The Scholar and the Seawal: Page 2
Names are good, is the moral of this page. Actually, true story: in the first draft of the story, I’d spent so much time hashing out the actual plot and lines of dialogue and trying to get everything working on a mechanical level that I’d legitimately forgotten to mention just WHO the characters were! I knew what their names were, but I’d neglected to share that information with the reader. Fortunately, Jayelle caught it fairly early on and we were able to recover in subsequent drafts.
Introducing your characters by name so the readers know who they are can be tricky in comics. In Guild Wars 2, lots of characters just have their names floating over their heads, so that makes things a little easier–but here, characters need to speak it, or we need to learn it some other way. Some people use boxes to just give us the names, kind of like the Guild Wars 2 method, but that seems almost like cheating in a way.
Anyway, I’m going on too much about the names. Let’s talk about the page!
As you can see in the thumbnail draft, this was originally a five-panel page. Ultimately, panel three would be split in two, giving Nora’s line about ‘telling the truth’ a little more heft by letting it stand on its own and giving the lutren a unique expression for it, a slight air of good-hearted snark. It works so much better that way, and Jayelle rejiggered the page after it was pretty far along to make it work.
Ultimately, yes, it works way better like this! These are the kinds of observations that really show the value in the collaborative process. I thought the original layout was going to be just fine and approved it, but Jayelle was soon convinced that Nora’s line needed it’s own panel to breathe and asked to make the tweak. With the above page used to prove her rationale, it was hard to say no.
This week for guest art, let’s take a look at a fun piece by Atelier Bagur (aka Veigue) of a tamian character we haven’t seen in a while! Let’s hear it for CRIM!
Yeah, so he’s a bit of a lunkheaded bully, but he’s mostly just upset at the nepotism that shot Quinlan up to the captaincy. Of course, considering everything that’s happened, it’s possible Crim may change his tune. Who knows?!
Was last week’s page grand?
Yes, yes it was.
Is this week’s even better?
Yes, yes it is.
And thus was the Salmon Party blessed with another bit of cherished vernacular with the gift of “spire-folk.” Pointy kitties!
I like this page even better knowing that this is their fourth day at sea and Nora is only just now learning Isa’s name. This also means Captain Otter-Sam Elliott brought her aboard this tiny vessel with no introduction which is hilarious.
The Previous Day. Noon.
A small sailing vessel plies the open sea. The weather is beautiful. Small waves gently splash against the hull.
CAPTAIN OTTER-SAM ELLIOTT
(Surveys the ocean, hands clasped behind back)
*Stoic silence*
ISA THE SCHOLAR
(Sits reading papers and taking notes)
*Studious silence*
NORA, SHIRTLESS GUY & OTHER BACKGROUND GUY OR GIRL
(Perform menial boat related tasks)
*Awkward silence*
SHIRTLESS GUY
(Whispering)
‘Shouldn’t we… shouldn’t we… uh.. say someting to her?’
NORA
‘I want to but she always looks so busy! I don’t want to interupt.’
SHIRTLESS GUY
‘I’m sure she won’t mind. Pretty sure.’
OTHER BACKGROUND GUY OR GIRL
‘You don’t know that! You cold be interrupting a vital scientific train of thought! Or somethin’. I ain’t no science-ologist.’
SHIRTLESS GUY
‘Don’t those Spire scholar coves love learning about other ways of life? Oral histories or whatever. Why not extend the hand of friendship on behalf of all Lutren everywhere! Make it sound official an’ everything!’
NORA
‘But what if I accidentally insult her entire culture and plunge Sunsgrove and Kishar into endless war and all of society shatters forever?’
OTHER BACKGROUND GUY OR GIRL
‘In hindsight it’s possible we’re overthinking this.’
SHIRTLESS GUY
‘You can do this, Nora! We believe in you!
(Performs double thumbs up)
NORA
‘Ok, here goes…’
NORA
(Turns to ISA THE SCHOLAR and waves a single time)
NORA
(In a tiny voice)
‘Hi.’
ISA THE SCHOLAR
(Obliviously continues reading and taking notes)
NORA
(Turns back to SHIRTLESS GUY and OTHER BACKGROUND GUY OR GIRL and carries out the simultaneous shrug and eybrow lift combo commonly understood to mean “so now what?!”)
SHIRTLESS GUY
(Spins an open palm in the universal gesture of “Keep going!”)
CAPTAIN OTTER-SAM ELLIOTT
(Clears throat in a pointed manner)
NORA, SHIRTLESS GUY AND OTHER BACKGROUND GUY OR GIRL
(Return to thier menial tasks)
The boat continues west as the afternoon wears on. The water laps and occasionally the boom creaks.
CAPTAIN OTTER-SAM ELLIOTT
(Surveys the ocean, hands clasped behind back)
*Stoic silence*
ISA THE SCHOLAR
(Sits reading papers and taking notes)
*Studious silence*
NORA, SHIRTLESS GUY & OTHER BACKGROUND GUY OR GIRL
(Performing menial boat related tasks)
*Awkward silence*
END SCENE
And so, this enters personal head-canon.
I think you spent just a little too much time thinking about this. :D
I’ll be the judge of that, thank you very much.
I like this comic and I think it’s worth spending time thinking about.
Yeah, I can’t help but agree with Trees here. How come she never introduced herself for three whole days?
And theatre scene is hilarious, too!
Nora’s so pretty! She’s going to die.
We’re *all* going to die, MP. But I would argue that one of the great things about a comic like this is that you can introduce really appealing characters like Isa and Nora and that’s not any guarantee that they’ll survive the story. (Although, come to think of it, I’d say we have yet to see any of the REALLY appealing characters in “BWD” meet their end … )
Well myths do have some form of truth. Even just a little. And Nora is pretty as otters are one of my top favorite animals. Hope the two of them live through whatever and possibly go on more adventures.
Lovely page! And a lovely otter, as some commenters have already pointed out.
Nora hasn’t backed Isa into as much of a corner as she thinks. Sure, the creature might be a myth, but the myth itself is true, inasmuch as it’s believed by at least a significant minority of Lutren! So ha!
Of course, if it IS real, there’s the very real risk that it’ll sink their ship. And if they survive that . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfSLuEj99d0
(I really wanted to link that song, okay? Isa is the professor, of course.)
Perhaps they’ll be lucky and it’ll end up being a big gentle blue whale or something. It could be a majestic and life affirming moment!
On the other hand this is a world where things like tree walkers exist so…
Even a gentle blue whale could sink their ship if it surfaced underneath it.
It seems like one of those things that can be tricky to pull off in stories and or comics without it being forced. But the way the names come up here works regardless : )
I like how enthusiastic Isa is when it comes to her work and socializing. Its very cat like where she’ll pick up on the strangest things to get happy over.
Also #myboiCrim represent
I agree, Isa is a gem of a character already, and so charmingly catlike.
It is I! A little more late than usual, But back from my backpacking trip all the same. Now enough about me and lets get down to brass tacks. I like these characters already but I have a Marion of Redwall feeling in my gut that the Polcan will attack their little sloop and force them into slavery and they will have to break free. That’s my prediction anyway.
“Marion of Redwall?”
Mariel of Redwall my bad. It has been a while since I have read the book so the name was distorted in my memory a bit.
Ah well. As long as it wasn’t “Latura of Redwall” – what a monstrosity.
Sometimes when I want to introduce names, I just nudge things a tiny bit so that the name is used. So in a situation like this, the captain would call for Nora to do some job that’s her responsibility, and she would respond with “I’m sorry Captain *name*. I’ll get right on it!” Names given easily and effectively, without intruding on the narrative.