Bondsman (Scene Sketch)

[@justanotherrandomgamer1380]

For the love of God somebody give this man a budget and let him make a Battletech TV show. It would be amazing.

[@jehova131]

I think if we wanted to properly see this man truly make an amazing battletech show, it would need to be crowd funded like through patreon or something, so that while he has a budget, he doesn't have anyone telling him to change something with him having no choice but to change it. That way we will actually know it will be a good show.

[@Knightlyfrog]

"Your bondsman. Your paycheck." The food bill.... oh no...

[@dakkath414]

Every single interaction here is perfect! I laughed, I was shook by the flashback, I cheered at the chief coming around, I laughed again at "Your bondsman, your paycheck"!

[@theblackpantslegion]

This is great

[@ThatOneMan830]

I am so, so happy to see these characters back. They’re so charming now that I see them fleshed out, and the Elemental was a fun touch. One of my favorite parts was how the chief was visibly revolted by the Elemental as well as traumatized, shown by him almost grabbing his gun and how violently his hands were shaking while trying to light a cigar, which takes on a light as a poor coping mechanism in this context. Also Amaya blushing at her lmao

[@DCBruinsMedia]

Dude's fought Toads up close before, that's for sure.

[@iainhutchinson1957]

Oh my god I would love to see this finish. I literally burst out laughing when I realized it was the elemental she had scraped off.

[@thatoneguywhodoesthatthing913]

I love how when confronted with her the chief’s first instinct is to reach for his weapon. He never touches it, but that hover of the grip like he was ready to empty the magazine and that shake when he’s trying to light his cigarette. Instinctive, visceral fear/hate from him. Very well done.

[@Marsunit-eq1vb]

Man, now I wish there was a whole series following these characters. Great stuff.

[@Nineball459]

I love the chief's reaction when he sort of realized that the light mech pilot was willing to forgive and basically become friends with a Smoke Jaguar warrior, even though its likely the Jags torched her home considering their track record. "If she can forgive them, maybe things *can* get better." Or something along those lines. Sort of had a "rekindled hope in humanity" moment, it is kind of interesting how even though Battletech can get pretty grimdark, it does have its share of heartwarming or at the very least hopeful moments compared to other sci fi universes.

[@Scarabswarm]

It's a very human setting. Humans suck and are great in equal measure. Settings like Star Trek pit an idealized and enlightened humanity against more or less uniform alien archetypes that represent the darker parts of our nature, in order to show how we can be better and rise above our base instincts. How enlightenment is not a weakness. Battletech brings it down to the individual level. Every person has potential to be saint or sinner in equal measure, and in varying circumstances. People are complicated. One of the complaints that I hear about a lot about shows like StarTrek is how it is hard for a modern person to relate to human characters who seem so different than they are. In Battletech, that isn't an issue. Despite the passage of time, and change of tech and circumstances, the characters in Battletech are still "us." So stories in this universe have an easier time resonating with the audience.

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

No "likely." She's a survivor of Edo on Turtle Bay. The city the Jags melted off the surface of the planet. And what caused the Second Star League to choose to wipe the Jags out specifically.

[@klortikterra4423]

first off, your speaking facts. second off, I TOUGHT YOU DIED IN MASTER OF ARENA!

[@harbingerx7793]

Oh boy, laughed my ass off! Perfect character dynamics. "I hit her with a cliff!" she was so proud.

[@franciscoduarteauthor]

Classic anti-Clan strategy

[@GhostBear3067]

​@@franciscoduarteauthorI mean it worked for Kai Allard Liao.

[@warlynx5644]

“Use the terrain to your advantage.” *Once done reading through the after-action report* “Not…exactly what I meant but you seem to understand well enough.”

[@mikegould6590]

I'd watch this show religiously.

[@Nathaniel-d3i]

Someone give this man money. I want to see this series continue

[@TheColonelsThree]

I loved this. Especially the little things, like the Chief's hands shaking as he tries to light his cigar.

[@CyclonerM]

Ahahah this Is gloriously funny, a comic worth of Nicholas Kerensky himself! Love the cultural shock

[@bthsr7113]

By Alexander and Gerome, that flash to a Jaguar reprisal orbital bombardment... ooh, I have chills.

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

Means Amaya was probably from Turtle Bay.

[@ulricgrey5219]

Yep turtle bay... its why the jags got singled out for removal...

[@onlymediocre7476]

I absolutely love the trope of sphereoids kinda 'adopting' clanners

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

Funny thing is you can even do that in BTA 3062. Virago is an Ex-CJF Elemental gal.

[@Razgriz_01]

Decided to check back in, haven't seen your videos in over a year... and I see this. Man, I want a battletech show so badly now. Someone give D.C. Bruins a budget now!

[@Bee_Tea_Sea]

Five out of five stars little scene Hits all the right beats, has perfect comedy and drama respective to the setting Also the end really does raise that question not a lotta people ask or realize: You basically have to care for your bondsman if you get one LOL

[@DCBruinsMedia]

"Make sure to give your bondsman plenty of exercise and stimulation. This can be duels, physical challenges, or excising repressed trauma." "Laser pointers are also a great alternative."

[@Psychobob2213]

😆"What is that!? Spit it out right now!" @@DCBruinsMedia

[@GhostBear3067]

​@@DCBruinsMedia laser pointers do work with Smoke Jaguars and Nova Cats in particular.

[@aperson3891]

this is why you get the mech techs as bondsmen your captain will kiss your feet you can replace the company's techs with clanner tech bondsmen

[@zanderchiu3692]

This is just insane, i mean the body posters and facial expressions, this had actually made a good backstory for at least the lore for bulldogs!

[@Johnpinckney98]

There was sound! There was sound too this IN MY HEAD! Voiceovers and audio and everything so crystal clear! This could be a full fledged series and many people see it!

[@thatoneguywhodoesthatthing913]

Chipper Amaya, gruff simple elemental, and the chief has that slow, sarcastic, smoky grow that Tex does his mech videos in. Defiantly my head canon.

[@SteveVerstaka]

This not only had some hilarious writing and very expressive characters...but it's nice to see such a human perspective of the setting. I love my giant stompy mechs as much as anyone else but its moments like these that make for great stories.

[@DCBruinsMedia]

In the end it's always about the people in 'em...

[@Brofisticus]

And lo... the Inner Sphere spake... "MOOOAAAAAR!"

[@RenegadeHPG]

Any day more people get to enjoy more of your work Dan is a great day! If you need a budget for the next chapter let me know. I'll earmark it for you in a second.

[@InfernalGoose]

This was great! "Your bondsman. Your paycheck."

[@bthsr7113]

What in the time traveling... your comment is listed as two YEARS old.

[@himat007]

I'm a latecomer to the BattleTech universe. Your works are what got me to delve deep into the lore. You have an amazing ability to capture so much character and humanity in every single second of your work. Glad to see you're continuing the bulldog story!

[@IronLotus-k1n]

IT'S THE SAME PEOPLE

[@longinogarcia6310]

This is perfect. I love it to pieces. You not only manage to create and manage the proper level of tension in animating battles and firefights to make them unforgettable, but also in conversations. Your work has me always right in the edge of my seat. It's always the right amount of tension, at the right time. You're an amazing animator, but in my view, the strongest point of all these animations is the script and characterization (even in videos where there are no spoken words or speech bubbles) and how it bleeds into the editing, storyboarding, and animation, making the whole product full of character. And I love the dynamic between these two (now three) mercs. You're both truly gifted and working really hard to push your boundaries. Hats off.

[@voiddragon903]

10/10 all it needs is some good voice actors

[@delsinhays6421]

Kindness is a thing often overlooked. Often a thing that overlooks others for their wrongs simply because they know no better.

[@genericname42]

It would be hilarious if Amayas locusts damaged side instead of getting the machine gun re installed gets a handlebar for her new friend.

[@CowCommando]

Lol, that'd be perfect, and the elemental is arguably more dangerous than any weapon they could have fit there anyway.

[@GhostBear3067]

Amaya realizing she has to feed THAT on her paycheck...

[@NOLMAD6]

Im so happy the wider YT battletech crowd and see these. Ive love them since the HPG talk with the producers of the BT animated show. Really hoping you continue these characters. Would be a lovely side story to the OP bulldog.

[@R4V3-0N]

I can't believe this is finally released

[@toddkatz9700]

I would watch this. This is fantastic. I wish this were an actual full-length show. A single season following these characters would be incredibly memorable.

[@patrickcoyle5469]

"I hit her with a cliff!" sounds like a shout-out to one of the commenters on the Bulldogs video. Intentional or coincidence? It's a great boast, though. It really says something for the quality of both warriors - that Amaya was quick enough to think of it, and that the Elemental couldn't be stopped by anything less. But to hell with the rest of her Star, copping that attitude. It's not like they did any better.

[@FlyingWithSpurts]

This visual storytelling is fantastic!

[@StilgarAstartes]

Love it! I don't know the backstory of that female Merc, Amaya, but I assume she's a survivor of Turtle Bay? That makes her taking a Smoke Jaguar as a Bondsman even more poignant. And the Merc Chief's reaction was spot on. Awesome Work, D.C.! And - of course - a Happy New Year to you!

[@audreyflavin8543]

Hey I’m new to battle tech. What’s Turtle Beach? I’m assuming it’s during the clan invasion

[@bthsr7113]

@@audreyflavin8543 A Smoked Jaguar reprisal attack in the form of orbital bombardment aimed at a city of 1 million to punish uprisings, notably action by local Yakuza cells to break the heir to the Draconis Combine's throne out of a POW facility. Prior to bombardment, APCs were deployed to disastrously bloody results in an attempt to force order. Even before then, Elementals were engaging indiscriminately at will throughout surrounding villages looking for insurgents who bombed Clan Barracks. That's the cliffnotes version of the Sarna article. So yeah, if she saw the Turtle Bay massacre from orbit with her own eyes, forgetting that trauma to help a Smoked Jaguar Elemental is pretty powerful forgiveness.

[@bthsr7113]

@@audreyflavin8543 Since my other comment seems to be gone, the Smoke Jaguars were rather heavy handed in trying to control captured territory. As in orbital fire aimed at leveling a city. Is that okay to say, KZbin?

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

@@audreyflavin8543 The City of Edo on the Draconis Combine planet Turtle Bay was orbitally glassed by the Smoke Jaguars for "daring to resist." It's the main reason the Smoke Jaguars got picked to get wiped the floor with by Operation Bulldog.

[@ryansauer5964]

absolutely love it. Hope at some point it becomes a short series.

[@Taurgis2]

aw man i really wish i could see more of these characters. i keep coming back to this even nearly a year later. great stuff man.

[@AdmiralSenn]

There needs to be more of this. A LOT more.

[@jakejohnson9552]

It’s amazing how much comes across with just what’s here. This is gold and I’d love for there to be more.

[@bthsr7113]

So much personality. I love it.

[@thedabblingwarlock]

I just watched Bulldogs again yesterday. This was a great late Christmas/New Year's present. Now, what do we need to do so you can turn this into a whole show? 😉

[@librarian5657]

So i did hear every line from the chief in Tex's voice and im okay with that brainworm

[@DCBruinsMedia]

Ehehehe yeep. Either that or Jim French.

[@trevorashby1844]

It took me a second. But then i realized, oh man this is a sequel to Bulldogs. I love it!

[@Scarabswarm]

Fantastic. You really know how to ratchet up a scene and deliver the emotional hit that feels like dropping off a cliff. Then, you leave the audience with genuine sentiment, and lighten it back up with more humor. That is simply great, emotional writing.

[@MightyTachikoma]

Good stuff as always, Dubdub. Little compassion on the battlefield is a nice touch for a new year.

[@tenchraven]

YAY! And remember, Chief, we can always shoot them both later if this doesn't work. Love the blush on Amaya, btw, and how it fades. She was on Turtle Beach? And I like the Chief's reaction. Most Clanners can't be humanized, at least the warrior caste, they're too indoctrinated and they are culturally aliens as certain birds are. As bondsmen they are safe-ish but only because that indoctrination includes an honor code. But one... One individual can be different. We tell stories of the one the others thought was odd.

[@zeewulfeh]

I'm so happy to see more with this crew. Seeing her in her locust as a cameo in the Urbie Derby was fun, but I love to see more of her character on display here. And the Chief is the sort of attitude I could only wish to emulate. Are you planning on stitching all these together into a movie or show or something?

[@DCBruinsMedia]

I've got a rough idea for a few storybeats, but nothing super concrete outside of them. Ultimately this projects is an "as time and spoons allow" kinda thing between the day job and commission work, and some life events over the past couple of years. Would love to revisit when able.

[@Taurgis2]

@@DCBruinsMedia please you magical motherfucker. just keep putting out lil beats like this, this is great.

[@Disgruntled_Dave]

Well damn. This is fantastic. Your sense of humor is just subtle enough that it fits in with this (mostly) professional company without the video feeling like a parody, and then gets suddenly deep and touching at the end. That quick tone shift at the end hit perfectly. I'm starting a new job soon, so hopefully I'll be able to get back on your Patreon! I hope we can get much more funding for this kind of stuff.

[@arcosraid]

That line at the end really made me giggle sold me on the face expression at the end of shock of "your check your bondsman" great characterization never be afraid to add more pause the recognition flash of the jags being responsible for an attack was really nice maybe let those play out a bit more and stretch the time to really sink that feeling of horror realizing something like that, as most people including myself who can describe PTSD like flashbacks feel like time moves so slow in those moments and we freeze locked into that moment till broken to edge out the time on it will help make the watcher understand that more if you are going that direction but the break from that being that hand to the shoulder nice touch maybe zoom the focus in on that to highlight the moment a bit to sell the snap back to reality or situation at the very least, again if that was what you where going for but love it keep going was great!!

[@themememan4218]

This is great. Glad to see another post from you, and I hope more come.

[@DCBruinsMedia]

Gonna try my best to at least post SOME personal stuff this year, hahah

[@Sumaire_STi]

Wild. I was literally looking for this *just* yesterday and couldn't figure out where I'd seen it before (in hindsight, I probably should've searched Renegade HPG interviews), but I knew it was your work. Thank you so much for posting this to be seen independently! This is just plain BRILLIANT. :D

[@DCBruinsMedia]

Heey thanks bud! Been meaning to for a while, but actually hitting the button to post publically completely slipped my mind for waaaayyy too long ^^;

[@lucendacier6851]

Nice to see some humanity and kindness in BattleTech. I know I've seen the encounter between Amaya and the Elemental in an animation somewhere...nice to see a part 2 to it.

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

MechWarrior Bulldogs. Also by DC Bruins.

[@lucendacier6851]

@@michaelgreenwood3413 Thanks! Yeah, I was able to look it up after the comment. Still a good animation.

[@EndlessInfinity1]

Holy crap, I was not expecting this in the slightest. You win all the encouragement points to keep going.

[@FiauraTheTankGirlGamer]

Weird question: Want some Voice Actors and an Audio Editor to put voices to it?

[@Drunkennewt]

I‘m in the planning stages of the Clan Invasion Part of a mechwarrior tabletop RPG campaign. I am absolutely going to have to see about engineering some bondspeople into my game now.

[@Nietzschesghost]

Just wanna say I really enjoyed this and would love to see more of these mercs and their new Bondswoman Tiny :D

[@DCBruinsMedia]

...that's absolutely her nickname now

[@Nietzschesghost]

@@DCBruinsMedia its not the most original but im betting most mercs arent that original :P Cliff Racer might be a funny callsign for her though ;)

[@DCBruinsMedia]

@@Nietzschesghost "Alright team. Sound off." "Ey Chief! Wanderer reporting in." "Malice. Check." "FIRESTORM reading loud and clear." "..." "You gotta say it, newbie." "Is that an order, *Sir*." "Yep." "...(deep sigh)... Skidmark. In position."

[@NOLMAD6]

​@@DCBruinsMediawant wait wait the rifleman a scott?

[@thomasc.3832]

Great video! This is the kind of content Battletech needs!

[@floppymcdankus2905]

god to have this voice acted and in colour in the future(we can dream).... your sketches and animations just refuel my passion for battletech

[@markymark3668]

insane talent man, I can see the Battletech web series now... if you're ever serious about it, reach out to me, i'd love to bring something like this to life into a show in my favorite universe much love!

[@thomasrose4523]

I got back into MechWarrior late 2022, I used to be obsessed growing up. And after I got back into it, I ended up finding you and many others, and I'm beyond excited and happy that this series is still going strong! And with MW5 Clans on the horizon? Childhood is coming full circle! I absolutely love your work!

[@DarthDregan]

Awesome work D.C.

[@CowCommando]

Careful, Bruins. You keep this up and this'll turn into the Astartes of the Battletech universe.

[@CowCommando]

Okay, that was meant as only praise, but now I'm bummed out about what happened to that amazing animation series and worried corporate stooges and lawyers could come along and steal this too. Sorry to be a buzz kill.

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

Actually that also kinda already exists. Hired Steel. It is nice we're getting an overall BattleTech Renaissance these days, though.

[@CowCommando]

@@michaelgreenwood3413 Hired Steel is good too. I'm a story guy at heart though, and the story in this is much more compelling to me than what little story we've gotten in Hired Steel so far.

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

@@CowCommando Well, my point is Astartes didn't really have a story either XD it was just action and some implied story.

[@CowCommando]

@@michaelgreenwood3413 I count Astartes as having a story. It's not complex or deep or anything like that, but it's there. We've got a main character, a villain, and supporting characters on both sides. The factions have clear opposing goals. As for a plot, we've got exposition, rising action, climax, and resolution. We have clear locations of events. Everything you need is there. It's the action that tells the story rather than dialogue primarily doing that job as is typical. Honestly, that's part of what makes Astartes so good, the action, the sets, and the events of the story tell us a ton without needing anything else. Most movies today have action in them to be visually impressive and nothing more. You could take out the action and the plot wouldn't change much if at all. The action scenes stop and then the movie progresses the plot with dialogue. Astartes progress the plot _in_ the action scenes.

[@Balmong7-y4s]

Damn I just stumbled on these animations. You do great work.

[@Alex-tb6lx]

I love seeing your work again! Always great to see fresh Mechwarrior stuff again.

[@Ragnaroknrol]

If anyone is wondering about where Amaya and our unnamed elemental first met: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gZ2rdZhqgNaEbJYsi=0Tid1XHHjhP4_h87

[@CowCommando]

Ah thank you. I couldn't remember where it was since I didn't see it in Bruin's videos.

[@das_gruuben]

I can only imagine Randolph P. Checkers having a similar conversation, after claiming his future ex-wife as a bondsman. Bruins, if you ever feel like animating that tale (the battle, not the aftermath) I have a storyboard for it in my head. Say the word, and it's yours. I'd love to see you give that story life.

[@BrokenGauge]

Lol, its like Tex was having flashbacks to when he met his ex-wife!

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

He wasn't married yet during Operation Bulldog.

[@JeepMan365]

Excellent work. The storyline so far is great. Keep 'em coming.

[@ErikWarhammer]

Is it wrong that Amaya's voice in my head is Marriner's from Lower Decks? Also, I have Tex's for "Chief".

[@DCBruinsMedia]

I love both of these choices. An alternate for Chief could also be Stephen Russel (Nick Valentine), or Jim French (Bill, Left 4 Dead)

[@sneakyghillie4087]

This is so good!!!! You sir, have made some of my most favorite BATTLETECH content of all time.. Wish you had the time and resources to do more

[@DCBruinsMedia]

Eyyy thanks bud! Had a few life events over the past couple years that slowed things down a bit, on top of like... day jobs and stuff. New years resolution is to commit to making and posting more BT and personal works here this year.

[@stephanvandermerwe1468]

This would have been one hell of a series

[@matthewwitzig6534]

I would love to see more of this story.

[@theaureliasys6362]

finally got around to watching this. good story, enough said.

[@stargazer79]

This is AMAZING. perfect hit, right in the feels :3

[@odsts6658]

I'm sorry when I saw the walk into the room all the way through my head is that's a fucking elemental

[@rookiemechwarrior]

How did i not see this until today? Do i need to declare a trial of grievance against the algorithm?

[@Morkail321]

Somone hire this person to make a show damn it.

[@afrix1064]

Nice! Been a while.

[@DCBruinsMedia]

Too damn long...

[@Psychobob2213]

However long it takes, we all appreciate your work :) @@DCBruinsMedia

[@genericname42]

Wait this was published today! Man I love these characters. Maybe we'll meet the rifleman pilot or figure out what happened to the centurion.

[@DCBruinsMedia]

Ehehehe we'll see... I know for sure the Centurion pilot is a piece of work.

[@genericname42]

@DCBruinsMedia well they did 1v1 a much heavier clan mech so yeah.

[@bthsr7113]

@@genericname42 That just means they have guts. Monsters and heroes alike can be seen standing their ground in defiance. It's what happens with opponents of lesser power or between official battles that speaks to whether one is the dragon or the slayer.

[@m.bibliophile9912]

Oh this is too good. More please!

[@thespectator1243]

I wish you good luck with this project! :D May you find the time and resources to follow your hearth. :)

[@EricDKaufman]

The kid from Friecht is Tex. The mark of cain is passed on to him along with the hunchback and the eye patch in TMC's stuff (yes, AggieLawGirl is in the Hunchie, i know I know) and eventually through that other video you did. Then at some point Tex gets his Awesome, and then TTBT begins on Van Zandt that is how i see the Netflix series playing out. :-)

[@jaromswenson7541]

i love this, i cant wait for more!

[@KillerOrca]

ELEMENTAL WIFE AQUIRED

[@nemamiah7832]

Oh, this is very lovely!

[@yaksuba4676]

thanks for this perfection dude

[@brianslack1263]

Excellent! Thank you for posting

[@konstantinostravlos210]

a) your work is awesome b) a really pity BattleTech is not in the Secret Level series. Something by you for that anthology would had been awesome. c) Here is hoping Catalyst adds in a future crowdfunding an option to fund a short (20 min) cartoon done by you (ala Lackdaisly )

[@galadrielpokracki8153]

This is awesome Dubs!

[@KevinSmithGeo]

Amaya wouldn't happen to be from Turtle Bay would she?

[@KevinSmithGeo]

And that would mean her name is probably Japanese, and it appears "Amaya" could be written 「天矢」("Sky Arrow") or 「雨矢」("Rain of Arrows") which are a tad ironic for a survivor of an orbital bombardment. On the other hand there are a bunch of less ironic ways of writing it like 「雨夜」("Rainy Night") or 「阿麻弥」 ("Increasingly Flattering Hemp").

[@bthsr7113]

@@KevinSmithGeo If she scouts/spots for fire/air support, there's another layer to the name.

[@danielcamacho1913]

I already had a crush on that Locust pilot, and now she’s showing compassion toward someone that tried to kill her. And, is she from Turtle Bay? That elemental is going to get a lot of bad news, for the foreseeable future. I can see Amaya being the friend she needs.

[@Geeko170]

Where can I throw money at you? This needs money!!!

[@klortikterra4423]

it is my persoanl opinion that everyone execpt the most foul and evil people deserve a second chance. a clanner elemental deserves a second chance. they are just soldiers following orders from the true evil, they most likely don't know better.

[@Panzerfan93]

I love this! Great work!

[@OvertureSaintp2391]

Subbed. I wanna see more of your work.

[@janhornak5739]

perfection

[@Faceless_One]

Read the comment about giveing you a Bugdet to make a series about it. Im Curious about how much money we talking about? Nothing like a TV series but more like the Astartes Fan Film Project (lenght wise). Could Crowd/Fan funding be an Option? Cuz what i saw in these few minutes makes me wanting more of it and properly anniemated wirh VA etc.

[@Yawgmothx]

Jags? Frag'em. Ghost Bear or Wolf? Keepin them as bondsmen.

[@michaelgreenwood3413]

Or be bondsmen to 'em. You'll be generally well-taken care of and likely even adopted into the clan.