278 - The Others

278 - The Others: "

REMIND ME TO DO/NOT DO THAT AGAIN...

Today's strip is
another example of a time when my reach has exceeded my grasp. As both
writer and artist, I have the luxury of scripting things that I know I
can draw. But, every once in a while, I bring the story to a point where
I have to draw something beyond what I consider to be my abilities.
Sometimes, it's the only honest way to tell a story.

I get the
sense from all of you and from my cartoonist friends (who should know
better) that my art has evolved to the point that it is somewhat well
regarded. To me, this proves that sticking to a narrow range of things
one can do competently, will, over time, fool people into thinking you
are better than you are. Sure, it helps to get at least a little better
and better at what you do over that time, but even if you're good at the
start you can probably make a good go of it for quite a while before
people get bored and notice your lack of clothing.

The only thing
that can ruin the illusion, then, is to do something outside of that
narrow range. That's when the kinks in the armor really start to show.
For me, that's today. There are a number of things in the mechanics and
fundamentals of today's drawing that I simply wish were better, but that
I don't know how to actually MAKE better.

I know, I know. A lot
of you are already saying "I don't know what he's talking about and I
wish he'd shut up because he's ruining my enjoyment of a perfectly
lovely strip." Whatever.

The catch is, of course, that one cannot
actually get good at doing a thing without first attempting it. So,
today I drew nearly a couple dozen characters in a room poorly. Perhaps
tomorrow I'll draw them middle classly. There's the hope. That's always
the hope.

All that said, pretty frickin' cool, right? I mean, at least this will give a lot to chew on until next week!

NEXT WEEK:

On Tuesday, in Spy Gal's Origin,
Manny and Vanessa continue their affair and their new lives in Europe,
all right under the nose of Monica. Plus: someone gets a proper costume!

Then, on Thursday, be back here for some serious answers. That's right...the Bubbles of Light will be explained! "