Untitled Comic Book Script

(for Eric)

1st Page:


A land quartered into sectors of junk. The land of overlapping rectangles, the land of fragile trash, the land of the eccentric vandals, and the eruptive land.


2nd Page:


Top half:

A flood of people traveling across the border between the land of the fragile trash- spindle chairs, birdcages, wicker, thermometers etc., and the land of eccentric vandals- twisted bicycles, plumbing, buildings interpenetrated with strange holes.


Bottom left:

A young family submits a fragment of junk to the border guards.


Bottom right:

The wooden junk, a cracked Chinese table, is clamped into a huge bending machine.


3rd Page:


Top half:

The bender tears and splinters the junk in a series of close up panels, as it is slowly torn in half. We see the wood grain strain, bend and separate, finally bursting into splinters.


Bottom half:

The family is turned away, dejected, by the guards


4th Page:


Top left:

King of the land of eccentric vandals, a rugged dwarf, holds high a cutting torch.


Top right:

He stands, tiny seeming, on a podium constructed next to a submarine, twisted into a horseshoe shape, and begins to cut.


Bottom left:

A close up of the metal separating


Bottom right:

A close up of a ring of submarine falling away.


5th Page:


Top left:

The king of the land of overlapping rectangles strongly resembles a series of large, interconnected mollusks. He confronts his Census Taker, an obsequious babylike creature. The creature holds a stack of styrofoam cups decorated with intricate illegible diagrams.


Top center:

The king grabs the Census Taker's hand, scattering the cups to the floor.


Top left:

Enraged, eyes goggling, the king crushes the Census Taker's hand in his wide, clam-like jaws.


Bottom:

A styrofoam cup rolls across the floor in a series of three panels (left to right), sequentially revealing a chart of the diaspora from the land of overlapping rectangles to that of the eccentric vandals.


6th Page:


Top left:

The family from the land of fragile trash has returned to the border, this time with a huge piece of filigree.


Top right:

Hopefully, they hand it over to the guards


Center left:

The guards clamp it into the bender again.


Center right:

This time, a twisting force is applied to the junk.


Bottom left:

To the horror of the family, as it twists, pieces of wire fray and snap loose.


Bottom right:

The filigree clamped into the machine, still whole, although held together by only a few wires.


7th Page:


Top half:

The guards carefully inspect the junk, make faces and scratch the backs of their heads.


Bottom half:

To their vast relief, the family is waived across the border.


8th Page:


Splash Panel:

The babylike Census Taker appears at the border, clutching a large, lathe-like device. He carries it easily, as if it weighed nothing.


Inset:

Close-up of his hand on the device. His first and ring fingers have been replaced- his first by a 3-fingered clamp which holds a lump of coal, mechanical pencil style. His ring finger is a small adjustable wrench.


9th Page:


Top left:

The Census Taker stands supplicant before the guards, proffering his lathe for bending.


Top right:

Close-up of the muzzley lips of a border guard whispering in his compatriot's ear- "King's Junk"


Bottom half:

Tiny, the two guards lead the Census Taker in chains past a huge structure, formed by the welding of the rings of the submarine and other assorted objects. Tiny figures work here and there, adding huge new pieces. The picture is captioned: "WELDING FOR ALL"


10th Page:


Top left:

The king of the Land of Eccentric Vandals stands on his platform, the submarine having been completely sliced apart, only the tail and conning tower remaining like an eaten fish.


Top right:

The king dreams of the immense structure the guards and the Census Taker just passed, "finished".


Bottom left:

The Census Taker is brought before the king. Around his neck hangs a sign- "SPY".


Bottom right:

The king grabs the Census Taker's face, and stretches it into a grotesquerie.


11th Page:


Top left:

The king tosses the Census Taker lightly to the ground, and turns to his adoring subjects.


Top right:

He addresses his subjects affectionately-

"Can you see my face? My expression's changed from madness to love."


Bottom left:

The king's hand reaches into a box of welding gloves and masks.


Bottom right:

He flings them into the crowd, who scramble to pick up the gifts.


Twelfth page:


Top half:

The king of the land of overlapping rectangles stands at the border (his junk is not yet visible). Before him is the bending machine.


Bottom half:

A sequential close up of the kings many wrinkles and spiral-folded skin.


Thirteenth Page:


Top half:

A sequential close up of the many pieces of rectilinear garbage which he has brought to the border


Bottom half:

The king, standing before his trash, waits at the border.


Fourteenth Page:


Top left:

Close-up of an adjustable wrench clamped to a bolt.


Top center:

The wrench turns the bolt.


Top right:

The bolt falls away.


Bottom:

The Census Taker sits at the base of the huge submarine structure, rubbing his wrists, He has used his wrench finger to escape a set of massive shackles. The panel is captioned: "WELDING FOR ALL!"


Fifteenth Page:


Top left:

The Census Taker peers at a scene in the distance.


Top right:

The king of eccentric vandals confronts the king of rectangles. They squint at each other with hatred.


Bottom left:

The king of rectangles gestures towards his junk.


Bottom right:

The king of vandals points to a spot behind him.


Sixteenth Page:


Top left:

The submarine structure looms behind the king of vandals, far larger than it has ever appeared. It dwarfs both kings, and a tiny figure can be seen running along its base.


Top right:

The Census Taker dashes towards the border.


Bottom left:

The king of rectangles hangs his head in shame.


Bottom right:

The Census Taker crosses into the eruptive land. Just on the other side of the border, his babylike family waits to receive him, tears in their eyes.

end