Page 1350…
Happy Friday!
Hope you all enjoyed this week’s worth of pages!
The Dreamland Chronicles Book Five is being uploaded to the printer right now.
The grand total is 336 pages!
Yikes!
Hopefully the printing and shipping won’t take too long.
Thank you all for your support in this year’s Kickstarter drive to pre-order the books.
I hope you have a wonderful weekend and look forward to seeing you all next week.
Scott
Whose arms are those sprouting out of Paddington?
Rock gaint beats all swords (stone beats scissors).
I had to upgrade my computer’s Awesome Processor so that it would be capable of processing the Awesome in Paddington’s entry.
π
Paddington: *pops up over the edge* BOO!
Classic surprise attack. lol Love you so much Paddington!
So many people called it.
Great job, Paddington.
LOL GO PADDINGTON!!!!!!!!!!
Perhaps, but it still made me LOL!
Hey, Desmond! Good call! You nailed it!
Ah, it took me a while to figure out what was going on. Where is Paddington in the last panel?
This bothers me a bit. Our heroes are supposed to be … heroes. Not thieves or pirates. How does informing the pirates that there has been a change in the ‘rules’ (which they seemed to be okay with) and they are no longer ALLOWED to pirate, then pirating the pirates ship, a good starting precident for the new “Kings” rule? Far better to tell the pirates they could make amends for their past misdeeds by assisting the new king on a mission.
The serious part of me thinks you’ve made a very fair, and even noble point. ^_^
However, the rest of me is totally overwhelmed by the awesomeness of Paddington’s ‘Boo’ entrance!!! π
And lest we forget, from what we’ve seen in the past those pirates have been up to all sorts of terrible goings on, a bit of an (admittedly extreme) swim is gentle punishment all things considered. All that being said though, Captain Big Beard and crew are most thankful for your consideration. π
While part of me wants to go “Yeah, go kick the bad guy butt!” the other part of me couldn’t help but think the same way, Ga’Tor ever since catgirl got that… well… “evil” look in her eye. =P
I mean they were all okay with stopping and leaving (as best could be told–they seemed ready to give right in) until the ‘heroes’ started poking fun of them and then told them that their ship was being taken from them. >_>
And I mean, I *know* the pirates are bad guys, but my gut can’t get over how clearly non-heroic this is from our heroes. =/
Yeah! Funny page, but I was kinda hoping for a team of silly pirates. They were cute little monsters. Hehe.
E-e-e-e-e-yahoo! π
Well, seeing them acting this way, any Firefly fan would’ve remembered the famous “I just wanted you to face me so she could get behind you.”
沑δΊεΏ π
It depends. If the old treaty (the one before Nicodemus) had a clause about losing any pirate ships caught outside the Nightmare Realm, they would be in their rights to confiscate it, since by their lights Nicodemus is a usurper.
I agree with Ga’tor. The pirates don’t need to be victimized.
surprised paddington didn’t take the whole boat down.
OMG, that’s priceless! Love that last panel. ^.^
It’s less of a matter that the pirates are being victimized, than our jolly band and new king are stooping to the level of the pirates. We don’t know what deal the pirates had with Nicodemus nor do we know much about the pirates. They could have been doing his bidding as Nico was the ‘legitimate’ ruler or he had given them letters of marque. Using historical pirates as a measure many of them were honorable seamen who had escaped the bondage of impressed service under England, France Spain etc. Of course a lot of them were a bloody, rapacious gang of murderers. As this is “Dreamland” I would hope that our current bunch of scallywags do not fall into the latter category. I’d like to think that they were a happy-go-lucky freebooters who had escaped from from their Nightmare Realm slave masters and were making the best of the situation. Historically, pirates were among the first democracies.
As stated yesterday, the entrance of Nastajia, Felicity, and Alex, as well as the dialogue- masked the incoming presence of a ROCK GIANT!
“It’s a rock! “Yeah, but it flies!” “It’s still a rock!” “Yeah, but it flies!”- funny discussion between a friend and I about Gallio the Gargoyle from League of Legends (online game).
I totally agree with you. This is a pretty bad lapse in writing quality here; the heroes are suddenly behaving like jerks while the pirates are actually being surprisingly civil, but are kicked off their own boat anyway. Not exactly in continuity with everything we’ve learned about the characters before, as well as what we know about the enemies. Hopefully it’ll shape up soon, but right now . . . eurgh.
@Dr. Bones – I’m not sure I agree that there’s been a lapse in quality writing. I’ve been onboard Dreamland since its inception and Scotts done a pretty good job plus he’s tossed in a few surprises. One thing of note is that there are a lot of people making decisions, commands and otherwise speaking in the “kings” name. I wouldn’t be surprised if Scott has Alex do an intervention here.
“One can never know where the author is going”. – That’s a real original “Ga’Tor ism”
Paddington is up on deck using pirates as suitable (for him) substitutes for dwarfs and is hosting a round of dwarf tossing.
My understanding is that the pirates are residents of the Nightmare Realm and would have confined their depredations to that realm were it not for Nicodemus’ treaty with them. The intent was to use the pirates to rid Dreamlands of those Nicodemus deemed troublesome. Since he could disavow having control over their actions Dreamlanders would have had to prove he directed the pirates actions. This would obviously cause the vocally curious to disappear in yet another pirate raid. Now that Nicodemus is “dead?” the pirates are being sent back where they belong.
30 seconds later:
Pirate Captain – “Well boys, did ya bring your floaties?”
Don’t worry about the pirates – the water will break their fall.
The key words being ‘break’ and ‘pirates’?
Silly heroes. Villainy is for antagonists.
Am I the only one that sees exactly what US government would do?
Impound the ship, take the crew hostage OR expel/deport them, and take strict diplomatic action against the offending state’s government.
Sounds like standard procedure for most democracies.
(Only difference I can see is that the crew does not get CIA/FBI escort to ensure they pass the border. More sloppyness than evil-ness IMO. Perhaps they trust the Mer-people to handle that part.)
Only just realized the new chapter was up! Well, I have enjoyed the latest updates and can’t wait for the next adventure to begin! Well done!
Interesting how you all feel about the Pirates.
We’re talking about a race of inhumans that’s sole purpose is to come to Dreamland (against Dreamlander’s wishes) and steal little children to take them to a place called “the Nightmare Realm”.
And you think that taking their Pirate Ship and making them swim back is unfair?
Yet…earlier…when Alex fought them off and killed the Captain…it was okay?
I wonder…had I written it as just the gang jumping on board and saving some kids…killing everyone in an epic battle…if there would have been as much speculation.
I say this, of course, completely open to your thoughts on this. I love the fact that my characters have varying moral compasses and that you all as readers can pick up on this.
I want to make sure I haven’t done the characters a disservice.
Please let me know.
Scott
I think the pirates were planning to do something, like not go back to the nightmare realm. I think they just acted like they were going to go back so they could get away. I mean really, the pirates are ruthless people, they cannot be trusted. They just acted innocent when they realized what had happened to Nick, and saw what they were up against. I noticed that when our heros fist landed/were approaching, the pirates were ready to fight them. The pirates attitude changed when they heard that their big, fearsome, protector, Nick, was gone.
Hmm. You might break this into an Ethics and Morals Issue. Any deal between Nic and the pirates is dubious on both grounds. 1) Morally Nic is a usurper he has no moral right to make deals/letters of marq. 2) Ethically the Civil War made any allies of Nic enemies of Alex/Nas. You can rob and kill your enemy combatants/ supply ships as long you do so under the constraints of normal practice. Arresting or impounding known pirates fits. Furthermore as King He is obligated both ethically and morally to protect and defend his country. Removing the pirates’ vessel is the only way he can reasonably guarantee they will not be kidnapping as he does not have the time to escort them home or available people to do it for him. All his friends are needed to help find Nas’s parents which is a important matter of state. He is going easy on them. Ohh and as his friends can’t fly without him the lifeboat/s are required for their safety and the mission.
Why do you consider it villainy? The job of a good government is to protect its citizens in the most “moral” way it can. Aside from killing them all, escorting/locking them up, or taking their ship and weapon’s how can the king protect his people from them. If the pirate lied to him and pirated kids (maybe his beloved cousin) he would be RESPONSIBLE. ALEX is the KING. His matter of state trumps escorting pirates.
You should have made the bad guys wear black hats, I guess. π
Hi Scott,
Dreamland is your world and we are just the visitors. You know the ins and outs, all of the nuances, the history and background of the realm and its people, We know only what we remember from our visits. To put this in context, I have about a hundred or more web comics bookmarked. Of those I actively follow only about 20 or so. Dreamland is in my top 10 and is ususally in the top 5 (this is a variable). That said, I don’t usually make a comment unless something is REALLY exceptional for good or bad. Which brings us to the present issue.
Alex, Nastajia and the good folk of Dreamland have just won a major victory. Alex is the new king with (I assume) the power to set new rules, laws, establish precidence on treating old foes etc. Regarding the current issue I guess the major question is, are the pirates beyond salvation. Also, what does Alex know about them? I cite Felicia as an example, she’s a thief and betrayed her friends at one point. If she can be redeemed are the pirates then beyond redemption? I dunno Scott, that’s your call. If you say it is so then so mote it be. However, (heheh) that means Alex and Co. has just released a bunch of bloodthirsty, rapacious, pillagers to make their way across a Dreamland full of (helpless?) innocents on their way back to the Nightmare realm.
Regarding your comment “Interesting how you all feel about the Pirates”. You missed it. Again I’m not so concerned about the pirates as I am about Alex and our heroes:
– Are they going to stoop to the level of the pirates?
– What kind of precident is Alex going to set as the new king?
– Are ALL of the ‘inhuman’ denizens of the Nightmare realm implacable, irredeemable and just shagnasty creatures that can’t be reasoned with?
I dunno, but YOU do Scott. IMHO there are INDIVIDUALs who are beyond salvation, but people, nations, races etc. are not. Is this an ablosute with the Nightmare realm?
In any case, Kudos on a darn good comic.
Historically, pirates were considered enemies of all mankind and were to be sunk or hanged on encounter by forces of any civilized nation.
I wouldn’t have batted an eyelash has the story gone this route. Except that you should have established that precedent earlier.
Thank you.
My take on how Alex would react is the way most 20 year olds would.
He would not be thinking of treaties, diplomacy, or the like.
Just that they need a ship. And these guys are bad guys with a ship.
It’s a simple thought for a simple person.
Now…Nastajia is another story.
She has no love for the Pirates. We’ve seen this time and again.
She’s killed the captain (to save Alexander)…but she also gave him a “pass” the FIRST time they met (when she saved Alex in Chapter 3).
Her warning was…
“If I see you in these parts again…it will be WAR”
So this is within HER character too. She’s given them warning after warning.
She had the rest of the crew taken captive by the Fairies.
She’s not above killing them if need be. And taking their ship is definitely not out of her personality.
Felicity…I don’t need to even go there. This is right up her alley…ha ha.
Paddington and Kiwi are pretty passive. They go along with the rest.
And I love talking about this. It HELPS me make sure I stay on track.
So please don’t mistake me for “defending” myself.
I WANT you all to question me. I have gone back and changed the story and dialog SEVERAL times because of the readers.
You all are my editors. Helping me stay on track with the story and characters.
So thank you!
a wise choice im shure they will make some rafts to get back home or not.
you can look at my other posts for details. But why is taking the Least Brutal way to ensure that these REPEATING pirates will not continuing pirating in waters a KING and a PRINCESS are Directly Responsible for in any way immoral or unethical.
If it makes you feel better, I’ve been stabbed in the gut in one of my dreams and felt it. To be fair to them, it wasn’t a pirate. It still hurt really bad, though. Yes, I am talking about a real dream, and yes, it really hurt. I awoke still catching my breath.
I’ve actually had this dream twice. First time, he used a spear. The second time, he used a trident, and leaned into my face and grinned really big before he pushed his weight behind the spear. He was a BIG dude.
So, yeah, if some Nightmare Realm guys with big swords get tossed over the railing, they won’t find much sympathy from me. I don’t think they had any intent of defecting or being peaceable. If they were willing, I think they would have taken the news about Nicodemus a little differently.
I have to agree with you, Scott…. and not just because you’re the author (although that DOES have a large bearing on it).
Most of the best stories have characters that are not truly evil or truly good. Take Princess Mononoke for example (wonderful anime). It was acclaimed as anime’s Star Wars, it was so great, and the biggest part of it was that none of the characters were totally good or evil. They all had a side to them that was both in some form or fashion. Another great example of this (in mainstream media) is Harry Potter, Iron Man, Star Trek, and even Star Wars. Most of the characters in those movies were NOT totally good or totally evil (Harry being a prime example, using unforgivable curses to rid the world of Voldemort), and they made for great stories, because that’s how it is in real life. We relate to that.
I think that Scott has done the same with his characters, and it’s amazing storytelling because of it. You still want to root for the good guys, even though they do something that’s a little lower on the good/evil totem pole (or so it seems, at least). Keep it up, Scott. Yes, we are your readers/editors, but you need to keep your own ideas in there too.
Also, I have to say that I LOL’d when I saw this page. In class. Where there was nothing funny to laugh at. Thanks, Scott. π
OK, beloved author, how ARE you going to prevent the dumped pirates from pillaging their way home? or are our heroes going to come back from their own trip and find devastation in their homeland? Frankly, I would also have liked to see the crew kept/reformed. The Paddington solution was a one-time wonderful Zing! but keeping them as crew would have led to lotsa future interesting plot possiblities…
There are consequences to every action. The pirates are in Dreamland illegally.
When our vehicles are used in an illegal manner today they often get impounded (smuggling, drunk driving, illegal parking, etc). This is nothing more than the pirate’s ship being impounded.
Dreamland is a fantasy world, but it is being written by someone who has a dose of reality to him! Kudos, Scott.
I would venture to say that first, they would probably have to drop their weapons, in order to “lighten the load” and be able to float/swim.
Secondly, having no ship, they would have to travel by land, once they reach it. Supposing for a moment that they still had their swords, they may try to do some form of attacks on the people on the way, but the main purpose of pillaging being that of taking booty (whether material, or people), not having a ship would make that much more difficult.
Should they even consider doing such, the fact that they would then retreat on foot would greatly hamper their speed of egress, heightening the chances that messages reach someone, anyone, who can come along and stop them in their tracks.
IMHO, their best option is to try to travel as low-key as possible, so as to avoid contact with anyone, thereby heightening their chances of making it back to the Nightmare Realm alive.
there’s a sort of purple pirate there, he’s hard to see, but he’s there, even though he kinda blends in with paddington
I like that explanation–it fits the characters better than mine, and is consistent: Alex is doing what seems right at the moment, while Nastajia is the one trained to look at things legally and be a true (and just) ruler.
And both have reason for taking the ship, whether or not the pirates agree.
I don’t think there is any moral issue here that needs to be worried about, any more than there was when the Fellowship was slaying goblins in Moria. I think most readers will understand the black and white morality being applied in this story, which follows the traditions of Tolkien and CS Lewis. (Interesting aside: Tolkien noted in his writings near the end of his life that one of the issues he was never able to resolve in Middle Earth was how orcs, or anything, could be inherently evil, so if you’re also struggling with this for your pirates, know that other masters have as well.)
Completely disregarding everything I said above, I am in favor of at times morally grey situations, and having Alex getting carried away at some point because of his youth, or Felicity as a result of tendencies developed while working for Nicodemus, and then corrected for it by the other members of the group. The final lesson for young readers would still be that such actions are wrong, though even heroes make such errors at times.