In standard Arthurian Legend, Arthur pulled the sword from the stone to become king.
In Dreamland, Alex pulled the sword from the stone to end Arthur’s kingship.
I think not Mr. Mighty. Arthur may yet still be in that place between worlds. The sword only says Arthur is not King because Alex took the Sword from the stone. Nothing was said that Arthur has ‘moved on’.
So Arthur’s just stuck? Bummer, but he knew the risks and it was worth it to him to take it. Arthur being Arthur, he’d probably do it again. Heavy stuff for Alex though, to find out that you’re following an act like King Arthur, wow, talk about shoes to fill.
O.o
So the actual ruler of Dreamland was meant to be Daniel o.O (tis be the reason why he couldn’t enter but Alex could). Or else I am royally confused hehe
I’ll admit, it’s a bit of a hiccup for me as many of us all-too-regular commentors kinda pieced this bit together a ways back. But yeah, exposition has it’s place. Sometimes, you just need it.
P: Hmm so if Arthur is no longer the king, and Alex is that still technically means Dan can not get in. Because there can not be two potential rulers at one time or w/e right?
But could Dan give up his right?
Can’t wait for the next page!
Okay, I knew the bit about ‘next king can’t enter while the previous king is still there.’ I didn’t know about the part where Alex taking the sword would break the… chain? Anchor? I’m going to go with ‘anchor.’
And personally, I like a good exposition. In fact, I kind of enjoy text-walls for this reason. I’d also like to note that I would hardly consider this to be text-wall. Even if there’s a lot of talking going on, I generally don’t consider it ‘text wall’ unless the text takes up about half of the visual space of the whole comic (something like this – which is half the size of this comic with more than double the wordcount), and even then I’m usually too caught up in what’s being revealed to notice.
So my opinion, in short: Don’t be afraid to textwall. ;D
Now, if Dan couldn’t get in because he was king and Arthur was still around, that should mean that he can now enter again. Of course, he’ll need to take the sword from Alex or something…
Loving this plot twist… so Dan couldn’t enter Dreamland when he was young, because Arthur was still “ruling”. Then Alex comes and pulls the sword out, ending Arthur’s rule and breaking the barrier that blocks Dan from entering Dreamland. But then their mom confiscates the sword necklace, and I guess that somehow prevents Dan from entering Dreamland (perhaps all kings-to-be can only enter when the sword is there, but it’s now stuck in necklace mode in the real world and kept away from Alex). It wasn’t until they grew up that Alex got the necklace back; but now Dan is grown up and can no longer enter Dreamland on his own.
So it seems that eventually Dan will get to wear that necklace… but if he always needs it to enter Dreamland, then Alex will be stuck in the real world—which would spell trouble with Staj. Hmmmm… the plot thickens!
The barrier was still there after Alex drew the sword though because there was still a king of Dreamland…he was it. It doesn’t matter that he’s Dan’s brother. The rule would still apply that no potential kings could enter while there was still an existing king.
What I want to know is how Alex will react to the news that his brother was supposed to be king of Dreamland…and how Dan will react to learning what he lost due to Arthur’s predicament…
Aaand just realized that my last comment could be construed to mean I don’t want another update or an explanation…neither of which is true. I just love that quote from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. 🙂
Yesterday, the rules about Dreamland kings and Dan’s “curse” were explained so clearly in the comment section. Today, the explanation in panel one is harder to follow.
I might have phrased the swords lines like this:
“Dreamland can only allow one human ruler at a time. Any other humans born with the potential to lead can not enter Dreamland until the current ruler passes.”
Please forgive me for being a back seat writer and feel free to tell me to cram it.
It reminds me of Merlin being trapped by the Lady of the Lake in a tree, or in a crystal or a cave, depending on what version you read. Poor guy, he had to see Arthur go through it and then have a similar thing happen to him.
Ehh… that line would be implying that Alex doesn’t have the potential to lead, which he does seem to have, rightful king or not. How about something like:
“Dreamland must have only one ruler. While one king remains, the next rightful king may not enter.”
For the voice of the sword, I have been hearing James Earl Jones and George Takei. Sometimes it’s one and sometimes the other. I guess my SciFi roots are showing considering the voices I hear for it are from Star Wars and Star Trek respectively.
I reckon that Alex has (unintentionally) killed Arthur when he drew the sword from the tomb. While the sword was still with Arthur he was still caught in a kind of double limbo. One from the ritual going awry that made him trapped between the 2 worlds while the swords presence acted as a gate that allowed him in both worlds thus causing a kind of feedback paradox loop.
When Alex removes the sword this negates the gate effect and as Arthur is from Earth he goes pop back to Earth at wherever Camelot used to be. He’s brain dead because his mind is still lost between worlds (It also ties in with how Alex goes brain dead when he’s in dreamland) which would quickly lead to real death, thus allowing the sword powers to pass to a new king.
I do wonder how Arthur would look when he returns, would he have aged in which case a dust cloud appears or if he was still whole because of being suspended between dimensions then I forsee some “Weekend and Bernie’s ” hijinks
Wow, at no point ever in my life did i ever expect to end up with a crossover involving Weekend at Bernies and King Arthur/Camelot but then I shouldn’t be surprised at having this silly idea…why…because Camelot is such a silly place
Hi all!
Thank you so much for the wonderful comments every day.
It is always so amazing to see what’s working and what’s not by reading your comments.
Thank you.
Looks like the computers are still chugging along on Friday’s page.
So as I’ve had to do all week…I’ll have to update the page in the morning.
Hopefully the weekend will give me a day buffer to catch up so I can go back to updating at midnight again.
I think when he pulled the sword he ended the rule of the previous king. Then his actions more recently proved that he was worthy of being king and the sword bestowed the title once it was earned.
I always thought that the reason that Alex didn’t go back after drawing the sword could be his age. His twelfth birthday could have made him to old to return without the assistance of the sword which his mother took away before he could use it. That could also explain why Dan never got in after Arthur’s rule ended without placing the crown on Alex that fast. After all, the sword only saw Alex for a few minutes before he woke up.
Anyway. What actually happened to Arthur isn’t that important now, so that can remain a mystery, I don’t mind. He’s burried in the cave with his ancestors, and that’s sufficient to know.
But what I DO like to know is how Alex is going to react to the fact that the whole of dreamland is counting on his leadership, especially trying to live up the legacy of King Arthur. I know that Alex had some personality growth recently, but from becomming “reasonably responsible” to be “the King everybody is looking to for support” … THAT might be a leap to far for Alex.
To phrase someone who visited other worlds as well: “A small step for Nastaija, a giant leap for Alexander.”
PS: I always imagined the sword having an eye on one side and a mouth on the other side. How else can it talk? :p
D= I vote for John Rhys-Davies as King Arthur. Oh yeah the sword, hmm I really think it would be best for it to have like as many voices as possible. Maybe its talking in a bunch of languages at one time. But only english is heard as strongly. Merely because that is what our heroes speak.
I think Alex` might need a little time to think this whole story through and that it`ll take a while before the `being king` realisation kicks in. He`s slow like that. 🙂
I might be a bit slow too, but still don`t really get it…why could Alex come to Dreamland while he was a kid, and Dan couldn`t? If they`d both be worthy to lead, would Alex not be held back too?
Ahem… people, whilst we’re arguing about what’s happened to Arthur’s mind, remember that he also had a body, which would be hundreds of years old by now, and probably pretty malnourished. So I’m pretty sure he’s “dead!”
@ HenrikeD, in terms of rightful kingship, Dan and Alex were not born equal at all! Dan, as the first-born, is the next-in-line. Alex is the equivalent of a prince. So his “royal blood” permitted him entrance to the tomb, but he was never the intended king, so he was allowed to enter Dreamland as a child. Basically an awesome loop-hole.
I don’t think Alex was considered worthy to lead, brother or no brother to the rightful king. Dreamland kings don’t follow any kind of direct line. What little we know about past kings before Authur is they are random famous people from our distant history, spanning many countries and no direct lineage whatsoever. Why did the sword allow itself to slip easily from the tomb then? Maybe, like Nastajia, it knew Alex could be much more then what he was? Maybe it was desperate for a human king to take over and prayed that he would become worthy over time? Maybe Dan’s blood gives him the potential to be a good king, but unlike Dan, he’d have to work his cute bum off for it?
Having done events with Takei, I am going to have to say I think he would be the perfect sword voice, especially if you could get him to use his natural speaking voice and not his stage voice.
Actually, after some of the other comments, I’m picturing Arthur in some kind of home, for the last few centuries, some secret order having arranged his care.
As nicodemus stated earlier the sword can only speak when in the presence of the king that means that our hero was officially king the first time the sword spoke.
Hmmm. Not sure if the barrier was keeping out everybody or only Dreamlanders. If humans could pass the barrier that would be a big reason for Nic to keep ALL humans out of Dreamland. Alex is just the first human to ever find the entrance to the tomb.
the plot thickens!
Also, First!
In standard Arthurian Legend, Arthur pulled the sword from the stone to become king.
In Dreamland, Alex pulled the sword from the stone to end Arthur’s kingship.
Interesting symmetry!
😉
(Don’t forget to VOTE! http://topwebcomics.com/vote/4274/default.aspx )
So… does this mean that something bad has happened to Arthur? Did he finally move on? Shuffle off this mortal coil? Perish?
I think not Mr. Mighty. Arthur may yet still be in that place between worlds. The sword only says Arthur is not King because Alex took the Sword from the stone. Nothing was said that Arthur has ‘moved on’.
So Arthur’s just stuck? Bummer, but he knew the risks and it was worth it to him to take it. Arthur being Arthur, he’d probably do it again. Heavy stuff for Alex though, to find out that you’re following an act like King Arthur, wow, talk about shoes to fill.
Oh, and being 16th is unacceptable, so . . .
Don’t forget to VOTE! http://topwebcomics.com/vote/4274/default.aspx
We shall see in future pages…
O.o
So the actual ruler of Dreamland was meant to be Daniel o.O (tis be the reason why he couldn’t enter but Alex could). Or else I am royally confused hehe
I’ll admit, it’s a bit of a hiccup for me as many of us all-too-regular commentors kinda pieced this bit together a ways back. But yeah, exposition has it’s place. Sometimes, you just need it.
How did I know this would be the answer!!!!
😉
I can envision a lot of possible scenarios with Arthur, and the amulet. Can’t wait to see how you leave us “hanging” in the next page!
Loving the plot line. Nothing wrong with great dialog.
P: Hmm so if Arthur is no longer the king, and Alex is that still technically means Dan can not get in. Because there can not be two potential rulers at one time or w/e right?
But could Dan give up his right?
Can’t wait for the next page!
Okay, I knew the bit about ‘next king can’t enter while the previous king is still there.’ I didn’t know about the part where Alex taking the sword would break the… chain? Anchor? I’m going to go with ‘anchor.’
And personally, I like a good exposition. In fact, I kind of enjoy text-walls for this reason. I’d also like to note that I would hardly consider this to be text-wall. Even if there’s a lot of talking going on, I generally don’t consider it ‘text wall’ unless the text takes up about half of the visual space of the whole comic (something like this – which is half the size of this comic with more than double the wordcount), and even then I’m usually too caught up in what’s being revealed to notice.
So my opinion, in short: Don’t be afraid to textwall. ;D
Ever more intriguing, Scott. You have me remembering “The Once and Future King” again, or at least the title.
Now, if Dan couldn’t get in because he was king and Arthur was still around, that should mean that he can now enter again. Of course, he’ll need to take the sword from Alex or something…
wonder what the sword sounds like?
It tells ya indisputably. =P
OK, so what I’m wondering — was Dan chosen ANYWAY, and the fact that his twin brother (not firstborn) grabbed the sword is TOTALLY coincidental?
Hm. I hadn’t thought of that.
Maybe we should do a casting call for the voice of the sword.
I vote for Eddie Murphy!
🙂
Yes…I was kidding.
Yes, vote!! Let’s get Dreamland back into the top 10!
I think of it as an echo-y, hollow, reverberating metallic voice, the kind of almost spooky voice that seems to come from all directions.
Loving this plot twist… so Dan couldn’t enter Dreamland when he was young, because Arthur was still “ruling”. Then Alex comes and pulls the sword out, ending Arthur’s rule and breaking the barrier that blocks Dan from entering Dreamland. But then their mom confiscates the sword necklace, and I guess that somehow prevents Dan from entering Dreamland (perhaps all kings-to-be can only enter when the sword is there, but it’s now stuck in necklace mode in the real world and kept away from Alex). It wasn’t until they grew up that Alex got the necklace back; but now Dan is grown up and can no longer enter Dreamland on his own.
So it seems that eventually Dan will get to wear that necklace… but if he always needs it to enter Dreamland, then Alex will be stuck in the real world—which would spell trouble with Staj. Hmmmm… the plot thickens!
For some reason when I read that, my brain only picked up on the ‘metallic voice’ bit, and inserted Stephen Hawking’s computerized voice. 🙂
The barrier was still there after Alex drew the sword though because there was still a king of Dreamland…he was it. It doesn’t matter that he’s Dan’s brother. The rule would still apply that no potential kings could enter while there was still an existing king.
What I want to know is how Alex will react to the news that his brother was supposed to be king of Dreamland…and how Dan will react to learning what he lost due to Arthur’s predicament…
The suspense is terrible….I hope it lasts. 🙂 🙂
Aaand just realized that my last comment could be construed to mean I don’t want another update or an explanation…neither of which is true. I just love that quote from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. 🙂
Oscar Wilde said it first.
Yesterday, the rules about Dreamland kings and Dan’s “curse” were explained so clearly in the comment section. Today, the explanation in panel one is harder to follow.
I might have phrased the swords lines like this:
“Dreamland can only allow one human ruler at a time. Any other humans born with the potential to lead can not enter Dreamland until the current ruler passes.”
Please forgive me for being a back seat writer and feel free to tell me to cram it.
Curiouser and curiouser…
It reminds me of Merlin being trapped by the Lady of the Lake in a tree, or in a crystal or a cave, depending on what version you read. Poor guy, he had to see Arthur go through it and then have a similar thing happen to him.
Yes; it also likely explains why Daniel has no dreams…
Then he still couldn’t get in: the only human adult allowed is the King… :^(
That would be a good possibility, especially if we invoke technology/magic equivalency.
Ooh. I like that.
Thanks. I may steal it.
🙂
Ehh… that line would be implying that Alex doesn’t have the potential to lead, which he does seem to have, rightful king or not. How about something like:
“Dreamland must have only one ruler. While one king remains, the next rightful king may not enter.”
That works too.
I’ll see what I can change.
For the voice of the sword, I have been hearing James Earl Jones and George Takei. Sometimes it’s one and sometimes the other. I guess my SciFi roots are showing considering the voices I hear for it are from Star Wars and Star Trek respectively.
I think it should be the actor that voiced K.I.T.T, uh… what’s his name…
Or maybe a Cylon type voice from the Old Battlestar Galactica.
So when Alex pulled the sword out, he effectively became king?
I think the following voice would be perfect.
“I’m sorry, Dave. I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
🙂
I wonder. Since Alex is the new Arthur, might it be that Dan is the new Merlin?
I reckon that Alex has (unintentionally) killed Arthur when he drew the sword from the tomb. While the sword was still with Arthur he was still caught in a kind of double limbo. One from the ritual going awry that made him trapped between the 2 worlds while the swords presence acted as a gate that allowed him in both worlds thus causing a kind of feedback paradox loop.
When Alex removes the sword this negates the gate effect and as Arthur is from Earth he goes pop back to Earth at wherever Camelot used to be. He’s brain dead because his mind is still lost between worlds (It also ties in with how Alex goes brain dead when he’s in dreamland) which would quickly lead to real death, thus allowing the sword powers to pass to a new king.
I do wonder how Arthur would look when he returns, would he have aged in which case a dust cloud appears or if he was still whole because of being suspended between dimensions then I forsee some “Weekend and Bernie’s ” hijinks
Wow, at no point ever in my life did i ever expect to end up with a crossover involving Weekend at Bernies and King Arthur/Camelot but then I shouldn’t be surprised at having this silly idea…why…because Camelot is such a silly place
Hi all!
Thank you so much for the wonderful comments every day.
It is always so amazing to see what’s working and what’s not by reading your comments.
Thank you.
Looks like the computers are still chugging along on Friday’s page.
So as I’ve had to do all week…I’ll have to update the page in the morning.
Hopefully the weekend will give me a day buffer to catch up so I can go back to updating at midnight again.
Hope you don’t mind the 8 hour delay.
You misspelled “dias” in the last frame. ;2)
I think when he pulled the sword he ended the rule of the previous king. Then his actions more recently proved that he was worthy of being king and the sword bestowed the title once it was earned.
I always thought that the reason that Alex didn’t go back after drawing the sword could be his age. His twelfth birthday could have made him to old to return without the assistance of the sword which his mother took away before he could use it. That could also explain why Dan never got in after Arthur’s rule ended without placing the crown on Alex that fast. After all, the sword only saw Alex for a few minutes before he woke up.
who did the voice for HAL? that’s my vote.
Anyway. What actually happened to Arthur isn’t that important now, so that can remain a mystery, I don’t mind. He’s burried in the cave with his ancestors, and that’s sufficient to know.
But what I DO like to know is how Alex is going to react to the fact that the whole of dreamland is counting on his leadership, especially trying to live up the legacy of King Arthur. I know that Alex had some personality growth recently, but from becomming “reasonably responsible” to be “the King everybody is looking to for support” … THAT might be a leap to far for Alex.
To phrase someone who visited other worlds as well: “A small step for Nastaija, a giant leap for Alexander.”
PS: I always imagined the sword having an eye on one side and a mouth on the other side. How else can it talk? :p
D= I vote for John Rhys-Davies as King Arthur. Oh yeah the sword, hmm I really think it would be best for it to have like as many voices as possible. Maybe its talking in a bunch of languages at one time. But only english is heard as strongly. Merely because that is what our heroes speak.
I think Alex` might need a little time to think this whole story through and that it`ll take a while before the `being king` realisation kicks in. He`s slow like that. 🙂
I might be a bit slow too, but still don`t really get it…why could Alex come to Dreamland while he was a kid, and Dan couldn`t? If they`d both be worthy to lead, would Alex not be held back too?
Maybe it’s time to bust out the dreaded monument of nearly endless text that is…..THE WALL OF EXPOSITIOOOOOOOON!!!!
Ahem… people, whilst we’re arguing about what’s happened to Arthur’s mind, remember that he also had a body, which would be hundreds of years old by now, and probably pretty malnourished. So I’m pretty sure he’s “dead!”
@ HenrikeD, in terms of rightful kingship, Dan and Alex were not born equal at all! Dan, as the first-born, is the next-in-line. Alex is the equivalent of a prince. So his “royal blood” permitted him entrance to the tomb, but he was never the intended king, so he was allowed to enter Dreamland as a child. Basically an awesome loop-hole.
I wonder now. Is Arthur, trapped between two worlds, also wearing that bracelet? That could be…rather handy. =)
Hi and what page did he go to sleep in real life???? It’s been such a long time….
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dais
Borg voice!
“We are the Sword. Resistance is futile … ”
😉
I don’t think Alex was considered worthy to lead, brother or no brother to the rightful king. Dreamland kings don’t follow any kind of direct line. What little we know about past kings before Authur is they are random famous people from our distant history, spanning many countries and no direct lineage whatsoever. Why did the sword allow itself to slip easily from the tomb then? Maybe, like Nastajia, it knew Alex could be much more then what he was? Maybe it was desperate for a human king to take over and prayed that he would become worthy over time? Maybe Dan’s blood gives him the potential to be a good king, but unlike Dan, he’d have to work his cute bum off for it?
Having done events with Takei, I am going to have to say I think he would be the perfect sword voice, especially if you could get him to use his natural speaking voice and not his stage voice.
Actually, after some of the other comments, I’m picturing Arthur in some kind of home, for the last few centuries, some secret order having arranged his care.
The last time Alex fell asleep.
http://thedreamlandchronicles.com/the-dreamland-chronicles/chapter-15/page-1062/
As nicodemus stated earlier the sword can only speak when in the presence of the king that means that our hero was officially king the first time the sword spoke.
HAL was voiced by veteran Canadian stage actor Douglas Rain. http://www.canadiantheatre.com/dict.pl?term=Rain%2C%20Douglas
Ben Stein?
So…Alexander’s King because he ninja-looted a sword from an instance that was stuck for eight hundred years.
William Daniels was the original KITT.
oh that explains it! pretty complex…
So long as he isn’t nailed to a perch somewhere, things should be fine. 😉
Sword:SILE-ehm..hehe I got carried away…
Oh my, I don’t think Alex likes where this is going XD
Hmmm. Not sure if the barrier was keeping out everybody or only Dreamlanders. If humans could pass the barrier that would be a big reason for Nic to keep ALL humans out of Dreamland. Alex is just the first human to ever find the entrance to the tomb.