Page 142 panel

In the bottom panel on page 142, readers are looking down upon Judd and Pedro sitting on a bench and staring at nothing, as though they are in deep thought. They had just discovered that Pedro had lost his ability to speak due to PML, a rare disease that affects the brain. The men are devastated because Pedro was a communicator, and his whole life was devoted to teaching people to practice safe sex and educate them about AIDS/HIV. The panel is darkened in shadows as if a curse had been cast over the two men. It is as if they are left in doubt and uncertainty of what tomorrow may bring.

The author, Judd, tells the readers in this panel that his friend Pedro was “robbed of speech at the end… when he had so much left to say. It was agony.” Those words signified one of the huge turning points in Pedro’s health, and in the story itself. They make the reader feel the pain and agony of Pedro’s battle with HIV, because his life’s mission was to communicate, and his gift was taken from him at this point. The panel gives the feel that Pedro and Judd both know that Pedro is reaching the end of life and they are at a loss for what to do about it.

Readers are looking down on Judd and Pedro from a distance, and it appears as though they are two young boys in this panel, which is possibly a symbol for how they are feeling. As if they are children searching for knowledge and answers. Another symbolic approach that the author took was aiming down upon the men. It gives readers a feeling that we are in heaven, looking down on Pedro, and waiting for him to arrive. The panel doesn’t seem to fit in with many of the other panels in the book up until that point, because this panel is dark and not humorous. It does signify a turning point in the book, however. Many of the panels after this one are dark and dreary, leading into the unfortunate loss of the author’s best friend.