Closer...

The blood witch and the angel share an intimate moment: 

Guess what happens next.

Anatomical Anomalies

So I was looking at this sketch and I realized that I gave the angel an extra set of abdominal muscles.  The odd thing is that, looking back at issue three, apparently I did this about half of the times that I drew him, and the other half I guess I remembered enough human anatomy to not add extras.

Also, here's a panel from another new page.

She is rapidly becoming one of my favorite characters.

When I was initially coming up with things to run in the first issue of Delirium, I had this concept for a series of one page gags called Sex and Violence (alternative titles included Naked Death and Death Slut), with the basic premise being a sexy woman and a monster inciting murder and mayhem in their wake.  The blood witch is essentially who the female lead would have been in that strip.

I think I might revisit that idea at a later point.

I'm not dead, I'm just sleeping....

"I will try to post a new page or panel two to three times a week."

Or take over a month and a half.  Whatever.

Well I have been busier than I would have liked to be doing things that are not related to Delirium.  But I have a bit of free time for the next week or so here so I'm going to try and make some progress on Delirium number 4.

One thing that I wanted to include in the fourth issue was some character profiles to give some information that might not get presented in the story otherwise.

Here's the art for Tehra's profile:

The book in her hand makes her a positive role model, right? Because she likes to read and is intellectual.  Right?  Is that how it works?

That first damn step...

For some reason getting the first page of issue four finished was an absolute chore.

The dialogue is cut off, but, really, were you really looking at that anyway?

My schedule has changed a bit so updates will probably not be posted quite as regularly.  I will try to post a new page or panel two to three times a week.

Delirium Issue 3 is on Sale Now!

The third issue of Delirium is on sale now!  Click HERE to BUY it!

Here's the description:

Shotgun wielding cultists worshiping an altar to the dark lord Tchernobog underneath a public library? An arcane ritual involving a grimoire and a naked blonde that will summon up a blood witch? A genetically engineered angel fighting a robotic monstrosity armed with a drill hand and chemical weapons? These are just a few of the exciting scenes that await as you enter the world of Delirium.

Issue three features the continuation of the ongoing stories "Kingdom of Monsters" and "G.E.R.L."

In "Kingdom of Monsters," Tehra finds herself the captive of a cult that plans to use her as a "vessel" in a summoning ritual that is the first step in bringing about the end of humanity.

Meanwhile, "G.E.R.L.'s" story continues as she faces off against a giant security cyborg as she tries to protect her bunny monster companion and find a way out of the Tyrus' sect's grisly laboratory.

If that's not enough to get you excited, there's also an exclusive preview of the first seven pages on Newgrounds:

Compelling and Sexy

Well, issue three has been sent off to the printers and should be available sometime next week.

In the meantime, here's a sneak peek at the cover:

Blood Witch

Will this be the last thing that our hero sees before his untimely and extremely messy death?

There are worse sights to haunt your final moments I suppose...

The Hard Questions

I think I mentioned that it was going to get worse.

The thing is, when you're an angel with a bionic arm, I think you tend to rush into things headfirst, considering you can literally punch a hole through most of your problems.  But can you punch a hole through the person you're supposed to be protecting?  Probably not...

What if that person is possessed by the spirit of a blood witch?  I think all bets might be off then.

The Key is Blood

This phrase will be oft repeated...

When a blood witch says it's a good thing that you're there, it's probably only a good thing for her.

Unchained

They've all got wings folks.  They've all got wings...

Actually I like how those wings look overall and while this is a fairly simple character design overall I like it and at some point we'll use her again as a character, preferably when she's not inhabiting poor Tehra's body.

A Strange Way to Fulfill a Prophecy

I suppose given the nature of the comic, at some point we were going to see a woman with horns kiss another woman.

What's a Grimoire Do Anyway?

Short answer: whatever it wants.

I am embarrassed to admit that there is no sense of continuity regarding breast size in this comic.

So one of the things we are finding out about why the Grimoire is important to so many people is that it acts as an amplifier for supernatural power.  Also it has a bunch of things written in it that may or may not be horribly misleading or completely straight forward.

In other news, the current page count is 18.

Altar of Tchernobog

So this page is actually a reprise of an earlier page I drew but decided to scrap because I didn't really like the characterization of Tehra.

It is basically the same pose and the same background elements, so it was useful for that.  But, like I wrote in an earlier post, Tehra is a lot tougher than she looks and she really isn't going to just fall to pieces.

Callback to issue 1

For people that read the Blackhand story in the first issue, there is in fact a reason why he gave a detailed explanation of what a summoning ritual is.

Look at that!  Emotion!

And yes, the cult in issue 3 is the same as the cult referenced in issue 1.

Now that is a mighty lookin' pompadour there.

Summarization

I have been debating about whether or not to include a panel with something to the effect of "The Story So Far..." to give a brief summary of what's been happening in previous issues.  On the one hand, I suppose it would help new readers so they don't feel totally lost.  On the other hand, I would kind of prefer that people seek out the back issues if they're interested in finding out the rest of the story.

This is what Tehra's face is supposed to look like, but for the life of me I cannot make her look like this consistently.

 I do enjoy including one or two panels that reference something absurd sounding that happened in the previous issue.  I don't think it would work as well with G.E.R.L., but for Kingdom of Monsters I think it fits the overall tone well.

Tehra and her quick wit

You know Tehra hasn't really gotten a fair shake in the story yet as she's been mostly eye candy and a damsel in distress.

Those guys look like they should be reporting to Cobra Commander or something.  I did not design those hoods well.

She's got what we'll call...moxie.  I actually drew a different splash page for page 1 where Tehra was more of a traditional helpless female but I scrapped it because I felt like that wasn't really being true to her character and how I wanted her to act in the story.  I'll post that unused page at a later time since I did use the pose and background on another splash page.

Tchernobog!

Well, it's time to move on to issue three. 

A couple of things to note with this one.  First, there's the custom lettering I made for the title, which I like.  Second, in case you couldn't tell by the hooded cultists and the reference to Tchernobog, I am a fan of the cult shooter Blood.

Delirium Issue 2 is on Sale NOW!!!

It's October and the second issue of Delirium is on sale now! Click HERE to BUY it now!

Here's the description:

Tentacle beasts and evil dolls guarding the entrance to a public library? Grisly experiments carried out by masked scientists as they search for the location of an ancient book that holds extraordinary power? Cute bunny monsters? These are just some of the sights you'll see when you enter the world of Delirium.

Delirium is an exciting new monthly comic from Nick Calavera showcasing detailed black and white art and stories focused on the strange and surreal.

Issue two features the continuation of the ongoing stories "Kingdom of Monsters" and "G.E.R.L."

In "Kingdom of Monsters," Tehra and her guardian angel face off against supernatural opponents as they continue their search for the elusive grimoire called the Book of the Black Seal.

Meanwhile, G.E.R.L.'s story continues when she wakes up from cryostasis and must fight her way out of a laboratory filled with scientists, soldiers, and unfeeling computers that have her scheduled for a vivisection.

If that's not enough to get you excited about Delirium, there's also an exclusive preview of issue number two at Newgrounds.com which you can get to by clicking on the thumbnails below:

 I'm really proud of both the art and the story in this issue and if you liked the first one you'll love this second issue.  The print run is 100 copies and there are currently no plans to do reprints so if you want yours, pick it up now before they're gone!

Out of Sequence

Well this is slightly out of the order of how I would normally post things but I sent issue number 2 off to the printer today so I wanted to post the cover and let everybody know that issue 2 will be available in October.

I hope the colors reproduce this way when it's printed but I'm actually unsure of what the conversion process will do to it.

This week has been a bit ridiculous in terms of what I was trying to do.  Monday I got an email telling me that Docucopies was offering a 15% discount on booklet printing through today and since that is not an insubstantial amount of money saved I felt the need to try and push the book to be ready to print by Friday.  Effectively, that meant that I was going to have to draw, ink, and scan 8 pages, including designing the cover, which would have to be colored.

It was a bit frantic as the deadline closed in but I did manage to do it and at least now I know I can work fast if I need to.

I definitely feel the  need to take a day off after this though.

The back cover.  Look at that bunny monster!  He's so cute!

The print job should be completed and delivered to me by next week, so expect Delirium issue 2 to be on sale in the first week in October.

Delirium Issue 1 is Available for Purchase on Etsy!

It's here!  It's here!  The wait is over and the first issue of Delirium is available for purchase through  my store on Etsy!

Looking at the finished product, I've gotta say that the book looks great!  Docucopies did a incredible job with the printing and I am very happy with how it turned out.

Here's the product description:

Enter a world where angels battle drill wielding mechs piloted by strange bunny-like creatures; a world where hockey masks and chainsaw hands are regular fashion accessories; a world where death and danger lurk around every corner. Enter the world of Delirium.

Delirium is an exciting new monthly comic from Nick Calavera showcasing detailed black and white art and stories focused on the strange and surreal. Issue one features the debut of two original ongoing series: Kingdom of Monsters and G.E.R.L.

Product Details:

Size: 8.5" x 5.5"
Interior: 32 pages of black and white art
Cover: full color cover

* * * * *

The cover price for issue one is $2.50, which I think is a great deal for all of the great art and production values that you're getting.  Supplies are limited, so, make sure to buy your copy now before they're gone as I have no plans to reprint this in the near future.

It's been a fun trip getting this far and I am looking forward to announcing issue two when it's finished.  In the meantime, buy the book and see the story behind all of the disjointed images on this blog!