12/08/2013
For the unacquainted: Scapula’s early crew, the Halloween Gang, consisted of three thugs named Steven, Homer, and Randy. They first appeared in ‘Gutless Wonder’, an early story (which is collected in SCAPULA Volume 1: Losers Never Quit), then reappeared in A CRAPPY CRIME CAPER. They worked with Scapula off-and-on until they were killed by Sharkmouth.
It was never explained before why exactly they worked with Scapula (who, at the time, was a pretty pathetic villain), so hopefully today’s bit of exposition sheds a little light on that.
Is that woman wielding a leaf blower?
And, dear me, that fellow with the bow and arrow can really climb.
I think she’s got a chainsaw, but that’s my fault for drawing it so terribly!
Yes, that archer can climb. If he was smart he’d climb up to the ceiling and crawl out the skylight window.
Man, he’s pulling stuff straight out of the ol’ Hitler playbook.
I guess he’s building his personal guard, then :V
The Pocket Hitler Book, for those who don’t have the patience to read Mein Kampf, is pretty much a one page book (it has a snazzy red leather cover). The only text in it reads, “Be a jerk and get everyone killed.”
I’d say Scapula did his homework, ja?
You schould add a ‘,nicht wahr?’ to a question (equivalent to ‘wouldn’t you say so?’). In German there is no ‘,ja?’ at the end of sentences. That would be Denglish. Just sayin. ;P
Maybe I just made up a new slang term: “ja”. It’s pronounced with the usual “J” sound, so it’s sounds like “jaw”, only not so drawn-out.
Ja! Ja! JAAAAAAA!
Yeah, heard that before, Scap…
It just seems incredible that these kids could be so easily induced into homicidal rage…but ol’ Edgar seems to be forgetting that works both ways…they’re also really quick to turn on an incompetent boss who leads them to defeat. Oh well…better a time bomb you can run from at least.
I gotta wonder, Aidan. Recently, I see a lot of your color strips featuring a mono- or bi-colored background scheme, changing colors every week, for the sake of focusing detail on the characters rather than the setting. A good idea for saving time when you’ve got plenty ofblack-and-white strips to work on, I’d guess.
The monochrome trick is useful not only for saving time coloring every little detail, but also for focusing the reader’s eye. You’ll notice that the furthest characters in the background are sort of gray toned, while the characters in front of them are much brighter (and the characters in the utmost foreground are very dark, but not the same shade of dark as those far away guys). This helps keep the focus on the individual characters in the crowd.
Have you ever seen those huge fight scenes in superhero comics, where there’s so much going on and so many characters stuffed in it that you don’t know what the hell you’re looking at? That could potentially be solved by using the tricks I’ve listed above. It doesn’t matter if Superman has the proper shade of blue and red and yellow in that one panel; the artist is better off showing where exactly he is in the scene. Can the reader tell that’s Supes and what he’s doing? Only if the artist knows how to focus on him, or play down other aspects of the scene.
All righty, end of sermon. Artists out there, feel free to debate my theories!
Is that an attack trained lobster? Being able to use whatever is at hand as a weapon is a handly skill to have. Sea food can be quite dangerous in the wrong hands, wrong being based on personal opinion and situation.
That is indeed a lobster. I don’t know why I put a lobster in there, but the first nerd who feels the urge to make a “Rock Lobster” comment or start reciting the lyrics can jump off a cliff.
Seafood can be dangerous. Imagine if that combatant tricked the others into eating that lobster, and it was undercooked (or alive)!
Scap is now so evil he legitimately scares me. Clearly that fall was good for him.
He’s the scariest cartoon character since Wile E. Coyote…and he was clearly good with falls!
Also, the trenchcoat and slit eyes in panel 3 are a good (evil?) look for him. Kind of a Chameleon-in-the-90’s-Spider-Man-titles style icon thing going on there.
Hypnausea will no doubt help color-coordinate the new and even more evil outfits.
The Chameleon is a great villain. I would say that it’s sad he never got a movie appearance, but considering the awful direction of the new series maybe it’s for the best (they’d probably make him a giant robot or an actual chameleon).
If they did use a movie version based on his comic persona, I’d kind of like to see him played by David Hyde Pierce. Not sure why…
As for THIS comic’s villains, Hynausea’s got something planned for the uniforms, and they’re going to be faaaaabulous!
I haven’t seen a good old-fashioned mace in a long time. They don’t carry ’em in Wal-Mart anymore. I’m interested in seeing who the survivors of this bloody skirmish will be.
There’s got to be some on-line tutorial for how to make a homemade mace, but until then get creative and make one out of stuff lying around the house! Make a humongous ball of tinfoil, stick plastic forks and butterknives in it, then duct-tape the whole thing to a screwdriver and voila!…instant crap.
Never mind. I’m just going to go back to macaroni art…
Ah, those impetuous young people mauling each other in such an uninhibited manner makes me reminisce about my own misspent youth. I could go into more detail about my indiscretions, but in some cases the statute of limitations still applies.
Just curious; how does one fit a sword, mace or a chainsaw into a goody bag?
How all of those items, including the bow-and-arrow and the lobster, got inside the bags is left to Hypnausea’s skill with party favors and setting up adorable soirée affairs. The boy’s got talent!
I have just finished hacking my way through 20 miles of humid jungle trying to make sure nothing comes near my mark that could harm him. I’ve shot, stabbed, and skewered spiders, snakes, and a crocodile to make it to today’s comic, and if it weren’t worth the effort of getting back to a wireless tower to check I would have to add ‘artist’ to that list.
You’re safe! Good job hun! I like the color wash effect and your explanation of it is pretty solid.
So, on to my major contribution to anything…… grievous bodily harm! Let’s see, a mace is a good weapon all around (you can swing it any which way and it counts if you hit), with all the virtues of any other clublike weapon except……. it’s heavy. A proper mace is very heavy by dint of having to be to, y’know, inflict harm. Now a hammer is much the same by focussing all the power into a single point at the head, and also is light and has a wicked little claw at the back. Problem? No real reach and also not very intimidating. Works fine in a pinch though, and everyone knows how they work. A chainsaw I think I’ve covered before…… they’re awkward, but even a glancing hit will lacerate and tear flesh and they are scary as hell. In this mess I doubt fuel is an issue, but even unpowered they can deliver a hell of a whallop. Heavy as sin though. The bow is perfect if used just like this. Only concern is ammo, and accuracy. It’s hard to be on target without a great deal of training. Still, it’s going to maim or kill whoever it hits pretty severely! In close range you’ve still got something to whack people with, but it’s not good for much or for many hits. Don’t rely on it, but if you have an arrow on hand they make for a surprisingly good stabbing weapon. And a lobster, well, those claws are serrated and if it’s alive it will do a number on anything you can get it on, but I wouldn’t be afraid of it. The short sword is a fine weapon but like all cutting edges it requires some precision since you have to hit with the edge. The tanto tip is good for piercing though. By the way, I like the consistency in characters to arms….. everyone still has the weapons they were shown with! Excellent!
As for Scap’s idea, well heck, it’s worked for many other would-be dictators. Sadly you can’t rely on that kind of volatile mob for anything outside of inflicting violence and turning tail once they meet superior opposition! Mob rule is easily broken.
I think I threw the lobster in there deliberately to hear how you would suggest defense tactics against an assailant armed with a crustacean (or maybe I drew it just because it was silly).
Now, as for all the cuddly fauna you claim to have mutilated in order to read today’s comic (now that’s dedication!), I think the only people who would be using those as weapons would be Throgor or the late Steve Irwin (he must have had some “attack-critters” in secret training). I think the unlucky lobster-wielding punk would have been better off with a crocodile, assuming the beast didn’t turn around, clamp on his leg, then spin around until the limb tore off.
Scap may want to think this through; does he really WANT an army of lobster-wielders at his beck and call? Only if they’re packing drawn butter!
Hm, defense against an aggressive man with a lobster. Now that’s tricky since the lobster has it’s own range of motion! If I were in that situation I’d keep to the side that didn’t have the lobster and try to take out his knees, or get a weapon with better reach (a chair would do) and smack the critter loose. Either one would be fine. The best method providing no weapons are available would actually be to strike any major pain point to force him to either drop the lobster and clutch the injury (the groin is a popular one), or get a hold of the forearm holding the lobster and keep your arm at a ninety degree angle to theirs to keep you outside the reach of claws.
Incidentally, I didn’t mow down everything threatening JUST to get to the comic, but I will admit it was one of those things I kept thinking to myself. It went a little like this: “It is way too humid out here, this guy complains way too damn much, and I am so sick of looking out for venomous everything! I’m running out of pistol rounds, this machete is dull as a pair of chopsticks, and these &$*#ing trees are packed tighter than sardines. What do I have to look forward to? Oh yeah, a cold drink and a new Scapula comic!” Which promptly got interrupted by “Ah, crap! Spider/Snake/Crocodile!”
No matter who wins, they won’t really win in the end if they join ol’ Scap, will they?
You never know. Maybe he’ll take them all out for frosty chocolate milkshakes!
I’m not gonna lie: Scap looks downright scary in the third panel.
Oh and apparently, spoon guy is doing pretty well with his “blunt weapon”.
Glad you enjoyed the scariness, and remember: beware the stranger who carries a weapon best used for scooping Cap’n Crunch!
I did mention earlier that spoons are artifacts of overwhelming power, didn’t I?
Only if you can bend them with your miiiiiiind!
There is no Keanu Reeves.
It would take a lot of money to agree to work with Scap
It takes a lot of money to work with some awful employers, but I guess there’s a few lucky suits out there.
Leaf-blowers are dangerous… they blow yer eardrums out, man!
It’s even worse when the person wielding the leaf-blower doesn’t care about passing people on the sidewalk!