The other day I happened upon a movie called Primer from 2004. It's well regarded for how original it is and also for being made for only 7,000. That's a shockingly low price, even for low budget films.
I enjoyed it, though I found it a tough ...

To Explain Or Not
Banes at 12:00AM, June 17, 2021Different Variations of Protagonist
Banes at 12:00AM, June 10, 2021
When we think of a Protagonist, the standard type that comes to mind is the underdog, maybe a young character who goes on a difficult journey and learns some lessons and faces many challenges, or a capable person who gets in way over their head in some kind of intriguing ...
You Have a Superpower
Banes at 12:00AM, June 3, 2021
shields up!
Our struggles are probably different in some ways, and maybe the same in others. But as comic creators, there are certain issues many of us have in common:
Finding time to make our comics,
Spending too little time…or too much time on them,
Making decisions about our ...
The Dark Turn
Banes at 12:00AM, May 27, 2021
Hey, I found an image of the actual moment! yeah, real good, there
Last time we took a look at the little moment in some stories where a character has a moment and realizes that in spite of being able to get what they want (valuable magic rocks, or to ...
I Can Do Better
Banes at 12:00AM, May 20, 2021
The moment of change in a character is not always crystal clear in a story. Very often the secret to good storytelling I think, is to understand all the structural elements in a story, and a character arc, and then to HIDE those elements so they feel realistic while they ...
What Will Comics Be in the Future?
Banes at 12:00AM, May 6, 2021
In the past decade or two, video games have grown more and more sophisticated, in terms of graphics as well as story. 3D environments can be explored there, and with VR even more immersive experiences can be had. At the moment, comic shops are struggling, and the future of movie ...
When I Come Around
Banes at 12:00AM, April 29, 2021
The other week i finally watched the movie Palm Springs - I think I'd heard some good reviews, and had a vague notion that it was sort of a romantic comedy with a time loop twist. I absolutely flipped out over it and watched it again the next day, and ...
Mary Sue Contest Winners!
Banes at 12:00AM, April 22, 2021
Big, big, Mary Sue-sized kudos and thanks to dpat57 and Ironscarf for their Mary Sue contributions! Both of these august individuals are very important to the Duck (even when it's only April!)
Head on over to the new Mary Sue - The Comic to see the full sized pages!
http ...
Stuff Wot I Had Not Considered
Banes at 12:00AM, April 15, 2021
I saw a smaller youtuber talking about movies and she mentioned her belief that “Hollywood movies” - like, normal movies I guess she meant - are destructive to our psyche. ‘Our’ referring to we the viewing audience and society at large. She didn't elaborate in the video I saw; I'm ...
The Bestest Evar
Banes at 12:00AM, April 8, 2021
The Bestest Evar: Revisiting Mary Sues -
And a Contest!
Way back in the day our friend and my grizzled old mentor HippieVan did a post discussing Mary Sues - and we followed it up with a Mary Sue “contest”.
Many of us comic creator and reader types have probably known the ...