Broken Frontier

On sale this week from Viper Comics is the first issue of A Dummy’s Guide to Danger: Lost at Sea, the second outing for Alan Sirois, the ventriloquist P.I., and his dummy sidekick. The book is written and created by Jason M. Burns and the artist is Joe Eisma. The solicitation for the issue reads:

Finding their relationship strained under the pressure of becoming newfound celebrities, Alan and Mr. Bloomberg heed the advice of a therapist and take a vacation in hopes of salvaging their friendship. Opting on a murder cruise, the private eye pair are surprised to find themselves knee-deep in a real-life murder thriller complete with an all-new homicidal madman!

Jason gave Broken Frontier some exclusive insights into the creative process on this debut issue...

JASON M. BURNS:This is the first 24-page issue of the new A Dummy’s Guide to Danger series. For those who aren’t familiar with the Viper Comics offering, it focuses on a private investigator (Alan Sirois) and his paraplegic ventriloquist dummy of a partner (Mr. Bloomberg) who became crippled when an assailant shot him in the back and the bullet lodged in his spine. It’s a quirky tale about one man’s own internal issues and the external problems that arise in his often complicated life.

The Lost at Sea series picks up where the last one left off (though it’s written in a way that a new reader can jump right in without any confusion). Following the conclusion of their last case, Alan and Mr. Bloomberg have been having some issues getting along, so they decide to go and see a therapist who specializes in relationships. Taking the doctor’s advice and going on a vacation together, the two detectives end up on a cruise ship where an actual murder mystery is taking place.

A Dummy's Guide to Danger: Lost at Sea #1: Pages 4, 8 and 9

Page 4

This page is sort of the set up for the entire second series where Alan and Mr. Bloomberg are seeing a therapist about their relationship issues. In panel 4 we get a good idea about how the rest of the world views Alan and his inanimate partner, which is basically that he’s insane on some level. But, no matter what is said to him or what he sees, Alan’s very delicate mind has given Mr. Bloomberg life and nothing can convince him otherwise… At least at this point.

Page 8

This is the very last page of the scene that introduces our rich, eccentric millionaire, Templeton Lieberman. After reading about Alan in the news, Templeton travels to the detective’s office and offers him a deal he can’t refuse… Come onboard his Mystery Cruise Line and try and solve the phony mystery he’s crafted. Luckily for Alan he’s just been told to take a vacation by his doctor, and throw in the big bag of money he’s being offered by the millionaire, and it’s a no-brainer. But when all is said and done, things will be much more complicated than that.

Page 9

Against Mr. Bloomberg’s best wishes, Alan invites his "is she or isn’t she" girlfriend along on the cruise. Like everyone else in his life, Teri is aware that Alan is a few eggs short of a carton, but she loves him for everything else that he is, even if he fails to see it. What I like about their odd relationship is that it gives me (the writer) a lot to work with regarding the tension between her and Mr. Bloomberg, which in reality, is Alan’s own sub-conscious. This makes for an interesting dynamic throughout the series because it poses the question: how and why would a man be jealous of himself?

A Dummy's Guide to Danger: Lost at Sea #1: Pages 11, 13 and 16

Page 11

After boarding the cruise ship, Alan, Mr. Bloomberg, and Teri head to the theater for orientation where they meet The Amazing Crespo and his comedic partner Wally Winkles. Crespo is that sort of cheesy, moderately successful comedian that thinks he’s funnier than he is, and needless to say, this won’t be lost on the often smarmy Mr. Bloomberg.

I love the design that artist Joe Eisma brought to Crespo and Winkles, especially the suit. I laugh every time I see it. For me, they represent the absolute definition of cruise line entertainment.

Page 13

Fast forward two pages and we’re dropped right in the middle of Mr. Bloomberg giving The Amazing Crespo shit. He sees ventriloquists as the lowest form of entertainment and he’s offended that the felt-covered Winkles is eye-balling him. Of course, this is really Alan speaking through Mr. Bloomberg, and like always, Teri is caught in the middle, hence her mortified expression. The irony through this entire scene is that it’s simply one ventriloquist calling out another ventriloquist, which for me, makes it amusing on more than one level. The tricky part is writing it in a way that other people get that. Haha

Page 16

This is the first clue given in the story, though it’s unclear to the reader if it’s a clue to the real case, or the fake case thought up by Templeton Lieberman to entertain the passengers of his boat. Either way, it doesn’t go unnoticed by longtime detective Alan Sirois, who is actually waiting for Mr. Bloomberg as he’s checked by the onboard physician for seasickness.

A Dummy's Guide to Danger: Lost at Sea #1: Pages 18 and 21

Page 18

After not hearing from Bloomberg, Alan busts into the doctor’s office and has it out with the physician, who like everyone else, dismisses Bloomberg as nothing more than a "dummy". Furious about his friend being verbally berated, Alan lashes out at the physician for his unprofessional behavior.

Page 21

Immediately following Alan and Mr. Bloomberg’s exit, a mysterious third party enters the doctor’s office and strangles the physician to death. Clearly this is not part of the onboard theatrics associated with the fictional mystery. This is a real murder. OH MY!

And here is what people can expect from the three remaining issues:

Issue 2:

As bodies begin to pile up while at sea, Alan and Mr. Bloomberg have to put their vacation on hold in order to retrieve Teri’s missing underwear collection and unravel the identity of the onboard murderer. But when their number one suspect turns up dead, who will the duo look to next as the guilty party?

Issue 3:

With the ship’s captain found dead in his quarters, the mystery cruise once believed to be a vacation for Alan and Mr. Bloomberg has now turned into a floating deathtrap. As they dig through clues in order to uncover the killer’s identity, Teri goes and gets herself kidnapped by the psycho in question, thickening the plot and upping the danger!

Issue 4:

As they drift further and further out to sea, Alan and Mr. Bloomberg uncover the true identity of the murderous madman terrorizing the ship, ultimately culminating in an unforgettable climax featuring transgender panty wearing and puppet burning pandemonium. You’d have to be a dummy to miss this one!

A Dummy's Guide to Danger: Lost at Sea #1 is on sale now from Viper Comics priced $3.25