Annotated 5-14
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: This week, I’m releasing a new memoir, Shortbox. It’s told in short vignettes from various points in my life, tied to over 100 comics. Three of them are Guilded Age stories (our first volume, our last chapter, and our first Axemas special) and I have never shared them on this site. The ebook’s normal price is $7.99, but go to Amazon before Sunday to get it for an insanely low $2.99.
The fact that Scarlett prays to Gigundus even in a relatively unguarded moment will say some interesting things about her psychology later, when Gigundus’ current nature is revealed.
I think Phil picked the Nordic name “Åkerfeldt” for Frigg to go with her first name, which I pulled from the Venn overlap of “Norse goddesses” and “things that sound like cursing.” We’d get less use out of it than “Deserthammer” or (of course) “Best,” but more than we’d get out of “Hackenslasher” or any of the later Peacemakers’ surnames.
The end sequence here evolved out of all our ideas. Phil tightened up my basic concept and argued me out of an unnecessary flashback. Erica added some panels of Syr’Nj waking and (snrk) the birds on her butt.
I wonder if “root canal” could be an adequate wood elf insult.
Coulda been worse. You could have called her a dry river bed. THAT would hit her where it hurts!
Syr is a hella calm sleeper if the birds were able to build a nest on her ass…
Hmm…I remember ‘Keynes’ coming up a lot, but the fact that she’s the only one of the secondary crew I can even remember their surname (does E-Merl even have one?) is telling…
Can it truly be considered a surname if it’s the only part of the name someone would still have after changing careers?
E-Merl Danielssen. It may have been the only surname of the “new” batch of Peacemakers that was ever mentioned in-comic (unless “the Scorpion” counts as a surname). At least I think it was mentioned. It’s on the cast page, anyway.
Only now noticed the birds (though before I read the text, so “yay me” for be observant for once).
Is Frigg the ones saying “may he strengthen me”? That sounds like a plight to a diety, but that clearly isn’t a Frigg thing but why would the nun say “owwww”? Who the heck is saying that bubble?
It’s Scarlett. Frigg hit her hard on the last page and, as she will admit later, cracked one of her ribs. The pain from that is severe enough for Scarlett to briefly interrupt her own speech with a prayer for strength.
Ah that was very sloppy of me, should’ve realized it was the same nun from last page. Thanks.
Astonishing confessions! T reveals what the T stands for! Read the Shortbox preview to find out!
I already knew, but I read the preview anyway, and it was interesting.
Either he doesn’t know what “nee” means, or it’s very surprising that he had his name changed by the age of six.
Nee generally means “originally called” or “born,” and it’s used especially but not exclusively for maiden names.
If I’m reading between the lines correctly here, no, I didn’t get my name legally changed at that age or anytime after, but I think you get to define what your own name is without governmental approval. Sure hope that’s true, or all my author bylines are lies.
Huh. I had thought Åkerfeldt might have been inspired by Mikael Åkerfeldt from Opeth.
That does ring a very faint bell, actually. But there’s no contradiction here… we needed a Nordic name, no matter where it came from.
” Scarlett prays to Gigundus even in a relatively unguarded moment ”
Interesting. How is this an unguarded moment? Seems like in front of an adversary and surrounded by her flock, she would always be on guard. I figured she’s been faking the the role of priestess to Gigundus for so long that it’s just second nature.
And by “it’s just second nature”, I mean faking a prayer to Gigundus for strength when hurt.
What shey says is between brackets, so it’s internal monologue.
By traditional comics typography, internal monologues would be in thought bubbles. (Of late, if the protagonist’s internal monologue, captions are more often used.) Parentheses within a regular speech bubble would usually some form of (usually quiet) aside. Here, she would be mumbling the prayer after being hit by Frigg.
(In visual novels, parentheses are generally used for the character’s internal monologue, as distinct from speech (in quotes) or narration (unadorned), but that’s the only context I’ve seen that.)