Grrl Power #292 – Crime may not pay, but villainy is evidently humorous
The more I think about it, the more I think this page should have come before the previous one. I’d have to redraw Sydney without the peacoat though. I may do that when I do my editing for the book cause I think it flows a little better that way. In any case, this isn’t quite the last page of the book, but it is the last page in which that parking lot appears for a long time, Xenu willing.
Let me break this page down by rows since there’s a lot going on. Maxima might say this outright in the comic at some point, but she wouldn’t mind sporting a crooked nose since some people would consider it a -1 to comeliness, which is fine with her, and it makes her look more like a scrapper. The problem with that is she doesn’t want to walk around sporting any particular villain’s trophy injury on her face.
Achilles winds up being either enormously useful in fights, or gets pinned under rubble/tossed over the horizon. It’s about 50/50. Also, what the hell is that poster tube made out of?
Some people have a chronic nervous laugh, some people have something called the Pseudobulbar affect, which is actually a neurological disorder or can be caused by a brain lesion. It causes uncontrollable laughter or sometimes crying. I assume the Joker has this affliction. Deus… just seems to be privy to a joke only he gets. I think I should draw a tablet or something in his hand in that last panel, otherwise it looks like he was staring out the window down at the parking, and his building is nowhere near that fight. Also I realized after I finished the page that I should have revisited the dramatic lightning gag in panel 9, but if I put lightning behind him, then the “oops, busted” look over his shoulder wouldn’t work right. :P
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I just thought of a really bad pun and wondered if it would be something of an interesting back-story piece (and I can accept if it’s simply fanon)…
Here it is (I offer no warranty express or implied for this pun):
Is Deus’s Ex Maxima?
you should be PUNished for that
Now, now, maybe he just happened uPUN it by chance.
sorry sorry did not mean to be unPUNtual, but grammar nazis aside, that is a great pun
I do believe such a comment deserves to be exPUNged.
I can see this chain growing exPUNentially, given how many of the community have a PUNchant for word play, PUNctuation and PUNctiliousness. PUNching us might stop us PUNctually though, if any PUNgent sPUNky PUNk wants to try?
Such PUNitive measures would not be received with imPUNity mind, and such actions will neither be forgiven nor exPUNged. And those cyberPUNks could find themselves PUNctured. Why not just try acuPUNcture, instead?
Are you done being punny yet? Maybe you could PUNt it off to someone else, eh?
the PUNdits will PUNtificate on your PUNishment for a long time.
Almost makes you wonder what’s going to hapPUN next.
The Pun Jar from Wapsi Square is vorping in *right now* to accept payment for those horrible horrible puns y’all have been PUNishing us with…
Payments to a Jar Jar Brinks?
At this rate, it would take the volume capacity of a Brinks truck to hold it all.
Oh, no… it’s MUCH larger than that by now… there have been SO many deposits that their combined gravitational field has cause local Space-Time to collapse it into a black hole, thus ensuring that it is able to fit anything in there that it needs to fit in there. you could almost say it’s bigger on the inside…
I’m going to hurt all y’all.
“Hands Pander a leather suit and whip”
Don’t forget to put salt the whip…Promise me you won’t use the whip without salt.
Don’t forget the lotion.
No no. You don’t use lotion with salt. Salt and vinegar is the best. Mmm.
At this point, I’m thinking of adding a bit of parsley & some croutons…Then we’ve got the makings of a fine salad.
Don’t forget the cheese, bacon, hardboiled eggs.
Oh hell let’s just go raid a GOD salad bar.
Fracking auto correct.
Meant to say GOOD.
*hides the traveling shovel*
We don’t need that.
Terrible puns deserve terrible grammar nazism. That would be “Deus’ ex Maxima”.
But you wrote it exactly the same way Rob did. It should read as, “Dues’ ex, Maxima.” If you want to be a grammer Nazi about it, at least use punctuation (like commas, for example) where they belong.
o.O
Rob had it right the first time, really…as in this case “Deus” is a name, apostrophe s is appropriate and your comma after “ex” is simply unwarranted and would be considered “comma splicing”
…but as LupoCani said, it’s “terrible grammar nazism” time, so I guess your version takes the cake?
(I love a good pun….Great one, Rob! and totally would make for a good secret subplot)
The apostrophe rule changes when the last letter is an ‘s’, despite the normal way it is handled for plural or singular. Or so the genius daughter of an English teacher told me. Normally I verify such, but did not feel the need to, in that instance.
Mind you, if she is wrong, tell me about it, so I can be all “Naa naa! :-P ” *
One of the perks of having a conversation with her, is that she never forgets a word. So I will not need to remind her that she said that.
* See that nice touch, putting the emoticon inside the quotation marks? So you know which way the tongue would be pointed.
Actually (says another English teacher), the rules regarding apostrophe-s vary from culture to culture, sadly. For plurals ending in ‘s’, the apostrophe always comes after the ‘s’ and there is no further modification. For singular nouns (and proper nouns) ending in ‘s’, however, an apostrophe may be followed by an additional ‘s’, especially if the standard for pronunciation is to produce another syllable.
Culturally variable. Damn she is sneaky. American daughter of a real English professor. And she may have chose the Canadian version, just to have a laugh. And the Australian version is probably upside down.
I haz to plot my revenge.
Yep, it’s very much a stylistic thing. Sometimes the advice given is to follow the way it’s pronounced. For instance, compare Achilles’ heel or James’s ball. However even then pronunciations will not be consistent either. Other manuals of style will mandate one way or the other for everything.
Like many of the really contentious grammatical issues there’s not really a right answer.
For we Aussies, apostrophe placement is (officially) as you and whisakedjak describe it.
Trouble is, there are a LOT of Aussies for whom English is their second (or even third) language, so …. well, it gets messy.
Not like English isn’t a messy language to start with, right?
Ohhhhh, yeah.
Wouldn’t the Autralian apostrophe, when used in the USA, just become a comma?
Given that some countries use commas to separate their small change, from their main currency figures, it would not surprise me. Mind you, it is probably best that everybody does their own thing, so long as it works ok.
The alternative is to have an official language board, to approve such matters. And that is just too French. Mind you, that makes me laugh, as they are so backlogged due to the constantly changing language needs, in modern society, that they run a decade behind.
***** Sigh! ****
Welcome to English 101… where we make up the grammar* rules as we go along.
*Not to be confused with the grampa rules.
I before E except after C or when sounding like A as in neighbour or weigh, or , really, whenever we decide to incorporate a word from another language as if it’s English, or honestly when we just feel like being weird.
‘I before e’ has officially been dropped, as a teaching aid. An exercise was done and found that the number of exceptions to the rule came close to exceeding those in the rule. Making it rather pointless.
I can see that.
Fortunate in that I’ve always been an extremely good speller, so words either “look right” or else they don’t to me. Never used Spellcheckers because they just slow me down.
Most times a word doesn’t “look right” & I look it up to see I was spelling it wrong. Sometimes I’ve written words that just don’t “look right,” so I go look them up in a dictionary and, whaddaya know…I had it spelled right all along.
:D
That’s not a comma splice. You might recognize what it actually is in sentence form (also a handy mnemonic!):
“My friend, Bob, is a positive person.”
See this for reference: https://www.chompchomp.com/terms/appositive.htm
“I am pleased to introduce you to Deus’ ex, Maxima.”
Small public service announcement: when grammar nazi-ing, please first google to see if you are right about what the terms you are using mean.
PS: Technically I think calling out a comma splice is style nazi-ing not grammar nazi-ing. In this case it wasn’t actually a comma splice, but it’s an important distinction that bears introspection so I didn’t want to fail to bring it up.
PPS: To save people the google–a comma splice is the joining of independent clauses with a comma. (It’s funny how splice sounds like a cross between split and slice but it actually means join.)
Although comma splices have gained a great deal of acceptance, due largely to their usage by popular fiction authors, they actually are still bad grammar; they’re a form of run-on that substitutes a comma for a conjunction. The correct form is to use a semicolon, a conjunction, or to break the sentence into multiple sentences with a period or other ending punctuation.
That said, using Maxima’s name in that phrase and in that way would probably make it a nonrestrictive appositive and, therefore, require the use of a comma. The comma is not needed, however, if the appositive is restrictive.
Well, I’m not familiar with the literature, but https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma_splice claims that there is disagreement on whether it’s style or grammar. They bring up “I came, I saw, I conquered” as an example.
Are you claiming this is grammatically incorrect? As well as the uses (listed at said article) that Strunk & White call acceptable?
To me, that says style, not grammar. But I lean toward thinking of grammar as syntactically accurate.
It’s a somewhat shorter hop from there to “Say what you want, how you want to, critics be damned,” but I feel like grammar is stuff that’s always right or wrong and style is what we argue about based on individual and/or community taste.
Ultimately, I think, is the problem that style and grammar do overlap and they don’t always agree. Veni, vidi, vici is stylistically outstanding; grammatically, it’s terrible. Strunk and White is pretty specifically a style guide- I have a copy that I use regularly; it is not a comprehensive guide to correct grammar.
I note that the texts cited in the wiki article are also style guides, not texts devoted to English grammar. While these texts undoubtedly are written with an eye towards encouraging proper grammar, they are still more focused on making the language feel appropriate to readers of whichever era they were written in. Generally speaking, I would be very hesitant about using a wiki article as a source for research, except as a jumping-off point. Note, for example, that the first source cited in the article, and the primary source for the entire article, is from nearly a hundred years ago and is not the most recent edition of the text in question.
That’s why I tend to use a semi-colon a lot; it’s much more appropriate than a comma-splice.
;)
Um, actually, while it’s not a comma splice, in context it’s not setting aside an appositive, either. The original question was “Is Deus’ ex Maxima?” The comma would be separating the two things being equated. I don’t think there’s even a term for that; it’s just incorrect comma usage.
Actually, no. It’s correct to add ‘s to proper names, although the common manner (omitting the last s) is acceptable. His is the preferred form for formal writing.
It should be “Deus’s ex, Maxima.”
Since we’re going hyper grammar natzi here the apostrophe use depends on which style guide you’re using. The standard Oxford would say that there should be an s after the apostrophe except in the case of plurals and in cases where it creates an awkward sound such as a double s. Therefore Deus’ toys would be equally correct to Deus’s toys. Omitting the s would be considered slightly more formal.
Oh, it’s just aaallllwaaaays gatta be some manner of Nazis with you isnt it!? GO TAKE A WALK!
? I’m pretty sure that pun was used earlier in this story arc actually…
That pun was used in the fight against vehemence.
My God, what kind of a monstrosity have I unleashed?
Kill it! Kill it with a Thesarius!
no you have to nuke it from orbit… it’s the ONLY way to be sure!
Dues is in the weapons manufacturing line…I wonder if his R&D department could come up with a way to apply nuclear power to a Thesaurus?
I had a similar thought reading Deus’ who’s who, where is said that he is the head of Machina corporation…
My favorite maniacal laughter page in all nerddoom! Anyone can top that? I am a big fan on that very topic!!
I think I’ve got the “villainous maniacal laughter” down pat by now…I’ve been known to send chills down spines when I do it.
To break the parking lot like that, what exactly is Maxima pushing against? Of course, her own flight ability would be more than sufficient, but does that really engage reflexively to compensate for a twitch?
Actually, yeah. I think it would engage like that. D&D actually has a good graduation of levels of flight control agility from clumsy up to perfect. When you think about it having a high level of control must mean that it takes little thought or effort so the better your control is the less it would be like flying a plane and the more like walking. When you sneeze do your legs not move at all?
It might just be her stomping her foot in reaction to the pain, but then it would be more of a “stomp” than a “crunch”. *shrug*
I read it as that. The “crunch” just being the sound that the car park made, due to her reflexive action.
Yeah, she didn’t ‘stomp’, she simply reflexively pressed down with her foot
or down and to the side (slight rotation of the ankle) digging in and pushing away the material on the side.
Considering her power and speed the pavement might give before the is pushed away even without flight or higher mass.
On the topic of the Joker having a brain lesion, i dont think so. His laughter isn’t uncontrollable. He just lives in a world in his own mind that is one big cosmic joke to him so he finds everything funny. He’s not brain-damaged, he’s just that crazy. Also in some of his darker moments he doesn’t laugh at all.
Actually, Dave said brain lesion OR a neurological disorder, which depending on which writer/continuity you’re going by, sometimes the Joker does have (one or the other). Usually they’re cited as the source of all of his crazy, not just his tendency to laugh when he thinks something is funny (which is often).
I did know someone who had that disorder – every time they were in pain, it would cause them to start laughing when anyone else would be saying “Ouch! Ah! ARGH STOP IT!” he’d be giggling so hard he couldn’t breath, and thus unable to communicate that he was in pain. This was especially bad for him growing up, since he was also a total jerk and had severe “chihuahua syndrome”. (That’s where the tiny dog acts vicious and violent to try and scare away the _everything_ bigger than it is, because they scare it.) He got beat up badly a lot as a kid because of it.
I’ll admit that i haven’t read everything ever written about the Joker. There’s a lot of theory about what makes the Joker like he is, especially among Arkham Doctors. Do you know who wrote him as being unable to control his laughter and how far back it was?
Ah, I may not have been clear there – I don’t remember anyone writing that the Joker was unable to control his laughter, just that some writers have used neurological disorders and/or brain damage as the reason behind his crazy.
He laughs at the cruel absurdity of the world! I don’t think that his laughter is any more controllable that anyone elses, he just has a really twisted sense of humour.
My mum laughs at funerals. Not the concept, when she is actually in attendance. Normally it is not an issue, but when she is extremely sad, her wiring gets mixed up, and she starts laughing. And has to try and cover it up, holding her hand over her mouth.
Sometimes, when people are trying to suppress their crying, it may sound like laughing.
But in Jack Nicholson’s version of Joker, it’s definitely laughter: “I make art until someone dies.”
Many high function autistics have a really hard time not laughing during funerals. Beta blockers really help if it’s ever absolutely necessary to not laugh during something, and are very safe. Ask yer doctor if not laughing at a funeral is right for you!
Really, I think the villains allowed themselves to be defeated before facing Achilles mano a mano because they couldn’t handle the prospect of Achilles’ hearthrob boxers. I mean, being defeated is one thing, but to fail against someone wearing THOSE? Oy vei. Talk about a disgrace. :)
Ok, Harem, we need to talk proper decorum here. Ladies do not sit indian style on top of a table while wearing a skirt. Its just not proper!
Luckily for us, she’s not a lady. ;p
True she’s no one lady. She is a whole harem of them.
And I would guess those are tights, not stockings, anyway.
On a clothing related note, I find it amusing that if vector had hit maxima with those guided explosives just 6 inches higher, this comic would have had a very different rating. /cough. I mentioned anvil holding her shirt closed in an earlier comment, maxima got herself a crop top from the explosion, and of course harem sitting in a very unladylike position. :p
As Dave said if this comic were behind an age wall Lightning Bug’s wardrobe malfunction would have definitely played out differently.
We must search for more patrons, for Dave, so he can hire a bricklayer!
And a colourist, for that matter.
Atomic bombshell hit her with the explosives, not vektor
Atomic missed, vector slammed them into her, so I counted it as vector nailing maxima.
after Halo’s comment does anyone else think there needs to be “Tubey” plushy on sale along with all the colored nerf balls that Arrianna is planning on marketing in the near future.
Yes!
Thinking about it, Archon would have the technical capabilities to allow folks to send in photos of themselves. In order to create personalised plushies of “You and your Tubie”.
Of course marketing YouTubie ™ may hit some kind of technical snag.
I was just thinking slap some googly eyes on that thing near the top and turn it into a muppet.
No. Completely accurate ‘Tubey’ carry cases for all the balls? Definitely.
The colored nerf balls come in their very own plush tubey…
How long until people figure out that Harem’s a double agent for funsies?
She’s a quintuple agent. It’s just most of her agency is on one side. :p
My thoughts exactly. She’s literally a quintuple agent.
It’ll probably be a little while longer, but she’ll probably out herself. Whether by accident or on purpose, I can’t say, but I’d expect her to get bored of helping a villain who doesn’t seem to do anything besides plot and laugh maniacally.
All she thinks she is doing is giving him info his connections to Archon might not want to share. Insider tips for a contractor. Common illegal business practice. If she ever got the idea Deus meant to harm anyone, she would probably turn him in. She is there for fun not treachery.
Actually, I get the feeling shes there at Archon’s behest, giving accurate but mostly inconsequential information to him, while reporting back everything to Archon in realtime. if you understand the reference, I believe she is part of Archon “pulling a Coventry”
Which is what Deus has already stated that he believes to be the case, and is counting on it.
How long before they discover she has split personality disorder (its not tied to her multiple bodies. Her ENTIRE quantumwhatever brain has split personality disorder and the only way outsiders could notice it would be that the body that best represents the current in control personality gets better at maintaining its “character” while the rest are more obviously playing a role) and different personalities are working as spies for different interests?
Considering that Harem’s duplicity (quinplicity?) is a matter of being a sub-plot it’s up to Dave on how long he can keep tangling up & knotting that thread before something breaks.
(Sigh)
the impatience of youth nowadays…I blame TV programming in both entertainment, marketing AND even news programs that re-enforce short attention spans advocate for instant results. Anything that happens in the Laws of Nature take time to occur; All things come about in due time.
Patience, grasshopper.
Is it just me or does Deus look like he forgot there were other people in the room in his third panel?
Yup. But the impression changes, on reading the last. Which I like. Getting an ‘oh, it works that way too’ moment.
Well, the Joker could have the Pseudobulbar affect, or it COULD be MHS!
Malign Hypercognition Syndrome, that is, he’s an evil genius.
I can’t take credit for that one. It’s from “Soon I Will be Invincible” by Austin Grossman
Saw this gif today https://i.imgur.com/6TPVunW.gif . Made me think of Dabbler on this page… https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1579
Ok, thats 20 minutes of my life well spent.
The reason they repeat that one jump all over again probably is that they have yet to find the means necessary to keep those contained any longer than that.
Also, flaunting those guy magnets must come at a high price to personal comfort.
Well, Dave did mention that he did a lot of research in order to get it right for Dabbler. That particular link may even be one of his sources…
That GIF looks painful for her.
Very pretty though.
Doh. Don’t know why, but I read eddi’s comment as referring to kikiklas’s avatar. It gives me the impression of being a blood tear. Which, presumably would be painful. But still having a pretty, if poignant picture.
The gif was well spotted, as being reminiscent of Dabbler’s skipping.
Maybe painful for her boobs, but it was easy on the eyes…
The guy is looking the wrong way.
Naa, not if his taste in breast sizes runs the same as mine. Mind you, either way he is doing well to politely avoid staring, it is a very eye-catching display she is putting on.
If the analogy with Dabbler’s hypno-boobs is taken to the extreme, then he could be saving himself from being bludgeoned!
Just noticed, the men don’t have collar/com’s thingies…
It doesn’t suit the ones with thick necks. Some have torques instead.
I think the two pages work well this way round. The contemplative relaxing, at the end of the last one is very powerful mind. Probably my favourite part of the whole battle. But Sydney grabbing Tubey, above, is that much more funny knowing that she has just leapt up from that state. Her quiet moment is just that, before a shiny object distracts her again!
Plus I think the ‘relaxation’ would feel a bit false, if we, the readers, knew at that stage, that whilst Harem is being nice and friendly to Sydney, she is also betraying Archon information to Deus!
But we already knew she was playing double/triple agent games with Deus already. So it wouldn’t change the info.
Intellectually yes. Emotionally no.
Previously it was just Archon being betrayed. Now it is Sydney personally, who is being deceived. Harem is, at the very least, a trusted colleague. But Sydney may consider her a friend, given how concerned she appeared, when Shadow Boxer was attacking her. Likewise during this quiet bonding moment.
It is like finding out that, whilst on the telephone to you, saying how much she loved you, your spouse was actually having sex with someone else. If you split up later, you may suspect that there had been an affair. But if you found out the circumstances were as just described, then that makes a big difference. Carrying a huge emotional impact and feeling of betrayal.
In both Sydney’s situation, and the analogy, there is a betrayal of affection and a bonding moment.
If new readers, or us re-reading it later, are exposed to that deception, prior to the nice scene of sitting quietly and sharing a drink, it will feel false. Because we know that, at that moment, she is in Deus’s’ess’s office, sharing a lot more with him than just a drink!
“Deus’s’ess’s” might be going a wee bit overboard. Not much, mind you; just a tad. :)
Harem has mastered the spying art to the point where she can even pass on information (as related by Sydney) directly to her spymaster (Dues) in real time.
Damn, late to the party…
Sorry to all the grammar checkers you may have wasted your time… (my Canadian is showing). I thought it was geniu’s, i guess that proves’ theres nothing original in world anymore.
Btw, absolutely loving the comic…
level up Halo, Level up! (stomps feet, claps hands) Level up Halo, Level up!
*stomps paws…
…
… nods rhythmically*
Comic-wise we have already seen the best level up scene ever. In all it’s running, screaming, butt grabbing, orb wrestling, swearing vigorously glory. All the rest will be, matrix appears, dot drops into Sydney’s hand, she talks about what slot to fill with whoever is around, click, whirr. New unknown power. More fun is a day or two later,Sydney: “Now let’s she what this baby will do on full throttle.” Max (with rolled up newspaper in hand) “NO!” BOOM!! Sydney: “I didn’t know a shield could be explosive. You OK Max?” Max: ” … ” (grinding teeth).
A shield with reflexive counter-attack?
Where’s my GURPS books? This is going to be awesome!
I wonder if Tubey is related to The Luggage from Discworld.
Only by contrast. One is an immovable object, the other is an insatiable force.
which one of those would be the “insatiable force?” To me, that would be Dabbler.
D’awwww, Syd’s so cute in panel 7
I empathise with her there. When I got back from my holiday, and saw that Wolf Whacker * still leaning by the door, I was every so pleased to see it!
Wolf Whacker is a traditional quarterstaff. Although it has never been needed against any of the wolves and jackals here, it has seen action. Defending my Jack Russell from an unprovoked attack by a rottweiler.
Sadly, it is a necessary precaution for someone who takes as many walkies as I do. There are many dogs here who are not properly restrained, and none are trained. ** I am able to make friends with the majority of them though, despite that. But a few are too aggressive to approach. And several have attacked my Jack Russell.
Being a tiny super hero though, from a breed of fighters, she has seen each of them off successfully. Despite the smallest outweighing her eight times! Assisted by Wolf Whacker recently.
* Technically Wolf Whacker 2.0, the replacement for a, particularly oversized, earlier incarnation, who was staffnapped. Probably by pranksters. That one was big enough that, when planted on the ground, kids could climb up it, one on either side!
** All the locals were amazed to see my dog respond to voice commands, the kids in particular. She was old when I adopted her though, so I only gave her the basics. But even just that fascinates them.
She is very smart mind. Several times having picked up phrases, without me consciously training her. Figuring out exactly what “this way” means, for example. She will immediately reverse her route, and go the way I am facing.
Sadly her hearing is starting to go, so I am going to have to supplement the verbal commands with signs. Whilst she retains enough hearing to get her attention, anyhow. If she goes fully deaf, I think I will need to put her on a lead. Which I save as a last resort, as her quality of life is way better without it.
All this talk about various marketing ploys for the “Halo” toys got me wondering how they would make the runes/symbols Sydney uses to activate certain abilities show up in the balls.
Then it hit me, 8 lyrics Sydney sees them because as Dabbler said in
https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/620/comment-page-1#comments she saw no markings of any kind on them.
Yet in https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1112 and https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1564 Sydney uses them to activate certain powers.
Just a little something to think on.
8 lyrics = only.
How in the mudder pocking shell did that happen?
You sir, get the Auto-correct award for today.
Officially, it’s called the “Autocowreck” award:
https://failblog.cheezburger.com/autocowrecks?ref=footernav
That’s also the name of this entire section of the linked website.
That is a doozy there alright, Doc.
Maybe only the wielder of the orbs (Sydney) can see the markings.
Maybe so. And very well pointed out initially, DR.REVENGE. Mind you, we could always see markings on them, despite Dabbler’s comment to the contrary.
Points to consider:
1. Dabbler is not a native English speaker. Even more than that, she is quite literally an alien. Mis-communication and/or mis-understanding are both very possible here.
She may be thinking about something we simply do not understand, and is trying to adapt our limited language to explain something that would be easily understood by any of her own cultural peers. Not realising that the subtleties or true meaning are lost on us.
Or she may simply not understand the words she is using properly herself. Given that they are all (when talking magical contexts) drawn from fiction, or contradictory superstitious sources, it is not surprising that she may have gotten the wrong end of the stick.
2. We may be able to see those markings, as a courtesy to us, as readers. Like we can see the symbology representing spells, when they are cast. The latter normally only folks able to detect magic would be able to see. Such as Halo, when she is using the appropriate function, with her orbs.
To expand on Pander‘s line of reasoning, perhaps it is not just being the owner, that allows her to see the sigils? Maybe that is simply one of the options she has already unlocked?
3. We know that Sydney can control the orbs by thought alone. She does not have to be touching them, to direct their orbits. That may be one of the already highlighted options on the grav ball.
If so, then one of the, previously unlocked, options of the True Sight orb, could have allowed Sydney to see the same markings that we can. Allowing her to experiment with them, as we have seen. But, they remain hidden to the weaker detection capabilities available to Dabbler and others.
Anything I said positive about Sydney before in this fight, I take back.
Achilles has opened my eyes to the truth – obviously he’s the REAL hero here! Long live the mullet.
The Tube is made of Plotonium.
I know why Deus is laughing. He owns most of the construction companies in this world.
Like LexCorp basically running Metropolis (and the rest of the Eastern USA)?
Ah, yes, a condition. One without a cure, I’m afraid.
He’s an incurable ham.
Let us have a moment of silence for the brave smokers who tried and failed to cure him…
Smoked ham failed to cure the incurable ham?
Oh God…that was…
…indescribable…
Never mind the fact that I just described your description.
Smoking is one way to ‘cure’ a ham. So in this context a ‘smoker’ is someone who smokes hams. ;)
That is one way to save your bacon. I would ham up on other ways, but I think I will just wallow contentedly and go stick my snout in the trough.
However, think on this. Do you prefer your pigs in blankets, smoke or space?
I don’t smoke my hams because they’re too hard to keep lit up long enough. Unlike Dr. Revenge, I don’t have access to space-faring levels of technology, so Pigs in Space is a bit out of my reach. I’m not “into” the kind of fun that some people might enjoy by porking their sow under a blanket.
I guess I’ll just have a ham sandwich…
You know who Deus reminds me of in panel nine? Ari, when she was talking about people spinning on her fingers (or something, that image is on rotation on the top)
Actually, Ari was describing “twisting” around her finger, but your point was understood.
;)
Laughing maniacally as a condition. Hmmm. That reminds me of the short story by John Kendrick Bangs “The Affliction Of Baron Humpfelhimmel” https://www.readbookonline.net/readOnLine/63713/
That was in the nature of a curse rather than a condition but it’s still striking in its similarities.
If the author laughed at the irony in his own story, one can hope that a magician never reads it…
Hmm me thinks the fight was a test to see what Syd can do, and that crazy guy likes what he sees.
It was only a test if he could somehow manipulate Vehemence…
… or was aware of him and knew him well enough to predict what he would do, and used that to his own advantage.
So, in either case, he’d be a lot scarier than he’s appeared to be so far.
I always have been a keen “Deus is behind it” advocate. But do always consider other options too. We should not leap to conclusions on the above page.
Deus is an industrialist, who supplies Archon with their equipment. He knew that, once they went public, there would be challenges and super fights. Which would guarantee future orders and profit for his company.
Viewing the above page, just in that context, you can see that no sinister machinations need be attributed to him. He made sound economic and business predictions, and they are playing out as he anticipated.
Ok, so he is more than likely to be up to mischief too, but that we will find out, in due course.
Yes, despite his stereotypical …. quirks, I think Deus is more interesting as a morally ambiguous “player”. Someone who can be counted on to always serve his own interests, and may either help or hinder the good guys as circumstances dictate.
Blackie Duqesne from the ‘Lensman’ books is, I’m told, a good example of this – he certainly is not a “nice” person, but he isn’t stupid either.
More interesting than the “GET #########” nutjobs that some famous supervillains seem to be.
Archon is going to make Deus rich. Why would he do something to jeopardize that? He is gloating over replacement gear, more R&D money in his lap. Bet he owns a plastics casting factory. Action figures and assorted tat on express order, just the way Ari likes it. Harem feeds him the inside info that is seemingly harmless but gives him an edge for making preparations to bid. And what do want to bet Harem has been dropping off copies of pictures and video like we saw her take right when V and Max started in on each other. Footage to sell to the media.
Why would he jeopardize that? Because he’s insane. He’s a megalomaniac.
Other than his megalomania, we have seen no sign of insanity. And megalomania, on it’s own, is simply a desire to rule the world. So, by itself, would not be counter-productive. Rather it would provide an ambition and drive, which can cause exceptional individuals to excel.
Napoleon was clearly megalomaniac (by actions, if not clinically diagnosed). Yet he conducted his campaigns in a perfectly sane way.
Hitler though would be a better example to support your statement. His basket-full of neurosis, evil morality and other mental disfunctionality did jeopardise his ambitions. Not least in over-estimating his own tactical and strategic skills, when he had the services of some truly gifted generals, at his disposal.
No wonder that his insanity was considered a major Allied asset, at a certain point in the war.
Oh nose!
I nose, right?
Ow nose, eye knows. Aye, eye.
*wink, wink, nudge, nudge, holds paw to side of nose, knowingly*
The weed of crime bears bitter fruit.
Crime does NOT pay.
The nose knows!
(With apologies to THE SHADOW)
Eye, eye… or is it ‘ear, ‘ear?
yes you do have a condition it’s called megalomania and they make really fun drugs to make it go bye bye
Drugs that suppress your sense of self-confidence & turn you into a proverbial couch-potato? Sounds like a real downer, man. That’s just not hip at all.
Maybe she should have flown up an inch or two :p
All this talk about various marketing ploys for the “Halo” toys got me wondering how they would make the runes/symbols Sydney uses to activate certain abilities show up in the balls.
Then it hit me, only Sydney sees them because as Dabbler said in
https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/620/comment-page-1#comments she saw no markings of any kind on them.
Yet in https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1112 and https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1564 Sydney uses them to activate certain powers.
Just a little something to think on.
Marketing Halo’s orbs in accordance with how they appear, they would seem boring without including some kind of adornment, otherwise there’s nothing to really distinguish them from any other toy balls on the market now. However, for Arianna to have the runes inscribed on them, she’d have to get descriptions or drawings supplied by Sydney.
Of course, neither Max or General Faulk would approve that for “public consumption,” since the very existence of the runes would likely be “classified info.”
soft clear plastic outside for safety with a deeper colored section holding the defining image for the toy. be it a noodle knot, amorphous blob, or lightning design. possibly a joke engraving of control symbols (Klingon and Tolkien elvish maybe) not matching the real ones on the surface layer of the toy.
Quiet in here tonight. Man a lot of folks who read this must have a life!
Unlike you?
Also its the WEEKEND.
I heard there was also this sort of holiday celebrating something or other. Can’t be anything important or I’d probably know more about. Probably something obscure like international weasel in the trousers day or something…
OK, one thing at a time. Someone needs to explain this ‘life’ thingy first. :P
Those international weasels get all the fun.
(sigh)
Even over the course of a few years in Naval service, I never once set foot in a foreign country…Those weasels are fortunate indeed.
Well, the poster did just say “get to see the world”. No promise was made that you would get to do it in person, nor step off the ship, if you did. ;-)
It’s not that…My rate was assigned to shore-duty stations within US jurisdictions. the kind of facilities I worked in don’t have any foreign presence at all.
Yea, I guessed that would be the case. Still you avoided the delights of Deli Belly and other exotic surprises that the world can offer it’s guests. And you still managed to get all the comforts of home.
Whereas I get excited if a mediocre, bottom of the range, UK stack becomes available in the shops here.
“No Buffy, this is delicious UK chocolate, you are not allowed to have that! Here, have some of the local stuff. The difference would be lost on your palate.”
Love the car mirror.
Poor Shawn (Sean? Seal-guy) is crying over the little that remains of his car :D
He -may- have a cool look…but I’m pretty sure this villain guy is going to surpass even Halo in unbridled Dork-ossity.
He’s not just going to have a cape… he’s going to have minions in matching uniforms… an elite team like of supers working for him that strike poses like the Ginyu Force… a Death-ray coming out of the old abandoned observatory… an elaborately prepared monologue (possibly with visual aids)… and lets not forget… Sharks with fricken lazser beams attached to their heads!
+ 1
HOLY HYENA’S ON HANNIBAL’S HORSE! Dues is wearing a trinity knot in his tie! I love you for doing that Dave!é
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Just so that you know Dave.
Anyone else think that Max’s broken nose gave her a much more caveman look? It also broke up the straight ‘frown line into nose curve line thing’ she had going.
It did very much alter the look of her face, when Dave emphasised it.* Much to her detriment, although I would not go so far as to say giving her the impression of cave man features. Although it did remind me of guys, with craggier basic features, and a broken nose, who did conjure up that image. So I can see how the look would trigger such associations.
Your latter line is very true. I think Maxima made a wise choice to act quickly. Maxima looked rather elegant, all dressed up in her best. The broken nose would loose some of her facial character and, indeed, leave her looking a bit brutish.
* A bit earlier in the comic he had toned it down, enough that it looked like she may be regenerating the damage.
That is not a “Villains” laugh. It is really a “My company, who sells equipment to the US Government in order to deal with extraordinary threats, is about to make BILLIONS!!!! MUHAAAHHAHAHA”.
Seriously, his company is about to quadrupedal its stock price (at least), and sell hundreds-of-millions of dollars of equipment to nations around the world.
Does anyone remember when Maxima said that there were 2 people who fought her to a standstill? Dabbler and one other whom she said was dead (As far as she knows)(see: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/989). Well what if Deus is the other one and the scars on his face were from her?
I don’t know how well thought out it is, but it’s a food-for-thought theory anyway. And if I’m right then I totally get to say that I called it!
An outside possibility I am afraid. It would require that he be the head of his corporation, without the outside world knowing that fact. Or he would need a completely fake identity (which is of course possible in the genre, so cannot be ruled out).
This is because the company is the primary suppliers of high tech gear to Archon. So Archon will have checked them out thoroughly before committing to that. Finding out that the chief executive was an enemy of the state would have put a dampener on the negotiations.
It’s also been confirmed that they know each other on an ongoing basis. So, nope.
I want to know if he *actually* has a condition…
I have not noticed him using hyperbole.
Would ‘megalomania’ count?
Those vegetarians sure do love their Tubeys. Tubers…. tube…
Tuuube Morrooow Tuube Mooorooow, there’s alllwaaaays tuuube Mooooroow
It’s only, a Tuuuube aaaa waaaaaayy!
Tuba.
Vegan Tuba…. Hmm.
Would that be like a giant vegetable carved into an instrument, or an instrument shaped like a vegetable?