Chapter 22 | Page 37
Choosing sides.
The chapter is finally over!! I sure hope I don’t need to do another 30+ page chapter again cuz that was a lot. I think it was necessary though as it sets up a major plot point all of you Norse nerds already know of, but perhaps in an unexpected way. :3
Anyway, now comes the customary chapter break!! Because this chapter was such a beast, and I lost my day job last week, I need to take a longer break than usual. I hope to get the next chapter going on September 5th but we’ll see. My editor is busier than before and it may take longer to get feedback. I also need to find a new job because I need money for, y’know, staying alive.
The story overall is steadily climbing to the climax, though, and I hope you all continue to check back. Please spread the word to your friends and the Internet! As always, thank you so much for reading. <3
Oh no! I hope your situation resolves fairly quickly (and better than before). By the look of it, Hel has to do her job now. I hope we see you back here in Sept, refreshed and settled and on the upward!
Aw, thank you! Hopefully things will resolve quickly. It’s hard to work on TMK stuff with that hovering over me.
Good hunting for a new and better job!
Thank you! I’m glad so many places are hiring remotely now.
Good luck with the job hunt.
Thank you! I will need it.
Not going for the Hel as two faced: one side haggard and skull-like, the other side fair and comely, split down the middle?
That’s how AD&D illustrated her! (/sarc).
I’m not sure how Hel is traditionally depicted. I guess, much like Hades in Ancient Greece, she is not depicted very much. Underworld and Chthonic Deities are not so much venerated and worshiped as appeased.
I’m not sure what AD&D is, but yeah usually Hel is shown as a kind of two-face zombie thing. I frankly didn’t want to draw that, so I interpreted her differently. She is still half-dead and half-alive, but just not at the same time. 😀
AD&D – Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. The Role-Playing game. Now just D&D.
Their original Deities and Demigods included illustrations and the “Norse Pantheon” for use in the game – along with three copywritten ones they got sued for.
I understand the reluctance to do the half-zombie face thing.
A curious story related to that. The original Spider Man costume – blue and red with its many fine black web lines – was a pain to draw, so that when Marvel did their “Secret Wars” arc (Late 70s? Early 80s?) they changed his costume to all black with a simple spider symbol. Much easier for the pencilers and inkers. But fan backlash happened, and the black costume became the source for Venom as it was a villain all along (retcon retcon retcon).
We’ve got a depiction of Hel on a 5th century Burgundian belt buckle. She mostly just looks like a tall, serious lady. She’s holding torches and standing in the doorway of the Hel gate.
Sorry to hear about your job, hope that that situation doesn’t take too long to resolve. As ever I’m loving the comic and art. The way you showed Hel changing her face is probably my favourite depiction of her alive and dead nature.
“I’m part of the Skeleton Army.”
Best of luck with the job hunt!
Hel says, “ Sorry Mom, but you can’t go back to the cave. But I’ve got plenty of room at my place, so you can stay with me. Forever.”
I’m just going to keep checking this every Tiwesdæg and Þunresdæg until September…
I hope you have gotten another job by now. If not, good luck with interviews and all that.
Loving TMK as allways.
I keep coming back to this page (partially bc I kept forgetting when this one is coming back), but I love the transition of Hel’s expression in the first panels here.
May you find the job of your dreams soon that allows you to keep working on your remarkable story. Please keep us updated