I’m a sword guy too, as my ridiculous collection will attest. But, maces and warhammers inflict incredible damage! When you get right down to it, a baseball bat is more dangerous in unskilled hands than a sword could ever be.
I built that mace in Google Sketchup, by the way. Kinda’ proud of it.
It’s taken me a few days to be able to respond to this. Coming so soon after the 9/11 anniversary, this page was deeply affecting and stirred up emotions I thought I’d held in check through last weekend. Looking back to the previous page, it helps a bit to know that those in this building were allowed to evacuate.
Maybe interesting, maybe not, but Benita and I felt the same way. We wrote this part of the story a couple years ago, and we had no idea that it would match up with the 10th anniversary of 9-11. Last week, as I drew this, and collected the models that make up this page, I felt odd, mostly because I had just seen some 9-11 retrospectives, and well, you get the idea. It was an uneasy feeling.
So, I suggested we take the week off. The only way we could omit this scene was to cancel the storyline alltogether, because it hinged on this. Benita vetoed that, because we had already taken a week off this year.
The painful and dangerous state of life in Spire City is a direct analogue to the real world and it’s situations. If it all seems senseless and indescrimate, that’s because the world around us is as well.
Truth to tell, I experience all the emotions the characters are having; it’s my nature as an artist and a sensitive. There have been times when it made continuing harder than you might guess. This story is totally from the heart.
In 9-11, we saw heroes we selflessly gave their lives to help others. It was heart-wrenching, and it made superheroes with their powers and soap opera lives seem stupid and useless. It wasn’t superheroes who tried to save us, but people like you and I, flawed mortals, yet people of absolute character and selflessness. I have tried to show that same sense of duty in the face of the unstoppable in this comic, but of course I fail, again and again.
OK, I have to quit because I’m getting pretty emotional about this…
Scott, please know that my comment was not intended as a criticism of you, the story, or the timing of this page. It is simply a record of my emotional reaction.
Art is all about emotion, both in expressing the artists, and in evoking the viewers. Yours comes through loud and clear (at least to me). Rather than being a hinderance, I think the proximity to 9/11 actually helps this page. The shock and horror we (in this world) experienced on that day helps us to understand what those (in Spire City) are experiencing on this day.
In your world, we have our analogue to the everyday, flawed and mortal heroes that emerge in the face of catastrophe. His name is Johnny Saturn. Beneath that mask is a face that could be you, me, or the person next door. We saw them on 9/11, but we also see them in smaller venues like the crowd that gathered to lift the burning car off the motorcycle rider trapped beneath it, or those who were mere feet away from the plane the crashed at the Reno Air Race yesterday. For me, Johnny is all of those people.
In a world with meta-powers, goddesses, angles, demons, and fantastic technology, the biggest irony and most important point is that the greatest hero and champion is, himself, a flawed, vulnerable, and ordinary man. He is us.
I just got finished reading 5+ years of Johnny Saturn over the last two days – not weeks, *days* – and I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. Solid storytelling, engaging characters and great old-school artwork (no manga influence – no offense to anyone who likes that style, but I don’t). I will certainly be keeping up with this series. Thanks for your continued hard work.
Oh dear….
Whoa, Thu Lynn wasn’t kidding about the power of that mace. Not sure even the vastly upgraded Utopian could stand up to that.
His dad most likely could though…
With the mace and augmented powers, DR is of equivalent power to Elect. For this world, that’s a Galactus level threat!
That is a cool mace. Would’ve preferred a sword, but still cool.
I’m a sword guy too, as my ridiculous collection will attest. But, maces and warhammers inflict incredible damage! When you get right down to it, a baseball bat is more dangerous in unskilled hands than a sword could ever be.
I built that mace in Google Sketchup, by the way. Kinda’ proud of it.
It’s not as impressive as it looks; Thu Lynn had him start with the world’s largest sculpture made entirely of dryer lint.
Hmm.. at first this is bad, but then he did evacuate the people and it is for Thu Lynn’s continued survival.
It’s taken me a few days to be able to respond to this. Coming so soon after the 9/11 anniversary, this page was deeply affecting and stirred up emotions I thought I’d held in check through last weekend. Looking back to the previous page, it helps a bit to know that those in this building were allowed to evacuate.
Maybe interesting, maybe not, but Benita and I felt the same way. We wrote this part of the story a couple years ago, and we had no idea that it would match up with the 10th anniversary of 9-11. Last week, as I drew this, and collected the models that make up this page, I felt odd, mostly because I had just seen some 9-11 retrospectives, and well, you get the idea. It was an uneasy feeling.
So, I suggested we take the week off. The only way we could omit this scene was to cancel the storyline alltogether, because it hinged on this. Benita vetoed that, because we had already taken a week off this year.
The painful and dangerous state of life in Spire City is a direct analogue to the real world and it’s situations. If it all seems senseless and indescrimate, that’s because the world around us is as well.
Truth to tell, I experience all the emotions the characters are having; it’s my nature as an artist and a sensitive. There have been times when it made continuing harder than you might guess. This story is totally from the heart.
In 9-11, we saw heroes we selflessly gave their lives to help others. It was heart-wrenching, and it made superheroes with their powers and soap opera lives seem stupid and useless. It wasn’t superheroes who tried to save us, but people like you and I, flawed mortals, yet people of absolute character and selflessness. I have tried to show that same sense of duty in the face of the unstoppable in this comic, but of course I fail, again and again.
OK, I have to quit because I’m getting pretty emotional about this…
Scott.
Scott, please know that my comment was not intended as a criticism of you, the story, or the timing of this page. It is simply a record of my emotional reaction.
Art is all about emotion, both in expressing the artists, and in evoking the viewers. Yours comes through loud and clear (at least to me). Rather than being a hinderance, I think the proximity to 9/11 actually helps this page. The shock and horror we (in this world) experienced on that day helps us to understand what those (in Spire City) are experiencing on this day.
In your world, we have our analogue to the everyday, flawed and mortal heroes that emerge in the face of catastrophe. His name is Johnny Saturn. Beneath that mask is a face that could be you, me, or the person next door. We saw them on 9/11, but we also see them in smaller venues like the crowd that gathered to lift the burning car off the motorcycle rider trapped beneath it, or those who were mere feet away from the plane the crashed at the Reno Air Race yesterday. For me, Johnny is all of those people.
In a world with meta-powers, goddesses, angles, demons, and fantastic technology, the biggest irony and most important point is that the greatest hero and champion is, himself, a flawed, vulnerable, and ordinary man. He is us.
Thanks so much, SCAScot. I’m glad that I didn’t cause offense, and that you get what we’re trying to do.
I just got finished reading 5+ years of Johnny Saturn over the last two days – not weeks, *days* – and I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. Solid storytelling, engaging characters and great old-school artwork (no manga influence – no offense to anyone who likes that style, but I don’t). I will certainly be keeping up with this series. Thanks for your continued hard work.
Iconocrat, you’ve made my day. Thanks, and Welcome!