Innovation's '91 DS Comic, Book 2

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And here's the inside cover -

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version)

And as already referenced, don't be fooled by Maggie Thompson's signature and think that Book 2, Issue 2 came out in March of 1993 because it didn't actually come out until mid-May...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Here's the first page of Book 2, Issue 2:

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version (without any of the artifacts that the forum's system created when downsizing the image))

Note the missing dialogue that wasn't included in the slideshow...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

The following picks up where reply #66 left off with what SG #62 had to share in October 1992 -

- and covers most of what was in that SG, though there's still more to share when it comes to what was planned beyond Book 2...

With regard to what's written here, first, I can totally see what transpires between Willie and Barnabas on Page 1 of Book 2, Issue 2 (and into Page 2) as something the '91 Series would have done. Given Willie's devotion to Barnabas (for reasons Maggie Thompson will get into in yet another article written by her and one I'll be sharing soon) Willie would have definitely bought Barnabas a Christmas gift - and while Barnabas holding Willie and not Pete and Fred responsible for what happened to Vicki may seem terribly skewed logic at best on Barnabas' part, it does fit in perfectly with his character at the time these events take place. Plus, down the line the comic will make an attempt to further explain why Barnabas treats Willie so violently this time around - but that's still quite a while away in the story. For now it's just a tragedy that Willie's gesture was mostly for nothing.

And I have to say I got another good chuckle when, as part of this report, David Campiti once again claims that they're monitoring things "to be sure" Book 2 is "as consistent in its continuity as the first 4." Yeah, right! As explained in the topic for Book 1, those issues have almost too many inconsistencies with the '91 Series to count. And his claims that readers like the consistency is also a laugh because, as I also mentioned in the topic for Book 1, I know for a fact that, sadly, several people who wrote into the letters column had their letters edited of any questions about valid inconsistencies (not simply, as Campiti claimed, complaints about the number of candles in a candelabra, which I agree with him is excessive to complain about). All that being said, though, Book 2, while not without its inconsistencies, is far more within continuity than Book 1.

And finally I do have to wonder if changes were made to Book 2 after some of Campiti's remarks here were made because it's not just the cover of Book 2, Issue 2 that would seem to be different from the actual Book 2...

[Uncle Roger]

As long as I have been reading comic books, I have never heard "Slice" used as a sound effect. Maybe in a story about golf.

Mail probably dropped off because of the severe lag time between issues. Why write if there's nothing new to write about?

I do find the remarks about future projects quite interesting. I don't think that it's any secret that the original cast member referred to is Lara Parker and that she reworked her idea for Angelique's Descent.  I do wonder how that story would have fit into the DS Innovation universe since that Angelique is somewhat different than the original character.

Was the original novel that Campiti mentions ever completed? Is it out there as a kind of Hawkes Harbor parallel? And what about the book of short stories? I wonder if the ones written by Kathy Resch and Marcy Robin surfaced in any of the fanzines? And who were the three other authors referred to?

I doubt that we'll get any answers at this point.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

SG #64 from April 1993 shared a not quite completed version of Page 1 -

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Here's the first page (twenty-fifth page) of a second article written by Maggie Thompson:

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version (without any of the artifacts that the forum's system created when downsizing the image))

It's really well worth a read.

And the graphic is part of the third panel on upcoming Page 12...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And here's the conclusion (twenty-sixth page) of a second article written by Maggie Thompson -

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version (without any of the artifacts that the forum's system created when downsizing the image))

- along with a reworked version of the ad for the posters (originally shared in reply #146 in the topic for Book 1).

I feel really bad for anyone who may have sent in their $42 to subscribe to the comics and had that subscription begin with Book 2, Issue 1 because instead of getting 12 issues, they only received 5. It was bad enough that those of us who subscribed from the beginning only received 9 issues - but those who only received 5 lost more than half of their money when Innovation folded prematurely...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I remember reading that the artist based Nathan's appearance on actor Roger Rees.

Whenever I've looked at Book 2 I've often thought that Nathan looked familiar but could never place why. Now I know. Thanks for clearing that up because I don't know if I ever heard that Jose Pimentel based Nathan's look on Roger Rees...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

As long as I have been reading comic books, I have never heard "Slice" used as a sound effect. Maybe in a story about golf.

   But I've thought that it's supposed to indicate that Barnabas' cane is slicing open Willie's skin, in which case it's very disturbing.

Mail probably dropped off because of the severe lag time between issues. Why write if there's nothing new to write about?

True.

I do find the remarks about future projects quite interesting. I don't think that it's any secret that the original cast member referred to is Lara Parker and that she reworked her idea for Angelique's Descent.  I do wonder how that story would have fit into the DS Innovation universe since that Angelique is somewhat different than the original character.

Upcoming comments in SG will give some hints about what they were planning. Aspects of it were very different from Angelique's Descent. And that might have been a good thing. But we'll never know...

Was the original novel that Campiti mentions ever completed? Is it out there as a kind of Hawkes Harbor parallel? And what about the book of short stories? I wonder if the ones written by Kathy Resch and Marcy Robin surfaced in any of the fanzines? And who were the three other authors referred to?

I doubt that we'll get any answers at this point.

IF Campiti's novel ever came out with something like a Hawkes Harbor reworking, it's a well kept secret - and those sorts of secrets rarely stay secret in fandom. So, I would tend to doubt it's seen the light of day. But who knows? And who knows what the answers are to your other questions? If SG ever had info on them, I don't remember reading it - but it's been more than 25 years since I've gone through the SGs I've been going through for the comics' slideshow, so I may have simply forgotten. But if answers are in SG, I'll come across them eventually...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Because the letters column indicates that it will be focusing on letters regarding Book 1, Issue 4, I'm going to start posting the column -

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version (without any of the artifacts that the forum's system created when downsizing the image))

- though, as you'll see upon reading this first page (twenty-seventh page), the letters on it contain general comments with nothing specific to Book 1, Issue 4. It's also interesting that Book 2, Issue 2 contains both an article by Maggie Thompson and a letters column - and not just a letters column, but one that's 5 pages long. And the reason they were able to do such a thing is because they dropped almost all ads from the issue.

[Uncle Roger]

To get any answers this late in the game would be nothing short of a miracle. If I get a chance, maybe I will run that by Kathy Resch. If she remembers that far back, I know that I would get an honest answer. Marcy is usually more evasive.

[Gothick]

I am LOLing at today's quote. "Miss Vicki" makes it sound like Barn is going to ask her to "tiptoe through the tulips" with him on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show (only people of a certain age will get this, I guess).

cheers, G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If I understand what I recently read about the time placement of Book 3 (of which we only got one issue), it takes place in the spring. Given that, I almost wouldn't have put it past David Campiti to have tried to persuade Scott Rockwell (the writer) and Felipe Echevarria (the illustrator) to have depicted a scene of Barnabas and "Miss" Vicki in a field of tulips, perhaps even tiptoeing.    But alas, Innovation folded before Book 3 could be completed...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Here are the second and third pages:

(Click here for a 2656X1996 version)

It's interesting how they depict Angelique watching the scene between Barnabas and Willie...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

It's interesting that in today's capture/quote Barnabas seems about to -

Book Two/Issue Two/Page 4 - Willie: 'GOD!'
Willie: 'NO...!'

- bite Willie - and particularly interesting as it's after just beating him. Kinky!!