^ 39 Comments...

1. Geofre
   December 12th, 2009 at 10:03 pm

   could we be looking at a double disarm!!! excellent acrobatics from Yatta but charging in … what was he thinking

2. Steve
   December 12th, 2009 at 10:03 pm

   Bravo! Bravo!

3. Paul
   December 12th, 2009 at 10:16 pm

   Wow, Zona might actually lose this one….. Not that she would lose a fight against him, mind you, but she might be disarmed first.

4. The Macnut
   December 12th, 2009 at 10:46 pm

   And again another well done page JE.

   Amazing how Yatta was able to do that back-flipping move without skewering himself-yet again proof that he’s got some chops in the sword fighting department. But charging Zona is playing the game on her terms, where Yatta has significant disadvantages. I hope he’s got a slick move at the end of that charge that plays to his strength, or this is the beginning of a losing move on his part.

   Either way though, this looks like the beginning of the endgame, the final moves of the duel. Looks like this’ll be finished on Tuesday.

5. The Old Hack
   December 12th, 2009 at 10:46 pm

   …that looks like it is going to be fairly conclusive. O_O

   But for whom?

   I love Yatta’s somersaults, by the way. Realistic or not

6. LorannaPyrel
   December 12th, 2009 at 11:21 pm

   The two mighty warriors clashed, and their swords clashed … and then Yatta’s sword slid and poked Zona’s not-very-covering top, tearing the fabric beyond repair. The duel ended abruptly as poor Yatta fainted dead away, falling face-first into Zona’s chest - which prompted much laughter from everyone?

   >.> <.< (runs)

   Nah; it’ll never happen ^_^

   Loranna

7. Lebbrin
   December 13th, 2009 at 1:28 am

   @Loranna LOL! That’s a great picture for the adult section…

   Now we have to wait for Tuesday for the outcome. Yet another great page JED. Looks like I’ll be madly hitting the refresh button come Tuesday.

8. AdamZero
   December 13th, 2009 at 1:30 am

   and both swords be broken!

   Betcha.

   Her Royal Mum-ness did say mention draws.

9. Someguy
   December 13th, 2009 at 3:56 am

   @laranna I don’t know that sounds a bit mangaish, but on the other hand JE put speed lines in this one with the samurai charge so you never know.

10. Tricksterson
    December 13th, 2009 at 5:24 am

    I’m with Adam Zero. I’m betting both swords break.

11. Tricksterson
    December 13th, 2009 at 5:26 am

    Or maybe the mighty K-TOK! was them running into each other for a double head butt.

12. Lora
    December 13th, 2009 at 7:20 am

    Tsk, somersaults doesn’t work in real fighting, but they do look impressive.

    Hmm, I’m guessing either two broken swords or a disarm coming next page.

13. Jean
    December 13th, 2009 at 7:44 am

    Tricksterson, did you mean… “The cocoanut-like sound of their heads colliding simultaneously secretly delighted the canary” …?

    XD

14. Joe
    December 13th, 2009 at 9:14 am

    Yeah, not sure what the point of the flips are - or of Zona’s counter-charge. A charging opponent is likely to be off in footwork, and an experienced foe can take advantage of that in a number of ways, without moving much at all. If this is temper on Zona’s part, its a revealed weakness.

    All makes for a good show, though, and there are scenarios here where that could be a valid goal for either character.

15. Gremalkin
    December 13th, 2009 at 9:16 am

    One word: Wow !
    Great scene, i LOVE it !
    Especialy the speed lines.
    Can’t wait to se how it ends.

16. Ghost
    December 13th, 2009 at 10:22 am

    @Jean Amazing. Someone else thought the EXACT same thing. I have those somewhere around here…

    And I’m thinking they might be going hilt-to-hilt, where Yatta might face some problems. But with the skill he’s shown so far, he’d know that is a terrible idea.

17. Sockpuppet
    December 13th, 2009 at 10:45 am

    Yea, both swords are going to shatter with the force of the quickly approaching EPIC BLOW!

18. Someguy
    December 13th, 2009 at 11:08 am

    or maybe they will both try to dodge and score at the last minute each having tried to sucker the other one in. that would be a way to go too. Probably not going to happen of course.

19. Kamatu
    December 13th, 2009 at 1:59 pm

    +1 for Loranna and the faint, right *after* Yatta disarms Zona. Points for both teams that way….

    Flipping may not be real “realistic” for us peons, but in a world of magic where the strongest of a race of immensely strong barbarians just happens to be a girl…..

    Charging is a tactic, it does limit some responses, but only limits them, doesn’t put the charger “off” in some way. After all, racers shouldn’t race cars because when the wheels are rolling bad things can happen, yes? Of course, part of this depends on the style trained in, because some are reactive and designed to take advantage of a charging opponent.

    Yet another +1 for Loranna, but if I had to put money down, I’d bet on the double break/disarm with a side bet on double break with only one actually being disarmed. Coin toss on which one is disarmed with the other holding their hilt, depends on JED’s plot.

    Ah, another thought occurs, double break, Zona disarmed but velocity makes her take Yatta out. So Zona is left standing but loses on technical grounds since she was disarmed first.

20. Professor 61771
    December 13th, 2009 at 7:16 pm

    With the speed lines and all I was betting with Kamatu. Zona technically disarmed but Yatta out cold. Queen scores it as a technical win for Yatta in the spirit of fairness. His Legend (The Circle) is Now Complete…
    (had to do the Darth Vader bit, sorry :))

21. Uhl
    December 13th, 2009 at 7:40 pm

    With the yelling, the charging, and the speed lines, the first thing that came to mind was “KAMEYHAHMEHA!” Or maybe “KAYOHKEN TIMES 10!”

22. Steve
    December 13th, 2009 at 8:04 pm

    I’m betting on Madmartigan … “You really are great!” Then he flips his sword and falls in the snow.

23. Kosine
    December 13th, 2009 at 9:29 pm

    I’m with Uhl… Unfortunately, this was a very cheesy “DBZ” moment for me.

24. Jean
    December 13th, 2009 at 10:14 pm

    XD @ Steve, yes, I remember that part of the scene! Willow was a much better movie than a lot of people gave it credit…

25. aPrincess
    December 14th, 2009 at 3:21 am

    You guys go ahead and analyze the swordplay all you want. I’m just enjoying seeing this unfold. This comic just gets better and better.

26. Lora
    December 14th, 2009 at 6:03 am

    Willow is an underrated movie. Very classic in my opinion.

    Now, can it be tuesday, please?

27. Soulworker
    December 14th, 2009 at 8:26 am

    Man…am sooo bummed…Am heading out of country tomorrow and will not get to see the update for a few days!!! ARG!!! Okay…the first step toward health is admitting the problem….”Hi everyone…my name is Soulworker and I am a Zona addict….I have not been Zona free for at least 6 months and gleefully celebrate when I get my next fix” Please pray for me while I go through temporary withdrawl symptoms…

28. zangoules
    December 14th, 2009 at 8:40 am

    i’m zangoules, I also suffer the much needed zona fix….AHH TOO ADDICTED TO WAIT!!!*rips open the time space continuem to the future to find jed there with a sock’em boppers hammer and nails me back to now*…ouch.

29. Sleepinin
    December 14th, 2009 at 10:33 am

    One thing’s for sure.

    Both of them are going to have an increased opinion of each other after this duel, amirite? ^w^

30. MaxBigfoot
    December 14th, 2009 at 12:44 pm

    I wonder if Zona’s “AIEEEEEEEEEEE” is a tribute to Xena?

31. Lonely ninja
    December 15th, 2009 at 12:39 am

    I hope yatta wins because then zona might learn to respect some of the nuts she meets or at least it will give the guy some credit and win him a Virgin of the tribe

32. God
    December 15th, 2009 at 3:29 am

    Um, charging like that is pretty much reserved for people with shields.

    Also with your sword forward you can block, but you have no strong attack.

33. Peregrin
    December 15th, 2009 at 4:12 am

    That was a distinctly wooden sound so ably displayed in Batman font in that last panel. Those swords hit each other awfully hard there. Methinks the next update will either show us the winner or will be a very sneaky cutaway to another plot development.

    Yatta had to know he could not win in a head-on strength match. If being tossed like so much salad while standing on a log the size of a Buick didn’t clue him in, then what he’s learned so far in this duel should have done it. I believe he initiated the charge to get Zona to charge HIM, and that he has something else in mind for the eventual head-on. Will it work? NO IDEA AND I LOVE THAT!

34. Sleepinin
    December 15th, 2009 at 10:58 am

    If Yatta has a samurai-style moment of sheathing his sword while Zona falls down slightly poleaxed, I reserve the right to throw something.

    And go BWAHAHAHAHA.

35. Matthew
    December 15th, 2009 at 12:58 pm

    It is clear from this page that our author is a fan of Japanese cartoons.

36. The Macnut
    December 15th, 2009 at 5:57 pm

    @Sleepin: It’ll most likely be Zona sheathing the sword while Yatta falls, but I agree the other way is more likely to make people go WTF?????

37. Pat
    December 15th, 2009 at 8:36 pm

    Did anyone notice in panel one he is facing the wrong way? if you don’t understand please look at the last panel of pg 329

38. Jean
    December 15th, 2009 at 8:55 pm

    Pat, it’s probable that he spun around, and used the momentum of his spin to launch himself into that tumble. It’s always easier to use the momentum you currently have going, even if you have to change vectors, than to start something like that frmo a standstill. Just watch the Gymnastics competitions: Standing-still flips are always, always, always much more difficult to pull off than a running-tumble-and-flip version during the “floor performance” sections, or whatever they call that part of the competitions.

39. ExPaladin
    October 28th, 2010 at 12:45 pm

    I take back the “doesn’t waste energy” -comment

) Your Reply...