Annotated 24-9
I helped steer this one, and I’m proud of that last line, which is easily the sassiest version of Ardaic the series would ever present. (Phil shortened it and added some punch to it, though.) Also, highlighting Ardaic’s more sympathetic qualities may have thrown some of you off the scent, here.
By now, Phil and I were definitely writing Ardaic with his developing crush on Syr’Nj in mind. He’s much too much of a professional to let a little thing like jealousy keep him and Byron from their shared goals. But you can still hear a faint undercurrent of “UGH, you KID, you just don’t know how good you HAVE it with her.”
Gold star comment by Kokuten: “Lobbying? DON’T YOU MEAN LOBBEARING? WITH SUCH CHARACTERS AS BYRON THE BEARACRAT”
That really is a great last line.
And that really is the perfect avatar image for that comment.
*bow*
I agree. Sassy Ardaic is hilarious.
Wait, Ardaic has a crush on Syr’Ng? I never noticed the first time through. That makes two crushes that were so subtle, I completely mistook them for disdain.
Given how explicit he was about his feelings right after the “altruists” revealed themselves to her, I’m putting that down to “you missed at least a couple strips,” not “the writing was super subtle.”
(And it’s Syr’Nj.)
The commentary brought up an interesting question in my mind. Putting aside the Sepia World connection for a moment, how old is Syr’Nj?
In much of modern fantasy literature, elves have a lifespan that last centuries. And as a result they, tend to mature at a slower rate. Is Syr’Nj is several decades older than Byron (and perhaps even Ardaic)?
This is something Phil and I were a bit vague about even with ourselves. We didn’t want to make a huge issue of it the way LoTR did, but it could well be a factor in different races’ different worldviews. In one of the “Ask an Adventurer” strips, Fr’Nj says, “She’s older than me! Like, a LOT older.” But that could be partly just Li’l Sis needling Big Sis, like you do.
I’d say that I think of her as the emotional equivalent to early thirties, however old she actually, literally is.
Wait. I forgot. There is a reference to Naror’Nj living for centuries in Chapter 19. So, uh, yeah.
I remember laughing out loud a little at the last line. It’s a good one, and shows Ardaic knows what the heads are like, even if he chooses to ignore it.
It’s a good line, and in spite of some of his actions I like Ardaic quite a lot. I can’t help feeling for that blonde guy in the last panel. He’s either a player who chose the most boring class the game has to offer, or someone living through one of the most tumultuous times in his world, and working in an office. Either way he does not look thrilled to be there.