diff --git a/tractor/_actor.py b/tractor/_actor.py
index 2c15706..6b6cdef 100644
--- a/tractor/_actor.py
+++ b/tractor/_actor.py
@@ -543,6 +543,13 @@ class Actor:
     async def _async_main(
         self,
         accept_addr: Optional[Tuple[str, int]] = None,
+        # XXX: currently ``parent_addr`` is only needed for the
+        # ``multiprocessing`` backend (which pickles state sent to
+        # the child instead of relaying it over the connect-back
+        # channel). Once that backend is removed we can likely just
+        # change this so a simple ``is_subactor: bool`` which will
+        # be False when running as root actor and True when as
+        # a subactor.
         parent_addr: Optional[Tuple[str, int]] = None,
         task_status: TaskStatus[None] = trio.TASK_STATUS_IGNORED,
     ) -> None:
@@ -557,26 +564,34 @@ class Actor:
             async with trio.open_nursery() as nursery:
                 self._root_nursery = nursery
 
+                # TODO: just make `parent_addr` a bool system (see above)?
                 if parent_addr is not None:
                     try:
                         # Connect back to the parent actor and conduct initial
-                        # handshake (From this point on if we error, ship the
-                        # exception back to the parent actor)
+                        # handshake. From this point on if we error, we
+                        # attempt to ship the exception back to the parent.
                         chan = self._parent_chan = Channel(
                             destaddr=parent_addr,
                         )
                         await chan.connect()
-                        # initial handshake, report who we are, who they are
+
+                        # Initial handshake: swap names.
                         await self._do_handshake(chan)
 
                         if self._spawn_method == "trio":
-                            # recieve additional init params
+                            # Receive runtime state from our parent
                             parent_data = await chan.recv()
+                            log.debug(
+                                "Recieved state from parent:\n"
+                                f"{parent_data}"
+                            )
+                            accept_addr = (
+                                parent_data.pop('bind_host'),
+                                parent_data.pop('bind_port'),
+                            )
                             for attr, value in parent_data.items():
                                 setattr(self, attr, value)
 
-                            accept_addr = self.bind_host, self.bind_port
-
                     except OSError:  # failed to connect
                         log.warning(
                             f"Failed to connect to parent @ {parent_addr},"
@@ -584,24 +599,36 @@ class Actor:
                         await self.cancel()
                         self._parent_chan = None
                         raise
-                    else:
-                        # handle new connection back to parent
-                        assert self._parent_chan
-                        nursery.start_soon(
-                            self._process_messages, self._parent_chan)
-
-                # Startup up channel server
-                host, port = accept_addr
-                await nursery.start(partial(
-                    self._serve_forever, accept_host=host, accept_port=port)
-                )
 
                 # load exposed/allowed RPC modules
-                # XXX: do this **after** establishing connection to parent
-                # so that import errors are properly propagated upwards
+                # XXX: do this **after** establishing a channel to the parent
+                # but **before** starting the message loop for that channel
+                # such that import errors are properly propagated upwards
                 self.load_modules()
 
-                # register with the arbiter if we're told its addr
+                # Startup up channel server with,
+                # - subactor: the bind address sent to us by our parent
+                #   over our established channel
+                # - root actor: the ``accept_addr`` passed to this method
+                assert accept_addr
+                host, port = accept_addr
+                await nursery.start(
+                    partial(
+                        self._serve_forever,
+                        accept_host=host,
+                        accept_port=port
+                    )
+                )
+
+                # Begin handling our new connection back to parent.
+                # This is done here since we don't want to start
+                # processing parent requests until our server is
+                # 100% up and running.
+                if self._parent_chan:
+                    nursery.start_soon(
+                        self._process_messages, self._parent_chan)
+
+                # Register with the arbiter if we're told its addr
                 log.debug(f"Registering {self} for role `{self.name}`")
                 assert isinstance(self._arb_addr, tuple)
                 async with get_arbiter(*self._arb_addr) as arb_portal:
@@ -613,7 +640,7 @@ class Actor:
                 task_status.started()
                 log.debug("Waiting on root nursery to complete")
 
-            # blocks here as expected until the channel server is
+            # Blocks here as expected until the channel server is
             # killed (i.e. this actor is cancelled or signalled by the parent)
         except Exception as err:
             if not registered_with_arbiter:
diff --git a/tractor/_spawn.py b/tractor/_spawn.py
index 5136aa3..baed198 100644
--- a/tractor/_spawn.py
+++ b/tractor/_spawn.py
@@ -3,11 +3,9 @@ Machinery for actor process spawning using multiple backends.
 """
 import sys
 import inspect
-import subprocess
 import multiprocessing as mp
 import platform
 from typing import Any, Dict, Optional
-from functools import partial
 
 import trio
 from trio_typing import TaskStatus
@@ -29,7 +27,7 @@ from ._state import current_actor
 from .log import get_logger
 from ._portal import Portal
 from ._actor import Actor, ActorFailure
-from ._entry import _mp_main, _trio_main
+from ._entry import _mp_main
 
 
 log = get_logger('tractor')
@@ -160,7 +158,7 @@ async def cancel_on_completion(
 async def spawn_subactor(
     subactor: 'Actor',
     accept_addr: Tuple[str, int],
-    parent_addr: Optional[Tuple[str, int]] = None
+    parent_addr: Tuple[str, int],
 ):
 
     spawn_cmd = [
@@ -232,6 +230,7 @@ async def new_proc(
                     "bind_port": bind_addr[1]
                 })
 
+                # resume caller at next checkpoint now that child is up
                 task_status.started(portal)
 
                 # wait for ActorNursery.wait() to be called