Atland 330 - "MADNESS! Part 3"

You guys have mentioned the fact that Barry might not be "killable" since he's sort of undead. The truth is, no one really knows.  He's never been wounded so badly that death was a possibility.  Last week proved there's a first time for everything.

Inky once again steps up to be the voice of rational planning.  He's decided Verner is beyond saving. He also knows that Nessa might not be able to do what needs to be done in that case.

We shall see!

~N

Atland 329 - "MADNESS! Part 2"

I had a great time drawing this episode.  I couldn't wait to draw that last panel.  I even almost enjoyed coloring it. (Almost.)

About two years ago, I wrote down some ideas for a story where Barry loses an arm.  I even sketched out some ideas what he might do to try and replace it.  This fight with Verner was the perfect opportunity to finally add the "missing arm plot twist." 

More in 2 weeks!

~N

Atland 328 - "MADNESS! Part 1"

I love drawing Verner when he goes batshit crazy.  It's like his head is made of silly putty. I really wanted to show how completely he's under the influence of the Chimera.  Clearly, there's very little human being left to him at this point.

When I finished drawing this, I realized I had forgotten to add Barry's shield!  So the shield you see in the episode was drawn in Photoshop, after I sketched it over the inks on the original art.  D'oh!

In two weeks, our heroes go on the offensive!

In other news,  I'll be at Boston Comic Con this Sunday, walking around with friends.  Spot the guy in the Blambot shirt and say, "hi"!

~N

Running Behind

Had a family commitment this morning. Chances are good that the new ATLAND will not be up today. Tomorrow instead. Which still makes it "on time" but I usually put up the episodes the night before.

Thx!

~N

Atland #327 - Mastery of Steel

Finally! Father and daughter are reunited.  I tried to view Verner's explanation from his standpoint. It's an extreme view, but he's not all-together wrong.  If you really want to be completely black and white about being "the best" swordsman, then  you have to fight the best.  The corrupting influence of the Chimera is just tipping him over the edge... he won't battle to a draw, or even a win.  Only to the death.

We're closing in on the end of the story arc, and the end of ATLAND for a while.  I'm anxious for both, as I'd like to get back to work on my BERSERKER'S DAUGHTER project.

~N

Atland #326 - Let's Take This Outside

The original script for this episode was about 3x more wordy.  There was a full-on exchange between Alanna and Verner, but in the end, I decided to play it out more like an old western.  I imagined setting up a gunfight in the 1850s.  So less was more.  That last panel had a couple of lines that made it all the way to the lettering stage, but I realized it played more "heavy" if I cut them. So they went.

Editing is fun.

~N

Atland #325 - A Guest

I think Veller the Half-Merman and Master Torgen have been friends a long time.  Maybe more than friends at some point and it didn't work out.  They've remained close, with Veller bartending at her inn.

He knows she's in serious danger.  But when two swordmasters clash, anyone of lesser skill is bound to just end up dead.  She's basically saving Veller's life, here.  And Veller probably knows that this may be the last time he sees Alanna Torgen, as well.

~N