09. Long talks with ravens

Tokoyoto on June 14, 2010

So the comic's still going through some developmental changes. Messed around with the font in this one, and I have to say I'm rather fond of the new text. I can fit more in a smaller space and still have it readable, and the old font had alot of… err, behind-the-scenes problems. I also tried something new for characters speaking off-panel, and I kinda dig it (though outside opinions would be cool, too).

I'm also working on drawing more backgrounds, or at least throwing more detail into the scenery once in a while. I originally pictured The Chainless as just being a Mario Bros 3 style airship, but traveling through quicksand; the more I've drawn of it and thought about its design, though, the more its taken on elements from other sources. More specifically, it's drawing a bit from Jonathan Jones' sunken ship from Super Mario RPG.

Really, this strip gave me an excuse to toss in alot of little references. The raven sprite, of course, is from Yoshi's Island for SNES. The big cubes that McCoy sleeps on resemble used or dead blocks from the original Mario Bros, for NES. One of the blocks is probably still active, actually, just under the blanket–maybe it's got coins in it, akin to keeping money under one's mattress.

Keep those comments coming, I'd love to hear more about what people think of the happenings so far.