Page Notes
Episode published on Monday 12th of June, 2006.
The first comic where my girlfriend starting doing the shading, and also the comic which has suffered from the most compression. I can't remember why. I used to store all the files as Windows bitmaps, and upload them to DeviantArt as high-quality Jpegs, so perhaps I was trying out exporting Jpeg beforehand, and in the process lost the original bitmap file. No biggie, especially since the concept behind this strip was borrowed lock and stock from The Simpsons (I was in denial about it, but it's pretty much what happens to Homer in the episode where Mulder and Scully from the X-Files make an extended cameo).
I still like the lazy humour behind naming the building "Le Bar" and the skip "Le Trash Cart", because that's the kind of thing that used to happen in old Beano comics that I would read as a kid. It's funnier on the deeper level of showing that the writer in intrinsically prejudiced against foreign countries, as they wish to write about a country without even attempting to empathise with the culture, the language or the people that live there. This is probably why the French gendarme accosting the protestor has a comical Inspector Clouseau moustache.
I've just looked up "gendarme". Apparently it's incorrect to refer to the French police with the word as it is a common English misconception. Well tough, if I want my comic to be built on common misconceptions then that's how it is going to be! Integrity be damned!
Tagged:
Location - Detulux HQ,
Location - Paris, France,
Max Valerion,
Melvin Pratt the Environ-mental Protestor,
Mr. Pain's Guides,
Newbie the Henchman
Comments
Transcript
Title - 18: "The More You Know"
(The page starts with a title card for a fake show. Pain is winking with his right hand giving a thumbs up in the direction of the viewer.)
Title card: Mr. Pain's Guide to Covering up Your Secret Weapon Collection! Five Easy Steps to Success!
(In the dark of the warehouse, Pain begins covering the protestor with a garden hose attached to a vast tank of rum. The henchman watches him. The scene is accompanied by a caption.)
Caption: Step 1 - Cover the person-who-knows-too-much with vast quantities of alcohol.
(Each frame is a new scene, representing a new step of the guide. This one shows the outside of a building with a car parked on the pavement in front of it. The building has a sign with "Le Bar" on it, and has two double-doors underneath.)
Caption: Step 2 - Take them to a bar.
(Inside the bar, Pain and the henchman are sat at a booth table, with the unconscious protester between them. Their table is covered in bottles. Pain has his arm around the protester in a friendly manner, and is calling out over his shoulder in such an indiscreet manner that a waiter in the background is frowning in disapproval.)
Caption: Step 3 - Make a scene.
Pain: Oh dear! It appears that my friend is very drunk.
New guy: Sir, they can't understand you. They speak French.
(Back outside, presumably a short time later, the protester has been handcuffed to a large rubbish skip in a back alley after being stripped down to his underpants and vest. He is still unconscious.)
Caption: Step 4 - Remove clothes, leave in awkward position.
(Shortly afterwards again, the confused protester is accosted by a French policeman, who wraps a towel around his shoulders and leads him away. Pain and the henchman watch from the opening of the alleyway. Pain is grinning but the henchman looks concerned.)
Caption: Step 5 - Bask in the warmth of a job well done.
Protester: (speaking in French) But Monsieur policeman, I have no idea how I got there!
Policeman: (also speaking in French) A likely story, rummy. We have a report that you passed out drunk in a bar...
