I know lots of readers have been waiting for this moment. I sure have. This kiss has been waiting in my notes for years like a strange attractor pulling the plot towards it.

We started working on MoS back in late 2001. It's now early 2007. Frankly, I couldn't even conceive of the current year in concrete terms back when we started working on the comic.

This is probably the penultimate page of MoS, since there's so little left of the script. I sent the last pages of script to Mark in early December, and I've been watching with something between elation and worry as they were turned into pages of artwork.

Not that I've been sitting back while Mark works on the art. Well...I haven't been sitting back more than I usually do. I've been working on the next comic, Afterlife Blues, adding explosions to it with delicate, hand-crafted care.

If you had told me ten years ago that I would be writing a comic book today, I would have told you that you were mad. Thank you all for coming along on this ride with us. There's another page or two of MoS ahead, then the new comic will start after a break to restore our sanity.

As Jon mentioned, this is the second-to-last page of MoS. If you'd told me ten years ago I'd have been drawing a comic book today, I'd have been darn pleased, because I've always wanted to do one of these things, and indeed have been continually drawing them since I was in college. It's the bit where you say "yeah, and additionally, you finished it" where I would have started giving you a skeptical look. Suggestion: Bring along some stock market quotes from the future to help establish your bona fides.