Thing is, tho, there is an entire issue of FINDERS complete and in the drawer. What to do with it? Well, this is my solution: "serialize" it here in the JBF.

A couple of little problems with that idea, tho. One, it's not lettered, since lettering is rarely done on the boards these days. And second, it's in black and white, and there are several pages with rather important color element. Solution, then, run the script along with the pages -- sorry, gang, I just don't love you enough to put in the time and effort to letter the story (no volunteers, please!) -- and apply color, as in ANGEL: BLOOD AND TRENCHES, where needed.

I'm going to run a page a day for the next three weeks or so -- without attempting to convert it to "serial" form -- but to kick off, I'm starting with two pages, since not much happens on the splash. Oh, yeah, and I'm going to lock the thread each day, until the whole thing is "published." Then I will open the thread for comments.

Merry Xmas!

PAGE ONE

1 NATHAN: Ah, GOWER. There you are.

2 NATHAN: This is CYNTHIA CARTER. She’ll be JOINING us as of today.

3 NATHAN: I’d like you to SHOW her the ROPES.

PAGE TWO

PANEL ONE

1 NATHAN: As I’m sure my WIFE told you, Ms. Carter…

2 NATHAN: Gower here is one of our TOP operatives.

3 CYNTHIA: Oh, yes.

4 CYNTHIA: Mrs. SMITH has told me ALL about Mr. BLAINE.

5 GOWER: Has she indeed?

6 GOWER: Maybe I should play it SAFE…

7 GOWER: …and DENY EVERYTHING!

PANEL TWO

8 NATHAN: Gower, ALVIN is ready downstairs whenever you are.

9 NATHAN: Well, I leave you two to GET ACQUAINTED.

10 CYNTHIA: Thank you, Mr. Smith.

PANEL THREE

11 GOWER: So YOU’RE the new blood the office has been buzzing about for a WEEK.

12 GOWER: Cynthia, was it? Can I offer you a cup of COFFEE, Cynthia?

13 CYNTHIA: Perhaps later.

14 CYNTHIA: I was hoping to get STARTED…

PANEL FOUR

15 GOWER: So was I!

16 GOWER: And I’m sure we can find something much more INTERESTING than COFFEE.

PANEL FIVE

17 CYNTHIA: Perhaps we need to come to an UNDERSTANDING, Mr. Blaine.

18 CYNTHIA: I know your REPUTATION, but I am here strictly to WORK.

19 CYNTHIA: Do. You. Understand. That?

20 GOWER: Y-yes…

PAGE THREE

PANEL ONE

1 CYNTHIA: Then I think we are going to get along just fine.

2 CYNTHIA: Now, where can I put my coat?

3 GOWER: The… employee locker room is just down the hall.

4 GOWER: But tell me, how did you get drawn into this little slice of WONDERLAND?

PANEL TWO

5 CYNTHIA: I was ADVANCED STUDIES at PRINCETON.

6 CYNTHIA: One day the DEAN called me into his office. He said he’d HEARD about… the THINGS I can DO.

7 CYNTHIA: He gave me a number to call…

8 GOWER: And it turned out to be Mrs. Smith.

PANEL THREE

9 CYNTHIA: Yes. Bethany. She had me come in for an interview.

10 CYNTHIA: Some tech types tested my… powers, and Mr. and Mrs. Smith offered me a place with the ORGANIZATION.

PANEL FOUR

11 CYNTHIA: What about YOU?

12 CYNTHIA: I presume you also have some… SPECIAL ABILITIES?

13 GOWER: Me? Nah!

14 GOWER: Strictly GUIDED MUSCLE.

15 GOWER: My job is to PROTECT the SPECIALS, like you.

PANEL FIVE

16 GOWER: And there’s the man who has the most IMPORTANT job…

17 GOWER: Alvin!

18 ALVIN: Gower!

PANEL SIX

19 ALVIN: I was just going to SEND for you.

20 ALVIN: Got a HOT one for you this morning.

21 ALVIN: Who’s your friend? New blood?

PAGE FOUR

PANEL ONE

1 GOWER: Alvin Nealy, Cynthia Carter,

2 GOWER: Cynthia, Alvin.

3 CYNTHIA: Dr, Nealy…

4 ALVIN: Oh, please! Not so formal!

5 ALVIN: Besides, I never did actually FINISH getting that degree…

6 ALVIN: Anyway, Ms Carter, welcome to the HIVE.

PANEL TWO

7 ALVIN (off-panel, left): This is where all our busy little WORKER BEES make the MAGIC that makes this whole operation POSSIBLE.

8 ALVIN: Like Rosario, here…

9 ROSARIO: You’re right on time, Al.

10 ROSARIO: This is the data. Just needs your SPECIAL TOUCH!

PANEL THREE

11 GOWER: You said this was a HOT one, Al?

12 ALVIN: Looks like. Been TRACKING bits and pieces since just after MIDNIGHT.

PANEL FOUR

13 ALVIN: There you go. Close to home, too, for a CHANGE.

14 ALVIN: Harlem.

PANEL FIVE

15 ALVIN (off-panel, right): Oh, and it looks like SHARON McALLISTER is on this one!

PAGE FIVE

PANEL ONE

1 CYNTHIA (from car): We’re almost there.

2 CYNTHIA: Are you going to tell me who Sharon McAllister is?

3 GOWER (from car): I used to be a COP.

4 GOWER: She used to be my PARTNER.

PANEL TWO

5 CYNTHIA: And that’s all?

6 CYNTHIA: Nealy seemed to be… GOADING you.

7 CYNTHIA: And given your REPUTATION…

8 GOWER: That’s all that's RELEVANT to this CASE.

PANEL THREE

9 GOWER (from car): Cops are still here in FULL FORCE.

10 GOWER: Al was right -- this MUST be a HOT one.

PANEL FOUR

11 CYNTHIA: Oh my god! The STENCH!

12 CYNTHIA: Do people really LIVE like THIS?

13 GOWER: Not by CHOICE, Princess.

14 GOWER: Mornin’, Shar. Okay if WE take a LOOK around?

15 SHARON: If I said NO, would you LEAVE?

16 SHARON: I thought not.

17 SHARON: And as long as your BOSSES are BEST BUDDIES with MAYOR LINDSAY…

PANEL FIVE

18 SHARON: But be CAREFUL where you STEP.

19 SHARON: There’s BLOOD EVERYWHERE.

20 CYNTHIA: No need for HYPERBOLE, Detective.

21 CYNTHIA: I’ve been BRIEFED on CRIME SCENE PROTOCOL.

PAGE SIX

PANEL ONE

1 SHARON: Well bully for you, Nancy Drew.

2 SHARON: But that wasn’t hyperbole!

PANEL TWO

3 GOWER: Princess…?

PANEL THREE

4 GOWER: Princess!

PANEL FOUR

5 SHARON: Excellent “briefing”, there…

6 GOWER: Cut the kid a BREAK, Shar.

7 GOWER: You were FRESH out of the BOX yourself, once.

PAGE SEVEN

PANEL ONE

1 GOWER: You okay, Princess?

2 CYNTHIA: I’m… EMBARASSED.

3 CYNTHIA: Oh, God! There wasn’t anybody on the STAIRS, was there?

PANEL TWO

4 GOWER: Nothing to be embarassed about, kiddo.

5 GOWER: Here, have a drop of the TRUE. Steady your nerves.

6 CYNTHIA: I… don’t DRINK…

PANEL THREE

7 SHARON: If you two LOVE BIRDS are done…

8 SHARON: …do you MIND if we CONTINUE this investigation?

PANEL FOUR

9 SHARON: I’d like to get HOME some time today!

10 SHARON: Are you about DONE, Dr. Ricardo?

11 RIC: For now.

12 RIC: It’s gonna take WEEKS to sort this all out!

PANEL FIVE

13 GOWER: What are you BAGGING, Ric?

14 GOWER: Is there more than just BLOOD?

15 RIC: A LOT more, Gow.

16 RIC: Like BONE CHIPS. Millions of them.

17 RIC: Not a ONE more than a QUARTER INCH long.

PANEL SIX

18 RIC: But THIS is the REAL puzzler.

19 RIC: What do you make of this blood-free pattern?

PAGE EIGHT

PANEL ONE

1 GOWER: Footprints. Adult Male. Child.

2 GOWER: Looks like the adult was standing over the child… threatening?

3 GOWER: Not sure about the BLOB behind the kid…

PANEL TWO

4 CYNTHIA: That could be a person sitting on the floor.

5 CYNTHIA: The MOTHER?

6 CYNTHIA: …and the child was PROTECTING her…

7 GOWER: Makes sense…

PANEL THREE

8 SHARON: Hold on. I KNOW the kind of WEIRDNESS Gower is mixed up in these days.

9 SHARON: Are you saying… a man… EXPLODED?

10 CYNTHIA: I… don’t know.

PANEL FOUR

11 CYNTHIA: But something like that… would have to make a… SOUND…

12 GOWER: Like NOTHING anybody had ever HEARD before.

13 GOWER: You don’t mind if we CANVAS the neighbors, Shar?

14 SHARON: Be my guest.

15 SHARON: You KNOW how HELPFUL they’ll be!

PANEL FIVE

16 GOWER: Yeah, well… we have a… slight ADVANTAGE.

17 SHARON: if you say so.

18 SHARON: And don’t forget, Gower… next SATURDAY is the FIRST of the MONTH.

19 SHARON: THAT’S when the ALIMONY check is due!

PANEL SIX and SEVEN (silent)

PAGE NINE

PANELS ONE & TWO (SFX on art)

PANEL THREE

1 OLD LADY: Go ‘way!

2 OLD LADY: I TOL’ you I got NOTHIN’ t’say t’the PO-lice!

PANEL FOUR

3 CYNTHIA: But we’re NOT the police.

4 CYNTHIA: And you have NOTHING to fear from us.

PANEL FIVE

5 CAPTION” “Surely you can spare us a FEW minutes?”

6 OLD LADY: …an she’d only just got MALCOLM back from SOCIAL SERVICES….

7 OLD LADY: …after she tried to KILL HERSELF again, last year.

8 OLD LADY: SPROUSE was BEATIN’ her again, I know, an’ I heard somethin’ go… POP!

9 CYNTHIA: And that was LATE last night?

PANEL SIX

10 GOWER: Did you hear anything ELSE?

11 GOWER: Like, AFTER the… “pop”?

12 OLD LADY: That POP was the WORS’ sound I ever did hear. I didn’t WANT to hear NOTHIN’ after that!

13 OLD LADY: But I thought… maybe there was a SQUEAK on the FIRE ESCAPE.

PANEL SEVEN

14 GOWER: The fire escape…

PAGE TEN

PANEL ONE

1 GOWER: Yep… there’s BLOOD here.

PANEL TWO

2 GOWER: Figures. Whoever was IN that room would have been just as COVERED as everything else.

3 CYNTHIA: They climbed to the roof?

4 CYNTHIA: Should we tell Detective McAllister?

PANEL THREE

5 GOWER: No. Like she said, this is one of OURS.

6 GOWER: Problem with that?

7 CYNTHIA: No.

PANEL FOUR

8 CAPTION: “Mrs. Smith explained our METHODS would be… UNORTHODOX.”

9 GOWER: The trail is running out.

10 GOWER: Not surprising, after climbing over HALF the ROOFTOPS in HARLEM!

PANEL FIVE

11 GOWER: This is the end of it.

12 GOWER: And from HERE, they could have gone ANYWHERE.

13 CYNTHIA: I suppose we should head back to BASE, then.

PANEL SIX

14 CAPTION: “All we can really do now is REPORT.”

15 BETHANY: This is SERIOUS.

PAGE ELEVEN

PANEL ONE

1 GOWER: More serious than any of the other “specials” we’ve scooped over the years?

2 BETHANY: You’ve been with us for five years now, Blaine.

3 BETHANY: In that time, have you ever seen a FIRST MANIFESTATION that was so… VIOLENT?

4 BETHANY:   This SPECIAL is POWERFUL and UNCONTROLLED.

5 BETHANY: Alvin… your thoughts?

PANEL TWO

6 ALVIN: I got NOTHIN’, Boss.

7 ALVIN: Way I see it, the only way we have any hope of finding this one again is to… WAIT.

PANEL THREE

8 CYNTHIA: Wait?

9 CYNTHIA: You don’t mean… wait until this monster KILLS AGAIN?

10 GOWER: We try not to think of them as MONSTERS, Princess.

11 GOWER: And do you have a BETTER plan?

PANEL FOUR

12 BETHANY: Unfortunately, there IS no better plan.

13 BETHANY: All we can do is HOPE the next incident leads to a SWIFT INTERCEPTION.

14 BETHANY: Get started.

PANEL FIVE

15 GOWER: On it, Boss.

16 GOWER: Comin’, Princess?

17 CYNTHIA: I’ll join you in a few minutes.

18 CYNTHIA: Mrs. Smith, if you have a moment…

19 BETHANY: A moment.

20 BETHANY: I have to prepare for a flight to Shanghai…

PANEL SIX

21 CYNTHIA: This won’t take long.

22 CYNTHIA: I just had a couple of QUESTIONS…

PAGE TWELVE

PANEL ONE

1 ALVIN: …but I admit I don’t really UNDERSTAND a lot of the company’s PROPRIETORIAL technology.

2 ALVIN: And I don’t think I’m SUPPOSED to!

3 GOWER: As long as it WORKS, Al, that’s all that…

4 GOWER: CYNTHIA!

PANEL TWO

5 GOWER: You look like somebody WALKED on your GRAVE…

6 GOWER: In HOBNAIL BOOTS!

7 CYNTHIA: Do I?

PANEL THREE

8 CYNTHIA: I… asked Mrs. Smith some QUESTIONS.

9 CYNTHIA: I… guess I wasn’t PREPARED for the ANSWERS…

10 GOWER: What did she…?

11 ALVIN: Hey!

PANEL FOUR

12 GOWER: Whatcha GOT, Al?

13 ALVIN: Something from your EX’s department.

14 ALVIN: They are suddenly VERY interested in a Mrs. ESTELLE SALTER.

15 ALVIN: She seems to be the GRANDMOTHER of the woman who was renting the BLOOD BOX.

PANEL FIVE

16 CAPTION: “Address is just across the G.W.B. in JERSEY…”

17 GOWER: Looks like this is going to CONTINUE your lesson in how the OTHER HALF lives, Princess.

18 GOWER: At least these folk know what TREES and GRASS look like.

PANEL SIX

19 GOWER: Nobody home?

20 CYNTHIA: I’m getting… COOKING aromas…

PAGE THIRTEEN

PANEL ONE

1 CYNTHIA: No sign of life inside, though.

2 CYNTHIA: What’s the usual PROTOCOL for…

PANEL TWO

3 CYNTHIA: Where are you going?

4 GOWER: The left side of the house is BLOCKED with GARBAGE.

PANEL THREE

5 GOWER: We’ll have to CIRCLE ‘round.

6 GOWER: At least it’s a LOW fence!

PANEL FOUR

7 CYNTHIA: Isn’t this TRESPASSING?

8 GOWER: Some say!

9 GOWER: Hello? Anybody home?

PANEL FIVE

10 CYNTHIA: Gower!

11 GOWER: Door’s not LOCKED.

12 GOWER: If they LEFT, they left in a HURRY…

PANEL SIX

13 GOWER: I wonder if…