I try to collect all of my ticket stubs and write the names of who went with me on the back of them. So when I started drawing this comic, it was fun finding the Return of the King stub in my collection and seeing who was there all those eleven years ago. Which meant I got to draw young Rick and Wayne sitting to my left. Michael and Kirsten are to my right, hidden behind the date square.

Then there’s the characters in the foreground. While you can’t see it in the final product, I drew Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman in the first panel and then John Howe and Peter Jackson in the second panel. I drew their heads completely on the original even though I knew well enough that they were going to be cropped out.

By the time this comic updates, I’ll be sitting in the theater eagerly waiting to see the conclusion to this Hobbit trilogy.

Can’t wait!

-Jimmy Purcell.