SuperButch is back! Book 1, Page 201

Hey patrons,

You know I love drawing a background, so let me tell you all about panel 1! Barry describes the setting as "a grassy area at the side of a road, by a hole-in-the-wall town." For an optimal view of the town, I interpreted "grassy area" as a parking lot next to the train station off the main street. I've taken a scenic train ride on the Oregon coast (thanks Emily!) so I can confidently say it's authentic. My family did our long-distance travel by train while I was growing up, and I have great memories of pulling into small towns at all hours and getting a little glimpse of them.

I was penciling this page last December (yipes!) when I started my new job. On my first choir trip to Seattle, I managed to get these shots out the bus window from I5.

Oof, December in the Pacific Northwest. I know the bus windows are somewhat tinted, but I took these pictures at 1pm!

The photos are blurry, but the "Kalama Shopping Center" sign helped me find the place on Google Street View and get a better look around.

I also borrowed some of the buildings from Tillamook, Oregon, a town near the coast that I've driven through several times. I love that green building with the dark trim!

I liked this little red brick building on the corner, too. You can sort of see it in panel 1 next to the hotel. I imagine in 1941 it's a bank.

When I was arranging the town in panel 1, I figured that the commercial streets would be right by the train station and the highway. The town probably runs on lumber or fishing rather than tourism, but there would be a hotel for new arrivals and people passing through. There are houses and a church further up the hill, and one mansion that's as far away from everyone else as possible.

Confession: I've been drawing equally from the Oregon Coast and the Columbia River Gorge as I draw this beach episode. Geologists, please don't judge me! A trip to either location will involve many bird sightings, so I made a mental note to keep drawing birds here and there. I was going to the movies one day to meet Barry, and nature had helpfully arranged a SEAGULL PHOTO SHOOT at Eastport Plaza Shopping Center!

Look at these fine specimens!

One last bit of visual reference: Sticks' friend Ruth is doing a Popeye impression in panel 4, so I looked around for a Popeye pose to imitate.

Barry just finished a comics deadline for another project, so he's lettering the next couple of pages and scripting the rest of this issue next week! Thanks, as always, for supporting me on Patreon. Barry and I dearly love SuperButch, but it's essentially a third job for both of us, so our progress is unsteady. Thank you for sticking with us!