TDM Page 57 and Brotherly Love

So the scene comes to an end.  This is a solid page with several stand out panels that display some really decent posing and facial features.  You can also see I went all out on that last panel to show the setting of the bar.

Looking at things I can see my perspective is a bit off, which I guess is expected when you just eyeball it.  Perhaps next time I’ll attempt to do it in full out proper two or three point.  It don’t really bother me too much though, as my main goal is just to create the feeling of a setting, not a realistic setting.  And I think I succeeded in that.

I didn’t draw this exactly as written, it is close but I changed a few small details to make it more dramatic when Brad gets angry.

Once again we get some more background on Black Snow, which I think is a really good thing.  We now know he was a good kid who looked out for the weak and he wanted to be a cop but failed his training.  We also know his older brother did not fail the training and has become a successful cop, straining their relationship.

You may not have caught that Brad and Black Snow, or Bennett (which is his real first name) are brothers.  It was meant to be revealed in this scene.  Looking it over now I see that it is not explicitly stated, but very heavily implied by Brad’s comments.  It was never meant to be a big secret or anything, this is just the scene where we wanted to reveal his connection to Black Snow with the reader.

Of course if you read the original comic books you already knew they were brothers, as it was openly said since issue 1.  If you read those comics books you also know Brad got a bit of a visual makeover, which was essentially to make him look more like Black Snow so it is easy to believe they are brothers.

I love that one brother became a vigilante while the other became a cop, so they are both fighting crime in different ways.  They have pretty similar personalities, especially temper problems, and I think that makes it interesting to see how life has led them down different paths and ultimately created their differences.  It also brings up some interesting questions like: Why did Black Snow fail at the academy?  What exactly are his superpowers and how did they play a role?  What did Black Snow do after failing, is that what drove him to attempt to be a superhero?

The obvious drama of Brad being put on the special superpower task force is also something I really looked forward to exploring more.  Will he allow it to become a conflict of interest?  Will it effect how he view people with superpowers differently than the other cops?

I really liked learning more about Brad in the original comic books, and his role was going to increase significantly in issue 7, so I’m really happy we sped up his storyline for the relaunch.  Readers of those original comics may remember we had introduced the idea of Bennett’s younger brother Brandon, even showing his photo in issue 6.  He was set to debut in issue 7.  Will he appear in this relaunch?  I truly do not know at this point.  So wait and see I guess.

Since these brothers are so similar, and they are both fairly cantankerous, it makes sense that they are gruff with each other and do not really get along.  Though it is sad.  But you can tell that there is still some instinctual family bond with Brad going out of his way to try and help his little brother.

Family relationships are complex, especially with siblings.  Here I get the impression that Brad is more of the golden boy while Bennett is the black sheep.

I myself am the oldest of 3 siblings, all sisters though.  One I grew up with and two who are still teens and live in a different state.  So I know a bit about sibling complexity.  Though not about having a brother.  I can only imagine what that is like.  Alex has a younger brother though, so he brings some first hand experience here.

I look forward to seeing where this is all headed.  Look forward to some big things coming up very soon!