45 Days Of CCS, #20: Alex Washburn

Published in the pages of the Fantology anthology, Alex Washburn's serial Clan Zargs works well a solid fantasy story, a romantic serial, and a humorous narrative. There's a frantic energy to it where the plot can take sudden, massive, and unpredictable shifts while never veering from the glue that holds it together: the character relationships. Clan Zargs IV follows the ragtag team of adventurers as they've gotten in way over their heads, captured by the Missionaries of Jahk. One of Clan Zargs, Sasha, has agreed to join the missionaries, but it's part of a plan to break out their fellow clan members. 

Here's what makes this story interesting: Washburn abandons the action of the plot and takes a detour into interpersonal drama for seven pages. As it turns out, Sasha wanted to try something new and genuinely wanted to join the missionaries, though she wanted to free her friends as well. This was such an interesting left turn for the story, as Washburn defied typical fantasy conventions in breaking up a team in this way. The story then takes another sudden turn as the threat of violence arises, only to be quelled by another new character. There's a lot of talking and backstory in this episode, but it never supercedes the emotional narrative that runs through it. Washburn's line is thick and chunky, but you can see the confidence in his drawing increasing episode by episode. That thickness allows for rubbery, exaggerated action, like in Washburn's two-page short, Azzy's Pork Buns. That quality is ideally suited for comedic storytelling, which is true of this story about a side character hunting a pig for a recipe, but it's also true of the main series as well.