Clockwork Angels: Comic Script (5 page)

Up in the tower inside the clockwork room, large gears and shafts behind the clock face, the Anarchist kneels, sets down his toolbox

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

Far easier to disrupt it all …

PANEL 4

Close-up, using a wrench and a screwdriver, the Anarchist fiddles with the complex gears.

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

Tenth one today … So simple.

PANEL 5

Looking chipper, the Anarchist strolls out the wooden door of the clock tower, back into the street, carrying his toolbox.

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

 … like clockwork.

PANEL 6

Back in his street clothes again, the Anarchist stands by a park bench (no need to see much of the street view in this panel.)

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

Back at the Alchemy College I was a great student, the best! I was the Watchmaker’s protégé …

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

Until it all changed.

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

Now I’ve found a different calling.

PAGE 9

PANEL 1

Our POV is from behind the Anarchist as he sits on the park bench. He has chosen a place where the view down the street shows numerous clock towers in the city. He is holding an open pocket watch in the palm of his hand.

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

Not long now … Total disruption will happen precisely at five o’clock.

PANEL 2

Anarchist smiles. He has his black lenses on again.

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

About time!

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

It’s all about time …

SEVERAL PANELS

A sequence of different clock faces. The hands are moving crazily, changing, pointing in different directions. One says 3:12, one says 5:05, one says 6:30, one says noon, etc. Add at least one small panel showing a face or two staring up at the clocks in horror.

SFX (STRUNG THROUGHOUT PANELS)

BONNNGG! BONNNGG! BONNNGG! BONNNGG! BONNNGG! BONNNGG!

PANEL Y

Holding an apple with his tattooed hand (see issue 1), the Anarchist takes a bite.

PANEL Z

Pull back. Anarchist sitting calmly, utterly relaxed on the park bench as the streets are total chaos around him, people pointing up at the clocks, obviously frightened, some of them clinging to each other.

CAPTION (ANARCHIST)

All is for the best …

PAGE 10

PANEL 1

Back to normal frames again, Owen’s story.

Close-up, Owen rubs his eyes, waking up. In this and next panel, he is rumpled, obviously having slept on the streets.

CAPTION

Next morning …

CAPTION (OWEN)

I’ve slept outside before, under the apple trees in Barrel Arbor. This was a lot less comfortable …

PANEL 2

Adjusting his porkpie cap, Owen walks up to a group of people who have gathered around to watch: Blue-uniformed Regulators are standing firm to keep the crowd away. Red-jumpsuited workers are using a steampunk generator and high-pressure spray and a large brush to scrub more graffiti. The circled “A” symbol is next to large letters scrawled on the side of a building: WHO MADE THE WATCHMAKER? And DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT
REALLY
IS? The crowd looks uneasy, muttering.

CAPTION (OWEN)

I wasn’t the only person in Crown City with a sleepless night.

MAN

Damned Anarchist! At least graffiti is better than blowing up bridges.

SECOND MAN

Didn’t he cause enough harm by sabotaging all the clocks in the city? I still don’t know if my pocketwatch is correct.

WOMAN

What does he want?

THIRD MAN

He wants us all to suffer! He wants to ruin the Watchmaker’s perfect Stability.

PANEL 3

Regulators disperse the crowd.

REGULATOR CAPTAIN

Citizens, disperse. Be about your business. Keep to your schedule.

OWEN

But what if I have no place to go?

REGULATOR CAPTAIN

Then go someplace else.

PANEL 4

As large as possible. I wish this could be full-page, but I just don’t have the room.

Owen comes upon a large city park that is filled with the most extravagant, fabulous, colorful, steampunk carnival! Striped pavilions, a Ferris wheel that looks like a giant watch gear, fluttering ribbons, crowds, booths. See pp 58-59 in novel for extensive description.

CAPTION (OWEN)

Someplace like this …

CAPTION (OWEN)

I still haven’t learned how I can see the Clockwork Angels, but this …

CAPTION (OWEN)

This …

PAGE 11

PANEL 1

Owen slips into a line of people passing through the gate, where a bearded lady is at a booth selling tickets. We’ll see the bearded lady in full in the next panel. This one should emphasize the crowd, the smiles on faces, the exuberance of Owen’s curiosity. A banner is stretched between two poles above the gate,
César Magnusson’s Carnival Extravaganza
. Owen tries to make conversation with the other people.

OWEN

I’ve never been to a carnival. They don’t often come to Barrel Arbor.

MAN

This one wasn’t on the schedule. I’m sure there’ll be an update from the Newsgraph office.

PANEL 2

Owen reaches the front of the line and is startled to see that the ticket taker is a bearded lady, LOUISA. (Neil dressed up as the bearded lady for a shot in the concert tour; I have a reference photo. Louisa should look like this, except she also has purple ribbons in her beard.)

OWEN

I … I’d like a ticket, please.

OWEN

I’ve never seen a bearded lady before.

LOUISA

I am the least of the marvels you’ll see in there, young man.

PANEL 3

Two-shot, another angle. Owen and Louisa. She hands him the ticket. (I’ll send a design for the ticket, which was used in the limited signed edition of the novel.)

OWEN

Thank you. Oh, and do you know how I could get a ticket to see the Clockwork Angels? You seem to have some knowledge of tickets.

LOUISA

I don’t have
those
tickets, dear boy! Isn’t our show enough?

LOUISA

NEXT!

PANEL 4

Owen in the Midway, crowds everywhere, lots of stalls, a knife thrower performing at one; a barker at a game booth is spinning a clockwork-gear roulette wheel at another.

BARKER

Big money! Big money!

PANEL 5

Three carnie clowns go prancing by in colorful, absurd outfits. One is banging a drum, another clashing cymbals together, while the third reaches out with an extended finger to poke Owen in the nose, while his eyes widen and he recoils in surprise. These three clowns are LEKE, DEKE, and PEKE and are meant to be Geddy, Alex, and Neil. Alex should be the one poking Owen.

PANEL 6

Owen gapes at a bronze-skinned, well-muscled strongman who is straining and lifting a barbell overloaded with weights. He sweats, grimaces, and his muscles look as if they’re about to explode. A big banner behind him says GOLSON! THE WORLD’S STRONGEST MAN!

VOICE (OUT OF PANEL)

What does the future hold for you, young man?

PAGE 12

PANEL 1

Owen stands before a bright red booth with windows, which holds the clockwork gypsy fortune teller. See Hugh Syme’s painting on p. 114 of the novel. The booth says GYPSY FORTUNE TELLER. There is a toy-like windup key on the side of the booth wall.

GYPSY FORTUNE TELLER

What does the future hold for you, young man?

OWEN

Are you talking to me?

PANEL 2

Small panel. Close-up of side of the booth, a slot for a coin that says “5¢”

PANEL 3

Small panel, Owen’s fingers insert a coin into the slot.

PANEL 4

Small panel, Owen turns the windup key

PANEL 5

Close-up of the old woman’s withered hands shuffling tarot cards, spreading them out on the flat surface in front of her. She is half-alive, half mechanical. Show some pulleys and gears in her arms/hands. A faint blue glow around some of her clockwork.

SFX

Whirrr whirrr clik clik clik

PANEL 6

The fortune teller’s head staring straight ahead as she delivers her reading. She looks artificial, robotic (in contrast with the next panel). Owen listens, amazed.

GYPSY FORTUNE TELLER

Justice against the Hanged Man. Knight of Wands against the Hour.

OWEN

But … what does it mean?

PANEL 7

Close-up. Gypsy fortune teller now looks alive, smiling, looks intently at Owen. (He does not need to be in the panel, if he doesn’t fit.)

GYPSY FORTUNE TELLER

The universe has a plan. We are only human—it’s not ours to understand … Owen Hardy.

PAGE 13

PANEL 1

Small panel, a puff of alchemical smoke and a flash of light bursts at Owen’s feet.

SFX

Poof!

PANEL 2

TOMIO stands there, a dashing Dartagnan-like young man with a thin sword in one hand and his other hand has just thrown the alchemical smoke bomb. He is laughing.

TOMIO

A-ha! That got your attention, young man. If you hurry, you can make it in time—see something more beautiful even than the Clockwork Angels!

PANEL 3

Tomio gestures with his sword toward a high-wire strung between two tall poles farther down the midway. A tiny figure stands silhouetted on a platform at the top of one of the poles. At the same time, with his other hand, Tomio flings another one of his smoke bombs, which explodes on the ground in front of them.

OWEN

More beautiful than the Clockwork Angels?

TOMIO

The amazing FRANCESCA—an angel of an entirely different sort!
Run
, boy!

SFX

Poof!

PANEL 4

At the top of her platform, we see the glorious FRANCESCA, raven-haired, gorgeous, wearing a white full-body leotard, a decorative cape (which hides a spring-loaded pair of metal wings). With a flourish, she places a long-stemmed rose in her mouth.

PANEL 5

Francesca walks out on the tightrope, one foot after the other, perfectly balanced, a vision of beauty. We see her from behind, walking away from us.

PANEL 6

Small panel. Owen is there in the crowd, tight on his face although we see other faces next to him (perhaps indistinct, to keep the focus on him). He stares up at her with sparkling eyes.

CAPTION (OWEN)

She is as beautiful as the Clockwork Angels. She
has
to be!

PANEL 7

Small panel, close-up of Francesca, looking down at the crowd. From position of faces in panels 6 and 7, we want to show that they are looking directly AT each other.

PAGE 14

PANEL 1

Dramatic shot from crowd level. Up on the high rope, Francesca spreads her arms as if she’s about to fly.

PANEL 2

Francesca LEAPS toward us, soaring in the open air, her black hair flying back, her cape rippling. She has a daredevil grin on her face, the rose still clenched in her teeth.

PANEL 3

Crowd shot, a group of faces—including Owen—all of them showing identical expressions of shock and horror.

PANEL 4

Birds-eye view, looking down on Francesca from above. From a hidden pack on her back, a pair of spring-loaded metallic angel wings snap out from beneath her cape.

SFX

Snikkk

PANEL 5

Francesca swoops down, pulling up to land gently in front of Owen.

OWEN

Ohh!

PANEL 6

Francesca hands Owen the rose, and he looks completely astonished as he takes it.

FRANCESCA

This is for you. I hope you enjoyed the show.

PAGE 15

PANEL 1

A troop of blue-uniformed Regulators marches along the Midway like an invading army, 12 of them like clockwork soldiers. The crowd parts for them. The officious guard captain shouts to the crowd.

REGULATOR CAPTAIN

Attention all citizens! By order of our loving Watchmaker, this carnival is officially closed. Please depart in an orderly fashion.

PANEL 2

CESAR MAGNUSSON steps up to face the Regulators, who crowd behind their captain like a sea of blue uniforms. Magnusson is the typical carnival ringmaster, beautiful red jacket, white jodhpurs, black boots, extravagant black handlebar mustache, short slicked-back black hair. Possibly with a black top hat. (Note for Nick: at the end we will learn that this is Francesca’s
mother
, with short hair, wrapped chest, fake mustache—so don’t make him/her look too masculine.)

MAGNUSSON

Excuse me, fine gentlemen. How may I help you? I am César Magnusson, proprietor of this carnival extravaganza.

MAGNUSSON

Perhaps the Watchmaker desires a ticket to see our show?

PANEL 3

The Captain flashes a wrinkled piece of paper, a permit, which he waves in front of Magnusson’s face. Magnusson strokes his handlebar mustache.

REGULATOR CAPTAIN

Irregularities were found in your permit. By decree of the Watchmaker, you must shut down these operations and remove all items by sundown.

PANEL 4

Louisa the bearded lady, Tomio, and Golson the strongman stand together, all looking disappointed.