Indie Corner
Each week I'll (hopefully) spotlight a couple independent books I've read and may have flown under people's radar.
GHOSTED
Interesting, though too early to tell if it's my thing or not. Most of the first issue was spent establishing the main character, being given a job, and assembling his team. Character introductions all-around. Will definitely be checking out the next issue, and will decide from there.
INVINCIBLE
Dan and I always speculate on what will happen next in Invincible. We're always wrong, because Kirkman is full of surprises, and this issue proves that in spectacular fashion. Eve and Angstrom, Invincible vs Invincibles... fantastic.
TMNT: ALOPEX
I take every opportunity to talk about the IDW Turtles series, because I love it. The main series is great, and the micro series expands the world while simultaneously further developing characters. They're perfect companions. Here, we finally learn about Alopex, the white fox that's been showing up since practically the beginning. And, oh man, those that three panels.
DAY MEN
Kind of a dense issue, and I mean that in the best possible way. Some books you can read in a matter of minutes and quickly forget. For a first issue, there's plenty here to latch onto. Mystery, action, non-sparkly vampires, and both the main character and the series' world in general are well fleshed out here. I'll definitely be picking up the next few issues.
HALF PAST DANGER
World War II, Nazis, a secluded Pacific island, and dinosaurs. Issue three was out last week, but I actually read all three issues over the weekend. I'd been buying it, with the expectation it would be good, but hadn't actually read any yet. It's good, though the art could be a little better, particularly the faces. Pulpy goodness.
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Marlena
Part of this might see the light of day in some other form, but I've decided to radically change one of the characters in it, so who knows what it will look like the next time is surfaces. Not wanting to see it go to waste, I thought I'd share...
***
Marlena started down the corridor, thought better of it, and turned in the opposite direction. She wasn't ready to deal with the Samiri brothers yet, and wanted to stay well clear for the time being.
The job had gone badly, just like she told them it would when they hired her. Still, they had already put a crew together by the time they'd contacted her and were ready to move forward with or without her. Even though she knew the plan would never work, the money and desperation conspired to make her sign on. It had been four days since the authorities came crashing down on their crew, and she still hadn’t come up with a decent story to tell the Samiri’s about what had happened.
With no particular destination in mind, Marlena turned down one gray hallway after another until she found herself at one of the station's saloons. At the bar she ordered a bourbon, neat, dropped some coins, and took her drink to the darkest corner she could find. The habit was something she had picked up from her father, despite her every effort to be nothing like him.
Drowning her thoughts in alcohol, time slipped away unnoticed. It wasn't until a curious looking man entered that she took notice of her surroundings again. Human, clearly, but she couldn't guess which system he was from. His clothes would have made him stand-out on any human settlement, but on a station like this that trafficked in every variety of alien, not many would waste a second look.
He took a seat at the bar, and appeared to be striking up a conversation with the barkeep. They were too far away for her to hear anything, but she decided she needed to refill her glass, even though she didn't intend to drink it. Saddling up to the bar a few seats down from the mystery man, she caught the attention of the barkeep and motioned to the empty glass in front of her. Breaking away, the barkeep took a bottle from the shelf on his way toward her.
"What's his story?" she asked while he poured, without looking at the man she asked about.
The barkeep understood whom she meant easily enough. "Asking questions, mostly." Adding, "Only drinking water." with a scoff. He walked off, replacing the bottle on the shelf before she could ask any more.
"Where's our merchandise?" a garbled, booming, and accusational voice came from behind her. Marlena didn't need to turn around to put a face to the voice, she already knew who was there, and was thankful for the full glass in front of her. She drank deep.
"Qylex, Z'rak! I've been looking for you." She swiveled her chair to face them, maintaining an air of nonchalance and took another sip. She wanted to keep this cordial for as long as possible, but odds were that wouldn't last long. The Samiri brothers stood close, blocking any potential exit she might have had. They were Velneks, towering three meters tall and each weighing a few hundred kilos. Although they appeared to be bulbous slobs, billowing over with fat, she knew from personal experience they had more than enough muscle to make short work of her.
"More like trying to avoid us." Z'rak spat.
"Where?" Qylex forcefully repeated the question she was trying to dodge.
She drained the last of her glass and put it on the counter behind her. "I think you already know I don't have it." This thing was going sideways, and her mouth wasn't helping things.
The Samiri brothers each took a half step closer, their formidable height and girth encroaching that much more. "Where?!" came the same scratchy, guttural question as before.
"Impound." The word slipped delicately from her lips, and relief came over her like a wave. None of this was going as she had planned, but nonetheless, at least she has told them. The hard part was over, and together they could all move on now that the truth was out.
There came a sound, that began as a growl, became a scream, and then left the audible range of human hearing. Z’Rak stood silent while his brother expressed his rage. Only silence remained in the saloon once the scream had ended, and all eyes turning to the three of them.
To her surprise, it was the mystery man that broke the silence. "I believe there's a desirable outcome to be reached for all involved without resorting to violence." He was now standing directly beside Z'rak, though how he'd gotten there, Marlena hadn't seen.
Z'rak’s response swift and brutal, launching a meaty back-hand at the stranger. Marena winced, but the blow never came. Cautiously, she opened her eyes again to find the mystery man had effortlessly stopped the blow with only one hand. And his hand seemed to be glowing as well, if only for an instant.
“Ah, Velnek physiology. I had stated I wanted to avoid violence, so you’ll be rendered unconscious for the rest of this conversation.” Placing his free hand over Z’rak’s eyes, more light came forth, and Z’rak collapsed on the ground.
The facial structure of Velneks don’t produce anything humans would recognize as shock or surprise, but from Qylex’s uncharacteristic silence and inaction, she knew that’s what he was feeling. “I--” she felt compelled to say, but couldn’t find the words to finish.
The stranger was the first to speak again. Turning to Qylex he spoke is a clam and quiet voice, “Your sibling’s actions weren’t conducive to a resolution. I hope you’re more willing to conduct yourself in a civil manner.” He wasn’t. Suddenly regained his composure, Qylex reached for the knife at his hip, drawing it with a speed Marlena didn’t think was possible for a being his size. Firearms of all kinds are banned on Paragon 3, but that didn’t mean its many inhabitants were without weapons. Upon arrival, most switched to blade or bludgeon weapons, and Qylex was clearly not ignorant of the practice.
Ultimately, it proved futile. Qylex roared and angrily slashed at the man that had rendered his brother unconscious moments ago, but he stubbornly remained unmoving. Involuntarily, she shut her eyes once again, expecting a violent end. Instead of fleshing slicing open, Marlena heard an unmistakable THRUM and Qylex grunt. Her eyes snapped open again to see Qylex struggling to maintain this balance, and what appeared to be - couldn’t be - shields surrounding the stranger?
Qylex whirled to face them again, looking poised to strike again, but paused, appeared to weighed the situation mentally, and spat an insult at Marlena, “We’ll be back for you later, when your guardian isn’t around.” He kept the knife in hand, but turned and left the saloon, with his brother still on the floor.
Adrenaline had countered the effects of the bourbon for the last few minutes, but now the alcohol was reasserting itself in her system. Marlena needed to get out of here, quickly. With no product for the Samiri brothers, one on the floor, and other humiliated in a fight, things were looking considerably worse than earlier.
The stranger turned to address her for the first time, “I’m sorry things didn’t go better, this wasn’t my intention.” He looked slightly confused, as if he honestly didn’t know what had gone wrong. There were so many things she wanted to ask, so many she wanted to ask, or scream at him. But what came out next wasn’t any of them.
Pushing her face into his, “What, was that you trying to help?” Marlena found herself jabbing a pointed finger into his chest and slipping one of her legs behind his. “You stay out of my business.” She slammed him square in the chest with both hands, sending him reeling backward, tripping over her leg, and crashing into the floor. “And stay the hell away from me.”
It took all her strength not to look back as she walked out of the saloon. She wanted to see the look on his face, on all their faces, but she couldn’t look if she wanted anything she’d said to stick.
Once again traversing the one gray hallway after another, Marlena took the opportunity to go over everything in her mind again and again, trying to puzzle out what had happened and her next move. A personal shield? Had to be. The Samiri’s still had no product, she’d have to find something else or burn a lot of bridges to never have to see them again. Did he have a scanner in his hand? She hadn’t seen one. Marco will be even more upset now than when he found out about the botched job. The light - how could anything do that to be Velnek? She’d have to get off this station on the first ship leaving. Those clothes, there’s something about his clothes that...
It’s impossible. He couldn’t be. Her pace quickened, now with determination and a destination in mind. She had to leave immediately. Marlena barreled through the entryway to her quarters, only missing the door by a hair’s breadth as it slid out of her way. Once inside, she stopped, leaned against the door, and slid down it until she was sitting on the floor. She looked up suddenly to check the lock, and locked it - not that that could stop him. The scanner, the light, and shield, the clothes. Could he really be an Engineer?
She was in a whole lot more trouble than she thought.
***
Marlena started down the corridor, thought better of it, and turned in the opposite direction. She wasn't ready to deal with the Samiri brothers yet, and wanted to stay well clear for the time being.
The job had gone badly, just like she told them it would when they hired her. Still, they had already put a crew together by the time they'd contacted her and were ready to move forward with or without her. Even though she knew the plan would never work, the money and desperation conspired to make her sign on. It had been four days since the authorities came crashing down on their crew, and she still hadn’t come up with a decent story to tell the Samiri’s about what had happened.
With no particular destination in mind, Marlena turned down one gray hallway after another until she found herself at one of the station's saloons. At the bar she ordered a bourbon, neat, dropped some coins, and took her drink to the darkest corner she could find. The habit was something she had picked up from her father, despite her every effort to be nothing like him.
Drowning her thoughts in alcohol, time slipped away unnoticed. It wasn't until a curious looking man entered that she took notice of her surroundings again. Human, clearly, but she couldn't guess which system he was from. His clothes would have made him stand-out on any human settlement, but on a station like this that trafficked in every variety of alien, not many would waste a second look.
He took a seat at the bar, and appeared to be striking up a conversation with the barkeep. They were too far away for her to hear anything, but she decided she needed to refill her glass, even though she didn't intend to drink it. Saddling up to the bar a few seats down from the mystery man, she caught the attention of the barkeep and motioned to the empty glass in front of her. Breaking away, the barkeep took a bottle from the shelf on his way toward her.
"What's his story?" she asked while he poured, without looking at the man she asked about.
The barkeep understood whom she meant easily enough. "Asking questions, mostly." Adding, "Only drinking water." with a scoff. He walked off, replacing the bottle on the shelf before she could ask any more.
"Where's our merchandise?" a garbled, booming, and accusational voice came from behind her. Marlena didn't need to turn around to put a face to the voice, she already knew who was there, and was thankful for the full glass in front of her. She drank deep.
"Qylex, Z'rak! I've been looking for you." She swiveled her chair to face them, maintaining an air of nonchalance and took another sip. She wanted to keep this cordial for as long as possible, but odds were that wouldn't last long. The Samiri brothers stood close, blocking any potential exit she might have had. They were Velneks, towering three meters tall and each weighing a few hundred kilos. Although they appeared to be bulbous slobs, billowing over with fat, she knew from personal experience they had more than enough muscle to make short work of her.
"More like trying to avoid us." Z'rak spat.
"Where?" Qylex forcefully repeated the question she was trying to dodge.
She drained the last of her glass and put it on the counter behind her. "I think you already know I don't have it." This thing was going sideways, and her mouth wasn't helping things.
The Samiri brothers each took a half step closer, their formidable height and girth encroaching that much more. "Where?!" came the same scratchy, guttural question as before.
"Impound." The word slipped delicately from her lips, and relief came over her like a wave. None of this was going as she had planned, but nonetheless, at least she has told them. The hard part was over, and together they could all move on now that the truth was out.
There came a sound, that began as a growl, became a scream, and then left the audible range of human hearing. Z’Rak stood silent while his brother expressed his rage. Only silence remained in the saloon once the scream had ended, and all eyes turning to the three of them.
To her surprise, it was the mystery man that broke the silence. "I believe there's a desirable outcome to be reached for all involved without resorting to violence." He was now standing directly beside Z'rak, though how he'd gotten there, Marlena hadn't seen.
Z'rak’s response swift and brutal, launching a meaty back-hand at the stranger. Marena winced, but the blow never came. Cautiously, she opened her eyes again to find the mystery man had effortlessly stopped the blow with only one hand. And his hand seemed to be glowing as well, if only for an instant.
“Ah, Velnek physiology. I had stated I wanted to avoid violence, so you’ll be rendered unconscious for the rest of this conversation.” Placing his free hand over Z’rak’s eyes, more light came forth, and Z’rak collapsed on the ground.
The facial structure of Velneks don’t produce anything humans would recognize as shock or surprise, but from Qylex’s uncharacteristic silence and inaction, she knew that’s what he was feeling. “I--” she felt compelled to say, but couldn’t find the words to finish.
The stranger was the first to speak again. Turning to Qylex he spoke is a clam and quiet voice, “Your sibling’s actions weren’t conducive to a resolution. I hope you’re more willing to conduct yourself in a civil manner.” He wasn’t. Suddenly regained his composure, Qylex reached for the knife at his hip, drawing it with a speed Marlena didn’t think was possible for a being his size. Firearms of all kinds are banned on Paragon 3, but that didn’t mean its many inhabitants were without weapons. Upon arrival, most switched to blade or bludgeon weapons, and Qylex was clearly not ignorant of the practice.
Ultimately, it proved futile. Qylex roared and angrily slashed at the man that had rendered his brother unconscious moments ago, but he stubbornly remained unmoving. Involuntarily, she shut her eyes once again, expecting a violent end. Instead of fleshing slicing open, Marlena heard an unmistakable THRUM and Qylex grunt. Her eyes snapped open again to see Qylex struggling to maintain this balance, and what appeared to be - couldn’t be - shields surrounding the stranger?
Qylex whirled to face them again, looking poised to strike again, but paused, appeared to weighed the situation mentally, and spat an insult at Marlena, “We’ll be back for you later, when your guardian isn’t around.” He kept the knife in hand, but turned and left the saloon, with his brother still on the floor.
Adrenaline had countered the effects of the bourbon for the last few minutes, but now the alcohol was reasserting itself in her system. Marlena needed to get out of here, quickly. With no product for the Samiri brothers, one on the floor, and other humiliated in a fight, things were looking considerably worse than earlier.
The stranger turned to address her for the first time, “I’m sorry things didn’t go better, this wasn’t my intention.” He looked slightly confused, as if he honestly didn’t know what had gone wrong. There were so many things she wanted to ask, so many she wanted to ask, or scream at him. But what came out next wasn’t any of them.
Pushing her face into his, “What, was that you trying to help?” Marlena found herself jabbing a pointed finger into his chest and slipping one of her legs behind his. “You stay out of my business.” She slammed him square in the chest with both hands, sending him reeling backward, tripping over her leg, and crashing into the floor. “And stay the hell away from me.”
It took all her strength not to look back as she walked out of the saloon. She wanted to see the look on his face, on all their faces, but she couldn’t look if she wanted anything she’d said to stick.
Once again traversing the one gray hallway after another, Marlena took the opportunity to go over everything in her mind again and again, trying to puzzle out what had happened and her next move. A personal shield? Had to be. The Samiri’s still had no product, she’d have to find something else or burn a lot of bridges to never have to see them again. Did he have a scanner in his hand? She hadn’t seen one. Marco will be even more upset now than when he found out about the botched job. The light - how could anything do that to be Velnek? She’d have to get off this station on the first ship leaving. Those clothes, there’s something about his clothes that...
It’s impossible. He couldn’t be. Her pace quickened, now with determination and a destination in mind. She had to leave immediately. Marlena barreled through the entryway to her quarters, only missing the door by a hair’s breadth as it slid out of her way. Once inside, she stopped, leaned against the door, and slid down it until she was sitting on the floor. She looked up suddenly to check the lock, and locked it - not that that could stop him. The scanner, the light, and shield, the clothes. Could he really be an Engineer?
She was in a whole lot more trouble than she thought.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Recommended Reading, Indy Edition
(update in progress, 10/27/2013)
Queen & Country - spy, complete
Saga - science fiction, adventure, ongoing
Chew - crime, comedy, ongoing
x Powers - superhero, crime, ongoing
Invincible - superhero, ongoing
Locke & Key - Horror, complete
The Last Days of American Crime - crime, OGN
Fear Agent - science-fiction, action/adventure , complete
Baltimore - supernatural, ongoing
Joe the Barbarian - fantasy, OGN
North 40 - OGN, Supernatural
x 30 Days of Night - horror, complete
x Metabarons - sci-fi, complete
x Homeland Directive - political drama, OGN
x The Killer -
x Artesia - x Wasteland -
x Wormwood -
The Nightly News - OGN
The Five Fists of Science - science-fiction, alternative history, OGN
We3 - OGN
x Mouse Guard -
Heavy Liquid - OGN
x Hard Boiled - OGN
x I Kill Giants - OGN
x Ronin - OGN
x Surrogates -
x The Wretch -
x Umbrella Academy - x Bone -
x Whiteout -
x Pherone -
x Demo -
x Casanova -
x Scarlet Traces -
x Hawaiian Dick -
x Power Up -
x Iron West -
x Creature Tech -
x Strange Kiss -
x The Walking Dead -
x The Red Star -
x Blacksad -
x Rocketo -
x Spaghetti Western -
x Soul Wind -
Planetary -
x Girls -
x The Sword -
100 Bullets - crime, conspiracy, complete
American Vampire - horror, ongoing
DMZ - ___, complete
Lucifer - ___, complete
Northlanders - historical fiction, complete
Preacher - ___, complete
Scalped - crime, complete
Transmetropolitan - science-fiction, political, complete
Y The Last Man - ___, complete
x Polly and the Pirates -
x East Coast Rising -
x Wonton Soup -
Orc Stain - Fantasy, Adventure, ongoing
x Courtney Crumrin -
x The Damned -
x Ghostopolis -
Parker - The Hunter -
x Amulet -
x The Strange Talent of Luther Strode -
Old City Blues -
Scud: The Disposable Assassin -
East of West - ___, ongoing
Velvet - ___, ongoing
Lazarus - ___, ongoing
TMNT - ___, ongoing
FBP - ___, ongoing
Hit - ___,
Ghostbusters - ___,
Six Gun Gorilla - Science-fiction, action, OGN
Wild Blue Yonder - ___, complete
Jupiter's Legacy - ___,
Peter Panzerfaust - ___,
Sex Criminals - ___, ongoing
Mara - ___, complete
Shaolin Cowboy - ___,
Ragnarok - ___, ongoing
Rumble - ___, ongoing
Annihilator - ___, complete
Battling Boy - ___,
Peepo Choo - ___, complete
Southern Bastards - ___, ongoing
The Life After - ___, ongoing
Trees - ___,
Starlight - ___, complete
The Bunker - ___, ongoing
Wytches - ___, ongoing
Seconds - ___, OGN
The Abominable - ___,
Autumnlands - ___, ongoing
Birthright - ___, ongoing
Bitch Planet - ___, ongoing
Deadly Class - ___, ongoing
Spread - ___, ongoing
Manhattan Projects - ___, ongoing
Thief of Thieves - ___, ongoing
Afterlife with Archie - ___, ongoing
Lumberjanes - ___, ongoing
Private Eye - ___, complete
Lady Killer - ___, complete
Chrononauts - ___,
Henshin - collection, OGN
The Wicked + The Divine - ___,
Monday, October 3, 2011
Brief Thoughts on Each of DC's New 52
Adding to Pull List
Action Comics
Here's a shocker: I actually give a shit about Superman. Who would have guessed?!
All-star Western
I've been wanted to get into Jonah Hex for awhile, since I heard it's good, but never knew where you jump in and wound up never making the plunge. This is better than I expected, in fact, one of my favorites from New 52. I need to take that plunge and find some Hex trades.
Batman
Batman and Harvey getting along? Madness. Capullo is perfect for this book, and I was a huge fan of Snyder's last arc before the reboot. A book I instantly knew I was adding to my pull list.
Batman and Robin
I was a big fan of the dynamic between Dick and Damien, but Bruce and Damien are great too.
Batwoman
I'm really just happy to be getting more Kate, since the previous series was so fantastic.
Detective Comics
Brutal, gorgeous, and awesome. The first book I knew I was adding to my pull list.
Justice League
Decompressed storytelling, sure, but not in a annoyingly Bendis way. Great interaction between Batman and Green Lantern, and a killer last page. Definitely looking forward this.
Will continue for first arc, then decide
Animal Man
Creepy, but in an intriguing way. I'll ride along and see where this thing goes.
Aquaman
Much like Action Comics, Aquaman is suddenly entertaining?! What is happening?!
Batgirl
I'd like to see this go somewhere... I'm just not sure where. It would be great is Barbara realized she did and could continue to do more as Oracle than Batgirl (with or without use of her legs, I really don't care), but I don't see that happening anytime soon.
Batman: The Dark Knight
The weakest the Bat-titles, in my opinion.
Batwing
That's one helluva last page. The concept is weird, but I'll hang around a bit and see if this thing has staying power. It could really use some more backgrounds, though.
Birds of Prey
It's just good.
Blue Beetle
A couple of things... really kinda creeped out that so many old-looking dudes want to have sex with a 14 (almost 15!) year old girl. Not cool. Two, if you're going to "translate from Spanish" TRANSLATE FROM SPANISH. Otherwise, kill the asterisk and keep the Spanglish. Pick one. Also, why is the short-cut to the girl's house through the warehouse district? That makes no sense. And finally, why did Blue Beetle get turned into a Green Lantern stand-in? That's really unnecessary.
Captain Atom
Really, the only things I know about Captain Atom are him blowing up in Kingdom Come (was that him?), and blowing up again in the Wildstorm universe. I was kinda hoping for a Dr. Manhattan take on the character, but it was still pretty interesting.
Catwoman
Unlike everyone else on the Internet, I liked Catwoman. The sex scene was not gratuitous and make perfect sense.
DC Universe Presents
Real surprise here, since I was totally prepared to continue not giving a shit about Deadman. But this book was compelling in a way practically requires me to continue reading.
Deathstroke
This is what Grifter SHOULD have been. Title character beating ass and being awesome. Well done, sir. Please continue.
Demon Knights
Solid first issue. I'll be sticking around awhile to see where this thing goes.
Green Lantern Corps.
I've always liked John more than Guy, but in this, they work together in a way that makes both shine. Also, way to work educating the audience on the characters without it being weird. Some of the other books should take note.
Green Lantern
I've never liked Hal, and really don't care why Sinestro has a green ring. Still, the stuff between Hal and Carol was priceless.
I, Vampire
I don't know what the fuck is going on, but will shell out at least a few more bucks to try and figure it out.
Justice League Dark
I have no idea who most of these characters are, but it was cool to see a partial Justice League get schooled by magic. I'm already intrigued by Zatanna telling Batman "no," and would like to see more.
Justice League Int.
Another book where I have no idea who most of these people are. The trouble is, I don't know if I'm supposed to, or if they're new creations. Not that I'm overly concerned, because I assume we'll learn. Still, I though more highly of the book during week 1 or 2, before more of the books had launched. It may not last long, but the interactions with Batman between Guy and Booster were great.
Men of War
I wasn't expecting much from this before reading it, but after getting past the awkward first pages, it was pretty cool to see a human level take on super hero activity.
New Guardians
A great first issue, once we got past the Kyle origin. Take a lesson from Green Lantern Corp and work the origins into the story itself.
Nightwing
Not real clear on how Dick can go from whooping ass as Batman for a year, and then get stomped at the end of this issue. He should be better than this.
Red Hood & the Outlaws
The Starfire thing is regrettable, but the interactions between Arrow and Hood are fantastic.
Red Lanterns
The feral space cat is my favorite, but this book will need to up its game to keep my interested.
Teen Titans
See Superboy, below. The book is pretty pretty much Justice League #1, and I'm still trying to figure out which character is Kid Flash. I'm guessing Bart.
The Savage Hawkman
The last page didn't carry as much weight as I think the writer was trying for. Mostly because the antagonist isn't built up properly. Skipping over that awkward fight scene, the rest of the issue was tense and interesting.
Stormwatch
I was hoping for more Authority, and less of... whatever we got. Still hoping Apollo and Midnighter ditch those terrible new costumes they've been given and put some decent clothes on. Also, Jack has tread hands? Was that always true and I missed it until now?
Superboy
Still trying to figure out the timeline of Teen Titans/Superboy, since the Teen Titans don't exist yet, but Superboy was created to destroy them...
Supergirl
I'm curious how she got powers so quickly after arriving on Earth, or why she heard two lines of text from Gotham, but whatever. It's cool.
Superman
Easily the densest book this book; there's just straight-up a whole lot of words in this book. That's not a complaint, it's actually a compliment. By far, of all the 52 books, this felt like the most happened. A two-hour premiere versus the
Swamp Thing
I had planned to skip this book until I saw it get four stars on CBR. Turns out to be pretty interesting.
Wonder Woman
I've never read an issue of Wonder Woman, except the one where she kills Max Lord. I'd still prefer if she was in pants instead of Star-spangled underpants, but I'm willing to give Azzarello some leeway.
Unlikely to continue purchasing. Not much to say about any of these. They all used to be higher, firmly in the Maybe group, but wound up here after reading all 52.
Frankenstein, Mister Terrific, Voodoo, Legion Lost, Legion of Superheroes
Won't be Purchasing
Blackhawks
Not sure who these people are, and at the end of the issue, I still didn't care. I think the writer wanted to make a TV series, but wound up writing a comic instead.
Firestorm
I tried to read this but gave up about 1/3 of the way in. Flipped through the rest, read the last few pages, and I'm sticking with my decision.
Green Arrow
Interesting, but not good.
Grifter
Just awful.
Hawk and Dove
Liefeld? Fuck no.
OMAC
Weird, but not in a good way.
Resurrection Man
Interesting, but not good.
Static Shock
Zero Interest.
Suicide Squad
Torture porn? No thanks.
Action Comics
Here's a shocker: I actually give a shit about Superman. Who would have guessed?!
All-star Western
I've been wanted to get into Jonah Hex for awhile, since I heard it's good, but never knew where you jump in and wound up never making the plunge. This is better than I expected, in fact, one of my favorites from New 52. I need to take that plunge and find some Hex trades.
Batman
Batman and Harvey getting along? Madness. Capullo is perfect for this book, and I was a huge fan of Snyder's last arc before the reboot. A book I instantly knew I was adding to my pull list.
Batman and Robin
I was a big fan of the dynamic between Dick and Damien, but Bruce and Damien are great too.
Batwoman
I'm really just happy to be getting more Kate, since the previous series was so fantastic.
Detective Comics
Brutal, gorgeous, and awesome. The first book I knew I was adding to my pull list.
Justice League
Decompressed storytelling, sure, but not in a annoyingly Bendis way. Great interaction between Batman and Green Lantern, and a killer last page. Definitely looking forward this.
Will continue for first arc, then decide
Animal Man
Creepy, but in an intriguing way. I'll ride along and see where this thing goes.
Aquaman
Much like Action Comics, Aquaman is suddenly entertaining?! What is happening?!
Batgirl
I'd like to see this go somewhere... I'm just not sure where. It would be great is Barbara realized she did and could continue to do more as Oracle than Batgirl (with or without use of her legs, I really don't care), but I don't see that happening anytime soon.
Batman: The Dark Knight
The weakest the Bat-titles, in my opinion.
Batwing
That's one helluva last page. The concept is weird, but I'll hang around a bit and see if this thing has staying power. It could really use some more backgrounds, though.
Birds of Prey
It's just good.
Blue Beetle
A couple of things... really kinda creeped out that so many old-looking dudes want to have sex with a 14 (almost 15!) year old girl. Not cool. Two, if you're going to "translate from Spanish" TRANSLATE FROM SPANISH. Otherwise, kill the asterisk and keep the Spanglish. Pick one. Also, why is the short-cut to the girl's house through the warehouse district? That makes no sense. And finally, why did Blue Beetle get turned into a Green Lantern stand-in? That's really unnecessary.
Captain Atom
Really, the only things I know about Captain Atom are him blowing up in Kingdom Come (was that him?), and blowing up again in the Wildstorm universe. I was kinda hoping for a Dr. Manhattan take on the character, but it was still pretty interesting.
Catwoman
Unlike everyone else on the Internet, I liked Catwoman. The sex scene was not gratuitous and make perfect sense.
DC Universe Presents
Real surprise here, since I was totally prepared to continue not giving a shit about Deadman. But this book was compelling in a way practically requires me to continue reading.
Deathstroke
This is what Grifter SHOULD have been. Title character beating ass and being awesome. Well done, sir. Please continue.
Demon Knights
Solid first issue. I'll be sticking around awhile to see where this thing goes.
Green Lantern Corps.
I've always liked John more than Guy, but in this, they work together in a way that makes both shine. Also, way to work educating the audience on the characters without it being weird. Some of the other books should take note.
Green Lantern
I've never liked Hal, and really don't care why Sinestro has a green ring. Still, the stuff between Hal and Carol was priceless.
I, Vampire
I don't know what the fuck is going on, but will shell out at least a few more bucks to try and figure it out.
Justice League Dark
I have no idea who most of these characters are, but it was cool to see a partial Justice League get schooled by magic. I'm already intrigued by Zatanna telling Batman "no," and would like to see more.
Justice League Int.
Another book where I have no idea who most of these people are. The trouble is, I don't know if I'm supposed to, or if they're new creations. Not that I'm overly concerned, because I assume we'll learn. Still, I though more highly of the book during week 1 or 2, before more of the books had launched. It may not last long, but the interactions with Batman between Guy and Booster were great.
Men of War
I wasn't expecting much from this before reading it, but after getting past the awkward first pages, it was pretty cool to see a human level take on super hero activity.
New Guardians
A great first issue, once we got past the Kyle origin. Take a lesson from Green Lantern Corp and work the origins into the story itself.
Nightwing
Not real clear on how Dick can go from whooping ass as Batman for a year, and then get stomped at the end of this issue. He should be better than this.
Red Hood & the Outlaws
The Starfire thing is regrettable, but the interactions between Arrow and Hood are fantastic.
Red Lanterns
The feral space cat is my favorite, but this book will need to up its game to keep my interested.
Teen Titans
See Superboy, below. The book is pretty pretty much Justice League #1, and I'm still trying to figure out which character is Kid Flash. I'm guessing Bart.
The Savage Hawkman
The last page didn't carry as much weight as I think the writer was trying for. Mostly because the antagonist isn't built up properly. Skipping over that awkward fight scene, the rest of the issue was tense and interesting.
Stormwatch
I was hoping for more Authority, and less of... whatever we got. Still hoping Apollo and Midnighter ditch those terrible new costumes they've been given and put some decent clothes on. Also, Jack has tread hands? Was that always true and I missed it until now?
Superboy
Still trying to figure out the timeline of Teen Titans/Superboy, since the Teen Titans don't exist yet, but Superboy was created to destroy them...
Supergirl
I'm curious how she got powers so quickly after arriving on Earth, or why she heard two lines of text from Gotham, but whatever. It's cool.
Superman
Easily the densest book this book; there's just straight-up a whole lot of words in this book. That's not a complaint, it's actually a compliment. By far, of all the 52 books, this felt like the most happened. A two-hour premiere versus the
Swamp Thing
I had planned to skip this book until I saw it get four stars on CBR. Turns out to be pretty interesting.
Wonder Woman
I've never read an issue of Wonder Woman, except the one where she kills Max Lord. I'd still prefer if she was in pants instead of Star-spangled underpants, but I'm willing to give Azzarello some leeway.
Unlikely to continue purchasing. Not much to say about any of these. They all used to be higher, firmly in the Maybe group, but wound up here after reading all 52.
Frankenstein, Mister Terrific, Voodoo, Legion Lost, Legion of Superheroes
Won't be Purchasing
Blackhawks
Not sure who these people are, and at the end of the issue, I still didn't care. I think the writer wanted to make a TV series, but wound up writing a comic instead.
Firestorm
I tried to read this but gave up about 1/3 of the way in. Flipped through the rest, read the last few pages, and I'm sticking with my decision.
Green Arrow
Interesting, but not good.
Grifter
Just awful.
Hawk and Dove
Liefeld? Fuck no.
OMAC
Weird, but not in a good way.
Resurrection Man
Interesting, but not good.
Static Shock
Zero Interest.
Suicide Squad
Torture porn? No thanks.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Facebook Be Damned
I need boredom. Sometimes I forget that, but it's absolutely essential. I always talk about how I work too much, and those that know me well will remember stories of how I loved match class in high school because I was so extremely bored I was able to do massive amounts of writing.
Tonight, I turned the TV off and instantly was able to start writing better and faster than I have in weeks. I don't know what's special about tonight versus any other night I've done the same thing... but tonight, I'm bored. It's invigorating.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Vagrant Vaqueros Script
No new Vagrant page this week - Mark's getting caught up. But we'll be back soon with new pages and continued adventure. Until then, I thought I'd post some of the work that went into the creation of Vagrant Vaqueros. Below is half the first draft of the Vagrant script.
There was no title yet, loads of info on Jack, the jail scene has a completely different internal monologue, the old lady is more long winded, and a small preview of things to come.
The reason only half the script is here is because I really had no clue what the hell I was doing and crammed to many panels per page in. Immediately after finishing this draft, I sent a shotgun email out to a bunch of people and they very politely informed me what I had written would be hell on any artist. So I stretched the original 8 page script out to 15.
I know it's a little disappointing not to have a new page this week, but I hope you find this a little interesting and/or entertaining. Back with more soon. Onto the script...
UNTITLED WESTERN COMIC
**************
Characters
**************
"Jack"
Caucasian male, around 25
Twin pistols
Dirty blonde/brown hair, medium length, somewhat scruffy appearance. Brash, implusive, and lucky. Raised as a rancher and farmer, herding cattle(?)
Visual reference: Josh Holloway (Sawyer, from Lost) de-aged into his 20s
Double holster references:
http://media.costumesinc.com/costumesinc/SKUimages/large/73062-12.jpg
http://www.historical-firearms.co.uk/acatalog/PHHR002Close.jpg
http://www.leatherbywc.com/dbl.gif
[ the rest of the cast has been removed ]
Other characters:
For all demons in this series, use black speech bubbles with white text. If you can make the "bubbles" non-standard and extra gritty, that would be even better. Also, their eyes should be a telling sign. If you could come up with a clever way of showing that (black pupils are pretty standard, but maybe work actual fire or flames into their eyes) that would be cool.
Demon 1 - Should look like a regular human, except for his eyes
Demon 2 - Visually similar clothing to Demon 1, but less human in appearance. Taller, unnatural skin color, I'm thinking like a brownish red clay color.
**************
Story
**************
Page 1 - Jack killing demon
Page 2 - Jack taking the necklace and getting caught
Page 3 - Jack in jail
Page 4 - Story of the necklace
Page 5 - Bar 1
Page 6 - Bar 2
Page 7 - Jail break
Page 8 - Running back to horses
Page 1
Panel 1 - Long, page-width panel. Two silhouettes face off in the middle distance of the setting sun.
Panel 2 - Demon 1, seen from the waist up:
Bubble 1 - "Jackie-boy, you don't really want to do this."
Bubble 2 - "Especially not without the rest o' yer crew."
Panel 3 - Similar waist up shot of Jack, throwing back his long coat to reveal holstered revolver on his hip, "Let's just get this over with."
Panel 4 - Demon 1's hand now hovering over his own pistol, "All I'm saying is, it don't gotta be this way..."
Panel 5 - Another long panel, similar to Panel 1, the sun a little lower and darker than before.
lots of little zoomed-in panels: one panel each for both men's guns in their holsters, a dust cloud rolling, coat flapping in the wind, one panel each for both men's trigger fingers twitching, the corner of demon 1's mouth curling into a smile, Jack's eye squinting
Panel ? - One panel, split diagonally in two, of each man grabbing his gun
Panel ? - Not a traditional panel, just the sound effect "PA-KLOW"
Page 2
Panel 1 - Demon 1 still standing, small smoking hole in his chest, black ooze spilling out, "*"
Panel 2 - Long shot, from behind Jackie. Demon 1 is seen halfway fallen over, his gun has slipped out of his hand.
Panel 3 - Demon 1, now collapsed onto the ground, gun out of reach, dust cloud raising around him, with a "KLUMP" sound effect. Jackie is walking towards the demon, his gun still drawn.
Panel 4 - Shot from Jack's point of view, looking down his arm and gun, pointed at the demon's face. "Come on then, boy. ...Finish the job." Mess with the lettering here to make it apparent he's struggling to get the words out.
Panel 5 - Now looking up at Jack's determined face, we see the flash of his gun go off, a small spray of blood hit the side of his face. "BLAM" sound effect
Panel 6 - I'll leave the details of this panel up to you, but I'd like to make it apparant Jack shot the demon in the face, without it being too graphic or grotesque (We don't want Zuda censors coming down on us).
Kneeling down beside the dead demon, Jack rips open the demon's shirt, he's still holding his gun in his right hand. Under the shirt is a silver medallion
I'll let you come up with the medallion design, but I've included a few examples below. I'm thinking roughly the diameter of a coffee cup.
http://www.brandlighting.com/images/focalpoint/81624.jpg
http://www.rocklove.com/images/MedallionCrest.jpg - about this thickness
http://www.jonskoolstuff.com/images/AztecGoldCoinMedalion_lg.jpg - on a string like this
Finally, there should be a small speech bubble with small letters (that can still be easily read) "The shots came from over here!"
Panel 7 - With his left hand, Jack rips the medallion from around the demon's neck. There should be some small "KLOP KLOP KLOP" sound effects here
Panel 8 - Three marshalls on horseback, two with their rifles drawn and aimed at Jack. We see Jack still kneeling beside the demon in the distance. Much larger "KLOP KLOP KLOP" sound effects again, around the horses.
Panel 9 - In the distance, the marshalls still have their guns trained on Jack. The lead marshall (no gun out) yells, "Hands in the air!" In the foreground, Jack pockets the talisman out of marshalls' line of sight while raising his right hand and letting go of the gun's grip - it spins slightly to balance the trigger gaurd on his index finger.
Page 3
Panel 1 - Ariel shot of the town mid-morning. It's smallish, all one- or two-story buildings, with a water tower, all the buildings made out made of wood and/or stone.
Panel 2 - Two of the marshalls from the previous page (the two with their guns out) - one is holding a jail cell door open as the other shoves Jack into it. "Listen guys, I'm trying to tell ya..."
(In my head, I was modeling the jail off the one they stick Jack in at the beginning of the first Pirates of the Carribean - stone walls, hay and dirt floor, crisscross metal bars, window to the outside, and more bars between the individual cells, not stone walls)
Panel 3 - The jail cell door slams shut, "CLANG" sound effect, as one of the marshalls cuts Jack off, "Don't want to hear it. The magistrate will sort this all out in a couple of weeks."
Panel 4 - The two marshalls leave the cell area, Jack is holding onto the door of his cell.
Panel 5 - Jack kicks at the ground, forming a small dust cloud, "Damn it!". Text box with, "They say you can tell a guilty man from the innocent by who's able to sleep."
Panel 6 - Jack plops down on the cot in his cell. Text box with, "The innocent are too worried to sleep..."
Panel 7 - Jack getting comfortable and removing his hat. Text box with, "... but the guilty know they've been caught..."
Panel 8 - Jack in a mostly laid back position, hat over his face, arms folding over his chest. Text box with, "... and are able drift right off."
Page 4
Panel 1 - Text box with, "Several days ago"
Same Panel 1 from Page 3, by now it's late evening - the Moon is low, sky is dark, but the lights from the town light the scene fairly well.
Panel 2 - Establishing shot of a upscale home. There's a light on on the main floor, though the curtains are drawn shut.
Panel 3 - Inside the home, Jack sits in a parlor with a well-dressed woman in her mid-50s. Her long white hair is held in a tight bun atop her head. Woman: "I know all about you and gang, 'Jack.' My niece has been kidnapped, and likely killed, by two demons. Along with my niece, they've also stolen an artifact of immense power." On a small end table next to her, stands a picture frame with a woman in it.
Panel 4 - Jack, flippantly, "Demons? Listen lady, I don't know who you think I am, but-"
Woman: "Do not feign innocence with me, boy. Or do I need to prove my knowledge of such things to you by sharing what I know of the events in Culver City?"
Panel 5 - Jack, in stunned silence.
Panel 6 - The woman, passing the framed picture from the table next to her. We now see the old-looking photograph in detail - a young woman in a low-cut dress. Clearly visible around her neck of the woman in the photo is the medallion. "I see I now have your attention. The artifact that was stolen, the necklace pictured here, can be used to open a gateway. That must not be allowed to happen."
Panel 7 - The woman now passes Jack a wanted poster with Demon 1 and Demon 2 on it. "These are the men that captured my niece, demons both. In a week's time they will use the necklace to summon a far greater evil than you've ever confronted before. You must stop them and retrieve the necklace before that happens."
Panel 8 - Jack, looking determined, "I'll do it, you have my word on that, but for a woman who's niece is 'likely' dead you sure don't seem too broken up."
Panel 9 - Woman: "Not everyone turns to anger and self-destruction, as you have, in times of mourning."
Panel 10 - Jack, grinning slightly, "Anger and self-destruction just make me better at what I do."
UNTITLED WESTERN COMIC
**************
Characters
**************
"Jack"
Caucasian male, around 25
Twin pistols
Dirty blonde/brown hair, medium length, somewhat scruffy appearance. Brash, implusive, and lucky. Raised as a rancher and farmer, herding cattle(?)
Visual reference: Josh Holloway (Sawyer, from Lost) de-aged into his 20s
Double holster references:
http://media.costumesinc.com/costumesinc/SKUimages/large/73062-12.jpg
http://www.historical-firearms.co.uk/acatalog/PHHR002Close.jpg
http://www.leatherbywc.com/dbl.gif
[ the rest of the cast has been removed ]
Other characters:
For all demons in this series, use black speech bubbles with white text. If you can make the "bubbles" non-standard and extra gritty, that would be even better. Also, their eyes should be a telling sign. If you could come up with a clever way of showing that (black pupils are pretty standard, but maybe work actual fire or flames into their eyes) that would be cool.
Demon 1 - Should look like a regular human, except for his eyes
Demon 2 - Visually similar clothing to Demon 1, but less human in appearance. Taller, unnatural skin color, I'm thinking like a brownish red clay color.
**************
Story
**************
Page 1 - Jack killing demon
Page 2 - Jack taking the necklace and getting caught
Page 3 - Jack in jail
Page 4 - Story of the necklace
Page 5 - Bar 1
Page 6 - Bar 2
Page 7 - Jail break
Page 8 - Running back to horses
Page 1
Panel 1 - Long, page-width panel. Two silhouettes face off in the middle distance of the setting sun.
Panel 2 - Demon 1, seen from the waist up:
Bubble 1 - "Jackie-boy, you don't really want to do this."
Bubble 2 - "Especially not without the rest o' yer crew."
Panel 3 - Similar waist up shot of Jack, throwing back his long coat to reveal holstered revolver on his hip, "Let's just get this over with."
Panel 4 - Demon 1's hand now hovering over his own pistol, "All I'm saying is, it don't gotta be this way..."
Panel 5 - Another long panel, similar to Panel 1, the sun a little lower and darker than before.
lots of little zoomed-in panels: one panel each for both men's guns in their holsters, a dust cloud rolling, coat flapping in the wind, one panel each for both men's trigger fingers twitching, the corner of demon 1's mouth curling into a smile, Jack's eye squinting
Panel ? - One panel, split diagonally in two, of each man grabbing his gun
Panel ? - Not a traditional panel, just the sound effect "PA-KLOW"
Page 2
Panel 1 - Demon 1 still standing, small smoking hole in his chest, black ooze spilling out, "*"
Panel 2 - Long shot, from behind Jackie. Demon 1 is seen halfway fallen over, his gun has slipped out of his hand.
Panel 3 - Demon 1, now collapsed onto the ground, gun out of reach, dust cloud raising around him, with a "KLUMP" sound effect. Jackie is walking towards the demon, his gun still drawn.
Panel 4 - Shot from Jack's point of view, looking down his arm and gun, pointed at the demon's face. "Come on then, boy. ...Finish the job." Mess with the lettering here to make it apparent he's struggling to get the words out.
Panel 5 - Now looking up at Jack's determined face, we see the flash of his gun go off, a small spray of blood hit the side of his face. "BLAM" sound effect
Panel 6 - I'll leave the details of this panel up to you, but I'd like to make it apparant Jack shot the demon in the face, without it being too graphic or grotesque (We don't want Zuda censors coming down on us).
Kneeling down beside the dead demon, Jack rips open the demon's shirt, he's still holding his gun in his right hand. Under the shirt is a silver medallion
I'll let you come up with the medallion design, but I've included a few examples below. I'm thinking roughly the diameter of a coffee cup.
http://www.brandlighting.com/images/focalpoint/81624.jpg
http://www.rocklove.com/images/MedallionCrest.jpg - about this thickness
http://www.jonskoolstuff.com/images/AztecGoldCoinMedalion_lg.jpg - on a string like this
Finally, there should be a small speech bubble with small letters (that can still be easily read) "The shots came from over here!"
Panel 7 - With his left hand, Jack rips the medallion from around the demon's neck. There should be some small "KLOP KLOP KLOP" sound effects here
Panel 8 - Three marshalls on horseback, two with their rifles drawn and aimed at Jack. We see Jack still kneeling beside the demon in the distance. Much larger "KLOP KLOP KLOP" sound effects again, around the horses.
Panel 9 - In the distance, the marshalls still have their guns trained on Jack. The lead marshall (no gun out) yells, "Hands in the air!" In the foreground, Jack pockets the talisman out of marshalls' line of sight while raising his right hand and letting go of the gun's grip - it spins slightly to balance the trigger gaurd on his index finger.
Page 3
Panel 1 - Ariel shot of the town mid-morning. It's smallish, all one- or two-story buildings, with a water tower, all the buildings made out made of wood and/or stone.
Panel 2 - Two of the marshalls from the previous page (the two with their guns out) - one is holding a jail cell door open as the other shoves Jack into it. "Listen guys, I'm trying to tell ya..."
(In my head, I was modeling the jail off the one they stick Jack in at the beginning of the first Pirates of the Carribean - stone walls, hay and dirt floor, crisscross metal bars, window to the outside, and more bars between the individual cells, not stone walls)
Panel 3 - The jail cell door slams shut, "CLANG" sound effect, as one of the marshalls cuts Jack off, "Don't want to hear it. The magistrate will sort this all out in a couple of weeks."
Panel 4 - The two marshalls leave the cell area, Jack is holding onto the door of his cell.
Panel 5 - Jack kicks at the ground, forming a small dust cloud, "Damn it!". Text box with, "They say you can tell a guilty man from the innocent by who's able to sleep."
Panel 6 - Jack plops down on the cot in his cell. Text box with, "The innocent are too worried to sleep..."
Panel 7 - Jack getting comfortable and removing his hat. Text box with, "... but the guilty know they've been caught..."
Panel 8 - Jack in a mostly laid back position, hat over his face, arms folding over his chest. Text box with, "... and are able drift right off."
Page 4
Panel 1 - Text box with, "Several days ago"
Same Panel 1 from Page 3, by now it's late evening - the Moon is low, sky is dark, but the lights from the town light the scene fairly well.
Panel 2 - Establishing shot of a upscale home. There's a light on on the main floor, though the curtains are drawn shut.
Panel 3 - Inside the home, Jack sits in a parlor with a well-dressed woman in her mid-50s. Her long white hair is held in a tight bun atop her head. Woman: "I know all about you and gang, 'Jack.' My niece has been kidnapped, and likely killed, by two demons. Along with my niece, they've also stolen an artifact of immense power." On a small end table next to her, stands a picture frame with a woman in it.
Panel 4 - Jack, flippantly, "Demons? Listen lady, I don't know who you think I am, but-"
Woman: "Do not feign innocence with me, boy. Or do I need to prove my knowledge of such things to you by sharing what I know of the events in Culver City?"
Panel 5 - Jack, in stunned silence.
Panel 6 - The woman, passing the framed picture from the table next to her. We now see the old-looking photograph in detail - a young woman in a low-cut dress. Clearly visible around her neck of the woman in the photo is the medallion. "I see I now have your attention. The artifact that was stolen, the necklace pictured here, can be used to open a gateway. That must not be allowed to happen."
Panel 7 - The woman now passes Jack a wanted poster with Demon 1 and Demon 2 on it. "These are the men that captured my niece, demons both. In a week's time they will use the necklace to summon a far greater evil than you've ever confronted before. You must stop them and retrieve the necklace before that happens."
Panel 8 - Jack, looking determined, "I'll do it, you have my word on that, but for a woman who's niece is 'likely' dead you sure don't seem too broken up."
Panel 9 - Woman: "Not everyone turns to anger and self-destruction, as you have, in times of mourning."
Panel 10 - Jack, grinning slightly, "Anger and self-destruction just make me better at what I do."
Friday, August 6, 2010
A Day at the Mall
This is positively ancient, dating back to February 07, 2003. By way of the Internet Archive Wayback Machine, I was able to find some my Gabe's and my short stories from back in the day. Without any editing or updating, I give you:
A Day at the Mall
I'm standing in a mall in Akron Ohio, 3 dozen zombies devouring the last of the mid-week, afternoon shoppers before me.
...And that's just what I can see from having just walked in the door.
My entrance hasn't stirred them from their feast, and they probably won't take notice of me for at least another few minutes, until the scent of flesh that's filling what's left of their nostrils is nearly gone and they catch my scent.
I begin maneuvering around a coffee shop, and out into the main hall of this giant shopping mecca for middle America. For the time first one of these places will actually serve me a purpose, the over-powering smell of coffee in the air will help to mask my scent for a few additional moments before I have a horde of walking dead attempting to lock their teeth on me.
After eventually reaching the corner of the coffee house chain store I peer out and get a glimpse down the main corridor of the mall - there's at least another five dozen undead consuming what remains of the local shopping populace. I'm gonna need more ammunition.
Not knowing the full scope of the situation, I'd only grabbed a handful of shotgun shell boxes as I rushed out of the door - none of which were anywhere near full. I know Frank had sounded frantic on the phone, but I'd never imagined the zombie infestation he was alerting me to was of this magnitude.
Zombies normally hunt in small packs of three to eight, I have no idea what this many are doing in a single place, but big something is going on.
I started slowly moving back around the corner of the coffee house, back the way I'd come, when everything in the mall went silent.
Zombies have a hard time breathing through their noses, if they're lucky enough to keep it for any length of time, and so they typically breath through their mouths. When eating, this makes for an incredibly grotesque sound of open mouth chewing mixed with their loud breathing and audible ripping of flesh and breaking of bone. The sound of the seventy plus zombies doing this at once filled the sizable mall, and every one of them had just fallen silent.
Looking up, I could see their eyes and empty sockets all fixed squarely on me.
A Day at the Mall
I'm standing in a mall in Akron Ohio, 3 dozen zombies devouring the last of the mid-week, afternoon shoppers before me.
...And that's just what I can see from having just walked in the door.
My entrance hasn't stirred them from their feast, and they probably won't take notice of me for at least another few minutes, until the scent of flesh that's filling what's left of their nostrils is nearly gone and they catch my scent.
I begin maneuvering around a coffee shop, and out into the main hall of this giant shopping mecca for middle America. For the time first one of these places will actually serve me a purpose, the over-powering smell of coffee in the air will help to mask my scent for a few additional moments before I have a horde of walking dead attempting to lock their teeth on me.
After eventually reaching the corner of the coffee house chain store I peer out and get a glimpse down the main corridor of the mall - there's at least another five dozen undead consuming what remains of the local shopping populace. I'm gonna need more ammunition.
Not knowing the full scope of the situation, I'd only grabbed a handful of shotgun shell boxes as I rushed out of the door - none of which were anywhere near full. I know Frank had sounded frantic on the phone, but I'd never imagined the zombie infestation he was alerting me to was of this magnitude.
Zombies normally hunt in small packs of three to eight, I have no idea what this many are doing in a single place, but big something is going on.
I started slowly moving back around the corner of the coffee house, back the way I'd come, when everything in the mall went silent.
Zombies have a hard time breathing through their noses, if they're lucky enough to keep it for any length of time, and so they typically breath through their mouths. When eating, this makes for an incredibly grotesque sound of open mouth chewing mixed with their loud breathing and audible ripping of flesh and breaking of bone. The sound of the seventy plus zombies doing this at once filled the sizable mall, and every one of them had just fallen silent.
Looking up, I could see their eyes and empty sockets all fixed squarely on me.
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