The Ever-changing but Constant Secret Chiefs

As mentioned in a previous post (Nov 24, 2014 -HERE-), we have some characters in the adventures of Claire, called The Secret Chiefs. They are constant and never changing entities, always hovering in the background - yet never the same.
The gif below (though not the best quality), should give you some idea of how they're progressing (I'm working on 3 new Chiefs images as we speak!).

This gif is blurry because I made it with a pasta-maker and some cat hair.

Also, aforementioned Claire's adventures have changed a little. I've decided she is no Angel, but is the mysterious Shadowgirl, who keeps appearing in some other Angels' adventures as a best friend. Sidekicks deserve their own (mis)adventures, don't they?

[seeing things]

Got a lot of photoshop stuff to catch up on with this project...

good things it's too cold to sit in my room and cut things up!

I might turn this into a T-shirt!

Issue 1 - DeepDreamed

As promised folks, here's Issue #1 of the Angel, as run through a "deep dream" website (namely: http://deepdreams.zainshah.net/ - not sure if the site works anymore).

Have you ever taken acid and then looked at weird or colourful images? Quite boring wasn't it (compared to the hallucinations, that is)? Well, that's what happened here - DeepDream looked at my comic and went "It's so damn weird, I can't hallucinate on top of it..."

I find the result(s) a bit "meh" - the filter is amazing, but the images aren't very mind-bending - probably because there is so much white space... or the above explanation. It's not to say this is all crap, btw.

Either way, see what you think - ENJOY!

... and work continues/ Ed the Happy Clown/ deep dreamin'

Howdy folks!

So here's several updates rolled into one.
First, yes, I'm working on upcoming issues.
Here's a screenshot of a page I was just fixing up in photoshop (where the dialogue is born):

OMG! It's a komm byoo tarr!

Not the champion on the mid-left, in fact, here, have a close-up:

This really happened

This panel is a tribute of sorts to the comic Ed the Happy Clown - more the pic than the words. If you haven't read Ed, get amongst it, it's very odd, very funny and very sad too. But very surreal and dream-like. Google it. But back to my panel. In Ed, there is a man who can't stop crapping. Literally. It's all explained why in the comic, but my soldier there, well, he's an homage to that - cozit'sfuknfunny!

Lastly, have y'all been "deep dreaming"? With Google's awesome AI? (Reminds me, must google video for self-aware AI again... you read right)

Anyways, my gorgeous partner, the Maharishi Walnut suggested I run the Angel through it, so here's the first result - soon to be followed by the entire first issue.

ENJOY!

Work continues...

Some "behind-the-scenes" action...

What? It's cold, dude.

But why is she pissing? (Pt2)

It is difficult to fully verbalise the thoughts that go into making this comic - it's why I make pictures, they capture what I want to say with precise dream-scalpel-incision ambiguity.
Like a diamond made of jelly.
Anyways, why is the angel micturating?
Other than the fact that I think "micturating" is a hilarious and terrible sounding word, behold Exhibit A: Albrecht Dürer's Crucifixion (1489).

"That's gonna leave a mark..."

I love Dürer's work.
Now, what are those two rascal angels doing on either side of the cross?
DO YOU SEE?

Exhibit B, Gaahl, former vocalist of black metal band Gorgoroth:

How NOT to eat Black Forest cake...

A few years back, Gaahl (know your metal: click HERE) beat the bejeezus out of someone in his home, who later testified that our hero collected his blood in a cup. Gaahl said he was just trying to protect his rug from the bleeding (which makes him a nasty Lebowski - that rhymes!)

Now, imagine you're being beaten to death by Gaahl, who seems to be enjoying his handywork. You're trapped. He's belting your face. Your bleeding enough FROM YOUR FACE that he gets a cup and starts collecting your blood. WHY WOULD HE DO THAT?!! What's he gonna do with that?!!

OR.
You're on a cross, dying. You've been imprisoned, beaten, humiliated and now you're dying a painful death, in public. And someone's there to collect your blood. Not to help, but to collect your blood and later even worship the vessel used. WHY WOULD THEY DO THAT?!!!

Primitive blood sacrifices (hey, have you heard of my black metal band, Easter yet?)

http://uscds.bandcamp.com/track/primitive-blood-sacrifice

I said primitive blood sacrifices have been around since forever. "The blood is the life!" Why? It's amazingly red and without it living things die. (Human thinking is very simple in many ways.) The Bible is full of instructions on how to do it and how much God loves to drink blood and smell burning flesh/ fat, and whilst it's a global phenomenon, we shall focus on Judeo-Christianity. The Angel is a sort of mockery or challenge of that tradition: it is her recycled blood that is sought after and captured for whatever religious purpose. It is her waste that is holy and beneficial and helps transcendence to divinity (or at least to being blessed. There are many philosophies that will tell you that true enlightenment comes from debasement or from contact with the lowest of the low. Hell, Buddha loved the lotus flower for it was a thing of beauty growing from shit and muck. Even my lecturer at Uni summed up life as "from shit flowers grow". Well our Angel will skip the mudplay and we shall stick with recycled blood. Blessing from below, eh wot?

ISSUE 5 OUT NOW + some other important things

[NOTE: THIS POST WAS EDITED ON 10.JUNE ]

Hello friends!

Been a while, but I've been away in Japan, and then busy since I got back making a fillum of my adventures. But sucka there's good news a-plenty!

i) issue 5 is out now AND ITS AN EXCLUSIVE NET-ONLY RELEASE (see below to read/ download).
ii) an anthology of issues 1 - 5 is out now at Minotaur and at The Sticky Institute.
iii) there's a new publishing schedule in town.

And it goes as such: from now on I will only publish the Angel in hard-copy format every 5 issues on. That is, the next hard-copy release will have issues 6-10. Then, 11-15, and so on. The next physical release is due in October - around Hallooween. After that, I will publish it when the next 5 are ready - however long that may take (see what happens when you have a job?!! Fuuuuuuu...).

Okay, so first, here be the cover of the anthology you should be looking out for:

ZOMG! I hate doing graphic design!

Now, here then is issue #5 (click to open in new tab, or right-click, save as...):

* as PDF

* as CBR

Or just read it here, now...

Feedback is welcome AND mandatory!!! :D