"Spectacles of Doom" (an ongoing multi-part sci-fi adventure comic).

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 3, pages 6-10:

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 3, pages 11-14:

 

[His Divine Shadow]

Poor Taloshi. Just like Mr. Dangerfield, rest him, he gets no respect. 😀 However, I sense that one who seems so inept and unwanted yet remains alive through it all must have a purpose yet to serve. Revealed, this may be, but not yet, I don't thing, not yet. *Thumbs up*

 

[Low_Roads]

My grateful thanks, HDS! :happy: And I wouldn't be a bit surprised! Though the Commander's a bit of a sap, if you ask me: dragging along the useless Mr, Celluloid; leaving enemies at his back, as well as in front... he'll be darned lucky to get away intact. Then again, who says he will...

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 4, pages 1-5 (WARNING: DISMEMBERED BODIES):

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 4, pages 6-10 (WARNING: DISMEMBERED BODIES):

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 4, page 11:

Picture #2 - page from The Commander Duck Portfolio, another publicity related project that never really came together. Within, Caligula Jones battles a pair of cyclops in a Blastrix-II arena... partial inspiration for the preceding scene:

 

[His Divine Shadow]

Carnage! Mayhem! Minor characters vaporized/crystallized/idontknowwhat-ized! A fate for that one that I did not forsee, but perhaps it is not permanent. Then again, I don't know what to think anymore. I do sense, though, that the showdown looms...

 

[Low_Roads]

A fate for that one that I did not forsee, but perhaps it is not permanent.

Thank you! :happy: I'm glad that I can manage a curve ball from time to time! Though I'm compelled to say that, once again (and without giving anything away), your surmise may prove prescient!

Carnage! Mayhem! Minor characters vaporized/crystallized/idontknowwhat-ized!

Vaporized... spooky you should say that. You'll see why in the first scene of the upcoming 13th episode.

A bit too much mayhem, perhaps... Commander Duck was supposed to be a kids' show. Then, our audience tended to be a little older, say middle school to early high school. I came to think of it as juvenile entertainment in the same way that Treasure Island or the Robert Heinlein juveniles are (and plenty of folks get offed in those classics!) Our stuff was tame indeed by comparison.

Since Spectacles never went into production, I'll never know how GM would have reacted to all this violence. He was rather protective of our audience... once stopped a long improvised acting scene because I used the phrase "artsy-fartsy"...

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 5, pages 1-5:

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 5, pages 6-10:

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 5, pages 11-15:

 

[Low_Roads]

Episode 12, scene 5, page 16:

Picture #2 - another selection from the Commanderd Duck Portfolio... the Commander in hero mode, accompanied by a covey rather casually dressed Annihilatrons:

 

[Violetta]

Dude, this is real sci-fi! I gotta say, I've been totally loving this! It's so beautifully retro! Just the way I like it. n_n I cannot wait for more!

 

[Janus4385]

Awesome! The commander really kicked some ass. You missed one frame though, you know the one where the commander does a small victory dance points at the guys who ambushed him and yells: OOOOOWNED!!!!!!!!!!! XD

 

[Low_Roads]

What very nice compliments! Thanks you so much, Sammi-chan! :happy: I'm delighted you're enjoying the story! Old fashion sci-fi (the E.E. "Doc" Smith-style space opera stuff) is the sort I've always preferred myself. I'm very pleased if I've been able to replicate some sense of that storytelling! Thanks again for letting me know! Twelve episodes down, five more to go... I'll do my very best to keep the installments coming regularly!

 

[Low_Roads]

Awesome! The commander really kicked some ass. You missed one frame though, you know the one where the commander does a small victory dance points at the guys who ambushed him and yells: OOOOOWNED!!!!!!!!!!! XD

Heheh! Thank you Janus! That's very kind of you! I'm afraid the Commander's victory dance is very shakey, though! He (like me!) is a hopeless square!

 

[Violetta]

What very nice compliments! Thanks you so much, Sammi-chan! :happy: I'm delighted you're enjoying the story! Old fashion sci-fi (the E.E. "Doc" Smith-style space opera stuff) is the sort I've always preferred myself. I'm very pleased if I've been able to replicate some sense of that storytelling! Thanks again for letting me know! Twelve episodes down, five more to go... I'll do my very best to keep the installments coming regularly!

I'll always have a spot in my heart for sci-fi like this. I mean, I love Star Wars just as much as the next girl, but I grew up watching stuff like "This Island Earth" and "Forbidden Planet." This sort of space adventure really has that nostalgic feel that always wins me over.

 

[Janus4385]

Not a problem, we'll get him some victory dance lessons, some good beats so he can practice and a really cool T-shirt with "WOOT" printed on it. He'll be a lean, mean victory dancing machine in no time. And don't worry, we'll get you a lessons and a T-shirt too, victory dances a must in life XD

 

[Low_Roads]

I'll always have a spot in my heart for sci-fi like this. I mean, I love Star Wars just as much as the next girl, but I grew up watching stuff like "This Island Earth" and "Forbidden Planet."

Oh yes! Me too, in a big way! '50s science fiction films are my favorite entertainment, bar none! And I'm sufficiently advanced in years to have seen some of them in theaters (there, or soon after on TV. Such movies were a ubiquitous staple of early television. Crummy black-and-white medium! For years, I never knew "This Island Earth" was a color film!)

Not a problem, we'll get him some victory dance lessons, some good beats so he can practice and a really cool T-shirt with "WOOT" printed on it. He'll be a lean, mean victory dancing machine in no time. And don't worry, we'll get you a lessons and a T-shirt too, victory dances a must in life XD

Oh dear! I hope he and I won't be required to stage a dance-off! I can just envision the results... trainers, judges, audience... all down with irreparable emotional damage! And should the event be televised... the consequences are too dire even to contemplate!

 

[Violetta]

Oh yes! Me too, in a big way! '50s science fiction films are my favorite entertainment, bar none! And I'm sufficiently advanced in years to have seen some of them in theaters (there, or soon after on TV. Such movies were a ubiquitous staple of early television. Crummy black-and-white medium! For years, I never knew "This Island Earth" was a color film!)

I remember when I first saw MST3K the movie. One of my current roommates was gonna show it to me because I'd never seen it. He said "it's some movie called 'This Island Earth' or something like that. And I was like "Oh! I love that movie! This is gonna be great." I wish I could find those old movies on DVD. I'd love to see them again.

 

[Low_Roads]

I wish I could find those old movies on DVD. I'd love to see them again.

A touch of serendipity... Universal just re-released "This Island Earth" to DVD last week! What a treat! It'd been years since I'd seen it... the color really is lavish, and I never miss a chance to see either Jeff Morrow or Russell Johnson!

More good news from Universal: they plan a small collection of hard-to-find titles sometime in November ("Tarantula" and "Monolith Monsters" are supposed to be included... I've been pining for them!) I'm told MGM has a multi-disk "Forbidden Planet" coming before the end of the year, complete with production documetaries... it's about dang time! Now, if they'd just do the same for "2001"...

Other than that, the release of such titles seems to be infrequent and spotty. Wade Williams offered a solid selection a few years back, but they aren't easy to find anymore. Foreign '50s sci-fi seems particularly tough to find: I was most excited to see Sony offer "Gojira" just recently, both the Japanese original and American reworking; excellent audio commentary analysis on each disc! Some things really are worth waiting for!

 

[Violetta]

They're actually gonna do "Forbidden Planet" on DVD?!?! I'm gonna snatch that up the second I see it! If I could just get that and a DVD copy of George Pal's "The Time Machine" I'd be all set. n_n And if I could find that copy of "Gojira" at Hastings or something, I'll check it out.

 

[Low_Roads]

http://www.dvdactive.com/news/releases/forbidden-planet.html

More information on the "Forbidden Planet" release... due November 14, 2-discs and scads if sweet-sounding extras! Even better features than I anticipated ("lost" footage?!) A touch pricey, but you know Best Buy and Costco will make it reasonable for everyone!

I've seen "The Time Machine" around, not with reliable availability (it's been out a while now). You might try Rasputin's, Barnes and Noble, Tower or Suncoast... not the best price-wise, I know, but I've had good luck finding obscure titles in those places.

 

[the_jimmy_james]

Pal's "The Time Machine" is a masterpiece. One of my favorites.