Monday, February 13, 2017

Cobweb and Stripes Review with James Paradie: Chapter 7 - All work and no play ... & Chapter 8 - Lydia's Evidence



Overview: Only three pages this chapter and basically all you need is this screenshot below to know the highlight. 


And the important part here is ... that is one adorable bat. I mean, look at it! I want to pet it. Good thing everyone is in bed or else they'd be seeing me petting a screen. No, I didn't really pet the screen. 

As you can see, Bones (that's Jacques to all you Beetlejuice the cartoon fans out there) has received information that Prince Vince has bribed the jury, but the good news is, the judge is on Beetlejuice's side. And that's it. 

My review: Three pages. How can I really judge three pages? Simple. It was short, but still served a purpose. It wasn't a harmless, nothing really happens chapter, like Chapter 2 was (not a bad thing at all, mind you); it raises suspense. Suspense that something is bound to happen. 

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Now since this chapter was only three pages, I am going to review Chapter 8. 


Overview: Wooo! We have a pretty hefty chapter here. Alright, let's do it! ... I mean ... it's showtime. 

It's been a month and that means Beetlejuice vs. Prince Vince is about to happen. Will Beetlejuice be able to con his way out of this one? Or ... 

Look familiar? The only thing missing is, "Though I know I should be wary ..."

Court is now in session. Love the judge's design. As Lydia would say, deadly vu!

The judge calls the first witness, Huckleberry Finn, who is the owner of the pub where the incident happened. Huck tells the judge that Beetlejuice is a good guy and is very loyal. Once he brings Vince into the conversation, using an insult, we're introduced to Vince. 

Jeez. Even his character design annoys me. That's a good thing, so good job, artist! 

Vince enters the bar and instantly felt like pulling his privilege around the joint. Calling it a shithole and demanding the patrons to leave the premises within five minutes. This does not bode well with any of the customers, especially one ... enter Beetlejuice. 

If there's anyone who can get a stick out of some up tights ass, it's Beej.

Vince demands Beetlejuice to take that back and eventually recognizes him. He comments on how pitiful Beetlejuice is; all you have to do is call his name three times and he goes to you like a dog. That doesn't bother Beetlejuice. So, Vince pulls out the oldest trick in the book to piss off ol' BJ off. He asks if Beetlejuice ever wondered if one of the whores in this pub was his own mother. Doesn't really work, because he claims he doesn't know anything about her, but Vince's mother says hi. Ooooooh! Beetlejuice tells Vince's boys to let him the fuck go (exact words in the strip), and goes to deck the prissy ass wipe, but the goons grab Beetlejuice. Huck explains that a fight ensued; Beetlejuice fought off two of Vince's guys, and that Beetlejuice didn't start the fight. Vince did. Vince says it's a lie. Other witnesses back up Beetlejuice with saying they were bribed, threatened, and that Vince is crazy. It does not look good for the Neitherworld's most spoiled little brat. 

The judge basically tells Vince that this isn't looking very good for him and blowing a temper tantrum will only make his position worse. The judge asks Lydia what does she have to say about Beetlejuice, after being shackled to him for six months. 

If this was an American sitcom, we would hear the, "Awwww!"

She says that she is going to miss him and he was like a friend. The judge seems content in that testimony and after asking if anyone else has anything to say, to which no one says anything, he tells everyone his ruling. Basically, they believe the punishment of Beetlejuice being shackled to Lydia worked and hopefully it results in him being a less troublesome spirit. He is found innocent, however, Vince is due in court for his bribing and basically being a jerk. 

After a happy moment between Beetlejuice and Lydia, it turns a bit more somber. Beetlejuice stands with his back turned to her, saying that they should turn her room back to normal soon (as they used Lydia's room as the court). I think Beetlejuice really wanted to say something else. Maybe, "Thank you"? I doubt he would say he's going to miss her, as being too emotional isn't his style. Lydia asks if he'll visit her and Beetlejuice, in absent fashion, replies, "Errm, yeah, sure." He then tells her to take care and don't call him, he'll come by. He vanishes, everything turns back to normal, and Lydia is alone again. 

Review time! 

The Good: 

- It was refreshing to see a lengthier chapter. The previous ones have been pretty short, which is fine, but something like this needed a big spotlight - so to speak. We've been leading up to this moment for eight chapters now. 

- The story, testimonies, kept me interested. 

- The end result creates questions. With Beetlejuice being proven innocent, is it the end? Is it the birth of a new beginning? Will Beetlejuice learn to become better or will he descend back to his old ways? 

- The art style is really good. I didn't see any flaws or anything that made me cringe thinking, "What the hell is that suppose to be?" Like I said, the judge's design really stuck out for me and was quite intimidating, which a judge should be. 

- Not sure why, but Vince having a potty mouth got quite a few chuckles from me. 

Bottom line is, this chapter has a lot to offer with no visible flaws that I noticed. The translation was really good, I only noticed a few things here and there that I would've reworded, but being a writer, I'm bound to do that. I didn't put that on like Middle Ground or anything like that, because I think that's more personal opinion than anything. But yeah, the storyline is still keeping me intrigued and I definitely look forward to reading Chapter 9. Until then ... 

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Read my other reviews on Cobweb and Stripes: 

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 <----> <---->Chapter 9 (Coming soon!) 

For more Cobweb and Stripes, check out these destinations. 



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