• Tru’Barb

    I have to admit (reluctantly) that I’m having a little trouble figuring out what happened here - the images are just … “stuff” to my mind’s eye. I don’t know who just got killed and mostly I can’t figure out what those block-shaped thingies are on each side of his helmet in Panel 2 (before and after shots of some kind? Of what?)…

    If I’m reading this right, something that moves too fast to see even with cameras is shooting at them. With insane accuracy. And he’s about to get his entire team obliterated…

    • You are indeed reading this right. The confusion comes across largely intentionally, because we were trying to show what Tenzin is perceiving and experiencing, and it’s chaotic and confusing to him as well. It was an artistic decision that means that audience has to be confused a bit as well. Otherwise you’d know more than Tenzin and the story wouldn’t work.

      At least that was my thought process ;)

      And don’t worry, I don’t think you are a nitwit ;)

      • nightgaunt

        War is chaotic confusion.

  • Core_Diver

    So is “Burn it All” his equivalent of a swear?

    • Yeah, basically. I know that they are soldiers and should swear, but I want to keep this a little more all-ages appropriate (and am not a swearer or comfortable with swears myself). So I’ve been trying to use some made up swears, and swears in foreign languages, etc. It might be a little less authentic, but it’ll have to do for now.

      • Core_Diver

        Not discontent with it, just getting a headsup! There’s such a mix of nationalities on the team that it works out pretty well by the way. (Though Age-Appropriateness in such a bloody comic is lightly novel)
        Loving every minute of this though

      • nightgaunt

        I find it funny about all the “bad words” business is worse than showing people with the heads shot off and guts hanging out. Our peculiar militarist version of Christianity.

        • NickDA

          Completely agree… but as Dan is the writer we appeal to his sensibilities :D… plus the “burn it all” in this case is a swear from the firestorms of the war and nuke shockwaves etc…

        • Although we are actually trying to be not too gory either. Yeah people are getting shot and lots of blood, but I don’t think you’ll see any guts hanging out or heads blown off. At least not shown graphically. It’s a difficult balance to try to show the horrors of war in a sensitive way.

          • Demetri Ermak

            I just came up with an idea. You could break the fourth wall a little bit, shooting holes through dialogues just in the places where swearing should be, or cover up parts of the texts with surroundings. Like a little piece of curtains covering up the “destroy this mot*curtain*ing artillery!”
            Though I guess it’s not fit to add now. That can be an idea for your next project! :D

          • Hehe those are pretty good ideas :)

          • Demetri Ermak

            Especially since the heavy swearing is probably happening in a killzone - there’s always stuff flying around, knocking things over, liquids spilling everywhere - it could also help to emphasize on the chaos and, for example, hide words that are unintelligible. For example, part of an order that was jammed can be covered by static or pieces of furniture flying everywhere)

  • Tenzin appears to be a damn good captain.

    • Hehe. Most people seem to say the opposite ;)

      But Tenzin tries hard. It’s just a really crappy scenario.

      • Agreed, part of being a good leader is having to make the tough calls that others can’t under pressure.

  • Citrus Reaper

    I hate to say it, but I’m having a bit of a problem tracking who’s eating flechettes in these panels. I would suggest in future, maybe, to help differentiate between the Keleres in warzones by having them each spruce up their armor a bit. I’m just a sucker for people custom-painting their armor in this kind of thing, I guess.

    • Yeah a big part of that was because, well, you’ll see… Talk to me at the end of the chapter if you don’t know what I mean.

      • Citrus Reaper

        Don’t worry, I’m eating this chapter up. I’ll be done in short order, I think.

  • theRoUS

    And kudos to you for the correct choice of spelling for ‘counsel’!!