Monday, October 31, 2011
Sunday, April 12, 2009
The Real Price of Comics
http://www.newsarama.com/comics/090410-the-price-is-right.html
I couldn’t believe the excuses I was reading on Newsarama about the price of comics. I am going to address these excuses in as pleasant a manner as I can muster.
RE: Vince Hernandez, Editor-in-Chief of Aspen Comics.
"Any time there's a recession, people are going to be spending less, but publishers still have to pay the talent and they still have to print the books.”
Okay so your logic at Aspen Comics is, since people aren’t buying as many books, we’ll continue to print a large number of them and simply increase the price per issue to cover the ones that aren’t selling. Is that what you are saying?
"Costs are going up because printing companies need to make their profit and everybody's tightening their belt and reacting to the economy."
Ah, the generic “blame it on the economy” excuse. Did they raise the price of comics during the last recession during the 80’s? Seriously, raising the prices because people are buying less didn’t work for the car manufacturers, why would it work for a company that rarely puts out any books?
RE: Michael DeVito, publisher at Th3rd World Comics
First off, I’ve never even heard of this company and I spend a hell of a lot of time online.
“Despite making the top 300 in sales, we lost money on the book and ultimately the series. Raising the price would have made much better financial sense and probably would have had very limited impact on sales."
Or to put it in regular English, their book sold well enough but they didn’t make any money. Raising the price a dollar would have given them more cash in their hand. But what you are saying is that you wish you had of milked the people who bought the book for a little more cash, because it wouldn’t have affected the sales numbers all that much. Classy. Th3rd World has two Co-Publishers an Editor In Chief and a Business Director. That is where the money goes, boys and girls.
To say the rising cost of creators is partly responsible for the price increases is silly. Creators can only be paid what they are worth, if their books don’t generate the kind of numbers that are profitable, then they aren’t worth the money. There are many, many affordable creators out there that I’ll support in a $2.99 book. There are very, very few creators that can make me buy a four dollar comic.
Good old Joe Quesada, always good for a bit of corporate bullshit. He’s really like Stan Lee now, isn’t he? But without the creativity and charm.
“What I’m saying is that we do work very hard to keep the prices where they are and to keep the top talent here at Marvel and in comics. We could just let these people move to other industries but then where would we all be... Some of these guys could easily be making two or three times what they make in comics by working elsewhere."
Okay, so the Nu-Marvel logic behind the price increases works this way:
Marvel hires Damon Lindelof for Hulk/Wolverine comic that isn’t very good. The book takes forever to come out. However, because Mr. Lindelof works on such shows as LOST, you have to charge more for the books he works on? We’re paying more because Marvel wants to hire outside the comic industry, forcing the price of comics to rise? The industry did quite well without celebrity TV writers and I am sure he wouldn’t be missed. Of course good business sense would suggest that a name writer with mainstream success should be able to sell more issues based on name alone, those extra sales would great more profit and actually let you sell the issues at a cheaper price. But this is Marvel, it doesn’t have to make sense, its MAGIC!
Does this mean since Jeph Loeb was fired from HEROES, the cost of his books will go down now?
http://www.newsarama.com/comics/090410-the-price-is-right.html
I couldn’t believe the excuses I was reading on Newsarama about the price of comics. I am going to address these excuses in as pleasant a manner as I can muster.
RE: Vince Hernandez, Editor-in-Chief of Aspen Comics.
"Any time there's a recession, people are going to be spending less, but publishers still have to pay the talent and they still have to print the books.”
Okay so your logic at Aspen Comics is, since people aren’t buying as many books, we’ll continue to print a large number of them and simply increase the price per issue to cover the ones that aren’t selling. Is that what you are saying?
"Costs are going up because printing companies need to make their profit and everybody's tightening their belt and reacting to the economy."
Ah, the generic “blame it on the economy” excuse. Did they raise the price of comics during the last recession during the 80’s? Seriously, raising the prices because people are buying less didn’t work for the car manufacturers, why would it work for a company that rarely puts out any books?
RE: Michael DeVito, publisher at Th3rd World Comics
First off, I’ve never even heard of this company and I spend a hell of a lot of time online.
“Despite making the top 300 in sales, we lost money on the book and ultimately the series. Raising the price would have made much better financial sense and probably would have had very limited impact on sales."
Or to put it in regular English, their book sold well enough but they didn’t make any money. Raising the price a dollar would have given them more cash in their hand. But what you are saying is that you wish you had of milked the people who bought the book for a little more cash, because it wouldn’t have affected the sales numbers all that much. Classy. Th3rd World has two Co-Publishers an Editor In Chief and a Business Director. That is where the money goes, boys and girls.
To say the rising cost of creators is partly responsible for the price increases is silly. Creators can only be paid what they are worth, if their books don’t generate the kind of numbers that are profitable, then they aren’t worth the money. There are many, many affordable creators out there that I’ll support in a $2.99 book. There are very, very few creators that can make me buy a four dollar comic.
Good old Joe Quesada, always good for a bit of corporate bullshit. He’s really like Stan Lee now, isn’t he? But without the creativity and charm.
“What I’m saying is that we do work very hard to keep the prices where they are and to keep the top talent here at Marvel and in comics. We could just let these people move to other industries but then where would we all be... Some of these guys could easily be making two or three times what they make in comics by working elsewhere."
Okay, so the Nu-Marvel logic behind the price increases works this way:
Marvel hires Damon Lindelof for Hulk/Wolverine comic that isn’t very good. The book takes forever to come out. However, because Mr. Lindelof works on such shows as LOST, you have to charge more for the books he works on? We’re paying more because Marvel wants to hire outside the comic industry, forcing the price of comics to rise? The industry did quite well without celebrity TV writers and I am sure he wouldn’t be missed. Of course good business sense would suggest that a name writer with mainstream success should be able to sell more issues based on name alone, those extra sales would great more profit and actually let you sell the issues at a cheaper price. But this is Marvel, it doesn’t have to make sense, its MAGIC!
Does this mean since Jeph Loeb was fired from HEROES, the cost of his books will go down now?
Friday, August 31, 2007
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
This is my cat, Star.I normally don't post personal stuff, but I thought I would introduce you to my cats, just because I've got nothing else to blog about right now.
Star is blind. She can't see at all. Also, she has some kind of sinus infection so although she can smell she creates a lot of snot that she sneezes all over the place. Kind of gross, but she is worth it.
Her hearing is great and she can always tell when you are talking to her or about her. She is a little princess. She was used as a breeder but I guess when she started going blind they had no more use for her so we didn't have to pay for her.
Sometimes she talks, but not everyday, in fact she is sitting by the sink right now waiting for fresh water. I trained them to do that so I could have company while getting ready in the morning, but now they expect it all the time.
Monday, February 27, 2006
The Dark OwlHero of the night, or psychotic junkie?
A normal man with an extraordinary talent in biochemistry, the Dark Owl uses a wide variety of chemicals to give himself mega-human abilities. Strength, speed, flight, enhanced vision, among other abilities. But drug use always come with a price; paranoia, hallucinations, even the possibility of death.
Does the Canadian Legion need him, or will they have to take him down?
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Monday, October 17, 2005
Poetry Part 2
REGRESSION
It will be the men and women who can regress
back into primitive roles that will
survive in the years to come
The poet, hunter, painter,
The cook, the mother, the child-bearer
We’ve complicated ourselves beyond our
Natural state, we are chaotic minds trapped
Within simple biological bodies
A star inside a nucleus, a dream with a sleeper
Who will never wake
When every human experience is on
the television or internet, the only thing new
is that which is beyond our normal
limits and social mores, the abominable, the horrible
The ecstatic, the erotic, the erogenous and alien
We regress to something less to feel
more human again
It will be the men and women who can regress
back into primitive roles that will
survive in the years to come
The poet, hunter, painter,
The cook, the mother, the child-bearer
We’ve complicated ourselves beyond our
Natural state, we are chaotic minds trapped
Within simple biological bodies
A star inside a nucleus, a dream with a sleeper
Who will never wake
When every human experience is on
the television or internet, the only thing new
is that which is beyond our normal
limits and social mores, the abominable, the horrible
The ecstatic, the erotic, the erogenous and alien
We regress to something less to feel
more human again
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Poetry Part 1
A poem from my book:
REAL QUIET
This is a quiet time
A moment where time will stop
and all motions come to rest
at your feet
I want to walk with pride again
Instead of struggling for a cause
to make it all worthwhile
better broken then nothing?
I want just one real thing
Something touched by God
that makes me special
like your love, or divine wisdom
This is a quiet time
A moment where time will stop
and all motions come to rest
at your feet
I want to walk with pride again
Instead of struggling for a cause
to make it all worthwhile
better broken then nothing?
I want just one real thing
Something touched by God
that makes me special
like your love, or divine wisdom
The beginning of a story . . .
Didn't get too far on this one. . .
Killer Cars
People killed: 41,471 People injured: 3,192,000 Passenger vehicle occupants killed: 31,811 Children age 15 and under killed: 2,990 Annual cost of motor vehicle crashes : $150.5 billion (1994 number, latest available)
I find it hardTo drive yourStupid carI find it hard'Cause I neverGet that farAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road You got concrete eyesAnd I cannot see your faceAnd I failed in life'Cause you crushed meWith your handsAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road
Page 1Panel 1:
A middle aged man waves to his wife and their baby as he gets into the car to head off to work.
Everyone is all smiles and even the baby manages to wave to her daddy goodbye.
Panel 2:Inside the car, the man turns the key and looks frustrated when it doesn’t start.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD TO DRIVE YOUR STUPID CAR.
Panel 3:
The car starts and the man smiles.
Panel 4:HIGH ANGLE: The car now speeds down the highway, in the background is a large billboard with a Radiohead poster. Not too obvious but there nonetheless.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD CAUSE I NEVER GET THAT FAR.
Page 2
Panel 1:
The car gets stuck in traffic, the man waits patiently, waiting for the slow moving vehicles to start to move again.
CAPTION: AND YOU PUT MY BRAIN IN OVERLOAD, I CAN’T CHANGE GEARS, I CANNOT SEE THE ROAD. Killer Cars
People killed: 41,471 People injured: 3,192,000 Passenger vehicle occupants killed: 31,811 Children age 15 and under killed: 2,990 Annual cost of motor vehicle crashes : $150.5 billion (1994 number, latest available)
I find it hardTo drive yourStupid carI find it hard'Cause I neverGet that farAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road You got concrete eyesAnd I cannot see your faceAnd I failed in life'Cause you crushed meWith your handsAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road
Page 1Panel 1:
A middle aged man waves to his wife and their baby as he gets into the car to head off to work.
Everyone is all smiles and even the baby manages to wave to her daddy goodbye.
Panel 2:Inside the car, the man turns the key and looks frustrated when it doesn’t start.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD TO DRIVE YOUR STUPID CAR.
Panel 3:
The car starts and the man smiles.
Panel 4:HIGH ANGLE: The car now speeds down the highway, in the background is a large billboard with a Radiohead poster. Not too obvious but there nonetheless.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD CAUSE I NEVER GET THAT FAR.
Page 2
Panel 1:
The car gets stuck in traffic, the man waits patiently, waiting for the slow moving vehicles to start to move again.
CAPTION: AND YOU PUT MY BRAIN IN OVERLOAD, I CAN’T CHANGE GEARS, I CANNOT SEE THE ROAD.
Killer Cars
People killed: 41,471 People injured: 3,192,000 Passenger vehicle occupants killed: 31,811 Children age 15 and under killed: 2,990 Annual cost of motor vehicle crashes : $150.5 billion (1994 number, latest available)
I find it hardTo drive yourStupid carI find it hard'Cause I neverGet that farAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road You got concrete eyesAnd I cannot see your faceAnd I failed in life'Cause you crushed meWith your handsAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road
Page 1Panel 1:
A middle aged man waves to his wife and their baby as he gets into the car to head off to work.
Everyone is all smiles and even the baby manages to wave to her daddy goodbye.
Panel 2:Inside the car, the man turns the key and looks frustrated when it doesn’t start.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD TO DRIVE YOUR STUPID CAR.
Panel 3:
The car starts and the man smiles.
Panel 4:HIGH ANGLE: The car now speeds down the highway, in the background is a large billboard with a Radiohead poster. Not too obvious but there nonetheless.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD CAUSE I NEVER GET THAT FAR.
Page 2
Panel 1:
The car gets stuck in traffic, the man waits patiently, waiting for the slow moving vehicles to start to move again.
CAPTION: AND YOU PUT MY BRAIN IN OVERLOAD, I CAN’T CHANGE GEARS, I CANNOT SEE THE ROAD. Killer Cars
People killed: 41,471 People injured: 3,192,000 Passenger vehicle occupants killed: 31,811 Children age 15 and under killed: 2,990 Annual cost of motor vehicle crashes : $150.5 billion (1994 number, latest available)
I find it hardTo drive yourStupid carI find it hard'Cause I neverGet that farAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road You got concrete eyesAnd I cannot see your faceAnd I failed in life'Cause you crushed meWith your handsAnd you put myBrain in overloadI can't change gearsI cannot see the road
Page 1Panel 1:
A middle aged man waves to his wife and their baby as he gets into the car to head off to work.
Everyone is all smiles and even the baby manages to wave to her daddy goodbye.
Panel 2:Inside the car, the man turns the key and looks frustrated when it doesn’t start.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD TO DRIVE YOUR STUPID CAR.
Panel 3:
The car starts and the man smiles.
Panel 4:HIGH ANGLE: The car now speeds down the highway, in the background is a large billboard with a Radiohead poster. Not too obvious but there nonetheless.
CAPTION: I FIND IT HARD CAUSE I NEVER GET THAT FAR.
Page 2
Panel 1:
The car gets stuck in traffic, the man waits patiently, waiting for the slow moving vehicles to start to move again.
CAPTION: AND YOU PUT MY BRAIN IN OVERLOAD, I CAN’T CHANGE GEARS, I CANNOT SEE THE ROAD.
Sunday, October 09, 2005
I TOUCHED HER THIGH AND DEATH SMILED
By Richard Evans
With help from Jim Morrison
Page 1
Panel 1:CLOSE-UP of Jack Doran, the perfect Aryan astronaut, sporting a 5 O Clock shadow beneath his darkened helmet. The space suit he wears is futuristic, smaller and leaner then those we use today. The helmet is a Buzz Lightyear style bubble helmet. A camera is embedded in the upper portion of the glass. Jack wears a suit that covers the back of his head but leaves his face bare. He is the chiseled American of the future. We look directly into his face, close enough that it blocks out the background.
JACK
WE’RE ALL IN MENDIS.
DROP US.
CAPTION: LIONS IN THE STREET & ROAMING
DOGS IN HEAT, RABID, FOAMING.
A BEAST CAGED IN THE HEART OF THE CITY.
Panel 2:LARGE PANEL: At the top of the panel is the bottom of a space personnel carrier. 12 astronauts much like Jack drop out of the bottom sideways, drifting out into space. It looks as if someone has tossed dolls out into space.
CAPTION: THE BODY OF HIS MOTHER
ROTTING IN THE SUMMER GROUND.
HE FLED THE TOWN.
Page 2
Panel 1:
CUT TO: The control room of the ship. Mendis sits at the computer terminal with a headset on. Mendis wears a pair of tiny glasses and is still rather young. His dark black hair is shaved down to the scalp.
MENDIS
JUST LIKE IN THE DRILLS BOYS.
LET YOUR FORCEFIELDS ABSORB THE HEAT.
WHEN THE FIRE IS GONE, ACTIVATE THE JETPACKS.
YOUR VITALS ARE GOOD.
JUST RELAX AND ENJOY IT.
CAPTION: HE WENT DOWN SOUTH
AND CROSSED THE BORDER
LEFT THE CHAOS & DISORDER
BACK THERE
OVER HIS SHOULDER
Panel 2:CUT TO: A lush alien planet. A few of the astronauts, including Jack, drop to the ground. A jetpack on their back maneuvers them with an anti-gravity system, which appears to be nothing more then an glowing orb inside a normal looking jetpack, just where the exhaust would normally be. A few of the astronauts higher up in the atmosphere have a pink energy bubble around them. It is transparent, much like a membrane or a soap bubble.
Perhaps one of the last astronauts can be seem descending wrapped in a fireball just like a meteor.
Panel 3:CUT TO: CLOSE-UP of a pair of feminine alien eyes. Too large and wide for the smooth face they occupy. She watches from the trees at the alien intruders to her planet.
CAPTION: ONE MORNING HE AWOKE IN A GREEN HOTEL
WITH A STRANGE CREATURE GROANING BESIDE HIM.
SWEAT OOZED FROM ITS SHINY SKIN.
Panel 4: Mendis appears on the side of the panel, overlayed on top of the shot of the planet. Mendis relays more orders from to the team. The 12 astronauts stand on a knoll overlooking a beautiful rain forest of strange plants and trees.
MENDIS
ALRIGHT EVERYONE LOOKS GOOD.
PERFECT LANDING.
IF YOU WANT TO PAY THE RENT BOYS,
YOU BETTER FIND SOMETHING GOOD DOWN THERE.
CAPTION: IS EVERYBODY IN?
THE CEREMONY IS ABOUT TO BEGIN.
Page 3
Panel 1:The astronauts break up, each of them heading off in a different direction. Mendis speaks over their helmet radios with one final warning. Jack is closest to the “camera”.
MENDIS
THE GRAVITY IS LOW
AND THE ATMOSPHERE IS DEADLY
SO BE CAREFUL. I’M GOING TO SLEEP,
SEE YOU ALL BACK HERE IN 8.
OVER.
Panel 2:Jack enters the forest, brushing aside giant leaves that drape over each other like layers of green silk.
CAPTION: WHO CALLED THESE DEAD TO DANCE?
Panel 3:
Time passes as Jack moves deeper into the jungle. He looks at a wrist mounted display that tells him a lifeform has been located.
JACK
I GOT SOMETHING HERE, A LIFEFORM PERHAPS.
I’M GOING TO CHECK IT OUT.
Page 4
Panel 1:
Jack moves into a clearing next to a waterfall. On a rock near the water sits the female alien, curled up as if sleeping in a fetal position.
CAPTION: WAS IT THE YOUNG WOMAN
LEARNING TO PLAY “GHOST SONG” ON HER BABY GRAND?
WAS IT THE WILDERNESS CHILDREN?
Panel 2:The alien woman begins to stir, rising herself up from the rocks slowly. Jack’s eyes open wide.
JACK
CAMERA OFF.
CAPTION:
WAS IT THE GHOST-GOD HIMSELF?
STUTTERING, CHEERING,
CHATTING BLINDLY?
Panel 3:
The alien woman sees Jack and smiles seductively. At least if she were human it would appear to be seductive.
CAPTION: I CALLED YOU UP TO ANOINT THE EARTH.
I CALLED YOU TO ANNOUNCE SADNESS FALLING LIKE BURNT SKIN.
Page 5
Panel 1:Suddenly the alien woman bolts like a deer, into the forest at top speed. Jack extends his hand to try and call her back, but she is gone.
JACK
NO,
WAIT!
Panel 2:Jack leaps over the rock she was sleeping on and chases after her.
CAPTION: I CALLED YOU TO WISH YOU WELL,
TO GLORY IN SELF LIKE A NEW MONSTER
Panel 3:Ahead of him the alien woman breaks through a grove of trees and disappears on the other side. Jack quickly pursues.
CAPTION: AND NOW I CALL ON YOU TO PRAY.
Page 6
Panel 1:Bursting through the trees, Jack comes out the other side standing on the edge of a canyon. Below, about 200 feet, is a gorge.
Panel 2:
Below in the gorge Jack spots the woman/alien disappear into a cave.
Panel 3:Closing his eyes, Jack steps off the edge of the cliff. The lower gravity allows him to float gently to the bottom of the gorge.
Page 7
Page 1:Jack enters the cave where the alien woman waits. She has her back to the wall, her arms spread out, in a very sexy, aggressive pose.
JACK
I WON’T HURT YOU.
PLEASE, BE CALM.
Panel 2:
The alien woman approaches Jack like a small child, fearfully with her hand out to him.
Panel 3:
She places her hand on his helmet as if trying to caress his cheek. Jack is mesmerized by her beauty.
Page 8
Panel 1:Jack does not even notice that the alien woman releases the locks on his helmet, pushing back the glass of the bubble and revealing him to the atmosphere.
Panel 2:She takes his head to her breasts, holding him like a child. The atmosphere chokes him so quickly that he can barely even get his hands up to fight back, even though he tries feebly.
CAPTION: WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS,
WE CAN WHIP THE HORSE’S EYES
Panel 3:LARGE PANEL: A tear rolls down the aliens face as she holds the dead astronauts limp body in her arms.
CAPTION: AND MAKE THEM SLEEP,
AND CRY.
By Richard Evans
With help from Jim Morrison
Page 1
Panel 1:CLOSE-UP of Jack Doran, the perfect Aryan astronaut, sporting a 5 O Clock shadow beneath his darkened helmet. The space suit he wears is futuristic, smaller and leaner then those we use today. The helmet is a Buzz Lightyear style bubble helmet. A camera is embedded in the upper portion of the glass. Jack wears a suit that covers the back of his head but leaves his face bare. He is the chiseled American of the future. We look directly into his face, close enough that it blocks out the background.
JACK
WE’RE ALL IN MENDIS.
DROP US.
CAPTION: LIONS IN THE STREET & ROAMING
DOGS IN HEAT, RABID, FOAMING.
A BEAST CAGED IN THE HEART OF THE CITY.
Panel 2:LARGE PANEL: At the top of the panel is the bottom of a space personnel carrier. 12 astronauts much like Jack drop out of the bottom sideways, drifting out into space. It looks as if someone has tossed dolls out into space.
CAPTION: THE BODY OF HIS MOTHER
ROTTING IN THE SUMMER GROUND.
HE FLED THE TOWN.
Page 2
Panel 1:
CUT TO: The control room of the ship. Mendis sits at the computer terminal with a headset on. Mendis wears a pair of tiny glasses and is still rather young. His dark black hair is shaved down to the scalp.
MENDIS
JUST LIKE IN THE DRILLS BOYS.
LET YOUR FORCEFIELDS ABSORB THE HEAT.
WHEN THE FIRE IS GONE, ACTIVATE THE JETPACKS.
YOUR VITALS ARE GOOD.
JUST RELAX AND ENJOY IT.
CAPTION: HE WENT DOWN SOUTH
AND CROSSED THE BORDER
LEFT THE CHAOS & DISORDER
BACK THERE
OVER HIS SHOULDER
Panel 2:CUT TO: A lush alien planet. A few of the astronauts, including Jack, drop to the ground. A jetpack on their back maneuvers them with an anti-gravity system, which appears to be nothing more then an glowing orb inside a normal looking jetpack, just where the exhaust would normally be. A few of the astronauts higher up in the atmosphere have a pink energy bubble around them. It is transparent, much like a membrane or a soap bubble.
Perhaps one of the last astronauts can be seem descending wrapped in a fireball just like a meteor.
Panel 3:CUT TO: CLOSE-UP of a pair of feminine alien eyes. Too large and wide for the smooth face they occupy. She watches from the trees at the alien intruders to her planet.
CAPTION: ONE MORNING HE AWOKE IN A GREEN HOTEL
WITH A STRANGE CREATURE GROANING BESIDE HIM.
SWEAT OOZED FROM ITS SHINY SKIN.
Panel 4: Mendis appears on the side of the panel, overlayed on top of the shot of the planet. Mendis relays more orders from to the team. The 12 astronauts stand on a knoll overlooking a beautiful rain forest of strange plants and trees.
MENDIS
ALRIGHT EVERYONE LOOKS GOOD.
PERFECT LANDING.
IF YOU WANT TO PAY THE RENT BOYS,
YOU BETTER FIND SOMETHING GOOD DOWN THERE.
CAPTION: IS EVERYBODY IN?
THE CEREMONY IS ABOUT TO BEGIN.
Page 3
Panel 1:The astronauts break up, each of them heading off in a different direction. Mendis speaks over their helmet radios with one final warning. Jack is closest to the “camera”.
MENDIS
THE GRAVITY IS LOW
AND THE ATMOSPHERE IS DEADLY
SO BE CAREFUL. I’M GOING TO SLEEP,
SEE YOU ALL BACK HERE IN 8.
OVER.
Panel 2:Jack enters the forest, brushing aside giant leaves that drape over each other like layers of green silk.
CAPTION: WHO CALLED THESE DEAD TO DANCE?
Panel 3:
Time passes as Jack moves deeper into the jungle. He looks at a wrist mounted display that tells him a lifeform has been located.
JACK
I GOT SOMETHING HERE, A LIFEFORM PERHAPS.
I’M GOING TO CHECK IT OUT.
Page 4
Panel 1:
Jack moves into a clearing next to a waterfall. On a rock near the water sits the female alien, curled up as if sleeping in a fetal position.
CAPTION: WAS IT THE YOUNG WOMAN
LEARNING TO PLAY “GHOST SONG” ON HER BABY GRAND?
WAS IT THE WILDERNESS CHILDREN?
Panel 2:The alien woman begins to stir, rising herself up from the rocks slowly. Jack’s eyes open wide.
JACK
CAMERA OFF.
CAPTION:
WAS IT THE GHOST-GOD HIMSELF?
STUTTERING, CHEERING,
CHATTING BLINDLY?
Panel 3:
The alien woman sees Jack and smiles seductively. At least if she were human it would appear to be seductive.
CAPTION: I CALLED YOU UP TO ANOINT THE EARTH.
I CALLED YOU TO ANNOUNCE SADNESS FALLING LIKE BURNT SKIN.
Page 5
Panel 1:Suddenly the alien woman bolts like a deer, into the forest at top speed. Jack extends his hand to try and call her back, but she is gone.
JACK
NO,
WAIT!
Panel 2:Jack leaps over the rock she was sleeping on and chases after her.
CAPTION: I CALLED YOU TO WISH YOU WELL,
TO GLORY IN SELF LIKE A NEW MONSTER
Panel 3:Ahead of him the alien woman breaks through a grove of trees and disappears on the other side. Jack quickly pursues.
CAPTION: AND NOW I CALL ON YOU TO PRAY.
Page 6
Panel 1:Bursting through the trees, Jack comes out the other side standing on the edge of a canyon. Below, about 200 feet, is a gorge.
Panel 2:
Below in the gorge Jack spots the woman/alien disappear into a cave.
Panel 3:Closing his eyes, Jack steps off the edge of the cliff. The lower gravity allows him to float gently to the bottom of the gorge.
Page 7
Page 1:Jack enters the cave where the alien woman waits. She has her back to the wall, her arms spread out, in a very sexy, aggressive pose.
JACK
I WON’T HURT YOU.
PLEASE, BE CALM.
Panel 2:
The alien woman approaches Jack like a small child, fearfully with her hand out to him.
Panel 3:
She places her hand on his helmet as if trying to caress his cheek. Jack is mesmerized by her beauty.
Page 8
Panel 1:Jack does not even notice that the alien woman releases the locks on his helmet, pushing back the glass of the bubble and revealing him to the atmosphere.
Panel 2:She takes his head to her breasts, holding him like a child. The atmosphere chokes him so quickly that he can barely even get his hands up to fight back, even though he tries feebly.
CAPTION: WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS,
WE CAN WHIP THE HORSE’S EYES
Panel 3:LARGE PANEL: A tear rolls down the aliens face as she holds the dead astronauts limp body in her arms.
CAPTION: AND MAKE THEM SLEEP,
AND CRY.
Saturday, October 01, 2005
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