Seeeeeee? What have we learned about things we’ve heard about secondhand and making judgments about people we’ve only just met?
Thanks, Dave, I appreciate you not going down the route that demonizes a man simply because of rumors and a past he’s clearly trying to atone for. He’s really no worse than Selkie’s mom.
It still doesn’t make her worries any less justified. They just came out of a Civil War and Scar is like a former SS officer, with superpowers.
Her being very wary of him is very understandable.
Humans have the capacity to be utterly heartless and cruel to people outside their circle of sympathy, while being kind and empathetic to people within their circle. If you need evidence for this, look at plantation owners in the U.S. South during slavery.
Sarnothi aren’t human, so we don’t know whether Scar shares the same psychological mechanisms. But the fact that he saved the life of an acquaintance says _nothing_ about his trustworthiness around people he may consider enemies or sub-his-kind-of-Sarnothi.
I wasn’t thinking in terms of in-group loyalty, but I did want to point out that we have seen a certain amount of actions, combined with a certain amount of history (that we haven’t seen directly — just know about second- and third-hand) and a certain amount of in-universe speculation.
He’s done some good things and we understand him to have also done some bad things (though it’s possible this was a disinformation campaign? I forget the details of what we know). We’re familiar with tropes and a lot of us, me included, are ready to accept him as a positive character with a negative past — all the more since Dave seems nearly incapable of writing villains who stay villains (a positive characteristic in a writer, I would say).
However, our speculation can’t be conclusive; we honestly don’t know if he’s:
a. Turned into a good guy
b. Still a bad guy, but finds it advantageous to pretend to be reformed (and pretend to be mentally challenged)
c. Turned into a good guy, but still going to do bad things out of a sense of necessity
d. Was never a bad guy, but only seemed so because of a misinformation campaign or hearsay/misunderstanding
e. Some fifth possibility not accounted for in the above
In other words, we really can’t say for certain, at this point, whether he’ll turn out to be trustworthy, or whether the characters who don’t yet trust him will find that lack of trust to be true/important later on.
But regardless of whether he’s trustworthy right now, it’s reasonable for Sai Fen to distrust him, given his past. That’s her being a rational agent with children to protect.
I’m just going to assume that Pohl is fascinated by cats (as many people are) and followed the cat off screen and is now petting Crook and giving him a lap to claim for a while. Doing so would also allow both to avoid all the drama plus pohl would also get the emotional/stress-relieving benefits of petting an animal.
Third panel, got another accidental tangent: Looks like Todd’s eating the floor. Pac-Man Todd! Nom nom nom nom nom.
The Return of Pants!
(sequel of the much loved Pants Strikes Back)
I find your lack of Pants disturbing.
Seeeeeee? What have we learned about things we’ve heard about secondhand and making judgments about people we’ve only just met?
Thanks, Dave, I appreciate you not going down the route that demonizes a man simply because of rumors and a past he’s clearly trying to atone for. He’s really no worse than Selkie’s mom.
It still doesn’t make her worries any less justified. They just came out of a Civil War and Scar is like a former SS officer, with superpowers.
Her being very wary of him is very understandable.
Humans have the capacity to be utterly heartless and cruel to people outside their circle of sympathy, while being kind and empathetic to people within their circle. If you need evidence for this, look at plantation owners in the U.S. South during slavery.
Sarnothi aren’t human, so we don’t know whether Scar shares the same psychological mechanisms. But the fact that he saved the life of an acquaintance says _nothing_ about his trustworthiness around people he may consider enemies or sub-his-kind-of-Sarnothi.
Geez… This comic’s fandom is hell-bent on seeing the best in people, innit?
Isn’t that what makes this the best fandom though? I love that!
I wasn’t thinking in terms of in-group loyalty, but I did want to point out that we have seen a certain amount of actions, combined with a certain amount of history (that we haven’t seen directly — just know about second- and third-hand) and a certain amount of in-universe speculation.
He’s done some good things and we understand him to have also done some bad things (though it’s possible this was a disinformation campaign? I forget the details of what we know). We’re familiar with tropes and a lot of us, me included, are ready to accept him as a positive character with a negative past — all the more since Dave seems nearly incapable of writing villains who stay villains (a positive characteristic in a writer, I would say).
However, our speculation can’t be conclusive; we honestly don’t know if he’s:
a. Turned into a good guy
b. Still a bad guy, but finds it advantageous to pretend to be reformed (and pretend to be mentally challenged)
c. Turned into a good guy, but still going to do bad things out of a sense of necessity
d. Was never a bad guy, but only seemed so because of a misinformation campaign or hearsay/misunderstanding
e. Some fifth possibility not accounted for in the above
In other words, we really can’t say for certain, at this point, whether he’ll turn out to be trustworthy, or whether the characters who don’t yet trust him will find that lack of trust to be true/important later on.
But regardless of whether he’s trustworthy right now, it’s reasonable for Sai Fen to distrust him, given his past. That’s her being a rational agent with children to protect.
Where is Pohl?
in the kitchen trying to go the sarnothi equivalent of super sayain
Pohl is wherever Crook goes when he’s off-panel but still canonically in the apartment. Soooooo… Todd’s bed?
Oh myyy. Pohl, how could you? Sai Fen will kill/maim you both. Unless she joins? …how would this work?
A conversation must first be had.
I’m just going to assume that Pohl is fascinated by cats (as many people are) and followed the cat off screen and is now petting Crook and giving him a lap to claim for a while. Doing so would also allow both to avoid all the drama plus pohl would also get the emotional/stress-relieving benefits of petting an animal.
Family comic people! Keep it clean!
We don’t want to turn this into “Blowup” (1960s movie about fashion photog.). Something…something… Purple paper….
Cheesecake fantasy will be a part of all fandom lol. I loved Dave response it all harmless innuendo fun.
This makes me want to see Crook react/meet/ignore Scar in the next comic.
It is so hard to predict what Crook would do….
Scar’s translating device must be one heck of a contraption if it works in water and on land.
I wonder how Todd would react if he ever finds out that Scar is Selkie’s birth father?
Conflicted? Torn? Hurt?
That’s my guess and I’m sticking to it.
There’s a man who understands a debt.
I think the sarnothi are missing their facial markings in this page.
Hey Dave, not sure if this page is still a WIP or not but Sai Fen and Scar are missing their facial markings