Some pages come easy, and some are a real struggle to bring into being. This page was one of the latter, for reasons I'm still not entirely clear on.

The script underwent the usual revisions, multiple times, as I drew the page. I still don't feel like I really cracked the "right" dialogue to explain why there is no exit from this room, but I'm very mindful of keeping the story moving - I don't ever want to spend panels and panels (or God forbid, pages and pages) explaining why two characters have to do something. In my mind it's better to get across just enough of an explanation and then get to the next story beat. So in the end I got to the point of "I have to live with it and move on."

Nothing seemed to look right, the first time I drew it, and I had to revise. Thumbnail layouts, pencils, inks - all had various aspects and elements redrawn. The fourth panel's perspective had me constantly clock-watching, thinking "this is taking too long, this is TAKING TOO LONG!" - even though I had built a CG model for reference, I just couldn't seem to get it turned to quite the right angle to match my thumnbnail layout. I got there eventually, but whew! it took a while!

I certainly had fun with the head-spinning gag. That was a late addition. In the original layout, Steamroller Man was just untangling himself in a pretty straightforward way. Not particularly funny, and a difficult pose to boot, so I thought, if I'm going to draw something this difficult, let's make it a joke. I hope it makes you smile.

I still don't know exactly why this one was so hard. Hopefully the next one will go quicker!