Sunday 27 December 2020

Changing Order

 Happy Holidays, Everybody!

And today's gift... another (hopefully wonderful) page in the Flight of Fancy story!


















Page 20

This page and the ones that follow are a juggling act. I needed to introduce the audience to the different companies who are bidding on the flight training contract, but I also wanted the audience to see who they are, to better distinguish one from the next. This section risked being really boring exposition but (as you will see in the next few pages), I think I executed it pretty well by jumping from this board room to the air fields. 

So, in the same way as I had to juggle the story telling, on this page I juggled panels. When I drew this what you see as the 3rd panel was drawn in the middle as the 2nd panel, but I quickly decided that we needed to see Fancy and her team before jumping into the discussion.

I like that first panel, probably because I can feel the humid warmth of spring in that one. It is a subtle change from the previous time we saw this building - the angle is different as is the time of year.

I do like that 2nd panel. We see everyone clearly, their designs are nice (and entirely not planned or considered before the moment I drew them!!), the people are well posed, the environment looks well proportioned to the people, the angle is pleasant.

I think the success in the last panel is the dialogue. I wanted to describe the contractors in a simple, punchy, memorable way and I think I did that. And who wouldn't love Dave, what with his chiselled features, barrel chest and growing gut below.  He's the hard military guy who talks tough and means it.  Stereotype? Probably.

3 comments:

  1. Nice page! Great layout and good characters. I like how the table in frame two is at a bit of an angle - it just makes that frame so much more dynamic.

    One thing - the "Timex" dialogue didn't work for me at first. Maybe you need to switch from watches to cars? You know - "do we go for the Hyundai, the Mercedes or the Lamborghini?". I think that might work better.


    Illustrated Ghost

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  2. The writing on that page was kind of hard to read, which may have contributed to the message not quite getting through, however your idea of using cars might work... then again, the last contender ("the X Factor")... I don't know what car could stand in for the "we know nothing about this one" - Telsa pickup truck?

    I was going to say that cars and car models get lost in time, and I wanted something timeless, and then it just occurred to me that not many people wear watches anymore and how many know what a Timex is?!

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  3. Trying to be timeless but also trying to use a metaphor is a bit self-defeating, isn't it?

    I think you've gotta go with three like items in the metaphor or just drop the metaphor.

    Then again, don't listen to me. I'm just a lug who's happy to be along for the ride.


    Illustrated Ghost

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Thanks for your input!