I pushed this comic through after seeing “District 9” and now the ending leaves me dissatisfied – damn it. It was fun to color with my new wacom though. My new schedule is beating me about the head and neck but I’m getting it worked out. New Vivian next week for sure and hopefully a new esad as well.
What’s the inspiration for the backgrounds you do, the kind of tree-filled old city that they’re perpetually walking about in? Any particular city or anything? Just wondering. I love it by the way, which is why i’m curious. Best backgrounds on the ‘net.
Kind of my dream city I guess. Curious Urgency and Vivian Blank take place in nightmare cities with no sky – endless basement/rooftops and wires and pipes. So for Trent and Dave in esad I like to draw my favorite parts of cities. Trees and steps and multiple levels and statues. When I first went to NYC I was really disappointed it didn’t look like Breakfast at Tiffany’s – so I try to draw the NYC of the movies of the early ’60’s mixed with Paris and Rome – the most romantic city I can imagine. I’m getting pretty tired of the endless walking around the cities though. I want to get every aspect of the comic working toward conveying the theme – like your comics. You come up with these really original and clever metaphors and every detail of the comic works toward building that metaphor and contribute to the main idea. They’re brilliant, really.
Excellent, and I love the alternative ending. Never has hypocrisy been so entertaining (or represented so clearly) as in esad.
Now I want to see District 9…
Did you change your coloring or shading somehow? I can’t put my finger on what it is, but something seems stylistically different in this installment.
Thanks, David! I recommend seeing District 9. I enjoyed it a lot. It makes you check yourself and your possible over-confidence in your own open-mindedness. And is fun and cool as well.
Och: I usually kind of work with a monochromatic theme for each comic. One comic will be red, another blue etc. But this one switches from panel to panel. It was kind of a (lame) attempt at engaging the backgrounds in helping to get the idea of the comic across. Also in the first panel the boys have the same skin color but by the end it’s different (another lame attempt). That’s probably it. Although in the first two panels I used a mid-tone in the skin shading which I normally don’t do.
I think I figured out how to fix the pacing problem with the end of the comic. I need a silent reaction-panel between the last two panels. I’m gonna work on that and see how it works out.
I just want to say that I really admire you.
I’ve always toyed around with drawing and coming up with stories, but always never really thought of making a living off of it, because you have to be ridiculously talented to get anywhere, or so I thought.
I’ve been reading comics and webcomics for a good couple of years, but I am constantly amazed by yours.
It really inspired me to get serious about drawing and to try and become somewhat decent enough to show the public how comics are a viable medium for intense story telling and not just for little kids and stories about men in tights.
You’ve gained a fan in me, thank you for your amazing art and tales. I consider you among my favorite comic writers along with Alan Moore and Grant Morrison. Please continue your incredible work.
Wow! Thank you so much, Dodger! That really means a lot to me. Inspiring fellow artists is way up there on the wish-list of things-that-would-be-great-but-c’mon-who-are-you-kidding. Of course you should make comics, c’mon. Make the comics that only you can make. And be sure you let me know when you get some up, I look forward to checking them out.
Ding! Archive binge completed (one sitting). Great stuff. Keep going. Found Bob&Bob particularly trippy. It’s kind of odd that page 1 comes only much after the main comic tho? I’m getting the impression the next/previous buttons are only for default and I’m supposed to use the sidebar categories. But I’m pretty sure it’s possible to rig the ordering to insert recent pages into the browsing sequence where appropriate…
Oh, and any particular reason you keep both the one-offs and a bunch of series under the ES&D moniker?
Thanks, Tropylium! One sitting, wow! Bob & Bob has been really well received. I think it’s because it’s finished. Hopefully some of the longer stories will be just as satisfying when they’re finished. I dropped the ball with page 1. Thanks for reminding me I need to fix that. The archives are organized by date – and I could go through and edit all the dates so everything flows with just the previous button. Hopefully I will – it would be better. ES&D (I like that abbr. by the way) is kind of the comic-strip of the site. The idea is that any one of them can stand on their own – while there are recurring themes and characters. The Allison Kelly stories will hopefully build a larger story over time and slowly reveal Allison as a charcter but each one should still be able to stand on its own. ES&D are supposed to be little bite-sized samples of the rest of the site. I don’t know, do you think it’d be better if they all had their own place?
Great work – loved it.