Murder Book - Local Office - Niel Jacoby

Panel 1: Long shot of a near-empty bar, with only a few janitors cleaning up and TOMMY REYNOLDS sitting in a chair on the stage, his head in his hands. We can see a REYNOLDS FOR MAYOR banner being taken down.

CAPTION: 3 AM, ELECTION NIGHT

Panel 2: profile view of Reynolds in the chair, a handkerchief to his nose. We can see that tears are streaming down his smiling face. We can also see a man in the background, in a tattered suit.

REYNOLDS: SNRK--

Panel 3: Reynolds is raising his head, and we can see the man from panel 2 behind him, putting his hand on his shoulder.

MYSTERIOUS MAN: MR. MAYOR.

Inset panel: Reynolds is surprised.

MYSTERIOUS MAN(OP): DON'T TURN AROUND.

REYNOLDS: WHO... WHO ARE YOU?

Panel 4: Close on the mysterious man's hand, which contains a switchblade close to the man's neck.

MYSTERIOUS MAN: I'M JUST A CONCERNED CITIZEN, MR. MAYOR.

MYSTERIOUS MAN: A CONCERNED CITIZEN WHO WANTS TO TALK A WHILE.

Murder Book - Greetings from Asbury Park - R.A.Wonsowski

LAYOUT:

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Panel 1 - Across the top of the page, a sunny exterior shot of New Jersey Department of Corrections Riverfront State Prison.

CAPTION:  You know what I miss, it's the shlyukhi na plyazhe.


Panel 2 - In the prison cafeteria, a burly mid-50's Russian thug with a shaved head and Cyrillic tats on his exposed arms (NICKY) is "holding court", talking to a crowd of young gangbangers.  He's enjoying being the big man, and the 'bangers are enjoying the cameraderie.

NICKY:  The whores on the shore.  String bikinis on oiled skin.  Young girls on spring break or summer vacation.  

NICKY:  A different girl every day, twice a day.  I remember everything about them but their names...


Panel 3 - Same as Panel 2, but a couple 'bangers have put their hands in their pockets.

NICKY:  You homeboys can keep your fat-assed women.  You like "junk in the trunk", you should see Russian trash.

NICKY:  Me, I have my type.


Panel 4 - Same as Panel 3, but the gangbangers are slowly pulling toothbrushes sharpened to a point on the end, without NICKY noticing; he's enjoying the memory tape in his head, his hands held in front of his chest palms curved in a gesture of his favourite part of the female anatomy.

NICKY:  Great big grud', high school candy, and naive as hell.

GANGBANGER:  (no pointer on the balloon)  So we been told.


Panel 5 - Same as Panel 4, but NICKY's face is confused, and he's starting to sweat.  All the gangbangers have their toothbrush shanks out.

NO COPY


Panel 6 - Dog pile of 'bangers on NICKY.  Blood is flying everywhere as they shank him.  One lone Hispanic-looking gangbanger (RUIZ) is slipping out the cafeteria door as the guards start towards the pile.

NO COPY


Panel 7 - RUIZ holds the prison payphone receiver to his ear as he dials a number.  Guards in riot gear run past in the background.

NO COPY


Panel 8 - Russian man with a crewcut in a good suit, but the jacket unbuttoned and the tie and collar unblocked, standing in front of the Wonder Bar (photo ref found at http://www.ijamming.net/?p=1161) answers his cellphone.  The cellphone hides his face.

MAN:  Da?

RUIZ (over the phone):  Termino.

MAN:  Spasibo.

Murder Book - Too Many Killers Spoils the Hit - J.D. Coughlan

Panel 1: Harry, a middle-aged, weather-beaten guy getting out of his car in a parking garage, grim expression on his face. He is dressed all in black.

FRANK (O.P.): Harry?

Panel 2: Harry turns to see Frank, a friend, approaching him. Frank is softer looking than Harry; doughier and more friendly despite his confused expression. He is also dressed in black.

FRANK: What the hell are you doing here at this time of night?

Panel 3:  Over Harry's shoulder. Frank, now caught up with Harry, has a shocked expression on his face.

HARRY: I, uh...

FRANK: Oh my god, you were gonna kill Bob!

Panel 4: Two-shot of Frank and Harry. In the background is a tall apartment building. Harry is feigning shock.

HARRY: What!?

FRANK: Ah, c'mon. It's no secret you want the bastard dead. The whole company does.

Panel 5: Same shot. Harry has a more serious expression. Frank looks a little guilty.

HARRY: That'll be why you're here too, then?

FRANK: The... The guy's scum and you know it.

Panel 6: Same shot. Frank offers his hand. Harry is thinking.

FRANK: Look, now we're both here, let's--

Panel 7: Long panel taking up the bottom row. Same shot, but now the building in the background has exploded. Both men look at it in surprise.

SFX: BOOM

END OF PAGE

Murder Book – The Murder Process – Shaun Richens.

Please bear with me this week. My script is a curve ball.

The whole page is in black and white, with a blue tint over it.

PAGE ONE

9 PANEL GRID

1. A MAN sits at a desk, a computer screen in front of him, his back to us; the screen illuminates the room with an artificial blue tint. A silenced pistol is being held to his temple, the SHOOTER holds the pistol with a gloved hand, and all we can see of him is his arm coming in from right of panel.

A grilled cheese sandwich sits half eaten on the desk.

         SHOOTER (0.P):

         Send it already.

2. A close up on the computer screen. We can see the contents of an email about to be sent.

The email reads:

So I am afraid to say the next one will have to be my last.

Kind regards

That’s is all that can be seen.

3. The cursor sits over the send button.

         SFX:

         CLICK.

         MAN (O.P):

         It’s done.

4. The man sat at the computer has turned to face the shooter. He is in profile. We can now make out that it is comic creator KURTIS J. WIEBE. The shooter is still aiming his gun but remains unseen.

        KURTIS:

Now what? I did what you asked? I’m no longer part of The Process.

SHOOTER (O.P):

Put this on.

5. The shooter is handing Kurtis a strange looking watch. It has a number of different clock faces on it and a digital read out on the top and bottom.

The read out says 10/5/1940.

         SHOOTER 1:

         I’m not going to kill you.

         (LINK)

         SHOOTER 2:

         But lets see how long you last in occupied France.

6. A close up on Kurtis, despite everything he can’t help but smile a little bit at what’s being said.

         KURTIS 1:

         Hah. You’re sending me back in time?

         (LINK)

         KURTIS 2:

         Kinda like they are doing in that flick Looper?

7. A shot over the shoulder of Kurtis, he still sits in the chair; however we can see he is wearing the watch. We are looking up towards the shooter. It is a future version of Murder Book creator Ed Brisson. He has a full-grown beard and wears an eye patch over one eye, but it is still clearly him. He still holds the gun put is no longer pointing at Kurtis, in his other hand he holds what looks like a detonator with one large button on top. Brisson looks really pissed off.

         BRISSON 1:

         Looper? Looper? This is nothing like Looper!

         SFX (Around the detonator)

         CLICK.

8. Same shot as 7. However once where Kurtis had sat now just a small cloud of mist floats upwards.

         BRISSON:

         One down.

9. Close up on a sheet that Brisson is holding. The sheet contains three close up headshot photos. One of Kurtis J Wiebe, now crossed out. The other two are of Ryan K Lindsay and Jeremy Holt.

         BRISSON (O.P):

         Two to go.

NEXT ISSUE: Houdini Holt.

Murder Book – Guardian Car Thief – MK Stangeland Jr.

(6 Panels)

Panel 1: Scene is night in a parking lot. A fancy-looking car is sitting by itself, the kind of car a well paid and/or important individual might drive. Off on the far end of the parking lot is a CAR THIEF walking towards the car who is trying his best to look inconspicuous.

Panel 2: The CAR THIEF looks over his shoulder and whistles as he tries to pick the lock of the car seen in PANEL 1.

SFX: (Music note should be seen coming out of the CAR THIEFs mouth as result of his whistling.)

Panel 3: The man is in the drivers seat, about to turn the key in the ignition. He has a smug smile on his face.

CAR THIEF: For such a nice car, you didn’t put much into the security.

SFX: Ver-rr…

PANEL 4: The car explodes spectacularly – the kind of explosion you get as result of a car bomb intended to blow up and kill the occupant upon the ignition starting.

SFX: kr-kc-BOOOOOOM!

PANEL 5: Panel of an office where the CAR OWNER is sitting at a desk. He’s looking up with a shocked look on his face.

PANEL 6: CAR OWNER is looking out a window. He looks even more shocked than before.

CAR OWNER: MY CAR!

CAR OWNER: Who the %#$& blew up my CAR?!

END PAGE

Murder Book- 'Off' Switch -Dan Hill

I may have gone 'off reservation' with this one. The scope is so wide this week and I really wanted to try and do something that would be 'complete' and function by itself as a single page. I also shamelessly 'stole' from Blazing Combat with some of my panel choices. Ahem.

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456
778

Page One

1.1
We OPEN on a CLOSE UP of a ten year old BOY looking towards CAMERA whilst clutching a HUNTING RIFLE nervously. He’s dressed in a thick, warm looking lumberjack shirt and a woolen hat. Cold breath shoots from his mouth. The gloved hand of an ADULT rests on his shoulder reassuringly.

ADULT (OFF)

Go on son, you can do it.

1.2
Nothing but black.

ADULT (TAILLESS)

Do it--

SFX

BLAM

1.3
CUT TO a CLOSE UP on the same boy, now eighteen. His head is shaved and he’s wearing the fatigues of a U.S Marine.

On the left of the panel we can see the shoulder of a DRILL SERGEANT. Behind the boy we can see other RECRUITS, all facing forwards, backs ramrod straight.

DRILL SERGEANT (OFF)

--do as I say and repeat after me--

1.4
CUT TO the boy, now a bit older. He’s wearing desert combat gear and lying prone, looking down the scope of a HIGH POWERED RIFLE (the barrel pointing towards CAMERA).

RADIO

--take the shot--

1.5
FIXED PANEL. The boy, now older, continues to look down the scope, now dressed in jungle combat gear.

RADIO

--take the shot--

1.6
FIXED PANEL. The boy, older still, continuing to look down that scope, the combat gear now suited to arctic climes.

RADIO

--take the shot.

(link)

Do it--

1.7
CUT TO to a CLOSE UP on the boy, now an empty shell of a man looking towards CAMERA, clutching a HUNTING RIFLE. He’s dressed in a thick, warm looking lumberjack shirt and a woollen hat. He has spatters of blood across his vacant face and there are no reassuring hands on his shoulder. Above him a helicopter shines its SPOTLIGHT on him. Behind him we can see we’re in a shopping mall.

LOUDHAILER (OFF)

Don’t do it, son. Don’t do--

1.8
Black. Nothing.

SFX

BLAM

Murder Book - Don't Quit Your Day Job - Ben Rosenthal

1.  Night on a highway. A man drives as sits behind the wheel of his car.  He has just noticed the police car behind him, sirens flashing indicating for him to pull over. The man looks annoyed.

DRIVER

Oh come on.

2. The police officer is standing next to the car. The man is looking out the driver's window.

POLICE OFFICER

License and registration please sir.

DRIVER

What, was I a little over the limit?

3. Inside the car. Without the police officer noticing, the driver has his hand on a gun.

DRIVER

Why don't you go and catch some actual criminals?

4. The Police Officer has his gun pointed at the Driver's head.

5. Not really a panel, but a large sound effect graphic.

Sfx: BANG!

6. The Police Officer is walking away from the car on his mobile. The dead body of the Driver is slumped on the wheel.

POLICE OFFICER

It's done.

Murder Book - Try the Beef - Grant McLaughlin

1 – Tiffany and Brad (original characters, both early thirties) sit across from each other at their dinner table. Brad is noticeably overweight. He wears business casual clothes, but they are dirty. Sweat stains are clear under his armpits, his shirt is not tucked in, his tie is loosened, and his topmost shirt buttons are undone. Unshaven, he looks like, while he used to be an attractive man, he no longer takes pride in his appearance. Tiffany is not much better off. She looks permanently tired and worn, run down by the struggles of life. While she is still made up, it's clear that she is also not as attractive as she once was. Brad eats some food – his plate is almost completely empty. Flushed, Brad leans back, hand on his full stomach. He wears a satisfied grin on his face, but it's not terribly warm. Tiffany doesn't have a plate or any tableware in front of her. She sits with a bored, unhappy expression on her face.  There's a serving plate between the two that is virtually empty, all the food having been eaten.  A doorway to the front hall is visible in the background, along with an end table in said hall.

BRAD (1): Ooh, I'm stuffed.

BRAD (2): Are you sure you don't want any? I feel bad having so many helpings of your dinner when you're not even eating.

TIFFANY: I'm fine.

2 – Tiffany's neutral expression remains.  She looks directly at Brad.  Brad is stunned by her words. His flush increases, as does his sweating.

TIFFANY: I don't love you, Brad.

BRAD: W-what?

TIFFANY: It's been a while now.  I thought maybe we could work things out.

3 – Tiffany's expression is unchanged.  She looks down towards Brad's plate.  Brad moves a hand to his throat, having difficulty breathing.

TIFFANY (1): It's a shame that the meat was off.

TIFFANY (2): I understand that botulism isn't a pretty way to go.

4 – Tiffany is up and walking towards the front door. Brad tries to follow her down the front hall. His eyes are bugging out and his grip on his throat is tightening. He stumbles into that end table seen in panel 1, which has some pictures on it.  The misstep knocks it and him over.

TIFFANY: It's also too bad that I was away on business this weekend.  If I'd been around, maybe this tragedy could have been avoided.

5 - Brad lies face down on the carpet. The table is overturned, the pictures scattered all over the floor. One lies next to him. Face up, it is a picture of Brad and Tiffany on their wedding day. The room is dark and the frame's glass is broken, but it's still clear that in the picture Brad and Tiffany look much healthier than they do presently. Brad has an athletic body and Tiffany is positively radiant. The biggest difference, however, is that both of them smile happily.

NO COPY

Why Murder Book?

Because sometimes you want to walk on the dark side of things.

From the Murder Book website:

“Murder book” is a term used by detectives to refer to a case file on a homicide investigation. Murder books typically include crime scene photographs and sketches, autopsy and forensic reports, transcripts of investigator’s notes and witness interviews. They chronicle the life of a case from the time the murder is reported until an arrest is made.

Ed Brisson writes a mean crime story, and he's got a number of crime mini-anthologies to prove it.  While they're named after the detective's tool, his tales are more often than not focused on the other side of the law.  Criminals big and small populate his comics, living out different scenarios of depravity and illicit activities.

If you're looking for some awful intense stories of degeneracy,  crime, and yes, murder, then Murder Book is the comic for you.  There's little uniting these stories beyond their general subject matter and the quality writing and art that goes into each and every one, but that's a big part of the fun.

I'll read pretty much anything as long as it's good (which Murder Book definitely is), but the stories Brisson and company tell are outside of my usual type of writing.  Fortunately, part of what we try to do here at Thought Balloons is to challenge ourselves, so I'm picking something that's outside of my comfort zone.

Did I succeed?  You'll have to tell me.

It's also a nice bit of symmetry after last week's pick, because while most of the stories were self-published, Murder Book also appeared as a backup feature in Near Death #8 through #11.

As always, if you're wanting to throw your hat into the ring this week, you're more than welcome to do so.  If you'd like to play-at-home, feel free to leave your page in the comments here.

And should you be unfamiliar with these brilliant stories, Brisson has kindly put up plenty of his work at the Murder Book website here.