Page 1315…
Thank you all for the wonderful thoughts and questions yesterday.
While the thought of Nicodemus in Alexander’s armor was a fun one…I hope you understand…this is where the story must go for now.
Remember…there are 8 more chapters to this story.
🙂
Awwwww…..
I wonder if we’ll find out what didn’t work. Maybe the sword knows something.
poor armour…. not self regenerating. 🙁
That’s so sad! Great shot with the tears there Scott.
I suspect the only way Nicole can get to Dreamland is to recover the two-piece amulet from Limbo. Don’t know if that’s in the cards for the next 8 chapters, though.
It is kind of odd that all the Dreamland residents are completely ignoring their King. But then, Alex doesn’t exactly have a commanding presence yet.
If they had started to crowd around him, that would have distracted from the emotional impact of this scene.
Also, now we know that when Felicity said “much too long,” she could have been referring to how Nicole had not arrived soon after Alex left. Now we know why.
Noooo, I’m saaad. 🙁
That is……NOT NICE!!!!! For the first time in years ,I am a bit peeved by a story-twist…
No, let me re-phrase that: I am totally peeved.
Talk about powerful story-telling. That a couple of bits&bytes, some color-information, and an idea can evoke such a powerful discontent in me…(aside from the ubiquitis crashing of OS-es, that is.. 😛 )
I guess Nicole is just too old.. *shrugs* apparently the lesson is that being a grown-up involves a lot of disappointments.
Poor Felicity. Almost dying, getting back to enjoy life, and then getting the lid slammed on her nose again… 🙁
I agree. Such a beautiful panel… and it’s all so sad. I also wonder what went wrong or what didn’t work…
I’m not all that fond of Felicity (not that I dislike her, just… rubs me the wrong way sometimes) …. so I was surprised when the second panel absolutely teared me up. Beautiful and touching.
I wish Scott would just yank us all and. Alex would go like “Haha fooled ya! She’s right here!”
Same here. I don’t why, I’ve studied art/design most of my life, I know all about the power of the visual image and so on, yet every now and then I’m always amazed by how a relatively small panel in a well written comic can stir me emotionally in a way few pictures/photos can (including the ‘classics’).
The say all art aspires to the state of music, well with that second panel right there Scott struck a very powerful note indeed. Sad as hell, but beautiful at the same time. Needless to say, always been a Felicity fan, so that makes it even harder to take.
I’d hug the hell out of Felicity if I could right now, and I’m allergic to cats! O_O
*They* say…
Sigh, typos, my immortal enemy. >_>
Well, since the King of Dreamland has so obviously nothing else to do right after the kingdom has been supposedly liberated from centuries long tyranny… why not go find Arthur’s bracelet at last? Nightmare Realm folks will surely sympathise.
Nicole, not Nicodemus, surely? 😉
Poor Felicity needs a hug.
There is a task that isn’t finished yet – fulfilling Arthur’s dream of people coming to Dreamland. Now that it’s confirmed that Nicole can’t simply go there, Alex will feel the urge to do something about that. That may indeed fill 8 chapters ^^.
Heh, you’ve beaten me to it.
While we don’t quite know the responsibilities of the K of D, isn’t it at least a wee bit strange that Alex turns his full attention to personal matters (even if not quite his own ones) right now? Not that anything in politics can really surprise me after Bush the Toddler ran for President and got elected, of course…
sad face 🙁 But at least they can say they tried. Now more interesting to note is wasn’t it Nic that set the initial curse which wouldn’t allow adults into dreamland? Food for thought. 😉
Awh….NOOO!!! It’s…so sad T^T. I hope Nicole (and Dan) will come to Dreamland soon. What could have stopped Nicole?
I have to agree, this was not nice to do.
Though it would have been a cool story twist, I agree. You can’t throw too many exceptions into the story either. This keeps the 1 adult human rule solid.
As for Alex, doesn’t he have some bruises. And if it’s been 1 day or less, those bruises should be HUGE now. A black eye, etc.
As for the amulet. I have mixed feelings. Yes AND No! Yes: It would be awesome to have Dreamland reunions and (my theory) return status of Dreamland to beginning of mankind. No: It’s really not a good idea to mess with the laws of “Nature.”
@ Redbeard623 I don’t think so, but possible and would support my theory (see above).
I do not like seeing Felicity sad…she is supposed to be perky and full of energy. Not wanting to see huge change in her personality.
Hmmm. Didn’t the sword choose Alex? Therefore it wouldn’t work on anyone else if the sword were to fall into the wrong hands or something. This comic had better have a happy ending for everyone or I’m gonna bawl my eyes out.
I think I am gonna abstain from TDC for a while. I’ll check back in a couple of weeks. Maybe something positive wil have happened by then.
This page is touching, but utterly depressing. Sorry.
So sad for Felicity. But that’s one of the operating laws of this realm, that the only adult human that can be there is the King. At least for now. I too am curious as to the future status of the amulet.
And yes, very powerful visuals, especially the previous page. Excellent storytelling, Scott, even if it is heartrending.
The thing is, the power does not come from the panel alone. Emotional involvement of a story does not only come from art alone, but from how you build it up, how you introduce the characters, how you let them grow deep and complex and then throw them into emotional turmoil. Most stories only have strength because they take the time to build a relationship between characters and reader. The most emotional image isn’t half as strong if no such relationship is created (and that’s where most stories fail, these days). Lucky for us, Scott is a master in story build up, character development and storytelling. That’s why he’s got us shaken.
Oh poo! This is depressing….
OK, if we can’t get Nicole to Dreamland, how do we get Felicity to Earth?
All true, but I can’t help but feel that the fact the panel itself is, so to speak, ‘perfect’, is what makes it so arresting (at least in my messed up little head). The angle of her head, the shape of her hair, the way she’s framed in the panel, everything just screams ‘wow’ all on it’s own.
If you then consider the background and her usual cheery self, it does make it even more powerful of course (as I said, the fact I’m a fan of an already established character increases the effect hugely), but either way, that such a painful moment could be so visually stunning is what always catches me off guard emotionally, and it happens more in the comic medium than any other, at least recently for me that’s been the case.
To put it another way, take away the story and it’s still an arresting image. Not as deep, of course, but still very much something you would notice if you saw it, and perhaps take a moment to consider why she’s so upset, and how it is she manages to be so graceful with it. On the other hand, if the panel wasn’t so great the emotional impact would be greatly reduced, and what should have been a truly huge moment would have been ruined.
Looking at it again, she reminds me in the second panel of the crying angels you see in some old cemeteries. Beautiful, graceful and full of dignity, yet wretched with sorrow all at the same time.
You’re right though, we’re lucky that with TLC we have the best of both worlds, great story AND the visuals to back it up. ^_^
*sigh*
TDC, I meant to say TDC!!!! What the hell has TLC got to do with… Dagnabbit!!!!
Hmm, maybe it’s a sign, this isn’t my day to be commenting! 😛
You guys are so flattering.
I’m humbled. Thank you.
Thank you all!
So happy to hear your thoughts on this.
Can I please clam dibs on the fact that even Alex can’t go to dreamland without wearing the sword while he sleeps?
Hmm.. it does make me wonder… what happened to make her take it off? …. did she… pop into the nightmare realm by accident, wake up, and just throw the necklace at Alex and yelll “Take it!! take it!!”
You people got my hopes up! I had a feeling it wouldn’t work when I first saw yesterday’s page and then you people suggested otherwise! Now I’m all bummed out,
Is their an elvish blacksmith that can repair Alex’s armor or will he always wear the scars?
Can we please keep irrelevant, partisan politics out of here? I come here to be entertained, not to be reminded of the petty garbage that goes on in real life.
Happily, Alex is the kind of guy who WOULD put his responsibilities on hold in order to help a friend. I don’t think one night it going to kill anybody and I’m sure he’ll get to his kinging soon enough. The nice thing about kingdoms is that they tend to be run by lots of people and lots of people aren’t going to change how they make/sell bread in one day. Let them have their moment, let the advisers have their day off, Alex will get back to flipping the world upside-down soon.
Regarding Alexander’s “duty as king”…there hasn’t been a coronation or anything.
My feeling is that the country is still in recovery/celebration/heavy sigh-mode.
We’ll work out the politics in the next chapter. Which reminds me…I better get writing.
Awww… so sad. 😥 I guess I should have known. Not just anybody can use the sword…
I think the second panel is my favorite picture of Felicity, ever.
And the first panel is my favorite shot of Alex…
This is a good page.
Whew, they were very lucky, actually. I stand my point. Only one person, the king, is allowed to enter Dreamland. The sword won’t transport anyone but the king, it seems. It either cannot or knows better not to. If it actually transported Nicole, it would break the treaty and you would have nightmare beats crawling all over.
Well, that was disappointing. I was really hoping for a small reunion between Felicity and Nicole, even for just a few minutes/seconds…
They both deserve it.
The saddest face! ;n;
Such a tragic blow! Felicity really had her hopes up, and then cruel reality dashes them to pieces. I sincerely hope that those two find a way to finally meet up again someday.
*sigh* poor kitty (as my inner child says). *reaches out to dreamland and hugs felicity* You know she tried her best, maybe we need to talk to _______ (the centaur that helped alex). He might be able to tell us why.
I know what you mean. when we first met her i was like…… what a snob. but now she had kinda started to grow on me but man it’s hard to type when you can’t see through tears. thank goodness for the little red squiggle under my miss spelled words.
Yes- and thankfully, the real life weeping angels are nothing like Dr. Who’s Weeping Angels…. 😉
lol!
I like it…it’s sad, but real. We can’t always have a happy ending.
Sweet comment. 🙂
A beautiful sadness. This page is absolutely gorgeous.
Lovely page! Uh, what’s going on with Alex’s helmet/collar in the third panel? Is It just broken?
Wow, there’s still 8 more chapters? I’m curious to see where it will go from here.
I’m at work and i’m glad i’m the only one here. Hate to have to explain why i’m crying.
I’m sure that’s what he meant, but Nicodemus being squeezed into the armor is a pretty fun idea, too. 🙂
awww poor felicity
The treaty only states that only one adult human can be in dreamland. Due to the complications of defining who the king is, it doesn’t state whom.
If only. Too bad its not likely to happen. Not unless Arthur shows up out of the blue with the amulet and hands it over to Alex before going on a bit of a “reunion” tour through Dreamland.
I want to cry, too.
Agreed. This is why the comic industry is dying, too much sadness and every hero has to be emo, and so on. Thank god webcomics essentially said sod off (to use the brittish version of it) to that whole concept while keeping the good story telling bits of it. I consider a case of having your cake and eating it.
The law is only one adult human at a time. Nothing about a king. Alex was out at the time, and Nicole should have been able to get in.
I feel I should apologize as I was one of them. So, sorry for getting your hopes up TechnoTreeGrass.
Well he was knocked about by a Dragon recently, so it wouldn’t surprise me…
I know! I know!
She didn’t make it to Dreamland because she couldn’t fall asleep. She tried to fall asleep, but she couldn’t because Dan and Alex were watching her. So lets wait till tomorrow night? 🙂 Please?
Well that was disappointing.
You also need to calm down. You could have just ignored the comment and not put up such a fuss.
I’m reminded of a few lines in Jonathan Coulton’s song “When You Go” “There in the frame of your face, in the cast of your eyes/I saw this coming but still I am caught by surprise/All of this time I knew/That I’d be losing you/That doesn’t mean that it’s OK/That doesn’t mean I’m ready” that pretty much sums up my reaction to this comic. I was pretty sure that it was not going to end well for Felicity but there was hope the whole time. Now that hope is dashed and though I was sure of the ending it still hit me suddenly.
Well done is better than well said.
~Benjamin Franklin
Oh, I sincerely do not like her. Never have. BUT this page DID make me feel bad for her
I like tacos.
-Me
Perhaps it makes me a terrible person, but I’m glad to see that not everyone is happy all the time in this world. It really adds a touch of connection for the viewers, and when done well, as in this case, speaks highly of the skills of the author.
Cat is not lolling.