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{{Infobox comics
 
{{Infobox comics
−
| preview        = WARComic Titlecard.png
+
  | preview        = WARComic Titlecard.png
−
| release-date    = December 9, 2009
+
  | release-date    = December 9, 2009
−
| number-of-pages = 21
+
  | number-of-pages = 21
−
| artist          = [[w:Michael Avon Oeming|Michael Oeming]]
+
  | artist          = [[Michael Oeming]]
 
}}
 
}}
  
 
{{Quotation|'''Miss Pauling'''|It's the BLU Soldier and RED Demoman. It looks like they've become... friends, Administrator.}}
 
{{Quotation|'''Miss Pauling'''|It's the BLU Soldier and RED Demoman. It looks like they've become... friends, Administrator.}}
  
−
The '''''WAR! Comic''''' is a [[comic]] released from December 9, 2009 until December 15, 2009, running along side the [[WAR! Update]]. The comic features the [[Administrator]] and [[Non-player characters#Miss Pauling|Miss Pauling]] in their efforts to break up the friendship between the [[RED]] [[Demoman]] and the [[BLU]] [[Soldier]].
+
The '''''WAR! Comic''''' is a multi-part [[comic]] released between 9 December 2009 through 15 December 2009. It serves as a tie-in comic to the [[WAR! Update]], featuring the [[Administrator]] and [[Miss Pauling]] seeking to dissolve a friendship between the [[RED]] [[Demoman]] and the [[BLU]] [[Soldier]].
  
 
== Synopsis ==
 
== Synopsis ==
−
The story begins with the [[Administrator]] watching RED and BLU fight on various maps, when she notices a RED [[Spy]] sneaking into the BLU Base (referencing the main storyline of the ''[[Meet the Spy]]'' short). She then draws attention to [[Miss Pauling]], standing nervously behind her. Miss Pauling explains that while running a background check on the BLU Soldier and RED Demoman, they discovered that the two have become friends after meeting at a Projectile Weapons Expo. This angers the Administrator as it is a betrayal of their trust. She then inquires as to what friends actually do. When Miss Pauling tells her that friends sometimes talk, this worries the Administrator, who fears that the two mercenaries could talk about work and discover they are both working for the same person.
+
The story begins with the Administrator watching the RED and BLU teams fight on various maps before noticing a RED [[Spy]] [[Meet the Spy|sneaking into a BLU base]]. She then draws attention to Miss Pauling, standing nervously behind her. Miss Pauling explains that while running a background check on the BLU Soldier and RED Demoman, they discovered that the two have become friends after meeting at a ''Projectile Weapons Expo'', observed as a betrayal of the Administrator's trust. The Administrator inquires Pauling on what friends actually do, before being told that friends sometimes interact with one another.
  
−
The Administrator decides to take action. She instructs Miss Pauling to call [[Saxton Hale]] and have him develop custom weapons for her to use as bait for the two friends. The comic then cuts to Saxton Hale, preparing to jump out of an airplane. The pilot says not to jump, that they're not at a high enough altitude. Hale jumps anyway and crashes through a window into his office, where he is met by his employees, [[Mr. Bidwell]] and [[Mr. Reddy]]. While eating his breakfast steak, Hale discusses company matters with his associates. Mr. Reddy informs him that [[TF Industries]] is on the phone for him. He quickly receives the phone, thinking that it is the Administrator, whom he addresses as 'Helen'. The person on the other end is revealed to be Miss Pauling calling about the weapons. Hale says that he has some incriminating evidence that he could use some more finger prints on, and Miss Pauling accepts.
+
Alarmed at the possibility that both mercenaries could discover that they are working for the same person, the Administrator decides to take action and instructs Miss Pauling to call [[Saxton Hale]] to have him develop custom weapons as incentives for each friend to turn on the other. The comic then cuts to Hale, equipped with a parachute, preparing to jump out of an airplane. The pilot orders Hale to not jump as they are at too low an altitude; Hale ignores the order and gracefully crash-lands through a glass window installed in his office, where he is met by [[Mann Co.]] employees [[Mr. Bidwell]] and [[Mr. Reddy]]. While eating his breakfast steak, Hale discusses company matters with his associates. Mr. Reddy informs him that an associate from [[TF Industries]] wishes to talk to Hale; he quickly receives the phone, assuming that the Administrator is on the line, whom he addresses to as "Helen" - the individual on the other end is revealed to be Pauling. Hale tells Pauling that he had also recently discovered the nature of the mercenaries' relationship, willing to pursue additional leads.
  
−
The comic then cuts to the RED Demoman on his day off. He is at home preparing tea for his [[Non-player characters#Mrs. DeGroot|mother]], who is hassling him about getting more than only three jobs. While the Demoman retorts this by saying he earned $5,000,000 the previous year, his mother scoffs at him for spending rather than saving. They are then interrupted by a knock at the door. The Demoman answers and is greeted by Miss Pauling. The Demoman questions why she’s there and she relays that the Administrator wants him to kill his best friend. After being tempted by some weapons, he is still unable to be persuaded. Miss Pauling leaves the weapons regardless and tells him that the Soldier accepted the offer from his employers.
+
The comic then cuts to the RED Demoman on his morning off preparing tea for [[Non-player characters#Mr. & Mrs. DeGroot|his mother]] at home, who is hassling him about needing to get more than three jobs. While the Demoman retorts this by saying he earned $5,000,000 the previous year, his mother scoffs at him for spending rather than saving. Interrupted by a knock on the door, the Demoman answers to Miss Pauling and questions her presence: she relays that the Administrator wants him to kill his best friend. Unable to be persuaded by three individual weapons (the [[Scottish Resistance]], the [[Chargin' Targe]], and the [[Eyelander]]) packed into large crates, Pauling informs the Demoman that the Soldier accepted an identical offer from his employers.
  
−
For the final chapter, the comic cuts to a messenger being sent to the BLU Soldier's apartment. After avoiding being shot twice by a [[Shotgun]] and having his neck snapped, the messenger is allowed inside. The Soldier then questions the man for his identity while pointing a Shotgun at him and taking cover behind an upturned table. The messenger then opens his trench coat to reveal a television screen strapped to his body. On the screen is the Administrator, who addresses the Soldier. She gives him two options: her associates drive him to the nearest [[Gravel Pit]] where they kill him for gross insubordination, or he kill the Demoman. He rejects both offers, threatening that if he is asked to kill his friend again he will stick his boot so far up the Administrator's ass it will be on the news. The Administrator questions the friendship and plays a video of an image of the Demoman with a clearly synthesized voice-over saying that the Soldier is a bad friend. The Soldier, while put off by this, again states he can't do it as the two have formed a bond. The video plays on, this time with the falsified voice portraying Demoman statng that the Soldier never served in the army, but is in fact a {{botignore|civilian}}. After briefly showing emotions as if a confided secret has been betrayed, the Soldier expresses outrage at having been accused of being a {{botignore|civilian}} and accepts the offer. The Administrator is pleased by this and announces that he will be receiving new weapons shortly.
+
The comic's final chapter cuts to a messenger being sent to the BLU Soldier's apartment. Avoiding two gunshots and a neck snap, the messenger is allowed inside. The Soldier then questions the man's identity while taking cover behind an upturned table, pointing a {{botignore|[[shotgun]]}} at him. The messenger then opens his trench coat to reveal a television screen strapped to his body displaying a video call with the Administrator, who then addresses the Soldier. She offers him two options: he either allows her associates to drive him to the nearest [[Gravel Pit|gravel pit]] where they kill him for gross insubordination, or he resorts to killing his best friend. He rejects both offers and threatens to attack the Administrator if asked to kill the Demoman again. The Administrator questions their friendship and plays a fabricated video of the Demoman with a synthesized voice-over, alleging that the Soldier is a bad friend. The Soldier, while put off by this, hesitantly refuses to carry out the offer again as the two have formed a bond; the video continues playing and reveals that the Soldier had never served in any military position and is in fact a {{botignore|civilian}}.
 +
 
 +
Overwhelmed by the allegations, the Soldier accepts the offer in a fit of rage - the Administrator is pleased by this, and announces that he would shortly receive a set of new weapons. She then further clarifies that one of the weapons the Soldier would first obtain would be a "[[Direct Hit|precision instrument]]" designed for taking down specific enemies with ease, while also characterizing on the ineffectiveness of its use as a [[rocket jump]]ing tool.
  
 
== Pages ==
 
== Pages ==
Line 55: Line 57:
  
 
== Trivia ==
 
== Trivia ==
−
=== Page 1 ===
+
;Page 1
 
* Several of the TV screen images on this page are views from specific, identifiable cameras on the [[2Fort]] map; for example, a TV screen on the left hand side of the page shows a BLU [[Scout]] checking out the camera at the top of the [[2Fort#Main base locations|L-Shaft (straight stairs)]].  
 
* Several of the TV screen images on this page are views from specific, identifiable cameras on the [[2Fort]] map; for example, a TV screen on the left hand side of the page shows a BLU [[Scout]] checking out the camera at the top of the [[2Fort#Main base locations|L-Shaft (straight stairs)]].  
−
* A TV screen on the right hand side of the page shows a dead BLU Scout against the blast door at the top of the [[2Fort#Main Base Locations|Spiral]] entrance to the [[Intelligence]] room at 2Fort. This is reference to the ''[[Meet the Spy]]'' video short, in which a RED [[Spy]] infiltrates the BLU base disguised as a Scout.
+
* A TV screen on the right hand side of the page shows a dead BLU Scout against the blast door at the top of the Spiral entrance to the [[Intelligence]] room at 2Fort. This is reference to the ''[[Meet the Spy]]'' video short, in which a RED [[Spy]] infiltrates the BLU base disguised as a Scout.
 
* Two screens down from that shows a BLU [[Soldier]], [[Heavy]], Spy (though only his shoulder can be seen) and Scout standing in the Intelligence room of the BLU base. This is again a reference to the ''Meet the Spy''. This shot however does not fit into the timeline, as the four would only arrive in the Intelligence room after the Administrator announces the Spy's presence on Page 2.
 
* Two screens down from that shows a BLU [[Soldier]], [[Heavy]], Spy (though only his shoulder can be seen) and Scout standing in the Intelligence room of the BLU base. This is again a reference to the ''Meet the Spy''. This shot however does not fit into the timeline, as the four would only arrive in the Intelligence room after the Administrator announces the Spy's presence on Page 2.
  
−
=== Page 2 ===
+
;Page 2
−
* The [[Administrator]] calling out "Alert! A RED Spy is in the base!" is also a reference to the intro of the ''Meet the Spy'' video. However, in the actual video the Administrator says "Intruder alert! RED Spy is in the base!" There is also a goof in regards to this, as the Administrator says to 'Attend to the briefcase!' shortly after. This does not happen in the comic because the Administrator is talking to Miss Pauling.
+
* The [[Administrator]] calling out "Alert! A RED Spy is in the base!" is also a reference to the intro of the ''Meet the Spy'' video. However, in the actual video the Administrator says "Intruder alert! RED Spy is in the base!" There is also a goof in regards to this, as the Administrator says to "Protect the briefcase!" shortly after. This does not happen in the comic because the Administrator is talking to Miss Pauling.
−
* Here, as the Administrator is saying, “He’s disguised as the ''Scout''.”, she is looking directly at the video of a dead BLU Scout at the BLU end of the [[2Fort#Outside locations|Bridge]].   
+
* Here, as the Administrator is saying, "He’s disguised as the '''''Scout'''''.", she is looking directly at the video of a dead BLU Scout at the BLU end of the 2Fort Bridge.   
 
* There is a photo of [[:File:Family Portrait.jpg|Zepheniah Mann's Family Portrait]] on the control panel.
 
* There is a photo of [[:File:Family Portrait.jpg|Zepheniah Mann's Family Portrait]] on the control panel.
  
−
=== Page 3 ===
+
;Page 5
−
* The pose the [[Demoman]] is standing in while crying at the Eye Museum is same pose he stands in on the [http://www.teamfortress.com/war/victory/ Gunboats announcement] page, but from the opposite side.
+
* The control panel the Administrator is sitting at loses several dial gauges from the top of the panel to the bottom.
−
 
 
−
=== Page 5 ===
 
−
* The control panel the Administrator is sitting at loses several dial gauges from the top of the panel to the bottom. It should be noted however, that given the direction Miss Pauling is facing and the lack of chair obscuring the Administrator's back, that they are facing an entirely different control panel.
 
−
 
 
−
=== Page 14 ===
 
−
* Bowels can refer either to the abdomen or to the deep inner levels of a place, while [[w:Forging|forging]] is the means of shaping and strengthening swords. Therefore, "forged in the bowels of" someplace is a metaphor or trope for the formation of characters or weapons. ([[w:Mazikeen|example]]) 
 
−
* There have been general myths of forged [[w:Damascus steel|Damascus]] swords being quenched by thrusting into the bowels of slaves or condemned prisoners.<ref>Walter Sullivan [https://www.nytimes.com/1981/09/29/science/the-mystery-of-damascus-steel-appears-solved.html ''The Mystery of Damascus Steel Appears Solved'',] The New York Times, September 29, 1981, Section C, Page 1.</ref>
 
−
* In old Britain, [[beheading]] was reserved for the execution of nobility, including a few English kings.
 
  
−
=== Page 15 ===
+
;Page 14
−
* The Demoman receives an additional 3 crates to the one the [[Eyelander]] came in, totaling 4. However, the Demoman only received 3 unlockables for the update, so it could be speculated the fourth crate could hold the [[Gunboats]].
+
* "Slow-forged for '''''generations''''' in the bowels of captured English kings" is a play on the phrase "forged in the bowels of", meaning "created in the deep inner levels of a place". In this case, "bowels" refers to the intestines of English kings. There have been general myths associated with [[w:Damascus steel|Damascus steel]] about thrusting it into the bowels of slaves or condemned prisoners to [[w:Quenching|quench]] it.  
  
−
=== Page 16 ===
+
;Page 16
 
* The name on the Soldier's door is Jane Doe, a military term used for an unnamed deceased woman. The name for a deceased male is John Doe.
 
* The name on the Soldier's door is Jane Doe, a military term used for an unnamed deceased woman. The name for a deceased male is John Doe.
−
 
−
=== Page 18 ===
 
−
* A map of Germany can be seen on the left wall, where the Soldier rampaged after the close of World War II in Europe.
 
  
 
== See also ==
 
== See also ==

Latest revision as of 18:23, 27 October 2023

WAR! Comic
WARComic Titlecard.png
Comic Strip Info
Released: December 9, 2009
Number of pages: 21
Artist: Michael Oeming
“
It's the BLU Soldier and RED Demoman. It looks like they've become... friends, Administrator.
— Miss Pauling
 ”

The WAR! Comic is a multi-part comic released between 9 December 2009 through 15 December 2009. It serves as a tie-in comic to the WAR! Update, featuring the Administrator and Miss Pauling seeking to dissolve a friendship between the RED Demoman and the BLU Soldier.

Synopsis

The story begins with the Administrator watching the RED and BLU teams fight on various maps before noticing a RED Spy sneaking into a BLU base. She then draws attention to Miss Pauling, standing nervously behind her. Miss Pauling explains that while running a background check on the BLU Soldier and RED Demoman, they discovered that the two have become friends after meeting at a Projectile Weapons Expo, observed as a betrayal of the Administrator's trust. The Administrator inquires Pauling on what friends actually do, before being told that friends sometimes interact with one another.

Alarmed at the possibility that both mercenaries could discover that they are working for the same person, the Administrator decides to take action and instructs Miss Pauling to call Saxton Hale to have him develop custom weapons as incentives for each friend to turn on the other. The comic then cuts to Hale, equipped with a parachute, preparing to jump out of an airplane. The pilot orders Hale to not jump as they are at too low an altitude; Hale ignores the order and gracefully crash-lands through a glass window installed in his office, where he is met by Mann Co. employees Mr. Bidwell and Mr. Reddy. While eating his breakfast steak, Hale discusses company matters with his associates. Mr. Reddy informs him that an associate from TF Industries wishes to talk to Hale; he quickly receives the phone, assuming that the Administrator is on the line, whom he addresses to as "Helen" - the individual on the other end is revealed to be Pauling. Hale tells Pauling that he had also recently discovered the nature of the mercenaries' relationship, willing to pursue additional leads.

The comic then cuts to the RED Demoman on his morning off preparing tea for his mother at home, who is hassling him about needing to get more than three jobs. While the Demoman retorts this by saying he earned $5,000,000 the previous year, his mother scoffs at him for spending rather than saving. Interrupted by a knock on the door, the Demoman answers to Miss Pauling and questions her presence: she relays that the Administrator wants him to kill his best friend. Unable to be persuaded by three individual weapons (the Scottish Resistance, the Chargin' Targe, and the Eyelander) packed into large crates, Pauling informs the Demoman that the Soldier accepted an identical offer from his employers.

The comic's final chapter cuts to a messenger being sent to the BLU Soldier's apartment. Avoiding two gunshots and a neck snap, the messenger is allowed inside. The Soldier then questions the man's identity while taking cover behind an upturned table, pointing a shotgun at him. The messenger then opens his trench coat to reveal a television screen strapped to his body displaying a video call with the Administrator, who then addresses the Soldier. She offers him two options: he either allows her associates to drive him to the nearest gravel pit where they kill him for gross insubordination, or he resorts to killing his best friend. He rejects both offers and threatens to attack the Administrator if asked to kill the Demoman again. The Administrator questions their friendship and plays a fabricated video of the Demoman with a synthesized voice-over, alleging that the Soldier is a bad friend. The Soldier, while put off by this, hesitantly refuses to carry out the offer again as the two have formed a bond; the video continues playing and reveals that the Soldier had never served in any military position and is in fact a civilian.

Overwhelmed by the allegations, the Soldier accepts the offer in a fit of rage - the Administrator is pleased by this, and announces that he would shortly receive a set of new weapons. She then further clarifies that one of the weapons the Soldier would first obtain would be a "precision instrument" designed for taking down specific enemies with ease, while also characterizing on the ineffectiveness of its use as a rocket jumping tool.

Pages

  • Page 1

  • Page 2

  • Page 3

  • Page 4

  • Page 5

  • Page 6

  • Page 7

  • Page 8

  • Page 9

  • Page 10

  • Page 11

  • Page 12

  • Page 13

  • Page 14

  • Page 15

  • Page 16

  • Page 17

  • Page 18

  • Page 19

  • Page 20

  • Page 21

Alternate "dirty" Saxton Hale WAR! pages

  • Page 6.

  • Page 7.

  • Page 8.

  • Page 9.

  • Page 10.

Trivia

Page 1
  • Several of the TV screen images on this page are views from specific, identifiable cameras on the 2Fort map; for example, a TV screen on the left hand side of the page shows a BLU Scout checking out the camera at the top of the L-Shaft (straight stairs).
  • A TV screen on the right hand side of the page shows a dead BLU Scout against the blast door at the top of the Spiral entrance to the Intelligence room at 2Fort. This is reference to the Meet the Spy video short, in which a RED Spy infiltrates the BLU base disguised as a Scout.
  • Two screens down from that shows a BLU Soldier, Heavy, Spy (though only his shoulder can be seen) and Scout standing in the Intelligence room of the BLU base. This is again a reference to the Meet the Spy. This shot however does not fit into the timeline, as the four would only arrive in the Intelligence room after the Administrator announces the Spy's presence on Page 2.
Page 2
  • The Administrator calling out "Alert! A RED Spy is in the base!" is also a reference to the intro of the Meet the Spy video. However, in the actual video the Administrator says "Intruder alert! RED Spy is in the base!" There is also a goof in regards to this, as the Administrator says to "Protect the briefcase!" shortly after. This does not happen in the comic because the Administrator is talking to Miss Pauling.
  • Here, as the Administrator is saying, "He’s disguised as the Scout.", she is looking directly at the video of a dead BLU Scout at the BLU end of the 2Fort Bridge.
  • There is a photo of Zepheniah Mann's Family Portrait on the control panel.
Page 5
  • The control panel the Administrator is sitting at loses several dial gauges from the top of the panel to the bottom.
Page 14
  • "Slow-forged for generations in the bowels of captured English kings" is a play on the phrase "forged in the bowels of", meaning "created in the deep inner levels of a place". In this case, "bowels" refers to the intestines of English kings. There have been general myths associated with Damascus steel about thrusting it into the bowels of slaves or condemned prisoners to quench it.
Page 16
  • The name on the Soldier's door is Jane Doe, a military term used for an unnamed deceased woman. The name for a deceased male is John Doe.

See also

External links

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