Grrl Power #590 – Fall from shower
One of these days, all of Dabbler’s perverse antics will probably be a boon to the team. Today is not that day. That’s the danger of being progressive beyond the fringe. You have to wait for the rest of the world to appreciate your forward attitudes.
Maxima can control her strength, as she has her power pool she can use to boost a stat. Normally that potential energy is there in the void, waiting to be used. She doesn’t have to have it spent at all times, but her baseline stats are still very impressive. She can actually lower her stats to feed more energy into the pool, but that takes effort, and even being in the military as long as she has, sometimes you just don’t feel like putting forth the work that early in the morning. Thus some of her bathroom fixtures suffer more than other parts of her room.
Still having super strength of any sort would wreak havoc on your daily life no matter how careful you were. I mean, Superman towed the Earth once, so you’ve got to figure he goes through a shitload of doorknobs. There’s just no way he’d be able to tell if a door was locked or not. The difference in resistance between an unlocked door and a locked one with that little 1/16th inch pin holding the knob in place would be like the difference between him using 0.0000000000000001% of his strength to open it and 0.00000000000000001% of his strength.
Yes, I know he has X-Ray vision and could just see if the door was locked, or use his super speed and super hearing to tell if there was metal stress happening as he turned it, and react instantly, but you know what I mean.
Fine. Thor. He doesn’t have X-Ray vision or speed or super ear bulbs, and he’s in Marvel’s top 10%, strength wise. He would wreck shit on Midgard left and right.
Yes, I know Thor could become Donald Blake in some continuities and had human stats. Hercules. He was on the Avengers with Thor and would reak everything he touched probably. Except he never pretended to have a secret identity and probably didn’t care about not breaking puny doorknobs.
Aaagh! *punches doorknobs*
I remembered what day of the week it is! Progress! So Monday is Christmas, and I’ve considered skipping the regular post that day. I’ve never done that before and I really don’t want to, but I’ve gotten a few days behind on doing the comic, but I wound up writing a page that was better laid out as a double sized page, so I tried a new thing with the art that I thought might save a little time, which it very much did not. Basically, skipping the inking and coloring it straight from the flats. I like the way that looks when it’s done right, only I’ve never really done it before. Once or twice, actually Dabbler’s hoof on this page is done like that. I tried it as a test, but it was actually a poor test case because it didn’t involve two things that were the same color overlapping each other. Without inked lines separating things, I needed to spend extra time on the edges to make sure something like a skin colored arm stands out when it’s in front of a skin colored body. It also didn’t help because I’m not used to that particular workflow. There are probably ways to work faster in that style, so it probably won’t be my last attempt. The other factor is my parents will be visiting for most of that week and I probably shouldn’t totally ignore them and work on the comic? Right?
So yeah, I’d really prefer to post a comic as usual, but I miiiiight not. Xmas, as you might imagine, is a pretty slow traffic day for any webcomic, and if ever I was going to skip a post, that’d be it. The other option is to probably split another double page I’m planning into two singles, which I’d also prefer not to do, but is looking likely, and also really skimp on the backgrounds on a page or two. A scene where everyone stands in an indistinct white hallway or something. :/ So swing by on Xmas, I’ll probably have a new page up, but don’t be too shocked if I don’t. I probably will. I should.
Double res version will be posted over at Patreon. $1 and up, but feel free to contribute as much as you like!
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This could be good.
And it’ll SFW as this comic doesn’t have an age block
RIP Dabblers. My guess: She will wake up seeing Max, calling her an angel.
Yeah… something along those lines
In the interests of drawing another line…
…Dabbler looks up, right under Max’s towel & gets a picture with her cybereye that’s almost the full nudie that she’s been trying to get.
Agree with Anvil here. Private showers are nice.
She can’t have a ‘private’ shower. She’s an officer.
Frankly with her skin tone, I’m surprised that the others are resisting the urge to call it a ‘golden shower’.
Each hour of KP they envisage gives them a +1 to their resistance roll.
And lets not forget the mountain of NJPs. That’s at least a +5 will save
Don’t sweat Xmas Dave. Enjoy a day off IMO.
Our gift to you is a day off?
OK.
I agree. After all, DavB has already given us the past couple of pages of so-close-to-the-borderline-of-breaking-PG13 pics that it takes very little imagination (& very little eye-work) to unwrap those packages…
Thanks DaveB, for these Christmas presents that I actually would want for the holiday. Far better than a pair of socks, fer shur.
The holidays should be spent with family. Of course, if your relatives do start getting on your nerves you could always excuse yourself to work on your comic. That’s one of the perks of working at home.
Dude, your comic is awesome.
Now have a Christmas break. Spend time with your family. Enjoy yourself.
I do use it as Monday morning motivation, but I’m not working the next two Mondays, so relax.
Grrl Power – helps the early bird get worms.
*chirp*
Agreed,
to create (art/story/etc.) rest is also important.
So, see ‘you’ January second, I/we’ll be checking in anyway every now and then..
For giving us fair warning, you get extra credit.
Have a happy solstice holiday of your choosing, DaveB!
I also vote to use the day to pad your buffer.
Is that description of Dabbler a purple people eater reference?
Yes. It was not even much of a reach either. Congrats on getting it. It’s been a long time since that song was popular.
I’ve heard that purple people eaters are still to be found down under. They’re a bit smaller than the song suggests.
https://australianmuseum.net.au/uploads/images/2191/swamp%20hen_big.jpg
Thieving Aussie bastards! That’s a takahē, native (and indigenous) to New Zealand!!
Go on, its Christmas. Hug an Aussie!
You never know, she might like it.
Even after who knows how many Eras that they’ve been evolving on the continent, and they still haven’t found any purple people to eat.
He he.
Man their recipe books must be dusty!
Wrong continent :P
You obviously haven’t seen the second (and last (dammit)) season of Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency that was just in BBC America. Let’s just say the titular creature of the song makes an appearance.
I’m old enough to remember that song, and it still cracks me up. Well done, Dave.
I got it right away as well. I was so proud of myself. Although, I can sort of remember the song. Oh god, I am sooooo old.
Yes, but can you remember the movie? o_O
Question: Given Dabbler’s “lawsuit-waiting-to-happen” behaviour, Why hasn’t ARCHON set specific times of when she is banned from going into the shower?
Wouldn’t everybody (excluding Dabbler) be happier that way?
Technically, what she did to Halo doesn’t qualify as much of anything, whereas Halo’s treatment of Dabbler just now constitutes assault.
…On the other hand, if she’s planning to snap pics of Maxima in the buff, that’s a different matter. Someone needs to explain to Dabbler about all the legal ramifications and the cultural issues, “revenge porn” and the other reasons why she needs to respect Maxima’s wishes in this matter.
Technically what Dabbler did was sexual harassment. Of a most intimate and intrusive sort!
Plus artificially interfering with somebody’s genitals will probably break some bylaw, statute or law in whatever jurisdiction they are in. But it would take a lawyer familiar with the breadth of state laws to find something suitable.
Practicing medicine without a licence may be one to try, for instance. And it certainly would be looking at all laws regarding sexual assault, to see if any would be applicable to Dabbler’s attack. Likewise any laws aimed at preventing the use of date-rape drugs, are likely to be very broadly worded (to avoid restricting themselves just to known drugs of this sort). So definitions may not stipulate ‘chemical’, for example.
Finally I would set my lawyer minions to checking out archaic, but not yet repealed laws. Specifically any which may have been created to prohibit the use of love potions or similar magics. It is surprising what things like that you can find.
We do not know where the Archon base actually is situated. If it is in Illinois, this article indicates that witchcraft is still illegal there!
Yorpie, what Dabbler did was not just harrassment, but could also be judged assault by the courts, if presented in the same light as slipping a roofie in someone’s drink. Since the effect on Sydney was physiological, the spell acted in the way a drug does, and a court may decide the “technology” is not relevant to the principle of right and wrong. Courts often apply this kind of test when the law must stretch a little with the times.
I was just sticking to rulings that I know. I don’t know what law(s) are used to convict people for using date-rape drugs (and they might vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction). Plus there is a senior lawyer planning on critiquing one of my comments in this area, so I am staying on safe ground.
*gets prepared for the cross-examination*
No Garbler. What Dabbler did is NOT sexual assault. I’ll explain why it is not, legally.
Sexual assault is “unwanted sexual contact that stops short of rape or attempted rape, including sexual touching and fondling.”
There was no contact. There was no touching. There was no fondling. There is therefore no sexual assault under ANY situation that you’d be able to bring up.
It’s also not the same as slipping a roofie either, as that is considered drugging someone. What Dabbler did was not drugging. There were no foreign bodies put into Sydney’s system whatsoever.
What Dabbler did was make Sydney experience sexual arousal without touching her in any way. To equate that with sexual assault would mean any stripper who does a pole dance has sexually assaulted the patrons of the strip club. Because they’re causing sexual arousal as well – without touching in any way.
You also argue that since the effect was physiological, it should be considered the same way that a drug is considered. Viagra causes arousal in a man’s physiological state. So does a stripper doing an erotic dance. So does watching a pornographic movie for many people. Strippers are not drugging the people watching. And the porno movie maker has not drugged everyone who is watching the movie.
So Yorpie is correct, and you are not.
*wags tail happily, but guiltily*
To be fair to Garbler I should point out the post I made further down this thread, exploring a similar angle to his, regarding the ‘foreign bodies’ counter you raised. It was exploring a route down which the courts might conclude that magically created effects could be considered a ‘foreign body’ for these purposes (especially where they replicated chemicals that have been ruled on in previous trials).
In light of that we should consider your citing Viagra, as giving that to somebody surreptitiously would indeed be a criminal offense. It is a prescription drug and it is illegal to give somebody such without a prescription.
Except what Dabbler did wasn’t surreptitious, and was not giving a drug. It was more doing something which just got Sydney aroused, like a stripper dance would. But via a spell’s side effect. :) They’ll need to add to the lawbooks if aliens and mages ever become public knowledge.
Doubtless there will need to be some additions. But it is possible to reinterpret laws as society evolves, to adjust for emerging technologies. We have already been through the process with computers and the internet.
Even if a law was framed in a non-computer age, if the principles were be seen to be the same then the new medium did not prevent those from being used. Others proved to be inadequate for the new era and extra laws did indeed have to be drafted.
I showed what I believe to be a credible route that test cases may follow, which could end with magic which replicates the effect of a drug being considered to be the same as administering said drug. I note that you did not dispute that.
If precedent goes the way I proposed then the fact that no physical drug was administered would be irrelevant. It need merely be proven that effects similar to those from using a relevant drug were created.
I think Dabbler was aware of the side effect of her spell. Dabbler’s cleaning spell consistently has a makeup side effect. I.e. it was not the result of a critical failure of her magic (not unless it went wrong twice and had exactly the same results both times).
Further she is aware that Sydney is extremely shy and sexually repressed. Take the mummy incident in the showers, as one example amongst many.
I think Dabbler would testify that she had known about the side effects and chose not to mention them, as she would expect Sydney to refuse. We have seen, with Maxima, that she likes to push the boundaries with people who are prudish or repressed.
As such I believe Dabbler was behaving in a surreptitious manner. But, of course, I accept that there are other possibilities. I just do not think they are as likely.
I don’t disagree that Dabbler was probably aware. I’m just saying that what she did was not a crime, because it didn’t fit the definition of any crime. Based on the law. Just like I argued (correctly) that what Maxima regarding Krona was illegal – based on the law. Might they make an addition to the law? Maybe. But they haven’t yet. Even in the comic, they havent yet. The ONLY change that there has been to the law so far, if it can be called a change, is that vigilanteism is still treated as vigilanteism, whether you have superpowers or not. Arianna was very specific during the press conference, as was Maxima during Sydney’s interview, that it is not illegal to have superpowers. And since mages are part of the veil, it can be very well assumed that magic (beyond David Copperfield stage magic) isn’t likely to be known to the public either, which means it’s not written into the laws in Sydney’s universe.
I’m also letting you know what any competent attorney would say as to it being illegal to cause someone to get aroused when it’s not by way of force or by way of drugs – that they’d make a comparison to something like pornography or erotic dancing or showing a naked sexy person. Until they know anything more about what Dabbler did, you can’t go assuming that there was anything invasive done that could not have been done in the same manner by a pornographic movie of some sort that Sydney would be into – maybe a slashfic tentacle meets Full Metal Alchemist slashfic.
I also am pretty sure Dabbler wasn’t acting with intent to cause Sydney to get aroused – because it would be an odd spell to have lying around, as opposed to a spell to heat someone up to save them from hypothermia – just with some side effects which are part of a succubi’s spell. One should always assume that the majority of succubi spell will have sexual overtones to them.
Yeah, Dabbles may have done it knowingly, butt did she do it maliciously, that is the relevant issue
If just seeking to prove that sexual harassment has occurred it is not necessary to establish the intent of the perpetrator. All that is required is to show that the subject was affected in that manner.
The pertinent law I would cite to Pander would be Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. I believe that Dabbler’s action would constitute an ‘unwanted sexual advance’.
We know that touching is not required as the perpetrator can can harass by, for example, requesting to watch a sex act being performed or simply observe someone in a lewd manner (eg peering up their skirts).
Further I would counter your assertion, elsewhere, that this is akin to watching a dirty dance, as being flawed, due to the victim being able to look away or leave the room. Whereas what Dabbler has done is bypassed any mechanism that Sydney may choose to employ to avoid arousal.
But, in any event, even a dirty dance would qualify as sexually harassing the victim.
I didn’t say “sexual assault”. I said “Assault”. and yes, it is assault in the US.
If you said assault, you’re even MORE incorrect.
Assault is the threat of bodily harm coupled with a present ability to cause said harm.
There was no bodily harm.
There was no threat made, either bodily or verbally.
There was no attempt at touching or touching via an object (the ’cause said harm’ part refers to battery, which is why it’s usually ‘assault AND battery’)
Plus Sydney asked for the heating spell. She just didnt’ know about the side effects. So it’s not even an unwanted action taken by Dabbler – it was done at Sydney’s request, even if the side effect was not.
So…. it’s not assault. It’s not sexual assault. And it’s not battery. The only tort (not even a crime since there was no touching or threat of touching) that Dabbler did was sexual harassment. Even as a tort, you’d need to show that the spell was an unwanted sexual advance. Which is at least possible to argue – but not assault, battery, or sexual assault.
It’s the magical equivalent of slipping Halo some “Spanish Fly” (NOTE: Cantharidin is a burn agent or poison depending on the dosage and is illegal to sell or use in many countries for this reason; do not attempt to ingest or give to somebody else). Pretty sure the Halo-verse has a magical legal system that largely mimics mundane legal systems. Dabbler gave Sydney a mood-altering enchantment with enough power to affect the choices she made. Given that this was given without notice or warning, she’s getting off pretty easy (add your favourite succubus joke here) with just a non-powered punch to the gazorpazovum. Not that Sydney’s in the right to punch anybody, but it’s likely quicker and easier than taking the case up with their C.O. at this point.
I think the big question is: was the “warm up” spell something that she deliberately added the “I feel sexy” feature to just for Sydney, or was it one of her standard emergency spells that she routine uses on herself (and either enjoys the extra effects, or even gets some health benefit from).
If the former, it’s harassment at the very least.
If the latter – it might have been a legitimate attempt at first aid. With the sexual component either unconsidered or ignored due to the need to help Sydney *right now*.
Its possible – in this instance, and for a very strict definition of the term – that Dabbler’s innocent. Hard as that is to believe.
Whether Dabs knew of side effects isn’t all that big a question. Consider what would happen if a doctor administered medicine without informing the patient -or even knowing about the side effects. More in medicine than elsewhere, ignorance is not a defense against liability for the consequences of one’s actions.
Administering medicine is not the same as what Dabbler did. There was no foreign body put into Sydney. There was no touching, including via a needle, done to Sydney. There is no assault. That’s the defense, not ignorance of the effects.
Although if you really want to use the ‘ignorance of the law is no excuse’ – it does, at the very least, mitigate a crime if intent is part of the criminal definition, because you need mens rea as well as actus reus when saying someone committed a crime.
Mens Rea = Guilty Mind
Actus Reus = Guilty Act
To have a guilty mind in the case of assault (and battery, though here we are using the term sexual assault, which is different than assault in assault and battery – it’s more like battery), you have to intend to commit the crime. Otherwise, whenever you bump into someone, they’d be able to say that you committed a battery upon them, despite you not intending to commit a battery when it happened.
With super powers being known in this setting (likewise with magic, once that becomes public knowledge too) I think the courts would need to examine the “no foreign body” in the light of the new elements involved.
Presently if someone introduced cyanide into the person we would recognise that a foreign body had been introduced. Would magically/super created cyanide be excluded from this law, because it was not formed by natural processes?
Should that be considered a foreign body, then other magical/super effects could be considered too.
For instance a magic/super power/super technology which exactly replicated the effects of cyanide in the target, but without actually creating any physical substance. I think that this would not be an unreasonable case to make.
Again should precedent be set confirming that, then any magic (et al) which created an effect similar to a known chemical, could be examined under existing case law established for abusive use of chemicals and drugs.
Magic is not public knowledge though. That’s protected by the veil. And yes, there’s ‘no foreign body’ in Sydney. It’s the equivalent of making Sydney watch a TV show that arouses her. The production of any sort of hormones within Sydney is not a foreign element – it’s her own hormones.
Also they’ve already dealt, in law, with technology and how it affects existing laws. Take listening devices, for example. If the police want to bug your house, they can only do it with a court order. Beacuse planting the bug would include an additional act –
basically breaking and entering the house and manipulating objects within the house (like the phone or whatever they plant a microphone on). HOWEVER…. if they want to use a device which just listens to the vibrations from your wall (like the UZI-OD-1 Observation Listening Device – a parabolic sound collecting dish), they can do that without a court order. There’s no invasion.
Same deal with things that might affect other people. If you want to wave your arms and cause a distraction, that’s not doing anything to another person, even if they are distracted. If you punch them in the fact, that’s also distracting them, but you’ve THEN committed a crime. Same result, but one’s legal and one’s not.
Same thing for getting a guy to have an arousal. If you hire a stripper to do a sexy dance, that’s legal. If you force some viagra down a guy’s throat, that’s not legal.
That’s how the courts would decide it, because that’s how the courts HAVE decided it in 4th amendment cases. They’d just take those decisions and apply it to other tech as well.
Magic, on the other hand, would probably have to have its own set of laws. But the court doesnt know about magic, even in Sydney’s world.
If this came to trial then it would become public knowledge. So it is pertinent for me to speculate on how that would affect the trial. However unlikely that is to happen.
Yesterday I linked to an article which maintains that at least one state still has an anti witchcraft law. Which rather implies that magic is already legally recognised. Albeit archaic and not repealed.
As such, if magic were to be proven to be real, then there is no rewriting needed (provided they are in said state). Dabbler could theoretically be burnt at the stake!
Morally speaking that is exactly what Dabbler has done to Sydney (Viagra can arouse many women, albeit not in quite the same way as in guys). Sydney was no more able to prevent Dabbler from artificially stimulating her, than the guy being physically force-fed pills.*
Legally? Well that would take test cases to prove. But I know U.S. courts are sympathetic to cases which have a solid moral basis.
Where they do have wriggle room I have found myself suitably impressed, over the years in seeing them bring a just result. Or apologising where the law, as framed, cannot accommodate a fair result. But that does at least give feedback to the lawmakers as to what amendments are required.
* Contrast that to the sexy dance alternative, where Sydney could choose to look away, or to walk out of the room. The two examples are dissimilar.
“If this came to trial then it would become public knowledge. So it is pertinent for me to speculate on how that would affect the trial.”
I doubt it would come to trial. And if it did come to trial, it wouldn’t be a public trial. It would likely be a military trial, which is closed to the public. Or a council trial, since Dabbler’s from the Council as well as Archon. And I think we can all agree that the council has better things to deal with than punishing a succubus for basically making a person feel horny. It’s sort of what happens around succubi in general.
“Yesterday I linked to an article which maintains that at least one state still has an anti witchcraft law. Which rather implies that magic is already legally recognised. Albeit archaic and not repealed.”
Actually no, magic is not legally recognized, even if there’s an anti-witchcraft law. That law would quickly be shot down as unconstitutional if it was EVER used. The only reason it hasn’t been is because it’s such a stupid law that it’s never been used. There are other laws that have never been used that are still on the books as well, like not having an ice cream cone in your back pocket, selling peanuts after sundown on Wednesday, playing Dominos on Sunday, letting a dog pursue a bear or bobcat at any time, having grocery stores provide plastic bags, having women drive while wearing a house coat, having any vehicle drive more than 60 mph, throwing a frisbee on the beach without the lifeguard’s written permission, opening an umbrella on the street (because it might spook horses), men can’t go outside with a jacket and pants that do not match, ice cream may not be eaten while standing on the sidewalk, riding a bicycle in a swimming pool, wearing cowboy boots if you don’t own at least two cows, wearing a fake moustache in church, putting salt on a railroad track, flicking boogers into the wind, wearing blue jeans while on the street, and that men who deflower virgins, regardless of age or marital status, may face up to five years in jail (in other words, sex of any kind is illegal).
Also, there are laws on the book that make incestuous relationships legal, peacocks have the right of way on ANY street, including driveways, and legal to drive the wrong way down a one-way street if you have a lantern attached to the front of your vehicle.
Not to mention those archaic laws tend to be from cities or states, and do not hold any sway in other cities or states even if they werent inane.
By the way, forcing viagra down someone’s throat – you wouldnt even have to get into sexual assault for that. That’s already criminal assault and battery to begin with. Plus sexual assault since there is touching involved.
I think a number of those laws are sensible ones. Throw the book at those reckless booger flickers!
Then perhaps you’d like to hear about these laws.
It is against the law for dogs to bark after 6pm in Arkansas.
In Connecticut, it is illegal to educate dogs. Whoever taught you how to use the internet broke the law in Connecticut, Yorpie.
It is illegal to give a dog whiskey in Illinois.
Also in Illinois, it is illegal to own a smelly dog.
More laws from Illinois against dogs – it’s illegal for a dog to bark for more than 15 minutes.
It is illegal for a cat and dog to fight in North Carolina.
In Oklahoma, if you want three or more dogs to be able to congregate on private property, the mayor of the city must give a permit.
In Wisconsin, it is illegal for a dog to worry squirrels in a public park.
Still think archaic laws that have never been challenged because of their stupidity are good for precedent? :)
You make a good point. Its a dog’s life.
That said though, in a world where magic is real, is a law which prohibits the casting of spells, for malevolent purposes, a stupid law?
Clearly all aspects which have been superseded by modern laws and practices would be inappropriate. So no trials by ordeal, where if you live you used witchcraft and only if you die were you innocent!
Plus, even with pharmaceutical companies refusing to provide drugs for executions, I do not think burning at the stake would be seen as an acceptable option.
Presently you indicate that there would be no legal defense against magical attacks. Yet there is an extant law which has been framed specifically to prevent such. Bearing in mind that, whilst it would not be needed against Dabbler (as Sydney has dealt with the matter), there are bound to be evil casters out there using curses and death magic.
Would a prosecution lawyer, seeking a means to remedy an observed injustice, not be remiss in choosing to ignore a law which would provide justice? Or would mages be permitted to murder anyone who they chose and get away with it simply because you feel the law is silly?
I should also mention that if they made a law which specifically singled out one person, or one group of people that didn’t include everyone else as well, that might be considered unconstitutional :)
That’s called a Bill of Attainder, and it’s unconstitutional under Article 1, Section 9, paragraph 3 “No bill of atainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.”
Just to be clear about what the heck a bill of attainder is, it’s making a law that singles out an individual or a group for punishment. IE, you can’t make a law making redheads illegal. You can’t make a law making black people illegal. You can’t make a law making the ability to have a child illegal. And you can’t make a law making superpowers illegal (which is what always struck me as funny about X-Men, since they always try to make the law against mutants in general, instead of just expanding existing laws to include ‘or by use of magic or powers’).
A very interesting point, and one I shall try to remember for super hero discussions.
Unlike in Harry Potter though, where the world is divided into those who can use magic and muggles who cannot, we have not yet had any indication that magic is restricted to certain individuals.
In fact the one clue we have had points the other way (to a degree). Gwen found a spellbook and taught herself magic from it. OK she may simply have been someone with mage potential, and succeeded where a muggle may not. In which case your attainder point would be applicable.
If though anybody can use it, then an anti-witchcraft law would be constitutional, as it would only persecute people who chose to learn and cast spells. This would be no more discriminatory than insider trading laws.
Well from a legal point. Morally they are different as insider trading only harms society. Whereas we have seen that magic can also do useful things (replicating the internet, create a shield, divine information useful to the police and so on).
A related matter is that Wicca is considered a legitimate religion. One which considers spell casting to be a central practice. Whilst that aspect has not been tested in court, it certainly would provide grounds for them to claim that any attainder was discriminating against their right to practice their religion.
Ironically it may turn out that the existing anti-witchcraft law could be enforced against everybody in society, barring those who practice Wicca.
*rolls laughing in fields of irony*
Just want to mention that wicca isn’t actually that old :) They just act like it is. Wicca was actually developed in 1954 by Gerald Gardner in the UK (ironically three years after the UK repealed its Witchcraft Laws). It just borrowed from some ancient pagan concepts, but most of it’s very modern. Has nothing to do with actual witchcraft.
There is a reasonable argument to be made that they are continuing the ancient traditions and that he just formalised them, whilst reinterpreting aspects to suit present-day society.
Something that all religions have done, to one degree or another, down through the ages. Not to mention secular society using similar mechanisms to rationalise their world-view, and change it as beliefs evolve (for instance dropping the steady state theory as more evidence supported the Big Bang).
Nowadays that example is ingrained in the secular mindset. Yet it too is a modern adaptation of earlier concepts. Ironically in that the first were proposed because an ever-existing universe conflicted with religious doctrine!
No, Yorpie. Seriously, Wicca is not ‘continuing ancient traditions.’ It’s very well established, but they just tend to act like their religion is ancient when it’s not even remotely so.
It was created in 1954 in England – the same year that Scientology was in the United States. :)
Thought Scientology was started in the 1910’s? o_O
While Wicca may be modern practice (would hardly class it as a ‘religion’), they are continuing ancient traditions
They have a reasonable basis, to make their claim.
Yes, it was a ‘pick and mix’ creation, rather than a continuation of a cohesive body of practice. But various of the rituals and beliefs are documented as having been conducted in antiquity.
Honestly, the military prefers this sort of resolution. Less paperwork, and you dont have to fire a valuable team member (or both) for stepping over a line if you didnt see nothin.
Schedule some fanart for Xmas day? If there’s some that hasn’t been posted yet?
A ‘clip show’ of previous art?
There’s still DaveB’s Deviant Art pages (with a selection of NSFW art included; if you’ve registered as over 18 years old, you can access them) just in case you’re feeling withdraw symptoms…
Anvil’s face looks like the “Just Right” meme from Emperor’s New Groove
And her abs/ body looks just right out of my dreams!
As a Christmas present, Anvil is the “total package” & we can still unwrap that with our eyes.
:P
I have showered in a lot of public baths and there were allways either full walls between shower heads or none at all. Never have I seen these half walls. It’s almost as if these showers were constructed for this comic ;-)
Also the water streams are strange.
What’s even stranger is the apparent lack of shower heads. I can’t see any, and they were there on the previous page. Do they retract inside the walls when they’re not in use, or did Dave simply forget to draw them?
I’d say the last option, earlier scenes have shown shower heads producing water and not doing so.
Besides, why retract, that only gives a more complicated system.
see: Grrl Power #337 – Superheroines in the shower
Wow. I din’t even NOTICE the lack of Shower heads.
Max must be hypnotic herself.
…Or it could be from the reflective glare…
They are protected by the Veil when not in use because they use magic. Introduced after budget cuts, those guys spend to much time in the showers.
Heh. Swift justice. Totally not PC, but Dabbler can’t be dealt with by mechanisms designed to keep humans in check. When dealing with an intransigent demon, use demon techniques!
But… where will Halo get the 40 lb tub of Ovalkwik, and the flamenco dancers’ castanets on such short notice?
I just read this in Pinky’s voice. Narf!
HULK SMASH PUNY DOORKNOB!
Hulk was actually very gentle with doorknobs and has an amazing glass figurine set. I mean look at that pretty set: https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/avengers-assemble/images/8/89/Hulk%27s_Room.PNG/revision/latest?cb=20140427225704
Even when Hulk has been in his intellectually regressed state, he has always been gentle…Until somebody attacks him. He’s always careful to not hurt or damage kittens, flowers & anything else…Heck, even if Hulk gets attacked while petting a kitten, he’ll literally smash tank with one hand, while protecting the kitten with the other hand. Hulk knows how strong he is & how fragile everything else is.
But as we turn back to Max & her shower, I’m gonna be over here & guarding my knob against an accident…
I see what you did there.
*blushes*
Pander, stop peeping! Shame on you!
*averting eyes from MidnightDStroyer*
Hey Yorpie, btw I used my legal knowledge to defend your posts in another thread :)
*does happy little doggy dance*
You are a very good person.
Just keep checking the
atticplace of legal confinement, to see if your evil twin is still locked up. ;-)Well I like dogs. And you can tell the evil twin is locked up if she still has a goatee.
Remember, all evil twins have goatees.
Unless they recently shaved it off…
Oh, so she put on a white hat and became a good twin?
*wags tail deductively*
I don’t think anybody’s going to complain if you take one or two days off for holidays.
Saying that is like saying “at least the day cant get any worse…”
Maxima looks down at the beaten and dazed Dabbler,who in turn eyes her towel…
Max:(looking at her towel)Don’t…even…go…there! You…you..purple pervert!!!
Dabbler:(coming out of her daze)Where is she???
Sydney:Who???
Dabbler:Jizza..er..Jazza Ng,Jabberwocky!!!
Maxima gives Dabbler the stink eye and it would be worse is she learned what transpired before she arrived.
I have no idea what a gazorpazovum is or how vital it is for Dabbler, but Sydney really got a good hit in if she’s still incapacitated and twitching on the floor.
I am assuming it is related to her ovum, most of which are in her ovaries. Punching a woman hard enough to damage those will definitely incapacitate you.
It’s Dabbler. She’s still twitching on the floor but there’s no telling if it’s because of Sydney’s Space Kidney punch or…well, because it’s Dabbler. Any excuse for some floor-twitchin’ probably sounds like a good one for Dabs.
Dabbler may be pulling the ‘Florence Nightingale’ act that Math tried years ago – you know, act hurt in hopes that some cute grrl will nurse her back to health…
It’s a Rick and Morty reference. In relation to a 4-armed species that shows up as a sort of running gag, after its first use in a very strange episode.
Don’t they have six arms? o_O
Huh, they do. I did not realize that they actually had the quad torso arms as well.
Though it seems that any crossbreeds with 4 limbed species do lack the second pair coming out of the shoulders.
Damn, that ol’ ‘ol gazorpazovum must be one hell of a nerve point.
Interesting information though.
Filed under: succubi, nerve points, one punch knock out, disable, suckerpunch.
Seems much like getting punched in the kidney, which may be what Sydney intended.
Keep in mind some people tend to overdramatisise the results of being hit.
Several of my friends have playfully punched or slapped me only to have me fly across the room as if they’d put their weight behind it, I’m a bit of a fan of slapstick.
so it’s not to much of a stretch to imagine Dabbler’s just humoring Sydney’s vindictiveness.
It’s easier to film everything going on in the showers for later use if everyone there think you are incapacitated.
Maybe, but Jabber has left (maybe only because of Kenya), Kenya has come in, Maxima a bit later otherwise Kenya’s comment doesn’t make sense, so at least 5 to 10 minutes down time.
If Dabbler was human I would be thinking of calling some medical assistance or at least talk to her how she’s doing.
I’m kinda concerned at how casual Max is being about Sydney assaulting Dabbler, but on the other hand, Dabby-poo could be faking it.
As for the questions on the faucets, maybe they’re just built in to the ceilings or something? I’ve seen some really nice shower heads while considering redoing the bathroom in my shower, some are literally set into the ceiling.
Max started by asking what happened. The side effects question supplied the answer. A good military leader understands that sometimes the troops pranks, word, or actions, inspire the others to apply corrective actions to the culprit. Depending on cause and response the leader then decides to act or ignore it. This time Max ignored it. Other times she has yelled at Syd for her actions. Max is just basically being a good strong leader. Some military leaders never learn how to do this sadly. Those that don’t, especially in combat teams, may not last long.
It helps that Max knows Dabbler and knows that Syd probably could not do any lasting critical damage to Dabbler with her bare hands. As a succubus, Dabbler is not exactly subtle about things.
Dabs is definitely faking it.
She shrugged off getting smashed into a wall, no way a normal human punch leaves her twitching on the floor.
Acting hurt may not even be a scheme for sympathy sexiness. Many species include “drama” in their play fighting. Especially elders reacting to cubs’ vicious pounces. It could just be Dabbler’s non-verbal “mea culpa” to Sydney’s objection to the “side effects”.
(PS: A male lion’s “roar of pain” when a 2 kg cub chomps his tail is adorable, especially the first time the cub hears it.)
Given Dabbler knows healing spells, and doubtless some of her attached gimmicks also do healing, I’d have to say she’s milking it.
…A beautiful mental image there…
Hypnoboobs & milking…
What’s the best way to assure a party can’t heal its damage? Take out the healer. Sydney’s caused Dabs enough pain that she can’t concentrate on spells. She’ll be out a while, until her natural healing can kick in.
I don’t remember Anvil being so… catty? Is that the correct word?
She does like teasing Max though.
It seems like everyone does. Poor Max have a hard job trying to keep order in this place filled with trolls, pervs and weirdoes.
Actually the trolls are in the Twilight Council and the weirdoes are in the Mansion of E. Usually under bridges or in attics respectively.
yeah, and the Pervects go to “The Bazaar” on Deva.
@Titan
Dabbler’s a mage with access to hypertech. One of her eyes is a hypertech prosthesis. If she really wanted to see any of the ladies in the buff, she’d already have done so. I suspect this is just her being aggressively transgressive about boundaries; an artefact of her succubus nature. Or possibly her relationship with Max.
Note that she doesn’t do it to Anvil, or Heatwave, or the other lovely ladies of ArcSWAT.
People who she definitely outranks power-wise. She only persists in picking on the only woman who could definitely pound her into the dirt.
Maybe she’s a masochist.
“Enjoys antagonizing anyone she percieves as prude”
from the cast who’s who, upper right. Max presents as a target; Dabs takes the shot.
Dabbler presents as a target; Sydney takes the shot. Dabbler goes down hard (and not the way she likes to).
Do we have canon that says Dabbler hasn’t already got al the rest of the team in the buff, or is this a case of a lack of evidence constitutes evidence? For all we know, Dabblers has all the team already in a little folder on her computer’s hard drive labelled “Super Hot!” and she’s after Maxima to complete the set…
That said, your point is well taken. Dabbler probably tweaks (not twerks, tweaks) on Maxima because she she gets such a great reaction.
Absence of evidence is not evidence of an absence. Just because you have not found something does not mean it is not there; it just means that your searching strategies are not effective enough.
The main motivation for teasing is the reaction, and Max’s reactions are golden for Dabbler.
She may not have pictures and may have no intention of actually aquiering any, but that doesn’t stop her from saying so just to get a reaction. A case where words do not nessisarilly equal actual intent. But ther eis no way to be sure either. Another posibility, is she made the claim, to keep Max out of the female showers so she can do her antics freely?
I AM fond of telling the rogues in my D&D games, “You don’t find the trap.”
The first time a player reacts to that is always fun…
*chuckles evilly*
I’m calling it.
Sydney hit her in some special, sucubus orgasm organ that’s got her stuck in pleasure overdrive… or maybe some tantric energy absorption thing that’s looping her own tantric energy into her.
Something tells me this isn’t the first or last time Dabblers ‘helpful’ spells have had side effects.
Something tells me that Dabbler considers getting sucker punched a possible “side effect”, also. Or she’s just as impulsive as Sydney in her own way.
Equal and opposite ADHD!
That is very true.
Just thinking, Sydney’s punch…a lucky punch? I mean, one thing the Orbs don’t give her is super-strength, as far as I know…hmmm….there is that last mystery orb….though she wasn’t holding it….still it would be interesting to have one Orb that gave her abilities without needing to be held….but that would be too easy.
Where did she punch Dabs, in a frame that we would be able to understand.
I thought Syd went for a boob punch (quite painful I’m told) but probably a little more vital to her kind.
I didn’t put Syd as a back puncher.
Sydney would have had to adjust her position from face-to-face to be able to aim for the back. How did she know that spot was particularly sensitive to a Dabbler-Type succubus?
Probably just a case of the joke wouldn’t have worked otherwise so don’t overthink it.
Dabs’s could have been turning to walk off, giving Syd the angle to hit her from behind. And, on the Kapow image, there is, what looks like a dent in Dabs’s skin on her back where Syd’s fist is. But it could be the scene a fraction of a second after contact which caused Dabs to spin and a motion line round Syd’s fist.
Max is fine with it anyway. Just wanting to know for future reference should I ever have to fight one off ;o)
To me it looked more like a side strike, near what would be a kidney strike for a human. I do not think Sydney aimed for anything specifically. As to what she actually hit, only dabbler really knows, and maybe that doctor of thiers.
It may simply be a case of convergent evolution. Brains are vital, so get put in a solid case. They need to be near to the senses, and height gives an advantage to sight, so a bunch of common organs are in the same place for bilaterally symmetrical bipeds.
And evolution would get rid of any critters which had their sensitive organs in exposed places.
So, even though the kidney and the gazorpazovum serve very different functions, their vulnerability requires that they be placed in a position where they are less likely to be hit in a fight.
evolution would get rid of any critters which had their sensitive organs in exposed places.
Except crabs.
Oh yeah – except these guys, too.
or him (or her?)
or whatever the hellthis thing is.
Eyes have to be exposed to function. And their function can be enhanced by being on stalks, which can help avoid an attack. Whereas those species with recessed eyes, or which surround them with other defensive features, will suffer a corresponding loss of sight.
You will note that the crab very sensibly keeps all of its other organs nicely behind armour, including its equivalent of kidneys.
yeah, I was just tweaking you a bit. Any generalization re evolution has scads of exceptions. Or, as I prefer to think of it:
God: Hey, Charlie! I see you figured out that whole evolution and “survival of the fittest” thing. Good on, ya, lad! Very clever, here, have a platypus.
Why wouldnt you consider her a back puncher? She’s also a tongue flipper and head biter.
She is one of the heroes. And that sort of thing is unhero like.
Sydney is a superhero in training. Who has not had much training yet, so needs to make do with tongue fu and kidney punches.
But I assure you that her combat training will include training specifically covering attacking vitals. Sydney has demonstrated her bravery,* so does qualify for being heroic, in that aspect. Sadly her language and childish behaviour makes her fall short of a heroic ideal, on other fronts. However in her role as a soldier surviving a fight is more important than ‘playing fair’.
Of course, under circumstances where Halo is in a policing role, or otherwise likely to influence public opinion, she would be wise to stick to approved police techniques (and avoid assault and battery for that matter). However here she was resolving a matter in private, and going up against someone capable of beating the most powerful super on the planet.
Having made the decision to use force,. there would only be a limited range of options which would work against Dabbler. Sydney chose one which was brutal but effective. Whereas if she chose a fair fight, she probably would loose against the vastly more experienced Dabbler (who is 187 years old).
* Risking dying by protecting her teammates from Vehemence’s attack, but thereby leaving herself defenseless against him.
Pssh. Sydney likes wearing a Deadpool shirt. Deadpool is a ‘hero’ too.
Other heroes who have hit other heroes:
Cyborg
Wolverine
Psylocke
Captain America
Iron Man
Hulk
She-Hulk
Hercules
Thor
Wasp
Ant-Man
Black Panther
Winter Soldier
Superman
Batman
Wonder Woman
Spider-Man
Punisher (duh)
Every Single member of the Runaways
Jubilee
Monet St. Croix
Skin
Thing
Human Torch
Mr. Fantastic
Plastic Man
Savage Dragon
….
You know what if I write every single hero who has hit another hero, I won’t have enough space in this buffer.
Not to mention it happens so often in first time meetings that there’s are several tropes about it:
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HeadbuttingHeroes
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FightingYourFriend
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LetsYouAndHimFight
Love Maxima’s understanding on this situation.
if you avent already you should watch sky high,,, its a super hero high school movie and the MC’s father has a drawer full of hand phone in the kitchen for when he get upset and pulverise one using his super strength :)
Hah! Max made a play on “One-eyed one-horned flying purple people eater!” Still more nerdy than she lets on.
Reminds me of the Dirty Dozen film where a few people used the excuse that the “slipped on some soap” when they had been on the wrong end of a fist.
Maxima’s right hand is on her left arm in the last panel. Still a great comic
Either Dave fixed that really fast or you misperceived.
Look again – she’s pointing with her palm up, not palm down. The thumb is in the correct place and the fingers curl the correct way if the palm is facing up.
Granted, it’s drawn a bit awkwardly and I hardly know anyone that actually points in this manner, but I do have a few oddball friends who do this.
Not exactly palm up, more tilted on an angle, and it really depends on how she is standing
Personally, when standing in a similar fashion with arm like that, the wrist rotates slightly
To be fair, I saw the same thing Erdan did at first, and Guesticus’ explanation is also more correct than own.
Interesting that Anvil knows what Max’s private shower feels like.
She’s probably used it, more than once, sometimes even alone…
Didn’t Hercules once tow Manhattan Island back into place?
I seem to recall he put the Battery in the wrong place…
I love that Sydney actually managed to put Dabbler out of commission with a mere punch.
May everyone have a fine solstice celebration!
Happy Hannukah!
Merry Christmas!
Festivus for the rest of us!
Let’s see if i remember the greeting….
Merry Yulexmasannukwanzaa!
Why thank you, and to you.
* hands over a plump carrot, with a festive bow on it*
Whatever happened to Decemberwe’en?
Okay, where did Jabbs go? Cereally doubt she would have willingly left, specially with a prone Dabbles in need of comfort
Three pages ago Dabbler was having to cover up for a security lapse, where Jabberwokky saw something above her pay grade. So far we have seen Sydney being appropriately discreet with the confidential information she has. Discussing details of the secret mission they were just on, in front of Jabberwokky, would not have been appropriate.
If you note on the previous page Jabberwokky was not visible at all. It was my reading that Sydney waited until she had left, before bringing up the points on that page.
That twitch was just Dabbler’s potentially naked Max sense tingling.
Heh.
Although hearing that her good eye might be ripped out could account for the reaction too.
I like Anvil’s hair in panel 1 there.
Did Anvil always have such big lips? I never noticed before…
Ever since Dave posted that reference photo of Jim Carrey I’m seeing his smirk in almost every strip – Anvil in frame 3 today. Just me, or has anyone else noticed it?
Anvil isn’t in frame three…
Second frame. Higher mathematics was always a bit tricky for me.
Actually, a Queen is a princess that has gotten a Field Promotion ….. XD
The Hulk when he was Joe Fixit. Yes, his resting strength maxed at only 80 tons, around the strength of the Thing, but he was living in an apartment or house in Las Vegas, not some custom built high-tech base. Door handles and shower knobs… Joe Fixit.
Wreck It Ralph, Joe Fixit, and Fix it Felix walk into a bar, the bartender takes one look at the 3 of them and says
“Is this some kind of joke?”
*sits in an attentive position, ears cocked, awaiting the reply*
I’m going to assume Dabbler getting decked for her antics is not an infrequent occurrence.
I’d wager that getting pounded & going down is a sensation that’s not wholly unfamiliar to Dabbs…
Oh yeah…
MM… the beauty that is known as Anvil graces us this day. I love it.