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Post by Aurelia Verity on Nov 8, 2010 17:23:03 GMT
Given the framing of this chapter; that is, starting out with Surma's romantic manipulations and then placing Annie alone with a boy (although I agree that this may not take a romantic turn, Jack could simply be very grateful and apologetic for the way he behaved earlier under the influence of the spider in Residence and Spring Heeled) I wonder if Annie's awkward and anti-romantic nature is due to the fact that she disagrees with her mother on how she treated the men in her life. I doubt that Surma actively encouraged Renard, she probably allowed him to think she loved him and did not clear up the misunderstanding. In real life girls and guys often string each other along and often don't see this as wrong. Eglamore was so taken with Surma that he still is devoted to her after so many years. At this point I'm really curious what the Anthony/Surma relationship was like. Annie's reluctance to enter a romantic relationship or even be associated with one could be partially explained by this. Unlike her mother she does not want to string men along. This could be why she was so angered by Mort's gift to her.
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Post by jayne on Nov 8, 2010 17:33:19 GMT
I had forgotten about the Mort thing... maybe that's why she ISN'T reacting too quickly now because she knows she overreacted then.
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Post by paxjax123 on Nov 8, 2010 17:36:37 GMT
Speaking of Mort, I have a feeling we might be seeing him soon...
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Post by atteSmythe on Nov 8, 2010 18:10:19 GMT
Suddenly I am reminded Annie's expression from this page. Let's hope Jack doesn't pull a Rey. It does, however, present the possibility of a... ...wait for it... Jack in the box!
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DC
New Member
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Post by DC on Nov 8, 2010 19:11:35 GMT
I don't think there is necessarily a romantic element to this, especially if Jack is just a toucher.
I know I don't like being touched without being warned first (I do not know how this is going to work out if I am ever in a romantic relationship--"Warning, I am about to caress your face" or some such). Annie might just be surprised. But since she's had her lessons about being anti-social and so on, she may also not want to push her peers away. Sometimes I hug people even if I don't really want to.
Romance is STUPID, that's what I say.
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ryos
Full Member
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Post by ryos on Nov 8, 2010 19:41:25 GMT
I feel compelled to point out that Annie's <= 14 years old. Yes, we're all romantic saps and all, but let the girl grow up a little before you start longing for her to have a romantic relationship. I invoke John Green. He said what I would say better (and more amusingly) than I would say it.
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percival
Full Member
there's a storm a-brewin'
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Post by percival on Nov 8, 2010 19:41:44 GMT
Suddenly I am reminded Annie's expression from this page. Let's hope Jack doesn't pull a Rey. It does, however, present the possibility of a... ...wait for it... Jack in the box! gosh golly.
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Post by jayne on Nov 8, 2010 19:49:21 GMT
First time some guy held my hand it made me very nervous. My first thought was "how do I get out of this??" and as soon as I did, "wait, I liked that...how do I get him to hold my hand again" I guess it works out in the end.
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Post by Aurelia Verity on Nov 8, 2010 21:05:07 GMT
Serious romantic relationship, yes, it's is a bit too early for that. But 14 is just about the right age for discovering romantic feelings and experiencing an attraction to another person. By North American standards Annie is just about to enter High School. This is the age in which most people determine their attitudes towards relationships, love, attraction and any form of physical intimacy.
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Post by Fhqwhgads on Nov 8, 2010 21:17:18 GMT
gosh guys Eglamore looks very very young in todays's comic! </oblig> also: It does, however, present the possibility of a... ...wait for it... Jack in the box! you forgot the YEEEEAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!
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Post by Afalstein on Nov 8, 2010 22:15:21 GMT
Given the framing of this chapter; that is, starting out with Surma's romantic manipulations and then placing Annie alone with a boy (although I agree that this may not take a romantic turn, Jack could simply be very grateful and apologetic for the way he behaved earlier under the influence of the spider in Residence and Spring Heeled) I wonder if Annie's awkward and anti-romantic nature is due to the fact that she disagrees with her mother on how she treated the men in her life. It's possible. But personally, I think it more likely that this chapter is going to stress what Annie has in common with her mother. Rey commented that she had a spark, a "heart of fire" like her mother did. I think we're starting to see a bit of Annie's hidden aspects, as we did in her rant against Mort. A couple of people have suggested that Annie is pulling the same trick as Surma here. I can't really see how, though. There's nothing that the court has to learn from Jack, nor is Annie really leading Jack on, to all appearances. If anyone's trying to entice the other, it's Jack. And quite simply, there aren't any ulterior motives at the moment for him to do so. (Although, given the story she's just heard, Annie may think there are.) I'm actually somewhat interested if Anja really knows as much as she thinks she does about the Reynardine incident. Surma might not have told her everything. Also: Annie seems to have come a ways since Mort. I wonder if we'll get development on why she reacted so much at that time.
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Post by christopher on Nov 8, 2010 22:19:25 GMT
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Post by Casey on Nov 8, 2010 22:24:11 GMT
A person's judgment of Jones as a character is largely the basis of my judgment of that person's savvy as a critical reader.
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Post by quirkykelly on Nov 9, 2010 2:20:50 GMT
I know everyone has already jumped all over the hand-touching (which isn't even hand-holding, he's just resting his hand on her hands), but I also love the rest of the body language, especially from Jack. In the previous comic, Jack is sitting on the table www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=796But by the time Annie arrives, he has stood up, waits for her to sit down, then he sits down, and waits for her to start the conversation. www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=797Even without the hand-touching, these comics perfectly capture awkward adolescent friendships. It's obvious that neither of them are completely comfortable with each other, and even from a platonic friendship this makes sense. The first time Annie briefly met Jack, he seemed to be impressed by Kat, then he quickly got possessed by the spider and started acting like a crazy person for months. Now Jack and Annie are becoming friends for the first time. Tom said they've talked since then, which is implied when Jack says, "Thanks again," since he's thanked her before. Now, put this scenario in real life, without etheric stuff. Imagine that Jack has a mental illness, perhaps Bi-polar, and he's been a manic or psychotic state. Now he's on medication and has calmed down. If you were in Annie or Jack's shoes, wouldn't you feel a little awkward about developing a friendship after all of that? It could be romantic, or it could just be them trying to figure out how to act after all that happened.
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Post by todd on Nov 9, 2010 2:46:26 GMT
I feel compelled to point out that Annie's <= 14 years old. Yes, we're all romantic saps and all, but let the girl grow up a little before you start longing for her to have a romantic relationship. Thirteen, actually. We know from Tom's notes on the Bonus Page for Chapter One that Year 7 (Annie's first year at the Court) is for children ages 11-12. Annie is in Year 8 now (presumably near the end, if she and the Donlans really are going away for the summer holidays), so she'd be thirteen. (Unless Tom skipped a year without telling us, which I don't think he'd do.)
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Post by jayne on Nov 9, 2010 4:01:40 GMT
I feel compelled to point out that Annie's <= 14 years old. Yes, we're all romantic saps and all, but let the girl grow up a little before you start longing for her to have a romantic relationship. Thirteen, actually. We know from Tom's notes on the Bonus Page for Chapter One that Year 7 (Annie's first year at the Court) is for children ages 11-12. Annie is in Year 8 now (presumably near the end, if she and the Donlans really are going away for the summer holidays), so she'd be thirteen. (Unless Tom skipped a year without telling us, which I don't think he'd do.) I've just noticed Annie doesn't celebrate her birthday...
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Post by paxjax123 on Nov 9, 2010 4:02:25 GMT
Thirteen, actually. We know from Tom's notes on the Bonus Page for Chapter One that Year 7 (Annie's first year at the Court) is for children ages 11-12. Annie is in Year 8 now (presumably near the end, if she and the Donlans really are going away for the summer holidays), so she'd be thirteen. (Unless Tom skipped a year without telling us, which I don't think he'd do.) I've just noticed Annie doesn't celebrate her birthday... Perhaps she is Jehovah's Witness. maybe.
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Post by Mezzaphor on Nov 9, 2010 4:18:12 GMT
Or it could just be that her birthday fell in one of the gaps between chapters.
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Post by Snes on Nov 9, 2010 4:21:10 GMT
I've just noticed Annie doesn't celebrate her birthday... Or she does, we just don't see it. We didn't see anyone talking about Christmas either, but that doesn't mean they aren't celebrating it between chapters.
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Post by Casey on Nov 9, 2010 4:22:32 GMT
Or it could just be that her birthday fell in one of the gaps between chapters. They should call those "gapters"... the chapter of unwritten stuff that happens in the gap between the chapters of written stuff.
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Post by Tobu Ishi on Nov 9, 2010 7:01:33 GMT
They should call those "gapters"... the chapter of unwritten stuff that happens in the gap between the chapters of written stuff. I believe the term you are looking for is "fanfiction".
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deram
New Member
I am a god who's made himself forget that he's god...
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Post by deram on Nov 9, 2010 10:28:12 GMT
gosh guys Eglamore looks very very young in todays's comic! </oblig> also: It does, however, present the possibility of a... ...wait for it... Jack in the box! you forgot the YEEEEAAAAAHHHHHHH!!! He also forgot to put on his sunglasses: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sarYH0z948
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Post by Tenjen on Nov 9, 2010 12:34:25 GMT
it looks like annie's gonna go Book Of Eli "Touch me again and you wont get your hand back" on him.
Do remember she has a fancy blade just like Eli.
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Post by Mylian on Nov 9, 2010 13:48:23 GMT
Anybody who thinks that Annie is feeling anger at Jack in this page's last panels needs to go back to Chapter One and read the whole archives over again, because they have no idea who Annie is.
She may, however, still be dealing with her recent anger at the Court and possibly her mother.
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lovecraft1024
Full Member
What does anything mean? Basically
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Post by lovecraft1024 on Nov 9, 2010 21:31:12 GMT
So many mixed signals. Tom is very good at that. Was this a chance meeting or planned? We don't even know what the outside of the dorms look like, so he could be sitting outside the dorm building and Annie is on the way to the door. His expression in the previous comic is actually quite deadpan. Doesn't give away whether he was expecting her or not. And Annie's expression in the last panel is again deadpan, after in 5 and 6 she's looking alarmed. So many possibilities for tomorrow. Perhaps she just says, "so what are you doing for the summer?" Maybe Jack asks her instead. Maybe they both try to talk at the same time, inducing more awkwardness. Perhaps it's just, "well, gotta go now..."
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Post by hal9000 on Nov 9, 2010 21:48:22 GMT
Kraftwerk rules.
Jack has good taste in music it seems.
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Post by Tenjen on Nov 9, 2010 23:43:35 GMT
annie has shown trouble in dealing with gestures of affection [outside of clear friendship] and she's in business mode [or something strong on her mind] here. I wonder if she has plans to utilise jacks skills or whether this this is just a meeting
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Post by Casey on Nov 10, 2010 0:06:50 GMT
annie has shown trouble in dealing with gestures of affection [outside of clear friendship] I'm trying to think of any occasion where that has been shown to be true...
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Post by jayne on Nov 10, 2010 0:17:48 GMT
annie has shown trouble in dealing with gestures of affection [outside of clear friendship] I'm trying to think of any occasion where that has been shown to be true... Wasn't that whole blow up with Mort because she thought the blinker stone was a gift from a "boyfriend"? That's a gesture of affection.
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Post by chiparoo on Nov 10, 2010 0:34:56 GMT
I'm trying to think of any occasion where that has been shown to be true... Wasn't that whole blow up with Mort because she thought the blinker stone was a gift from a "boyfriend"? That's a gesture of affection. I interpreted it not as her blowing up over a gesture of affection, but her being angry that he effectively made a pass at her without her knowledge. It's the apparent underhandedness of the situation she was pissed at, not the affection.
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