"Spectacles of Doom" (an ongoing multi-part sci-fi adventure comic).

[Low_Roads]

In 1978, a good friend of mine (hereafter referred to as GM) created a public access children's program for our local cable TV station. Called Commander Duck and the Quacketeers, it grew from a 15 minute time slot, live broadcasts and an interview format to 30 minute serialized, videotaped adventures in its 10 year run. GM created the scenario, as well as most of the characters. I performed in the show, and wrote and directed episodes of my own. Spectacles of Doom was to be my magnum opus, a titanic 17 part saga. It wasn't to feature live performers: the whole thing was conceived as a graphic presentation, sort of a videotaped comic book. I worked on this project for years throughout the '80s; once completed, it was never filmed. GM's health (he was a life-long type-1 diabetic) had grown very fragile and he was unable withstand the rigors of production. Spectacles of Doom has languished for 20 years without an outlet.

I hope to change that now. The individual panels have been arranged into pages and I plan to offer them in graphic novel form. I'll use this one thread to present the story, adding to it until the story is finished or until someone in authority tells me that I'm squandering too much space for off-topic material. I hope at least to give you a taste of this massive undertaking that occupied so much of my time.

Episode 1, scene 1, pages 1-5:

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Episode 1, scene 1, pages 6-10:

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Episode 1, scene 1, pages 11-13:

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Episode 1, scene 2, pages 1-5:

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Episode 1, scene 2, pages 6-7:

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Episode 1, scene 3, pages 1-5:

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Episode 1, scene 3, pages 6-10:

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Episode 1, scene 3, pages 11-12:

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Episode 1, scene 4, pages 1-5:

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Episode 1, scene 4, pages 6-10:

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Episode 1, scene 4, pages 11-14:

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Episode 2, scene 1, pages 1-5:

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Episode 2, scene 1, page 6:

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Episode 2, scene 2, pages 1-5:

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Episode 2, scene 3, pages 1-5:

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Episode 2, scene 3, page 6:

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Episode 2, scene 4, pages 1-5:

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Episode 2, scene 4, pagers 6-7:

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Episode 2, scene 5, pages 1-5:

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Episode 2, scene 5, pages 6-8:

[isabeau]

yea i'm a busy bee, looking through all your threads...this is fantastic. the details are painstakingly done..and the plot is ingenius..so tell me...when is the next installment? do the prisoners break free? what happens to poor Wilbur? and about that secret parchment..dang i'm hooked lol..

[Low_Roads]

yea i'm a busy bee, looking through all your threads...this is fantastic. the details are painstakingly done..and the plot is ingenius..so tell me...when is the next installment? do the prisoners break free? what happens to poor Wilbur? and about that secret parchment..dang i'm hooked lol..Delightful! So pleased you wrote in! I'd let this thread lapse because of slender numbers, but I'll gladly start it up again! All the work is done... I can offer a fresh scene every couple of days!

Episode 3, scene 1, pages 1-5:

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Episode 3, scene 1, pages 6-9:

[isabeau]

Now that is what i call premium service..thanks Low Road..i would like to read all you have on this series, but only if it's not too much of a problem for you..

[Low_Roads]

Now that is what i call premium service..thanks Low Road..i would like to read all you have on this series, but only if it's not too much of a problem for you..Not a problem in the slightest! The cartoon pages are neatly regimented, easily accessible, a snap to load! I'm just pleased that someone at the TMF made the inquiry... response at the TTC was positive, lively and most gratifying; it's proving quite nice to have the same sort of interest here too!

[isabeau]

Not a problem in the slightest! The cartoon pages are neatly regimented, easily accessible, a snap to load! I'm just pleased that someone at the TMF made the inquiry... response at the TTC was positive, lively and most gratifying; it's proving quite nice to have the same sort of interest here too!
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i'm so very glad i took the time to look through all your threads, you are so very talented.. i'm interested in this series, have no fears about that..you post, i'll comment..i'm loyal that way...once a fan, you will have a hard time getting rid of me..hehe...:)

[Low_Roads]

...once a fan, you will have a hard time getting rid of me..hehe...:)I could always arm myself with feathers... or do they attract? :evilha:

Episode 3, scene 2, pages 1-5:

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Episode 3, scene 2, pages 6-7:

[isabeau]

thanks for those...i'm a bit confused however..who is Felicity??? lol...outstanding as always..

[Low_Roads]

...i'm a bit confused however..who is Felicity??? lol...Yeah... that introduction was a bit abrupt, wasn't it! A matter, I think, of being a little too familiar with the material as I wrote... (I knew who these people were... everyone else should too! XD) Felicity Felinus from the planet Kaliko is the X-Minus-Zero's communications officer (not that we ever saw her at her station at any time during the show. It was an idea I never cared very much for anyway; made her seem a bit too much like Lt. Uhura, as though answering phones was a strictly feminine job!) GM created the character, as he did for almost every character in "Commander Duck", and his girlfriend played the part. My interpretation of her as an athletic amazon differed somewhat from the way she was played in live action, but all the characters had to be altered slightly to fit into this more expansive scenario.

[Low_Roads]

Episode 3, scene 3, pages 1-5:

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Episode 3, scene 3, pages 6-10:

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Episode 3, scene 3, pages 11-15:

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Episode 3, scene 3, pages 16-20:

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Episode 3, scene 3, pages 21-25:

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Episode 3, scene 3, page 26.

"Commander Duck" advertising art: first color show.

[isabeau]

wow thanks for keeping your word and posting more of this fascinating saga...i was wondering, why did you choose to do it in black and white? and thanks for answering about Felicity...lol...you funny...

[Low_Roads]

wow thanks for keeping your word and posting more of this fascinating saga...i was wondering, why did you choose to do it in black and white? and thanks for answering about Felicity...lol...you funny...Thank you, Melanie! Happy to oblige about Felicity (the more we know about the characters, the more engaging they should prove).

As to the black-and-white, at the time I created this series I didn't have access to the easy coloring technique that I do now (a sign-designing program called Flexi-sign pro... not really intended for art applications, but I use it in my work and am well familiar with its capabilities). There really wasn't much at all in the way of computer assistance back then. I might have resorted to colored pencils (a favorite of mine) or markers, but the linework took approximately five years to complete as it was... coloring would have added another year or so, and I was anxious to start filming (which, as it happens, never took place). I believe the style suits itself better to black-and-white anyway: the fancy-schmancy cross-hatching and filigree elements might have clashed with graded color shading. And the stark daily-strip look offers an antique flavor appropriate to both personal and general historical perspective. I doubt that I'd want to add color now, even if I had the time.

[isabeau]

coloring would have added another year??? wow..you must email me and tell me what all is entailed in creating these cartoons...i had no idea it took such time and energy...i really appreciate your talent even more now, yours and others who create these cartoon artworks....and yes i agree, black and white seems the best for this series...

[Low_Roads]

Episode 3, scene 4, pages 1-5:

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Episode 3, scene 4, pages 6-7:

[isabeau]

thanks for continuing this series for me...it's super intriguing, and so well-detailed and told...i agree this cartoon series works best in black and white..o and thanks for that detailed email, describing what all is involved to create these cartoon images...i admire you and others of your class even more now than i did before...:)

[Low_Roads]

Very kind of you, Melanie! Glad the letter proved intriguing, especially as it tended to be so technical! And thank you for enjoying the story! My pleasure to keep it coming! Speaking of which...

Episode 4, scene 1, pages 1-5:

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Episode 4, scene one, pages 6-10:

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Episode 4, scene 1, page 11.

Picture of yours truly in Mr. Uultarre costume. I played him on the live-action show, along with other characters.

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Episode 4, scene 2, pages 1-5:

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Episode 4, scene 2, pages 6-7:

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Episode 4, scene 3, pages 1-4:

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Episode 4, scene 4, pages 1-5:

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Episode 4, scene 4, pages 6-10:

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Episode 4, scene 4, pages 11-13:

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Episode 5, scene 1, pages 1-5:

[isabeau]

wow fascinating..thank you for continuing to post this series..what a treat to find when i returned from my trip...so they are all headed for the same place? this proves to be intriguing...

[Low_Roads]

Welcome back, Melanie! Hope you enjoyed your vacation! Thanks once again for showing interest! To address your question, all parties are actually heading in totally different directions, except for the Commander and Caligula Jones; the Commander is hoping to head Jones off to his Stormhaven refueling point, or failing that to his ultimate goal of Phantmos (with only one guy to back him up! Well, I never said it was a good plan! XD) Lucius, Felicity and Troppo are hunting down the other serious escaped baddy, Two-Gun Thurg; while Quincy, Lithia and Red seek out the remote base of Prince Palomar, where they'll try to obtain coordinates for the otherwise mysterious Phantamos. I was eager to have the various groups split up, both to provide visual variety and to fight narrative fatigue by cross-cutting between individual stories. The down side, of course, is that the plot becomes awfully tangled; numerous recaps help, but more so for a viewing audience than a reading one... as a telecast series, an entire episode would have been available all at once, and without the fatiguing trial of loading individual pages. I fear this complexity will become all the more daunting as the tale develops.

Another scene tomorrow (just to add to the confusion!)

[Low_Roads]

Episode 5, scene 2, pages 1-4:

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Episode 5, scene 3, pages 1-5:

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Episode 5, scene 3, pages 6-10:

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Episode 5, scene 3, pages 11-15:

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Episode 5, scene 3, pages 16-20:

[isabeau]

damn this is getting complicated...awesome work..you take such time with the details of each drawing, plus create a story line to go with it...i am intrigued..thanks for keeping your word and posting this series bit by bit..i'll email you later ...

[Low_Roads]

Thank you, Melanie! I know... this story's barely begun, and already it's dauntingly tangled (by design, I admit. I favor complex plotting, where the reader can lose one's self)! Hopefully, Spectacles will resolve itself into easier-to-follow threads once the characters become better established and more recognizable. That isn't a problem that would have confronted fans of the show back in the '70s... they'd have known the main players already (heros and villains alike), thanks to weekly repetition. Though, no other episodes ever managed to be this dense!

[isabeau]

this was an amazing story..i'm so surprised more weren't interested in this series on the forum..thank you for continuing to send it to me via email...i loved it and am now having withdrawals lol from not only this series which was spectacularly done..but the Low Road's series as well..i realize it takes much time to create the artwork and dialogue and you do both fantastically well..i am your number one fan ..yes i am damn it lol..so i'm bumping this up even though it's not finished here..Low Roads was kind enough to send me the rest in sections via email...thanks friend xoxo

[Low_Roads]

this was an amazing story..i'm so surprised more weren't interested in this series on the forum..Hi Izzy! So true... this story never took off here, the way it did at the TTC. You've certainly made up for that, though! So much wonderful commentary!

thank you for continuing to send it to me via email...It was my pleasure! It's not often I meet someone as enthusiastic and complimentary as you've been!

i loved it and am now having withdrawals lol from not only this series which was spectacularly done..but the Low Road's series as well..i realize it takes much time to create the artwork and dialogue and you do both fantastically well..Very kind of you to say so! Darn it... I know these story installments take forever to turn out, which makes it all the more gratifying when you (and all the other nice folks here and at the TTC) remember the continuity and are so lavish with appreciation! I deeply enjoy creating plots and graphics... I'd probably do so even if no one else was around to share them... but the joy of making my imaginings communal is truly transcendent! You've become an integral part of the process... the feature that makes it most worthwhile!

i am your number one fan ..yes i am damn it lol..so i'm bumping this up even though it's not finished here..Low Roads was kind enough to send me the rest in sections via email...thanks friend xoxoIzzy, it'll be my pleasure to send you anything I write or draw as long as you're pleased to receive it! You may be a fan, but you really have become a friend too, a relationship which is so much more vital and lasting! Expect us to be having identical conversations for decades to come!