The Hobo Society - First Five Pages

2009-01-22T22:03:00.000-08:00

Page 1 (4 panels)

Panel 1

CAP:
Looking back on it all, I should have known what I was getting myself in to.
Distanced shot. Nighttime with no stars or moon. Large teepee style bonfire in a small clearing in the middle of a pine forest. Around the fire are four individuals, three men one woman, all moving convulsively as if in a savage celebration. The fire is as high as the humans. They are dressed in normal clothing (i.e. blue jeans and t-shirts), though quite ragged and stained, with what could be blood.

Panel 2

CAP:
In a village of madmen and murderers, kings and paupers, and soldiers and gods--I was just a civilian.
We have zoomed in now on one of these people (they will be referred to as 'The Savages"). His head is facing up towards the sky and his eyes are rolled back in his head. His mouth is open and quivering slightly. We can see the burning fire and one other Savage in the background.

Panel 3

CAP:
A wanderer who wandered into a world in which he didn't belong.

SFX:
Aeeeiiiiaaaahhhh!!
Both the savage that we focused on in the previous panel, and the one behind him, is now staring straight out at us, eyes wide open.

Panel 4

CAP:
But things change. People change. I changed.
We've pulled out a bit now so that we can see all of the savages. They all have their heads high up in the air, they look like coyotes howling at the moon. There is one large speech bubble in the frame, but four tails extending from it in the direction of each savage.
SAVAGES:
Ahhhyaayaaayaahh!

Page 2 (5 panels)

Panel 1

CAP:

I never thought much of myself before I came to the society. I was just another guy who married too young and became miserable too soon.
We see that another group of four savages is coming out from the dark forest. There are two in front, both women. The two savages behind the woman are carrying a large, burlap sack...with a human leg sticking out over the side of the bag.

Panel 2

CAP:
There was a time when I loved my wife, but the forces of life and mortgages and debt tore us apart.
We see that two of the savages are holding all four ends of the sack and are springing the body into the fire. We don't see very much of the body yet, as it is still blocked by the sack, but we see that it has long, brown hair and thin, feminine legs. The body is clearly that of a woman. We can see all of the other savages standing calmly. They just stare jadedly into the fire.

Panel 3

CAP:
We learned to hate each other.
We have zoomed in closer on the fire, we can only see the heads of some of the savages. We see the woman on the fire becoming surrounded by smoke. She is wearing a white dress that has become ripped up and bloody. Her head is face down.

Panel 4

CAP:
Life became miserable. A never-ending cycle of mediocrity and repetition.
Wide panel that closes in on 5 of the savages-two women, three men. The woman on the left of the panel is smiling like a mad-person. The man to her left is looking down somberly. The man on his right is just gazing forward, no emotion is on his face. The woman to his left is looking up into the sky expectantly, like she's waiting for it to rain. The man on her left is looking behind him, scared.

Panel 5

CAP:
But all of that faded away when I joined the Hobo Society.
We zoom out a lot, now. We are looking down on the clearing from an angled view. We see the fire, the burning woman, and the savages. They are all just standing around either looking at the fire, up at the sky, or behind them.

Page 3 (6 panels)

Panel 1
We are outside an old and dreary, Tudor house. It's dark outside and raining, the only light is coming from the full moon and one lit window. On the door is a magnificent, gargoyle doorknocker. Smoke billows from the chimney.

Panel 2
The front door is being pushed open, we can see down a hallway. This house looks like it hasn't been lived in for decades. The only evidence of occupancy are the many candles lit on dusty tables and on the walls. There is a painting of George Washington on the wall that has all but fallen to pieces.

Panel 3

We are standing outside a room. There is a glowing yellow light seeping through the bottom of the door. The door is marred with chips, scratches, and peeling paint.

PRIEST (OP):
Enter.

Panel 4

We are now inside of the room looking at the person that opened the door. He is one of the savages that we saw before. He has scraggly brown hair and a messy beard that covers the entirety of his lower face. He is wearing a ragged tan sport coat with a faded blue t-shirt underneath that, both stained from dirt, blood, and God knows what else. He also is wearing baggy brown dress pants and black, leather shoes. He carries an air of gravity and stoicism. A very strong face, with dark brown eyes and large, chiseled features. This man is named BORIS.

PRIEST:
Things went as planned, I hope. The sacrifice was retrieved?

BORIS:
Yes, my priest.

Panel 5

We are now looking inside the room, at the man called PRIEST. He is sitting on a large, brown leather chair that is parallel to a gorgeous, brick fireplace. There is a small table next to the chair with a bottle of brandy and a half-filled glass. The PRIEST is sitting cross-legged with a book in his hand. The PRIEST is very wiry. All in all, he is a very bird-like man. A long pointy nose; thin, snake-like lips, narrow and angry eyes. His head seems to be too large for his long, thin neck to hold up. He appears to be balding slightly, and attempts to cover up his small bald spot with a subtle comb over. He is wearing shiny, black dress pants and an oversized white dress shirt. He is looking up at BORIS with his wiry glasses at the tip of his nose.

PRIEST:

Good, good-but I take it from the look on your face that you have not yet acquired the man.

BORIS:
He was seen early, your grace. But-

Panel 6
Close-up of the PRIEST looking wickedly evil. His eyes are aflame with anger and hatred towards BORIS

PRIEST:
But? But what? You know I don't like excuses, Boris.

PRIEST:
What happened?

Page 4 (4 panels)

Panel 1

Wide shot of both the PRIEST and BORIS. Boris is looking down at the floor, trying not to show his face to the PRIEST. The PRIEST has edged up on the chair and is sitting straight up, glaring at BORIS. This is the first panel in which we get a good glimpse at the entire room. It's a bit more decorated than the rest of the house, but not any cleaner. There are two paintings on the wall, but they cannot be made out as they are caked in dust and are falling apart. There's a suit of armor near the fireplace that is missing the bottom piece of its facemask, and the lance that it must have been holding at some point or another is laying on the ground. There's a davenport desk against the wall between BORIS and the PRIEST that is, yes, covered with dust. There are many stacks of paper on the desk, one stack is very neat and orderly; the others are all messy and crumpled up.

BORIS (whisper):

He was scared away.

PRIEST:
Scared away? By who?

Panel 2

Close-up on BORIS, still looking down at the floor. His mouth is open and his lips are quivering.

BORIS (whisper):
Brutus.

Panel 3

The PRIEST has gotten off of the chair and has a hand on BORIS' shoulder. As thin as the priest is, he is quite a tall man, and a bit taller than BORIS. BORIS now has his head up and is looking at the PRIEST. The PRIEST seems to have grown warmer and is no longer filled with rage towards BORIS.

PRIEST:
Worry not, Boris. The fault is not yours-you will not be punished.

BORIS:
Thank you, Priest, thank you.

PRIEST:
You have done well my child-

Panel 4
Close-up on the PRIEST. He is smiling wickedly from ear to ear and is taking off his glasses.

PRIEST:
Now tell me, where is Brutus?

Page 5 - Splash page

This page is an image of the character BRUTUS. BRUTUS is a tall, thin man. He wears an olive drab, always opened, oversized army jacket with peeling patches of valor. Beneath the jacket he wears a thin, gray sweatshirt. He wears thick, brown wool pants. In this image he is wearing a black fedora placed on the back of his head. At one point, BRUTUS must have been a man with chiseled good looks, but after years of living as a vagabond his cheeks and eyes have sunk deep into his face. His hair is long and unruly; black as the night. He does have a nicely managed goatee, on the other hand. On this page he is standing atop a boulder surrounded by smaller rocks, against a completely black backdrop. BRUTUS is standing straight up on the boulder with his arms folded against his chest, looking up with a thin smile on his face. There appears to be a slight wind, as BRUTUS' scraggly black, shoulder-length hair is floating in the breeze.
To the bottom right of BRUTUS' image is the title and publishing information. The letters of the title, A Hobo Society, are pressed together tightly and stacked upon one another.

TR Blach

The Hobo Society - First Five Pages