AudioShocker

Back in Berlin, 1945!!! Last we saw, FuturePete hatched a sneaky plan, goading Stephen Foster to go after the unicorn horn in his detached metal arm.

Sorry to make you wait for this one!!! But ya know, sometimes it gets tough to push a piece of art like this through five different collaborators when no one's getting paid and the audience is your friends. Everyone has other obligations, and sometimes Time Log takes a hit.

But enough of my blabbering! You already know that. Point is, we're in the home stretch now with less than 20 Time Log strips to go. And all I've gotta say is DAAAAMN we have some surprises in store for you!!! No one is safe and nothing is sacred!

Be back next time for more intense metal arm action in 1945!!!

Hmmm how should I preface this? Uhhhh... last time, FutureNixon told Hitler not to kill himself. So, yeah. That's basically where we're at right now.

Nothing special to hype today! Time Log's sold a few copies at Fleeting Pages (which is awesome), and I'm getting creamed in an indie book contest (which is not awesome). That's about it!

NEXT: Shawn and Nick get their future on!!!

Time Log webcomic ACT II ends with this stunning Time Vortex montage!!! The FutureNazis and FutureNixon edge ever closer to fulfilling their evil plans as Nick and Shawn race through the Vortex in the hopes of stopping them!

Need to get caught up on Time Log? NO PROB! Nick and Shawn were last seen leaving Miami, with coke, guns, money, and sandwiches in tow. FutureNixon was last seen blowing up the Land of the Unicorns. Annddd... the FutureNazis, along with both Petes, were last seen in 1846 as they made a quick stop to kidnap Stephen Foster. (And here's a link to "Eye of the Tiger" in case you want to test out the soundtrack.)

Soon, I'll be collecting all of Time Log's ACT II and posting it on Facebook for you to read in one big chunk. It's so much easier that way. Trust me!

Also, don't forget that the real Shawn and Nick (not nearly as sexy as the cartoon Shawn and Nick) will be at Phantom of the Attic Comics in Oakland (in Pittsburgh) this upcoming Saturday, May 7th for the store's Free Comic Book Day 2011 party!

Seriously, it gets wild in there. Free comics, candy, entertainment, incredibly brilliant indie comics creators *ahem*, and more. You can scoop your own copies of the Time Log one-shot, The New Time Log (1 of 3), and the newest digital sensation, the AudioShocker Comics Archives v1 comic card. So come see us this weekend!

Oh, and of course, you MUST be back here next week for the shocking start of ACT III. We promise that this one won't disappoint!!! It's bright, flashy, potentially controversial, and in unquestionably poor taste... everything you've come to expect from the AudioShocker.

Last week, we watched as the FutureNazis time-snatched Stephen Foster from 1846 (yes, I said "time-snatched"). This week, we travel to another time and place... a time and place ripe for a little bit of quantum bullying!!!

No big revealing behind-the-scenes write up for this week, sorry. Though at some point it would definitely be interesting to recap the script squabbles Pete and I have been having about characterization, character placement, and other such vital minutiae.

Instead of digging deep into Time Log's sordid history, I'd rather keep it simple this week and feature a photo of the winner of our half-assed contest that we first announced back in Time Log #26. The winner is none other than the stupendous Scott Hedlund, a mix of man, mountain, and machine that illustrates like a tornado and loves like a grizzly bear. See for yourself:

Scott's currently working on a revamp of Weirdlings with his bud, Brian. Go check it out!!! It's only two pages in right now, but it's two fantastic pages in :)

And be back here next week for more FutureNixon hijinks!!!

After raving about the restaurant's delicious sandwiches, Nick and Shawn were invited into the kitchen of Justique's Diner to meet the chef. As love blossomed between Nick and the burly cook, Shawn learned that Justique had a special button of her own...

This week I'd like to talk about... LETTERING! <everyone stands up and leaves>

No, seriously, I want to talk a little bit about lettering. See, back when I first started making my own comics, not only was lettering the last step in the process -- it was also the last thing on my mind.

But over the years, I've come to not only enjoy lettering but to also give my lettering decisions a lot of consideration. Maybe too much consideration!!!

That brings me to today's comic. In the first panel, we see a stylized silhouette of Justique's hand hitting the button on her stove. In Pete's script, it calls for the sound effect "Boo-Zeeep!" (an inversion of the "Bee-Zooop!" noise made by pushing the button on the time log).

I couldn't decide how I wanted to letter the panel, and I went through several different iterations, as you can see here:

I didn't want the letters to overpower the image, so I tried setting them on the bottom at first. But I had two problems with that -- the narrow panel looked empty AND the "Boo-Zeeep!" was buried too low.

So I tried adding an exclamation point to the arm/hand to generate some motion and excitement. But neither black nor white gave the image the punch I wanted it to have.

So I tried breaking away from the low "Boo-Zeeep!" and I moved the SFX up top where it could be seen clearly. I added a bouquet of exclamation points beneath the button, and I added just a smidgen more black space to the button area. It was close, but still not what I wanted.

I remembered back to Time Log #27, another installment that left me with a lettering conundrum. My solution that time was a freestanding "Bee-Zooop!" between the panels. Inspired by that solution, I tried overlaying the SFX directly on Justique's arm. And it worked!!!

While I'm not 100% satisfied (I think the SFX draws your eyes down when I'd rather have it draw them across), I dig the look of the first panel. And there you have it -- another Time Log lettering adventure!!!

Oh, BTW, if you live in Pittsburgh, have a few bucks to spare for an arts-related cause, and need something to do on Friday night, come check out the Sugar Factory art show. Both Shawn and I have donated original art to benefit Pittsburgh's Future Tenant art gallery.