Endtown by Aaron Neathery for November 02, 2012

The community’s closeWho has she to thank?Could it be one moroseEndtowner named Hank?Hank Stillwell’s in scenesOn the very first dayHe wasn’t worth beansAs they gave him awayFacing cans on a shelfHe went off his nutAnd he offered himself:“Perfect specimen!”But…=|====/ Level HeadVote for Endtown 2.0And for Doc Rat, tooThe Endtown ForumThe Endtown AuctionThe Endtown Books

It seems she’s going to really learn how the other side lived. Yes, I did mean to use the past tense.

Could this have been Ed or Leo’s old place?

Nice calm settlement for someone who was a topsider. joke intended.Did the community know she was. Blessed Be

Watched a great movie last night. Rented. Called " IN TIME". Illogical .But well acted.Blessed Be.

no irony here…

Give me a break! We’ve only gotten 28 panels into a new story and you’re already whining? Jeez. Go read Marmaduke already.

“I’m counting on AN here for something worthwhile. So far, it’s more than a little daytime soap-opera-ish.”You can absolutely count on AN for an excellent story, at any time, and time and time again. He is exceptionally skilled at narrative, and he has never let us down. For now, just enjoy the variation in pace. Let Linda have a comfy bed. Let her have new friends. Let the emotions come flooding in, and let her feel a sympathetic arm around her shoulder, I mean really touching her, without a biosuit in the way.AN has a wonderful grasp of the storyteller’s medium. When the setting is outlandish, the action is spectacular. When the setting is mundane, the drama is psychological.My advice: Relax, and expect a punch in the gut when you least expect it.

This is the descent for Linda. She really needs a friend who knows what she was to pop around.

Maybe even a married Cat and Mouse? It HAS been three months.

Even though she’s had 3 months of intense training that is not the same as the actual experience. It does seem to be sinking in, though. The poor kid who lived here before may have been someone you helped harvest, Linda.

What’s the landlady’s name? Daisy? Elsie? Moo-rial?

Is it bad to ask the landlord for some fresh milk for your cereal in the morning? I’d ask for a cup of sugar, but she’s not a sugar cane mutant.

Annnnnd guilt trip in 3, 2, 1…

@JennerCome to think of it. . . Maybe a nice collaboration piece for you and AN. Holly, Flask (new and improved, out of the uniform and into something a little nicer) and the Video Carnival girl. A ladies’ night out piece? Just thinking “out loud.”

“You guys, . . .I mean. . Topsiders got him. Enjoy your stay.”

Man. Looks like even honest friendship is going to be hard for Linda to come by…sooner or later, something like this will come up, and get in the way. Tune in Monday…

Also, re: Panel Two…I guess it was “Endtown Housing Commission” on Linda’s papers after all…

At least Linda has one fan (panel 4) ;-)That room seems simple, but comfy. Love the detail.

Hot plate, fan, and mattress on the floor, the perfect starter studio apartment. Is the plumbing down the hall?

Hope there is a stepladder for that upper cabinet.

I get the feeling Linda is about to start truly understanding what it’s been like for the Endtowners to live under constant fear of their own demise because of people like her. My guess is that she was assigned to this particular place (in the midst of a housing crunch) for a reason…after all, where do newer Endtowners come from?

Here’s a thought. Given the cold-war mentality of many Americans in the 50’s and 60’s, what are the odds that a few paranoid Hillsiders had built bomb shelters in their backyards prior to The End? The bombs start flying, a few of the Hillsiders are still at home at the time and run into their shelters, and wait. They turn on their radios or TVs, which work for a few minutes then there’s nothing. Obviously, the worst has happened, so they stay in their bunkers and keep waiting. They get lucky – their air recycling system works properly and they can sit snug. Eventually, the food runs out, or the water. Maybe they had planned really long-term and had several year’s worth of supplies stockpiled. Energy generators, too, which weren’t wiped out. There wouldn’t be too many people lasting this long, but you only need one or two. Finally, their resources exhausted, and assuming they have a way to get past all the dust above them, they open the airlock to escape outside…

Wait till Linda starts checking the Apt and finding his belongings.I know how I felt when I got to Nam and took up residence in the bunker. I was given the place my predecessor had slept and lived in. He was killed two days before. His stuff was still there. It was left to me to pack it. Man that was hard. Family photos, letters not finished. I choke back the tears now.Linda’s situation is worse. She was part of the group that killed him. Ohhhhhhhh. If she feels nothing that would surprize me.

In the cow landlady expression you can see the wartime mentality expressed perfectly Jovial at times and serious at others. Laughing and joking down the hall till approaching the room to let Linda in. The laughing and joking turned to respectfulness, somberness, and remembering a lost one.

Linda just ot a taste of reality. Never judge another person – one day you may be walking in their shoes….

I hope Linda is now starting to see the real era of her ways.

To starliliesOr sleeping in their bed. That I can tell you is a creepy feeling as I have done it. (Nam of course) I would suggest Febreeze, new sheets, pillows, matress. (You can still smell the previous occupant even in the room)

I think Wally’s orientation period was probably shorter because he had been a mutant for several years and was used to it. Linda is a new mutant (not an ex-man) and had a lot more to learn about her body’s changes. You thought puberty was a challenge.

and watch – it’ll turn out to be Linda that got him

Interesting. . .looking back over the last few days, the outside of the building is vastly more run down than the inside. The inside actually seems very clean and in great repair. She even has curtains, can’t say it’s too bad if you have curtains. Furniture could be a tad better though. On another note, the landlord doesn’t have udders, got human breasts instead—not surprised cosidering Allie, Flask, Holly, etc.

Check out the backpacks.Wally’s look just like her’s. He was already accepted as a mutant just from another settlement. Probably wandering the surface from camp to camp surviving as he went. There are probably more like him in the various ruins and debris. That is why that satellite is so important to the Topsiders. It controls the surface. Forces others to underground. How many other places underground like Endtown? One time when Prof Mallard became aware there was a room he went in that listed four places by name. I wonder were they other settlements similar to Endtown or just other settlements in contact for mutual defense. We know there are other settlements from Al and Gustine. When Al and his buddy found only beans a note was left by other foragers ribbing them about the tamales. It was signed Epsilon 2

Night Gaunt49 Need a missile? They can put it into a shipping container. Transport it to anywhere. Put it on the dock. Load on a truck. Drive to down town anywhere. Driver parks truck and leaves. When out of range detonate.The hold of a ship sitting in harbor.Who needs missiles? Let free world trade no restrictions or inspections become the rule. They could already be on soil sitting in the mass of containers on a loading dock. Or in a ships hold sitting at a dock. You would never know they are there.The only issue is having the correct combination of explosives to insure proper detonation. To be perfect it has to be exact. A gram a degree off one way or the other produces a big boom with radiation debris but not the thermal nuclear event desired.At the start of the atomic age they had three bombs. One they detonated because it had to be tested to see if it works. Well there was Trinity. They had two more a big fat one based on one form of detonation and a slim one based on another form. One hit Hiroshima the other Nagasaki. Then that was all anyone had. There were no more and it would have taken months to build even one more. The slim became the better design so it was the acceptable. Small core surrounded by explosive plates. All angles and force lines calculated to the 1000th of an inch or degree.Just having enhanced uranium does not mean one has perfected the device. They have the fuel but have to be precise in the detonation sequence. It is the THREAT that one deals from. Can you imagine the surprize if Trinity did not work? Just a big poof?

REALLY BIG BOOM!Respect obtained.

Again MrSherman you are on the mark.I see the same story.This is cutsey with animals on parade. (You know what I mean)Our reality would be a far worse senario.

And MrshermanI am far more scared of the biologics and chemicals than atomic.Remember I was stationed at Fort Greeley Alaska. We tested that stuff. I moved and transported bombs marked VX. In a chemical suit fully breathing contained. It was that scary that I had to fear something like a metal bomb. Supposedly clean out side VX inside. So why all the concern. I knew why and loved the suit.In Endtown we have both. Aimsworth Radiation and an even worse mutagenic virus. Two horsemen of an Apocolypse.

Just read this on the enews. Electrical repairmen from Alabama were sent home from the ravaged areas hit by the storm because of UNION ISSUES. They arent union so go home. Union folks up there dont want those Non union workers helping. Wow!!!!

“Are you sure about that time frame? It takes weeks in our time to see all that AN has to tell us about what passes in just an hour or two in his universe.”If you’re referring to my comment about 28 panels, then yup. Linda showed up a week ago Thursday. Two days from that week and the 5 from this give 7 day’s worth of strips, at 4 panels each. I was going to state also that it took 6 months for Countdown to really develop, but felt it would have been wasted on him. (If you’re referring to my other post about Leo and Ed getting dusted 4 months ago, then not really. I don’t know how long Wally had been in Endtown before Flask recruited him. It had to have been at least 1 month to recover from the cracked skull, and to spend enough time with Holly. Then there’s Linda’s 3 month orientation. So, a minimum of 4 months, but I’d say closer to 6.)

Just gotta hop in here for a sec and say how much i love this strip. Endtown is like nothing else I’ve found. And I’m still looking! Compelling stuff…four panels at a time.

“Also they would be using machines and energies that could easily be turned into weapons should they be attacked.”America has Twinkies and the Atkins Diet! We’re unbeatable now, baby!

I read a series of books like that along time ago. I cant remember the name but it dealt with a multiverse earth. The premise was time is a multilane high way going in one direction. Each lane is an earth. Some keep going some just end but you could change lanes with some kind of devise. But out of the thousands of earths only a few hundred made it. Similar but different. Several where Hitler won the war. Others where Hitler never occured. Each was the same but somewhat different. The hero found himself being delivered to lanes where there was outside interference needing to be cleanesed out. He had this odd weapon that used natural items to operate. It was that bad types figured out how to jump lanes and were invading other lines stealing resource. He was enlisted to help stop them and restore the lanes. As if one lane had issues it would jam up the whole highway of multilanes.

The aliens will never come. They dont want to be infected. Remember Mars Attacks. We would try to figure how to make money on em.

The landlady must be from California.They have contented cows there. I wonder if she is one of the artists for Chick Fil A?Of course she could be a JERSEY girl. Like on Jersey ShoreShe does have a big butt like most Kardashians.(And to think they (K )girls think it looks good. My God you could use it to hold your beer like a side table.)

They could sure use some downsized facilities in Endtown. When it comes to mutants, one size definitely does not fit all!

And they lived happily heifer after.

Robyn, email me @juno.com

I meant to spell “favorite”. I get fat-fingered at times.

It is know there is a criminal element in Endtown. Wally got his pack stolen. It seems crazy that in a area like Endtown in a small space that crime could occure. And what would be the purpose? What could a refugee have? Sometimes you can be surprized. But what would gold, jewelry bring? Money would appear to have no value. What is value is your work and what you can give to the society. Travel is highly restricted. Not everyone can get surface. If there are other means to get topside it has not been discussed. I find it strange they produce alcoholic beverages over food production. You have to have mash to produce moonshine but it has been shown that between food and alcohol it is alcohol usually wins out. They have police and security forces. I imagine the worst problems would be those caught up in th schims of mutation. Drunkness. Catnip abuse. Probably others not mentioned. Everything is rationed so there may be a Blackmarket operation but it would be hard to hide so it may run openly. It occures now and did even in our wartimes. My dad told of a time they needed a new tire on the car and how my grandpa made a deal to get the tire outside of the restrictions because they had a C ration car which meant no need. So Blackmarkets would run probalby in Endtown. And with Blackmarket would come a criminal element. It is just what is of value in Endtown. Money? Jewels? Gold?. I imagine Food would be of value. Especially rare stuff like meat if still in an operational deep freeze. Something other than beans. Ramen maybe. Soup. It is not discussed what Topsiders eat. I imagine they grow or produce their own food as they would not trust anything on the surface due to contamination. Their main search seems to be mutant hunting and technology parts and equipment. I believe there has to be weapon caches around. Rats have guns. Flask found a big gun so they must be available. Other settlements may rely on them more so than energy based weapons. It may have been six years but I have seen AK47 over 40 years old function perfectly. They would be good trading material. Moral behaviors may also be an issue. Prostitution would be one. It would have to be controlled due to the diseases that can be transmitted. Europe controls the issue while America and others force it into the underground which makes it a criminal behavior so disease is problem. One can not fight ones natural urges. They are essential to our mental stability. It takes a great deal of effort to ignore those drives. Endtown would make a good study of sociology. I noticed one thing not mentioned is seeing or hearing of religion. In all the views of Endtown some not seening all I did not see a church like place. It may be there but not seen. I would pity the minister or padre or rabbi that would have to tell people how this is a good thing. Many may think God is laughing at them or hates them.

That’s what I like about this strip. The main contributers here feel free to share opinions that may appear to have nothing in common with the strip, yet to me show awareness of core underlying issues. For example: To me, Flask was one dimensional until she heard the word “Blackie”. Then it was a completely different situation. She became real. When Aaron Marx asked her what was going on, we ALL wanted to know, because somehwere along the way, we all became concerend.We wanted to know what made her tick. In the same way we want to know what makes Mr. Neathery’s world of Endtown tick. From that we discuss what’s happening there and here and remarking on the human nature of it because no matter what they look like, they’re all human (including the topsiders) and they’re going to act like humans in their situations.