When I didn't make "NEMS Part 2" part 2

If you're reading this far, you've (hopefully) read my rough NEMS Part 2 PDF. As I wrote on Monday, I couldn't draw it. I'm not going to go, page by page, through why it was a bit of a bear to tackle, art-wise -- put simply, I had tried to keep it to 32 pages, which led to some sequences that were far too compressed. 

I could draw exactly what is in the rough I showed you (and I tried), but as soon as I tried to make those pages look good, I was fighting them. A lot of balloons, a lot of characters, and scenes that were almost vignettes, that needed more. I sometimes talk to other artists and writers about "telling yourself lies in the rough", ignoring glaring mistakes in early versions, considering problems solved that really aren't. It's always something to watch out for.

So, I could have re-written it to be 48 pages instead, but that would have run for such a long time online, and taken so long to draw... I might have been 32 pages into it but I wasn't 48 pages into it. There are better uses of my limited time and energy. It's a shame, because the action pages in particular were full of things that I would have enjoyed drawing. But there is virtue in knowing when to cut and run.

Anyway, to cap this off, here's a read-along commentary of all the historical references and messing around with time I put into the story. 

Page 1: Freddie Garrity's pop career was over by the late 60s and he had moved into light entertainment and TV. I took his look from this 1974 LP cover - he looks fantastic! Those bell-bottom jeans!

Page 2: The Cilla flashback pages were meant to look like B&W strips from old British girls' comics like Bunty. 

Page 4: there was quite a lot of footage available of the 1969 (close enough) Royal Variety Performance. Compere Des O'Connor, whose TV career lasted almost up until his death in 2020, delivered his trademark mix of songs and "mirth". He sings a rotten song about UFOs.

Cilla Black is meant to be wearing a union jack dress, as a reference to Geri Halliwell at the 1997 Brit Awards. The Beatles' new name "the Peppermint Gardeners" was very carefully selected for an era-specific waftiness.

Page 5: I did some careful research on sitar music just so Cilla could boot George's "Indian banjo" across the room.

Page 6: enter ESTHER DE GROOT! The implication here is that when Shelley made the decision to depart the Ministry of History (as detailed in Giant Days issue 52), her eventual replacement was Esther (who made a great impression at the Ministry in the 2016 Giant Days Holiday Special).

Page 7: a few years have passed since NEMS part 1, Sid and Babs have both been promoted. Sid is now the head of technology and Babs McChinnery is in charge, replacing Perkin Warbeck.

(If you want to stop reading here, I will understand)

Page 8: Perkin Warbeck is now just a portrait on the wall. There's a wall of Nemulon time robots, with many different models - a bit like Batman's wall of costumes. This is always a good chance to draw some mad notions that you will never have to explain. We also see the horrifying and beefy Nemulon-13, inspired by the ancient Transformers comic below:

Page 9: my plan for Esther's wardrobe in this issue was "goth Biba".

Page 11: This page is a good example of one that I couldn't draw because of all the words on it. It needs splitting into two for clarity. It's got Mal Evans, a Get Back joke, serious discussion of record contracts and royalties, and a visual joke based on the Beatles as an Olympic bobsleigh team. That's too many ideas for one page. 

Page 12: American bully boy and new Beatles manager Allen Klein is someone I was very keen to draw. I was also very keen to draw Esther in her Biba dress camouflaging against the curtains. 

Page 13: another page that I couldn't draw because it was too busy. This story highlights the problems of making comics that are meant to be both a book, and a webcomic. The more moving parts requiring explanation that there are, the harder it is to cram those moving parts onto one page.

Page 14: I wanted to give Brian Epstein a proper send off.

Page 15: I also wanted to have Cilla play the Rolling Stones' ill-fated Rock 'n Roll Circus TV special (which went unaired because the Stones were a mess and everyone blew them off the stage). I've never liked the Stones and couldn't wait to lampoon their blues-rock tomfoolery.

It was also an opportunity to draw Bobbinsverse stalwarts, The Whom, in action. 

Page 16: just imagine how good the first panel, with The Whom doing multi-part mod epic "He's Away, This One's Quick", would have been. Also featured: Taj Mahal and Jethro Tull.

Page 17: Marijuana.

Page 18: Cilla is quite brutal in this comic, she really kicks the shit out of her Nemulon unit. I wanted to reflect the rage and bile that was behind her eyes on every episode of "Surprise Surprise".

Page 19: just me having to make up some nonsense to get the plot to resolve.

Page 20: The subtitle for this story (sub-subtitle?) was "THE DARKEST TIMELINE". Destroy History: NEMS part 2 "The Darkest Timeline. The convoluted title is a red flag.

Page 21: I was very keen to draw Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac. Even in this primitive version, you should be able to pick out Mick Fleetwood and Danny Kirwan with relative ease if you are "familiar".

Page 22: The patched-in Nemulon-13 is a clear reference to Lawnmower Man, a film I think about every 45 minutes or so. Access denied!

Page 23: an airport buggy race begins. I had to look up when airport buggies were invented. You don't tend to see them at UK airports anyway, so it was something of a moot point, but I like to know the answers to these questions in case someone challenges me to a fact duel.  This one was a toughie, because I couldn't work out what they were officially called. Carts? Trolleys? Sitty-gos?

Page 24: a good old fashioned robot fight, this is what I live for.

Page 25: the encapsulation of an exploding cold fusion reactor, this is what I live for. This two page sequence should, again, have been a lot longer to give it weight and moment.

Page 26-27: six pages from the end, we get some actual character work with actual emotions at stake. Two out of three ain't bad, Meatloaf sang. Two out of twenty-seven... is somewhat remiss.

Page 28: Tom Jones on a plane. Another person i just wanted to draw in their "pomp". I had a great time reading Tom Jones' autobiography. He details all kinds of debauchery but this most legendary of all shaggers never once acknowledges that he has ever had extramarital sex. Apparently this was on the instruction of his wife of (currently) 59 years.

Page 30: Nemulon-9 returns in the form of a hand-dryer. Destroy History has never really worked - I find it borderline impossible to write - but I love the characters (which is why I keep trying) and Nemulon-9 is my favourite of all of them.

Page 31: the last panel on this page is a reference to very famous letter to the NME in the late 70s, "Where Is Beatles Band" by Samuel K Amphong. I include it below. 

Where is Beatles band? This band who have not been as of late clear of circumstance. Beatles Band! Can we no longer hear there medolious throng? John! Paul! All in Beatles Band come forth! What question have we to put? Now? Arguments necessary can begin with whole results expected for any return. Ringo! Here in Thailand Beatles band experience is long loved and can be hurt away from John, Paul etc. Please give any news to Samuel K. Amphong of address similar to above. yours as in rock!

Samuel K Amphong, Thailand

Page 32: And who is that, staring stone-faced from the back of the boozer? It's only Cilla Black in her 2010s form.

So Shelley Winters returns to reunite with her old pals and toast Esther's success. Alas, she will not be be toasting my success in completing this comic.  But hopefully, with my commentary, I have made amends.