2.18
Number 1 rule of spying on people: don’t make noise.
I had finished that last panel and the page, then realized that it looked really stupid/ non-sequential without my having shown the hole in the window. So I had to do panel surgery on it XC Details in the vote incentive tomorrow, cuz I hate this kind of last minute revision.
Ooh, guess what? This is the last page of the year! Next page will be the 1 year anniversary of the comic 
I can’t believe its gone by so fast, or that I haven’t even finished two chapters, hahaha. On the plus side, the year was well spent according to this article. Makes me feel warm and fuzzy!
The last comic pimp of the year goes to DAR: a Super Girly Top Secret Comic Diary by Erika Moen (warning, sometimes NSFW)! Not only is this a fantastic comic by a great person, but it is actually ending Tuesday (12/29) after 6+ years. I myself have been reading it since it started, back on GAM I think… Anyways, take a look through the archives if you haven’t already, and maybe take a moment to congratulate Erika on the successful run of her comic
Well, I guess that’s it for now… see you next year!
YESSS. I have been creepily checking the site every few hours and it has finally paid off! Wonderful wonderful page!
Haha, sorry I didn’t get it up earlier XD I was lazy last night and read other comics instead of working on mine.
what kind of comics do you like?
I’ll read anything that has a reasonably good art and/or story… but for the most part I like long-form comics like mine vs gag-a-day strips.
Panel 2 :O
Even MORE intensity than I had expected. You keep raising the bar, damnit!
Poor Rana/Phe/Luca. D:
The close-up on Luca is brilliant.
Wow. Phe looks seriously frightened in that last shot of her.
Boy, you can really feel the sadness in panel 2.
Phe in panel 3 is like “ohshitohshitohshit” (if you’ll excuse the profanity).
I have to wonder how exactly Phe is being hurt though. It looks like Luca’s on top of her, but that’s all I can see.
OOoh! Well worth the wait, (and by wait I mean stalkery refreshing while reading 4our-Calender Cafe xD)!
I love the tension and the panic and this page is epic.
._. I love you. <3
Oh dude, this page and the last one are scaring me. You know what’s the most frightening about them? That Phe is actually afraid of her own husband. D:
This is one of my favourite pages so far. I like the violence, sadly. LOL
His eyes are amazing – that you managed to capture so much in just a few strokes of the pen and the colouring. Beautiful.
I find Raging Luca extremely sexy. LOL Yes, I am messed up.
Awwww, I hate it when that dar comic gets pimped, she totally made a comic insulting transgendered dudes one time. It was the opposite of awesome.
Really? http://www.darcomic.org/2009/02/17/transmen/ + read the comments… I am pretty sure she has nothing against transguys!
Oh, ok. I haven’t been to her site in a while, and her “edit to add” comment under the comic wasn’t originally there. I just remember everyone blowing up over it because she deleted and turned off comments for it on her site and her LiveJournal, insinuating that she didn’t want to hear what others had to say.
Yeah, I remember that… I used to be pretty intimidated by/ unsure of her (based on comics) but then I had the opportunity to meet her at a con… In real life she is very nice and definitely does not seem like the sort of person who would badmouth anyone.
WOW Luca’s expression in the close-up gave me the creeps! I can totally feel the emotions – this is one of my favourite pages so far! He looks really fucked up (excuse me), sad and totally crazy at once. A total madman!
At first I thought the “crack” in the third panel hints that Luca’s hurting Phe, urgh.
RUN FOR YOUR LIFE, RANA! you better do so, too, Phe D:
Ugh, I love you for being so awesome!
Luca is hurting the one and only person he seems to really care about, and that makes me sad for him. He must have had to endure horrible physical / mental pain to be so deranged. He hates Phe for not understanding his view, yet she seems to be his only remaining tie to sanity.
On a completely unrelated note, Phe looks uncannily like a certain spanish lady I used to date. It kinda freaked me out a bit the first time I saw her there in the emperor’s chamber.
Kudos to you for making such an awesome comic, and best wishes for the forthcoming year
what happened to his teeth? theres a big gap in the front
He lost them a while ago!
but theres pages where he has them D:
when hes at the meeting, arguing with phe
Maybe he has falsies to wear for special occassions?
Actually thats it exactly
They’re uncomfortable so he takes them out when he’s not in public.
Oh, man… That second panel is… heart-wrenching. I feel so bad for Luca. I can’t be too mad at Phe for wanting him to have mercy on Caris despite what he’s been through, but I do hope his outburst makes her leave it alone.
And Rana looks like she’s about to cry–I have to wonder if this is the first time she’s seen Luca like that, both in that kind of rage and with his gloves off and fake teeth out.
Either way, beautiful, emotional page. This might be my favorite so far.
…errmmm…I think I found a typo and it doesn’t look like anyone else spotted it. When he shouts “Did they GAVE me a chance to start over?” shouldn’t it be GIVE?
otherwise…I love your comic and style. XD
I think alexds1 purposely uses bad grammar with Luca. She’s mentioned that the language they are speaking is his third, so any grammatical mistakes are his, not hers. It really helps illustrate when he’s upset, because his grammar gets worse.
oooooooooooh…my bad. ^^;
Rana’s face in the 2nd to last panel makes me choke up.
Amazing job on the expressions!
Luca is a bit insane. More so than I thought he would be.
An utterly convincing moment: you show Luca’s rage and Phe’s terror in just a few panels. Masterful.
garr that close up of his eyes plus his words gave me the cold, cold chills. BRRRRR. Poor Rana no wonder there’s no love lost between her and her dad. Watching such a violent dispute between mom and dad hits a child right in the worst spot.
The first panel is an awesome shot in terms of emotional impact. I had to look very close to figure out how they were positioned though. I think he’s like sitting on her or something? or kneeling beside her? I’m guessing he’s probably got the other hand pressing down on her. Poor Phe.
Yeah, he’s doing something alright. Kneeling, kneeing… I had the other leg knee-to-floor just cuz its the weirdo leg, the other hand is also in the air like “I surrender” (but a bit scarier)
The most emotional page in this chapter (the page where chinchillas flood the castle) is still coming up!
OHSH** CHINCHILLA INVASION? D8
They’re Caris chinchillas I bet. All part of Caris’s INSIDIOUS plans…The emperor was right all along!!!
Oh god the MOST emotional page is still coming!? I didn’t think it could get worse! D:
Sheez, Luca has got to calm the frick down.
Is spousal abuse common in Pasori culture ?
Sort of :\ The characters are on their own when it comes to this stuff, I definitely don’t condone domestic disputes!
The tension just keeps on building! I love god drama, and this is getting truly excellent. I have a small critique though; the damaged hand is a little confusing, in the beginning of the chapter we can see that it is his right hand that is damaged, but then in the previous page he takes of both gloves and now he is showing her his left hand. It just makes it a little confusing.
I think they’re both damaged, which would make sense if he was tortured…picking one hand to wreck and nothing else is a kinda odd decision.
Yeah, they are both messed up. I think the colors were a bit misleading on the first few pages, I’ll have to go back and revise them.
I’m curious to see what Rana does with the information.
Yeah the window looks the same as the vote incentive to me, maybe the change didn’t upload right?
I think the window broke earlier in this page http://www.meekcomic.com/2009/12/06/2-15/ in the last panel.
I wonder if Suda will believe Rana if she goes to tell him “OMG Dad is crazy!”
Crap, no, this is the right page, its just super not-obvious. I’ll stop lying to myself, I guess I have to do more surgery on that panel >:C
The actual pane that broke is out of frame. She just added some glow around it where the light is coming through. I think it looks good!
Those eyes in panel two are so sad that it almost makes me forget that the man is right on the edge of batsh*t insane. I’m surprised Phe let it get this far though, there’s no way she can’t know where the big red berserk button is on this man. I’m wondering what exactly she is worried is going to happen if he decides to turn the ambassadors away with nothing. Her look of fear tells me she doesn’t prod this side of Luca out into the open too often, so why is she going there now? Maybe she just thought he’d managed to work through some of that trauma that torments him, and could start showing some kindness to his old enemies. Maybe I’m just over thinking it. Either way, the razor’s edge between sanity and incoherent rage isn’t a great place for an Emperor to set up shop. Doesn’t bode well.
Or maybe she got tired of walking on eggshells around him, stood up for a cause and is currently regretting it. Unfortunately, I have been in this relationship. :\ People with PTSD are a lot of work to love. I don’t even want to imagine how much more complex the dance would get if said person was in a position of power.
On the other hand, once he comes down he may be more amenable. I’m not putting any money on it, though.
Possibly. I’m still wondering why she picked this particular one though. I’m not betting on him being too amenable later either, I think one of the reasons those two relate to each other is that they’re both stubborn enough to get in a staring contest with a brick wall, and win. I don’t count on him acting normal anytime soon either, I read through this part in its old sketch form, and frankly he just seems crazier this time around.
Phe knows this is an issue with large-scale ramifications, so she doesn’t want Luca to make a dumb decision based on his personal feelings (of ANGR ARARARRR). Neither of them are fans of Caris, though.
Your description of Luca’s emotional motivation is the best thing I have read all day. Despite the seriousness of the topic I can’t stop giggling now.
Fantastic building up to this moment! And really smart move with the broken glass. It worked in the pages leading up to this (Rana discovering it in the hallway first was such a nice touch) and then looking through it.. and now you’ve provided her with something to actually step on and make a sound! (succesfully avoiding the ‘random twig in clean floorspace’ effect) well done!
Of course she doesn’t know what hurting is. No one does. All we know is our own pain, our own hurt and everyone else’s is always inferior to that because no one can truly know the pain of others.
Oh no!
mr guard doorman! please help Rana!
… or maybe if you lie about who was in there you´ll lose your job… So then, loose your job! help Rana! ;^;
Ahhhh! I love DAR. And I love it when webcomics I love all love each other!
Props on getting recognized! You do great work you know, and it is all the more appealing to me since you don’t have any formal art “expertise.” Can’t wait to see what you unfold next!
Happy new year!
Happy new year to you too!
Um…is Luca missing his two front teeth?
yes, he wheres false ones when in public
as stated above
He is so scary.
Ah, Luca is scarier than ever on this page XD. I love that close up on his eyes — I could almost hear his tone of voice just from seeing that.
This comic just keeps getting better and better (not that spousal abuse is a good thing, it’s just that the comic has developed a deep & faceted story really quickly)!
You can easily tell that Luca went through some kind of personal hell during the war. I’m curious to see what comes up about that in future backstory. . . . . Although I miss Angora’s part of the story (she’s fun, in a quirky way).
Serious props; great art, great story. Keep up the good work.
Aw, thanks! I’m glad the setup is done, now is dramatime.
Is Luca a cyborg?
I- I hope not!
Whoa, at first I thought that >crak< was the sound of him breaking one of her fingers or something. XD
Awesome page as usual!
whoa, somebody has serious issues! at first glance, I thought the “crack” was phe’s neck….It dawned on me a few seconds later…..
so far I’m siding with the emperor, I think Phe should be more supportive.
Oh my. When I read the cracking sound effect on panel three I thought he broke her arm. It definitely would have followed from that scary look on panel two. O_o
I absolutely LOVE that you show Luca’s deterioration with not only the illustrations but with his rapidly declining control of language as well.
And oh, Rana. Poor dear.
how long has luca been missing his front teeth?
i’m curious because my moms a dental assistant and she says if a tooth is missing for a long time the teeth above or under the gap will move to compensate for the gap. creating a snaggle tooth or a loosened tooth that is taller than the rest
Really? I didn’t know that ! Luca has had his teeth missing since he was 6 (about a year after the permanents came in, unfortunately). Haha, I’ll just have to hope that the majority of my readers aren’t as dentally informed as you are
its all good
being THAT techinal isnt always the best thing
(if you havent noticed i’m very literal)
My dad lost a few teeth in his childhood and never had that happen. I wonder why? D:
Wow. An absolute monarch with PTSD. That bodes well for everyone, doesn’t it?
Absolutely!
Oh god, that second panel. It’s so full of torment and yet chilling at the same time. When I saw that ‘crack’ sound affect in the next panel, I was worried that he’d snapped something of PHE’S.
I have to say, I tremendously enjoy Luca as a character. It’s because I’m really not sure what to make of him – a tormented, half-insane despot underneath a layer of civility or a seemingly decent leader who understandably has a lot of bitter issues with a traumatic war. He flies into terrifying rages but he has a fully justified, moral reason to be angry. He’s a dictator who took over his country, but other countries have monarchies which is hardly better. He’s got so many layers that makes it hard to label him a good or bad person. I really hope we get to see more of him and learn more about him.
Yoohooo… :3 I missed you XD :B
I’m feeling Luca’s pain in the third panel. So far, I think as a woman I could understand Phe that starting over is a good option, but my heart sets on Luca, I mean that kind of pain is hard to let go, especially when physical torture is involved.
well at least he still got his hand …but i’m dying to know why all that uppestness!!
Damn, there are some intense panels all up in herrr
Oh my goodness, thank you for the shout out! Dang, I was not expecting that <:)
Love your comic too, it's definitely one of the best books I picked up at APE.
Your expressions, man… They are flipping BRILLIANT.
Hey, thanks
Agreed. In addition, the quality of your worldbuilding has thus far been fantastic. Will be continuing to read with great interest.
I’ve been silently keeping up with this and I must say, I’m thoroughly intrigued with this story line and I’m glad you’ve been able to keep it going! I can’t wait to read more.
so I know like everyone else has said this, but when I read the *crack* I was like…omg he just broke her wrist. it fit with his crazy expression and her expression of fear (and mebbe blind pain?).
I think this is my favourite page so far. It is deliciously cinematic, from the lightning and POV angles to the tension in the bottom two panels. Ace!
I dunno if he put in fake teeth and I missed it but before when he was grinning like crazy or speaking there was no gap in his teeth.
I love the gap >:
Haha, yeah he takes them out when he is not in public (they have a wire frame that is pretty uncomfortable to wear… no modern-day dentures in the comic :\ )
I just want to say that up until now, this comic is wonderful! I was just wondering… what happened to the green haired girl? We’ll probably see her later in the comic I guess but it’s kept me thinking. And since when is Luca missing a tooth? You must have been answering that question like crazy! xD
He’s missing his two front teeth! Check out page 1 of this chapter, he didn’t have his dentures in at that poit either
The comic goes roughly like this:
Chapter 1: Angora
Chapter 2: Luca
Chapter 3: Soli
Chapter 4: Angora
with about a weeks or two in between each character’s arc. So the next time we see Angora she will be continuing with her adventures with Pinter, but now you will be aware of all the other things happening with the other characters at the same time! Eventually the stories will start to intersect, you’ll know when that happens
Ahhh I’m probably retarded but I don’t think I can really read the second panel right.. or maybe I don’t get what he’s trying to say in Santri? I dunno when I first read it it looks like he snaps or something and is saying “you think you know what hurting is?! I’LL SHOW YOU HURTING” like he’s about to force-choke her or something o_o lol. That isn’t what’s intended is it? I dunno, I didn’t pick up on the sadness everyone else is mentioning, I fail at comic readan gaems
Actually, you’re reading it just fine D: He’s supposed to be scary and threatening. I didn’t really intend for that panel to be sad, but I guess it could work that way too, haha…
oh! well i win at comic readan then mwahaa
For me it’s the glint in his eyes — it makes him look slightly tearful.
Oh, almost forgot. He goes from angry eyebrows to uplifted eyebrows. That always makes people look less angry.
Thats true, but in context it’s a bit crazy for him to go from yelling to crying on her XD Then again he’s kind of crazy.