HELM Progress Report

Hi everyone! Since it's a new year, I figured it was a good time for a status update. Here's a little info on what we've been working on...

As you can tell, our site went through a bit of a revamp. The intention was to rearrange things so our focus was on Crookshaw Creative -- the brand/imprint that serves as the umbrella for HELM and other projects -- rather than focus on a single comic. That's mostly done. I will likely create teaser pages for Bastards of Babylon and the Star War project later... just not sure exactly when yet.

A little about B.O.B. -- as the slide on the front page notes, B.O.B. is a mystical action-adventure set in the modern Middle East. It's intended to be a 12-issue limited series that will go straight to print (i.e. it won't be offered for free, like HELM, as a webcomic). I haven't approached any publishers yet and don't plan on doing so until most (if not all) of the scripts are complete. As of today, I already have a couple issues written (though I need to go back and revise them, and do another pass on the entire series outline). That's all I'll share here, at this moment.

Now, Star Wars... (maybe I should have led with this, as I've already got people asking questions, lol!) --- cool your jets, folks -- Disney hasn't contacted me to work on anything (only in my dreams!). This is just a fan project. I want to let the teaser site do most of the "talking" whenever I get around to putting it together... buuuutt... I will share that what I intend to produce is a re-telling of the prequel trilogy presented in a format that's TBD. I know that's super vague but I promise I'll share more later. At the moment, I'm thinking the end result will be 45-min videos that are a mix of static images and animatics with full audio (voice actors, SFX, and music). 1 video for each episode. This could change... but it's where my current thinking is at. 

I'm looking up at everything I've typed so far and realize I haven't discussed HELM a whole lot. Fear not... HELM is on track to return very soon. I'm just about wrapped up with the Chapter 6 script (titled Old Ghosts), and plan on starting art next month. This would put us on track to continue HELM this summer (probably even earlier). Chapter 6 is slower paced compared to the previous chapters... but there's still plenty going on. I say this about every chapter I write (and I mean it each time) but I think the latest chapter shaping up to be the best one yet.

As soon as we start the art process on HELM #6, we'll also be publishing our Patreon page. At that time, you'll be able to get access to our art/scripts as we are working on it... so if you're really eager to see what happens next, you can pledge your support for us on Patreon and see our concepts, sketches, completed pages, the entire script, and get your hands on other goodies. 

Lastly, regarding the print version of HELM -- we're making progress. If you're a comic retailer, you'll soon see the first issue of HELM in the Diamond Previews catalog. Each issue, and a collected volume, will be available purchase later this year.

Anyways, that's all for now. We're looking forward to continuing our adventure in just a few months!