Annotated 41-9
I don’t think I figured out that the Sepia heroes had worked out to be “another five” until I got to the part of the script where Carol reasonably asks, “How MANY other people?” and I was like, “Oh, hey.” Patterns arranged subconsciously, yada yada.
“Shrill and unattractive” was our last nod to the idea that Carol’s interactions with Shanna had a certain unacknowledged sexual dimension, especially on Carol’s side. I mean, there had to be a more professional way for Carol to describe a target to JJ than that. With this and the phrase “screechy, underfed paranoiac,” she seems to be working very hard to emphasize how repulsive she finds Shanna, as if this will prove that her moment of “infidelity” to HR never happened. “Her voice is so whiny, it could never have had any power over me, under any circumstances.”
But most people seemed to miss this idea! I suppose you could read it all as “Carol’s emotions are out of control in general, and that’s why she’s going low with the insults.” No big deal, I’ll just file this away with “Syr’Nj had a crush on Best.” So plot threads based on subtle attraction don’t come through to most readers without a lot of underlining. S’all good. Y’all got almost all of what we were putting down. The rest was a learning experience for next time.
And there is indeed a next time coming up! On February 12, Webtoon will launch Traveler, a superhero story with me on writing and lettering, Jason Waltrip on pencils, John on inks, and Monica Marier on colors. If you’ve been following the GA annotations carefully, you may already have some idea what it’s about…
Oh yay! I’m excited!
Signing your work with a giant “T,” subtle.
Wait…a “couple” of others? Did I miss someone other than Kaye?
He’s including his intimidation of Joel in that count, I think?
I assumed he was talking about having intimidated Joel and paid off the pizza guy (out of his own pocket!). Not killed, but he’d had to go out of his way to deal with them (and again, drop some of his own cash) to finish the job.
It’s important that Carol does not think he killed anyone, so it’s only fair he includes those who are still alive but would be expected to not cause any trouble for Hurricane.
Speaking of which: funny thing that Blizzard recently did get bought by Microsoft, no? They’ve come so far yet fallen so low …
Congratulations on your new project, gentlemen. I’m sure I speak for us all in wishing you success and prosperity with it!
Oooh, new comic! Very exciting! Looking forward to it.
Eeeeee, a new T webcomic, after ten years! Hurray hurray!
I am not really a fan of Webtoon, but, by god, for a new T and Waltrips comic! I WILL be
Good news, T, on the new webcomic. I’ll be tuning in…
Thanks, everyone. Looking forward to it myself. It’ll be nice being “published” again.
Thus the ancient pact is fulfilled once more … Every time you make a new story, I’ll read it (especially if a Waltrip is involved) Lots of luck in this new endeavor!
OH MY GOD YOU’RE COMING BACK?! AAAAAAAAHHHHH THAT’S AMAZING I’VE MISSED YOUR STORIES! (Even more so with all this rereading, it adds so much to the story, like all the romance I missed because anything subtler than a kiss gets over my dumb head…!)
And space! Futuristic outlook! Oh I can’t wait!!!
So glad to hear about the new project. Expecting great things from our known trio and the new party member.
This might have been a real good time to just drop it. Let Shannah and her band be just one more bunch of conspiracy theorists. “They think a tech billionaire is a supervillain, and it’s not Bezos?” “So, they kidnapped five gamers and keep them in glass tubes. Is a sex thing or a vampire thing?”
I look forward to this new endeavour!
I don’t think one needs to assume any sexual component at all to “get” the “shrill and unattractive” remark, at least not in terms of Carol being sexually attracted to Shannah at any point in time.
Of course, she was persuaded to let her guard down, so she now needs to rationalize that that was a really stupid thing and cannot possibly happen again. And there _is_ some sexual undertone to her relationship with HR, uncomfortable as is may be, and probably some unresolved element in her own private life: Carol thinks she’s still totally attractive and her love life is only taking a small break while she’s dealing with this whole mess and advances her career, and all that — while part of her senses that it’s probably over already because she’s married to Hurricane now. So she also has a need to believe that her romantic chances are totally fine. And what better way to do that than by comparing yourself favourably to others of similar age whom you have a need to believe are worse than yourself, in every respect?
I think there’s almost nothing about Shannah she wouldn’t be using in a similar way. I mean, just look at her hair, or her clothes! No taste whatsoever. Of course not because Shannah is obviously some lunatic with nothing but hate for the games industry, and that defines her life. Not really a proper well-rounded human. She probably doesn’t even have any friends who might miss her if JJ … scares her and she decides to never talk to anyone anymore. Right?