I have really mixed feelings about this comic. On the one hand, I really like being shown this side of McBell’s history and past relationships and how people she’s known have seen her. On the other… well, even as I type this out, I start to understand one of the things I wasn’t getting. Yes, somebody who feels this strongly about McBell shouldn’t have sold her out without asking her the way she did. But like she said, she’s not a good person. She’s motivated by fear and will do things she knows is wrong because of this. So I do see that. I guess I wish I’d been able to see these characters interact a little more overall to get to this payoff which as things stand, feels a little out of nowhere but I have been told before that my idea of how much build-up a story needs is a little much and I do appreciate that in the webcomics medium, there’s really only so much time one can devote to providing context. I dunno.
Anyway, going back to reread old comics to try to piece together my feelings has led me to really appreciate how far the art has come, here. It’s very clean and the style is so distinct.
There’s definitely a feeling of disconnect, with how we’re first seeing this deep into their relationship with a moment that feels like it should have been built up to over time. But I think that might be intentional? Notice how little McBell is reacting to this — her friend is going through a lot of emotion, but McBell is either unmoved, or refusing to lower her emotional guard. (Probably the latter.)
This came out of nowhere (for us), and McBell is no-selling it. Those two things feel like they go together, though I can’t quite articulate why at the moment.
I think it relates to McBell’s general emotional detachment from pretty much everything, down to her reasons for wanting to join the Corps in the first place. I’m starting to wonder if there’s anybody in the main cast who’s in a good place psychologically. Bonus points to Mustard for finally cycling from the Depression stage of Grief to Anger.
I mean, we’re talking about a town where clowns are the primary law enforcement. Forget the main cast, I suspect there’s nobody in the whole county whose mental health is doing particularly well! There might be something in the water.
To be fair, I suspect there’s nobody in our whole country whose mental health is doing particularly well.
And we don’t even get police with rubber clown noses.
I think that what she was hinting at in the previous pages is that only when they lost McBell, they realised that they cared for her and missed her. Moreover, it sounds as though McBell’s own maverick ways were the ones that emboldened a common pack of ne’er-do-wells to believe themselves big-league criminals… you know, precisely the kind that ruthlessly sell each other to save their own hides.
I think that when they initially told the cops that McBell was the leader of the gang, they were unwittingly saying the truth and only realised so later on.
One has to wonder if after a conversation like that whether McBell will be able to do the right thing in the end to keep her role in the clown corps and get some sort of karma payback against her former teammates ? Especially, now that the kid has an idea of what’s going on.
But also just gotta remember that while the group was willing to throw McBell under the bus, McBell was willing to throw herself under it too. There had to be a relationship there-something strong enough to make her willing to do that for people who were in the middle of betraying her.
Course there was friendship. And then we hit a point where friendship went head to head with self preservation.
Just cause one lost doesn’t mean you don’t regret it.
I think our girl here set up this crime bit to try and get the band back together. To try and return to normal. But her conscience (such as it is), lingering aftermath of the betrayal and just care for McBell won’t let her.
I told you you can’t trust the smol ones!!
I think everyone called it, this time around.
The bigger call will be calling Eliza playing McBell from the get-go.
This kid is great can we adopt her
I have really mixed feelings about this comic. On the one hand, I really like being shown this side of McBell’s history and past relationships and how people she’s known have seen her. On the other… well, even as I type this out, I start to understand one of the things I wasn’t getting. Yes, somebody who feels this strongly about McBell shouldn’t have sold her out without asking her the way she did. But like she said, she’s not a good person. She’s motivated by fear and will do things she knows is wrong because of this. So I do see that. I guess I wish I’d been able to see these characters interact a little more overall to get to this payoff which as things stand, feels a little out of nowhere but I have been told before that my idea of how much build-up a story needs is a little much and I do appreciate that in the webcomics medium, there’s really only so much time one can devote to providing context. I dunno.
Anyway, going back to reread old comics to try to piece together my feelings has led me to really appreciate how far the art has come, here. It’s very clean and the style is so distinct.
There’s definitely a feeling of disconnect, with how we’re first seeing this deep into their relationship with a moment that feels like it should have been built up to over time. But I think that might be intentional? Notice how little McBell is reacting to this — her friend is going through a lot of emotion, but McBell is either unmoved, or refusing to lower her emotional guard. (Probably the latter.)
This came out of nowhere (for us), and McBell is no-selling it. Those two things feel like they go together, though I can’t quite articulate why at the moment.
I think it relates to McBell’s general emotional detachment from pretty much everything, down to her reasons for wanting to join the Corps in the first place. I’m starting to wonder if there’s anybody in the main cast who’s in a good place psychologically. Bonus points to Mustard for finally cycling from the Depression stage of Grief to Anger.
I mean, we’re talking about a town where clowns are the primary law enforcement. Forget the main cast, I suspect there’s nobody in the whole county whose mental health is doing particularly well! There might be something in the water.
To be fair, I suspect there’s nobody in our whole country whose mental health is doing particularly well.
And we don’t even get police with rubber clown noses.
I think that what she was hinting at in the previous pages is that only when they lost McBell, they realised that they cared for her and missed her. Moreover, it sounds as though McBell’s own maverick ways were the ones that emboldened a common pack of ne’er-do-wells to believe themselves big-league criminals… you know, precisely the kind that ruthlessly sell each other to save their own hides.
I think that when they initially told the cops that McBell was the leader of the gang, they were unwittingly saying the truth and only realised so later on.
The mayor seems pretty happy!
How sad it would be if all the character development was up front, and then all the characters were just frozen, like a superhero comic.
Kudos for doing it right.
I like how her necklace makes a giant grinning mouth
One has to wonder if after a conversation like that whether McBell will be able to do the right thing in the end to keep her role in the clown corps and get some sort of karma payback against her former teammates ? Especially, now that the kid has an idea of what’s going on.
How much you want to bet the kid will ask if she can help rob the auction?
A little out of left field?
Sure.
But also just gotta remember that while the group was willing to throw McBell under the bus, McBell was willing to throw herself under it too. There had to be a relationship there-something strong enough to make her willing to do that for people who were in the middle of betraying her.
Course there was friendship. And then we hit a point where friendship went head to head with self preservation.
Just cause one lost doesn’t mean you don’t regret it.
I think our girl here set up this crime bit to try and get the band back together. To try and return to normal. But her conscience (such as it is), lingering aftermath of the betrayal and just care for McBell won’t let her.
At this point, it doesnt even feel like they betrayed her. McBell seemed to be fine with her group going free in return for her ending up in prison.
“Sure this will be the last time someone cries in the chapter called tears of a clown.”