alone story). It was only going to be 12 pages but as I was drawing it I felt it needed more action in the middle. It’s very bare-bones, mostly just notes to myself with brief descriptions of action. And I didn’t even bother to finish it because I knew how I wanted it to end…
PAGE 1 A ship in space. VOICE Here we are. You sure this is it? VOICE 2 I’m sure. The ship approaches a huge asteroid. VOICE Long way off the trade routes. What were you doing out here? VOICE 2 I’m... embarrassed to say. Inside the cockpit now. The pilot is a woman. An older man sits behind her. PILOT You’re embarrassed? MAN I... I followed a woman out here. Someone I met on the web. I’d been... trading in bionium and— PILOT tsk tsk. Bad boy. MAN I know, okay? Lesson learned. PILOT Let me guess. She offered to move it at a good price and when you showed up she jacked you and took your cargo. MAN There it is. Down there. The man’s deserted freighter lays abandoned on the asteroid surface beside a huge crater. PILOT Not reading any life signs. MAN ... PILOT Putting ‘er down. The ship lands on the rock, kicking up dust. Inside the old freighter now. The door chugs open. The pilot enters wearing her full suit with helmet and breathing apparatus. PILOT Well she stripped everything pretty good. Even your backup battery cell. Doors are all on manual. There are two teacups floating in anti-grav. PILOT You invited her in? The man is beside her now. MAN It wasn’t just the trade deal. I was... she said she’d had a bad break-up. She said I was someone she could talk to. She hadn’t been able to really talk to anyone in a long time and I was the... the person that... PILOT ...show me the cargo bay. Inside the cargo bay now. It’s empty, as expected. The pilot looks around. PILOT Over here? The man gestures toward a far wall/bulkhead. The pilot examines the area and finds a lot of blood on the wall. PILOT (small) Ouch. She shines a light on the floor, looking around the area. PILOT Nothing here, Jack. You don’t remember anything else? MAN Nothing after that. The flashlight finds a blood trail on the floor. PILOT Here we go. She must’ve dragged you outside. Outside now. The pilot follows some drag marks across the dusty rock surface. The man is beside her without a helmet, which astute readers might notice to be weird. They look over the edge of the crevasse. The pilot looks down the hole. PILOT Frek. You’re not gonna’ rest until we go down there, I guess. MAN Sorry. PILOT Gonna’ need the grappling gear and the jump-drone from the ship. CUT TO: the inside of the crevasse. The pilot rappels down the side of the rock with the jump-drone hovering beside her. She checks her wrist which reads a depth of 6777 metres. MAN You think I’m stupid. PILOT Didn’t say that. MAN It’s just… you get to be my age, and… It gets lonely out here. A bit of conversation, some damned companionship now and then. You’d trade that for anything, you know?… Ah, you’re young yet. You don’t know. PILOT I know. She looks around and sees some light coming from a crack in the wall. She shuts off her flashlight to see if it’s actually another light source. It is. She peers into the crack. A huge, glowing space worm jets out of the hole. It has fangs. The pilot loses her grip on the rappel line and tumbles downward. She grabs the drone’s leg and they fall awkwardly onto a rocky surface, kicking up more dust. Light surrounds her. More worms. They rush in for the kill but she blasts them with the laser pistols holstered on her legs. Most of the worms scatter. One is cut in two and goops glowing blood all over the place. She bends down to look at a piece of equipment on the ground–looks like it came off a space suit. She picks it up and shows it to the man, who’s now standing beside her. PILOT Bad news, Jack. I don’t think there’s much left. The man looks at the ground where the suit parts are scattered. There are blood stains. PILOT Hang on. She’s on the ground, looking into one of the worm holes. There are bits of parts leading inside it. PILOT Can I get a scan here? The jump-drone goes into the hole, scanning in front of it. The pilot squeezes through the hole on all fours, following.
