Issue #8
"First Night, Part III"
Plotted by: Joss Whedon & Brian Lynch
Script By: Brian Lynch
"Gunn" co-scripted by Scott Tipton
Betta George Illustration: Tim Kane with coloring by Jeremy Treece
Gwen Illustration: Fabio Mantovani
Civilians Illustration: Kevyn Schmidt
Gunn Illustration: Mirco Pierfederici with coloring by Fabio Mantovani and Michele Buscalferri
Lettered by: Neil Uyetake Edited by: Chris Ryall
Cover By: Brian Miller
Page 09: We open, like with Gwen, before the Fall. There's a bell ringer with the sign letting everyone know 'the end is near' in front of a movie theater. The manager comes out to ask him to clear out, but he's adamant that everyone should stop wasting their lives watching silly movies when the end of the world is close.
Page 10: The woman argues with the homeless, crazy guy that he should be doing something nice for someone. His reply is that he is by trying to tell everyone to get ready for the end. She insists the end is not near... which naturally is about the time when L.A. gets sent into Hell.
Page 11: The homeless guy is ecstatic at having finally been proven right.
Page 12: The manager woman runs off after seeing tentacles shoot up from under the streets. Homeless guy is upset that his triumph has been preempted by his feeling badly for her being scared.
We see that he had a bit of a crush, perhaps, because she'd given him leftover hot dogs and popcorn from the concession stand and jackets that went unclaimed in the theater's lost and found.
Page 13: The homeless guy is still hanging out at the movies two weeks later, hoping that 'the girl' will come back. In order to make up for her being scared by the end, he's changed the marquee sign to read, "The end of the end is near".
Alas, since he's standing outside waving around a sword and there are at least two demons (one of them rather large and muscular) noticing him, it seems unlikely he'll survive much longer.
The Good: I like the 'water color' look of the artwork.
I like the last panel with the new message on the sign, and his hoping that 'the girl' will take heart in it, after he'd been so exciting that the end had finally came.
The Bad: This is simply too short to be involving.