I have to wonder, for those of us poor souls who are late to the party, is the prohibition on speculation still in place?  Of course, the answer to any conjecture may be along the lines of "Read the next issue and your foolish question will be answered."  On the other hand, speculation at this point might inspire some interesting discussions without the risk of tampering with John Byrne's ongoing plans, now that Elsewhen is no longer in current production.

I agree with others' comments about the beautiful facial detail of the pencils in this chapter, with Sean receiving nicer portraiture than he has in the past.  The fine detail here in your pencils is not limited to faces, since the splash page illustration of Muir Island shows the most detail that I remember seeing of that facility.  There are some artists who reach the peak of their abilities at a young age, and others who continue to develop and improve for the full length of their career.  I put John Byrne in this latter group, since the pencil artwork that I have admired in these first four chapters seems like the best work of his career.  (And there are still 28 more chapters or so to go!)

Wally Wood, Gil Kane, and Neal Adams have been mentioned on this Board with reference to borrowing and swipes from their styles for these initial chapters.  Do you think that borrowing and copying the styles of other artists helps to push creative people in improving and developing their own styles and talents?  I am sure Picasso, as just one example, developed his unique talents by observation and imitation of other artists.  I am sure the same is true of Wally Wood, Gil Kane, and Neal Adams.  Neal Adams may have inspired some of the facial expressions and details in this chapter, but it is still John Byrne's experience and artistic abilities that have interpreted the craftsmanship and techniques of Neal Adams to create these new illustrations.  The shading and fine detail on these pages show a wonderful evolution in John Byrne's artwork.