Annotated 15-14
Caneghem-ahems: “Dude. Dude. Dude. DUDE. DUDE. SHUT. UP.”
To be honest, this is my least favorite of the Heads-of-Houses scenes, because there’s a little too much of the Heads acting as a single unit. Even if it’s pretty obvious what they’ll end up doing, we usually imbue them with some lively variety, and that’s chiefly due to Phil’s early notes on their personalities. But everyone in panel 3, except MAYBE Caneghem, is projecting the same emotion: “I guess we have to put up with this guy flapping his gums for a while until he tires himself out and we write him a check, but man, I wish he’d hurry it up.” Like, Iwatani hasn’t taken over the government YET, so why’s everyone acting like he has? Surely one or two of the other Heads should be giving him more static over his ridiculously criminal son, whether out of honest concern for legal precedent or to press their own political advantage.
Some great bits from coldelectrons about what Caneghem might be writing while this is going on:
There is a nation called Gastoni
whose leaders are full of baloney
Elves, Gnomes and Men
all supposedly friends
I laugh behind my face-stoney
There was once a Great Observatorium
whose tenants were lacking decorum
but when pencil-neck human lout
drove a hammer-tank through and about
they were evicted by popular gnome-forum
The gnome sitting to my left
is not politically deft
when I’m clearing my throat
he pays it no note
and continues to get us both eff’d
Conjuration / shopping list:
milk
eggs
bread
white wine
Dapper Dan’s hair gel
something called “duck tape”? – ask gnome hardware vendor
a bag of Dr. Tran’s Dire-Peppermint Dickables
magic blotting paper
300 board-feet Akerran pine
socks
“He’s a true Arkerran legend.”
“What? I’ve never been to Arkerra!”
“…FROM ARKERRA!”
If there’s one thing that can unite the Heads of Houses, it’s a complete disregard for the lives of non-humans.
And now Taro stole the alt-text. Is there nothing that brat won’t do?
Surely he’s incapable of cold-blooded murder, at least!
I didn’t get a sense that Iwatani was being treated like he’d taken over. This just felt like noble house privilege on display alongside obvious racism.
Also, like this was a formality, after all the backstage deals were made with “everyone who mattered” being on-board with whatever favors were called in.
This scene, while I really liked it due to the attempt at calling out the blatant racism of the council, still confused me. Because back when we saw the agreement to create the machine, I thought I remembered Reynolds being there doing the handshaking on the agreement. Yet here he is all aghast that the Professors “betrayed their oath.”
This is the scene I am recalling http://guildedage.net/comic/annotated-14-7/ The gnome in front looks like a slightly younger Dean Reynolds.
I asked about that when it came up again last chapter, and it earned an explanation in the post here: http://guildedage.net/comic/annotated-14-11/
It isn’t entirely clear, but I don’t think the original agreement was to create this machine. Rather, there was an agreement that Reynolds signed to help develop weaponry for Gastonia. But then Bandit stole and destroyed that agreement which…cancelled it…somehow. But the professors apparently went on to keep developing weapons and started selling them to both sides. And…somehow Taro got involved. Hell, it’s Taro. He might be the mastermind behind the whole thing.
I never really got how Caneghem got so invested so quickly.
I mean, unless his plan was to get advance warning before Gastonia or Don Goblino were to gain access to large-scale air power… but even then, why freak out about what the gnomes do?
I was wondering a bit about Caneghem’s part here and in the end I just think he was simply trying to get him to avoid having to “suffer this righteous spiel”, like everyone else.
Really, he’s no better. Hell to me he’s one of the worst in the story.
I think that Caneghem is trying to stop Dean Reynolds from turning himself into a target. He also joined the heads of houses in order to appear to be playing along. He’s just buying time until he can enact his own plan.