By: Zak McKracken

Zak McKracken — Tue, 31 Jan 2023 22:44:33 +0000

I absolutely love that Byron has more sympathy for Bandit than Syr’Nj does. And is also sufficiently relaxed to quietly support her without requiring anything from her end. He does not go on a mission to win her friendship back, even though I’d want him to do that. He’s fine with it, and that’s probably much wiser than what I’d do in his stead. This is something he can teach Syr’Nj. Hope she’s paying attention.

By: T

Sat, 28 Jan 2023 22:26:55 +0000

Thanks, Hilen. That’s pretty great to hear.

By: Jim

Jim — Sat, 28 Jan 2023 13:20:34 +0000

Bandit looks so hopeful for her future here. I love it. And I have really enjoyed this second go around.

By: Hilen

Hilen — Sat, 28 Jan 2023 05:31:39 +0000

Your comment about the “pilling lasts” really punches me. This story is ending for a second time, and it all feels so… Inevitable. It makes sense- no story can prolong itself forever, otherwise it becomes twisted and lifeless, unrecognizable. And stories like this are eternal, in that we can always look back to them and re-embark on the wonderful, beautiful journey. But… The tragedy of fiction is that it does not continue once it is over (at least, my mind always weeps when the canon dies.) We can imagine these people doing a thousand things, yet their stories trully end here. This is Sr’Nj’s final dialogue. This is Gondolessa’s final appearance. I could draw or write about them, but they wouldn’t be the same characters, simply because they are not the same you and your team envisioned. It is all such a bittersweet paradox, really- That they can be eternal and finite at the same time.
Or maybe i’m speaking out the usual depression I feel when a piece of art I’ve been reading for years gets to its natural conclution. This story was a regular companion for me for more than ten years now. It taught me what a “plot-twist” could really be, it taught me the complexity of political and social conflict that I should aspire to emulate on any of my stories, and overall, it offered wonder, and joy, and hope. The “re-run” offered a new insight into the workings behind this masterpiece, on the real struggles you went through with it. And while it pains me to see it “go”, all I want to say is thank you. I might have said this before, and if that’s the case, I apologize. But I’m a nobody from the southest end of the world, and I could have never dreamed of ever finding a work out there that inspired me so much, that moved me to laughter and tears so often. If the stories of these characters cannot span indefinitely, may pride over bringing them to life forever nest in your heart. I know I will never forget Guilded Age, and I will never cease to be grateful for its existence.

Comments on: Annotated 50-24

By: Zak McKracken

By: T

By: Jim

By: Hilen