Double Cross Scene Compilation - CH3 Pgs 27-33

Hey, y'all!

Time for another scene compilation with "DVD-style" commentary, which I'll be posting weekly until I start getting the completed pages from Gabriel and Vero for Fallen Chapter Two soon.

On the personal front, I'm really looking forward to Thanksgiving. Fernando and I will be visiting my Mom in her assisted living center on the day, and then we'll be hosting my new-in-town cousins the day after in our apartment for a little feast. I'm not a huge holiday person, but I am a foodie, so that's probably why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. :)

In terms of posting Fallen, I've unfortunately run into a couple more snags there, not the least of which is some difficulty aligning schedules during the holidays. So, it's looking more like a December launch for Chapter 2, instead of this month. I'm a bit bummed about that, to be honest, but I am enjoying posting these scene compilations, and I'll continue to do this weekly until we start posting new pages. And since Fallen is a romance, once we are up and running, those pages should be especially fun to share.

Anyway, in this scene comp, Ambrosia pulls out all the stops to get Teen Spooky on her side!

Check out what happens under the fold!

These pages were first published way back in July 2020 - August 2020. If you want to read the previous scene compilations (and, even better, read the whole first two chapters all at once), you can find them on the TYP:DC Scene Compilation Collection page. 

My DVD-style commentary is below the comic pages. And the pages themselves are full-resolution here on Patreon, so feel free to zoom-in!

Let's save Teen Spooky from a femme fatale!

 Those two are going to get so much good sleep.

Film noir time!

As I mentioned before, one of the things both Adam and I were looking forward to in the Double Cross story arc was the chance to indulge our mutual love of film noir. And here is where Ambrosia is cranking up her femme fatale role to eleven.

The team have every reason to suspect she's responsible for setting Teen Spooky up at the church with Shades, but here she is, not only with a handy explanation, but one that plays on the heartstrings. Not only that, she's cranking up her feminine wiles and directing them like a laser at young Spooky.

Lucky for him, he's not alone on this rooftop with Ambrosia. He's got Flyboy, who is inherently cautious, and Amanda, who is deeply protective of Spooky—and she's right there to run interference on what looks like a possible, sudden kiss attack.

Which leads us to

Ambrosia vs. Amanda 

It's a small moment, but one I found fun when I wrote it. Ambrosia tries to get under Amanda's skin by insinuating that she's just being jealous, but Amanda's not taking the bait. Our future Commander can certainly get hot under the collar at times, but if someone she cares about is in trouble, she gets ice-cold serious. And dangerous.

Ambrosia plays the Daniela card again

Not making any headway with her tale of woe or with her seduction attempt, it's time for Ambrosia to bring out the big guns: the little girl in the clutches of monsters. There are many things that Teen Spooky can resist, but a kid who needs help isn't one of them. Amanda immediately intervenes again, but Spooky is still hooked.

Teen Spooky is going to Dreamland no matter what!

So, even though this scene is a Sequel, we get plenty of microtension. First with the risk that Ambrosia poses, and now with a debate between our heroes about what to do next.

Spooky is determined to go to the abandoned amusement park and save the little girl, and to stop him, Amanda brings out her own big guns to keep him away from Shades, the threat of narcing on him to ExSec.

Which leads to one of my favorite Teen Spooky moments when he says "You really think ExSec could stop me?" For me, it's an intense character beat of him being aware of his own power. But readers seemed to just find him being "bratty" in that moment. There are certainly times when folks react differently to your story than you expect. When that happens, it doesn't always change my own mind about what is really going on, but I do always pay attention to it. Sometimes it means I wasn't as clear as I should be and I need to learn from that. Other times, though, it simply means that stories are larger than the people who create them. So, sometimes others can see more clearly what you wrote than you, yourself.

What do y'all think? Is Spooky being bratty here or strong?

(Oh, one little Odds and Ends: we get a "Dammit, Spooky!" from Amanda in this moment once she realizes Spooky is not budging. It's not the last time she will say this to her friend. In fact, I picture her saying it a lot over the years. (I found one example that I just linked to, but I know there are more...)

He still makes a reasonable argument for why he should go

Bratty or not, I do think Teen Spooky makes a pretty good argument about why he should spring this trap. In particular, that knowing where Shades is going to be is an advantage, and this way they can make sure to confront him together.

And he recognizes the Power of Friendship

In my opinion, the most important takeaway of this scene is Teen Spooky realizing that he doesn't have to fight Shades alone. Up until now, Teen Spooky has felt that having anyone try to help him fight magic would just get good people killed. But he's now had two battles where having Flyboy and Amanda with him made a huge difference, and that's beginning to change his perspective.

We know Adult Spooky gets there someday, at least in part. That's why he's a member of The Young Protectors team. But this Spooky is getting that lesson even earlier.

Both in terms of defending against Ambrosia's hijinks and in facing off against Shades, here is another time where I was hoping readers might ask themselves: what would have happened to Teen Spooky if Amanda and Flyboy weren't around? How would things have worked out for Teen Spooky?

Let me know what you think!

Anyway, those are the things I was thinking when I was creating these pages with Adam and Vero. Please let me know your own thoughts below. It's your feedback that makes it fun for me to create these, so please jump in and share!

And thank you, as always, for making this comic possible. Sharing these scenes with you helps remind me of how much I love creating this story. And it's only possible because of your support.

Y'all totally rock. I'll post the next set of pages next week! I hope to see you there! :D