Issue 1 page 8

I sorta dropped the ball on my promised bonus update, not that it really matters that much it was mostly just going to be me running my mouth about various brands of ink and I can totally do that now anyway.
Anyway, this page we're introduced to Jack's B.F.F., Alder Kinsey. If she seems grumpy she usually is. In case you're wondering what Alder's watching it's this.

After being recently introduced to India ink I've started experimenting with different brands. What I've noticed is that very few people go out of their way to compare different India inks so I've decided to share what my experience has been.
Higgins Black Magic
This is easily the most ubiquitous brand of ink out there and the first brand that most people try. It's a fairly thin ink which comes in a dropper bottle-- to me it seems a little watery and isn't terribly dark. Given about a week with the cap off the bottle to allow some of the water in the ink to evaporate Higgins can be OK, if slightly less than ideal. Higgins is by far the easiest to find-- every shop I've been to that sells art supplies sells Higgins.
Speedball Super Black
I've known a few real cartoonists that love this brand so I gave it a try, from the get go it seemed promising. The first thing I noticed about Speedball is that it didn't come in dropper bottles but small jars, I'd later discover that this is because the ink is too thick to use with a dropper. After some difficulty getting the jar opened I noted that this ink was rather thick, particularly in comparison to Higgins, I hoped that this would mean that it would be darker too. Unfortunately it was about as dark as Higgins, maybe even a little lighter. As near as I can tell Speedball's thickness is because it contains more shellac. Like Higgins allowing water in the ink to evaporate will result in it becoming thicker and darker, nevertheless I was disappointed in this brand. Speedball is fairly easy to find, though there are quite a few art stores that don't carry it.
Windsor and Newton India Ink
What made me want to try this brand was the fact that it came in a glass bottle, (the extra heft of glass makes the bottle harder to knock over.) This turned out to be my favorite brand overall, it's not as thick as Speedball and maybe slightly less watery than Higgins but darker than either. I needed to allow some of the water to evaporate in this brand as well but it worked well after a few hours, (Higgins and Speedball required days to get to the right consistency.) Unfortunately this isn't an easy brand to find. I only know of one art store that carries it and I've never seen it sold by the jug.

Anyway, this is hardly comprehensive but those are the India ink brands that I'm familiar with and hopefully some of that is useful. If anyone would like to share some their favorite ink brands go right ahead!