Art - Ben Rosenthal and Mike Perry

So here is the thing - I really loved my Nightcrawler script for this week.  So much so I asked my artist in crime Mike Perry if he would mind drawing it.  We figured that it would be a good thing to include in our portfolio.
He didn't answer me back until a few hours later when this appeared in my inbox.  I was blown away, not only by the awesome art, but at seeing Mike try his hand at super heroes for the first time in the almost 2 years we have been working together.
I'm hoping this will inspire other artists to draw some scripts here at Thought Balloons.  It is something we could use more of.

Oh, if you want to see more of Mike and my work check out Man in Suit Comics and Squared Circle Wrestling.

Nightcrawler - Apostle's Creed - R.A. Wonsowski

Layout:
1122
3344
5566
7788

Panel op stands in front of the altar in his best ceremonial robes, his hands outstretched over the prostrate novitiate on the marble steps before him.  We can tell by the two-toed feet and blue prehensile pointed tail sticking out of the novitiate's plain white robe towards us that this new priest is NIGHTCRAWLER.

CAPTION (top of panel):  I believe in God Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth...

CAPTION (bottom of panel):   And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord...


Panel 2 - P.O.V. looking up from inside a well, we see MYSTIQUE dropping the woven basket that holds a crying baby Kurt Wagner as it tumbles down toward us end over end.

CAPTION (top of panel):  Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit...

CAPTION (bottom of panel):  Born of the Virgin Mary...


Panel 3 - Young NIGHTCRAWLER running from the Bavarian villagers (a la his first appearance in Giant Size X-Men #1)

CAPTION (top of panel):  Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, died and was buried...

CAPTION (bottom of panel):  He descended into Hell...


Panel 4 - Close-up on a photo on a fireplace mantel:  Professor X in his wheelchair, with NIGHTCRAWLER poised on the wheelchair arm.  Both men are laughing in the picture, like they are sharing a hilarious private joke.

CAPTION (top of panel):  On the third day he rose again...

CAPTION (bottom of panel):  To be seated at the right hand of the Father...


Panel 5 - Action shot, NIGHTCRAWLER "bamf"-ing in, leading ANGEL (on the left) and PHOENIX (on the right) through explosions.

CAPTION (top of panel):  He shall come to judge the quick and the dead...

CAPTION (bottom of panel):  I believe in the Holy Spirit...


Panel 6 - Kurt's birthday (as shown by the cake towards the foreground.  NIGHTCRAWLER (wearing a jeri-curled afro) and WOLVERINE (mask off) have their arms around each other's shoulders, laughing hysterically.  Kurt is holding an unwrapped box with the ribbons hanging off.  Inside the box is a leather wallet that resembles the one belonging to Jules in "Pulp Fiction" (available at http://www.amazon.com/Pulp-Fiction-BMF-Embroidered-Leather/dp/B0037BQVJI ); the leather stamping reads "B.A.M.F."

CAPTION (top of panel):  The holy Catholic church...

CAPTION (bottom of panel):  The communion of saints...


Panel 7 - NIGHTCRAWLER stands behind MYSTIQUE, who is on her knees, weeping over the side of a ship as she scatters Destiny's ashes at sea.  His hand is on her shoulder.  The sky is the pink orange of sunset.

CAPTION (top of panel):  The forgiveness of sins...

CAPTION (bottom of panel):  The resurrection of the body...


Panel 8 - Looking down at the kneeling NIGHTCRAWLER, now ordained into the priesthood, in the cathedral, his arms and open hands outstretched, his face upturned, his blue-impish face smiling beatifically heavenward.

CAPTION (top of panel):  And life everlasting...

NIGHTCRAWLER:  Amen.

Nightcrawler - Blink Of An Eye - Niel Jacoby

Panel 1: Arcade is walking warily through the hall of mirrors with a gun in his hand.

Arcade: I'M WARNING YOU, IF YOU DON'T COME OUT, I'LL HAVE TO HUNT YOU DOWN!

Panel 2: We see Nightcrawler's image in a few of the mirrors.

SFX: BAMF!

Nightcrawler: AH, MEIN HERR, YOU WILL HAVE A TOUGH TIME OF THAT.
(link)
AFTER ALL, YOU MAY SPEND AN HOUR TRACKING ME, AND YOU'LL BE WITHIN A SCHWEIN'S TAIL OF MY HIDING SPACE...

SFX: BAMF!

Panel 3: Nightcrawler's image is now on a different variety of mirrors. Arcade is getting antsy.

Nightcrawler: AND, ACH DU LEIBER, WITHIN THE BLINK OF AN EYE, I'M SOMEWHERE ELSE ENTIRELY.
(link)
AND THEN, EVEN BEFORE YOU KNOW IT...

Inset Panel: Close on Arcade's startled face.

SFX: BAMF!

Panel 4: Nightcrawler is right behind Arcade, and has applied a sleeper hold.

Nightcrawler: ...I'M RIGHT BEHIND YOU.

Nightcrawler - The Greatest Show on Earth - J.D. Coughlan

Five long horizontal panels.

Panel 1: The entrance to a circus tent. A poster advertises "The Incredible Nightcrawler!" and has a picture of Kurt in a flamboyant costume, surrounded by those little clouds he leaves behind when he teleports, implying he's 'porting all over the place. Several customers pile into the tent. Their speech balloons should overlap and consist of the following:

BALLOON 1: Yeah, yeah, just another weirdo in costume...

BALLOON 2: --effects! It's all special effects. Wires and s--

BALLOON 3: I wanna see clowns, Mommy, this looks bor--

BALLOON 4: --waste of money. I live in New York, I see stranger stuff--

BALLOON 5: --only here ironically. Y'know, to laugh at it.

Panel 2: Same, but the crowd is disappearing into the tent, only a few of them visible. Off to the side, there is a shadowy figure (who can also be in Panel 1, but less distinct).

BALLOON 6: (small) ...probably not even stay for the whole thing.

Panel 3: Same, but now the crowd has totally vanished. The shadowy figure looks up, and we see it is Kurt, grinning.

KURT: Showtime!

Panel 4: Same, but now Kurt has teleported away and left a little cloud behind him.

SFX: BAMF

Panel 5: Same, but now the crowd is slowly emerging from the tent. It is the same customers from above, but now totally wide-eyed and speechless.

CAPTION: Several hours later...

END OF PAGE

Nightcrawler – The Book of Wagner – MK Stangeland Jr.

(6 Panels)

Panel 1: NIGHTCRAWLER sits on a cliffside overlooking an ocean, while MAGNETO floats above the ground behind him – the location is probably on UTOPIA.

MAGNETO: Tell me, Nightcrawler, how do you do it?

NIGHTCRAWLER: Was?

MAGNETO: Your faith. In spite of all you face, even from those of the same beliefs, how do you maintain it?

Panel 2: NIGHTCRAWLER ‘bamf’s so that he’s standing next to MAGNETO, with one hand on MAGNETO’s shoulder. MAGNETO has turned his head a little – the impression the image should give is that MAGNETO was startled by NIGHTCRAWLER’s change in position, but is doing his best to hide this.

SFX: BAMF

NIGHTCRAWLER: It is because my beliefs and my faith are not in those who follow it, but in who I follow.

Panel 3: NIGHTCRAWLER backs off a little as MAGNETO brushes NIGHTCRAWLER’s hand off his shoulder.

NIGHTCRAWLER: Who am I to let misguided followers of my religion dictate what I believe?

Panel 4: NIGHTCRAWLER, upper body.

NIGHTCRAWLER (1): Who knows, perhaps they even have it backwards.

NIGHTCRAWLER (2): Rather than being an affront to God, perhaps Mutants are instead meant to be agents of God.

NIGHTCRAWLER (3): Is it truly any greater stretch of faith to believe that our powers come from God than to believe that humanity has grown from Neanderthal to Human to beings with such amazing and vast powers simply by genetic mutation?

NIGHTCRAWLER (4): Nein, sage ich.

Panel 5: Panel is positioned behind NIGHTCRAWLER and MAGNETO as they look out across the ocean.

NIGHTCRAWLER (1): The Old Testiment speaks of Judges, humans gifted as to protect God’s people from harm.

NIGHTCRAWLER (2): Perhaps, in truth, we Judges for the modern era – sent to protect others.

Panel 6: Close up on MAGNETO’s head as he contemplates what NIGHTCRAWLER has said.

MAGNETO: Not entirely unlike what Charles believes.

NIGHTCRAWLER (1): (Off-panel) Ja.

NIGHTCRAWLER (2): (Off-panel) Perhaps.

END PAGE

Nightcrawler -Leader Of The Pack -Dan Hill

So, I kind of jammed together Starjammers, Thunderbolts and The Exiles. This is what came out the other side.

PAGE ONE

1.1
We OPEN on a SKRULL PILOT going about his business at the controls of a starship. He presses a few buttons on the control console in front of him.

1 PILOT: Roger, we are on course for arrival in--

2 SFX BAMF

1.2
Push in on the pilot as he turns, sniffing the air. What IS that?

3 RADIO: Empire’s Hope, are you there? Your ETA?

4 PILOT: What is that smell?

1.3
CUT to a POV shot of NIGHTCRAWLER standing before the pilot, arms folded, a wide grin across his face. He wears a kind of lo-fi body armour (think the Marines in Aliens) that's coloured and made up to look like his original costume from Uncanny. He also has a leather holster on his hip with a LASER PISTOL inside it.

A small dark cloud settles behind him, indicating he’s teleported aboard from a nearby vessel.

5 NIGHTCRAWLER: Guten tag, mein freund. This is your lucky day.

6 NIGHTCRAWLER: You are carrying Kree slaves in your hold and I am willing to relieve you of this ungodly burden.  

1.4
Back on the pilot, defiant and grinning.

7 PILOT: Fool. This ship’s crew were hand picked by-

1.5
Back on Nightcrawler, he holds his hand out in a ‘see for yourself’ gesture.

8 NIGHTCRAWLER: Ah, enschuldigung. Where are my manners. Introductions first, ja?

9 NIGHTCRAWLER: My name is Kurt Wagner. This is my flock.


1.6
Wide panel.  In the foreground of the shot is the Skrull pilot sitting at the controls still, his back to us. In front of him, in the background of the panel, standing in front of the ship’s viewscreen are NEBULA, PHILIP JAVERT (alternate universe version of THE SWORDSMAN), CALLISTO (from the AOA universe) and WILSON FISKE (Kingpin from the 1601 universe). 

They are all dressed in similar kind of body armour, a strange hybrid of lo-fi protection and swashbuckling derring do.
Fiske is holding a comatose SKRULL WARRIOR by the scruff of his neck, with another one slung over his shoulder casually.

Little dark clouds settle behind all of them, indicating Nightcrawler has teleported them in.

10 CAP(NIGHTCRAWLER): “I believe they’ve already met yours.”

Nightcrawler - Night Games - Grant McLaughlin

Despite being a big Nightcrawler fan, I had the hardest time finding a point of entry to the character.  I don't know if I actually figured one out, but this is what I ended up with.

1 - Establishing shot of the Superdome.  It's Super Bowl Sunday and the game is in full swing.

CAPTION (NIGHTCRAWLER): As much as I enjoy seeing Beyoncé swing her hips, are we certain that the Brotherhood is actually planning on causing trouble this evening?

2 - Shot of Nightcrawler, Wolverine, and Colossus sitting in the stands amongst other fans.  Wolverine has a beer and some nachos, Colossus also has a beer and is reaching to have some of Wolverine's nachos, and Nightcrawler appears a little bored.

WOLVERINE: That's what our intel said, but I'm with ya.  The only trouble I see right now is San Fran's bumbling down on the field.

3-5 - Shot of the field as the Ravens and 49ers are setting up for play.  The image is divided into three panels.  Panel 3 has all the power on, panel 4 has some of the lights going down, and panel 5 has the power off (and for comic book sake, we'll go with it being darker than it was in real life).

NO COPY

6 - Wolverine, Colossus, and Nightcrawler sit in the same spot as panel 2, but it is now way darker.  Colossus has paused just before taking a bite of the nacho that he grabbed from Wolverine.  The three men look concerned.

NIGHTCRAWLER: It appears we may have spoken too soon.

7 - Wolverine and Colossus are standing up, moving towards the stairs.  Nightcrawler is already teleporting away to see what the problem is.

WOLVERINE: Let's move.

NIGHTCRAWLER: I'll see you down there.

SFX: BAMF

Nightcrawler - And Now You Know - Ben Rosenthal

1.  Nightcrawler and Wolverine are in the midst of a fierce battle.  They are backed up against a wall, with enemy robots moving in for the kill.

WOLVERINE

There’s no choice, Elf.  You’re gonna have to ‘port us in blind .

NIGHTCRAWLER

I can’t Logan.  You know the risks.

2.  A young Wolverine and Logan are standing out the front of two doors at the Xavier institute.  One door says ‘Girls Change room.’  The door next to is is cut off by the panel, however it is identical.

YOUNG WOLVERINE

You can really teleport in there without knowing where you’re going?

YOUNG NIGHTCRAWLER

Sure.  What’s the worst that can happen?

3.  Young Wolverine is a little taken aback by Nightcrawler’s ‘BAMF’ as he teleports.

sfx: BAMF

4.  A wider panel showing the door next to the girl’s change room.  It reads ‘Boys Change Room’.  Wolverine is grimacing at the cry coming from the boys room.

YOUNG NIGHTCRAWLER (coming from the boys change room)

NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIN!

Nightcrawler – Juliet and John – Shaun Richens.

PAGE SEVEN – 7 PANELS.

Layout.

123

444

567

1. Close up on JOHN. He looks concerned about the situation unfolding in front of him.

         JOHN:

         Get me the hell into that room Hammer.

2. Cut to a close up of HAMMER.

         HAMMER:

         There’s no need to bring hell into this.

3. Cut to close up on JOHN’s hand as he grabs at HAMMER’s arm.

         JOHN:

         Now Hammer.

4. We are looking through one-way glass into a plain white interrogation room.

A small cloud of dark blue smoke floats in the air on our side of the interrogation room glass.

A steel table sits in the centre of the room. JULIET sits handcuffed to a steel chair on the right of the table; DEAD OF NIGHT sits opposite her. A thick steel door situated behind DEAD OF NIGHT is flung open and LADY LIGHTNING stands in the doorway, electricity leaping up and down her arms, which she has pointed towards JULIET.

         SFX (Around the smoke)

         BAMF!

DEAD OF NIGHT:

My dear Lady Lightning see if you can spark up some conversation here.

5. Cut to close up on LADY LIGHTNING. She has rolled her eyes back slightly as she can’t believe the awful puns I am making DEAD OF NIGHT say.

         LADY LIGHTNING:

         <Sigh>

6. JOHN and HAMMER appear in front of LADY LIGHTNING in a plume of dark blue smoke.

         LADY LIGHTNING:

         What the…?

7. JOHN’s fist connecting with LADY LIGHTNING’s jaw as he knocks her out.

         SFX (Around impact)

         CRAKK.         

Why Nightcrawler?

Because teleportation is a fun power to get to play with.

Ok perhaps that is a slightly simplified answer but it’s the one that instantly springs to mind.

Teleportation is a great storytelling device to play with (despite what movies like Jumper may have taught us!) and I want us here at Thoughtballoons, and any writers who want to join us at home to prove.

Nightcrawler or has his friends know him Kurt (Wagner) also possesses superhuman agility, and adhesive hands and feet. However he is in fact for more than just a cool set of powers.

As an X-Men fan for years I have always had a lot of love for Nightcrawler. He was always a happy go lucky and fun character to read about, despite being a mutant, who like fellow X-Man Beast had to wear this fact on his sleeve due to the physical manifestation of his mutant DNA. His skin has a purple hue to it, in addition he has two-toed feet and three-fingered hands, yellow eyes, pointed ears, and a prehensile tail, so quite a lot to deal with. In spite of this outward mutation Kurt has used it to become a character who can’t hide from who truly he is, this juxtaposed with his ability to teleport anywhere makes for a rather complex character who in the face of mutant hatred must be happy in himself. This makes for some compelling storytelling.

What's more as practicing German Catholic, Nightcrawler has even more layers to him that are such as his relationship with religion and god in the face of being a mutation which are themes just ripe to be explored.

When you add to this melting pot of character traits his mother Mystique and father Azazel, Nightcrawler makes for a character that draws vast portions of the Marvel X-Men universe together.

So, where will your story take the mutant who can go anywhere?

I leave you with words from the man himself.