SS4 151 Janey explains
skyangel on Nov. 3, 2012
It's been very hectic just lately trying to keep this going and trying to do the Xmas story pages too, so I am truly indebted to Emi even more at this time of year for doing all the colouring for us each and every week. I think we've turned out something like 350 pages between us now and the lovely thing is, is that she's so in tune with me that if there are any mistakes in the art it'll always be my doing! lol
Next week: Janey describes in detail how her affair started with Claire. It's going to be an interesting page because you'll get the narration alongside an actual flashback, which is naturally something no jury would ever get to see, so your comparison and interpretation will be great to read.
Have a lovely week :)
Lunaris Victoria at 5:14PM, Nov. 4, 2012
@tommym So they would only have sex once every few weeks for a year, then? XD Yes, she kept the affair a secret. Just coming out and saying 'Hey, I'm sleeping with Claire, thought you should know' would've probably ended worse, especially what with all that Sarah was taking on herself before. It's really to Sarah's benefit that Janey was caught out -after- she got done tying up so many loose ends as she had. What I'm saying, is...Janey copped up to it, even though most would probably stutter or fumble for an excuse or something, or play it off as a one-time fling. Janey's came out and admitted to a full-blown affair. And hell, who knows? Maybe she'd just lost her keys or something and could only retrieve them with her tongue? :P You don't know! ~Liz
tommym at 4:44PM, Nov. 4, 2012
Dear Sky, "Above and beyond what is expected of cheaters"??? Janey was lying and hiding ,keeping the affair seceret. Copping up to the act? Hell. She got caught as red handed as one could get. What else could she say? "Oh, I just got out of the shower."or "Oh It was hot so we took off our clothes but dont worry nothing happened." She is using Sarah's time spent with others as an excuse/reason. Janey is already on trial. We the readers have been a jury of sorts. Yet in the end, only Sarah has the right to forgive or condemn. I would forgive,on the condition Janey becomes Sarah's sex slave for a year.tommym
Lunaris Victoria at 2:45PM, Nov. 4, 2012
And to answer that Sarah hasn't been neglecting Janey off-screen because we haven't seen it...it's probably akin to everything else that happens daily. We see it the first time or two, but all-in-all once it becomes a habit that tends to be it. It's assumed we know it's happening, so it doesn't need to keep being shown. Like their cosplaying probably didn't stop when it stopped being shown. They probably keep the flat tidy enough even without Nikki, but we don't tend to see it. Once it becomes routine, it would be boring to keep showing it over and over. Just because we didn't see or hear it more doesn't mean it didn't happen. I'll repeat...both have blame here. Janey unarguably moreso, but that doesn't make Sarah innocent or, in my eyes, worth so much sympathy. I should be the one upset...I absolutely hate Claire. :/ But oh well...Janey screwed the pooch, so to speak. Put her on trial, hang her in the morning. Who could forgive it? ~Liz
Lunaris Victoria at 2:40PM, Nov. 4, 2012
Instead, Janey has copped up to the act, she's made it clear she knows she did wrong, she hasn't hidden from it, she hasn't made any excuses, and she's made an effort to get it out in the open and explain herself. She's gone above and beyond what we expect from cheaters. But no...she cheated, she must be burned at the stake. I don't buy it. I agree they need a split, I agree that Janey needs to grow up, I believe Sarah -also- needs to grow up, and I believe, in the end, that things can work out between them once they've both had time to learn something from all of this.
Lunaris Victoria at 2:35PM, Nov. 4, 2012
@(Several) I never said Janey did no wrong. Hell, look back at my comments...I never defended the fact she cheated, and never said it was a good thing. All I've said is it took two to damage the relationship and that both Sarah and Janey need to grow up considerably. What amazes me is how demonized cheating is. You'd think Janey were beating Sarah, or off committing murder, to read some of the comments. And to read them, you'd think it'd be a very simple matter to do it or not. It never is, and it does not necessarily mean you are weak either...it means you had a moment of weakness. We all have those, even if caving in doesn't mean cheating. I'm not faulting Sarah for being angry, there was a time when I would be too. I just think Janey has handled herself above and beyond what is expected of cheaters. They try to lie, they try to hide, they avoid the topic, they get insanely jealous and accuse the other party of cheating, or they make excuses...none of which Janey has done.
tommym at 8:29AM, Nov. 4, 2012
Dear Sky, Agree with GGG, DarkPascal, comic_didi Dragonrider and Marrog who correctly stated the affair probably began after Claire broke up with her boyfriend.That was a awhile ago. Janey has been living a lie, decieving Sarah on a regular basis. Seems to some people Janey can do no wrong. Love is blind. eh LV? tommym
marrog at 8:10AM, Nov. 4, 2012
I always find the interpretations I see in comments really interesting here, if rather bemusing. The author has always shown us Sarah's faults, her weaker, pettier or more selfish moments (there's one above!), so I reckon the answer to: "how do we not know she hasn't talked to Sarah about it many times?" is: we'd have been shown it. We weren't. If Sarah systematically neglected Janey, we'd have been shown - and in fairness, we DID see Janey feeling left out and under-attended, and we DID see Sarah spreading herself very thin among the many folk she cares about and who rely on her. The threads are there; so why this need to demonise Sarah by asserting that she's been systematically refusing to engage with Janey off-screen? It takes two people to put a relationship in trouble, absolutely, but here's the distinction: it only takes one to cheat. Good people do bad things; nobody's 'hating on Janey' (well, I'm not). But the blame _for the affair_ still lies at her door.
DarkVisor at 6:08AM, Nov. 4, 2012
We have _seen_, when Janey wants to talk about something that Sarah doesn't, Sarah _DOESN'T_ _LISTEN_!! Sarah knows how Janey feels about Stacey, and yet, Sarah _still_ chose to put _her_ ahead of her girlfriend. Not condoning what Janey did, but Little Miss Perfect is not innocent of blame either
comic_didi at 3:30PM, Nov. 3, 2012
--continued... they're weak. And that's never been a trait anyone has ever had any respect for. That's just how it is. Granted, I'm not blaming just her for the relationship issues in the past. Or for having the feelings she may have had. But I do now for what she chose to do as a result of them. For how she chose to react. And if she and Sarah go their separate ways, that's on her too.
comic_didi at 3:29PM, Nov. 3, 2012
If I didn't know for a fact that you've been writing pages ahead of time and stuff, I'd wonder if you're taking the comments we've thrown in there and run with them. I guess in this case the reality is that peeps be very good with predictions. That being said... @DV: So Sarah is being callous to Janey's feelings? GOOD. Maybe I'd have room to sympathize with her in the past but now? EFF that. She deserves this shabby treatment at the moment. Pre cheating issues? No doubt. Everyone's got them. But cheating does not a problem solve. Janey pretty much poured gas on a fire and made it go boom. And I disagree with Sarah driving Janey to do anything. No one drives a person to cheat. It's their choice. @LV: Perhaps that's the problem. Janey chose the easy solution to her issue. Instead of trying to speak with Sarah or whatever, she chose to cheat. Because it was simple? Because it was easy? I can easily put blame at a cheater's feet due to the simple fact that no matter how you look at it...
Dark Pascual at 3:24PM, Nov. 3, 2012
And the gods know that talking is too much of an effort... Maybe this is because how the story is presented to us, but it always had come across to me as Sarah doing the bulk of effort in the relationship. If Jane would ever brought this up, I would bet my both arms that Sarah would have listened and do something to fix things. That's how she rolls... Besides, this sounds to me as Jane expecting to be the whole on Sarah's life, and that's selfish AND unhealthy. Add to that the stress of having to be the responsible one on the relationship and Jane comes even more as an entitled brat... And no, never being a fan of Jane... this last storyline just turned from slight annoyance into burning dislike... Now I'm gone to see Arnie movies... Where issues can be solved with the warm dialectic of a machine gun...
Lunaris Victoria at 1:14PM, Nov. 3, 2012
@DV Thanks. XD @arici I think if anyone moves out, it'll probably be Janey. :/ @GGG Sarah only ever listened to Janey about half the time. Try looking at it from Janey's perspective...Sarah wasn't there, but Janey still loved her. Claire offered her what was missing. Janey suddenly had what she, personally, needed. A girlfriend she loved, and someone else to give her the physical attention her girlfriend was too busy to provide. And honestly...once you start down that path it's never as easy or clean-cut as people make it out to be. Just stop? Just don't do it? Just talk about things more? If it was that easy then problems would never happen. Fact is...it's easy to lay the blame on the cheating party's feet, but that doesn't mean they're always the one at the heart of the problem. @DR Just saying...a lot of people can be fairly two-faced with this. Makes it hard to tell if they're mad at Janey for cheating, or just hating on Janey and don't care about the cheating. ~Liz
DarkVisor at 11:45AM, Nov. 3, 2012
3G: how do we not know she hasn't talked to Sarah about it many times? Sarah has repeatedly shown (by her actions of not words) that when Janey wants to talk about the relationship she isn't interested
DarkVisor at 11:40AM, Nov. 3, 2012
Once again, LV did a better job of voicing the same thoughts as me. Panel 4 doesn't show that Sarah "has grown up ans is in command of her destiny rather than being a sub to someones whims, emands and desires.", it simply shows her as being the callous (to Janey's feelings) bitch that drove (yes, _drove_) Janey into Claire's clutches
arici at 9:34AM, Nov. 3, 2012
Really, Janey, really? I'm at a total loss for words. A wonderful, wonderful page, love all the detail! Panel 4 is my aboslute favorite. Oh, the irony in the magazine Sarah is reading. I wonder whether it'll do her any good reading that kind of stuff. I'm also curious about how they are going to handle the living situation. Who is moving out and where?
GreenGlowingGoo at 8:48AM, Nov. 3, 2012
@LV If you aren't satisfied, you tell your partner, you don't go behind their back and repeatedly have sex with somebody else in the bed you two share. That shows a complete and total lack of respect for Sarah. So yes, I can fault Janey.
dragonrider at 6:43AM, Nov. 3, 2012
Also I do like the Sarah in panel 4 she has grown up and is in command of her destiny rather than being a sub to someones whims, demands and desires.
dragonrider at 6:39AM, Nov. 3, 2012
@LV we both have our champions and our devils in this situation. It's a good thing it's a story even though our Mistress of Mayhem, Murder(remember Richard) Mystery, and Misery manages to involve each of us vicariously it its life. Sky, at one time you were worrying about your, you thought, lack of audience participation? I seriously doubt there is another graphic novel on DD that has this level of audience comment, observation and participation. My hats off to you and Emi both. Also going back a page are autographed prints available? *please-please* Puppy dog eyes*
Lunaris Victoria at 5:32AM, Nov. 3, 2012
You can't really fault someone for being tired of being alone, or for still trying to make things work. Janey might've been wrong for trying to do both, but it's a very easy mistake to make once you've crossed a certain point. Lord knows if the tables were turned it'd still be Janey's fault somehow, I'm sure. :/ That's fine...I'll take her. :D I just...I really can't believe half of what I see. I suppose it's easy for me, personally, to forget that I'm just that extra layer of screwed up. I'm actually going to shut up now, though, before I say anything that might have no more purpose than to actually offend someone. XD *Gives her Janey another good snug* ^.^ ~Liz
Lunaris Victoria at 5:28AM, Nov. 3, 2012
@dragonrider Sarah entered into a relationship and she has clearly not been as present an entity as she should have been. I'm not going to hold Janey anymore responsible for not holding a torch forever than I would anyone I'd date for not waiting if I was always out cavorting with other people, possibly some who hated them or whom they hated. If you don't like Janey, that's one thing, but good God I don't think people would've had half the reaction if Sarah had been cheating on her with Gerry. The kiss was bad enough, and I seem to recall people were more than supportive of it. That kind of thinking really says a lot about people. Janey needs to see someone who is actually physically present for her from time to time, not off with people who tried to kill her or who have shown a deep interest in her girlfriend. It took two to wreck this. Sarah has just as much growing up to do as Janey. :/
Soda-Pop at 4:53AM, Nov. 3, 2012
Composition and angles are gtreat. Nice page.
oldironside at 4:15AM, Nov. 3, 2012
Aha! Now, that's a Xmas present to look forward to.
dragonrider at 3:38AM, Nov. 3, 2012
This story goes two ways, Sare needed companionship that Janey could/would not understand or offer so she spent time with others who either weren't self centered bitches, or with guidance came away from that path.
skyangel at 3:11AM, Nov. 3, 2012
Liz: Your making me feel bad!!! lol
skyangel at 3:10AM, Nov. 3, 2012
Well spotted Dave :) Yes, that's the title of this years Christmas special that I'm working on now. It's actually just gone up to 15 pages so you'll have plenty to read over Xmas! As soon as we hit December I'll hopefully have time to make a nice teaser poster for it :)