Exposition, also called “laying pipe” (though you should be careful where and in what context you use that phrase, as it means something rather different in other company) is kind of a pain. Exposition, having characters organically address each other by name (not a thing that happens very often with people who know each other, in my experience), keeping a coherent plot…all of that stuff is kind of a slog.

Laying pipe is hard to do well, basically. Or I’m just not good at it (according to my ex-wife anyway LOLZ).

So, there’s a few things in this story that are just me capitulating to a hard task. The omniscient third person narration on page 1 (although I actually enjoy that, and would do more of it if I didn’t have to letter it), and now, with this page, me just biting possibly the greatest this-is-what-this-thing-is-about narration in the history of television to catch you up on who the protagonists are.

Of course, me being me, I twisted said narration into a bit of character work. Alternatively, now it’s a parody, I can’t be sued, haha. But really, I’m after an effect: you don’t know who’s speaking yet, but you know he’s a prat and at least one person close to him not only hates him, but is willing to declare that in the eyes of God.

Because seriously, nobody likes a windbag, am I right?