Thursday, October 29, 2009

Destroy History Pilot number 1


32 comments:

Joe Taylor said...

Ah, Shelley my secret love. This has brightened up my day.

I feel privileged to have seen this! :D

Timothy J Swann said...

Love the fact she goes through Mornington Crescent... it's a lovely touch.

Joe Taylor said...

Two further thoughts:

1) I am really admiring the internal constistency of this now!
http://sgrblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/electrifying-conclusion-part-3.html

2) The optimum route from Mornington Crescent to Tower Hill is surely one of the greatest puzzles known to man (or Humph)

Chelle Lynn said...

LULZ

John A said...

She could only have lived near Mornington Crescent, out of respect for Humph! And Robert Rankin, of course.

Unknown said...

AH! you ARE the best at comics!

Unknown said...

Hurray! Pilot approved!

Matthew Stublefield said...

Ahh! I love it.

I think the key, as others have observed, is the pacing. BM is certainly slower, and that's totally OK. I really look forward to (someday) going back and re-reading it straight through (and I'll continue enjoying reading it as it goes!).

This has faster pacing and a punchline and I really enjoyed it :-) Look forward to seeing colours and if you take it further.

Part of me wishes we could all just do what we love, money be damned, but I think this might be a good move for you in regards to the money factor.

K said...

I am just now catching up with this week's Bad Machinery because I have been having flu. It is very good! I like it! It does seem a little darker and richer (like fruitcake?) and I can think of a good few other successful webcomics with much slower paces.

Mind you, I also like Shelley, so it's all good.

Or all goo, as I just typed. I HAVE THE FLU! MY BRAIN ISN'T WORKING!

Hilary said...

LOVE. I did miss Shelley, I did. I kind of want to write a song with those lyrics now.

John A said...

Hilary alas that song has already been written, by MS SHEENA EASTON!

Doctor Oddverse said...

Ms Sheena Easton is special. And she has nice teeth.

Tiki Snakes said...

If I did not know better, I'd think that you were perhaps prepared for such an eventuality all along.

Naming the comic months ago, and such-like. ;)

2goldfish said...

I hope Bad Machinery finds its own audience soon enough, I really love it for my part, and I'm glad you're bringing the sexy fun through another comic and not through a poochy like manoeuvre. I'm sure BM is better off without catchphrases and talking animals.

Hilary said...

Really? My world has just gotten 10% better!

Margaret said...

I like this! I also like Bad Machinery. I like what your brain produces, Mr. Allison.

Dean said...

Shelley certainly likes those giant retro headphones.

Hans said...

I hope that goes beyond pilot!

Unknown said...

Good stuff John! It seems like people (me included) were not ready for Shelly-less world but I can see how she might be a bother as a regular cast member in BM. If you keep DH going, you won't have to pull an "Outland" (i.e. gradually reintroducing all the old characters from a previous strip until they dominate it) with BM to keep your fans. I think we have enough energy to read two John Allison comics if you can find the energy to make them.

John A said...

Thanks Patrick!

I think the main reason not to "pull an Outland" is that Outland was rotten. Bad Machinery is a comic about kids, it has adult characters but it isn't about the adults. Any of the old Scary Go Round characters could appear for "colour" - you've already seen Ryan and Amy and Hamilton Percy (although I really think Shelley shouldn't ever appear) but it would be a real mess if I did a story about Esther all of a sudden.

Clockpunk said...

Oh... I don't understand - will this become a 'proper' project?

I must admit, I'm not enjoying Bad Machinery one little bit. Very disappointing after so many years of enjoying SGR. This could very well fill the void!

John A said...

James, a comment like that makes me never want to make a comic ever again, let alone the one that the person who made the comment particularly wants to see.

Clockpunk said...

I am so sorry, John, but I've got to be honest with you. I'm only a single fan, and I realise BM is just getting up to first gear, so to speak, but I'm just not 'connecting' with it. At all. I don;t like the focus on the children - Esther, The Boy et al were fine, but this lot... no matter how much I want to try and like it, I just can't. Sorry. :-/

SGR.com is still the furst site I check Mon-Thurs morning, and I try to support you through buying books and personalisations, but BM just doesn't have that same vibe as SGR, for me at any rate.

John A said...

I'm not going to argue with you, I can't make you like it, James. It's a different comic. I'm just exhausted and depressed by people telling me they don't like it.

Clockpunk said...

I thought you were well-backed on the new one, John?! In that case I am sorry, and didn't mean to cause any upset. Looking back, my first comment perhaps sounded a tad aggressive, when such a feature was not meant of the statement! :-(

John A said...

It doesn't matter how many friends you have, if a stranger calls you fat in the street, you still feel pretty bad. I know you probably didn't mean anything by it.

Clockpunk said...

I truly didn't. I do look forward to the little glimpses of Shelley, should you do anymore.

For what it's worth, your artistic style is still the favourite by far in all the webcomics I read each day.

John A said...

I was up to about 100 people metaphorically calling me fat, you are forgiven, James.

Here is a question for you that will heal all wounds. How old are you? A lot of the people who have kind of taken offence to the new characters are younger, in their early twenties at the most. Some of the comments read like they feel betrayed! My older friends genuinely can't see the difference between the new comic and the old.

2goldfish said...

Ooch, I feel i've just got called old.

John A said...

Well Cédric, older than 21 at least ha ha

Clockpunk said...

I'm 24 tomorrow. And feeling it... So it could indeed be a generational thing, with the original cast around that age (?).

We good? ;)

John A said...

All is forgiven.