Grrl Power #188 – Halo’s first order as a recruit
Boy Sydney’s just full of mysteries lately isn’t she? Don’t fret, this one at least will be resolved relatively soon.
I knew whatever gross combination of flavors I tried to come up with, there’d be some Scandinavian or Asian country that would be all “Hey, that’s our national dish!” So I apologize beforehand. I’m sorry your national dish happens to be the sort of thing that someone would come up with if they were trying to invent an awful combination of flavors for comedy purposes.
I thought about this after I laid out the page, but there’s really no way that Harem would sit with herself like that. She’d divide and conquer and be part of 5 different conversations at once. But no I wanted to draw her all sitting together in one panel, because I’m a big dummy who likes spending 3 hours penciling a single panel. I suspect she’ll drift around the table once the appetizers arrive. Still, I’m pretty pleased with the art on the page, so I’ll go ahead and say it was worth it. (And yes I know I need to go fix Strawberry Blonde Harem’s outfit from the last time we saw her as she was still in her Thing 1 shirt. When I drew this page I decided she’d swap out which one of her was in uniform.)
<– And I’m still doing this. Also don’t forget to check back Friday for the Valentines Day Vote incentive.
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That’s an interesting side effect of having multiple bodys…
Nice detail
Nope! No one suspects a thing…. but they better turn off the fire sensors just to be safe.
WARNING, WILL ROBINSON! DANGER! DANGER! ;)
I’m sure she’ll start with something mild…like Ghost Chillies Sauteed with Jalapenos in Tobasco sauce.
Hot Dang!
Just thinking about the fumes coming off that combination almost set my monitor on fire!
Well, the Jalapenos and the Tabasco in that combination would be the soothing sauce around the ravaging taste-explosion.
I had the exact same thought that Peggy stated.
Peggy looks really pretty on this page.
Indeed. LOVE. IT.
And suddently she have way sexier lips than before (https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/664). Maybe she is coming from her photo session for Valentine ;)
I will repeat myself: she could be a great Suicide Girl model.
Counting the hours…
In the service I saw a lota people with those web elbow tats, forgot what they were for.
It seems to have many meanings, from “time in jail” to just fashion.
This is the better explanation I was able to found: https://www.tattoosymbol.com/just-for-site/spider-web.html
Sydney looks… I’m not sure. It just looks like a peculiar expression in the last panel.
Also, not sure I quite understand the Harem eyeing a pitcher of sangria bit.
My guess on the sangria bit: Harem is 19, so below drinking age. She’s ordering soda but really wants to lay on the alcohol.
If only one of the Harem’s bodies is drinking, what will that do to her other bodies and her behaviour in general.
Harem: [ Stopped while driving a car] Honesht Oshifer, I have not been giggle been drinking. My shishter giggle is the one whosh been drinking. But I haven’t toushed a drip, I mean a drop. giggle Here, I will do a breath tesht. [ Staggers out of the car, after finally remembering to undo her seat-belt. She already had the car in park. ]
Just how bad could it be if just *one* member of a group mind is drunk?
https://www.airshipentertainment.com/buckcomic.php?date=20070512
Keep an eye on the little bald guy in brown and read the rest of the story…
yep. that got interesting. fun too.
I think Harem is not really a “group mind”.
for the purposes of this conversation it wouldn’t make any difference, the effect is the same… one physically drinks but the other four get bombed as well…
Nephandus’ link no longer works.
Theoretically, the quality of being ‘drunk’ involves a number of different effects. Things like muscle relaxation, equilibrium disruption, and other physical effects likely hit the body that’s drinking with full force. Effects that work on the mind, such as by reducing inhibitions, are likely one-fifth as effective (because only one processor in the cluster is being inhibited), but if enough of the brains are at minimal inhibition, you could have the Halos that HAVEN’T been drinking making drunk decisions while appearing completely sober.
The Sangria bit is becuase Harem appears to be checking out butt. Whether that butt belongs to the waiter or Sydney is anybodys guess. It could be both, Harem is an equal opportunity oggler.
Harem may be checking out the sangria; Peggy on the other hand…
Peggy is looking at Harem, if Harem is not checking out butts, then she is looking out the window
Well she has 10 eyes so she could be checking out quite a lot of things.
Among others posibilities.
I think they just told her what escargot are.
Notice the lack of my picking out errors lately? It is because none of them mattered to the point of stopping the fun on the first read.
Well done!!
Ok, I admit it, being able to read the menu in half the time, hold multiple simultaneous conversations and drink at the same time is handy to do. But Harem can do it so much easier! Not to mention being able to sample five times more of the menu, without having to swap samples with your dinner companions.
But if one Harem gets drunk, do the rest suffer as well? Do her sober brains have to take up the slack of the underperfoming drunk one(s)?
Possibly. That will be an interesting one to find out. But it will certainly impact on the performance of the others, even if the drunken state itself does not get shared. Wobbling around and the usual drunken antics will be bound to send confusing sensory data to the others, at the very least. And we have seen what happens if one of them takes a bump or gets injured.
Its already been pointed out that there “one” anything with Harem, except the one in uniform, because they all have one brain. Still would be interesting to see if the alcohol gets filtered down by all her livers, or whatnot, or if all Harems go from zero to drunk when downs a bottle of something expensive.
I suspect that she’s gotten drunk before (if nothing else, for the experience of having done so), but if she dislikes keeping some of her selves in “storage” because of the lack of external stimula, I’m guessing she doesn’t care much for drinking, due to the reduced sensory acuity…
My bet is that while all of the information Harem takes in is shared between all her avatars, they are not normally conscious of it. The data just goes into memory. She won’t experience cross-avatar juxtaposition unless she either seeks it out, or something surprises her. Sudden pain will cross, but not ordinary sensation. If one of her goes outside and gets rained on, they don’t all experience the feeling of rain on their skins, but Harem will know that it is raining outside.
She probably could eat five different meals at the same time. Unless any one of her avatars started to wonder what the meal being eaten by one of the others tastes like. That’s when the data would become conscious and start crossing between avatars. That’s probably easy to avoid if they are each in different rooms, but difficult if they are all at the same table.
In order to function, Harem would have to be pretty good at avoiding that kind of cross-avatar confusion. It would be a skill she gets lots of practice with.
If one of her got drunk, all she’d have to do is put that one off on her own somewhere, and she’d be able to keep the effect contained. If she -wanted- to, she could share the effect across all of her selves. It might be a little difficult if she’s allowed all of her selves to feel drunk and she needs one or more to sober up though.
Don’t forget about the atomic wedgie incident: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/389
I agree there has to be some level of filtering going on, or how would any of them get to sleep while the others are awake? If this were a standard sitcom, one of them would be making an important presentation to her boss and have to deal with another copy who is, shall we say, getting lucky in the supply closet.
At the plus side, Harem could give a whole new meaning to “multiple orgasm”.
I would think that she could absorb the drunken avatar and halve the blood-alcohol level, and/or double her tolerance. Further absorptions of the other 3 avatars would contribute similarly.
I don’t think I agree with you on this point. My understanding of Daphne’s power is that it is her mind that is quantum-linked – her bodies are independent of one another. By way of example, when Max atomic-wedgie’d her, one of her bodies slammed her knee into a table. While all bodies felt it, only that one body would actually produce a bruise. If this is the case (and only DaveB can say for certain), then “absorbing” the drunk body would result in instant sobriety for the rest.
My question for DaveB is what happens to that absorbed body WRT alcohol (or any other metabolic process, really) processing? After a couple hours in limbo, could a drunk Daphne pop back into existence sober? Or would all those processes be frozen in time? Could this result in a pregnancy possibly lasting years?
When she “unteleports” one of them, it’s like they’re written to disk, so she can’t use it to sober up or heal injuries. That does mean that particular body doesn’t age, but she’s so used to having all of her out at once that she rarely recombines herself, it’s like walking around with an eyepatch and an oven mitt taped to one hand.
Nice titbit. Which means my hypothesis, on the next page of comments, is still in the running as being a possible explanation of her powers. The ‘limbo’ between dimensions would not be subject to time, as we know that time is a function of a universe. Time only started when the Big Bang… err… banged. The creation of our universe and time were part of the same act. So if a body gets stuck in limbo between two parallel universes, they will not age or otherwise be affected by time.
*Wags tail happily*
Great, thank you :)
If you do not mind just one more point to elucidate some theories.
When a body is “stored” and “retrieved”, the clothes and stuff are included too. What happend the very first time a body is created (say her fourth at age 14)? It is copied something else beside herself (flesh and bones)? For example, is the new body already dressed?
If you did not plan to state it now, it’s ok :)
The downside of being able to sample 5 times as much of the menu without sample-swapping is that you have to pay for all of the dishes, which may not be the case if everyone pays their own ways at the restaurant.
I am pretty sure that this time Archon is paying. And maybe that is why she is fully splitted :)
That makes me wonder. If she combines into one body, to keep costs down, and eats a full meal, what happens when she splits up again? Will each body feel like it has only had a light snack? Or will they all have the benefit of having eaten well?
Yeah, lots of questions around that. I was thinking a few things myself. Since sleep is mainly a brain thing, it rest all of them if just one body sleeps? If just one body is thirsty and join and split, is it gone?
Maybe this was already stated and I just did not see it, but I will give my theory anyway.
It occurs to me that when she first create a copy it is an exact copy of her state at the moment, but from then on the new body lives by itself sharing only, and just only, the mental stuff.
When a copy joins back to the main body they remain separate, like on parallel dimentions, just overlaping the physical effects over reality. That could explain the copy keeping clothes and body modifications.
So no, when a copy splits out it is as much hungry as it was when joined, no matter how much “Thingie one” ate.
Of course this meanning that a copy must eventually split out to take care of body needs, but perhaps while joined it is in a low consume mode.
Make sens?
I do not believe Harem’s copies have any independent existence.
The way Harem’s teleport works is based on the way the transporters work in Star Trek. Matter cannot travel at or near the speed of light, but information can. The transporter scans people, creating a multi-dimensional map of the placement of every single bit of matter they are composed of. The process destroys the person, converting them into energy. The “map” is then sent at the speed of light to the destination, where energy is converted to matter to exactly duplicate the original person.
What is different with Harem is that the original does not have to be destroyed in the process. Instead, she makes a copy. Over time she has learned how to edit the “maps” slightly, so she can create slightly different looking copies.
When she creates one of these special copies, she gets slightly smaller. Some part of Harem Prime is required to maintain them, and she has the ability to re-absorb that part. The copies do not have minds of their own, they are all part of the same intellect. Harem seems to function somewhat like a multi-core CPU. She can have multiple thought processes going on, but it’s still all the same mind in the end.
When she reabsorbs a copy, it is gone. When she makes a new copy, she makes it from her edited template of herself, so how hungry, thirsty, or tired the copy will be will be based on Harem Prime’s state when she makes the copy.
Maybe but that implies if a copy is hungry she just needs to join and split and the hungry is gone. And wounds. And tireness. And age. And all. Copies do not need to care going to the bathroom, yet they do: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/572
It seems improbable to me.
By the way Harem seems to have the usual kind of teleporting as well, that she use when any of them teleports without join Prime: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/402
While Harem probably -could- dismiss and recreate copies to avoid them needing to eat, or use the rest room, or take showers, or whatever, I have to wonder how much effort it takes her to summon them. I suspect it’s a lot easier to just keep them around, so she wouldn’t dismiss and recreate a copy for something trivial. It might not be worth it even for minor wounds.
Also, much of the “customization” between the different versions of herself is things she has done after having summoned them; They cut and dye their hair, they get tattoos, they wear makeup. It is quite possible that a lot, or even -all- of the changes are lost when she absorbs and then creates another copy.
You are correct that all the versions of Harem are able to do the teleport where the original is destroyed in the process. It is strongly implied that only Harem Prime is able to make copies by teleporting -without- destroying the original. We have been told there is a limit to the number of copies she can sustain, one that has gone up as she aged. The reason for this is one of the little mysteries about Harem.
A matter of saving, well, yes it could be possible.
While we do not know why she has up to 5 bodies we do know it is now. Dave stated: “She got her first dupe at 8, second at 9, third at 11, fourth at 14.” so maybe they could still be coming :)
You are correct. All Harem copies start out identicle to the base Harem this is per cast page data.
From Dave said Earlier Recombining a Double is basicly like saving a program to your hard drive. so if a double is “deconstructed” in a certain condition. it’ll be in the same condition when it’s recreated. Including Hungry or REALLY needing to use the bathroom.
TheARCmage, your theory is a sound one, but it is in direct opposition to what DaveB has told us in the past about her. He has stated outright that the Harem copies are enduring and modifications they make (haircuts, tattoos, piercings, etc) are permanent changes to those independent copies.
until said copies are “terminated” yes but all new one would be based off of Harem “prime” i.e. her base dna
I believe it has been said that when Harem banishes her copies she gets just a little larger for each one. She does not gain that much mass though. Her weight remains normal for her size and shape. Most of the mass for her copies comes from the land of PFM, and returns there when she isn’t using it.
If she collapses down to just one of herself and eats, when she makes copies again, they won’t be hungry. Technically she could avoid having to buy food for five, but that wouldn’t let her try new foods at five times the rate of normal people.
I am inclined to believe that Harem’s copies come out just like they went in last time, either because the copies are physically stored in a dimensiona limbo, or because she recreates them exactly as they were last time. Otherwise, how would she do the clothes? You can argue that she duplicates her bodies and alters them on the fly, but if she duplicates her clothes and alters them on the fly, that would have strange implications, allowing her to create basically any sort of object. (“I use my ability to make my duplicate wear anything, by having my duplicate wear woven plastic explosive”)
We have yet to be shown Harem dismissing or creating one of her copies. I believe the clothing they wear is normal purchased-in-a-store clothing. When she dismisses a copy the outfit the copy was wearing is probably left on the floor, and when she creates one, they will be wearing whatever Harem Prime is wearing at the time.
If true then Harem could have a pretty good job refilling the stock of any Clothing Store :)
What I am saying? Harem schedule: “First thing in the morning get borrow a gold ingot”
You sir are incorrect any time a Harem is deleted and a new one created, the new one looks the same as the base Harem. This is per DaveB’s cast page data.
From cast page:
“Harem’s copies all started out identical but she has customized them over time, dying and cutting hair, buying individual wardrobes for them, and more than one has a number of tattoos.”
It say “started” identical, first time created. The full description also imply that the customizations remains over time. If not then she has never regrouped back again. Unlikely.
actualy very likely due to the cost and other factors involved in customization
No her bodies are permanently independent, so all of them need to eat and sleep and get their vaccinations updated separately. When one is unteleported it just kind of stops being in our timespace, which somehow makes Harem stronger. Because science!
In that case that does bring up the possibility I suggested before, of holding back a body so she can use it when she’s 80 and double her lifespan (or bring it out when she needs a child body now).
True enough, that is why I included it in my Death and tactics post on the next page. Mind you, it does get blown out of the water if what NotFred is saying on that page is true, namely
Because, if that is the case each copy will be the same age as Prime, but she will never be able to put her original self into storage, to pause time for her. So she could use her tattooed copies like disposable bodyguards, to ‘take the bullet’, if she has no restriction on how quickly she can replace them. But any damage, injury or mortal wound made to Prime will cause all future copies to suffer the same fate.
Of course, if she only uses Prime to do that out of habit, rather than because she has no alternative, then hello end of the world. She can book a ring-side seat to watch it with Achilles. Whenever it happens. Although she had better make sure that at least one copy of her has emigrated far far away by then.
Oops, I was reading your post as implying open ended replacement by younger bodies. But what you had actually stated is just a single replacement, which would not be affected by the Prime issue. Although the original body could not slow its aging, each of the copies will be a bit younger, for every minute they spend in storage. So only the eye-patch and oven-mitt problem causes her to age.
Oven-mitts and gloves are obviously evil in the Grrl Power universe! Archon should find the super-villain behind them and destroy his child-labour factories now!
How do we know Harem doesn’t have a Thing 6 in storage for just that reason. She’s already a double agent, so she may have other secrets.
I wonder if Jamie Madrox ever gets these kinds of inquiries?
Jamie Madrox doesn’t have contiguous mental processing. In actuality, his duplication thinking process is massively parallel, which only gets shared back into him when he reabsorbs a duplicate.
Metaphorically speaking, Harem is a supercomputer formed by interconnecting 300 game consoles into a single rig (a thing the Air Force actually did when they were denied the budget to design a new supercomputer, actually), while Multiple Man is the Server of a Wide Area Network, farming out programs to individual terminals to resolve specific problems, and taking their finished products for long term storage.
I’m guessing Sydney has a food allergy/intolerance and is checking if a certain dish is safe for her.
I was thinking she was going to add something of her hot-scale topping to Daphne’s dish, as a petit revenge for stealing her “Badgers!” routine during the demo, but seeing her scheming-gaze to her right, I’m guessing she’s ordering a “birthday special” for somebody, likely Peggy.
Harem should really pull herself together. And I’m thinking Sydney is ordering a T-bone steak medium rare.
Naw.. its obviously a blue t-bone steak that only got to medium rare from all the capsaicin added.
A what now? Never heard of blue t-bone steaks
‘Blue’ is a category of meat preparation, just barely above ‘raw’, on the scale that goes through ‘medium’ to ‘well done’. It is considered illegal in many places, because if not done carefully there is a risk of food poisoning.
Having sampled burgers in every country I have visited, I was surprised to find that absolutely the best ones I ever had were cooked ‘blue’. A very good one in northern Spain, but the best in Nice, in France, on the Mediterranean coast. It may not just have been so good because of the way it was cooked, as it had unusual sauces as well, but that was a distinct part of it.
Thank you for this very intresting bit of info.
Wish I could travel and try out all those great places and foods.
Sadly I no longer order burgers as anything but well done. While I love a blue or better yet black and blue steak, years in the Air Force cured me of undercooked ground beef. There’s only so many times you can get food poisoning before you decide hamburgers should be crunchy.
Yea, I was trying to keep brief, out of guilt from my long post yesterday. But I really should have added that folks should never order blue meat at some random food place. Like any unusual food you should only get it at a place that specialises in it, and is well equipped and practised in preparing it.
For instance do not feel tempted if you see shark on the menu at a pub. It is a hard dish to prepare well, and at best you will be able to say ‘I have eaten shark’. But you probably will not want to have it again, because it will have been chewy and not very nice. But go to a (good) specialist fish restaurant and you will taste it at its best.
Asking a greasy burger joint to do your burger blue will likewise probably give you an unpleasant surprise. Not least of which could be having your stomach pumped at the hospital.
Just like the Fugu I’ve had in Japan. You have to get it from a very reputable place or you could end up dead.
dude, even with the chef’s having to be specially trained to even attempt making it, any joe-schmoe off the street WILL get it wrong and kill the customer. you STILL have to sign a waiver, and even at those places, there are still deaths every year from it. Fugu is one thing i’d never have the guts to try…
I was surprised to find that Limburger cheese needs to be made by a recognized and registered master. It’s not going to kill you like Fugu would of course, but its fascinating that someone has to be on the top of their field to make a cheese that shows up in a number of punchlines.
I could be wrong, but I would think that may be due more to marketing than actual need- sort of like “European law dictates that only those cheeses aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon may bear the name Roquefort“, even though there are several cheeses nearly identical to it.
True. But do not forget quality control. Producers of such products, and the countries which generate revenue from them need to ensure a consistently high standard in order to protect the market. The two factors are intertwined, but ensuring that the makers are properly trained and certified is part of the solution to both.
For years, down here, when you ordered ‘Fish and Chips’ from pretty much any fast food shop, you were getting shark (you had/have to specifically ask for blue cod)
I love that you vary people’s clothing and hair styles as time goes by. Though I think after seeing it for a couple years, I’ve kinda got used to Sydney wearing a Wonder Woman top.
Note that Sydney is now proudly wearing her own choker.
Looks awesome.
So is the seating on purpose and if so when does Sydney get to sit at the Big girls table?
She should get to the big girl’s table by the time she gets her bars. (She DOES become a colonel at some point after all.)
Corporal, actually.
https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/60
just a tought,, from pink hair harem shirt on all the other panels,, there is no way she give such a view in panel one with that neckline,,, just saying.. not that i dont enjoy such things,, but
I don’t necessarily disagree with you – it IS rather high. A few contributing factors, though: she’s bent over the table, which could matter if the shirt is looser than it appears, and she’s leaning on her crossed arms, which would push her busom upward and compress the skin over the collarbones…
An effect that might be exaggerated depending on how loose – um – “things” are under that shirt.
You mean, if she is or isn’t wearing ‘support’?
Some are, some arn’t. At least two are wearing push up bra’s, one is wearing a sport’s bra, and one is going comando bra wise, or a demi-bra.Im not sure.
she’s the one IN Uniform… there WILL be a bra… seeing as how it is part of the required articles of clothing, there’s no way she could get away with NOT wearing one…
Panel 7 zoom:
Sydney: See these Jalapeno poppers? Do think they could be made with Scotch Bonnet or Habanero instead? Do you think the chef has some Ghost Peppers he could use instead? I have yet to try a Carolina Reaper, but if you have something like that, I would really appreciate it. Add for the main course, I am thinking of trying the lamb, but with a hot curry mint sauce.
Waiter: We have our own super-suicide sauce that I could ask the chef to mix in with the lamb sauce just for you. Be careful, it will be very spicy.
Sydney: Do you know the Scoville heat rating on that “suicide” sauce?
Waiter: It depends on how much he uses, but pure, I think it is about a million, but I can check with the chef.
Sydney: Meh, it will have to do, I guess. Oh, and make sure you do not mix up Daphne’s jalapeno poppers, and my habanero poppers. She might not appreciate it.
Sydney: Err, waiter? What have you got that, if it were to become airborne, would cause the Governor to order a statewide evacuation?
This is Texas we are talking about here. That is a big state. Oh, and Sydney is not the only one there who likes spicy food.
Well, that’s the *challenge* isn’t it?
daaaahaha loved this one
I’m calling a swerve on the spicy angle… maybe Sydney is Kosher or something?
Also, Harem could solve her problems & save money and headache by squishing together for dinner.
Also, as a former (mediocre) server, I hate people moving around the table.
Given that Sydney has said that “Not everything I eat has to be spicy”, I agree that we will see something different. Although she might just be covering defensively, and it just happens that this time she has chosen something hot.
But I think it more likely that she wanted to try something exotic. Perhaps something on the menu she was not familiar with? Or she wanted to prepare something in an unusual, but not necessarily spicy, way? If she did not fancy any of the main dishes, maybe she was seeing if she could have a series of starters instead?
Either way I find it endearingly sweet that she had to go off in a huddle to discuss it privately.
Maybe she just wants to try a ‘cored pickle filled with cheese & spicy mustard.’
https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/589
Mmm, that sounds so gooood.
now im getting hungry
Breakfast time!
Punk Harem’s hair is mirrored, compared to the who’s who picture.
Or, the ‘Who’s Who’ image is mirrored (if you look closely, her brow-piercing is on the same side as her hair tuft, just in one image it’s on the left, the other the right)
Whoops! Oh well maybe she… brushed it different?
Maybe she can mirror herself while “vorp” :)
I laughed at that, but thinking on it, yea, that really could happen. Especially if she vorped to an image that she inadvertently saw in a reflection say.
Anne McCaffrey‘s dragons of Pern could teleport. Which they would do by telepathically going to the image of the place their rider visualised. Up until one visualised somewhere they had not seen for some time. To their surprise, when they arrived, they found that they had teleported through time!
:) And Lessa found herself looking at the back of her own head. Nice reference, been a while since I read Dragonflight, maybe it is time to keep with the saga.
yeah, and ended up being the cause of the weir’s downfall… because the guards saw her and her dragon flying overhead and thought that nothing was wrong…
It was the HOLD’s downfall because the WatchWEIR recognized her. But close enough
SPOYLURZ!
I figure since the story is getting near 50. A small spoiler isn’t gonna kill anyone
The entire series is a …ahem… timeless classic though. So if anyone has not read it, be sure to get your paws on a copy. Anne McCaffrey was one of the finest science fiction and fantasy writers. She creates settings so vividly that you can visualise every character, smell every food and engage with every scene.
Her, Misty, Andre, did I leave out any other ‘grand dame’s’?
constructive feedback, DaveB: Daphne’s broader rear-jawline (Vogue in panel 1, Prime in panel 3) doesn’t really match the shading being applied to her face in most all of the other drawings you’ve done of her, except on this very same page in panel 7. Compare that with Kenya’s face, who’s rear-jawline is consistently highlighted (not a perfect comparison, since she also has a wide chin, while Daphne has a pointed chin).
Also: no issues with switching out the uniform-wearing copy – loving Punk’s leather jacket!
That angle is tough to draw, but in my defense, when you see the chin nearly inline with the jaw, it makes head look a lot squarer. I don’t recall if I used photo reference for that one though.
I haven’t tried one yet, but lingonberries should make for a decent milkshake. When I was a kid, I would approximate one by stirring my milk with lingonberry jam runoff. Tasted good; not as sweet as strawberry, so like lingonberry jam, it should go well with dinner, rather than with dessert.
“Base” Harem actually looks like a pretty Farmgirl next door in the first panel.
i see daphne has switched ‘who’ is in uniform. Sticking to that promise to Max?
It was not a promis thaf was made, it was anorder to be obeyed.
i like who Harem #2 on the first panel from Halo have the same haircut as her :D
GotHarem has always had her hair like that, just this time it’s more pronounced/styled similar
had to check that again. how bout that? lol
Wasn’t one of Maxi’s standing rules for Daphne that at least one Harem has to be in uniform at all times?
Loving blonde Daphne’s outfit, very sexy-beautiful (as opposed to sexy-slutty)
Bookworm kinda looks odd to me, showing so much bare arm flesh (always pictured her at least wearing short sleeved shirt, even if she tied it under her breasts)
Any chance of seeing detailed looks at their outfits? Specially ‘Military-punk’ Harem at the far end
That was the instruction. Although that would only apply whilst she is on duty. Off duty she can do what she likes. Although the Daphne nearest to Sydney does appear to have her military jacket on. Whether she is in appropriate ‘full uniform’ however, I hesitate to say.
Harem is unique though in that she may be on duty at all times. It depends on how well she can cope with having bodies on different shifts, and whether the military rules would be flexible enough to apply unique regulations to accommodate her capabilities. It would be a significant asset to a military unit to have someone who was on duty 24/7, albeit in different bodies.
On the other paw, from the fact that we have seen all the bodies active at the same time, probably all working simultaneously, and appearing, at the moment, to be off-duty together, I think that is not the case.
Not only is she wearing the jacket, she is also wearing the t-shirt/under-shirt
I’d give her half shifts, after all, that many bodies with one brain it has to be taxing on her. Fatigue would set in quicker for her than others. And she can work more places at one time so while she would only do half shifts, she would still be getting more done in that time than a full shift person would so it works out in the end.
She dines like me. Always got to ask a question or modify a meal.
Hamburger with garlic: The way I often go for it.
Chocolate and garlic: Mexican molé sauce, when you mix in some chili peppers.
Fish and chocolate: While that does not appeal to me, I am sure that somebody would like it.
I had trouble coming up with 4 flavors that were all totally incompatible since I was trying to thing of things that she would have been eating anyway, and not stuff like hot corpse and toe jam.
that’s the national meal in Nigeria, lately, according to the news.. :D
My number one local specialty I never want to taste should I ever visit Greenland: Kæstur Hákarl
Orange, Mint, Carp, and that Maggot Cheese.
Incompatible flavored AND textures.
Figure: something soupy, something chewy, something crunchy.
Also: include something with a subtle taste, and something with a strong odor to ruin that taste
(Butterscotch anyways ruins the taste of milk for me)
If you need any more (bad) idea : the worst I ever tasted was a sweet-and-sour pickles and nutella sandwich.
Mayo and Hershey’s chocolate syrup on buttered bread (not toasted)… it made sense at the time, but ultimately: Ugh!…
So you are old enough to drink, eh? Just watch it; you could wake up to a very nasty headache the next day.
So, am I correct in believing that we are still on the very same day(Probably Evening, by now.) that Sydney went to make a deposit at the bank?
I am eager to see what Joel’s reaction will be, at least he’ll finally have an explanation for why she’s been carrying around the blueprint tube; also, I want to know what Sydney’s one condition was, from back in # 127.
Keep up the spectacular work.
Yes, same day (early-evening)
And yes, we all are eager to see his reaction, and what her condition was
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70QfHtKdh_0
Dear Diary:
Long and hard day today.
Joel told me we are in danger to lose the store, I had to deal with the Brad’s nonsense, and needed to sneak away from a herd of nuns. I thought it would never end.
See you tomorrow.
PS: I think there was something else but I can’t put my finger on it right now.
+1
some irony here, Joel still can’t know what’s in the tube. Even if he watched the news, the orbs aren’t caught on camera. So Joel is still completely in the dark on what she has in the tube, just an idea that it’s enough to make her a supercop, and some of what they do.
i would like to think that Dabbler would have either mentioned it while back at Archon in the ballroom, or a few minutes ago when she told Max about what happened after she left the demo, as it would have been a confusing point for all the press if they could see them via the MK I Eyeball, but nothing ELSE could… that WOULD have been mentioned by them at the very least… so I’m inclined to believe that the ORBS themselves can be photographed, it’s just the extra stuff like the Skill Point Tree, and any of the ?Runes / Symbols? (or whatever they’re called when she does the shield embiggening thing) that can’t be photographed…
you’re right, I was just remembering the specifics wrong, dabbler was saying that nothing could be read off the orbs, and the light they give off couldn’t be recorded or sensed unless directly looking at them, but didn’t mention that the orbs themselves had that last problem.
Looking at this makes me think though, just how much of what the orbs do can be picked up by cameras?
Can the cameras see the shield, tentacle, ‘splodey beam, or holo-sidney? how about the mini-orb the comm-ball sends out before it becomes holo-sidney?
Tentacle and splodey beam are most likely filmable: tentacle was used for shameless self-promotion and so much is affected by the beam that something (maybe not the “blast shield”) would definitely be recordable. The shield doesn’t appear to be visible on any of the recent screens that show Maxima’s explosion, but that may just be Dave not wanting to clutter them up, and size restrictions. Holo-sidney and mini-comm haven’t been discussed in comic for this, and I haven’t seen anything in the comments about them (they might have just hidden from me).
I wonder if she ever got the deposit made…
I think Sydney asked how much a certain something on the menu actually cost. Not that she has to worry about paying of course, but still a big shock.
I had not considered that. But you may be right. Any of the supers will doubtless be earning a lot more than a normal person at their rank. Either that or the higher ups who made that call are absolutely insane. Equal pay principles do not apply for people who have superhuman powers. Essentially you are paying what a normal person would get plus a unique capability (or in Halo’s case many capabilities) that are irreplaceable if lost to a competitor.
I would expect the market value of supers will give them salaries comparable to top-league sports stars, if not more. In the private sector anyhow. Military pay might not stretch that far, but pay too low and they will be loosing all but the most patriotic to private industry in no time.
But, of course, Sydney will not have been paid yet. So it does not matter how much she will be expecting come pay day, it is what she has in her pocket at the moment that counts. And she may be too embarrassed to ask if Archon will be footing the bill or not. To cap it all we know she has just been on what was probably quite an expensive holiday, given the financial state of their shop. So she may not have much cash to spare.
It is probably she still have the bank money with her.
That is why I say a super would be best served hiring an agent.
I figured this was a kickoff party so no one is having to pay anything, the food is free and it’s a fancy shindig so they have a select menu to choose from.
Though to go back to my old chestnut of economics, supers would probably be the worst thing for the economy. They would have to be paid a whole lot more as Yorp said. After all, these are rare talents that you either have on your side or you deal with them on someone else’s side. Certain powers would copy certain things you need anyway. Super Strength=Forklift, but you have a human mind with a lot more precision than some guy behind a wheel so accidents become far less common and he can do a lot more than a simple forklift. Who wouldn’t want that?
All in all, supers fall under a unique level of supply and demand. Supers are the only ones that can supply these things, so they demand a whole lot more. That means higher pay, then, more spending in certain markets. Raises the costs of certain services. People like you or me with less pay, can’t afford it. The economy unbalances itself.
Ariana is paying from an expense account for this kind of thing. The food isn’t free, just you won’t be paying for it. Mind you, I expect Syndey to be “paying for it” during basic training, but that is an entirely different context.
Actually since technically Sidney is now part of the military she’ll probably get military pay for her rank plus hazardous duty pay. After all she can’t quit. In the military they call that desertion and you get to spend a few years in prison if you do that.
No, but she can choose not to re-enlist at the end of her tour of duty (unless a war kicks off and that option is removed). And once word gets out how badly they are paid vs civilian heroes who would want to go into Arc? Skip forward a decade and the building could be empty. Military planners need to plan for the long term, not just the current budget year.
Plus hazard pay will not compensate all the supers that they will need. Not all powers will be useful in the field. But would still be priceless for the army or police force that had them.
Say a clairvoyant, for Arc Dark or Light. So powerful that they refuse to go anywhere near where any violence has occurred because it is too traumatic for them. But give them an item from the scene and they can tell you who was there, and what they said, and did and where they are now. Yet you propose that they should just get regular warrant officer pay? One hero like that could solve more crimes than a thousand detectives. Infallibly.
I bet you that if you had access to military budgets you will find that there are presently a few uniquely talented individuals who get vastly more than the normal pay grades. Take a mathematical genius of the order displayed in Good Will Hunting. They might come along once in every two or three generations. Ie only one country in the world is likely to have someone that good in any given working lifetime. Do you seriously think that they will only offer that individual basic rate to work on code breaking?
No, they get paid better, but they are not enlisted either. You hire those people as civilian contracts which then allows you to pay them a lot more.
And I’m not sure what ARCs going to pay above standard paygrade, or what it should pay extra either. Do you pay based on degree of supernatural ability? Utility? What about Peggy and Math who lack superhuman abilities (dubiously in Maths case.) Who makes the final determination? Any way you slice it you have issues with unequal pay impacting moral and unit cohesion.
The military has fixed paygrades but they can play around with special incentives, duty bonuses and the like.
I expect ARC probably does get paid more than the regular grunt, but not absurdly so or you would watch service moral plumet as Officers try to explain to line troops “Of course he get’s paid more Johnson, he can’t get his arm blown off like you can.” But it won’t be but a drop of what they could make in civilian life. As we discussed earlier Maxima could make millions a day as a heavy lift launch platform and make the world a better place while doing it. In the end nobody serves for the money, you do it for any number of reasons, but great wads of cash is not one of them.
Reasonable arguments.
I would do a series of physical and mental tests. If you’ve spent time trying to be recruited, the mental test is like the asfab. For those not in the know, it’s much like an IQ test, but targeting the ability to do certain jobs that they may need. Can you break code? Can you learn how to fix a jeep. Fly a plane, that sort of thing. Then when the results come back, give them a job fitting the results of both the asfab and the physical testing which would include super powers if appropriate.
Then according to the role they pick in the results of multiple roles being appropriate or just the single role, pay them that positions pay, and I would say 250% more to reflect the inherent value of the power. This would push the supers to pick elite roles that would really suit their powers and you are very competitive in wages.
You’re both right and wrong. Having had access to a few of these exceptional individuals, I can confirm there are provisions for a variety of incentive pays, but they aren’t nearly as high as you might think.
I have been consistently impressed with the quality of people the military manages to retain, despite all the hardships and dissatisfiers associated with service. Part of that is the culture of service-before-self that the military engenders. Another part is that those attracted to military service to begin with are much more patriotic and service-oriented than the average (this is a bit chicken-and-egg).
In-world, I would assume the military members make about 10-25% above standard scale for their rank, and the “civilian advisors” probably make double that (but with no enduring benefits package afterward).
One thing everyone seems to be forgeting is the money that arc members will be getting from royalties, licsend merchendise, and other special considerations.
Ahh, but you are forgetting the manure sales. Sydney is bound to have asked for a pony enclosure in Arc, as her special condition. Or some kinda merchandising deal for the shop, maybe. Outside chance, at the very least.
The vibe for the last few comics is that Max is giving ARC is a bad image to the public. I think that in addition to merchandising, Arianna should set up some one-on-one time with the press to let the public get to know them when they are NOT blowing stuff up. Interviews on the late night talk shows could prove that they are ‘just folks’ and not to be feared. Harem could even be on Letterman, Leno, O’Brien, Stewart and Colbert all on the same night. (Or whoever the networks picked in this universe)
Additional good will ideas:
They could do a basketball tour with the team ‘The Harem Globetrotters” (The refs would have to decide if teleporting during a game is considered traveling)
To get the public familiar with the new tech used by the group we could start up a new show on PBS hosted by ‘Xuriel the Science Gal’.
Since Sydney is the resident fan-girl, she could write about her adventures with ARC, possibly by starting a web comic about her life. (Although this may create a logical paradox and destroy the universe)
https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/413
Arianna is already planning just that sort of thing. She told Harem about it earlier. After the Press Conference she’s going to set up all kinds of appearances on talk shows and such so that the public can get to know the members of Archon as people.
I do not know about basketball but I was plotting a fanfic around a volleyball game, and then I realized that regardless having five bodies Harem is still one person, and rules states that each person can touch the ball just once :(
I managed to work it in another story but my initial intent was “vorped” away, kinda disapointing.
When dealing with supers, the rules for any sport have to be customized to fit the situation. In the absence of Power Nullifiers things like super strength cannot be shut off. Harem might well be allowed to be one of the teams all by herself.
Marvel comics used to have super teams try and play various sports now and again. It was always interesting to see what happened when the X-men or the Avengers tried to play a baseball game.
Well, in my story Harem was playing volleyball, that means normal volley in a normal volley tournament. Not a super one.
Beside that I do not think you really “have to” modify the rules. Many sports can be played by many supers as they are.
A lot of times the only reason to have special sports for supers is to allow a fancy display in the movie (or anything else) and let the characters show off. But in “reality” it is different even with normal people. If a quarterback joins a soccer team nobody will say “hey, this guy is super at throw the ball with his hands, we need to change the rules to allow that”.
Let Harem use her powers could be great for her but, why all the others teams must to allow it?
That I think is new rules could be added mostly to avoid unwanted behaviors: “Flying not allowed in the Super High Jump” (https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/970)
Of course a whole other subject is “at home” games made up just to have more fun :)
GURPS Supers IST covered Supers in Sports, IST (the UN’s Super Army), the DMI team (US governments Super registration program) and Supertemps (private sector Super employment agency) have all put together Baseball teams a number of times to do charity matches against the World Series champs and the League All-star teams, the Supers keep losing since the folks putting together the Supers teams keep making the same mistake going for Strength and Speed instead of Precision and Coordination
I was thinking of the members of Archon playing against each other. With the possible exception of Sydney, I don’t think having any of the supers in a game played against normal humans would be fair.
While some of them may not have “super” level strength and speed, all supers are way above average physically; They are stronger, faster, tougher, and better looking. It’s just part of the package of being a super.
I am not so sure, it could be fair as long as all teams are allowed to have supers. Also, Max could throw unstoppable balls but she will not be always the pitcher.
(early launch, was saying…)
I know what you mean, yet I think that normal rules can work with supers (all supers or mixed). Maybe some matches will be totally predictable (or just boring) but it is the same with no supers.
Plus, many times rules will just cut down superpowers, like Harem in volley: you must run, not fly; you must kick, not “telekinet”; you must swin, not teleport; and so.
Y’all know how… random… Sydney can be, right? Coming from her “All sorted! Resume normal operation!” might not actually mean anything.
Then again, Sydney always has a method to her madness, even if it might not be immediatly obvious, or even visible, to the rest of us.
She might be one of those people who like varied tastes and textures to her food when it’s not atomic flavored.
Talking to the waiter on the side for a special order might be common place for her.
Of course I might be wrong, but we don’t know everything about this girl.
Method to her madness, madness to her method, purely randomness, that is all Sydney. Snafubar is where she lives.
Could be she was having her ‘no baby food,and a garnish of sneeze’ speech like she gave at Fusion.
Syd would just about be a perfect Mythbuster.
Her normal mode: “Here comes chaos!”
What would be the worst combo of three or four foods you can think of?
Might make for a bit of intresting conversation.
Or what is a great combo that you might not think would go well together?
Please put good or bad before your choice.
Bad: Four month decayed shark, with greasy bacon and prunes.*
* Klingons would kill to eat this needless to say. A real warrior’s meal.
Prune juice. “A warrior’s drink.”, according to Worf, Son of Mogh.
In ‘Yesterday’s Enterprise”. A serious contender for best Star Trek episode ever. Across any series. I would vote it as the top one, even though preferring Deep Space Nine to The Next Generation. It is like a stand-alone series contained in a single episode.*
* Good feature: There are no kids on the Battleship Enterprise.
I’m reasonably sure Klingons prefer fresh meat.
I was just alluding to Berpol‘s earlier comment:”
l”Which is rotten shark. Even a Klingon probably would not want to eat that fresh because, quoting Wikipedia, “Rotten shark is chosen instead of fresh shark meat because the meat of the Greenland shark is poisonous when fresh“. Culturally they would be attracted to this dish because ” Eating hákarl is often associated with hardiness and strength.”
I found a 10+ year old list from https://interstice.com/max/disgusting.html
Having a sample to work with, I asked ‘what do people consider disgusting’? Looking at it for common themes, the most common grouping is a combination of a meat with something very sweet, usually with a sticky or sauce texture. Also combinations containing strongly sweet/sour/bitter items, including a known ‘icky’ food (liver, squid, anchovies) and using ketchup on anything other than meat. (Does anyone else remember Fonzie using that last one in a ketchup on ice cream quote in a Happy Days episode?)
Jello sushi — Kevin
Strawberry popsicle with ranch dressing — Kevin
Corn-dog covered with chocolate — Jason
Lime jello with bacon bits — Jason
Sausage milkshake — Chris Izerda
Fudge bars with little bits of corn inside, topped with carrot shavings — Jen
Chocolate-covered shrimp — Jason
Magic-Shell-covered shrimp — max
Cornflakes with catsup — Mike
Omlette with marshmallow creme inside — Jason
Taco with cherries in the meat sauce — Jason
Chili with Junior Mints — Kevin
Starburst with garlic spread — Kevin
Carmel-coated lima beans — Jason
Smores made with hamburger patties — Kevin
Vegemite — glemist
Banana split with baked beans — Jason
Spice cake with chicken lard — L. Cotrotsos
Figs, ketchup, and steamed onions — L. Cotrotsos
Candy corn smothered in barbeque sauce with fresh dill and mayonnaise — L. Cotrotsos
Pickles and milk — Wicked
Tang and Quik — Wicked
Rice Krispie squares with ketchup — Wicked
Beef jerky with marshmallow creme — Jason
Graham, cheese & saurkraut S’Mores — Jason
Clam chowdah with Oreos — Jane
Steak and Skittles — Laura
Chicken McNuggets in chocolate sauce — Jason
Fudge & oyster milkshake — D. Miller
Brussel sprout tapioca pudding — Bob
Tuna milkshake
Peanut-butter and mayonnaise sandwich
Tuna and toffee ice cream with hot chicken grissle fat sauce all packed in a taco shell filled with beef and goat cheese topped with sweet and sour sauce — Karen Lee
Donut and squid casserole — Suzy
Liver merangue pie — Jason
Orbitz — Gopher
Cheese ravioli with rasins and chocolate sauce — Gopher
Jelly nachos — Danielle
Orange marmalade on Spam — Kyle
Hamburger topped with soy sauce, mayonnaise, and vanilla ice-cream (known affectionately as “The Booger Burger”) — Milkweed
Asparagus with grape jelly, skim milk, and chili powder — Clatter
Marshmallow creme in Ministrone soup — Clatter
Dates with crushed-up cheese-puffs, drenched in peppermint tea — Clatter
Cottage Cheese Ketchup soup, with fresh mint and chocolate chips — Annie
A sandwich of mayonaisse and Cheetos between two thin-mint Girl Scout cookies — Aghhhhh
Sauerkraut and tapioca pudding, topped with kidney beans — Melissa
Gazpacho Crunch ice cream — Kevin
A latte with shredded tuna — Kevin
Peach marmalade with anchovies — Neuwa
Cinnamon roll with Italian dressing — Katzmanian
Tang and Quik are good together as long as the milk doesn’t curdle.
Totally agree about Vegemite, Marmite on the other tastebud is, well, tasty (did you know it almost went extinct because the yeast-extract used is a by-product of beer-production and the local brewery was severely damaged during an earthquake a couple years ago)
Raw Calamari, week old Mural Mushrooms (( those fancy ones that only grow after a fire )), Shake and bake Chicken with cocoa beans
Let me add something to that mix, Gorgonzola and Chocolate Ice Cream. I’ve never had it, but just that combination, ergggg. Diet plan.
Let’s see. What has ended up in the Chopped mystery baskets lately? Some of those seem like impossible flavour combinations, but somehow some of the chefs manage to pull off something edible out of it.
In your baskets you will find: durian, canned sardines, ghost peppers and prickly pear cactus fruit. You have 20 minutes to complete your appetizers, which starts … now.
Yes, I have seen episodes using each of these ingredients, but not all at the same time. The sweet flavour of the cactus fruit will be so overwhelmed by the other items as to almost undetectable.
I just noticed that Peggy is wearing a double holster to dinner. Impressive.
With this group, it puts a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘packing a pair of 38s’. (Although we know that Max is packing a pair of 44s. And I also think she carries a gun.)
That phrasing–have you, perchance, read a book entitled Calamity Trail?
Not just double-holsters, but they are not empty holsters
good catch. I thought they where mag pouches in front of the pistol holsters. I understand the groups a special military-police blend but it’s not proper to carry like that off duty hours without special reason and permits, beyond that the mags appear to be in and it is legal standard to carry them separated unless in a place you are intending to use the weapon (a range or test center).
In which case, clearly, she must be there on official duty. Doubtless as Maxima’s bodyguard. Max is going to have a bunch of elite super-villains gunning for her, after all!
she says that like smoked haddock burgers with garlic relish is a bad thing…
admittedly, the chocolate wouldn’t mix well.
The art has changed while I was away! Everyone looks better than ever. Peggy especially, but everyone else too. The sleeves, now… they are awesome. :)
If you’re talking about Peggy, those aren’t sleeves. They’re her tattoos.
Actually, they are referred to as ‘sleeves’
I once put garlic in a chocolate cake with a mocha frosting. Was actually very good.
LINGONBERRY JUICE WITH FIZZY WATER IS DELICIOUS!!!!!
Halo’s bangs seem to be growing at a remarkable pace. Until told otherwise I’m going to assume that this world functions under the Dragon Ball Z law of Hair to Power proportion, and that this is a side effect of her leveling up.
Your apology made me laugh out loud.
Also, she’s more strawberry milkshake than strawberry blonde. Strawberry blonde is my hair color, or at least it was when I was a kid. Reddish blonde but still looks blonde.
Special request to DaveB. I know there have been one or two pages which focus on Harem, and her abilities. Such as when she had to take the taxi. But any time I look for them, I can’t find them. I seem to remember that the other one was a Dabbler Science corner. But can only see #1 in the main archives. If you get a chance, is it possible to add them to her ‘notable appearances’ section in the cast list? She only has the one listing at the moment, so there should be room.
Either that, or is there an index somewhere of pages that do not appear in the main archives? In the event that either or both of those pages simply are not listed.
I found this: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/893
but the image seems to be a past incentive and I could not find it.
Be aware of the “others” previous/next links at the upper right corner of the entry. It seems it goes by the blog instead the comics. I am researching… :)
Anyway Dave +1 to Yorp’s request.
I would not like to be so close connected I taste all my doubles food together. Yukk! Definitely a severe draw back. The other is feeling pain. Ben Tennison found that out with Ditto. Everyone on including the original fel the same thing. And if they died they splatted as slimy protoplasm.
First thing popped into my mind: title=”Surströmming”>.