“ATTENTION. OFFICERS APPROACHING.”
….PHEW! There you have a it, a 5 page update! Not gonna lie this was an intense round of work…cutting back and forth between two settings meant twice the design work, not to mention two separate color palettes to wrestle down. That being said it was a really fun update…the interior of Cael’s quarters was one of the first images I had in my head for the leveL reboot, so it was exciting to finally put that down on digital paper. Also Reagan and Jordan’s banter was a lot of fun…I must say I’ve missed writing the character of Reagan, good to have her back (though I doubt she’s as pleased about it)
Hope everyone enjoys the pages…things are gonna get dicey next fortnight, so mark you calendars for 09.26.13 and don’t miss our next update!
And as always, don’t forget to let Nate know you are out there and leave him some of that sweet, sweet comment love.
14 Comments
Cael’s quarters here were one of the first things you imagined? How come them in particular? I love the color you gave the place – it’s not comfortable, but not cruel, and has a great view; it’s like the place is saying “See, we can be nice. Just don’t get any ideas please.” Which isn’t particularly comforting… But. Well.
Also, JORDAN STOP BEING SO CHIPPER and I foresee Raegan getting really creeped out and then really pissed off again pretty soon. This is my guess. :D
Yeah, that’s the kind of feeling I was hoping for! The image of him sitting looking out through the large circular window on the city was stuck in my head for a long while. I got inspired by brutalist architecture…specifically the architect Louis Kahn who uses these simple shapes and makes these monolithic looking buildings that feel really imposing, strong, but also kind of lonely? I dunno, I dug it X)
Safe bet that Jordan is likely to not stop being chipper, Reagan is likely to remain rant-y. Gotta love ’em.
Looked up Louis Kahn – you’re right; his buildings are sort of like the embodiment of Kasmir Malevich’s circle and shape paintings; just design, and completely un-emotional, so you end up projecting your own emotions onto them. I can see how photos of his buildings look lonely; they actually look a little menacing to me, maybe because the size and severity of most of the designs makes them look really powerful. I definitely get that same feeling from Level – grandeur in size, but no emotion; with the size giving a feeling of power and probably underlying menace. *shiver*
That’s a really striking image to base this reboot around. I’m glad you did it!! (Also glad you didn’t get SO distracted by Level that you couldn’t finish Rain Dance. Tyler said he had to keep pulling you away from Level to work on it.) ;)
Ghost Wryn is very creepy, I wonder if he’s simply a hallucination or something else.
That….is a good thing to be wondering :X
I can’t tell you how excited I am about this reboot – I was so afraid you had abandoned the project, and to see it rebooted and so obviously well-thought out is wonderful. At first I wasn’t sure about the style of the characters, but the more I read it the more I like the juxtaposition of such a cheery, expressive style with the darkness running through the very heart of the story. Mixing light and dark always makes for the best stories (and it fits the city itself – it looks very, very nice on the surface but you know instinctively that it isn’t).
A couple of things that particularly stood out to me:
The fact that Cael actually looks older here, even from the back. Maybe it’s the fact that you cleaned up the hair on the back of his neck, but I thought it was masterfully done. Though an aside: was he 16 when he inadvertently cut a hole through the city and is 19 now, or was he 13 and is 16 now? I was trying to figure it out from your cast page and wasn’t sure.
Also, I really like how you have this running “I’m ok, I’m ok, I’m ok” from Cael. It’s a really neat story-telling (not to mention character-telling) device.
Reagan’s re-design is fantastic – she’s even more herself than she was in the original comic. I’m not sure how that’s possible, but OH WELL. That’s how it struck me.
Finally, I really, really like the fact that your promised to finish this story, no matter how you have to do it – and I even believe you! :) And your decision to write this in “beats” is great. I like webcomics that are story-oriented, but I so often lose patience with them because I lose the thread of the scene. Well-done. And wonderful to see you (such as it is) again!
Wow, THAT’S some serious comment love :D :D Thank you so much for all the great feedback <3
Andrea, I think I remember you from the original comic, it's nice to see you again too ^_^
It makes me really happy that you caught the mixing of light and dark, that's actually exactly what I was hoping for. I dunno what it is but if you put serious, even dark content with unassuming or simple visuals it seems to resonate more for some reason.
Ahhh, the redesign of Cael was a hard task, so I'm happy it was appreciated! I actually like his older version a lot more than the younger version we already met, so it was exciting to get to him in the story, haha :D To clarify, he's 19 now. I'll be updating the Cast Bios with the next update (I didn't want to change his profile picture yet since we haven't technically seen his face)
Reagan being more herself than in the original comic, I like that, and I can see what you mean XD Her character was a lot of fun to rework and get to know again...she can be such a spaz but I love her just the same :3
Yes! The story WILL be finished no matter what, I'm really excited to get it out there for everyone to read at last :3 And I'm glad you like the story beat updates as well...it makes for a longer wait but it allows me a lot more creative freedom to make sure the content flows together nicely, and also I think it's more enjoyable to read :3
So happy to have you back and thanks again for all the kind words, I can't tell you how encouraging it is T_T
I think the reason light and dark work so well together is because there’s a lot of realism to it. Real life is never one or the other: there’s light in the darkest moments (“Band of Brothers” is an excellent example of this – horrific war, but everyday joking and camaraderie right alongside it), and dark always waiting for you to turn the light off. Using both together is an excellent sign of what promises to be a very good work (thus sayeth an opinionated observer).
As usual, I can’t wait for the update! I like Cael’s new design already, so I’m really excited to see the moment of his official reveal. His character is so tied up with the mystery and horror of this world, and Reagan is guaranteed to stir up things that shouldn’t be stirred!
Sweet been looking forward to new pages since the first version, and It finally Redirected to your new site :D
Oh great, glad you found the new one! I’ve tried to get all the old database stuff to send folks here now, glad it’s working! :D Thanks for saying hi!
love the comic – (i liked it so much when i started reading the reboot that i went and read the original) its nice to see Reagan again – its also interesting how different the introduction of present day Cael is from in the original.
Oh WOW you went back to the old comic?? You are a brave soul, lol. Yeah the situations of the characters this time around are totally different, but they are still the same familiar faces in spirit…if anything they are hopefully a bit stronger as characters X) Time will tell.
Thanks so much for reading, I’m glad to have you here! :D
Well, this is a surprise! I clicked my old Level link to see if there was any news, and it redirected here. I’m kind of torn because I want to know what happens to the Cael et al of the original Level, but on the other hand, I’m just so happy to have you putting out a comic again. I do think you judge your old work too harshly, but that is the nature of artists and writers. The art style now *is* greatly matured though, and much more “yours” than “the stuff you were inspired by”. I’m looking forward to reading more of new!Level~!
Haha, YAY I’m glad you found the new comic!!
Aww well if its any consolation the characters in this version are going to follow the same journey as the ones in the original…therefore their fates will be the same…basically you are seeing the same story just with the details and visuals finessed and (hopefully) improved :D
Haha, I wouldn’t be an artist if I wasn’t hard on myself about my work X) That’s nice of you to say though…the old work is important to me cause I would not be where I am now without it…but its fun to take on the subject matter I enjoyed with a better understanding of how to approach it :D Only marginally better though…I still feel like I’m learning so much with every new page and have so far to go, haha :D
Well I’m glad to have you along for the ride! Welcome back to leveL :D :D :D