No Deal – SEE SAW Comics, Webcomics from the Sequential Artists Workshop

No Deal

The title panel reads, "No DEAL by Vanessa Davis." The text is laid over a splash of grayish-blue. Next to it is a floating red balloon. The whole comic has 12 borderless panels, 2 across in 6 rows (not including the title). 1. Vanessa begins narrating, "My father died the night my winter break started, which was very convenient. I had a month off school to go home and deal with it." Vanessa, colored entirely in blue, except for her brown hair, lies in bed with the blanket drawn up to her neck. Her hair is cut in an above-the-shoulder bob. She is frowning and her brows are furrowed. She says, "I wish we'd all died, like in a car accident or something." Someone lies in another bed across the room, also colored in blue except for their short brown hair. Their blanket is drawn far enough up to cover their chin. Their hand obscures part of their face. Their eyebrows are furrowed in concern. They reply, "Don't say that!" 2. Vanessa as narrator: "In grief I've felt betrayed by reality. It makes no sense. There's nothing to hold onto." Vanessa sits on a couch hugging her knees to her chest. Her hair is past shoulder length now. She is still colored entirely in blue except for her hair. She sits next to a man with short brown hair, also colored in blue - probably the person from before. They both look older. They have empty, solemn expressions. 3. "There is grief that divides you from the world. This one, though, is pervasive. There is no escape." A desert is dotted with rocks, scattered shrubs, and cacti. There is a mountain in the background. 4. "My family members all flew in for the funeral. I felt sure that once they left, my dad would return." Vanessa, in full color, is clearly young, perhaps in middle or high school. Her hair is in the above-the-shoulder bob. She wears a pink t-shirt and blue shorts. She reaches up and touches the beard of a man bending down to hug her. He wears glasses, a red t-shirt, and green pants. Vanessa asks, smiling, "Can I get you something to drink?" The man does not smile back.

5. "After my month at home, I returned to school. My mom feared that my life might be derailed or defined by my dad's death." Vanessa stands in front of a red-brick school building, wearing a red backpack, purple sweater, and jeans. She looks apprehensive. 6. "It's supposed to be for our own good, to let go of anger and sadness." Vanessa, with longer hair, sits across from her therapist, a woman with bangs and a short bob, glasses, and nice clothes. Vanessa wears a green long-sleeved shirt and blue pants. The therapist says, "'Forgiveness' is sort of a religious idea. What about acceptance instead? Can you accept it?" Vanessa, with a dull expression, replies, "No." 7. "I'm really distracted. I feel incoherent. Even talking with friends is hard." Vanessa as an adult talks to a man with blond cropped hair, glasses, and a baby in his arms. They are at a kid's birthday party - there are colorful balloons and red streamers in the background. A young child carries a ball. Vanessa frowns, looking devastated. The man says to her, "Well, we'll see!" 8. "Everyone's talking. No one is saying the right thing. Including me." Vanessa is running, looking distressed. Behind her is a scene of destruction and chaos - buildings are on fire, smoke fills the air, the ground looks like rubble. She shouts, "is there a rational adult anywhere!?"

9. "This isn't death, though. It's stupider." A man who has floppy blond hair wears a red baseball cap, bright yellow t-shirt, and orange pants. He is pointing and sneering, "Ha ha! Deal with it, LIBTARDS!" 10. "Life changes anyway. It's hard to keep a grasp on self-respect facing a cynical, self-hating regime. (While I do not see its wealth trickling down anytime soon, its divisive hostility already is.) Vanessa scowls at her laptop while typing. The laptop reads, "You're an idiot." 11. "We're told to focus on small, real things." Two people, not shown besides their hands and forearms, sit at a table drinking coffee. There is a palm tree in front of them, and they appear to be by the ocean, or at some water-front. 12. "Anger and sadness feel ok right now. And reality isn't going anywhere." Someone wearing jeans walks aside an unleashed dog, a golden retriever with their tongue out and tail wagging.

The title panel reads, "No DEAL by Vanessa Davis." The text is laid over a splash of grayish-blue. Next to it is a floating red balloon. The whole comic has 12 borderless panels, 2 across in 6 rows (not including the title). 1. Vanessa begins narrating, "My father died the night my winter break started, which was very convenient. I had a month off school to go home and deal with it." Vanessa, colored entirely in blue, except for her brown hair, lies in bed with the blanket drawn up to her neck. Her hair is cut in an above-the-shoulder bob. She is frowning and her brows are furrowed. She says, "I wish we'd all died, like in a car accident or something." Someone lies in another bed across the room, also colored in blue except for their short brown hair. Their blanket is drawn far enough up to cover their chin. Their hand obscures part of their face. Their eyebrows are furrowed in concern. They reply, "Don't say that!" 2. Vanessa as narrator: "In grief I've felt betrayed by reality. It makes no sense. There's nothing to hold onto." Vanessa sits on a couch hugging her knees to her chest. Her hair is past shoulder length now. She is still colored entirely in blue except for her hair. She sits next to a man with short brown hair, also colored in blue - probably the person from before. They both look older. They have empty, solemn expressions. 3. "There is grief that divides you from the world. This one, though, is pervasive. There is no escape." A desert is dotted with rocks, scattered shrubs, and cacti. There is a mountain in the background. 4. "My family members all flew in for the funeral. I felt sure that once they left, my dad would return." Vanessa, in full color, is clearly young, perhaps in middle or high school. Her hair is in the above-the-shoulder bob. She wears a pink t-shirt and blue shorts. She reaches up and touches the beard of a man bending down to hug her. He wears glasses, a red t-shirt, and green pants. Vanessa asks, smiling, "Can I get you something to drink?" The man does not smile back.

5. "After my month at home, I returned to school. My mom feared that my life might be derailed or defined by my dad's death." Vanessa stands in front of a red-brick school building, wearing a red backpack, purple sweater, and jeans. She looks apprehensive. 6. "It's supposed to be for our own good, to let go of anger and sadness." Vanessa, with longer hair, sits across from her therapist, a woman with bangs and a short bob, glasses, and nice clothes. Vanessa wears a green long-sleeved shirt and blue pants. The therapist says, "'Forgiveness' is sort of a religious idea. What about acceptance instead? Can you accept it?" Vanessa, with a dull expression, replies, "No." 7. "I'm really distracted. I feel incoherent. Even talking with friends is hard." Vanessa as an adult talks to a man with blond cropped hair, glasses, and a baby in his arms. They are at a kid's birthday party - there are colorful balloons and red streamers in the background. A young child carries a ball. Vanessa frowns, looking devastated. The man says to her, "Well, we'll see!" 8. "Everyone's talking. No one is saying the right thing. Including me." Vanessa is running, looking distressed. Behind her is a scene of destruction and chaos - buildings are on fire, smoke fills the air, the ground looks like rubble. She shouts, "is there a rational adult anywhere!?"

9. "This isn't death, though. It's stupider." A man who has floppy blond hair wears a red baseball cap, bright yellow t-shirt, and orange pants. He is pointing and sneering, "Ha ha! Deal with it, LIBTARDS!" 10. "Life changes anyway. It's hard to keep a grasp on self-respect facing a cynical, self-hating regime. (While I do not see its wealth trickling down anytime soon, its divisive hostility already is.) Vanessa scowls at her laptop while typing. The laptop reads, "You're an idiot." 11. "We're told to focus on small, real things." Two people, not shown besides their hands and forearms, sit at a table drinking coffee. There is a palm tree in front of them, and they appear to be by the ocean, or at some water-front. 12. "Anger and sadness feel ok right now. And reality isn't going anywhere." Someone wearing jeans walks aside an unleashed dog, a golden retriever with their tongue out and tail wagging.

Published On: November 12, 2023

Adult Vanessa sits across from her therapist, a woman with a brown bob and bangs, glasses, and a blue suit. The therapist asks, "Is that a FEELING or a THOUGHT?" Vanessa crosses her arms and scowls. "Both!" she replies.

Young Vanessa, with short hair and glasses and a pink one piece swim suit, floats in a tube along a marshy spring. She is drifting into the marsh despite trying to steer with her hands flapping in the water. In a panic, she shouts out to her peers who have floated much farther past her, “Guys!! Wait!”

An older man, with grey hair that's balded on top, wears dark shades and a green collared shirt. He looks straight ahead as he drives a car. There is a girl in the back and a woman in the passenger seat. The woman says, "To the mall, Jeeves!"

A guy in a blue snow suit races the Iditarod with standard poodles.

Vanessa sits on a couch hugging her knees to her chest. A man sits next to her. They both look solemn, and are colored entirely in blue, except for their brown hair.

Vanessa lies in a neon green hospital bed with her legs in stirrups. She is actively in labor. Two people hold onto her legs, encouraging her.

A person dressed in a green park ranger uniform holds a boom box over a beaver's dam. It plays water sounds. A beaver works on the dam and thinks, "Whatever, I don't care where I build it."

A girl looks over at a dog, who sits behind a fence. A red sign reads "BAD DOG."

"Women often say they become invisible as they get older." Vanessa walks in a crowd, sandwiched by two fashionable younger women walking in different directions.

One thought on “No Deal”

Jason
12/14/2023, 12:17 pm
- Reply
You are not alone!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply