The hardest part about this short story was making the background of Doc’s rivalry with Dusty more-or-less clear to the reader without actually explaining the details or relying on them having read HEAT beforehand. It was originally published in the Kayfabe anthology. I think I talked about that earlier, but if I haven’t, uh, this originally appeared in the Kayfabe anthology. Anyway, because it was in an anthology, I knew most of the people who read it wouldn’t have known about the comic beforehand, so I needed to try to convey the plot point of the Doc/Dusty enmity without just flat out saying “these guys used to be rivals and this screwjob reference happened at this old show and then Doc trained Dick and now stuff is happening.” How successful was that? Well, you guys probably aren’t people to be asking, since you’ve presumably been reading this comic for a while.
I’m going to be in Calgary this weekend for the Calgary Expo Holiday Market (Nov 25-26). If you’re in town, check it out.
Next Week: Denoument. Read it early on Patreon!
