Grrl Power #357 – One of the least painful ways to get shot down by Maxima
All in all, a successful interaction with a woman for him. His name is Brad apparently. I forgot, but an astute reader pointed out that his name was actually in the comic way back in the day. (embarrassing art link)
When I started this page I wasn’t quite sure what Maxima’s reaction would be to a clumsy pass. I briefly fantasized about Brad getting tazed but the editor in me quickly nixed that. Sydney… I could see doing it but Max has more practice with restraint, after all, she knows if she slaps someone’s hand away, she could literally slap their hand away. Which isn’t to say she hasn’t broken the odd metacarpal in her day. In any case she didn’t give Brad a chance to finish his sentence. He could have been planning to say “…tactical sense. The battle last night was won and lost on your leadership.” It’s probably not what he was going to say though.
For those of you unfamiliar with Joel’s reference: Monty Python’s – The Money Song
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Don’t feel sad about missing the opportunity to sing the Money Song this paycheck Sydney. You can always sing it when you get the second check.
After all, the 1 she got was just to hold her over till the next actual pay day, wasn’t it? *Goes back & checks* (LOL checks :P ) Yep, the 1 that got her foaming at the mouth was an advance to offset any new costs she comes across new she’s a super hero. So if she had this kinda reaction to an advance payment (ie-not a full payment, just something like, say, 1/4 to 1/2 normal pay), she’ll have a beautiful singing opportunity when a full paycheck hits her…
Don’t be embarrassed about your old drawings. Be impressed by your improvements. Because honestly, your old strips are good enough, they just look embarrassing compared to the new ones. Because the new ones are awesome.
That being said, I love Maxima’s intimidating scowl.
Amakawa Yuuto is right!
You’ve been having what, a couple years of intense practice by now? Of course you’re better now.
My response to that request from Max would be to simply raise one eyebrow and do: https://cdn.instructables.com/F1G/FRJJ/I8UHFHXE/F1GFRJJI8UHFHXE.LARGE.jpg
Go ahead.
Audentes Fortuna Iuvat
DaveB‘s comment about how Maxima could “slap his hand away” reminds me of some of the old Looney Tunes cartoons. Foghorn Leghorn and Daffy Duck in particular, when their wives/girlfriends slapped them so hard they had to go pick up their face.
…Max is no Looney Tune (that’s Sydney’s job), but she could make it happen just like that.
Now I want them to go up against someone who has the power to disassemble/reassemble their body, maybe with remote movement capabilities, too. I could see Sydney going apoplectic when she ‘punches his nose off’ the first time…
…Hang on, I’mma
steal thatwrite that down.I think he may have to ‘battle’ for the copyright to use this theme.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-9n2ImgJQ0
Had a PC who wanted me to write up their powers for them for a Supers game. I asked them what the background story was; apparently the character was a magician’s assistant. After rejecting summoning (“Hey, Rocco, watch me pull a dinosaur out of this hat!”), actual magic (“Now I will be the headliner and you get to wear the bustier!”), I decided that she got her powers while doing the old “Girl Sawed in Half” trick. The character could “deconnect” body parts and control them at extremely long range – or go to pieces and attack someone en-masse. Each body part could fly, and the character was basically built around the idea of duplication with a linked Variable Power Pool with several limitations.
The player was not pleased.
Selective intangibility and invisibility might appeal more. Less icky but could certainly replicate many of the tricks and do some new ones too.
Pass the magician the keys he needs to escape the cuffs, through the wall of the box he is sealed in. Allow people to walk between the gap in the boxes, between her head and her feet (just make sure the boxes do not go too far apart or it will stretch her – unless she has stretch power too).
Wait until the audience member has identified which card they chose, then pick it out from the deck, invisibly approach the sealed container, which allegedly has held their card all the time, and intangibly pass her arm in, to substitute the correct card (or any other similar ‘clever reveal’ trick).
Needless to say these would also be extremely useful powers when behaving as a super hero.
Quite clever being the assistant mind. As any debunking or suspicion of super-powers would be aimed at the magician. Thus preserving her privacy and/or secret identity.
Please, DaveB, can we get a close up of Brad’s reaction next page! Because I have a feeling it is going to be epic.
I admit, If I met Max in person, It would be impossible to stop me from saying “You are shiny.”
Firefly reference? :)
Zoë: Captain will come up with a plan.
Kaylee: That’s good. Right?
Zoë: Possibly you’re not recalling some of his previous plans.
Hey if they’re alive to talk about his previous plans that means they worked, right? ;)
That’s… one way of looking at it!
But dere vas a disturbink lack uf hets in dat schow…
Jayne: [wearing ugly homemade hat] How’s it sit? Pretty cunning, don’t you think?
Kaylee: I think it’s the sweetest hat ever.
Wash: A man walks down the street in that hat, people know he’s not afraid of anything.
Jayne: Damn straight.
Yez, dat vas a nize hat, ho yez.
Needz a bit more of da hatband und da zparkliez, though.
OH!!! That’s what that accent meant!!!! :(
I challenge you for your hat.
Wearing of the hat automatically is an open invitation to all challengers
How’s this for follow up panels…
Brad stands there silently but edges closer and closer to Maxima.
Four panels- no changes of that. But add in wind arcs that cross Brad’s face, chest, arms and groin. Nothing else is visible.
Halo has sight orb in her hand. Raises an eyebrow spock like.
“Maxima, stop showing off.”
“Hmmph. It’s not like I was actually hitting him.”
Brad o.O “What?”
Joel “She really that fast?”
Halo “Yep.”
Joel “that’s cool and mean at the same time. I’m impressed.”
Halo “that she’s actually so fast that you can’t see her move sometimes?”
Joel “No, that she didn’t hit him. 30 seconds next to him is as much as I can take.”
Halo holding up one of the mystery Balls “Wonder if it’d be a bad thing if I tested these two on him?”
Maxima “Unless it can erase Con-funk or bathe the man, I doubt it would be something we could bury.”
Joel “Huh. If it erased confunk, you’d be the most popular super at ComicCons everywhere!”
Brad “Hey!”
whoosh – this time a breeze is seen pushing his odor away from Maxima again.
Maxima “Shhh and please bathe.”
Last panel – Some Blog late at night. “Met maxima today at Horizon Comics. Complimented her. She was impressed. Waved a lot at me- I think. Asked to take a bath with me.”
Subcomic- Ariana “Maxima, do not nuke that apartment! That’s an order!”
Maxima -.- “Hmmph. One damn Mosque and no one trusts you to limit your justice anymore.”
thumbs up
DaveB, Please, Pleeaassee make this canon!!!
Seconded!
this site needs a like button.
+1
Here, have all these likes…
Yes!
If Dave ever needs scripting help or a fill-in, you should be near the top of a very short list. Great vignette.
Combat boots… he was going to say combat boots…
She wears combat boots on her… head? o_O
Actually got a bad reaction from complimenting a girl’s boots on a noisy bus once…. turns out she heard something just a little different. :-/
Since then, I stick to “Nice footwear!”
I would assume that the most painful way to be shot down by Maxima is, well, actually being shot down by Maxima.
That would probably hurt.
A lot.
But only very briefly
Didn’t we already see that happen to budget Halo?
Time for a game of: Guess the compliment!
Was he about to compliment Maxima on her:
a) skin/hair color
b) pointy ears
c) amazingly chiseled facial features
d) bouncy parts
He was actually looking her in the face so probably not d.
I’m going for B
e) destruction powers
f) Eyes. He was making a pass at her. Even the dorkiest of nerds knows better than to tell a woman she has really nice tits. You have to be a douche with a ton of charisma or reeeaaally stack the situational modifiers in your favor to pull that off without getting hit, much less have her like it. If you were doing it in D&D as a charisma roll on a character who wasn’t a complete and total slut or a doxy I’d say it was probably a -15 or -20 on a D20 roll.
… Friends/coworkers
What about that employee she highered?
She has taste. Brad has no chance with her.
Mind you, the same is true with pretty much any female with a pulse.
Oh, you mean, ‘where is she?’ She will be working the morning shift, with Sydney, if I recall correctly. So we would not expect to see her here now. She is probably at a lecture or studying right now.
I didn’t know Maxima had elf ears! They’re usually hidden by her hair in the pics I’ve seen.
That will be explained eventually. :)
They need to be explained? I figured she got them the same way she got the golden skin and purple hair.
Dave is stepping into Midichlorian territory. ;D
Heh. The thought did cross my mind too. There are some tricky waters you can navigate around those shores though. When a back-story is integral to the setting and forms a key part of the ongoing plot, then it is not unnecessary fluff that breaks the sense of disbelief.
How it is explained is important too. Unnatural insight is bad (ie when a character suddenly knows things that they have no possible reason to know or makes wild, unsupported guesses, which turn out to be totally accurate). The audience will accept that a zombie is a zombie. And, for those who crave to know why, ‘magic’, ‘biological experiment’ or ‘natural disease’ are all sufficient to explain. But get more detailed and it needs to hold together well, or… Midichlorians.
Clearly though the biggest problem is if the explanation falls beyond the scope of the genre or the existing lore. Or distorts it in a direction it did not go before. This is fine if, when looking back at it, everything remains consistent, and the reader goes ‘oh, we just had a red-herring before or made false assumptions’.
DaveB is at much less risk from this than most though, as his setting clearly draws on a range of sources. Magic, psionics, aliens (and/or supernatural entities) super-technology, mystical martial arts and even keeps the cause of basic super powers vague and mostly unknown. So, having multiple causes of super-powers, even if Maxima’s does come across as stretching belief, he can get away with it, without (necessarily) harming the rest of the setting.
I agree with you. I am super curious about Max’ backstory (and pretty much anyone’s backstory in this comic), I just think that her skin turning golden and her ears getting pointy requires no real explanation in a world where super powers exist. If it naturally flows into her backstory, then it’s cool, though.
But then, only DaveB knows her backstory, so we can only speculate at this point. Hehe… specularity. Max. Get it? ;D
On reflection, I do, a spectacular paronomasia to excogitate.
She’s adopted.
To sum up her genetic heritage in a way that this comic’s audience can understand, I present the following scenario:
We cut to Max putting on a pair of headphones, hitting play on her Walkman and we hear “Ogga Ooga Ooga Chaka”
Which version?
Maybe Maxi prefers the non-Ooga’ed original :P
Maxima is likely to be suffering the conflicts of career versus private life. There is only one choice.
You believe she is getting broody? o_O
You don’t think she is going to adopt Sydney, do you? O_o
She already has.
That poor orphan and bunny rehab center….
But, no, there are no signs of getting broody. However, given the choices offered, I think the subliminal urges (even is presently well and truly repressed) would tip the balance.
Was just making a joke about the version of song you picked :D
You guys are all wrong, it’s this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peJhJMciSXE
That’s green.
That’s why she usually wears her hair down :D
Hence her nickname: The Golden Elf of Dooooom!! (the ‘doom’ part is what happens to whoever she hears calling her that :D)
Their eyes made me LOL. Possibly even SOL (snort out loud).
Still hoping for someone (Max!?) to have a sonic womb. I’m sure none of you know what I”m talking about after a few weeks, though, right? ;-)
sOnIc WoOb!
Why do I suddenly have the mental image of a pregnant woman having a contraction so strong, that the baby is propelled out of her womb at supersonic speeds? (With potentially messier-than-usual results unless the baby is a super.)
Cue the awkward question:
“How did you discover you had super powers?”
“Well, when I was first born, I…”
Pregnancy with supers is always a risky subject. If the baby’s super strong but mama isn’t she might die. I think the line once came up that if Superman got Lois Lane preggers and she got a tan the baby could kick right through her stomach wall. Not pretty. By the same token if mama’s super the baby might not be able to survive the pregnancy, like Laurel K Hamilton’s were creatures who lose any babies when they shift at the full moon. Any child and mother would have to have a workable combination of powers for both to survive. Given Max’s abilities I would assume she’ll be fine with anything, and as long as the baby has enough toughness to survive being pushed out through superstrength vaginal muscles it should be too.
Love and Capes took care of that. https://loveandcapes.com/comic/06042014-2/
It’s a concern. Love and Capes dealt with this issue via magic – a spell supressing the fetus’ powers until it was born.
Hopefully Dave could come up with something better for Sonic Womb (WOOB) than just a high-speed baby gun.
Come on Dave, we’re waiting. Good follow-up to the page that started this idea. ;-)
I hope he was going to day “Features” mayhaps he has a thing for Handsome Ladies, Max is Statuesque and Striking, I wouldn’t call Max Beautiful (in the soft overly feminine way that is so popular) but she is one darn Handsome woman, asurqadaly one of the more asthicly pleasing examples of the human female, and that is more than Ok in it’s own way if you ask me. perhaps if she softened her demeanor and lost some of her over the top intensity (I like intense women folk but their can be too much of a good thing) she would be beautiful as well as handsome, she was sure as shoot’n cute as a teen.
Ok showing my Traveller Geek side, if Max hadn’t added to her mussel mass she would only need a wig and she could cosplay as a Darrian
I’ve got ninety thousand pounds in my pyjamas.
I’ve got forty thousand French francs in my fridge.
I’ve got lots of lovely lire.
Now the Deutschmark’s getting dearer,
And my dollar bills would buy the Brooklyn Bridge.
PRESENTER and CHORUS:
There is nothing quite as wonderful as money.
There is nothing quite as beautiful as cash.
Some people say it’s folly,
But I’d rather have the lolly.
With money you can make a splash.
PRESENTER:
There is nothing quite as wonderful as money.
CHORUS:
…Money, money, money, money.
PRESENTER:
There is nothing like a newly minted pound.
CHORUS:
…Money, money, money, money.
PRESENTER and CHORUS:
Everyone must hanker
For the butchness of a banker.
It’s accountancy that makes the world go ’round.
CHORUS:
‘Round, ’round, ’round.
PRESENTER:
You can keep your Marxist ways,
For it’s only just a phase,
For it’s money, money, money makes the world go ’round.
CHORUS:
…Money, money, money, money, money, money, money, money, moneeeeey!
Thanks, the lyrics are kind of hard to hear.
Unfortunately, the EU has mandated that the references to old currencies in this song be replaced with references to the Euro for the countries affected by the changeover. Also, since the song was written in the 1960s the values of the ‘old’ pound will need to be updated to the equivalent values in the ‘new’ pound.
This has been a message from the National Pedantic Association.
The national pedaaantic association can go stuff themselves. Furthermore I have it on good authority that they wet their beds. Not a one can do a decent Welsch ten and 3/4 step anyway.
This has been a message from the Ministry of Silly Walks.
*O.B. Juan & the CrimsonF*cker are both squashed by a exceptionally large Caucasian foot coming out of a cloud with a “ptthhhh” sound effect…*
And now for something completely different…
Just be glad Maxi hasn’t been issued with a Fly Swat :D
Maxima is the flying SWAT!
Along with the “H” squad (Hiro, Heatwave & Halo).
Read “Everyday Heroes” to get the reference (Summer isn’t allowed to use a Hammer, she is only allowed to use a Fly Swat)
*eager nod* H is for ‘Hentai’, right?? *eager nod*
Maybe he was going to say nice ears
They ARE very pointy and glorious
But now we’ll never know
I would just have to ask ‘Have you always been purple and gold or did it grow in?’ Was she born this way, did she get her powers overnight and woke up as she is now or did it gradually happen? Not that i would ever ask i would cower quietly in the corner.
I think it’s fairly clear she was not born with them from that scene where she was a teenager and nearly killed someone by accident. If she knew she could do those blasts it wouldn’t have been a surprise to her. Beyond that we haven’t heard her origin yet.
We have no idea how anyone got their powers at all apart from Dabbler, Halo and Vehemence. Who all seem to have non standard super origins.
He could always tell her she is spathic…
I remember the line from Lady Slings the Booze by Spider Robinson. It is a geological term that means “having good cleavage”
It doth impress the lady.
Course she married Justin for his puns….
Ah yes, Justin, the Mick ‘o Time.
I find people’s fondness for jumping to conclusions amusing.
You have evidently forgotten the very public demonstrations that Maxima has given in the last 24 hours.
And as Brad has most likely seen them all he would be very hesitant to provoke Max.
Also Max is a member of a new and very likely controversial military branch.
And she should be under advisement to be circumspect in her dealings with the public, which she was not
Her proper course would have been to here his remark, then reply.
I don’t disagree, but I heard something a few hours ago that rang with a weird sort of truth. It was a “Even pirates wouldn’t dare attack us.” boast, to which Dooku replied: “They are devious and deceitful and most importantly, stupid.”
The meaning of course is that just because something isn’t smart, doesn’t mean someone won’t try to do it anyway.
Meh, she isn’t dealing with The Public(tm), she is dealing with a single individual. She also doesn’t have to take crap from The Public(tm) regardless of any PR concerns, and it was a fair bet that whatever Brad was gonna say wasn’t going to be as neutral as something along the lines of “How do you like the weather?” Starting a conversation by commenting on something, anything about a person isn’t usually polite.
Again with the assumptions.
How do we know he was going to give her “crap”.
And yes he is the public.
For purposes of this discussion here is the breakdown.
You have Archon
the press
the criminals
and then the public.
As far as we know Brad does not fall into the first 3 groups so therefore he is the public.
Also remember that in this day there is the internet and if this exchange should show up it would be a blow to the image Arch is needing to project.
Also anyone who has been in the military, law enforcement, or the security field can tell you is,
it is drummed into you repeatedly that when you are in public, in uniform and dealing with the public unless it is appropriate you are ALWAYS polite to the public.
Just as well she was polite. Brusque, yes. But to the point and not rude. She simply made it very clear that she does not want to be disturbed.
It is worth noting that we must consider more than just the much-discussed ‘guy harassing a female and/or celebrity’ aspect here. Maxima is a commanding officer in a military unit, and is on-duty at the moment. She may appear to be just standing there, doing nothing, but that is not the case.
She is assessing the security of the shop. You may well recall that last night they got attacked when in a publicly accessible premises. Further one of her primary assets (Halo) will be spending half her working day here. She needs to know how great the risk is, and figure out if there are any ways to mitigate any issues she identifies.
Likewise she knows that Joel is a significant person in Sydney’s life. She will want to form an initial impression of him, and his potential impact on Halo’s operational effectiveness.
None of which she can do efficiently if having to engage in idle chit-chat. Her priorities do not include assessing individual customers. Especially as she has just been given a subtle, but very pointed, warning from Sydney about ‘less socialised customers’.
In the same panel that is given, you can see that Maxima’s expression has shown her irritation. Sydney has confirmed her suspicions. So she then acts in the most expedient fashion to cut-off the anti-social individual.
Maxima’s priority is looking after the well-being of her subordinate. Not kissing the arse of a comic super-fan!
No, she was rude.
The proper way for her to handle the incedent would have been,
hear his statement, then respond.
Because interpretations in ANY circumstance is a sign of rudeness.
Meant to say interruptions .
I get the impression that this is pretty much SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) for Maxima. Unwanted attention? Shut it down quickly and don’t worry if it comes across as rude.
Remember that she has issues with guys looking at her as if she were some kind of exotic sex toy rather than a person. Then, there is her comment at the firing range demonstration that she is there to fight bad guys, not to be anybodies friend. There was also the discussion after Sydney’s interview at Archon HQ where she said she thought Syd would be even more of a PR nightmare than her.
Then Max needs to get some counseling to deal with her issues and attitude.
Because in any professional interactions that occur withe the public, whether military or civilian if you are on duty you attitude is calm, polite, professional.
Yes, and the public has to respect that when someone is ‘on duty’, you don’t attempt to make a pass at them
Granted. I stand by the rest of my comment though.
For a member of the military or law enforcement, or which she is both, when you are on duty and in uniform there is a certain level of decorum that is to be observed.
The only exceptions are while in an emergency situation or in response to active provocation.
And not just because you “think” someone is going to make a crass, stupid, profane, or similar remark.
And the attitude that Maxima is exhibiting should merit a “general” assistance chewing at the very least.
Especially since she is now having to deal with the general public.
And that is the reason I have a high turn over rate with my clones and other minions.
They forget to be polite to those not actively opposing my plans.
That ‘level of decorum’ goes both ways
No, Brad is not “the public.” He is a single individual, not a press conference. There are no cameras and a good chance of no recording devices. Maxima is under no compulsion to watch as closely for a gaff as she would be in a truly public situation such as a busy street corner, a crowded coffee shop, or a press conference.
And for the record, you noticed that Maxima wasn’t bending over backwards to project fluffy bunnies and clouds and rainbows at the actual press conference either, right?
So get over it. Or I’ll kill a few more of your clones while visualizing that they are you.
I’d actually say there’s probably a 95% chance of recording devices – it’s a store, and they likely have surveillance cameras.
Of course, those cameras are owned (at least in part) by Sydney, not some random person in the general public or press.
How come there is not already a thread in this page finishing the comment “You have really nice…”?
Because it is on the previous page of comments.
there is. a few.
SHUT DOWN, sheesh Maxima at least give the guy some hope before you crush his dreams like that. >:D
She did. Five panels worth.
Plus he managed to speak to a woman without getting a slap in the face or a death threat. Probably a personal best for him.
As uncomfortable as he is.
He got to be in the same room as a couple of superheroes. Granted one has the attention span of a Is that a bunny tapdancing?
So, speaking of Monty Python, anybody got any bits they particularly like? I would have asked for your favorite sketch, but I couldn’t pick just one. I always enjoyed the Scott of the Antarctic sketch, the How Not To Be Seen sketch, the World’s Deadliest Joke sketch and the Science Fiction sketch. Anybody else?
The one where they do something unexpected and different
The I’m here for an argument sketch is a favorite.
The wine report one was also pretty great. “The Bristol Berry is a wine with a message and that message is ‘do not drink. Put it down and back away immediately.’ This is NOT a wine for drinking. THIS is a wine meant for heavy hand to hand COMBAT.”
To those people defending Frosted Douche: please to be noting where his finger is pointed in the last panel
Please note that he has been fidgeting for the previous 5 panels and in panel said finger was pointing across in front of Max.
And it was only point ting at her when the interaction occurred.
Now here is the important question, did he turn towards Max to make his comment, or when she made hers.
He started to point in panel five, at the same time s he was turning towards her
I still say Mad Brad would be a good nickname for him.
Totally off hand, this reminds of a little black book….
For instance, now that I thought about, Maxima should have been written down for her gun lesson back in the armory. Intimidating Sydney is funny, in a Joe Pesci from Goodfellas kind of way. ;)
You have really nice… tech. Who did your throat mike?
To me, Brad would default to a safe nerdy subject and even if shut down, would finish like it never happened. He would not necessarily feel shut down if he was as social-lacking as portrayed before. It may not register.
Except, there is nothing ‘safe’ about Frosted Douche
Why so much hate for brad…? He’s a quirky but loyal customer.
So what if he doesn’t understand a few things, is socially awkward (or socially inconvenient), he still goes to them to give his money for something he loves. He’s in a comic shop, do you know how rare that is? Even for diehard fans? I don’t see why that makes him a bad guy to easily be shot down so hard or to be fantasied about burning his heart out with a tazer. Or because they no longer have money troubles, loyal comic buyers need not apply? I mean seriously, wouldn’t YOU want to talk to Maxima if you had the chance? I know I love super heroes, her pointy ears ARE awesome, and if superman walked into my comic shop I would be falling all over myself to speak to him. Whether I was attracted to him or not. I suppose you could say this is probably exactly what Batman would say, if someone complimented his ears, and could easily work just as well if thrown at a female comic fan. But I’d still say neither would deserve the amount of violent suggestions and scathing disgust thus far.
I’m not sorry I dare to exist in the same space as you Maxima, I think your ears are pretty cool too.
He goes to them and demands the impossible
Yesterday, comic time, he was in there demanding that Sydney get him a comic that is not possible to order, and today he is in there demanding that Joel reveal the Super they have stashed out the back just for him
A demanding customer? That’s what they do. Still loyal if not misguided, like not knowing about ebay, just remarks on his intelligence. That doesn’t make him a bad person worth all this violence and ridicule being piled on him in the comments- by the author and others. Comic nerds are usually social awkward/ socially inconvenient. Why all the hate?
Because he irritates Sydney. That is intolerable.
This link would have been better for last week’s flight comic, but I just ran across it today.
A travel site has put up a post that compares the speeds of various fictional individuals and vehicles.
https://www.travelmath.com/feature/fictional-travel-times/
Note: They got their speed stats from various sources. Some of them seem reasonable, but others look like they were extracted from their rectal orifice. As usual Superman can be practically any value, based on what source you use.
Their top (live action) vehicle speed goes to the Millennium Falcon, based on the time in-movie from Tattooine to Alderaan which they put at 50,000 light years in 1 to 2 days, or about 1000 light years per hour. The top individual speed is Dr. Manhattan at ‘instantaneous’.
(Of course, if you are the Doctor you can get there before you left).
Which he has done on more than one occasion
Man, still wish we could see the larger versions of these pages. Really hard to see the subtlety of the back and forth glancing between Max and Brad in the first few panels for me alas
I read the comic on 175% magnification, so it fills my screen. Plus, if I feel I am missing something, or cannot make out some fine detail, I turn on the magnifier in Windows preferences. Which I have set at 200% magnification. There have even been a few occasions where I have cranked up the former setting to 500%.
Interestingly Dave does actually draw the comic at a higher resolution than we get to see it. But that means that even with such extreme magnification, as I mentioned above, you can resolve very subtle details.
Unfortunately magnifying a digital image doesn’t actually add detail, it just makes it bigger. I could and do lean in to get the same effect, but I don’t like the fuzziness that results from digital magnification, especially on such high quality work
Depends on exactly what’s happening – if DaveB uploads it in large format and your browser’s scaling it down to your screen size, then zooming in turns down the scaling and you’ll be able to see more detail.
That’s not what’s happening ;) Already attempted to view the image exclusive from the browser
But it may be what’s happening to Yorp, depending on his browser, screen size, OS, and a few other factors.
Alright, has anyone else looked at the last panel & thought about what else Max could have said? figured I’d have some fun & madethis slightly altered version for others to try.
Naturally, I had to have a go at it myself… :P
You should think about doing an “Impress Me with your silence” t-shirt
And I shall go with one that says,
Impress me with your manners.
ah… but that leaves it open to interpretation… you DIDN’T say anything about whether they had to be GOOD manners or not… just that they be IMPRESSIVE…
grrr, hit return too soon… and that you KNOW some people will try to see bad they can go before you call them on it…
PLEASE I want this, I will buy this.
AAAAAAAA I LOVE that we don’t even hear the rest of the fanboy’s sentence there, that was fantastic. Because there are so many ways that could end and I really can’t think of anything that wouldn’t sound at least slightly creepy right away so I doubt he thought of anything more sophisticated. I laughed dude, that was great. A++
eyes was the first thing that came to mind.
especially considering they are purple.
On the issue of improving security in the shop, one obvious improvement DaveB could get Maxima to organise, will be to install additional, concealed, CCTV cameras. With the consent of the partners, obviously.
At least one in each location: outside shop, in each of the back rooms and, if there is access to the rear, the back exit. Both recording (and storing in a hardened local unit) and transmitting back to Archon HQ, where the displays can be monitored in their security room. Likewise installing panic-buttons, tied into the local police Archon HQ.
Other measures could include replacing suitable doors with concealed heavy duty steel doors. Any business in my local city, which has high-value equipment or supplies, such as dentists, always have such doors. Until you try to move them they do not look conspicuous. But nothing short of a blow-torch, explosives or a tough super will get you past them.
Similarly a panic-room could be constructed, with hardened walls and security door, plus communications, emergency food, water, air supply and (suitably safely stored) weapons. Access to the CCTV and P.A. system would be handy too. It could also have a concealed escape route, such as a tunnel. Further there could be a stand-alone secret exit, for when even a hardened room would not be of help.
Finally tying secure communications, in the shop, to the Archon HQ, could allow them to keep in touch in an emergency, or even broadcast a public address warning, to let any villains know that they have been spotted. If scaring them off, that way, seems a viable solution to a particular event.
Similar precautions may be standard in private residences for all heroes who live off-base. Perhaps for any significant people in their lives too. Such measures would be extremely costly to set up and maintain. But the assets they are protecting are unique and invaluable. Plus something needs to be done to offset the lossed protection of anonymity that could have been offered by wearing a mask.
Maybe that’s why we see such a different location in the first few strips, cause they moved to somewhere with more security…?
Would be a smart idea, especially with the Super Brawl that pretty much leveled the steakhouse last night…
Sound reasoning.
One thing I would add to that list are Panic Buttons – a few concea;ed switches that will trigger silent alarms. Most bank teller stations have had this kind of thing for years (usually a “kick bar” under the desk), and many home security packages include a couple of these as a matter of course.
Actually, I find it very easy to imagine Sydney going hog-wild abiout home / business security. Whichever ‘consultant’ she deals with may have quite a ride trying to talk her out of certain stuff she REALLY wants. Thinking spiked pit traps, hidden flamethrowers, etc.. Not to mention whatever “anti-Ninja” traps she decides on.
Replacing the front glass with something as bullet-resistant as possible would be good too. Sydney’s nigh-invulnerable with her shield up, but a sniper could take her out before she put it up if that glass front is standard glass.
Very good suggestion!
When I started this page I wasn’t quite sure what Maxima’s reaction would be to a clumsy pass. I briefly fantasized about Brad getting tazed but the editor in me quickly nixed that. Sydney… I could see doing it but Max has more practice with restraint, after all, she knows if she slaps someone’s hand away, she could literally slap their hand away. Which isn’t to say she hasn’t broken the odd metacarpal in her day.
Reminds me of the super strong ones like Hulk, Superman, The Thing, etc having to be very careful with things that are to them mushy soap bubbles and to us concrete, steel, and so on. Maxima, being on the good side would learn to do that too or she would be dangerous to any humans near her. I also recall that Superman really had to work to use all of his strength when the time came to use it.
The price you pay for restraint.
I wasn’t familiar with the money bit from MP, glad I googled it.
I honestly thought he was going to say “You have really nice hair” or “You have really nice skin”. I was mad at Maxima for not letting him finish. :<
Just because someone has freedom of speech does not mean that anyone else has an obligation to listen.
Um, did I say they do? No, I didn’t.
You clearly have far too much faith in humanity, or possibly too little experience with this specific individual.
I don’t think I do, actually. I just believe in “innocent until proven guilty”. Maybe he was going to say something inappropriate or gross, but we’ll never know either way, because he didn’t get to finish.