PAGE FIFTEEN.  Track 2 begins with a cool shot of Olympus City’s harbor.  This is really the Red Planet’s hub for travel and commerce.  I think Nic has nailed the bustling chaos of the main spaceport here.  The scale really works, too, with the Martians dwarfed by the various liners and cargo loaders.

Nic was a little worried about his vehicle designs, but I think he was unnecessarily concerned.  They’ve got a cool “boxy” look.  And their engine configurations have a little of the Betty (Alien Resurrection) going on.

I also love the girls’ “stealth” fashion.  This is their idea of keeping a low profile.

Fashion, in general, is a big part of the comic.  Nic and I have talked a lot about what the characters wear and Nic has an almost Euro sensibility.  In fact, I like to think that Luc Besson would dig this comic.  I realize I just sort of referenced Luc Besson twice.

In other webcomic news, Warren Ellis has invited webcomic creators to post a few pages and a synopsis on his Whitechapel Forums.  I’ve looked through a few of the pages and there is some very cool stuff.  If you get a chance,

CINEMATIC POSTER.  One more week until ‘Track 2′, but we’re not leaving you without your weekly Grimmtainment.  What can I say about Nic’s latest offering?  The goal was to do a “cinematic poster” for the comic, mainly because we thought it would be cool, but we also wanted to offer our loyal readers a limited edition print.  This would give you guys a piece of cool art and potentially help us keep the comic going and, theoretically, help pay for a printed version of Sisters Grimm.  And t-shirts.

So stay tuned for details about getting one of these for your self.  Next month for sure.

So, happy Halloween, gremmies.  I know it’s probably a little premature this year, with only a few months of comics, but I expect to see some Sisters Grimm costume pics next year.  I’m already working on my Kessler overalls….

Finally, got word today via Perez Hilton (via Jessica) that Shirley Manson is working on a new album with the band.  So Garbage returns.  Huzzah!  In honor of this great news, I think this week’s music pairing needs to be ‘Cherry Lips.

INTERLUDE.  As promised, gremmies, Nic and I wanted an “intermission” piece while we’re working on Track 2.  Nic titled this illustration ‘Interlude.’  I call it, ‘Vikki in Repose.’  In either case, you get a very cool and somewhat personal view of our heroine.  Is there downtime on Mars?  Hope you dig it.

The song is my contribution.  Is it autobiographical for Vikki?  I wonder.

I’ll be posting a few more concept sketches from our “spin-off” Adepticon comic this week on the Twitters.  It takes place in the same Sisters Grimm-verse, but centers on a smuggler and a rogue ‘bot.  I’m excited about it- finished writing it today.  Stay tuned for more info.

PAGE FOURTEEN.  And, fade to black.  I wanted to say “star wipe”, but I think “fade to black” works better here.  In any case, that’s the end of Track 1.

I think, looking back through these 14 pages, I’m pretty happy with the pacing.  It’s tough to do all this set-up and character introduction and still keep the plot moving.  I think the real trick is having Nic’s art tell part of the story; every page has something interesting going on and he refuses to waste any space.  I feel like, even after just 14 pages, Mars has a definite look and its denizens have a certain style.

So what’s next?  Track 2 ‘Band on the Run’ starts in two weeks.  We’re taking an extra week so I can do one more script edit and Nic can catch up on some of his non-Sisters Grimm work (he does manage to find time for other projects).  But we do have a nice “Intermission” piece already done, so expect a Friday update next week as usual.

We’re also working on a limited edition print, a cinematic-style poster.  It’s coming along nicely and I’m sure our Twitter followers will get a preview soon.

Finally, we’re also working on a little spin-off comic for our good friends at the Adepticon game convention (www.adepticon.org).  We’ll have more news as things develop.

So thanks to everyone who’s been checking out the comic.  It’s sort of a relief to finish the first chapter.  Someone told me that a webcomic doesn’t get taken seriously until after a couple years of regular updates.  I hope that’s not true for us.  I hope we never get taken seriously.

PAGE THIRTEEN.  Interior Studio SD4.  Busted.  Maybe not what you were expecting?  Certainly not what the band thinks is happening.  Dub clearly has a lot going on….

There was a lot of discussion about the SexBot design.  We wanted her to be an obvious android; a lower-end model.  But still sultry enough that some lonely Martian would shell out some real credits.

So, PG-13.

We also get to meet some of Olympus City’s finest.  Nic has a knack for hard-boiled detectives, methinks.