Frame is now virtually empty except for the man with the newspaper; a few stragglers on each side remain in view, as well as an older man who is about halfway through the frame, moving toward the right of it.
Man seems done with his paper, it’s semi-folded in one hand and held loosely at his side as he gazes about briefly.
Background: conditions (light, clouds, etc) are now virtually the same as frame one of strip one.
Man has reached the far right end of the frame and apparently stopped, holding what is now clearly a newspaper in both hands and looking at it in such a manner to indicate that both 1) it is of only minor interest to him and 2) he’s nearly finished…the page he’s on, anyway.
The crowd continues to thin out, noone exceptional.
The man who will appear in strip one (drawn very clearly as him) is one of those in the frame now; he has entered from the left and seems to be carrying a newspaper or magazine of some sort (nothing definitive can be seen, just squiggles that indicate – apparently – writing). He is walking at a leisurely pace, seeming on the positive side of the “content” scale, just like everyone else that’s here/has been here.
Nothing about the man really makes him stick out from the crowd, which appears to have gotten a bit thinner: not much time has passed at all (obvious from the clouds, light, stragglers from frame 3, etc), there just seems to be a lull in the daytime traffic.
The crowd, by this point, seems fairly regular but also fairly thin…people exit, new people enter, none of them all that distinct in appearance…noone that shouts out to be looked at.
Mood is average, pace is average…noone seems “ecstatic”, but the overall impression is that this is a fairly pleasant/relaxing place to be, and that those that pass through it are taking advantage of the pleasant relaxation.
Background shifts are very minor: cloud movements that if one was paying attention to and LOOKING for, would seem to be moving together in such a way that the beginning of strip one is coming about (keep in mind that in sequence you haven’t SEEN strip one yet, so that’s not really relevant).
The jogger has crossed to a little more than halfway through the frame, pace seeming fairly constant/consistent. She seems focused on her jogging, looking straight ahead; if she notices the man at all, she doesn’t show it. Her appearance is somewhat attractive but not exceptional in any way, and her clothes match the occasion.
The man has obviously slowed down, as he has made very little progress in comparison. He smiles at the jogger, but if she even notices she gives no sign. Man is unremarkable, dressed for a fairly warm day; shorts and a t-shirt that appears to have a man’s face on it – you can tell the man shown has a beard, but other than that very little detail can be seen. (Perhaps because of his distance from “You”, the viewer, perhaps simply indistinct).
Other people are now in the frame: an elderly couple, walking in slowly from the left of the frame, a middle-aged man having entered from the right of the frame, moving slower than the jogger but faster than the other man. He is apparently wearing headphones and listening to music, as obvious indications of that are drawn: musical notes and words that appear mostly as gibberish unless (and maybe even if) one looked VERY closely at them.
The mini-crowd seems naturally flowing and unexceptional…all seems fairly “quiet”, a rather peaceful day.
A couple of people have entered the frame, one apparently from each side going toward the other side. They don’t seem to know each other as there is no hint of recognition, and they appear to be making (appropriate) way for the other.
Person entering from the left is a young adult female; she’s apparently jogging judging by the clothes she is wearing and the manner and pose in which she is drawn. Judging by the manner and pose she is doing so rather leisurely, in no hurry.
Person entering from the right is a young adult male; he seems ready to flash a smile in the jogger’s direction.
Frame is of the same area as in strip 1.
It is drawn exactly the same in terms of location, proximity, background, etc…
Clouds are very similar; close enough that they would match the eventual pattern to start strip 1. Weather is the same.
There is noone in the frame. Nothing appears to be taking place at all.
Tagline: Don’t Fear The Reaper…I mean, look at him.
Grimmsy appears to have either not noticed the man’s attempt or has chosen to consciously ignore it, as his form is now about a third of the way out of the frame and moving slowly and steadily, without pause.
Man, after one final glance at his corpse and with a faint sigh to his ghostly features, begins to move in the direction Grimmsy is exiting, looking both casual and somewhat unsure in movement in his new form.
END
Frame is much smaller than normal.
Grimmsy has begun to move past both the man’s spirit form and dead body; he moves with a formal and (attempted) “regal” posture, as if he fully expects to be followed, not looking back to ensure that is the case.
Man purses his semi-substantial lips, narrows his semi-substantial eyes, and swipes out at the SOUS as Grimmsy passes, but his ghostly hand merely passes through it.
Man gazes back to the tiny figure now very close to him; he does not seem properly chastised, more just a bit annoyed and slightly impatient.
Grimmsy’s purple eyes shift up to gaze at the man’s ghostly ones, still the picture of formality and decorum with his SOUS almost scraping the top of the frame. His speech/thought bubble is unaffected by the man’s annoyance as he addresses him as before.
DIALOGUE: “If you will follow me, Sir, I shall guide your essence on to its proper destination.”
Man has gazed back from the approaching Grimmling to his own dead body; he seems saddened by it, perhaps saying goodbye.
Grimmsy glides ever closer, continuing to gently chastise the man for forcing this rather unseemly behavior, seemingly MUCH more concerned with the perceived etiquette breach than by the man’s silent goodbye to his corpse.
DIALOGUE: “As you see, it would have been much more appropriate for you to have simply accepted your fate and come as I bade you.”
Man maintains an annoyed little frown as he crosses his semi-substantial arms over one another (more like INTO one another actually, obviously not having mastered the intricacies of ghostly form) and waits for the little creature to do something.
Grimmsy finally begins to move toward the man (walking or very-close-to-the-ground floating of some sort), holding the SOUS steady and vertical as he does so. His Speech/Thought Bubble has the same appearance it’s always had, the perfectly formed letters tilted just slightly to show a certain gentle but firm reproachment.
DIALOGUE: “I apologize for having to resort to such methods, Sir. I can only stress that, if you had come willingly to begin with, this would not have been necessary.”
Man looks somewhat annoyed in his resignation as he turns his ghostly gaze back toward Grimmsy. “Speaking” again – in the same manner as before – to Grimmsy, his words make both things clear in both form and composition.
Grimmsy seems prepared to respond, quietly allowing the man to “speak” first however.
DIALOGUE: “Well??? What now?”
Grimmsy is unmoving, apparently allowing the man to discover for himself that he is, in fact, dead.
Man pauses…then has the look of a dispirited (ha) sigh (ha). He seems to take the news fairly well.
Frame size is back to normal.
Grimmsy remains still and stoic: posture (as described) and appearance (tiny form, cute purple eyes, absurdly large scythe “held” carefully vertical and still) at odds.
Man pauses, confused, glancing down at his own dead body, lying at his own ghostly, semi-substantial feet.
Frame is much smaller than the previous ones, indicating a quick change/action.
Grimmsy remains as he was, expression much the same. He seems to be comfortable in it, as if this is what he was expecting/hoping for in terms of himself…in the sense of mission accomplished, maintaining the proper respectful solemnness, etc.
Spirit-form man has gazed back to Grimmsy from the “speech bubble” that was above his head in the previous frame, said bubble now faded almost entirely as if – whatever it was – it was mostly insubstantial at best and has/had a very limited lifespan. His expression is still confusion, perhaps expecting to see some sort of explanation in Grimmsy, or perhaps just the remnant of a quick reaction.
Grimmsy remains where he is, as does the amazing colossal scythe. His expression is still one of faint regret, solemn; he doesn’t appear bothered by the man’s (spirit’s) anger, as if he understands it, or at least appreciates the legitimacy of it…especially in light of the man apparently having yet to discover that he’s actually dead.
The gaseous man blinks, eyes tilting up slightly to apparently gaze at the “speech bubble” just above him. Whether he simply hears a change, senses one, or actually sees the bubble itself is open for conjecture at this point. His look of annoyance has been replaced by one of momentary confusion, this development obviously having taken him completely by surprise.
Grimmsy now “holds” (with or without hands, as usual, undetermined) the SOUS completely vertically: being entirely out in the open now, it can be seen that the staff is in fact a real “staff” – an obviously carved single piece of wood which, from the size of it, must have come from a source almost as tall as the tree Grimmsy stands/floats next to. The pattern is similar enough to his previous staff to suggest a connection (probably the same carver) but is quite clearly also independent. It’s also very silly-looking, since when held fully upright the actual scythe blade almost scrapes the top of the frame. Basically it looks like an entire tree was quite possibly used to make this, and all it appears to be is a MUCH MUCH larger version of Grimmsy’s “regular” scythe, adjusted for length only (the blade is not to scale but instead only as big as the regular one, the shaft isn’t any thicker, etc, etc…). So the impression it gives off is “silly, useless, and really weird”; this impression is obviously (and very) at odds with Grimmsy’s intended impression: serious, “commanding”, solemn and “otherworldly” in an amazing sense…but it seems to fit with his UNINTENDED impression: cute, solemn, and “otherworldly” in a “WTF is that???” sense.
The gaseous cloud has fully formed, now, into what it appeared it was going to: the man, looking “alive” in terms of posture as opposed to the still quite-lifeless non-gaseous body lying on the ground. The two are now separate, the man floating just the tiniest bit above the grass, and his own dead body visible through his slightly obscuring, semi-substantial new (gaseous) form.
The gaseous man seems rather annoyed, “eyes” narrowed as he “looks” over at Grimmsy. He “speaks”, apparently, right away: the moment his new form is whole, that is. As he does so he appears not to have noticed his own dead body lying on the ground close to him, or anything else really since the gentle “POKE” from Grimmsy that resulted in his death.
His “speech bubble” is altered from his previous ones: it doesn’t come from his mouth directly in a manner definitely indicating SPEECH, nor does it look quite like Grimmsy’s usual “speech bubble”; it’s somewhat insubstantial, like the man, a bit less “real” or solid than his previous one or Grimmsy’s. It also lacks the formality and near-Calligraphy quality of Grimmsy’s lettering; much more a vague, not-quite-as-there version of his previous casual speech.
DIALOGUE: “Look…this is ridiculous…why don’t you just-“
The man’s body is unmoving and unchanged: quite clearly still dead.
Grimmsy has succeeded in retracting most of the SOUS, lifting it upwards as the base of the shaft comes closer to where his hands (if any) would be waiting to hold it. It appears that this time he is pulling the base of the shaft towards his hands-or-lack-thereof, and subsequently the scythe is rising fairly straight up from where he “stands”, the blade on the end of it rising into the air much the same as a flag being hoisted up a great distance over a very small person or persons. The blade itself is incredibly small compared to the rest of the scythe; it looks roughly the same size as the blade on the previous, normal-sized (tiny) scythe, and the higher it is raised the more absurd both it – and Grimmsy – appear, as it looks both completely unwieldy (though he seems to be managing fine) and also, from the sharp contrast in sizes, completely useless (though it did manage to poke the man to death, apparently).
The gaseous form has begun to quite obviously take on the shape of the man’s body (before it was poked to death, that is) as it rises and – more and more – becomes semi-substantial and quite evidently self-aware, the closer it comes to its final form…whatever that is, exactly.
The majority of the setting is still unchanged, but Grimmsy has begun to withdraw the long arm of death (scythe handle of unusual size).
As he is doing so, a faint, translucent white form of some sort in the appearance of a gaseous cloud has begun both emerging and forming at the same time, apparently from the dead body – rising up.
There is both an ominous and somewhat noble air about this rapidly coalescing figure, and its appearance seems to indicate that it is not sentient, not self-aware…at least not yet. That it is being “born”, in a sense, from the death of the man both literally and figuratively.
Setting: The background – and very close to the exact detail – of the last frame of Strip 3; any imperfections and/or changes appear to be attributable to either a very small passage of time, a very small change in circumstances, and/or the illustrator starting to draw from scratch again.
Grimmsy is still gazing over at the now-deceased man lying on the ground, and still appears quite less than enthused over his “victory”.
Frame size back to normal.
Grimmsy’s eyes have resumed their normal look; no longer focusing. The way they are drawn indicates perhaps a bit of sadness mixed with a matter-of-fact note that he has accomplished what he set out to.
Man’s body has fallen over (drawn to indicate movement), off the bench, sandwich dropping. He is crumpled on the ground, obviously deceased.
END
Frame is MUCH smaller again, to indicate quick action.
Grimmsy’s eyes narrow as if he’s concentrating, focusing on something. Again, they don’t seem angry or gloating; a bit grim, though more neutral as he focuses.
Man notices Grimmsy and frowns, extreme irritation mixing with surprise/WTF. He starts to speak to him, speech bubble drawn to show mood.
The staff apparently moves forward (gently) JUST a bit…just enough to touch the man. On the lower leg, since it’s not very far off the ground.
DIALOGUE: “WHAT THE-“
Man seems more WTF? now than startled by the sheer absurdity (and unlikelihood) of what he’s looking at.
Grimmsy has appeared about halfway from behind the tree: enough to show that he is holding (somewhere) whatever is now close to the man. His eyes don’t appear gloating or triumphant at all; in fact, if anything they seem a bit grim, as if he’s not happy at all with what he’s doing.
Frame size back to normal.
Man seems startled – he glances toward the ridiculously long staff that is now quite close to him (the base of it), approximately horizontally, and from the end (near him) all the way back to the tree, about a foot off the ground, to scale.
He seems to have completely forgotten his lunch – the suddenness of the new entry (if nothing else) obviously taking his full attention.
Frame is MUCH smaller than the others, to indicate very quick action. Everything is drawn to scale.
Man looks to be in mid-bite as what appears to be an impossibly-long shaft has fallen suddenly and quickly toward him from behind the tree, motion indicated by the way it is drawn and a “swish” through the air drawn from where it was to where it IS; said “swish” is approximately a forty five degree angle. Appearance is uniform throughout the shaft: it is obviously one piece, not a conglomeration.
Man shakes his head slightly as if dismissing his sense as unimportant; his sandwich is much more worthy of his attention, so he raises it to finish consuming it.
Man looks even more annoyed than before, as if he senses SOMETHING but doesn’t know exactly from where. He has stopped eating, again, and has glanced (once again) to HIS left. Again, what had appeared is no longer there.
Basically the same as frame eight: man turns back to his meal, the bottom of what looks like Grimmsy’s scythe (sort of) has emerged JUST A BIT from behind the tree, at the same height and angle as before.
(minor changes, man isn’t sitting EXACTLY the same way, etc, so it appears normal rather than a simple duplicate of frame eight)
Man repeats his look of irritation and attentiveness, pausing eating again as before to look toward HIS left, this time more towards the tree itself, which is drawn slightly “behind” him (in the depth of the frame). What had been at the top of the tree is now gone, and all appears normal.
Man has turned back to focus on his sandwich, raising it to take another bite. If one looks carefully at the top of the tree, what appears to be the bottom of Grimmsy’s scythe (the end of the shaft) has emerged from behind it JUST a bit. It is at a forty five degree angle as if it is being shifted downward thusly. It seems somehow slightly different: if studied it isn’t EXACTLY like the bottom from the first two; VERY slight variations in wood pattern, color, etc.
Man’s head has turned toward HIS left, the far right of the frame. Gaze is at the general area, and he doesn’t seem to be specifically looking at the tree. Areas drawn just before “off frame” indicate in some way there may be other trees about. His expression still “interest/attention perked up a little, very mildly annoyed”.
Man’s head has turned to HIS right (frame left). Sandwich is lowered even more, not quite to his lap. His expression has gone from pleasant and relaxed to somewhat attentive and curious, along with very mildly annoyed.
Man’s eyes narrow slightly along with his brow furrowing slightly, as if he has realized something or perhaps sensed something; unclear which. He has paused his meal, apparently – sandwich lowered just a bit.
Man has taken a sandwich (generic) out of the bag and is munching on it, apparently taking his time, seeming quite relaxed and content.
Man has sat down on the bench, and is reaching into the bag that is now on HIS right, on the bench, as he gazes into it as well, smiling faintly as if he’s feeling pretty good and is ready to relax for a bit.
Man (from 1 and 2, obviously, mildly altered (clothes, etc) as normal) has entered the frame on the far left. He appears pretty much the same as before in terms of “mood”, expression, etc. He seems to have wandered in from just outside the left edge of the frame (position even with the “front” of it), and paused just to look around, take in the view, etc., at least briefly. He has a small bag in one hand, obviously filled (with something)…it looks like the sort of bag that would hold food or something similar; a little mark on it indicating some sort of logo, though it’s not “visible” – it’s drawn so small that it’s only obvious that it’s there, not exactly what it is.
Slightly larger box than the normal ones for strips one and two. Things are drawn in such a way to indicate that the larger box equates to a larger area in scale than before.
Scene background obviously altered from first two…there is a tree on the far right of the frame, drawn showing that it’s “back” just slightly from the “front” of the frame. Tree is fairly generic in appearance, leaves on it indicate spring or summer.
There is a small, plain wooden bench on the far left of the frame.
Distance from the tree to the bench and height of the tree seem approximately the same.
The background is drawn in such a way (besides the solitary tree) that it suggests a somewhat foresty area; perhaps a park, some land set aside for aesthetic purposes, etc…
Daytime is indicated by the Sun, random clouds (no discernible “match” with strip one or two) which seem to be still.
(clouds stillness remains during the course of the strip).
If one studies very carefully, the cloud formation at one point would appear to very roughly and vaguely (and naturally) look similar to a “J” next to a “G”.
These are the questions I imagine people would ask about the Grimmsy comic if people asked a lot of questions about the Grimmsy comic.
Q: Are you going to make more?
A: Yes…I have lots of ideas, it’s just a matter of transferring them to proper written form as opposed to jumbles of notes.
Q: When are you going to post the next Grimmsy strip?
A: Well, let me put it this way…no idea. If I had to be more precise, I’d say…SOMETIME between this exact MOMENT…(I guess not) and the moment right before I’m dead.
Q: Why are you going to make more?
A: Because I like it. He’s adorable, and he’s a real (thought out, detailed) character.
Q: Is every comic going to be him trying to take that guy’s soul?
A: No. That’s what I’m doing now, but the comic will NOT become an eternal (haha) Wile E. Coyote/Roadrunner bit.
Q: So what else will the comic be about?
A: He’ll develop a (noticeable) personality, things will slowly be worked in, things will build on other things, etc…you know, like how a character develops in a movie. Or a book. Or an illustrated comic strip.
Q: Can you tell me more about Grimmsy?
A: Just read and imagine. He’s not totally one-dimensional.
Q: What exactly does Grimmsy look like?
A: Not having an illustrator, that’s difficult to say. It’s sort of like role-playing…when someone writes a description of what their character is doing, you have to IMAGINE what that description would be in picture form. If the description is good enough, you should be able to come up with a decent picture…and your picture may be slightly different from someone else’s, that’s the beauty of imagination. The basics (pretty much all you should need for a picture) are in frame two of strip one.
Q: So you’re glad you don’t have an illustrator?
A: No, I’m just making the best of it.
Q: So, you still want an illustrator?
A: For the love of God, yes.
Q: Why would someone want to illustrate your comic?
A: Well, if they like the idea…they would get credit for being the illustrator, of course, and that could be good publicity since my website is extremely mildly visited.
Q: Do you really think it’s worth it for that?
A: No, not really, but that’s the best I could come up with.
Q: Does Grimmsy have hands? Or a body?
A: None of your business.
Q: Why are you being so grouchy?
A: I’m NOT…being “grouchy”…I just want to finish my work.
Q: Well, I’ll ask more questions later then.
A: *pause* Random Questioner, let me explain something to you…whenever you ask me questions about the comic, you’re breaking my concentration; you’re dis-TRAC-ting me, and it will then take me time to get back to where I was.
Q: *blink* *freaked out look*
A: Alright…we’re gonna make a new rule…whenever I’m thinking about the comic, and I’m typing. *TYPE* *TYPE TYPE* *TYPE* or whether I’m NOT typing, or whatever the FCK you hear me doing, when I’m thinking about the comic, that means I’m WORKING, THAT means, DON’T ask questions about the comic. Now…do you think you can handle that?
Q: *short, stunned pause* Yes.
A: Fine. Why don’t you start right now and shut the fck up.
Q: *see above* …Ok.
A: *TYPE* *TYPETYPE* *TYPETYPETYPETYPE*
Coming Soon: All work and no play makes Grimmsy a dull soul escort.
*rimshot*
The frame is larger than any of the others, showing a very broad area where things could possibly be.
Frame is empty except for the rather normal background and the bird, which has landed and is apparently pecking a bit at the ground.
END
Man is now turning away, apparently his mind switching to other, more important, things.
Grimmsy (and scythe) are moving through the air very rapidly to the left of the frame. Position is still horizontal and gravity-defying, and appearance is unchanged except that the top of the scythe and Grimmsy’s “head” (cowl, at least) are appropriately the furthest-to-the-left parts of him, indicating the manner in which he was flung.
Grimmsy himself seems a bit forlorn as he is hurtling away from the man, apparently having been flung rather strongly. His eyes reflect an appearance of what would be, were he still somewhat land-based, “gazing down”; disappointed, sad. Poor little guy.
Grimmsy remains exactly as he was in the previous frame; nothing has moved, though his eyes have lost a bit of their “command” and “focus” despite his best attempt to remain stoic under the circumstances.
Man blinks in surprise, holding Grimmsy/scythe horizontally, head tilted just slightly in curiosity, as if taking a moment to admire something odd or to recover from a momentary (mild and undisturbing) surprise.
Man’s eyes narrow a bit – expressing that he is expending much more force/effort – as he lifts the scythe, which brings along with it Grimmsy, still firmly “attached” to it, presumably where it disappears into his garment where his “hands” would be, if any. Man seems – very briefly – focused on the situation and non-bored.
Grimmsy’s eyes widen; he seems somewhat surprised, but at the same time attempting to maintain his majesty and dignity whilst being held horizontally in the air.
The law of gravity is clearly violated here – or Grimmsy has some sort of power – as his appearance is EXACTLY as it was before he was lifted: save the expression of the eyes, everything is exactly (proportionally) where it was. Nothing has moved, the cowl is in exactly the same position, the bottom of his cloak merely ends into the sky background as opposed to the grass one in exactly the same shape, etc.
The horizon in the background verifies that he is, in fact, being held quite horizontally.
Frame is smaller than the others (as above) to indicate this action takes place in a very short time.
Man furrows his brow slightly as he obviously attempts to pluck the scythe away, to no avail. Hand and body drawn to indicate the attempt in some way; momentary and slight confusion at his failure.
Grimmsy’s adorable little purple eyes narrow, he seems thoroughly focused and intense, as if putting all his will into something and emerging triumphant.
Man reaches out toward Grimmsy’s scythe and wraps his hand around the shaft of it, as if to pluck it away again. He seems vaguely annoyed and also vaguely bored, almost like he has mentally moved on to “well…what now?” (post-Grimmsy) already.
Grimmsy seems resolute and unphased, and makes no movement whatsoever, though his eyes drop from glancing up at the man’s to glancing at the hand that grips the scythe. He seems quite prepared for this, unphased since he had planned for this contingency!
Grimmsy remains as he was, purple eyes taking on a BIT more of a “commanding” look in shape as they remain firmly on the man’s eyes.
Man seems to roll his eyes slightly, expression becoming that of one resigned to doing something necessary and mildly annoying/unpleasant.
Frame size back to normal, background as above.
Grimmsy finally “speaks” (or “thinks”, or “projects”…as before, his thought bubble is just floating above him). The elegant and elaborate lettering of his thought bubble are almost Calligraphy-quality, retaining formality and composure in the face of the man’s dismissal.
Man is waiting with arms lazily crossed as Grimmsy speaks, expression more towards “get on with it!” now, facial posture slightly changed…mildly annoyed but also verging on boredom/tedium.
DIALOGUE: “Sir, it is my duty to escort you forward from this life and to your next. Your previous behavior was not appreciated, and I must insist that you come with me.”
Frame smaller than the previous ones (to scale, just smaller), as if to indicate that this takes place quickly after the last frame (moreso than normal).
Background as last frame (minor change only).
Grimmsy maintains his solemn, ritualistic politeness, gaze is the same. The man’s words do not seem to have phased him. Their eyes remain on each other, Grimmsy’s eyes glancing quite a bit upward of course. Apparently Grimmsy’s pause is longer than the man is willing to wait for a response…it seems as if the man is speaking very quickly, moreso than Grimmsy pausing eternally; politeness and all.
Man’s frown fades slightly as he seems resigned to another mildly-annoying encounter, and just wants to get it over with. He speaks in a combination of mild irritation, frustration, dismissal, and get-on-with-it!
DIALOGUE: “Well???”
