When I first started reading Dominic Deegan, I soon found myself developing favorites among its diverse base of secondary characters. I also found myself growing to detest certain characters (at times I had a love/hate relationship with Dominic and Luna as they danced back and forth on the border of Suedom); of them, the one who I inevitably despised was Dominic’s younger brother Scrappy – sorry, I mean Gregory.
While Gregory’s first couple of appearances worked fairly well, he soon had the more tragic elements of his life ripped out of him, resulting in a fairly flat and uninteresting character who often detracted from the storylines focusing on him. While Gregory was not the only reason I stopped reading Dominic Deegan for a while, the roots were laid in storylines focusing on him. It was only the recently-ended epic storyline on the Orcish nation-region of Maltak that regained my interest in the comic.
Before I go further, I want to mention that Michael Terracciano’s decision to focus on secondary characters rather than Dominic has been a welcome change. One of the problems with Dominic is that he’s become entirely too powerful a character; indeed, one of the reasons the epic storyline focusing on Maltak was so enjoyable was that Luna rather than Dominic was the story’s primary protagonist. These secondary characters are (for the most part) what has made Dominic Deegan a good comic, and by looking at their stories, it also lessens the importance of Dominic himself. The world doesn’t revolve around Dominic Deegan, and the stories focusing on secondary characters help drive that point home. Naturally, I don’t count Gregory among these useful secondary characters.
When Terracciano decided to focus on Gregory for his newest storyline, I must admit I was tempted to go on a sabbatical from the comic. Inertia kept me reading. Initially it seemed my concerns were well-founded. The start of the new Gregory-centric storyline felt lackluster and uninspired, despite the fact that Gregory not only was still stripped of his magic (which happened at the end of a previous Gregory-centric storyline) but was now starting to suffer nightmares on what had happened to him (both in the previous storyline and when he was a child and infected by the Blight of Undeath).
Being stripped of his magic and without anything to give him value, Gregory decided to commit suicide (by the convoluted process of creating a pretty boy band). Naturally, it didn’t go well, with Gregory ultimately kicked out of the band he created after they received a truly scathing review. And it was at this point that something odd happened. I don’t know if my heart grew three sizes or Gregory outgrew his Scrappydom, but I actually started liking the storyline (and while I still don’t particularly like Gregory, I’m detesting him far less).
And Gregory? He went from “pretty boy band” to writing hard rock… and recruited a new band who (while initially skeptical) became partners in crafting an “honest and ugly” band. He started using his nightmares as a source of inspiration, and the events in his life the fodder for his music. The story became less about Gregory (which is a good thing) and more of a commentary on rock music, and of music bands.
The cynic in me suspects the review was partly to blame. In crafting a devastating yet constructive review in the comic, Terracciano also called out to his own critics. He stated that “you don’t have to like this. But if you hate it, say something other than ‘it sucks,’ okay?” I am probably seeing further into this than there is, but let’s face it: Dominic Deegan has gotten its share of naysayers and shock-jock faux-critics who think tossing out a few vulgarities, saying “this sucks,” and making personal attacks on cartoonists is the highest form of entertainment out there. I prefer reviews to have some actual substance to them, and the faux-critics often fail in that regard. While Tangents (and most of the decent review sites) has avoided descending to that level, I’ve not been always kind to DD either (and even now I’m not going to pull punches).
I have to admit, I still am looking forward to the end of this storyline. Some people (such as Terry Pratchett) can meld contemporary cultural phenomena and fantasy literature with little problem. But these are the exceptions, not the rule. Dominic Deegan works better when its stories focus on more traditional fantasy tropes, rather than dragging modern music, superhero comics, and other contemporary venues into play.
Footloose
The latest update of Footloose has done just this; former antagonist and current damsel-in-distress Sparkle has managed in one update to become a sympathetic character. Oh, she’s not going around saving kittens from trees or saving the environment; she’s not even been beaten by the pirate faeries that kidnapped her (which makes sense, considering how many female pirates are in this band, including their Captain; they might not think highly of Sparkle and consider her just a “wench” to serve them drinks and food, but they’re not going to let the guys start getting ideas on what they can get away with. Besides, Footloose’s Faerie appears to be a matriarchal society, so the male fae probably don’t get away with much).
Instead, her latest attempt to escape captivity has failed. What’s worse, she wasn’t even caught trying to escape. She couldn’t even pick the lock on the hatch leading out of the building she’s kept in at night. Defeated by a mere door, we’re given a glimpse of her, huddled on the bench below the trapdoor, wishing, daydreaming, that she had her wand, and could escape her prison by herself. But it’s the final two panels that have helped reveal much more of who Sparkle is than in any prior scene, as she pulls her cell phone out from her cleavage and scrolls through her call list looking for someone who could help.
The calling list is also very telling. First, there are two names missing among her teammates: Claire, and Cherry. Of them, Claire is a hyperactive fan-girl who speaks in broken Japanese and seems to lack the common sense given to a squirrel facing oncoming traffic (or in other words, not someone you want to call on the phone and chat with), and Cherry? I’m unsure if Cherry isn’t included because he’s a guy, or if it’s because I suspect he’s the newest student among the magical girls. But there’s two other numbers included that humanize Sparkle: her mum, and “Wolf boy” (obviously Daniel).
Of these names, it is Daniel’s name that Sparkle pauses on. Of course, this was a process of elimination there, but when you consider that Sparkle is fairly proud and self-reliant, I could easily see her run off the entire list and decide none of them would be of any use and go back to trying to free herself. The nickname could be considered an insult, but it’s a fairly lackluster one (especially considering Daniel’s half-werewolf: calling him “dog boy” or “dog breath” would be much more of an insult than “wolf boy”); I could actually see it as a term of endearment. It’s not exactly the nicest of things to call someone you’re dating, but this is Sparkle we’re talking about; I suspect that “wolf boy” was pleasant by her standards. It also put Daniel’s number at the bottom of the call list, and thus easier to scroll to.
This also might throws a monkey-wrench into the growing relationship between An and Daniel. Just as Sparkle seems to have some conflicted feelings toward Daniel so too have we seen Daniel with conflicted feelings about Sparkle. And now Daniel’s ex-girlfriend is a damsel in distress, unable to save herself and forced to ask for aid. The cynic in me wonders if (now that Daniel is a “rival” to Keti’s affections toward An) the Plot (which is Keti-centric) may be deliberately manipulating these old feelings and doing their best to break Sparkle’s resolve. Of all the times for Sparkle to call, why should she call now? Why right when Daniel and An appear to be getting close… and right after Keti walked in on An and Daniel acting guilty around her (given Keti’s own attraction toward An)?
Whatever Sparkle’s motivations are, this character growth in a former antagonist is a long time coming, and is quite welcome in my eyes. Nor do I expect her growth to stop here. Sparkle’s freedom won’t happen quickly; what’s more, if Sparkle does manage to get a hold of Daniel and gain some glimmer of hope that she’s got someone coming for her, she’ll still have to hide that ember of hope from her captors lest she endanger the others (which will undoubtedly happen in any event; I’d not be at all surprised if the Pirate Captain left her the phone deliberately to lure in any would-be heroes). The fact that Sparkle’s call for aid will add stress to Daniel’s life (which may help flesh out his own character further and lead to growth in him as well) is merely icing on the cake.
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Posted in Webcomic commentary, Webcomic review
Tagged Character development, Character growth, Character motivation, Fantasy comics, Relationships