Welcome to Melody & Macabre.
A little girl befriends Death and encounters those who seek him. An odd little series about obsession and... you guessed it... death.
The Boogeyman
I've been waiting a good while to finally do a massive confrontation with this guy. What's weird is, this isn't even the climax. We have two plots going on, which makes everything really difficult.
That said, the Boogeyman is my favorite villain. Looking back, I find something truly horrifying about him, which is good because he is supposed to embody Horror itself. I just hope he keeps it up with a "real form," without falling into ol' Morty's own cuteness.
I promise, I'll do my best. Death is only that way for Melody's sake. The Boogeyman has a soft spot for no one.
Anyway... I hope you all enjoy this week, because it should be fun. Especially the end.
[ 0 ] Week Off. Also, COMIC SPOTLIGHT!
Okay, so I'm not sure how, but I'm on the Comic Spotlight. So um... thanks to whatever force made that possible.
To all new readers, I apologize for the lack of updates the one week people notice me (haha), but there will be a bonus this week. To all past and present readers, as well, keep a look out for that on Wednesday.
I'll be leaving that day, so um... I'll check everybody's comments when I get back on Monday. As I've stated already, Scene 26 WILL begin next week! I'll try and get as many pages done as possible while I'm away. As of now, I have Monday's done, but as long as I get Tuesday's done, I'll be perfectly on schedule.
I'll hope to get all the way through Friday, though, so I can FINALLY be well ahead.
Anyway, yeah, just wanted everybody to know the updates. Annnd... hopefully EpicSaga will still be up this week as well. I'll worry about that tomorrow though, I'm tired.
Max
Yaoi fangirls everywhere are grumbling, as I let out a little victory cheer.
So, finally we see Max. You all remember Max, right? She cleaned up Simon's pic way back when he was first stalking - I mean, investigating - Melody.
I don't think we'll get much into the backstory of this bright but very grumpy girl, but it goes like this...
A few years prior, Solomon Enterprises noticed slight discrepancy in their payflow via automated checking. Being one of the forerunners in technology, they realized they had to fix this or become a laughingstock.
When the bug was presumed to be fixed, it turned up again. David Solomon himself decided to investigate, and with certain... resources... he was able to track down the culprit who was seeping money out of his company. Turns out, a 13-year-old girl was breaking their oh-so-high-tech security programs.
Impressed and finding that she had no family, Solomon decided to bring her in to work on a special project of his. Now, five years later, she is more-or-less the brain of the Institute's computer systems.
Within the series, Max is essentially an anachronism. Her style and tech all say 21st Century, despite these comics taking place in the late '90s. Those flash drives around her neck shouldn't even be invented yet.
Then again... neither should teleporter watches and chi pistols.
Trying out a few things...
I decided on a layout change. Hopefully you can still see everything alright. I decided upon a pre-made template, because I still SUCK at coding.
Fortunately, this one, I know for sure you'll be able to comment pages. Which I like. Go ahead, leave some comments. I appreciate any thoughts and opinions. ^_^
For those who have been wondering about the Latin phrases found throughout Scene 21, I've compiled this list (thanks to Wikipedia, haha).
PAGE 1 - "Amor Fati"
Love of fate. Basically, being happy with your place in life. Nietzsche apparently believed it to be more life-affirming than "memento mori."
PAGE 2 - "Autoritas"
Authority. Wikipedia says it referred to "the general level of prestige a person had in Ancient Roman society."
PAGE 3 - "Dura Lex Sed Lex"
The law is harsh, but it is the law.
PAGE 4 - "Nomen Est Omen"
The name is a sign. In this case, it refers to the names fitting the characters, and the assumption that the same goes for Melody.
PAGE 5 - "Exempli Gratia"
For the sake of example. Often shortened in colloquial speech nowadays as "e.g."
PAGE 6 - "Carpe Noctum"
Seize the night. Basically the nocturnal version of "carpe diem."
PAGE 7 - "Nil Nisi Malis Terrori"
No terror, except to the bad.
PAGE 8 - "Nihil Ad Rem"
Nothing to do with the point. Worse nice for that page. OR DOES IT?
PAGE 9 - "Cor Aut Mort"
Heart or Death.
PAGE 10 - "Flagellum Dei"
Scourge of God.
Final Note: I apologize to readers, but I'm going to take another week off. I need to catch up on comics, get a good cache going, so I don't keep stressing out with before-the-day work to finish a page. Plus, there are some personal issues I have to dwell upon. Erm... let's just say it has to do with Mel&Mac's overall theme.
EpicSaga will still update on Wednesday, since it's pretty freakin' easy to deal with. But Scene 22: The Key of Solomon will begin on April 12th.
April Fools!
So, I'm sure some of you... maybe... noticed that Wednesday's comic wasn't... you know... Wednesday's comic. It's actually the beginning for my new series. Which I decided to post on here just to be an ass.
The real comic is up now, though, since the day's over and my fun has been had. Feel free to go read it, though it matters little to the plot.
...OR DOES IT?
For those of you who were intrigued by the oddity of EpicSaga, I've moved it elsewhere, and will continue to update it every Wednesday.
Lost Souls
Well, as you can see, we're back on schedule. I'm actually running a bit behind from the usual this week, so chances are I'll be doing comics the day before they go up. I uh... got very much distracted lately. It's okay, though! It should be pretty easygoing, even though we have a buttload of new characters for this Scene.
Ms. Rook is a bit ominous, though. And yes, her name is Ms. Rook. Basically at some point, she replaced Ms. Wampyr who... well, I don't know what happened to her. I don't think I want to know.
She looks like she should be Ms. Wampyr, though, huh? I was going for kind of a witchy thing. Though I think she mostly just looks like a transvestite. Oops.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this Scene. And I hope I enjoy drawing it.
Acts 1-3: Cover Pages
You may notice something new when reading through Melody & Macabre - I've added cover pages for Acts I and II. When Act II finishes, the week off will feature the cover for Act III.
I did it out of boredom, okay?
Anyway, I'm here in PA, safe and sound, and ready to work on Act III. I'm excited! Are you? You're still reading Act II. Nyaha, you're in my past. But the world's present. Okay, not really. Act III will horribly date this series.
You'll see.