PAGE ONE
Panel 1
(splash)
The
Duke, standing in a dark street corner, lighting a cigarette, cupping his free
hand around the flame from the match.
The Duke is still in his late fifties here, “grizzled, old” by those
standards (as per his description in original Dead Butlers script), to
allow for a guy who can reasonably clean up for that image used on the cover of
the original Nine Panel Grid book release)
CAPTION:
Hun City
CAPTION:
I believe in the inherent goodness of mankind.
PAGE TWO
Panel 1
A car
pulls up beside The Duke. Inside is a
woman, late thirties early forties, staring at The Duke’s cigarette.
ANGIE:
Get in. We’re already late as it is.
ANGIE:
Still trying to make sense of these guys.
I’ll never understand it.
Panel 2
Close-up
of The Duke, still smoking in Angie’s car.
DUKE:
You don’t have to.
Panel 3
Angie’s
car from the front.
ANGIE:
So let me just try and get this straight, just for the record.
DUKE:
Off the record.
ANGIE:
Yeah. Of course. Like always.
Panel 4
Angie’s
car from the back, although we don’t see much besides Hun City at night. Not anything that’s ahead of them, although
later we’ll learn that they’re tailing someone.
We don’t need to see that yet.
ANGIE:
We’re on the hunt for Jerome Taggart’s daughter.
ANGIE:
But we’re also trying to satisfy your curiosity in what happened to the
Ferryman’s dead apprentice.
ANGIE: Who
doesn’t seem to be so dead.
Panel 5
Angie
looking over at The Duke in the passenger seat.
“Bemused” would be the expression to use in describing her face.
DUKE: No. Not so much.
Maybe he never was. I don’t pretend
to understand these things. Way above my
paygrade. Everyone’s.
PAGE
THREE
Panel 1
They’ve
reached the highway. This is an
establishing shot of a panel. No
dialogue, no captions. Here,
technically, we’re seeing the car they’re tailing for the first time. It’s night but there’s plenty of traffic.
Panel 2
Angie’s
looking straight ahead again but now it’s The Duke looking in her direction.
ANGIE:
Listen, ditch the smoke.
DUKE:
Whatever you say, Angie.
Panel 3
A shot
of the passenger window opened and the cigarette being flicked out.
DUKE: Taggart
worked for MI5, back in the old country, in the old days, before he became a
butler for Adam Hemingway.
Panel 4
Angie’s
pressing the button in her door panel to close the passenger window, The Duke
staring at her.
ANGIE:
Forceful retirement, the report suggested, but not much else.
ANGIE:
The trouble was, he couldn’t leave it behind.
Panel 5
The Duke
absently pats his pocket, still having the urge to smoke.
DUKE:
Old habits.
PAGE
FOUR
Panel 1
The Duke
is gesturing in front of them, which is our first indication that they are
indeed tailing someone.
DUKE:
Look, just pay attention to the road.
Panel 2
Close-up
on Angie, her eyes narrowing. No dialogue.
Panel 3
Pulling
back a little to see her hands gripping the steering wheel.
ANGIE: Didn’t
stop him from leaving behind a daughter.
ANGIE:
Cassandra Dawes. Cassie.
Panel 4
Pulling
back further for another look at the road, where we see only a few cars ahead
of them now, which means one of them is definitely the one they’re tailing.
DUKE:
Followed in her old man’s footsteps.
DUKE:
Joined the Agency.
Panel 5
Angie
allows herself a light moment, almost cracking a smile as she glances at The
Duke again.
ANGIE:
Yeah. The other one.
ANGIE: Shares
that obsession of yours.
ANGIE:
Wonder you never applied yourself.
PAGE
FIVE
Panel 1
Another
shot showing us the road, with even fewer cars.
Say we started with five or six and then three or four, and now it’s two
or three. All in the same arrangement of
lanes.
Panel 2
Now it’s
The Duke shooting Angie and irritated look.
DUKE:
Slow down, will ya?
DUKE:
Think they didn’t spot us already?
Panel 3
Now
Angie is positively angry, glaring ahead.
ANGIE:
Who, the homicidal maniac you let stroll out of our offices?
Panel 4
Now there’re
no cars between them. We can see the man
in the other car, now. He’s wearing a
black ski mask. Normally he’s got a
costume. This is Switchblade. He didn’t have a lot of options at the time.
Panel 5
The Duke
staring resolutely ahead, Angie still pissed off.
DUKE:
Good police work doesn’t always look like good police work. That’s kind of the point. Which you should’ve learned by now.
PAGE SIX
Panel 1
Angie’s
pulled up beside Switchblade’s car. They’re
driving parallel now.
ANGIE:
No real point pretending now anyway.
Panel 2
The Duke
looks across Angie at Switchblade, who’s still looking straight ahead.
DUKE:
No, I suppose not.
DUKE: It
was enough to prove a point.
Panel 3
Switchblade’s
car pulls ahead.
DUKE:
Steady.
ANGIE:
Oh, don’t worry about that, Duke!
ANGIE: Switchblade
ain’t getting away. Not this time.
Panel 4
The Duke
places a hand, hovering, over Angie’s at the wheel.
DUKE: No
need to push it.
DUKE: He
gets it.
Panel 5
Another shot
at the road, the cars again separating.
PAGE
SEVEN
Panel 1
Daylight. We’re jumping ahead in time. The roadways are clogged.
Panel 2
The Duke
grips a coffee, now.
DUKE: Whether
she asked for the assignment or it was simply luck of the draw, her man’s
Bandit.
ANGIE:
Yeah. Coincidence.
Panel 3
Angie,
squinting her eyes.
ANGIE:
We lost ’em, hours ago.
Panel 4
The
Duke, sipping his coffee. No dialogue.
Panel 5
Angie
swatting her hand at the cup, knocking it into him.
DUKE: We
know where he’s headed.
PAGE
EIGHT
Panel 1
The
Duke, brushing his trench coat. It doesn’t
appear to be wet.
DUKE:
Thank god I was just finishing that.
Panel 2
Angie is
placing the cup in a plastic bag she’s got planted in the center console.
ANGIE:
Oh, not that Godsend freak?
ANGIE: Of
course I knew it was done. I keep a
clean house.
Panel 3
They’re
pulling into an off-ramp, into Traverse.
Panel 4
Now they’re
traveling through the city proper.
Panel 5
Now they’ve
pulled in front of Traverse Police Department.
PAGE
NINE
Panel 1
The Duke
and Angie in the lobby speaking with some uniformed officers.
DUKE: We’ve
got one of ours walking your streets.
ANGIE:
Not one of ours. A visitor. Like he is here.
Panel 2
The Duke
pulling Angie aside.
DUKE:
Not now.
DUKE:
They’ve seen the guy, too.
DUKE:
They know all about Switchblade.
Panel 3
Close up
on Angie.
ANGIE:
Not enough.
Panel 4
Following
the group from behind as they walk down a corridor.
DUKE:
Switchblade.
DUKE:
You boys know all about that one.
Panel 5
Angie
looking behind them, almost as if she expects to see Switchblade there.
PAGE TEN
Panel 1
Now The
Duke and Angie are walking the streets of Traverse.
DUKE:
You need to keep your cool, Angie.
Panel 2
Down an
alley.
ANGIE:
Oh, sure.
ANGIE:
Tell me to keep a level head.
ANGIE:
Never seemed to stop you.
Panel 3
They’re
speaking with a homeless man in the alley.
DUKE:
Just wondering if you’ve seen a friend of ours.
DUKE:
Probably wearing a ski mask. I’m very
aware you see those types around here.
This one would probably have a rather large knife. No idea how he would’ve gotten one so
quickly.
DUKE:
But he’s resourceful.
Panel 4
Close up
on Angie.
ANGIE:
And dangerous.
Panel 5
Pulling
back to see both The Duke and Angie. No
particular need to see the homeless man.
The Duke’s suppressing an exasperated look.
DUKE:
Yeah.
PAGE
ELEVEN
Panel 1
A flash
somewhere in the alley causes both The Duke and Angie to redirect their
attention.
Panel 2
They’re
both dashing off down the alley.
ANGIE:
Probably set this up.
DUKE:
You don’t know that!
Panel 3
Back out
of the alley, they’re looking in opposite directions down the street.
Panel 4
Angie’s
taken off.
Panel 5
The Duke
chases after her, behind.
PAGE
TWELVE
Panel 1
The Duke
is still trying to catch up with Angie.
DUKE:
Will you just let me catch up?
ANGIE:
And just let our friend get away?
Panel 2
From the
other direction, we see Switchblade, still in the ski mask, ahead of them, with
The Duke still trailing Angie.
DUKE:
That’s not what I mean and you know it!
Panel 3
We see
Switchblade dodge into another alley.
Panel 4
The Duke
is stretching out a hand to grasp Angie’s shoulder in an effort to slow her.
DUKE:
Angie…!
Panel 5
Angie
still reaches the new alley first.
DUKE:
You need to think about this!
PAGE THIRTEEN
Panel 1
The Duke
has caught up with Angie, who’s staring down an empty alley.
DUKE: He’s
still wanted for murder.
DUKE:
And we’re here because of the other murder.
DUKE: It’s
dangerous, Angie! Keep your head in the
game!
Panel 2
Angie
turns around, full anger in her face.
ANGIE: I
know!
ANGIE: Don’t
you think I know?
ANGIE:
Dawes is dead.
Panel 3
The Duke
reaches out a hand again, for a shoulder, this time in consolation.
DUKE:
But he didn’t do it.
DUKE: He
couldn’t have. He wasn’t even in
Traverse when it happened.
Panel 4
Angie brushes
the hand away.
ANGIE:
He might as well have.
Panel 5
Angie
sprints out of the alley again.
PAGE FOURTEEN
Panel 1
A hand
reaches for The Duke, catching him by surprise.
Panel 2
The Duke
spins around to see Switchblade, who indeed has a huge new blade in his hand.
DUKE: We
can talk this out.
Panel 3
Angie
has returned to the alley, now holding her service weapon firmly in both hands.
ANGIE:
Hands where I can see them!
Panel 4
Switchblade
grips The Duke from behind, holding the knife across his throat.
DUKE:
Angie, please.
Panel 5
Angie
walking toward the pair anyway.
ANGIE: Do
you have any idea what we’ve gone through to find you, “Switchblade”?
ANGIE:
Too much.
ANGIE:
Too much trouble. And bullshit.
ANGIE:
My pal here had his ideas. See where it
got him. I’ve got others.
PAGE
FIFTEEN
Panel 1
(splash)
Switchblade
throws his knife at Angie as she shoots back.
PAGE
SIXTEEN
Panel 1
The Duke
cradles Angie, the blade buried deep in her chest.
DUKE:
Angie…
Panel 2
Flashing
lights fill the alley as The Duke continues to clutch Angie.
DUKE: I
had it under control.
Panel 3
Paramedics
are collecting Angie.
DUKE: I
knew what I was doing.
Panel 4
The Duke
watches as Angie is rolled into the ambulance.
DUKE: I
had a plan.
Panel 5
The
Duke, alone in the alley.
DUKE: I
don’t understand.
PAGE
SEVENTEEN
Panel 1
The Duke
at Angie’s side in the hospital. Her
eyes are closed.
Panel 2
The Duke
at the memorial service.
Panel 3
The Duke
at the cemetery.
PAGE
EIGHTEEN
Panel 1
The Duke
at his desk.
CAPTION:
It wasn’t supposed to play out like that.
Panel 2
The Duke
looking through folders.
CAPTION:
I don’t blame her. I don’t even blame
Switchblade.
Panel 3
Someone
talking to him in the office.
CAPTION:
I don’t blame the system.
Panel 4
The Duke
standing up, the other person clearly annoyed that he hasn’t been paying
attention,
CAPTION:
It’s just something that happened.
Panel 5
The Duke
walking past the person without saying a word.
CAPTION:
Just something that happened.
PAGE
NINETEEN
Panel 1
The Duke
walking through the station. He’s
holding a file.
CAPTION:
You see all these connections.
Panel 2
The Duke
walking through the parking garage.
CAPTION:
As a cop, you just can’t help it.
Panel 3
The Duke
finds his car.
CAPTION:
You see more of the picture than anyone else.
Panel 4
The Duke
opens the door to his car.
CAPTION:
It’s just not so easy doing something about it.
Panel 5
The Duke
is now seated in his car, but isn’t driving yet. He’s placed the folder in the passenger seat.
CAPTION:
There are the facts, and then there’s what you can prove.
PAGE
TWENTY
Panel 1
Close up
on the file, which has “Bandit” written on it.
CAPTION:
For instance, I know as well as Angie did what did and did not occur, in
Traverse.
Panel 2
The Duke’s
car driving through the parking garage.
CAPTION:
What did, and did not, occur here in Hun City.
Panel 3
The Duke
waving at the ticket agent on the way out.
CAPTION:
And what did, and did not, occur in Bowie.
Panel 4
The Duke’s
car has emerged into the street.
CAPTION:
I know, objectively, that Bandit had nothing to do with this.
Panel 5
The Duke’s
car disappears into city traffic.
CAPTION:
That doesn’t mean I can’t hold him responsible.
PAGE
TWENTY-ONE
Panel 1
Stopped
at a red light, The Duke glances down at the folder.
CAPTION:
It angers me.
Panel 2
His hand
flips it open. We see a glossy picture
of Bandit.
CAPTION:
Not what happened.
Panel 3
The same
hand grips the picture.
CAPTION:
Why.
Panel 4
The hand
closes on the picture, bending it.
CAPTION:
It’s a matter of escalation.
Panel 5
The Duke’s
car, exterior. Traffic is flowing again.
CAPTION:
I don’t know what happened to him. At
the moment I don’t even care.
CAPTION:
I only know that a series of events occurred.
And Angie is dead.
CAPTION:
There’s no good reason for that.
PAGE
TWENTY-TWO
Panel 1
(splash)
Same as
the first page.
CAPTION:
Bowie
CAPTION:
I no longer believe in the inherent goodness of mankind.
