The Stolen Child — Page 18
Last week’s page this week!
I missed the update last week due to a cascading (snowballing?) series of responsibilities that piled up outside of webcomics following the winter storm a few weeks ago. Ten days of disruptions of power, internet access, work and school schedules threw my cartooning routine out of whack. I needed an extra week to get back on track. Now I am, so next week’s strip will arrive on time.
Stay safe and sane, people.
↓ Transcript
PANEL 1: Fetch pours a cup of coffee in his kitchen. Owen speaks from off-panel..
OWEN: So is the faer— I mean, is the Otherworld always like this?
FETCH: An anarchist commune or whatever? Ha! No.
PANEL 2: Fetch drinks his coffee and Owen, holding a can of soda, makes a sour face.
FETCH: We have a king and queen. We have lords and ladies. There’s a peasant class. There’s even real estate development and subcontractors with big corporations from your world.
OWEN: Gross.
PANEL 3: Fetch smiles wryly, leaning back in his chair, one arm draped behind it, while the other hand plays with his coffee.
FETCH: Sorry. I’m bad at public relations.
Look. The Otherworld is big. There’s no one way about it.
We’re in a realm of myths, right? There might be some general types — heroes, monsters, etc., but the details are local.
Here it’s the Seelie courts, elsewhere it’s Annwn, or Mag Mell — or further out, Asgard and Niflheim.
PANEL 4: Fetch leans forward, looking contemplative as he speaks.
FETCH: And it changes all the time. Like people change. They neglect old gods, make new ones.
It might look the same way for a while, but one day you’ll see a sudden shift. It’s all different.
You’ll look back and see all these subtle changes have piled up until you wind up where you are now.
OWEN: Huh.
PANEL 5: Owen smiles ironically, Fetch grins.
OWEN: Are you getting old, Fetch?
FETCH: You’ll see. It’ll happen to you.
OWEN: So is the faer— I mean, is the Otherworld always like this?
FETCH: An anarchist commune or whatever? Ha! No.
PANEL 2: Fetch drinks his coffee and Owen, holding a can of soda, makes a sour face.
FETCH: We have a king and queen. We have lords and ladies. There’s a peasant class. There’s even real estate development and subcontractors with big corporations from your world.
OWEN: Gross.
PANEL 3: Fetch smiles wryly, leaning back in his chair, one arm draped behind it, while the other hand plays with his coffee.
FETCH: Sorry. I’m bad at public relations.
Look. The Otherworld is big. There’s no one way about it.
We’re in a realm of myths, right? There might be some general types — heroes, monsters, etc., but the details are local.
Here it’s the Seelie courts, elsewhere it’s Annwn, or Mag Mell — or further out, Asgard and Niflheim.
PANEL 4: Fetch leans forward, looking contemplative as he speaks.
FETCH: And it changes all the time. Like people change. They neglect old gods, make new ones.
It might look the same way for a while, but one day you’ll see a sudden shift. It’s all different.
You’ll look back and see all these subtle changes have piled up until you wind up where you are now.
OWEN: Huh.
PANEL 5: Owen smiles ironically, Fetch grins.
OWEN: Are you getting old, Fetch?
FETCH: You’ll see. It’ll happen to you.
Spread the joy:
Getting old? Why yes, and I have no idea how it managed to have happened aside from having failed to die, which of course makes since as I am immortal (but just for a little while)!
For reals though, the 40++++++ years on this Earth, no idea how I’ve managed it so far. Still, zero plans to die, and even if I do, I DEFINITELY have plans to come back, as the incident when I was 16-17 and DID die, it didn’t take, I didn’t care for it, and here I am to this day! Oh no!
Incidentally, any word on Print (print on demand?) Fetch?
Thanks!
I do look around once in a while and marvel that I’m still alive, even as I still wonder what I’m doing.
Thanks for asking about the Fetch collections. I have two in the works. The pages are assembled and the covers are dawn. I have some finishing touches to make and then setting them up to sell online; those should be ready by then end of the month. Print editions will take a little longer, given the logistics. But certainly by the end of April print editions will be available. 👍🤞😬