Another Blueprint Magazine has hit the street–I’m a little late with this update as it came out last week, but alas, here it is! This magazine’s theme was “patriotism”. It’s a little more special to me this time around since it features a front and back cover designed by yours truly.You can read this issue online on the Blueprint Magazine site (along with back issues)–so go go go!

The fifth installment of the “Beholder Series” made it into the tail end of this issue even though I thought for sure I’d have to skip it this month. Now that I’m taking on writing comics more or less full time, you’d think I’d have more time to get around to everything. The reality is that with so much time to devote to thinking about creative endeavors, it’s remarkable how much time just flies by.

Thanks to Emmanuel and his unintentionally effective subtle encouragements (or maybe a “nudge” of this form from him simply means I get to see his awesome art bring a new short piece to life–and that’s all it took to commit to it over one night with a few days to deadline).

The idea for this strip didn’t come quickly, but it also didn’t really have much other competition when it finally sprouted to life in my mind. At first I was going to do something more obvious, like showing an interaction between a fiendish tyrant and his devoted followers who sacrifice themselves in exchange for the security and economic growth he provides his nation. I decided it might be a little too much for this venue and shelved that character. He will likely be brought to life for a much more dense and long form story in the future though–maybe even in future issues of Raven Nevermore if it becomes an ongoing gig.

The next thought pattern became: “What’s beyond national patriotism?”… Like, why not “global patriotism?”… or lets scale beyond that, why not “universal patriotism?”

You get the point. This scenario became obvious after that. I’ve always wanted to find a way to introduce this alien race to the “World of Hellmouth” but figured I’d take much longer to bringing them up. This strip acts as the official premiere for these stranded intergalactic travelers. Details about them, of course, will still be withheld for future stories!