Grrl Power #427 – Utility euphoria
Sydney can jangle her way through a basic padlock or a front door, but certainly not in record time. She understands the mechanics of it. She watched a few youtube videos on the subject, then practiced on her own front door and a padlock she had. Not handcuffs though, because she’s never casually had access to them, and mechanically they’re different than a deadbolt. She should look in to that before too long probably.
As the stinger suggests, Sydney does own a number of utility belts. Her first one was really just a bandoleer with pouches, probably filled with various types of candy, hair ties, a magnifying glass, and a tape measure, because she was six. This is her first opportunity to build one with literally military grade hardware. (The proper use of the word literally.)
I haven’t been giving Anvil enough to do lately in the comic. She’s a Sergeant, so this seemed like something that could fall in her wheelhouse. It was either her or the QM we saw once at the beginning on the fight, and the boob hug joke wouldn’t play right with him. ( Y ) :)
Originally I had planned on drawing a lot more stuff on the table than I did, but (besides taking forever) I started running out of ideas because a lot of stuff she could potentially carry around would realistically be a small kit of some sort contained in a pouch or a box, not scattered all over the table – or, the sort of stuff Batman (for instance) would carry on his belt is basically the stuff of science fiction. His grappling hook is just not realistic. Batman is something like 6′ 2″, is dressed in full body armor, and carrying all the crap in his utility belt. Even given than his outfit and gear is bleeding edge materials, he’s still probably hauling around 225-250 lbs minimum. Ok, if someone spent 6 million dollars developing a grappling hook, they might be able to make one the size of a… I guess a liter of soda roughly describes the size as depicted in show, but someone maybe could make one with existing materials and tech that could haul that much weight. Ignore the fact that Bats regularly drag another person along with him, and ignore the problem of the grapple being shot into the side of buildings securely enough to hold that weight – sure usually you’d hook it over the edge of something or attach it on to a pipe or fire escape, but watch Batman TAS or Justice League and tell me he’s not firing that thing into rock and armored walls all the time.
So maybe I could buy the grapple with enough money dumped into it, but then he’s got a million batarangs, and not just what basically amounts to shurikens, but also ones that electrocute people, ones with explosives, ones that spray knockout gas, etc. Then he’s got a laser torch, a microscopic rebreather, gas mask, bat-bolas, bat cuffs, a thing that jams guns somehow (according to the Arkham games) flares, x-ray specs, etc. Some of that stuff is realistic, some of it isn’t. I guess I’m mostly doubting his ability to fit it all on his belt.
A-kon is this weekend, which is my usual local con haunt. I’ll be there Friday and Saturday. I don’t have a table, but I’ll be at some of the webcomic panels and maybe we can organize getting lunch or dinner one night. Details to come.
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All those things shouldn’t be just lying on a table at all!
They should be properly secured in a tool stand, or at least several tool boxes.
But this looks so much cooler
I could see them having most things secured most times in specially made properly labelled containers (pen/sticky notes in an office supply drawer, flares kept in a combo locked locker, knives and tasers kept in a key locked locker), but considering that we saw at least 6 people go through PR training (here https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/2116), it wouldn’t be unreasonable that they wouldn’t take one of everything out of each locker that they want specific recruits to be able to pick from, and have it all on the table so to speak as they go through this process with each person and then just restock what the previous person picked from and/or add and take away as different people walk through the door.
Not only does it cut down on “Lets look through the 12th locker now”, but it also gives them a chance to vet out the stuff that someone already has powers for (“You don’t need to shoot a flare every fight, McShootyLighterson, you have a power for that, stop wasting our budget!”, hence most of Sydney’s options being close combat protection/stuff that she would need to learn a bit of discipline to use properly such as the Nunchucks) but it also has the added benefit of New Recruits not knowing where the lockers are kept if, say, something goes wrong and Sidney breaks her Nunchucks be flailing them around randombly, since she can’t just go to the lockers and grab a new one, she’ll need to requisition it from Anvil giving her a chance to practice her Sergeant Voice and dole out appropriate punishment…
It also gives Maxima a chance to see who might be sly enough to try to find out where the lockers are and sneak out extra equipment, at which point they get side shifted to the potential Field Intelligence/Black Ops (blARK Ops?) side of things.
X: *sigh* “ARC-Dark”
They are the black ops .
Arc-Light is intelligence. I assume the two work hand in hand a lot of the time
Yeah, I was just looking for a reason to type blARK.
They also have a special forces team trained to fight in cold weather: ARC-tic.
It is little known that Archon actually formed centuries ago, as a knightly order. The secretive knights of the ARC-haic order.
Normally, they would be, but when you are putting together your first custom tool belt, you need to be able to see them in the open, and your supply sergeant should have already picked out the gear must suited to you as Pow said
Once Sydney has made her choices, it will be listed and handed to QM Eastwood and he will keep at least one spare set fully stocked at all times (much easier to swap out a partially used belt for a fresh fully stocked one then try and remember which pieces have been used and try and restock it yourself)
Somebody has to first, put down every single one of those tools and neatly arrange them, and then to put everything back.
Repeat this process for every single new recruit.
That’s A LOT of work!
The one that has to do it would very, very quickly get tired of it, and would just put out open tool boxes instead, so that you can see them and select the necessary ones – and put everything back in seconds.
As an alternative, that table is already one giant tool box/stand, and we just don’t see the glass cover that was normally on it. But in that case the tools should still be secured to that table – and nothing of the sort is visible.
Archon has to compete with the private sector for the few supers in America. And private industry has deep pockets. Have another look at panel 2. That is what you call job satisfaction. Combine that with making Sydney the Queen of Salt, and she will tell Deus to go whistle, if he ever tries to poach her.
Or scramble her, for that matter.
Fairly sure Sydney is already scrambled :P
They wouldn’t have to put everything back in between every recruit because the equipment is being supervised by Anvil who is probably there all day, plus it doesn’t seem to have anything on it that is too completely dangerous and would require a 24 hour lockup. No Firearms for instance, or Chainswords.
And let’s be realistic, if someone wanted to steal a flare gun with the assorted powers that are rolling around, a locker wouldn’t be much of a hindrance. It would probably just be a health and safety formality in case the OH&S people ever audit them.
As much as it’s not technically the armed forces (because their arms are the forces), it’s still a military organisation so they are probably going through the same, albeit modified for the inclusion of powers, first day of any soldier in boot camp.
That means that today has probably been a section by section move to every workshop by every recruit broken up in a couple of groups, so as one group completes the first part (in Sydney’s case testing limits of powers), they move onto the next part of Basic Tactics (via Counter Strike), then Media Relations, after which is the Doctor for a general checkup/vaccination update, after which is receiving utility belt/uniforms, after which will be a course on how to take care of and pack that stuff, then a trip to a psychologist for the sociopath test, then on and on.
It not only would be reassuring to the people that came over to ARC from the military sector that as much as things will be different it’s still fundamentally the military they care about and are familiar with, but also let the new/private sector people the chance to go through a boot camp process to get them up to speed on how things will be run on a day to day basis.
Sydney has a separate source of income and a place to live, but that might not be the case for all of them so the very first part that she missed because she was with Maxima getting the oxygen tank was probably when the live in recruits received their room assignments, etc.
Because they are also looking at branding as a means of income and PR building, customized gear packs actually help with that as well “Oh, your Sydney has picklocks? For Christmas my dad gave me the one with a realer Taser!”
I appreciate you are attempting to cover tasers as not being “completely dangerous”. But they are lethal weapons they are simply considered to be less likely to cause fatality than firearms.
Folks could accuse me of simply using a different term that means the same as yours. However in going on to say that it does not require 24 hour lock up you make your intent clear. Unless a lethal weapon is in the hands of a trained officer, it should be locked up. Be it “lethal or less lethal” makes no difference.
Even serving police officers can fall into lax thinking and consider that a taser is a good alternative to using physical restraint techniques. But that is not the standard they should compare it to. Only when an individual’s behaviour is so dangerous that killing them is the only viable alternative, does it become acceptable to use a potentially lethal weapon.
Cops who fail to keep this distinction in mind are the ones who we are likely to see on the news, facing disciplinary procedures and even, in the more casually abusive uses, manslaughter charges.
How long ago have you cleaned your room? Leaving things just lying around for 24 hours on end ends up attracting uncanny amount of dust – which is frowned upon by far too many people.
Love the kunai.
And the silver shurikens from Underworld.
Those ‘kunai’ still look more like climbing gear to me, specially with the circles on the end
I think Dave put those in as an Easter egg for Naruto fans.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HQS-jMrhxmU/UCuqJLVcyNI/AAAAAAAAC-M/WKgKO7m3KnI/s1600/kunai-naruto-shippuden.jpg
Knew there was more than one Easter Egg! :P
…or secured in a Tool Belt? Or, dare I say, a UTILITY BELT? :3
Nice to see the Taser sitting there with the battery sitting beside it. The various construction/demolition tools are just overkill; they are there as a test to see how practical she can be.
My list for Sydney’s equipment belt (aka Lower Halo):
1) First aid kit attached as a fanny pack. Those kinds of things are always handy. Come to think of it, I have a first aid kit that looks almost exactly like that.
2) Folding trenching shovel. Benefits are listed above.
3) The Taser. Sydney does not get the battery until after training.
4) Duct Tape
5) Pad and pen (more practical size than The List)
6) Swiss Army style folding knife
7) Pliers-style multi-tool, ala Leatherman (it’s further up the bench, under the speech bubbles)
8) Heavy duty flashlight (can replace night stick in some situations)
9) Binoculars.
10) Pepper spray / Breath weapon recharge device.
It is at about this point that encumbrance comes into play.
Nice list! Wire saw would be handy. P-38/John Wayne (can opener) too. Bic lighters are also good.
Twine or wire is another item I often wish I had thought to bring along on my adventures. Oh, and tweezers, because no substitute really satisfies that need.
Tweezers (among other useful devices) are in the first aid kit. At least, they are in mine.
The idea of Sydney equipped with either a taser or pepper spray is frightening.
You forgot lockpicks and lockpick gun, and speaking of that, a person with ADD forgets keys ALL THE TIME. The number of times I’ve had to break into my own house… Though in my case I learned how to climb in through windows. Sometimes on the second or third floor of an apartment building.
Had Anvil considered her trainee’s personality at all, I doubt there would have been throwing stars or kunai on that table.
That is one of the reasons I have spare keys for everything I can get a spare key for!
I have the same problem, or at least I used to. Anticipating it, I used the old trick of hiding a key. Being sure to keep it far from the door, so that it minimised the security risk. Easy enough to do when you have a big garden. But then I moved to a house with a tiny front garden, barely four paces deep, and none elsewhere. Making it far too risky to hide a key there.
Talking to my best mate, about my concerns, he advised me to start using a lanyard, attached to the keys. I had noticed he always did that, and never had a similar problem. It worked. I have not lost a key in the two decades since doing that.
As a technical note, lanyards can be designed to be worn around the neck or attached to your belt. However we both found that just having the cord attached to the keys, and keeping it in a pocket is sufficient. Two or three times I have noticed the key dangling out. In those circumstances, without the cord, the key would have fallen, and been lost, but for the lanyard.
One final note is that I have one pocket dedicated to holding just my keys and never put anything else in there (or on very rare occasions that I have no choice, it makes me take care when removing the foreign objects, as it feels wrong). Eliminating the possibility of the key & lanyard falling out, unseen, when removing something else, like cash.
I may as well mention that a pocket lanyard can be a lot shorter than a neck lanyard. Ones that clip to a belt are fairly short too, but the type we use to keep keys in our pockets can be even more so. If the loop is big enough to fit around your wrist then it will serve the purpose.
Keys are just too small, even with a keyring and leather fob. Plus if you do not put the key fully into the pocket, the lanyard will dangle out, warning you that something is wrong. The extra effort required to make sure the lanyard is fully in too, means the key (or key ring) will be deep in the pocket.
Being a small lanyard means that it does not create an unsightly bulge in the pocket. Meaning you do not need to risk removing it under circumstances where that would be a problem.
There is a sympathetic reply, from a fellow ADHD reader. But it got a little … lost. You can find it here.
re #8, my brother was a police officer and early on, he got out of his patrol car to deal with someone who was a suspect in something or other but as he got out of his car he grabbed his maglight instead of his nightstick. He wasn’t about to turn around and reach back in to get his night stick, so he carried on as if he intended to do that. At that point his radio let out that they didn’t read his last transmission saying where he was. The guy heard that and figured that my brother was on his own with no backup and if he could jump him he could get away. He came at my brother and my brother smacked him in the head with the maglight instead of the night stick (which is made of a hard rubber) and wound up having to take the guy to the ER to get stitches after he arrested him.
About twenty years ago, I knew several young women who carried Maglites as a personal defense tool. The popular suggestion was to hold it backwards, with the light at the heel of the hand, and then rest the body of the flashlight on the shoulder. The theory was to (a) increase the height and distance of the beam, and (b) that if attacked, bringing the light down hard would be an automatic reaction, making it less likely the woman would freeze, or be legally charged.
Self-defense laws are different here in Canada than they are in the States, though, and I’m not sure if the legal defense was ever tested.
Whenever someone mentions ‘Maglite’, always picture those teeny tiny pocket lights
When I hear Maglite, I am thinking about a foot long, 1.5 inches wide with a huge number of D-cell batteries inside and tough enough to drive over with a car.
Trenching tools are awesome.
But just try to fit that into your utility belt!
Clearly you have the wrong utility belt.
I have a utility solar-system.
*wibbles tongue in your general direction*
Three of them actually. I keep them as ornaments in the bridge of my battle ship. The trick is to allow the battleship to reconfigure to a convenient little shuttle size. Or smaller.
*holds out paw, with battleship keyring, sitting on the upraised pads*
Is it from a Hasbro line of “robots in disguise”?
he also has bat shark repellent
Looking forward to how the Maxima puts the lock picking skill to the test with Sydney.
Perhaps Anvil doesn’t have the personality for this, but she could’ve responded to Dabbler’s comment with “Hey – do you know what it’s like to accidentally have sex with someone’s toe?”
Missed opportunity.
Knowing Dabbles, she already knows, and not by accident ;)
This reminds me of when Tyler got to pick his Moon Shadow gear in PS238, all the way back in Issue 9. This page and the next show the comparison scene and the results. The page after shows pretty much what the final result is, but this page probably shows it better, since the page is a lot newer and in color.
Of course, the difference is expressed heavily by the difference in characters. Tyler didn’t want to do the vigilante thing at all, but since his parents (superheroes) force him to attend a super-school, he kind of needs these lessons to survive. Note: the Revenant is shown to regularly trounce supervillains, including sometimes removing their source of power.
Hmm, what would happen if Tyler’s class shows up at Archon? I will try to come up with a cross-over script. When Harem asks why that kid in the hover-chair is singing all the elements to the tune of “I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General”, Arriana will have to suggest something similar for Sydney a few steps later. Ooh, the possibilities are enormous!
Curse you! You have just introduced me to a new webic!! Curses be upon your house until the day it crumbles to weeds!!!!!
Curse semi-redacted: had started reading that webic some time ago, but forgot about it, until you reminded me
Bottom right corner of the picture, to the lower left of the first aid kit… Are those the electrobinoculars they used on Hoth in Empire Strikes Back?
Yes
No, they’re Simrad LE-7 rangefinders. They just looked so ‘sci-fi’ that they were chosen for those scenes.
(The Hoth Scenes were filmed on Finse, a winter-sports location in Norway, and at least some of the rebels were played by Norwegian infantry. and these rangefinders were in use in the Norwegian Army back then. )
What is that thing in the top-right corner?
in the blown up version there are holes in it, 4 in the top one on the bottom.
looks like it might be some kind of really sharp knuckleduster/shuriken?
It’s from the movie ‘Predator 2’. The Predator uses it as a throwing weapon that returns.
Yup, and confirmed by DaveB on one of the earlier pages of comments.
So… Sydney can see through her Doppelganger illusion as was established here. She wears glasses, so presumably lenses work on the doppelganger, or else that version of her naturally has perfect eyesight and the glasses are nothing.
So either she can use the illusion to see when she loses her glasses, or she can carry binocs around and have the intangible illusion see distant things without being at all exposed to danger. That seems like a solid advantage.
I wonder, if she carries a flashlight, will the illusion include a flashlight beam? It’s only light.
That is a question worth exploring.
For that matter, see through projection, projection uses projected binoculars, binocular viewing at a distance?
Of course, down that line…can she use a laser pointer?
How about marking a target with a laser?
How about carrying a sci-fi military grade laser and shooting it from the projection (it’s still light)?
Blinding someone with an extra bright light?
We haven’t seen her upgrade screen in a while, and even she has no idea what most of it does. It’s completely possible that seeing through illusions is a basic self-defense mechanism, but that correct eyesight or other active abilities would be purchasable upgrades.
After all, the surprise at her being able to see through illusions was more about the strength of it than the fact that it was possible.
Dang, messed up the links and can’t edit.
Upgrade screen: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/1166
Strength: https://www.grrlpowercomic.com/archives/630
Hmm, did DaveB go back and make changes to the HUD? Don’t recall that clump above the PewPewOrb, nor the lit-up connecting spot between the Flight and PewPew Orbs
The latter has always been there. There was speculation that flying and blasting was what triggered the levelling screen, and that link supported the argument. I am out of the loop, with my long lack of an ISP, but do not think that it has been tweaked.
Just don’t remember that big cluster at the top though (did a fairly good job at the time of describing all the connections, but can’t remember now what all the connections were :()
Super glue
Duct tape
Steel cable and connectors
Glow sticks
Mega head torch
Multi tool
Hand axe / crowbar muti tool
Survival knife
Infrared goggles
Taser
Stun gun (because you really don’t want enemy’s in taser range)
Flash bang grenades
Caltrops
Warfs preffered close quarters weapon
Spare glasses
RC spy drone bug
Her meds
An extra thing as a distraction for when she can’t sit still
Nobody has yet mentioned a set of polyhedra dice for emergency games–a necessity for any tabletop gamer’s utility belt.
…with a couple of extra d4 for use as emergency caltrops.
Is that yellow thing in the middle supposed to be a halligan tool?
This one appears to have a wrench.
I want it.
I was looking for one, as that would be in my utility belt, if I were in that kind of job. But that yellow tool is missing some key parts, like the spike at right-angles. So it may be related, but it will not have the same capabilities.
Mind you Halo would not need a Halligan bar, as the lighthook will do the trick a lot better.
Looks more like a Stanley 30″ FUBar to me. Not sure I’d pick it over Gordon Freeman’s favorite plain-old wrecking bar under most situations, including actual construction demolition. I can’t ID the orange-handled pry-hammer next to it, but could I request a mountaineer’s ice axe or one of the Gil Hibben axes?
The long yellow one is called a Fu-Bar. I don’t know about the yellow one below it, or the orange one next to them.
Classic Dabbler. Nothing else to say.
There is a simple explanation for Batman’s utility belt.
It’s bigger on the inside
I knew someone else was going to beat me to it…… and you even are using the the same artist material as reference ….. (¬_¬)
In DC Heroes (at least 1E and the Batman RPG, anyway, which are what I still play), they have items that become whatever specialty item you need at that moment, so you can do the Batman utility belt/Green Arrow quiver pull-out-something-perfectly-suited-to-the-situation-that’s-completely-useless-otherwise thing.
I forget what they’re called at the moment, but they are especially fun to use when you are playing an Adam West style session.
Can Batman carry spare utility belts inside his utility belt?
Yes. Empty ones. Or ones with less equipment than the primary one. Sure. But, adding that to the already unbelievably long list of things he whips out, seems .. in keeping with the lack of realism.
I have tweezers in my swiss army knife…and the swiss champ in my briefcase.
I still need to replace the little screwdriver, but since I keep a full set in the briefcase, I’m okay.
My own “utility belt”, (pockets) consists of two pocket knifes, (one’s a Gerber multitool in a belt pouch,) a bright LED flashlight with three color choices, (I find the blue, blood-trail tracking, one easier for using at night than the red, and being farthest from white, drains the battery less if, when, it comes on in my pocket,) pen, thumb drive, phone with GPS, comb, wallet, and enough keys to constitute a melee weapon in themselves.
In the briefcase there are, about 100′ of paracord tied to a life-support rated locking carabiner, two sets of screwdrivers, (one’s a ratcheting screwdriver handle with different bits,) another pen, a couple pocket HDD’s, a GPS, a folding compass, a keychain compass, another flashlight, a “survival tool” with integrated whistle, firestarter and sharpening tools, a GPS for my computer, (which doesn’t work with Win10,), bag of q-tips?, tylenol and benadryl,…no batteries, need to correct that…another flashlight…swiss champ…battery quick charger for my phone…Man I really need to clean this out.
Oh, and then there is the contents of my trunk…
Not full of junk is it? [sorry – but not really but I should be]
With your preferences, I am surprised that you opted for a briefcase. Check out these backpacks. You might find one or two that will blend in well with your environment, and be better for your other needs than a regular briefcase.
The one with the solar recharger sounds it will appeal to you. Or the one that folds open, like a briefcase, maybe. Personally the security features of several of them were what kept me watching. Not that I would be able to afford any. But I would find them pawy.
I love how Anvil’s reaction is just “Why?”
Utility belt is the first, last, and only item on most of my Christmas and Birthday lists. Note I said *most*. Comics, table top RPG books, and dice find their way on the lists a lot, too.
This is my favorite utility belt item:
https://www.leatherman.com/skeletool-cx-19.html
I used to carry around those ones with a dozen different blades & weird crap, but I never used anything beside the blade, pliers and flat-head & phillips screwdrivers anyway. Now I just carry this in my pocket and I’m good to go.
And I wonder if Sydney has seen this baby yet:
https://shop.lego.com/en-US/Batman-Classic-TV-Series-Batcave-76052
I have that exact one on me at all times. It helps that I use the carabiner to hold my keys.
Just don’t keep up the habit if you visit the UK. I used to habitually carry a small Swiss-army knife attached to my keyring. When legislation was beefed up to discourage knife crime, I examined it in detail. And concluded that I was ok, as I could demonstrate a legitimate need. Namely using it to open packages (plus the everyday uses implied in the thread to date). Helped by the fact that I only had a small knife, which would be of limited use in combat.
But the problem lies in that even small pocket knives can be used to take hostages, such as with 9/11. Which has meant that even those can be considered lethal weapons. I have observed successful prosecution of uses which I considered to be allowable under the legislation.
One recent example being a woman who had been making sandwiches, and when she ran out of time, took the knife with her, to finish them off in her car. I am guessing that the circumstances may not have bee as simple as the reporting implied. But those were the facts presented, and not following the cases directly I am limited to what the reports advise.*
So I took off my Swiss-army knife, from my key ring. Definitely do not have key-ring knives with you, or in hand-held luggage, in an airport. One of the reasons why I stopped using mine. It would be too easy to forget about it. Whilst I doubt I would be prosecuted for such, you simply do not want to have a lengthy delay and investigation when flying.
* Mind you I do grumble to the BBC reporters about things like this, from time to time, and have successfully gotten them to update articles in the past. With a nice personal reply, in one case. Which I found sweet.
But boob hugs are why some guys like dating taller women, Anvil!
And that’s the reason she doesn’t like dating short guys
The secret to Batman’s utility belt isn’t that he carries all those different things you see all the time. The secret is, he just so happens to know what he should have carried all along, in his utility belt.
As for his grapple hook, did the first Batman movie with Michael Keaton have a weight limit on the grapple hook and it got a bit over exceeded? Of course, comic book grapple hook is likely a bit different and way more super.
Not sure if you ere asking an actual or rhetorical question regarding the better Bat-origin movie, but yes, he found out (half-way up) that Vicki Vale lied about her weight, but that still implies that either the rope or the mechanism used was tested for more than his own weight (but less than her actual weight :P)
I very much liked the (very old) DCU RPG handled Batman’s utility belt. The game assumes Batman’s tactical strategic sense is so superlative that he always has just what he needs. To simulate this, Batman has Omnigadgets – essentially, an Omnigadget is a Shrodenger’s Tool. It’s an undefined gadget that the player defines as needed and it remains defined as that thing until it can be reasonably swapped out. Typically, Batman carries 5-7 of these things.
He’s just that good.
Omnigadget! That’s the name I was trying to remember (see comment above).
Green Arrow uses them as well–boxing glove/blowtorch/drill arrows, anyone?
If his ‘tactical strategic sense’ is so good that he knows what gadgets to pack in his fanny-belt, why does he keep getting caught and tied up? o_O
So that he can demonstrate his foresight in concealing a bat-lockpick and rope untier.
And because Wonder Bewbs isn’t the only one with a bondage fetish? o_O
I like how Sydney’s orbs are seen to tilt out of the way of Kenya in panels 3, 4, and 7. Sydney’s hug happened so fast collision avoidance must be an automatic feature for them.
I have long maintained that such is a must with those orbs. From the sheer lack of anybody having been bumped, in various crowded situations that Halo has already been in. But you have spotted a very good specific example that proves the point nicely.
Mythbusters built grappeling hooks and such to test out various batman myths. They had a rough time but at the very least jamie was able to build one the size of his fist and forearm that could mechanically lift him straight up into the air. The hardest part was getting the hook to set. Adam tried those cement nail gun deals, didnt work well, but I think with some trial and error and a bigger budget they could have made it work well enough.
Don’t you mean “echolocating flying mammal man” myths?
And if there’s anything Bruce Wayne has, it’s a bigger budget.
You mean mr bruce “I can hide a space station in my r&d budget” wayne? Naw, he doesnt have THAT much money to play with! But seriously though, The only thing they really lacked was a consistent and safe way to attach the hook or spike or whatever. They had the motor sized down sufficiently to be impressive without being sci fi, they had wire capable of holding the weight of a relatively out of shape guy that also coiled up pretty well. Now being able to SWING on said rope might have been tricky, but one step at a time folks!
That looks like a lot of stuff, but an inspection ready TA-50 layout (late 70’s, early 80’s version) takes up most of a bunk. And you are expected to wear all of it, maybe,and I say maybe, not the sleeping bag. Depends on your 1st Sgt and where you are stationed.
I suspect the current layout is much worse, because they have more toys than we did, back in the stone age.
Should have gone with the classics. The equipment reveal from Escape from New York for example. Or the Men in Black trailer.
I think Sydney is going to bump into a reality check here. The things she will have in her “absolutely want” pile will be about three or four times the amount she can actually lift! I can’t see her being able to cut it down to even close to half the realistic value. Until she attempts to clamber over the assault course with it, that is.
Mind you, Halo can cheat. She can have a nice lightweight utility belt, for everyday use. And then a treasure chest full of all the other stuff, to carry around using either her shield or tentacle. Only trouble is that she will have to ensure that nothing in that box would cause trouble if it fell into the wrong hands. No lock-picks, weapons or explosives, for example.
But first aid gear, air tanks and things like that would be fine if she had to abandon them, in order to switch to other orbs.
“Only trouble is that she will have to ensure that nothing in that box would cause trouble if it fell into the wrong hands.”
The problem with that is that anything can cause trouble if it falls into the wrong hands. Granted, some items are more likely to, but even the unlikeliest item has that potential.
– Source: someone who watched MacGuyver, who, at least from the villain’s viewpoint, was the “wrong guy”
BTW, that reminds me of a Farley strip[1] where a general tells Farley that it’s his (the general’s, not Farley’s) job to keep nuclear weapons from falling into the wrong hands and Farley responds with something like “How do you know they are in the right hands now?”.
[1] The strip in question, however, is in the fifth book (Travels with Farley) on that page and is, unfortunately, out of print.
Reasonable points. But if you can buy it down a hardware store, she can hardly be blamed for any illicit use that gets made of it. However if a gun registered to her is used in a murder, it would be a serious problem for both Sydney and Archon.
Nah, she could do that, but it would greatly restrict her and what she can do in a fight. She would be constantly dropping her mega pack in order to do other things and would just end up a massive pita.
Sydney does love curry and pita bread goes well with such. But not sure that she would want one so big she could climb into it?
Hush Yorp! You know an acronym when you see one! Now admit it or no marrow treat for you!
Yorp (or \Yorp) prefers patented Yorpie-snacks (specially designed for Yorp under his stringent guidelines :D)
I just love seeing Sydney ecstatically happy. I am sure many folks will have said something along those lines, but who can resist commenting on such an enthralled face?
So is Sydney going to “Halo-“prefix everything like Batman does with the Batmobile, Batcopter, batarangs, Bat-shark repellent (yes, that was in one of the TV shows), Batcave, etc.?
Will we have to wait same Halo-time, same
Halo-channel, or rather same Halo-website next week to find out?Also, the Halo-Grammar-Nazizer was going haywire from the “some is” in the first panel until it realized that it referred to “some gear”. In other words, she is required to have some gear, therefore some gear is required (which makes “some” singular).
Typo alert, DaveB. Panel 6 should read “secrete” rather than “secret”.
Although “secret” does have a cute ring to it, so it is cool if Sydney chose to say that instead.
In others words, “to hide”. However, that makes wonder just how she would secrete loosies (which, from the context, seem to be individual lockpicks).
Never mind. I didn’t realize that “secrete” had an additional meaning. Should have looked it up beforehand.
Secret, when used as a verb, means to hide or to conceal. Sydney was using the word correctly, if in an infrequently used manner.
Pretty sure secret is not a verb. It’s an adjective, a noun, and an adverb, but not a verb. To make it a verb, you add the “e” at the end, which changes the pronunciation (just like breath/breathe), essentially turning it into a new word.
Being sure is not the same as being correct – if it was then the world as we know it and politics in general would be very very different.
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/secret
or just watch a lot of spy show classics like Man / Girl from U.N.C.L.E. or Mission Impossible or The Saint or To Catch a Thief or The Avengers…. Mat Helm does not count.
Ah, to avoid having to dig through that page for the relevant information.
Verb
secret (third-person singular simple present secrets, present participle (UK) secretting or (US) secreting, simple past and past participle (UK) secretted or (US) secreted)
(transitive) To make or keep secret. [from late 16th c.] [quotations ▼]
(transitive) To hide secretly.
He was so scared for his safety he secreted arms around the house.
From the cast page: “Rank: 1st Lieutenant”
Dave, it may be time to update the cast page…
Naa, Dave works himself half to death as it is. The time will come when an A-list celebrity name-drops Grrl Power. Or some big TV company does a piece on it. Ie when the comic gets so many new patrons, that Dave can afford a full-time staff to help him out. Or a minion, at the barest minimum.
“Or a minion, at the barest minimum.”
I’d loan him a couple of my minions, but I haven’t yet been able to cram them into the modem without making a bloody mess of it.
I would imagine like Math and Tedd from EGS Dabble can sense erotic and sexually awkward situations.
I would think that would fit into her porno-sense powers.
Kinda surprised she hasn’t asked where the 50′ of rope and 10′ pole is. But then, there’s still plenty of opportunity for her to get her geek on.
I’ll have the leatherman, the electrical & duck tape, folding knife, folding shovel, rope, wire saw, pen & pad, first aid kit, wire saw, small tactical light, range finding binoculars, super glue, compass, and while its not shown a cole-bar hammer.
Question one: What is the multicolored circular disc in the same row as the auto lockpick?
Question two: WHY would they put a grappling hook on the table when they KNOW that she would try to pull a batman with it?
According to DaveB on the first page: it’s an emergency supply of her medication
ooh, i have one of those things! the half-crowbar, half-hammer Pulverizer thing. i keep it in my car. very useful. but i assume Sydney is going to be limited in how much she can carry, since she’s fairly small. but with the utility of her orbs, i doubt she needs all that much gear.
Perhaps Batman borrowed some shrinking tech from his fellow Justice League veteran the Atom?
(I’ve never taken the whole Nolan ‘let’s make Batman realistic’ thing very seriously. Because of course a story about a man in a bat costume running around fighting a psychotic clown while the police are helpless is sooo plausible. :) )
Yeah, most of that stuff on the table wouldn’t fit in even a bat-utility belt unless shrunk before hand (with an easy way of unshrinking them when needed)
The Amazing Doctor Pym!
Ant-man / Giant-Man as a gadgeteer who uses his size-alteration powers to carry a *lot* of gear (West Coast Avengers, anyone?). Loved that incarnation of Henry Pym.
To be fair to Batman he doesn’t carry all of that stuff all the time. He’s just really good at anticipating what he’ll need for a particular outing. But still you’ll see him in situations where something he’s pulled out of the belt would have been useful and yet he apparently doesn’t have it this time. That being said, his special batarangs just wouldn’t fit into compartments that size.
How many variations of the crow bar are on that table?
I only ask because I see like 3 or 4 sitting there, the forth I want to question.
Also, are those morning after pill I see?
Several of the tools have relatives there too. Each with subtly different advantages or disadvantages. A standard uniformed service will value uniformity and tools optimised to the general role of the unit. Super heroes break the mould. So are far more likely to find value in customising the tool to their unique needs.
For Sydney, her greatest problem is her lack of muscles. Her greatest asset though, for this purpose, is the lighthook. She will likely not need any normal version of a crowbar, as a result.
Although she might need an ultra-tech strong version of one. We have seen that Halo is understrength for lifting girders. Her lighthook might likewise be unable to break a super-villain’s stronghold door open. But throw in an adamantium Halligan’s bar and the tentacle can pop it like a grape.
I would imagine she would think first to blast the door down with the PPO if anything, but okay.
That may indeed be her first thought.
Hopefully her second thought will be about Maxima’s talk on ‘checking what lies beyond your target’. Sydney’s PPO can melt through a tank. Anybody standing beyond a mere door, which Halo ‘opened’ with the PPO, would be crispy-fried-smoking-boots, and little else.
“Hopefully” being the biggest word there.
Sydney and a big knife in her hand….
And Anvil distracted by a horny succubus (is there any other kind? ;) )
But, panel eight sees Anvil carefully reaching over and gently but firmly placing a hand on Sydney’s left hand:- “Not until you have had proper training! Wait, how did you manage to remove the sheath with one hand?”
Large knives have a magical ability to make people lacking training/experience dumb.
…and sometimes those WITH training/experience. ^_^
Let’s see…
I’d pick the little Demo hammer, a K-bar or small bowie (not that takticool knife there- as much as I love the look of chisel tips, I’d rather have a more utilitarian blade), taser, first aid kit, flint and steel, braided natural-fiber rope (of course), first aid kit (of course), and adjustable binocs (’cause I got a big head and the non-adjustable ones wouldn’t work right). Plus all the required stuff.
Demo hammer as go-to melee weapon (blunt trauma is more likely to get people to stop fighting with less chance of killing them, while still having the lethal option- plus easier to maintain and can be used to demo stuff), taser as nonlethal option and backup firestarter, rope to act as tinder if necessary as well as being rope (and cord, and string, if you unweave it)- the others are pretty self-explainatory.
Of course, that’s in a sort of ‘don’t know what’s happening, dropping behind enemy lines in the Bolivian rainforest’ kit. I’d probably be the sort to hyper-specialize in other situations.
On the subject of Batman- I don’t think he keeps all that in his Belt- that’s just what he wants you to think. He actually secrets those things all over his body, and uses ninja slight-of-hand to make you think he’s pulling them out of his belt. That way, all the baddies just take the belt without bothering to pat the rest of him down (or just strip him- seriously, he’s been knocked out so many times, only to wake up tied up without the baddie having even peeked under his mask!), so he always has his stuff available if need be. He doesn’t need be that often, but still.
Need to be careful with calling something a ‘K-Bar’, over here in the future, a ‘K-Bar’ is a fruit-flavoured toffee-bar (Whittakers K Bar)
Believe you meant to say ‘Ka-Bar’
You have Anvil listed on the cast page as a first lieutenant. But mention her as being a sergeant.
Where is the Bat shark repellent?
Tiger shark, hammer-head shark… mmm… Bat shark? Pretty sure there is no need to repel a non-existent species.
… UNLESS Mr Wayne keeps something down in his cave that we don’t know about. After all, “Bat-Hound” is/was a thing.
https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2895/14035098653_ed27e804ee_o.jpg