Reclaimer – A Halo 3 Comic

Today’s page of Reclaimer is actually a day later than I wanted it to be. I had hoped to post a new page yesterday, but alas, real life decided to interfere once again, and I wasn’t able to build this page until last night. It’s probably all for the best, though, as my revised writing schedule is to plan to produce three new pages each weekend (more if time permits) and get them posted up in advance. As such, I hope to be able to start publishing on a Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule and settle into a rhythm there.

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this comic since I started it a week ago. A lot of this thought has gone into the overall storyline, figuring out specific plot points, setting chronology, planning reveals, and fleshing out details. The rest of the thought has gone into conceptualizing specific layouts for specific future pages. But I’m also trying not to get too far ahead of myself. Some of those pages are a little ways off yet. It’s good to have a goal to strive for but that becomes an impediment when it interferes with planning and writing the immediate story. Progress has been made, though, and I’m a lot more comfortable with the immediate story and the subsequent pages that will be used to tell it. And hopefully, I’m getting a little better, both with this type of storytelling and with the visuality (to coin a term) of the comic medium, with each page I do.

That said, I really would appreciate any and all feedback on Reclaimer. If you like it, tell me why. If you don’t, tell me why there, as well. All comments and suggestions can only serve to make this comic better, and honest – you really can’t hurt my feelings. I have seen one negative comment already, and this individual thought that Reclaimer was pretty lame – and it may well be. I do know, though, that a number of people have privately expressed their enjoyment of it. I think the only specific comment I’ve received thus far (and if I’ve missed one or two, apologies) is that the Poster Edges effect is a really nice way to simulate hand-drawn artwork. For the guy who thought it was lame, tell me why.

That one negative comment, though, has caused me to re-evaluate every line of dialogue in this last page. I re-wrote most of them a couple of times until I felt like I wasn’t merely relying on cliché. There’s far too much cliché in writing these days, and one way to keep your writing fresh and interesting is to avoid using cliché. Hopefully I’ve accomplished some of that. I do feel like some of the tension itself between the Reclaimer and Ferial is too cookie-cutter still, and I hope to correct that as I reveal some of the specifics fueling the violence between these two characters.

So, thanks to those of you who have come back to keep reading, and I hope you’ll continue doing so. Enjoy, and hopefully I’ll have a fresh episode ready on Monday.