Annotated 41-2
Yeah, that’s Baby Gravedust in panel 1, there, and Kid Gravedust at the center of panel 2.
As I mentioned way back, I had the story of Gravedust’s youth outlined for the planned, never-produced print volumes after 3. Panel 3 condenses the idea behind that story into a single picture: Gravedust was once indeed a warrior, at least outwardly. But he never quite clicked with his fellow Savasi fighters, and at some point their fervent fury alienated him enough that he sought out the road less traveled and became a mystic. Don’t remember if I’d planned for the desecration of corpses to be the wedge issue that forced him to make a change, but it wouldn’t surprise me.
My God, what an incredible payoff we got out of the double meaning of “berserker” here (i.e., truly demon-possessed hosts like Byron and fighty loudmouths like Brix the Berserker). I’d say it’s impossible to imagine Gravedust as someone like Brix, but again, his story is of change, of becoming whom you never thought you could.
We’ve seen the other mystics as shades before, and learned a few humanizing details about them through Gravedust here. This is the first time we’ve seen the meals of broiled desert moss that Gravedust apparently misses.
Savasi names really are something.
(I can totally imagine Cliff Rockslide being in that one MST3k bit…)
As you mentioned the missing volumes: Is there any chance you will produce the missing print volumes? Or perhaps their PDF versions? This is still one of my favorite webcomics and I would absolutely love to have it in print or at least as a PDF…
Thanks for the kind words, uqu. I hate to crush your hopes, but I don’t see it happening. I know there’s an audience for print editions (and PDFs, which would clearly be easier to produce), but it’s just not a big enough one to make those ideas worth the labor we’d have to put in to do them right. Flo and I are more invested in new projects these days and mostly work separately. But again, we appreciate the praise!
Gotta say that’s a darn cute baby and that is NOT easy to pull off without making them very cartoonish or… just ugly instead.
It’s also immediately obvious that this baby is Gravedust. That’s not easy to pull off either!
Baby Gravedust has a similar hairstyle (parting at the center, two cowlicks at the back) and a peaceful expression that seems very much in character. Apart from that, there’s the colouring (Gravedust’s theme is ochre) and the stylized mountains on the baby’s blanket.