Nov 06
And finally, the last page of “Gangs of New Scotland” or “Quebec to the Future”! I probably should have mentioned it on the first page six weeks ago, but the title is a take off on both the movies “Gangs of New York” and “Back to the Future” (as well as referencing Canada, where the story takes place). But if you’re not as big a movie freak as I am, then you probably don’t care anyway. So let’s just pretend I didn’t say anything. But to my fellow movie freaks, pretty clever, eh?
This first panel illustrates one of the many reasons I love Canada so much while humorously illustrating a couple issues I feel very strongly about. I don’t know if it’s considered bad form to bring your politics into your comics, but I honestly don’t give a crap if it is. Nobody calls Bill Willingham out for his occasional right wing rants in the pages of “Fables” (and I mention this as a fan–I really enjoy his book). The only justification I need is knowing that I conveyed my message in a humorous way, which should be the only prerequisite for inserting your political beliefs into a cartoon.
Now, some trivia about this first panel:
1. Zombie Chick’s line in this panel is borrowed from a punchline I wrote for my “Mother’s Goofs” comic strip back in college. It was funny in both occasions, but it was most biting here.
2. The doctor I drew is modeled off my college English/journalism professor and friend, Joan Ramm. Joan was our faculty advisor on our school paper, The Delta Collegiate. She’s the one who sought me out in her English class as I doodled in my notebook, and brought me aboard to draw comic strips for the paper, my first published work, which effectively put me on the path that has brought me to the publication of Dead Duck. I owe Joan a lot in my life and career, and this small cameo barely scratches the surface.
3. The way I drew the hospital here–with the patient inside a bright white room and the doctor and company in a stark black hallway in the foreground–was borrowed from the Hellboy story, “Almost Colossus”, where Abe Sapien stands watch over a hospitalized Liz Sherman. I love the way Mignola drew that panel (hell, I love how he draws EVERYTHING), and in retrospect, I wish I would have given more stark shadows to the foreground characters the way he would have. But, for the sake of the gag, I guess it’s best that I didn’t risk obscuring necessary joke elements like Zombie Chick’s syringe and, uh, doctor head thingy. Hey, I’m no Doogie Howser.
5. I chose to set this part of the story in Sarnia because, like Windsor, it’s just across the Michigan border. So it’s kinda like a hometown reference, even though I didn’t grow up in Port Huron, Michigan and I’m not from Sarnia. Okay, it’s nothing like a hometown reference. Maybe I just needed another Canadian town. So sue me. Unless there really is legal precedence. Then don’t.
The entire story rests on these last panels. When I first conceived of putting the Nova Scotia Cosa Nostra in Dead Duck, my initial thought was to make them enemies, as if Dead Duck were bothered by the loads of corpses the Scosh’ dumps on him. But then I got to thinking about it. More deaths mean more work, possible overtime even. And following this murderous clan throughout history would provide a steady and reliable client. So Dead Duck should LOVE these guys, right? So there in laid the punchline, and a funny one it is, I feel.
These are loose caricatures of Bob and Doug Mackenzie from “Strange Brew,” possibly my favorite comedy ever. Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas’ portrayals of these characters inspired a lot in my Scosh’ concept, and it’s only fitting that I slipped them in as a nice closer to the story.
As for the name of the Scosh’s social club, Moose Pile is just another poop joke. If you’re expecting more of me than cheap fecal humor, then you’re obviously thinking of somebody else.
Lastly, Zombie Chick’s rendition of “O Canada” is, I think, a loving satire. I really do dig Gordon Lightfoot (the jury is still our on Rush). In retrospect, I wish I could have thrown in a tribute to probably the greatest Canadian rock band ever, The Guess Who. Again, maybe in another story.
From my experience, Canadians are far more comfortable laughing at their culture than Americans are, and it’s one of the countless things I love and appreciate about them. Hopefully this Dead Duck story backs that theory up somehow.
Alright, show’s over. Be back here next week for the beginning of another Dead Duck adventure, kids.
–Jay
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