UPDATING OCCASIONALLY (FOR NOW)

9 thoughts on “558 – Cotton Clad Calamity”

  1. Raznaak

    Yup, he’s a bastard XD

  2. Dr. Norman (not a real doctor)

    Are those pajamas available in XXXL in the gift shop?

  3. Otaku

    It’s been a while, so let me ask: Did we get a reason for him to WANT Susie dead? Not to backseat, but if we didn’t, I’m worried were about to move into “Stupid Evil” territory. Now, stupid happens, don’t get me wrong. It’s not bad storytelling for that to be the case here.

    You’ve just done a good job NOT having that be a driving factor, so the “Kill off the stars of my successful reality TV show.” seems shortsighted, otherwise. Oh, I guess I could be mistaken about the in-story reality TV show’s success. Like, if the company behind them is losing money, or they think a change in management at the ranch would make the whole thing more popular/profitable, then I can see the above scenario happening as well.

    I REALLY think I’m just forgetting something important, but that I don’t have time to deep dive to remind me of, hence the comment. >_<

    1. Deoxy

      It certainly has been stretched out over quite a while, but there have definitely been hints from quite near the beginning that whoever is running the reality TV show definitely wants her dead.

      But I certainly don’t recall any reason why.

      1. Clint

        Yeah it’s fair to not remember since it’s been a hot minute (many, many minutes) but if you feel like a refresher the most relevant bits would be the beginning of Episode 8 and the end of Episode 15. We haven’t explicitly spelled out exactly what The Exec means by his “side hustle” or who was on the other end of that phone call, though.

        I’m hoping that when the whole thing is eventually available it will make sense, or at least enough sense to have hung this narrative on.

        1. Otaku

          Thanks for the replies, Deoxy and Clint. Yeah, I’d totally forgotten about those things. Good to know!

  4. Evervigilant

    Seems about time for the two people who aren’t there to make a surprise entrance as the ace Susie didn’t even know she had.

  5. Scarsdale

    There’s still 3-5 people on her side that might be planning something. This guy is a megalomaniac with a god complex, so letting him think he’s the sharpest tool in the shed sets him up for a fall. Everything depends on those cameras, and I suspect their little stop over by the charging coffins had something to do with her actual plan, not the one the a-hole thinks it is.

  6. lyra

    Really enjoyed the opening of Zombie Ranch. I like the combination of the western setting with the zombie concept, it gives the story a really distinctive atmosphere. I’m a freelance illustrator and animator, and I’d be interested in seeing how some of these scenes could translate into motion, especially as a short animated teaser or character scene.

    If you’re ever interested in something like that, you can reach me here:

    IG: eve_verse_
    Email: [contact.lilaclines@gmail.com](mailto:contact.lilaclines@gmail.com)
    Discord: Lyralilac_

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*


 

558 – Cotton Clad Calamity
Posted on August 26, 2026 by Dawn

What would you call this? Armchair assassination? Merk-from-home?

Well, Suzie ain't dead (or undead) quite yet, so we'll just have to see if his gloating is justifiable.

A circle is complete

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Clint

I still wonder sometimes whether Zombie Ranch has “succeeded”.

That’s weird, isn’t it? Especially for a story that by its very nature isn’t complete. I start wondering then how I’m even trying to define success. Notability? Critical reaction? Monetization? Some combination of all three? I feel like last year’s successful Kickstarter and the trade paperback resulting from it were definitely milestones and accomplishments for us, but it’s not like it magically made us household names, even within the comics or webcomics community. Big news sites aren’t busting down our (virtual) door demanding interviews. Strangers don’t line up to buy the book at conventions, and those conventions don’t offer us free airfare and hotel stays just to hear us speak. Our major motion picture deal has not materialized.

But I’m not going to cry myself to sleep over that. Because this happened:

ac-zombieranchtpb

That’s Amanda Conner. In October 2009 she was gracious enough to trade a sketchbook of hers for one of Dawn’s and our first crappy ashcan Zombie Ranch preview, as mentioned here. Then about a year later we were lucky enough to get to be Artist’s Alley neighbors with her, as I also documented. But since then we hadn’t had much contact, beyond a quick hello here and there. Did she even remember us?

Well, if she didn’t, she faked it really damn well when Dawn spied her walking down our aisle at the Long Beach Comic Expo this past weekend and we waved. On a slow Sunday morning, away from the usual pressures of her commission/autograph line, she stopped and chatted with us and reminisced about past and present, and when I mentioned that the ashcan from all those years ago had blossomed into a TPB, she pulled out her wallet and declared that she needed herself a signed copy.

We were in such a tizzy I didn’t even think to take a picture until she was already on her way back to her own booth, but fortunately I managed to scurry over and snap the above photo for posterity before the crowds found her. Then I came back and Dawn and I just sat and smiled. The strangers may still have not been lining up to buy our book, but one of our idols had just coughed up thirty bucks of her own free will so she could own a copy. I didn’t demand or even expect that, but given the history of it all, after the fact it sure felt right.

I guess sometimes the feel of success is measured by when a whole bunch of people want what you’re offering. And sometimes, all it takes is one.