Panel 2’s close-up of soon-to-be-Sistah-Spooky isn’t an especially great example of the tendency, but I feel I should mention that this particular “down-angle shot into a character’s open mouth” derives from the influence of artist Shinofusa Rokurou, whose facial-design work in the manga Ku-Dan-Shi made a big impression on me circa 2000 or so. The so-called “muppet mouth” I draw on Ninjette, at times, is a product of riffing off this mangaka’s idiosyncratic approach to certain facial angles.

Panel 3’s image of the Emp-resembling Icy Blonde Hottie reminds me of a plot thread that never quite made it into Empowered proper: That is, I once intended that Spooky would begin wondering if Emp had actually attended this very high school (or another such school with Infernal Service Provider access), and had indeed sold her soul for hotness. This would’ve led to amusing scenes in which Spooky tries to covertly interrogate Emp with coded references and casual-seeming asides, without ever stating her question outright. Alas, I never got around to addressing this matter a decade ago, and had forgotten entirely about it before writing this very commentary. Oops!

Gotta say, I’ve always wanted to explore the mysteries of this peculiar-seeming high school at some point. In fact, I’ve long planned a Guest Artist story that reunites Spooky with her erstwhile classmates, but at present have no such Guest Artist to draw said tale. Oh, well, again.

-Adam Warren