This might be one of my most sound-effects-heavy pages. But they all seemed essential and actually helped add to the chaotic look of the scene, which I liked.
It’s always a bit tough in a sci-fi series when characters have bladed weapons in a universe of laser guns. In this case, Roka and company have their guns, which would give them a ranged advantage over the Zahari. So I added the idea of throwing knives. I hadn’t planned on them initially, but it makes sense that they would have them, and for this scene, it gives them a momentary ranged attack while they quickly close the gap. And happily, the loose drapes of their outfits made for a good place to conceal the knives until they needed to show up here.
Good thinking Sean! The knives sure give the Zahari some cover and allows them to get closer. Gambit vibes in that first panel.
Grissom doesn’t fool around. Saved Roka again!
Jayd still being vulnerable makes sense, she was fighting off a whole group before after all.
Ha ha. Gambit vibes. Now I want to go back and give all the Zahari Cajun accents.
Not quite clear what happened in the THOK panel… I get that something hurt, but unclear how. Is that mystery intentional?
I read it as a knock from the fist or the flat side of the blade. Similar to the THOK on page 4.
Hmm. Now that you mention it, that is a really weird panel the way I staged it. I know the intention was Jayd getting struck. But the Zahari’s sword arm is in the wrong position to convey that. I think my intention was that the Zahari’s other arm was punching her, but then it’s weird not to see a trace of that arm.
I do have a small running list of things I might tweak for the graphic novel printing. This might be one of those things.