I’ve been waiting since page 1 of this chapter to get to do this scene. Hard to believe its been months! And its been 4+ years since I drew my first sketches for this scene, I’ll be posting some of those this week as voting incentives (starting today!)
No pimp today, I had something in mind that is a good comic but not really my cup of tea. Then realized whats the point of pimping something I wouldn’t read? Maybe next week :B
(by the way, “atda” just means “what” in Basori. The other text in brackets is translated Basori, so all you fine readers can actually figure out whats going on!)
Oh gosh.
I just love that last panel SO MUCH. <3
That snowy landscape is gorgeous, and so different from the land Angora lives in. I think she’d be very cold if she lived in this land.
That cigarette being the only warmth in the strip is really effective. :)
I can see why you were excited to post this. It’s beautiful. Does the “” mean they’re speaking in their native language?
The <>, yes. Very Megatokyo of me (kekekeke)
Of course, DC Comics has done it for a long time themselves.
Hey, it’s a method that works. :)
Really? I thought this was a method that’s been around for a while. XD
And the COLORS.
Hot damn.
This chapter is turning out to be quite a bit different from the previous version! (Uh. I guess that’s to be expected. X)
IS DAT SOME LIL’ LUCA. :D
Lovely page. I love the transition from the last panel of the previous page to the first panel of this one. Very effective.
Looks awesome!
Those are some funky, gnarled fingers in panel 2.
Also, is “Atda” the new guy’s name, or some un-translated utterance in whatever language they’re speaking?
It just means “what?” (spoken Pasori doesn’t use inflection in sentences with questions).
The fact that you have gone to the trouble of working out little details like the sentence structure and pronunciation of the imaginary languages your characters are speaking is why i read this comic.
Well, the artworks helps a lot, as well.
Have you ever giving thought to putting together a compendium, something to tie all the little nuances of you world together, or am I just going to have to make do with obsessively reading the comments threads in an attempt to glean these little bits of world enhancements?
Haha, I just made an addendum to the comments for the page so ideally others won’t have to XD But in general, most things that you need to know (including some vocab) is all in the wiki linked to in the comments box.
I think “the new guy” is a younger Luca–he’s got the broken fingers and missing front teeth, too, unless that happens to every Pasori they tortured (which is possible I guess). It’s an inner monologue!
Oh wow this is beautiful, I especially love how on the last panel you can see all the snow clumped on the trees.
Ooooh, lovely. <3 I'm curious as to where this goes! I'm thinking Atda is related to Luca, somehow…? He kind of looks like him. Or it's a fellow victim of the Carissi, seeing as though his fingers are busted up and his teeth are missing, too…
I'm still trying to figure out how you make your colors so prettyyyyyy and I'm failing hard. :') I think it's time to start eyedropping your palettes…!
That is ridiculously perfect, how you took it from warm indoors to cool outdoors. Very naturally done for so drastic a transition.
OHHH! It took me a while to figure it out, but this is not an actual scene, this is Luca talking with his younger self, like some sort of inner personal reflection. Am I right?
Yes :) It is not a flashback, since I will do all flashback scenes in this comic in panels with rounded corners.
Hmm… dreaming or hallucinating?
Flashback?
Winter wonderland :D ( been raing in NC wayyy too much this year, no snow :( )
Awesome page! :D keep it up
Been a while since I’ve commented.
I’ve definitely been watching fervently and really enjoy witnessing a comic where there’s lot of depth and character to each, erm, character. The drama is never too exaggerated nor does things go waxed philosophical when the issues end up being the simple things (note I said simple, not little :) ). The art also is going places and I can see you shifting gears from light and color schemes, making every scenario a unique experience, which definitely piques the interest of the reader – at least for me. All-in-all, keep up the good work there lass.
Oh, and another note. I pray for the lives of these two men as that GARGANTUAN SNOW PORCUPINE IS FLANKING THEM FROM THE RIGHT IN ATTEMPTS TO PURGE THEIR SOULS FROM THEIR FRAGILE HUSKS!
This is SUCH a great update from the original. The change of setting really points out that this isn’t actually happening. Also, that second panel definitely highlights the fact that it’s Luca talking, with the fingers and the teeth. Plus, it beautiful.
I
I forgot about this O_O
your colors in this chapter (well, the whole comic really) are incredible stuff, you can really tell the mood of the scenes through background alone…
Wow, wow, wow! That was a really unexpected change, but it works so well. Really nice depth to that last panel. I’m curious, what does “You’re one to talk” read as in Basori?
Aaaaaaaaaaand dissociation time!
…Wow. LOVE this transition! :o Ah, I thought that man was younger Luca, but then thought his name was Atda, til I read the description, lol. Awesome work!! :D
You’re coloring is so awesome! Do you pick all the colors yourself or do you use some kind of coloring filter? They’re just always so seamless and beautiful and set the tone wonderfully.
OMG I just realized that pannel 3 make me think of Charlie Brown leaning against that wall…now all I can think of is Linus calling Charlie Brown a fuck-up….I’m sorry, I’ll shut up now XD
A little of both… I ref images that I’ve collected over the years for things like this where I’m not sure how a Ponderosa pine covered in snow looks or whatever. But then I tweak it as necessary to fit the lighting/ mood/ etc etc
Your pine trees make me swoon.
Bawwww, haw haww. *sniff*
Amazing scenario! Loveit!
Perfect lightning, perfect shadows, this entire page is amazing! =D
BEARD.
Oh, an outdoor scene. You draw some pretty pretty outdoors scenes. In case you weren’t aware.
I’m going to assume he’s talking to his younger self (the shot of the hands is sort of a huge clue to that, yeah? Oh, also there’s the teeth gap, just noticed).
What a creepy coincidence, my original idea for the current story I’ve got going on was the same thing, but I changed it at the last minute from his younger self to a former colleague.
This is a great way to get some inner monologue going without it being all cheesy, though. I love his crazy hair and beard. He looks awesome.
It is pretty creepy! I laughed a bit to myself because you posted yours a day before I was going to post my internal talking scene :) Also I think we both dropped F-bombs recently. Also at this point I’m willing to consider that we are genetically related somehow.
Is that Bezo oh my gosh I am so excited!?! Luca, you are so totally crazy. No one else here has conversations with their younger self so I think that should tell you something (except Kate Beaton).
Wow. What a fantastic scene jump! I was not expecting the blue at all, I had to double take xD
Nestly: Cooooool winter scene. The fact that you couldn’t wait to draw it shows. It looks like you had a lotta fun with it. xD Well done.
I wonder what’s going ooonnnnnn.
And lawl. Now just because you mentioned a pimp comic and didn’t post it, I’m curious and want to know. xD
I saw that last panel and was like OMG YOSEMITE.
Hahaha.
That aside, great coloring as usual; also love that you’ve gone so far as to define the grammatical conventions of P/Basori.
This page is one of the prettiest things I have ever seen, ever.
Stunning page; I just love the visuals. I look forward to seeing how this progresses.
Your eyeballs are like marshmallows, I could just pop one in my mouth.
It’s hobo!Luca! I didn’t even know he was talking to himself until I read the comments. /is unobservant
For some reason, when seeing all those red rooms this entire chapter I didn’t expect that they would live in a cold place, not even if it was “just” happends to be winter at this scene.
But, after reading this page, it felt just right. Be called “barbarian”, wear fur legwarmers, and the title Gulo all fit to anyone who would live in such a cold place ^^ I wanna be there! D:
Also, it was kinda a nice turn in the colours. The redness was strarting to grow sick on the eyes, so this is just perfect for a few pages ^^
Love the pine needles in the foreground.
The water looks great. You can almost see the movement.
Oh.
I thought “Atda” was the name of the character. Maybe there should be an asterisk-footnote on the page or something.
good suggestion!
It won’t be necessary once you read the page after this, in real life it would be only a second or two of confusion :)
I would suggest going ahead and doing what many paper comics do: when introducing something the readers need to be aware of, like atda, put a * after it, with an [ed] comment stating it means “what” at the bottom of the comic (so, part of the whole image)… same would go for the emperor’s bad Engrish, a [note from ed] would help stop confuzled comments like we keep seeing (even people who comment don’t necessarily read the author’s comments on the web page).
Ah, as Wood just said before me, lawlz.
Awesome scene change! (Like everyone has already said!)
I think the “Atda” confusion is unfortunate: it is rather natural for everyone to think it is a name, especially when all the other foreign words are translated. I think it is a good tradition that the comic should speak for itself and reading the author´s comments shouldn´t be a necessity for understanding it. (more like an extra bonus. Of course I do read your comments). As someone suggested, asterisk footnote in the comic page itself would maybe be a good idea for such things, or just translate this word, too.
I agree! Just keep in mind that you guys are having to read this comic a page a week, whereas a person picking up a physical copy (or reading the archives) will read the next page and immediately understand what I’m going for :) So no footnote, by page 23 it’ll be obvious what I’m trying to do.
oh my goodness. this is so awesome.
it’s like watching a movie
SCENE SHIFT now this was a surprise! I’m interested to see where this conversation between the two Lucas goes. Wherever it does it’s probably going to have some yelling/slapping/denial eventually 8(
That bridge is in the middle of nowhere? Which intrigues me.
End of nowhere, actually :B
A RIDDLE >8(
that’s one smooth scene shift <3 and the artwork is magnificent as usual! the treebranch in the last panel looks strange though, the spikes seem to be too straight and stiff.
Hm, that is how pine needles look to me. At least, I’ve never seen ones that curved.
Luca, your wife is about to leave you, is this really a good time for a flash back?
For some reason, I keep thinking he killed his wife and dumped her in that river for pissing him off. D=
Haha, I like how younger Luca has a lot of cynical self-confidence only someone that age could have. XD
This is either a flashback, or a flashforward. Anyhoo, I think this is a moment of selfrealisation from Luca and he needs to calm the fuck down or he’ll loose the best thing in his life.
Am I right ?
Whoa, amazing! I like the transition between these two last pages. Like he is looking over his shoulder one instant and the other he is out there.
Thanks for sharing the older sketches in the incentives. I love that kind of thing. :)
Actually, rather than putting a footnote, I think a simple question mark after “atda” would suffice enough to make the reader assume it was a “what?” or a “excuse me?” rather than someone’s name.
And I suppose it’s also a little confusing since it’s the only line not translated for whatever reason, so I could see how everyone’s thought process automatically goes toward a name.
HOBO LUCA?!?!
kekekekke
I guess the emperor has issues, being that he thinks he is having conversations with his past self…
SEXY COLORING OF TREES IS SEXY.
I just noticed the fingers, similar to Luca’s yeah? So these guys must have gone through something together, they look like they could be related, I’m excited to know more.
that other guy IS Luca. they’re both Luca.
Oh wait….that other guy is Luca…I had to go look at the age meme you did.
There is a Luca age meme?! oAo
And he looks like a bum?! With a cat on his head?! TEH HORROR!!!
Lol, I figured out the second time I looked at the page though… I was trying to figure out if I missed a page or what, cause we went from outside a door to standing int he snow on a brige in the winter next to this smokin’ bum that gives totally useless advice… (much like all the other bums of the world as portrayed in movies. XD)
Anyway, glad you were finally able to get this page off your chest. XD
lol, the bum is a YOUNGER version! XD Thats gold, really. I have to agree that I like him best at 13 and the lovable 50. XD
That just completely blew my mind, this scene just became 10x more awesome when you pointed that out. I was like, why is he talking to this bum? WAY TO HALLUCINATE, LUCA!
The transition with the eyes was pretty smooth I thought.
Aah, good idea! Wow. This is kinda crazy.
I wouldn’t see an Emperor in that type of scenery. This must be an interesting scene :)
I wouldn’t see an Emperor talking to a homeless person myself. Or dressed less appropriately for the cold than a homeless person. But then again, maybe Atda isn’t a homeless person – I have considered this possibility. And we all know emperors like their uniforms. But I’m rambling…
Every scene is interesting, if you notice. Der-Shin, you’re making a remarkable job of not losing us over a slow rate of updates. Well, at least not losing me. xD.
ps. I liked the ” : ” in the so. Very meticulous of you :)
I’m glad! I feel like I’m losing myself sometimes, haha. Its a good thing I have the chapter sketched out already or else I might have fallen asleep by now.
…. Is he talking to himself?
I’m delightfully confused and interested. You never fail, Der-Shing, to create a wonderful comic.
….. SO IS IT NEXT MONDAY YET OMGOMGOMG.
(Sorry, just looking forward to it is all… ^^’)
Actually, I update Sundays :B So only 6 more days to go!
I was in agony over NEEDING THE NEXT PAGE and then the next page TOTALLY SWITCHED SCENES.
But the eyes in the bottom panel of the last page to the top one of this page=AWESOME.
Current conjectures RE: Chapter 1 pg 30
Pinter=Lost one that will know the way
Luca=Man who hates in the name of love.
I just read the comic through the second time; I’ve not followed your earlier works regarding the Meek so I have no clue what may or may not happen next. Your comic is absolutely the most inspiring and gripping online work I’ve seen yet, not just the art but the story and the world are worth coming to oogle at on a daily basis.
Also you probably hear this all the time but the fact the characters are very “everyday” looking and not exactly the conventional visage of beauty or handsome makes them appear all the more unique and alive.
Amazing works, keep pushing the boundaries of what an online webcomic can offer :)
and now we’re outside
…
or are we?
Oh, wow, this adds a whole new layer of depth to this scene. Now I’m really curious about what’s going to happen with the later stuff :D. The background in the last panel is amazing — such a realistic atmosphere.
*sits in a massive study, wearing a silk robe, fez hat, smoking a bubble pipe* Very intriguing indeed… the metaphors portrayed in this scene and the abrupt change of background allude to Luca’s cold heart. Speaking to his younger self further portrays this through the possible idea that the younger version is shown as during the times he may have been in war, the time that Luca seems to be unable to set behind him…
…
Done being a nerd, loving the comic, keep it up, can’t wait for the boobies to return.
So then, just curious, what was that unfeatured feature?
Hey, i’ve been reading The Meek from about the middle of the first chapter and ’til now, your art is really nice. The whole thing is being built up rather like a scene selection for a movie making than like a comic. I can almost see all the characters moving and talking like if they were animated, and it’s great!
And, well, since the Chapter 1 is finished, you haven’t thought of selling it ot Wowio.com? They set up a PDF for online reading at first and then readers can download it for a fee. I saw another on-going web comic there splitted in chapter – Strays Online – so i thought, like “hey! would be really cool to have The Meek there!” in pdf to buy and print!
Um don’t you think Atda should be followed with a question mark or is basori one of those languages that lack punctuation
He’s not asking if it’s Atda, he’s acknowledging him. It’s a less friendly “hello, Atda.” :)
The “da” part of of the word is actually the “question mark,” it is built into the word/ sentence rather than being an inflection of your voice the way it is in English.
Just putting in a vote that “Atda” is totally confusing at this part. The reader is already having to keep up with (a) mental not physical change of place and (b) figuring out that he’s talking to his younger self, which is further hindered by wondering if his name is Atda. To throw in an unknown word at this point is the last straw. I flipped between the last three pages for five minutes, trying to figure out what was going on and what that word could possibly mean, as if all the confusing dialogue hinged on it.
my two cents.
Hmmmmmmmm okay, I will start to take it into consideration then, I guess. The problem is that I still like the page better this way, despite the confusion :B
I think it’s fine as is – and can I just say that I LOVE THE MEEK? My buddy introduced it to me and can I say that I have just sat in awe of every page? Please keep up the amazing wondrousness! (And the story matches the art, something not common with most webcomics!)
Thanks very much :) I’m glad you’re enjoying it.
I think it’s lacking a question mark because “what” is sayd in an “you’re annoying me and I don’t really wanna know” way.
so I don’t believe he is actually giving any questionning tone to that “atda”
Interesting update, as per usual! Also, not a forum person, so clicked on the forum link for the first time today. HAHAHA Nice. :D
Is The Meek a reference to the beatitude in Matthew’s account of the Sermon on the Mount? As in, “blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”?
Yes, if you’ll take a look at the “about” page you’ll see that it is the first thing on there :)
Ah. Well, here I was thinking I was being clever. I’ve never encountered a comic that I enjoyed so much despite a slow pace. Thank you.
That’s purty. o_o Is that his former self?
just noticed the teeth right after the fingers, then it kinda clicked into place
Wouldn’t it just be easier to just put “atda” into brackets too? That way you won’t have to add a footnote saying it means “What”. Just for efficiency’s sake :-)
In other news, I TOTALLY LOVE THE MEEK!!! I’m curious to see the youngest child Hyla. I bet she is just cuter than buttons!