XIII - WATER ENDING - AWAKENING

So, it ends. XIII itself is practically over. This is the next-to-last delivery. We still have to survive a two-part four-page Epilogue.
This is the perfect proof of how easy it is to begin things, and how horribly hard it is to end them. You could say it took me ages to finish these pages. Well, they'd been sitting in my archives for weeks, then scanned and left again for some more weeks, which means I could've been over with this a long time ago. Yet, for some reason, this part is the most terrifying to post. It's a gamble, you see: I'm taking my chances here. You will immediatly notice many different things... Different from my earlier comic pages, and different from other pages of XIII. It was the last experiment, a bang and a whimper as one. Personally, I feel like I totally failed it... There are a million different ways this could've been much more awesome.
Yet, at the same time, this is the end of it: The way it should be. A story I had to tell. The first threads of a bigger tapestry I want to weave. You see, I like telling stories; it's one of the few safe places I have in this world. It's the least scary thing I have found, and telling the stories in my brain is relaxing, one of the few things I find relaxing these days.
XIII is, ultimately, just one story. Its 4 different endings shouldn't be treated as different things, but rather, as one single event, one single existance. Epilogue #1 is the continuation of all 4 Endings, as unbelievable as it may seem, and it wraps up the story by showing us another key in the story. Epilogue #2 is an explanation, an introduction and a launchpad, all at once. Two characters appear there. Two characters you, dear reader, will be hearing more about soon.
The Epilogues are pretty much over, just need to be worked on digitally. After that, I will need to reorganize my ideas for the next phase. Maybe we'll be posting some more comics. Simple, bizarre, like those first that were done before XIII even began. Yeah. That'd be nice.

XIII - Fire Ending: Parody

After a relatively long hiatus (Has it really been a month?), I'm back to finish this and take Yet Untitled in a different direction. You see, after XIII is over, this space will look the same, but house a different entity. There are many stories to tell, and this will be where they take place. It's gonna be less of a Comic and more of an Illustrated Story. Why? Well, let's just say I really feel like writing prose. I have nothing to say about Parody.

BONUS! Can you find all the reference I make in this Ending? I hope you've been paying attention. The next post will be coming soon, with the pages of XIII's final, definite ending. And the beginning of something else altogether.

XIII - Pages 15B & 16B (Earth Ending: Fading Memories into Nothing)

I apologize for the extended delay. I couldn't bear myself to finish this. At least not in this particular way. It's not nice. Not even good. But it's an Earth ending, grounded, without any hopes or dreams that fly. Nothing but a heartbroken girl whose life was shattered by an insane man.
That's all there is to it. Move along...

Next Ending is Fire. But first, I still got to finish more arts I owe some people.

XIII - Pages 12B, 13B & 14B (Earth Ending: Fading Memories Into Nothing)

Can't talk right now. Clowns will eat me. Second ending is over by page 16. Expect them sooner than later.

XIII - Pages 14A, 15A and 16A (Wind Ending: Sleeping in Night's Long Arms)

Ending #1 is DONE. Next up, is the second ending, Earth. No more information on the subject. About the Wind Ending: This is the first ending for XIII that I devised. As a matter of fact, for the longest time it was the ONLY ending. Until something happened: And actual time-space difraction that gave birth to endless possibilities, and out of those, 4 were selected as prime examples of what could've happened. Out of all the endings, this is the one that could be considered the "Good Ending". How is it good, you ask? Well, it ends on a positive note, without much depth, drama or psychological stuff. And yes, that means that this is the positive high point of the whole thing: The other endings are increasingly more complex. So, in the end, what really did happen to the guy? I want to believe that he fulfilled his purpose: Killing the 13 people he was set to kill, and then he was gone. That's what he had to do. Why, then, did the girl go with him? I suppose she learnt something important: That she could relate to people, deeply. Or something like that.
Anyways, today I am also posting more Deviant Art stuff. To tell you the truth, I'm posting some stuff that was a bit overdue... So check it out!
Anime Watch!! Check out Chevalier D'Eon. Pre-Revolutionary France + Alchemy + Plot Twists = Delicious.

THIS IS A TEMPORARY PLACEHOLDER.

CURRENTLY AT WORK.
XIII's WIND ENDING WILL BE POSTED
TONIGHT!
(3 PAGES TOTAL!)
MORE NEWS AFTER THE
LIMIT BREAK!

XIII - Pages 012A & 013A (Wind Ending: Sleeping in Night's Long Arms)

Each of the endings for XIII is associated with one of the classic elements (Wind, Earth, Fire and Water), representing its theme and mood. Each one also has a name by itself, a subtitle that would go right next to the comic's complete title. As such, XIII with the Wind ending is called XIII: The Long Arms of Sleep. The endings are short in page count (Wind has 5 or 6 pages, I think. I can't remember right now, I don't have the thumbnails at hand), but as a whole, they expand the comic's total page count to more than 30.
As a whole, the endings play with the multiverse theory, by branching off in a very specific point of time. The universe in which this story takes place is, thus, very mutable, and us as observers can witness how a succession of events can end in a variety of different ways.
I already have the idea of another story set in XIII's universe. It's not a sequel, but it is set in the same universe, which means some characters may make some cameo appearances. Oh, and this sunday we're making an 8 hr comic challenge (8 pages in 8 hours), so I might finish something new and different from XIII by then. All of this also gives me a perfect chance to refine Dreamless and choose a better title for it.
Now, to talk more about what's happening in the comic lately. As you can see (And I have probably said it as well!), XIII is all about Death,

XIII - Page 010 and 011

SURPRISE BOOTSECKS.
Ok, no. Here's the next two pages. Page 11 is, coincidentally, the last linear page. Which also means it's a HUGE CLIFFHANGER. Don't tell me you never expected THIS move! But you'll surely be surprised by the number of different endings this can lead to.
In other news... There's no news! Just business! Will try to post faster.

XIII Page 008 & 009

Well, there goes the neighborhood.
In case you haven't noticed, I haven't updated for a week. I've been busy. With life and stuff. I do not know why making the comic like this has become so complicated, particularly when trying to have some precision, some... I don't know... Quality. Soon, XIII will be over, right? RIGHT?!
I wish. Today, I'll talk about two of my other inspirations for XIII: Anime and Videogames, and will provide some of the specific examples that inspired me in this thing.
First, is one of my favorite artists, Yoshitoshi Abe. His works, from Lain to Haibane Renmei and Robot, have always left a deep mark within myself. Not only they inspire me artistically, they give me a chance to see a different world and feel it as my own. And someone, I really do. The worlds in these works are always a mutable thing, something unpredictable and dynamic. And then this hits the characters and they become trapped in this mutable, unpredictable world... Sometimes, they being the cause of it. This is my little, pathetic homage to that.
The other thing that has influenced this story is the Silent Hill games, which are, in essence, similar to what I mentioned in the previous paragraph. The influence here will become more obvious, though, because XIII doesn't have a single ending. In other words, I will write, draw and post here 4 different endings for the same story, all equally important, all part of the mutable world, all reflecting different things about myself and my world vision. XIII is, ultimately, just a stepping stone, the beginning of a bigger experiment. Either way, if you follow this on a regular basis, you will have to read the endings in order... Just like the Silent Hill videogame, but without having to replay through the whole thing over and over again.
The next comics after XIII's 4th and final ending will probably be crazy one-shots about stupid things in life, before we begin with Dreamless, which should be around twice of XIII's length, and possibly more detailed and strange.
I need to work on my art after this, though... I am not satisfied with it, and how I want to express Dreamless.
Maybe my initial idea will be totally scrapped, and Dreamless will become an entirely different beast. At this point, I really don't care. I just need to get it out.

XIII Page 009Well, there goes the door. Luckily, it's easier to break down, considering that bulletholes have the mysterios capability of breaking things sometimes. And, in this case, luck has always been on their side, so it's perfectly possible.

What else can I say? Just two more pages until the Big Announcement. Nobody reads this, anyways, but those who do will be surprised by my little experiment. Until next time.
P.S. WATCH SUZUMIYA HARUHI NO JUUTSU!

XIII Page 008They 're on a mission! The last one is a coward, by all rights. That doesn't mean he's just going to give up, though. Still, him being a big wuss does provide some advantages...

I apologize for the briefness of this post. I really don't have much to say.

XIII Page 007

We're entering the next-to-final phase of XIII. I thought I was further ahead with the pages, which is why I was teasing with a bigger announcement I am not making yet (EIDRIEN, YOU STAY HUSH! You're pretty much one of the few people who know what I'm talking about, though my motivations and ideologies behind this mess are still a mystery even to you; be patient, that is all I ask of you)

So, first things first... NEWS! I am back from Anime Expo and had a blast. I was also still down with Teh Salmonella (I blame the food at work, which is why I'm never eating at that place again), which meant a lot of meds and eating the greenests Subway subs every day for a week (I can't complain much, though, 'cause I love mine Subways to death, even if it's a fridge-cold sandwich, like the one I had for breakfast on Monday July 3rd).
Second news item: Did I mention I might need glasses? I took the Good Ol' Glasses I used nearly 5 years ago (I got better. Seriously! I was a computer junkie back then, but now that I have to work on a computer for nearly 9 hours a day it's become increasingly difficult to keep the insane migraines away). They still kinda work! Amazing. I still got to go check with the eye doctor, though, 'cause I'm pretty sure I will need to get some adjustments in these. Any autobiographical comics post-today will probably include myself with glasses, which will probably give you a good temporal reference.

I did say two new pages, right? Well, I wasn't kidding. Here's the other new page. Was that disapponting? Don't think of it that way. Re-read everything once again. Some thing may make more sense now.

The shocking revelation will definetely have to wait. Mark your count: Page Eleven. It's entirely coincidental... But there are no coincidences, really. Eleven is the number of my birth, after all.
Though there is one thing to mention concerning the throughput of pages of XIII from now on. I feel 100% better, but I am still taking it easy, which means I will be making 1.5 pages every two days, in average. Be patient... I am still ahead (How do you think I know Page Eleven is the one with the ominous announcement? It's already inked and scanned, sitting right in the pile where all the other XIII pages lie), which means I can manage to be regular for a while.

Now, Anime Expo! Pre-Day, June 30th, Flight and Arrival. The most unexpected thing was that I got a huge rash. All over my face and shoulders. That freaked out my Party Roommates (Abraham, Gela, Maiky and Myself were in the Party Room; the rest of the guys were in the Boring Room; our assesment was 100% correct!), because I looked real bad. The flight was early, so I was the first one to arrive at the hotel. That was a quite evening. We played some New Super Mario Bros. VS and I discovered that Maiky was a mean abyss dumper (Which means he has a tendency to kill you by jumping on top of your head right on top of an abyss! A cruel way of getting rid of your enemy!), and Argentina lost against Portugal in penalty kicks. Oh well! Better luck next time, boys! Thanks to the magic of Pre-Register and a US address, Abraham and myself already had our badges, so we just went to the ACC to pick up our badge holder and programmes. It was amazing seeing all those cosplayers camping outside a whole day before the actual convention. Borderline surreal... If we weren't from Mexico, it wouldn't have felt so natural. It was pretty exciting, actually. That night, I had a hard time going to sleep. And yet, it was a restful sleep... Necessary for the hectic day that was July 1st! Opening Ceremonies! Clamp! AMV! But that's the subject of another post.

UPDATE LATER.
TONIGHT. WITH NEWS.

TWO NEW PAGES OF XIII.

A SHOCKING REVELATION.

AND THE FIRST PART OF
SERIAL'S ANIME EXPO REPORT 2006





THIS SPACE FOR RENT OR SALE.
CONTACT OWNER.

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES

This is an approximate representation of what the doctor told me would happen if I became more stressed. My body's partially giving up, mainly because of the stress. What stress? I won't talk about it. Ever. Suffice to say, one of those sources of stress is Yet Untitled (Or rather, the compromise of delivering a new Yet Untitled twice a week). Some sources of stress will be relieved soon (I hope), so, until those things are sorted out, this thing is on hold. We'll be back in brief, if I'm still alive.

XIII Page 006

Surprise, surprise! OK, not really. Even I saw that coming. My excuse? It was at first sight. Seriously! There's more to this than meets the eye, though. See Page 9 and 10 for details. HAHAH!

On a more real note, I am currently working on ART for an Exhibit. And a poster for said Exhibit. An AWESOME poster. It has Elle, Robots and Nintendo! It's also the first time in forever that I've actually colored artwork. It's actually looking kinda nice. Maybe I will post it here at a later date.


More on the story of XIII, this time focusing on character design and symbols. Have you noticed howwe never see the eyes of the Male Protagonist? No one ever does. It's not that they can't see them or that they're not there... They just aren't noticeable. You look at the glasses first (Which technically are a deep shade of red), then at everything else. If you come out alive, that is. This is a guy on a mission, a guy with style. Do you think he likes doing what he does? Maybe he doesn't. Maybe it's just duty. Does he feel remorse? Probably not. All the weapons he uses for his mission are numbered with a roman numeral (Can you guess where this is going?) and are "bladed" weapons. No arrows, lances, or guns. Just knives and swords (Usually not too large, though). Around Page 9 there will be a more interesting bit of trivia about the weapons he uses. Also of note: All the weapons he uses have been designed already. They're based on real swords and knives (Just like the guns are based on real guns), though not very accurate (My weapon-drawing skills are lame and poor! POOR AND LAME).

XIII Page 005

I'm sick. No, seriously. Typhoid Fever. It's not going away. It's making me think about things. It's making me horribly depressed. This isn't stopping me from drawing, though, because it really does take my mind off the depressing things that compose my typhoid-full life. I hope I am not sent to the hospital, which will happen if the meds don't work. I am totally scared.
Let's talk about healthier things, like how this comic came to be, and how much it sucks ass. First, I am a whole day late. This is no coincidence (See previous paragraph), but it was unplanned. Second, this comic was heavily influenced by the music I listen to. In particular, the pacing and mood was heavily influenced by the Silent Hill 4 soundtrack, though the story itself has its roots mostly in Tool's Aenima and Lateralus. Aenima and Lateralus influenced mostly the concept of controlled aggresiveness, a certain anger and fury that cannot be contained, and also the use of allegories and ambiguity to express a message. Silent Hill influenced the pacing and mood, somehow distant, yet melodic, and also kinda sad.
As I write this, I am watching the Yahoo MatchCast of the Portugal - Mexico game of the Fifa World Cup. I expect Mexico to lose. Current score is 2-1, Portugal winning, and I expect it to remain that way. Way to be optimistic (I blame the depression worsened by the typhoid fever, and the many things it makes me think).

Now, local comics talk!
Someday, I wish I could publish a comic. Even if it's done independently, here in Juarez. We can have an industry! We need to make a bigger effort! The Yume guys have done a great work, but they need to get their priorities straight and implement some kind of quality control, or else they're gonna be blown away when the big players get on with the program. 656 Comics has Infestacion already; I've read it, and let me tell you that it rocks too fucking hard; we're also working together on an animation project that may also rock the casbah to the moon. Changolion is hopefully releasing a sketchbook soon, but I do expect them to release a bigger, badder comics compilation soon (They've got the people, they got the technology, and hopefully, they got the material to make it move forward). Many independent comic-makers here are eagerly awaiting news of the publication of the collective work called "Comiquero", to which I contributed my first public, crappy, totally unprofessional and extremely amateur comic (And, if I finish XIII before the deadlines, I may even include it there!). There's also the guys at El Paso and Las Cruces, which 656 is contacting already. Big things are brewing in the local comics scene... I will report more on this at a later date. Meanwhile, I expect to post the next page by Friday, if I am not in the hospital and am alive.

XIII Page 004

A bit late, isn't it? I apologize for that. It's been a busy Sunday, and I'm inking page 8 (I think it's page 8, though it might be page 7 or 9, whatever), which is, along with the next 2 or 3 pages, a complex page with some perspective things to work out. Let's continue talking about how XIII came to be, shall we?
The original "Guy travels around the world with runaway girl" kindof story didn't work out. Seriously. There was no reason for them to be together. But when the story evolved and became "New girl becomes an intern at a library with an asshole of a boss" it became considerably more interesting. That's where the characters got the glasses, to tell you the truth, though they have now been inverted (The guy had smaller glasses in that old story).
As almost anything I do, I scrapped that concept after some time passed, the reason being that, well, the characters were just plain DULL. It was seriously boring as hell.
Another story that ultimately served as inspiration for XIII was one of Elle's sources' story. Particularly the 7th one: Elle, in that story, had a mission to kill these creatures from the darkness that haunted the darkest places of the world and pretty much hunted people. This guy gets involved, and tries to help her all he can, but she always denies his help. The inspiration that came from this particular story is the concept of the Hunter, a character that, for whatever, reason, has to look for prey, and when another person gets involved, is forced to make a choice. For XIII, somehow the choice changed, and this guy who had always been a loner now finds himself with a willing partner.
For the record, by this page The Girl and The Guy have been traveling around the world together for 8 months already. Just a little teaser of bigger things that will be explained in the next post, which will proably be made Tuesday evening, before my yougest sister's High School graduation. It's a miracle! All jesting aside, I congratulate her wholeheartedly. She deserves it, after all the effort she's made.
MORE NEWS! I'm going to Anime Expo by the end of June. XIII will probably be left hanging for nearly 5 days. But fear not! After that, we'll have a lot more things to talk about! Like the strange world that breeds inside the Anime Expo, and the bizarre creatures found within. Forth we go!

XIII Page 003

As I said, Page 3 is a Title Page. See? I wasn't neither kidding nor lying. I'll have more real pages this weekend. Does Sunday sound nice enough to you? It does to me. Sunday it is.
More about the creation of this particular story:
This story has its most basic origins in a story I developed nearly 6 years ago. It was about a guy who got fed up with his job, quit and decided to tour around the world (But he didn't kill anyone! Big change there! And not the only one). During his travels around an imaginary country, he meets a girl who lives with an abusive father who runs away with him (Another huge difference! Hah!). The guy's at first reluctant, but ultimately acquiesces, and thus they travel the world!
Over time, this story slowly died, its elements incorporated into other stories, until ultimately the idea for this story came... Which is also derived from ANOTHER more complex story. But that tale will have to wait, or else I won't have much to say on Sunday.
On other Comics I'm working on:
* DREAM(LESS) is definetely on hold. I can't figure out the direction of that story yet. It's a huge challenge, mainly because it's LONGER and more COMPLEX than almost any story I've ever thought of. I love the concept, and how much it has changed (It feels more mature now than how it felt, say, 2 months ago), but something tells me it needs to rest a bit more. Like good wine.
* Regular, funny Yet Untitled will return after XIII. I was seriously out of ideas for YU (Or rather, the timing for most ideas was off). Now everything seems to have been somewhat fixed, thankfully.
* I I sent a submission for the Scary Go Round Idol, which was obviously not selected. Oh well. I have no regrets. I work colorless, and am nothing but a beginning "comiquero". At least I tried! I will post the comic here after XIII, though, so you can bask in its bizarre suckiness (It's not that bad, really, but it is... Weird. My kind of weird, mind you).
Oh well. Gotta paint stuff! But first, WORK!

XIII Page 002

We continue today, with page #2 of XIII. This week, instead of the regular 2 Comics Per Week thing, we get MORE and MORE pages! It's true! I'm working non-stop after getting out of work, now. As a matter of fact, I have pages 3-5 completely finished and ready to post right here, right now. But I won't. Not until Friday, anyways. Be warned, though, that Page 003 is a title page, which is a bit forebodding about the events in page 004.
What I like about working on "XIII" is that I can apply the concepts I've learned from the Comiquero project and the other strips here (Including the whole Megatokyo thing). The one thing I consider the most relevant about "XIII" is that it is a short story, and as such, the pacing is quick, sometimes leaving many things unexplained. Like names, for example.
When I conceived "XIII", I was planning for it to be around 50 pages long. In fact, these two pages were supposed to be around 5 or 6 pages! With names, more background and dialogue. However, as time passed, I began to realize that most of what was said in those 5 and 6 pages could easily be narrated, which is why we read what the girl thinks about the situation. She has become the narrator, and as such can choose to ommit unnecessary details. She was also supposed to assist him more than twice (4 times, I think), with varying degrees of assistance. The first time she helped him, though, has a much better pace now, and introduces a couple of lines of dialogue I had not considered in the original idea. Something tells me the end is gonna change.

XIII Page 001

After a week of rest (More than a week, actually), Yet Untitled is back! Fanfare! Today we return with... The first page of something else. Something outside the regular numbering: A short story called "XIII". I've been kicking around this story for nearly a year, and I figured now was the time to try and get it out, once and for all. It's not the best work I can do with it, but it's sufficient. It's still practice. This page is probably the worst I've made from it, so far. Anyways, one of the things I like about this kind of format (Short story comic) is the pacing. Sometimes you don't need to explain everything, you can leave details out and focus on actually telling the story. So far, I've finished 4 pages and will probably finish one more tonight (As well as starting the next one). I predict this will last for 10 or more pages, and be a good measure of how fast can I pump out comic pages. See you sooner than you can expect it.

XIII Page 000

Intro page. This is actually being posted on July 10th, but the story started originally on the next page. After a brief hiatus, I decided the story needed a new intro, something of a mood-setter that "dwell" a bit more on some of the subjects of the comic. So I drew this page and retro-posted it on the site. It's a bit of a brutish tactic, but it works, so sue me!

013 - Metaphorical Representation of Your Average Internet Discussion
(A.K.A. Twisted and Surreal Tribute to Akira Toriyama)

This is my humble guide in which I detail how to argue on the internet. First, you state how right you are and how the other person is wrong; you will receive a likewise similar response. This stage can last a long time, because both participants will insist about the rightness of their points and the wrongness of the others', until one of them starts with the unavoidable provocations. These might be veiled in the form of sarcasm, or direct verbal attacks against the person. The most common form of insult relates to the other side's moms, GTFO, n00b, and similarly infantile appelatives. The insults rise up in heat and, if they're not moderated, they get to the point in which each character will brag about their size of their ego for hours. HOURS. All this last part of the discussion will obviously be about how the individual in question has experience in said topic, and how the other side knows shit about it. They continue doing this until they're both totally pissed, popping, like, a million angry raging boners in a second and being total dickwads. The battle ends when one of the parties leaves the discussion, which usually means that the party who stayed in the end feels like they won... But so does the party who left right there and then. In reality, nobody wins, 'cause they're douchebags.

Anyways, I grew up watching Dragon Ball Z. You could say it was my inspiration for a short while, in Middle High. Then I grew out of the whole DBZ look. It would take a while to grow beyond your average Anime look, though, and I'm still working on it. I remembered Dragon Ball because they're airing it on Cartoon Network Latinamerica during Toonami (At 11 PM at night, local time! Awesome!).

Oh, and in case you haven't noticed, I did not pencil this comic. It was straight to ink, with no planned dialogues and... Anything, actually. It just sorta popped in the page. It shows. It stinks. BAD. Oh well, it took me 30 minutes to do it (One Dragon Ball episode, actually! It was the 3rd one, if my memory serves me right, in which Gokou gets the golden cloud), which was ok considering the RAGING HEADACHES I've been feeling. Doctor says I'm sick, I'm getting analysis done on Saturday. I hope I'm not dying or anything.

012 - Crazy Week

Even after having to work for 9.5 hours a day, last week I came home to work additional hours for a comission work. Unfortunately, it wasn't Artsy Stuff, it was a database, whose payment will go directly into the Anime Expo 2006 Fund.
Anyways, today's comic is about the OTHER things that prevented me from posting a comic on Thursday. First, on Wednesday, the Lost season finale. If you watched it, you know why the exaggerated and bizarre expression of... Joy? Ok, I was acting just a teensy bit scary. I was quite hyped. Now, I must wait. It's tough.Then it was X-Men, which was good. Thank you, Juggernaut. You have made the Internet very, very happy. The last two panels are more things I did on my weekend. In other words, READ SANDMAN! READ LOST AT SEA AND SCOTT PILGRIM!
That's all for today. I'll be back on Thursday or Friday with more comic... I hope.

011 - Inuyasha, Puberty and You (Not an Educational Film)

---

I always wondered why Inuyasha just didn't... You know? Put it in? 'cause she totally wanted to, too. I guess we can't expect more in such lost cases. I always wondered if Inuyasha's Big Ass sword wasn't some sort of euphenism for something else, until it totally hit me... What do you call a sword (Phallic symbol per excellance) that grows exponentially when taken out, and whose guard becomes all hairy? A PONOS. Why a PONOS, and not a PENIS, you may ask? Well...
You know how I said this page wasn't for kids? I meant it. I TOTALLY MEANT IT, 100%.
The following is a page of a Fate/Stay Night doujin, which trascended time and space like some of its forebears by creating a monstruous meme immortalized by the only place where such ludicrousness can be found: 4chan.org
To the left, the scanslation of the doujin. If you watch the Fate/Stay Night anime you can get a glimpse of what this image is about; if you dig a bit deeper, you can find what happens in the game (Isn't it fairly obvious, though?). In the end, the whole chapter is like Impro Sex Ed right before and during the act itself. Hilarity ensues. To the right, a small image that pretty much sums everything up.

On other news, I am pleased to announce that this week I will manage to meet a deadline! For a contest! An online contest! Why am I participating, you may ask? A simple reason, truly: An idea came to me, begging to be drawn. SO IT SHALL BE. Out of last week's deadlines, I managed to finish the Comiquero submission (Still got to send it, though), and although I couldn't finish scripting DREAM(LESS) and had to scrap today's comic in favor of the atrocity you see up there, I can satisfyingly assure you that the scripting process of DREAM(LESS) has been completely revamped, in order to provide a more complete experience. The drawing process will surely change and evolve as I try my hand at drawing the 20-or-so pages as fast and good as I can. Now that I think about it, I must be pretty crazy to attempt this, considering how fuckin' busy I am. Oh well. FOR AWESOME!

EDIT: There's a big chance I won't be able to finish the second comic this week (Reasons being, the other comic submission I barely finished last night, the LOST season Finale tonight, the X3 Premiere on thursday night and the extra work I am doing to earn some extra cash for Anime Expo). If I can, I will upload some sketchbook pics related, of course, to the comics I've posted so far, including the now-infamous Inuyasha As Ukiyo-e pic, along with stories and comments on said pics. Stay tuned!

010 - MY NAME IS PYRAMID. RED PYRAMID.

Our small saga continues! The Red Pyramid's secret is revealed! Him, carrying that gigantic banana around was just another form in which he tries to impress "The Ladies". He clearlye failed; however, Elle is such a good sport she's willing to put that huge scare behind and try to befriend, even assist in his quest, poor Red Pyramid. He looks for love, but is always unrequited. What will happen now?
PROGRESS REPORT:
Everything's according to schedule. Minor setback on YU, mainly because I was Internet-less for a whole day yesterday. That has been fixed. More as it develops.

009 - RINGU IS COMING

---

RINGU IS COMING FOR YOU. No wait, it's just a monster man with a red pyramid on his head. Let's call him Red Pyramid. If I were Elle, I'd totally do the same. This is not the end of this story, however... Prepare for more bizarre plotwists! Come back later this week, for more Red Pyramid, more Elle, and more WEIRD.

Progress Report:
a) Comiquero Submission: Deadline is in two weeks. It's just ten (or was it eleven?) pages, already inked, I'm just shading them. Finished so far: 4 pages. After finishing them all, then it's time for post processing them AGAIN, adjusting Levels and balance to give them the crisp, clean look in my YU comics (Which is pretty lame anyways! The difference will be, of course, the higher resolution). Personal deadline: This week for shading, next for post processing.
b) Yet Untitled: Thumbnails for next two comics, storyline for consequent comics is brewing, though not yet finalized. Personal deadline: Finish the two thumbnailed comics by sunday, draft one or two more.
c) DREAM(LESS): Three scripted and thumbnailed pages. Personal deadline: 6-10 more pages of script; if time allows, thumbnails.

008 - Origins - The Elle Story

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Here it is! A small homage to my own art history, and how the character of Elle came to be. Each panel lists a different character / idea that ultimately influenced / helped in Elle's current incarnation (Which can also be called the Ultimate Elle).
1. A dream I had when I was a kid. The girl's parents couldn't conceive, so they went to a scientific institute, where they were handed a newborn baby, that grew 10 years in a matter of days. Bizarre, but the girl became my best friend in that dream.
2. Oh man, prepubescent story ideas are totally not cool. She was generally an ass. And killed a lot of people. Heheh.
3. Two characters in the same frame, mainly because they come from the same period. Vampire girl has no story, but she had some kind of annoying attitude in her drawings (Which is a quality the current Elle sometimes has). The Mage girl, though, had one of the most complex stories I had ever created, but it was still pretty, well, black and white. And dragging, and boring.
4. A byproduct of Mage girl, silent girl barely influenced Elle, but she did influence some of her current designs.
5. The First Elle. I did dream her. And made, like, HUNDREDS of drawings of her. I'm not kidding. She originally had no wings, but they were later included for the added metaphor... The dreams she appeared at always had an extra significance... Sometimes, something deep that I had yet to understand. In fact, the original dream in which she appeared has just began to make TOTAL COMPLETE SENSE. Awesome, isn't it?
6. A character that went through many changes, and remained nameless for a long, long time. First, she was just possessed by an Evil Spirit, which granted her the ability to manifest tridimensional shadows under her complete command... Then she was a manifestation of another character's psyche (Still controlling shadows). The final version depicted here, she's the Shadow (By Carl Jung's definition) inside someone else's brain, where another Elle (The first one, actually) becomes trapped during a particularly nasty period of my life.
7. An offshoot of the actual Elle, this one hunted demons. She was actually an Angel of Death. Oh, and someone was supposed to fall for her. Geez, what a corny story.
8. The biggest influence on the current Elle, Penny is one of the few characters that was born with a name, and evolved A LOT throughout the years. She began as a painter, not a musician, with much shorter hair and name (She was just "Pen"). She was never part of any story idea... She was always kind of independent from all that, so at one point, became a musician and her own story began to form. Until it died like all good ideas. Her visual style and personality are Elle's biggest influences.
9. The reason why, in the comic, Elle can be so mean to Angel. He did some rather nasty things to her, like locking her inside a twisted mansion filled with archetypes (See character 6). She was given the choice of being forgotten or living as part of something else. The problem is that this something else became an amalgam of a rejected character concept and a very spiteful Elle. She was, literally, the one under control when I drew some rather BAD comics I made last year (Around 20 or so pages). By the end of it, she was getting over it, so no bigger harm done.
The current Elle will return next week, where she gets chased through a dark alley by a man with a lethal weapon. And I'm totally serious about that.

More Other News: First 3 pages of DREAM(LESS) (Another Comic idea I'm working on) are finally scripted. I expect to have 20-23 by next week, which means that, if I manage to get ahead with Yet Untitled, I will also start working on DREAM(LESS). It's big... And scary. But just as personal. Stay tuned.

007 - Expression of a Knot in your Throat

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Have you ever wanted to say something you just couldn't put to words? Well, this is one of such cases. Words alone are not enough in this case. It is something that really happened. I base my comics off the things I live, see, and enjoy; yet sometimes, due to individual and introspective nature of the creative process, personal things start to seep.
The original 007 comic was to be titled "Hate Comic Number One", and featured people I hated being killed off in numerous, amusing ways (Most, involving a tall man with a red pyramid on his head and a huge sword on his hand). Actually, it was just three people: A girl whose behavior and attitude irritate me to no end; Uwe Boll (Do I need say more); and Deviant Art N00bs who only draw anime and believe they're The Best Shit Since Akira Toriyama but truly have no talent. I'm scraping that comic, I'm just not doing it.
What prompted today's comic of self-reflection, then? I can cite a number of things.
First, the "Enlightment" hinted at in the first comics. That actually kinda happened, while watching a movie... The enlightment was the realization that I had been believing my own lies, and that I had finally understood the truth (Many truths!) that today's comic so obviously states. I don't like it when people lie to me, so why should I like it when I realize I had been subconsciously doing it to myself? Find a way out. Be honest. And this is it.
Second, an awesome japanese comic called "Living Game", which is drawn in the simplest, most old school style, and features some of the best layouts I've seen in a japanese comic. The story has a very basic premise that grows real fast and is the driving point behind the entire 10 volumes: A 25 guy who, after an earthquake, has to accomodate his office at home, along with the boss and the coworkers. His personal space is incredibly reduced, and even more so when the company hires a new employee: a 15 year-old girl. At first, he teases her, but soon he decides he will do his best to look after her, without realizing that decision might be the most influential and life-changing he will ever take. It's simple, it's sweet, and at some veeeeery specific points, it feels incredibly real. I don't get that often, so check it out.
Finally, Honey and Clover, another work of Japanese animation. It's a romantic story with hints of comedy, which means it might be everyone's cup of tea. Watch it, though; it grows on you. There is, however, a moment in Episode 10 that resonated strongly with my own situation. If you watch it, you'll know.
All these influences, albeit at different times, have forced me to think what I had been doing. Yes, I knew and accepted the truth. But can I face it so openly, without fear or regret? This is me, facing fear and regret, without turning away.

Another important thing to mention is that I finished this comic on Sunday, which is a whole day early. Even better: The next comic (Origins) is actually 60% done! I gotta keep the pace so I can have a reserve of comics in case I can't work on one or two.

Finally, I want to take this chance to send my best wishes to Chuy Astorga, who's finally getting his operation! (It's not what you think... It's his foot) LET'S PLAY SOME SOCCER AFTER YOU GET BETTER!

006 - This is THE END. (A.K.A. INSANITY) - part 2

Well, well, unlike the the last time I tried to post something related to some kind of end, this time we have ANOTHER Celebrity For Geeks. Last time was the Internet Infamy of the Juggernaut Bitch, which also spawned this other comic here, which depicts a rather dramatic failure for Angel. Not only did he fail to defeat the Juggernaut Bitch, but he also failed at putting Maple Syrup on the Most Delicious Pamcakes ever. Before you start wondering, yes, Pamcakes sounds 100 times cooler than Pancakes. There's something about that 'm' that makes the word well beyond the acceptable limits of cool. Say it out loud! Pamcakes, Pamcakes. It rolls like it rocks!
Another point of debatable artistry is the guns. I can't draw guns worth shit, particularly while locked inside a classroom taking notes about ASP.NET, without any sort of acceptable reference. Give me a break, I have a professional job to work at, 9.5 hours a day!
More news:
- I like Nintendo's Wii. It sounds like plain, innocent fun
- Progress is being made in the other comic project. Unlike previous attempts, though, this time I am creating a huge backdrop with similarly extensive character backgrounds. I have no idea about the direction of the story, but the setting and the characters will be the driving force behind this.
- No progress in shading the Comiquero submission. Too busy! Sleep is overrated, but it must be done at home, not at work, so I must try to sleep the most at home, lest my desk becomes too comfortable to remain awake.
- These last two comics were, like, totally scripted and pencilled in advance. Even then, I couldn't get proper reference; still, it feels more comfortable to plan things out in advance. No plans for next week yet, though! I need more inspiration, which should come tomorrow or the day after that.
- Anime! Currently Watching School Rumble 2nd Term and Fate/Stay Night. I plan to watch Ergo Proxy soon ('cause it looks too dang hawt), as well as a truckload of asian movies.

005 - Back To Normalicity

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We have a real guest in today's strip... Or rather, a trimmed down appearance of an old chum... See more about him here. The only thing I have to complain about is the third panel, which totally lacks more action on the right side of the frame. I must apologize about that: I totally forgot to ink it, and when I realized it, I had already scanned it and had no more time to work on it. If time allows (I still got to finish shading a small comic submissince January, for the Comiquero project some friends and I are self-financing. It's an awful comic, but it features the same brand of bizarre, nonsensical stuff found in these interweb pages), I may take the time to add something like a desk, a chair or even a Juggernaut Bitch Leg. Oh well.
In other news... HAHAH! I hope I have time to finish Thursday's comic... Which I will post late Wednesday. Maybe. Thanks for your comment, all you people who have commented. They're truly encouraging.

EDR: MT 004 - This is THE END. (A.K.A. INSANITY)

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In this last comic, I'm trying to explore the characters' "deeper" connections throughout the multiple layers of the human psyche. First, we have Piro's nightmare, obviously a consequence with his deranged obsession with games and Nanasawa. Is it Nanasawa? I have no idea, I can't remember the girl's name... It's the one that works in the restaurant. By the way, have you seen today's (Wednesday's) comic? I think it's a new low in Story Development. Mainly because NOTHING HAPPENED. AT ALL. Anyways, back to the comic. He wakes up from his nightmare, seeking the comfort of... What's... Going on...?! I didn't draw this... THIS IS NOT RIGHT... THIS IS WRONG! WRONG I TELL YOU!!! THIS IS THE END, OR IS IT?
Next week we'll be back to something more normal. And less Yaoi. And considerably less Megatokyo. But not Megatokyo Yaoi, that's a definite. Not Yaoi... NOT YAOI... WHY, WHY DID I DRAW THAT?! MY MIND IS BURNING, IT'S ALREADY IN HELL... OH CRAP! SOMEONE'S BEHIND ME... HE'S HUGE... I CAN FEEL HIS KILLING INTENT! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!

QUICK... *gasp* ... READ THIS ... *gasp* ... IT IS IMPERATIVE... NOW I RUN....

EDRMT 003 - THE INFINITE CODE

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Long time no see! I was inadvertedly forced to take an extended absence from Comic-Making due to an overwhelming amount of work (And, of course, Silent Hill). It was, however, somewhat planned, as this enables me to finish this saga by the weekend. (Yes! Only four comics! Each more Deviant than the previous!). Anyways, onwards with the explanations!
The first thing you'll notice about this comic is that it is based in none of the MT comics in existance. Remember one of my previous analysis, where I talked about how Megatokyo had too many characters? Well, in this particular instance, Ping and Miho are a single entity: Ping, the original A.I. within the Ping Unit, and MIHO, a clever and downright malicious A.I. bent on taking over the world to turn it into its own playground. An A.I. gone wrong, she's Largo and Piro's most insidious enemy, in both online games and real life. In this comic, she reveals herself and her intentions, while we also learn about Largo's mystic quest that granted him supernatural powers... Or not. Maybe he's just delusional, like Miho, who just doesn't understand how reality works and is bound to fail anyways. In their own fantasies, however, they do battle, and if you must know, Largo emerges really hurt, yet victorious. Androids are electric too, you know? SHOCKING. Literally.
The second thing, is that the scan is VERY poor. You see, this comic had a lot of trouble to begin with... It was hard to make, 75% of the dialogue changed throughout the entire week I was at work with it, and the penciles smeared a lot... I had to clean it up REAL BAD before scanning it. It was tedious work, I can tell you.
I know this sounds like just another promise, but I still want to post the sketches I made in preparation for this stupid epic.
And the next comic, I dedicate to 4chan. It feels like the right thing to do.
It will also be the last Deconstruction of Megatokyo I do, and the best possible ending for the MT comic, in my humble, biased, possibly totally wrong opinion.

EDR: MT - 002 - Where have I seen you before?

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Sometimes I wonder why the Kimiko character doesn't recognize Piro, the poor idiot, considering the number of times she poured coffee on his lap. WAITAMINUTE! It's because his face is generic. Just like every other Megatokyo character. Hence why I go through such an effort to make all their faces and expressions distinct and unique. In Kimiko's case, I wanted her to look the least like her Megatokyo counterpart. Her character, as it was, seems to be constantly changing, without any sort of constant, and a bland personality, to boot. Here, we're giving her a bit of higher reflexes and initiative while keeping a certain amount of naiveness, in order to boost her already simple personality. Hence, why the outcome was RADICALLY different from what was shown here and here. Not to mention it also grabs you and makes you wonder... Does she recognize him from the cafe, or from someplace else? The answer (YES! You guessed right) will be revealed in further installments of this strange trip into something else.
What I used to love about Megatokyo was how different Rodney Caston's writing was from Fred's. This becomes painfully evident by the comic that follows the last two I linked, relinked for your convenience here. In that particular instance, he's obviously making fun of Fred's awful non-working, boring pacing.
Aaaaaaand I have at least one more SECRET plan in the works that may or may not see the light of the day here... It greatly depends on what happens with it. I can't say much besides that!
If you want me to add a link to your site, leave a comment, and I'll get right to it ASAP.