What? You’ve seen a moment like this before? Yeah… me too.
Throughout fictional and cinematic history set ups like this one have been used countless times. I decided to employ it here to get more bang for more storytelling buck. Inahtuu being lulled into “a most dangerous game” by a way too friendly stranger gave me an opportunity to show a few things with ease:
Athea, while seemingly a “civilized” place, is still a tough place to make a living.
Groups of people hunt other people for sport = Some people here are very bad.
Just how good is Inahtuu with that ya’rosa of his you ask? Well…
I love taking advantage of well known concepts like this one, it puts the reader in a particular head space wherein every move I make gets more of a bang for its buck. Go along with a trope? Audience expected it. Pull it off better than the original? Audience loves it. Subvert it? Audience argues on Twitter about how useless or brilliant you are.
This scene is an example of how well comics can “show without telling.”
I love a good paragraph or 3 explaining the smells and sights of a particular party. The way the roasted pig wafts through the doorway as a character enters; the kaleidoscope effect that all the different colors of clothing have on the eye when one scans the room; the high ceilings and white walls that tell a tale of old, elegant wealth…
See what I did there?
I really do love embellishing with some flowery prose, but with comics you don’t have to. The art is the embellishment. And considering it’s the art that brings most folks to the table, that’s what make fantasy storytelling and comics such an ideal match. And on that note, here’s a look at this scene in full color to hammer home the point.
JL