Easier to wait
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STEEPLE – A Scary Go Round Comic
by John Allison
The whole of Maggie’s Party (part 2) is up on Patreon for $3+ subscribers now. Thank you for your support!
Ludmilla has an expression just like Tom’s when he is up to mischief. Clotilde appears to be nursing some reservations.
Ludmilla looks to me more like she wants to watch to see where this is going.
I think Ludmilla is the secret director of this scene. She and Clotilde seem to enjoy the show a lot.
Clotilde appears to have the mental faculties to realize where something like this could go, whereas Ludmilla would find such details as “boring” and “things that wet blankets say” and “huh?”
Plus, she’s probably had at least one warm willie…
Also noticed the tear in Billie’s eye; she really liked that dress! Hope it isn’t permanently ruined by supernatural ectoplasm. Whatever instructions shall she give her dry cleaner?
Well, it’s probably just vomit, and as a dad I can tell you, you can get vomit out of stuff! We dads know these things.
Yep. That poor dress. Clean it will cost a lot.
Instructions to the dry cleaner: Do what thou wilst.
I think the tear might just be a little ectoplasm spatter on her glasses. A spritz or two of 95% Tesco Lens Cleaning Spray, 5% holy water should do the trick.
Maggie in that first panel is amazing. And terrifying.
“Murdering hag.” Hmm.
Mrs. Clovis, I wonder? 🤔
I, too, am curious as to the identity of the “murdering hag”.
I also noticed that the panel referring to “these servants of the goat” last issue included Reverend Penrose. That seemed odd to me too – but possibly deliberate.
So many of these choices are never by accident in a John Allison masterpiece.
Does Mrs Clovis have a dark past? Was Mr Clovis buried under the rhododendrons in times past, now seeking a terrible revenge?
My view is that Sesh is back and wants revenge against Clovis.
The Shadow knows.
I’m more and more sure this is a trick Ludmilla is playing just to have fun at the expense of Maggie and the others. The room is a mess now and poor Billie is crying over her beautiful, ruined dress. I really like the chaos on this page!
This is a great page! The Rev looks like he’s ready for action and yet hesitant. I expect he’s not used to fighting an opponent who he doesn’t want to hurt.
Also, poor Billie didn’t sign up for a game of crystal football.
Oh, that’s the crystal ball. I thought at first that Maggie’d managed to kick one of Billie’s lenses out.
I’m amused by how Maggie has to hike up her dress because otherwise she’s too slinky to kick.
And, really, Rev, if you want her restrained, you’re going to have to do it yourself, however awkward it might be to do without grabbing her anywhere inappropriate. Billie’s not much of a brawler, and the hipster witches clearly can’t be trusted with the responsibility.
Probably one of the witches will use her phone for recording every part of that “Grabbing her” and immediately post it on some media.
Question; Are there any Anglican exorcisms or do they need to ask the Catholics for help on this one?
Penrose has always seemed very Low Church but there are plenty of small-c catholic High Church Anglicans in Cornwall who could whip up a comparable rite. Truro Cathedral was Britain’s first new cathedral to be built in 650 years after all!
Check out Phil Rickman’s Merrily Watkins novels for instruction on exorcism in the contemporary C of E.
Ah, man. That strip commentary. John, is there anything we can do to make your long road easier?
Where is this commentary? All I see is a link to Patreon. I went there and still didn’t find anything about John’s travails, whatever they may be.
People seemed to be reading it as if I was having some sort of terrible breakdown, so i deleted it. I’m not having some sort of terrible breakdown. I just wrote about how hard it is to get back into drawing after five weeks off (I was writing a new Dark Horse mini series).
I, for one, am glad you’re not having some sort of terrible breakdown.
I’m not! I promise!!!!
Beyond the “hashtag relatable” of the deleted post, I was mostly amused by my misreading of the old machinery as the Bad Machinery.
Andrew, if you are one of the readers who takes time to visit my website and comment on the regular, I think you are doing plenty to keep me motivated.
On the plus side, I don’t believe demonic possession was on Mrs. Clovis’ list of activities from which Maggie was to refrain!
You know Mrs. Clovis has an ax somewhere at her home. The Rev Penrose looks about ready to swing into action.
Good gravy Mr. Allison!
Aren’t you far too young of an artist to already be at the stage of “starting the old machinery up again is worse than just ploughing on”?!
We so appreciate your agricultural skills and tending and caring for wonder garden of characters you’ve created.
Please be sure the plow-ox is getting enough barley and water as needed! Hops to it!
The soil’s still mostly good on the Allison farm, I just need to rotate the crops and let a few pastures lay fallow.
Let the pastors lay fallow (Autocorrect: Fallon), but let the good reverend keep getting out in the field.
Again, as always, I love your creations.
I think I missed something on the way. Who is the spirit speaking through Maggie and who is the murdering Hag the spirit wants to destroy? Should I know already?
How about this? Maggie is possessed by her own mother who was murdered by Maggie’s Grandmother (Bob Warren’s mother)
Maggie’s mother isn’t dead, as far as I’m aware, she’s only mentioned as being in and out of rehab (“mum had to go for a a series of expensive ‘rests’. She still likes to do that” in Clotted Crime Part 3)
it is a mystery (currently) (I think)
We don’t know yet.
Gasp
Are we about to find out Mrs Clovis’s demon-murdering past?
Fingers crossed!
I am here for the Rev’s unexpectedly deep well of inner calm.
I don’t know that it’s unexpected. Combat with the supernatural is his element.
Given that he merely raised a metaphorical eyebrow at the prospect of plunging to his death off a cliff in an automobile driven by a Satanist, I’m not sure how unexpected his well of calm would be.
Ah, so sorry to hear you’re going through “stuff”. Hope you can find peace. Try not to assume you know everything that won’t work and listen to those who love you and to your own body.
I like the Rev’s sidelong glance in Panel 1. “It’s alright Maggie, I’m not blaming you for being possessed by the unquiet damned and retching up bilious spew, I’m blaming myself for thinking that this evening might have turned out any differently.”
The vomit-spattered pane that we’re viewing the page through was meant to be used for Pepper’s Ghost, but that’s ruined now
Ipecac’s Ghost
How is it that it’s taken me this long to realize that the good Reverend’s shirt is covered with roses? Self demerit’s for inattentiveness!
This is how badly shaken I am, I made “demerits” possessive instead of plural.
John A just penned them in, I guess.
This is probably my favourite opening panel yet.
I like how much Ludmilla is enjoying this.
To The Yellow Pages, Rev!
So who is the “murdering hag”? Mrs. Clovis?
… eh, yeah, she’s probably done a murder or two in her time. Seems the type.