Deja Vu?

[Nyamaza]

Being an artist demands at least a little masochism.

In the words of 2 the Ranting Gryphon: "Being an artist is the art of learning to f*ck up and accept it". with the best artists, a tenth of everything they make they consider to be worthy of people seeing. The rest, they consider crap. Good artists are the ones that learn to accept that, that not everything they do is going to look good.

Oh, and to comment about character mannerisms...anytime I deal with storytelling, I take a queue from Tolkein... always know far moer about the world, the characters, the story then your readers EVER will. it adds in a level of truth and realism that can't be attained from plotting out "just enough"

On a last note... putting the eyelight in your characters eyes, brilliant move. It works on the reader subconsciously, but it's something we're used to seeing in film, not in "fake media" (computer graphics, handdrawn animation, etc)

[Allan_ecker]

Actually, uh, heh heh..

http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/archives/im ... natos2.jpg

and

http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/archives/im ... /edge1.jpg

Okay, so I've got a Xanatos problem. I can't help it. By the way, Buena Vista's meeting next month to decide whether to put the next season of Gargoyles out on DVD, so get buying that DVD! And yes, I AM plugging the DVD in hopes I'll get to see the Xanatos-packed second season at DVD quality. I'm a Gargoyles whore.

And I think everyone will be pleased to hear that the world of Unit Zero has been tracked out in a hundred different directions, with a fictional future history that goes all the way back to the present day.

Eventually, I hope to do a bunch of stories that dig into that history, but as you say, doing those stories would mean figuring out as much -again- as I have now.

Oh, and black panel borders disappearing into the void: entirely intentional. The reader knows where the panel edges are, since they're clearly rectangles, so, at least for me, it's fine that they disappear. If the reader's eye follows the intended sequence, the panel has done its job: to guide the reader through the sequential artwork. (See Understanding Comics, Ch. 4)

Although I've never once even experimented with the infinite canvas, I am a rabid, frothy-frothy Scott McCloud fan.

[Nyamaza]

This might have been asked before, but I can't remember and am wondering... is the U0 world the same universe as the UH universe? I know it would be far in the future, but it owuld be interesting to think that a character we see, even if only a passerby, might be Cal's great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandchild, ya know?

[Allan_ecker]

It's ours.

[RandomScribe]

Well, in that case, I guess I'll just have to keep a lookout for my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandchild, then.

--RS

[Andrick]

... I'm emphasizing their isolation from the reality of war, and further that Admiral Dersky (the Cheetah) is actually contemplating that very isolation as he does so,..

You actually had the cervine character call the cheetah "Major". If the cheetah is supposed to be a naval officer then he would be a commander (direct naval equivalent of a major) and would at best be at the command of a small ship or a squadron of "boats".

If you decide on an admiral's rank then you are talking about a rank which is the beginning threshhold for strategic planning depending if he's a rear admiral, admiral or fleet admiral. Rear admirals are tasked with battle groups of warships (and thus travel to the danger zone with them) whilst fleet admirals are headquartered in strategy rooms far from the fighting.

I want you to note the closeness of the command ranks to their commands. A commander would directly see the enlisted under his command. A rear admiral would not except for those on his flagship, but he would still be with the fleet of ships at his disposal. An admiral or fleet admiral is no closer to the enlisted under his orders than the commanding officers to whom he gives orders (personally or by telecommunications).

If you are trying to get an infantry angle involved then it pretty much works the same way exempting the fact that it can only be done through the command structure of the army. A lieutenant directly leads a platoon of men (10-40) into battle. A captain does the same for a company (2-4 platoons). A major gets to be a little more indirect but still must be present for his battalion (2-4 companies or 40-640 troops). Colonels are likewise indirect but still battlefield present for their regiments or brigades (2-4 battalions). It is only the generals which have the option to be outside the range of artillery in leading the corps (2-4 brigades) and armies (2-10 corps). As you can see, a colonel is the first ranking officer that might get away with not knowing whom a good portion of his command would be, but it is really the staff ranks (generals) which become removed. I forget which ones are generals, brigadier generals, staff generals by star rank or command influence.

The green uniform is very TOS Star Trek-y, but it seems a little bright which makes it look a little sparse. Is this supposed to be a dress uniform? If so, it is missing any accoutrements which announces the qualifications and skill calibre of the officer in question unless he is completely unproven for his command rank. If not, why is it so bright? Yes, that color is bright for a fabric.

...

Why doesn't the cervine have ears? Does he have a name or should we start referring to him as "the young buck"?

[Allan_ecker]

Whoa. That is VERY likely to come in handy at some point, Andrick!

Thanks!

(And I'm probably going to have to bite the bullet and mod this page AGAIN to get the rank right; it's pretty important that the Admiral be strategic personell.)

Haven't named the Buck yet; He's only in three pages of my current set of storyboards and not likely to get many more.

[Andrick]

I will always help out with information whenever a body is creating anything with regards to the military especially if I can dispel some myths and illusions at the same time.

If your cheetah is an admiral then he should look old enough to have been in the military for the decades required not to mention the premature aging induced by stress. Even a prodigy must put in a minimum time in grade to be eligible for advancement as well as the necessary time in training and serve at the most diverse levels of command to quickly accelerate through the command structure.

The following link is to a quick officer's rank chart which will give you a breakdown of how the officer ranks work in each branch of service and how they relate.

An example of the types of training required would be found in this clipping from a newsletter: [quote]As the majority of service colleges commence in the summertime, now is the time to put yourself in position for an assignment to War College. Attendance at a service college is a significant milestone in the professional development of a naval officer. This education is designed to enhance the competence of those officers with high promotion potential. Professional Military Education (PME) entails the systematic instruction of professionals in subjects enhancing their knowledge of the science and art of war. Integral to each curriculum of any of the service colleges is an emphasis on joint matters and Joint Professional Military Education (JPME). Each of the service colleges provides JPME phase I credit. National War College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, are the only two service colleges that award both JPME Phase I and II as part of their single 10 month curriculum. Minimum grade requirement to attend a service college is lieutenant at the College of Naval Command and Staff and lieutenant commander for all other Intermediate Service Colleges. Commander is the minimum rank requirement for Senior Service Colleges. The general rule is that an officer must be wearing the appropriate rank by the beginning of a service college course. In unusual circumstances, individual schools may accommodate the assignment of Lieutenant Commanders (Select) to attend a course if that officer will pin on O4 shortly after arriving at the school. In addition, the Navy Personnel Command has a limited amount of latitude to assign an officer who has been selected to (but is not yet

[Allan_ecker]

Meanwhile, "Buck" strikes me as a government liason or appointed figure of civilian authority which is giving the command to the admiral to send a "trip wire" force. That would go far to explain the admiral's belligerent distrust of Buck's understanding for the situation. You should be able to read the admiral's thoughts; "it's one thing if I order those men to their deaths. I've been there and I know what I'm asking them to do. What right does this stripling have to do so when he's never picked up a weapon in defense of his nation... ever!"

Okay, WOW. That's practically getting inside my head, there. Dersky is a good man, a good soldier, and a keen strategist. Buck (and I think he's actually named that, now) is an oily pollitico who thinks himself a hero because he can calculate relative casualty figures and not think about the faces behind them. (Not thinking about them being worlds apart from thinking about them but making the call anyway.)

Now I also really want to apply some age to Dersky, although I'm not sure how I'd do it and have it still work with the fur. I may experiment, although there isn't a lot of time before tomorrow's update..

Now, I'm not looking to replicate the US Navy, exactly; a thousand years, a bloody solar-system-spanning war and a dark age separate it from the military force of Unit Zero, and there are a fair number people in this age who've never even -heard- of America.

But it's a very good model and things don't change -that- much, and after all I'm translating a language which has as much in common with English as Modern English does with 10th-century English.

Uhh.. to sum up, this is incredibly helpful, and I'm sure you'll have lots to say about some later episodes. I should caution that Dersky is about to do some very, VERY unorthodox things, even for his time, so if they're things that would never happen in the American military, a quick lecture on why would help me flesh out this structure (and probably a few parts of the future history) to much greater effect.

[DetailBear]

And just a nitpic, but shouldnt the planet be over the cheetahs other sholder in panel 2 if he is to the left of the dear?

Actually, no. The angled windowsill shows that he's being viewed from far stage left, not from stage center. Allan's shooting with at least three cameras. UZ is a big-budget production.

[Allan_ecker]

Heh. Next week is all Kubrick-y too.

[Fallwind]

And just a nitpic, but shouldnt the planet be over the cheetahs other sholder in panel 2 if he is to the left of the dear?

Actually, no. The angled windowsill shows that he's being viewed from far stage left, not from stage center. Allan's shooting with at least three cameras. UZ is a big-budget production.

ah ok

[Alfador]

Or it could be one camera that can move with discontinuity.

[Allan_ecker]

Heh. Next week is all Kubrick-y too.

Uh, I mean FRIDAY. I honestly didn't think much about the angles in that first page; I just tried to get the composition to look as good as possible. In most of these comics, you'll see some evidence of me trying to "mess with the panel format". So far, not one episode of Unit Zero has a uniform tiled rectangle layout, and only about 20-30% of them have standard gutters; bleeds dominate the pages. This concerns me a little, as I'm trying to have everything mean something in this comic, but everyone should understand: Unit Zero is to my composition skills as Umlaut House was to my writing: a first exercise which hopefully evolves into a fairly strong showing.

One of these days, I want to do a comic which starts out with great writing, great layout, and composition, all in the same place at the same time, from start to finish, with a uniform and coherant look.

For now, enjoy watching the process.

[Cyril_Dran]

Heh. Next week is all Kubrick-y too.

Uh, I mean FRIDAY. I honestly didn't think much about the angles in that first page; I just tried to get the composition to look as good as possible. In most of these comics, you'll see some evidence of me trying to "mess with the panel format". So far, not one episode of Unit Zero has a uniform tiled rectangle layout, and only about 20-30% of them have standard gutters; bleeds dominate the pages. This concerns me a little, as I'm trying to have everything mean something in this comic, but everyone should understand: Unit Zero is to my composition skills as Umlaut House was to my writing: a first exercise which hopefully evolves into a fairly strong showing.

One of these days, I want to do a comic which starts out with great writing, great layout, and composition, all in the same place at the same time, from start to finish, with a uniform and coherant look.

For now, enjoy watching the process.

A uniform look isn't necessarily the best thing for a comic... Often, artistic evolution can affect character growth, from what I've seen. Like, it's my experience that in comics where the style never changes, the story or characters never really change either. I'd post examples, but I don't have 30-40 minutes to run through archives and pick them out right now.. possibly in an edit when I have time. So, it's great if you have everything satisfactory to start a comic, but remember to keep working to make it that much more nearly perfect.

[Allan_ecker]

Now, I didn't mean to say the style wouldn't change in my hypothetical "ubercomic of teh futar" (sic). I meant that my goal is to have comics where even the more subtle elements of style are under my -conscious- control.

Umlaut House's writing was very subconscious for about the first half. I wrote what was funny. As the story progressed, I became more consciously aware of phenomena like plot flow, character development, and comedic pacing. I also developed my hand at facial anatomy and, I like to think, really began to filter into an area where I can call myself an Artist with a capital "A".

Unit Zero will, for the time I am producing pages for this current stint, represent an exploration of the use of panels to tell a story, colors to convey feelings and symbolism, and of nonorganic structures to provide backgrounds and references.

You'll notice the backgrounds in Unit Zero are significantly less sparse than in Umlaut House, although still not as lavish as a modern comic book. After Unit Zero, I may try to do something at "comic book quality" as I have just come into some -wicked- slick art pens.

[Cyril_Dran]

As long as none of the artists I respect fall prey to Jim Davis syndrome. Garfield is, to me, the largest example of a comic gone both artistically and plot wise, stale. After a point, Jim Davis began subconsciously recycling the same 24 or so jokes in new and interesting ways. Which is still only amusing for 2 of the 10 or so books that have been released since.

[Andrick]

Uh... you do realize that he's up to 40 books of the comic strip collections, six story arc books and a host of one-off books that number between a half-dozen and a score.

[Cyril_Dran]

No, I refuse to acknowledge anything past 30.