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Post by Mitth'raw'nuruodo on Sept 26, 2012 16:36:39 GMT
You know, if Tom wanted to be REEEEALLY evil, this little flashback would have Antimony loosing the medium position to Parley (or much less likely someone else, perhaps Zimmy) and then Jones would give that as a reason not to tell Antimony (as it's no longer need-to-know if she's not the medium). This would amuse me. And entirely in character for Tom to continue to keep this information away from us. Also, in a character based story (as this one is) plot related information is not necessary to the advancement of the raison d'être of the comic, which is to say advancements of the characters and the relationships thereof.
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Post by nero on Sept 26, 2012 17:03:13 GMT
Hmm, I think it must be Annie since she already goes out to the forest and talks with Coyote. I'm not sure how Coyote would treat Parley and Andrew if they became the new mediums. It could be that after talking with Annie Jones will delay choosing a medium, it wouldn't hurt since they have already taken so long to replace Surma.
Also, in panels 1 and 4 why isn't Jones' scarf visible?
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Post by GK Sierra on Sept 26, 2012 17:04:17 GMT
If Tom does ANOTHER cutaway before he gives us the answer to which medium was hired, I think I might spontaneously combust. That would be approaching Seth Mcfarlane status.
The only other candidates are Parley and Smitty. While the teasing about Antimony already having the gig in the bag does seem like foreshadowing now, I still believe Antimony is more qualified. Yes, her diplomatic forays ended in disaster, but Parley and Smitts haven't even been into the forest, and it's not like Ysrengrin is going to remember any of that, so no harm no foul.
Then of course, there is the issue of cheating. Perhaps they've caught on to that as well as her... emotional issues.
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myzelf
Junior Member
Posts: 83
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Post by myzelf on Sept 26, 2012 17:04:24 GMT
My money's on Parley. She's the most levelheaded of the candidates, and that includes Antimony.
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Post by TBeholder on Sept 26, 2012 17:18:49 GMT
Honestly, we all knew he would do this. Uh, no. Skip forward around the answer was predicted, but not skip backward. ;D I like the return of Mystery Solved™ Yeah. I'm thinking the choices would be limited to the Medium group. If not, my money's on Cookie. It would be hilarious. I almost thought it's Red. But yes, Cookie would be even better. And she obviously gets along splendidly at least with fairies. ;D Annie's been showing herself to be more and more of loose cannon from the court's POV--and quite possibly from everyone else's. I like her, and I think she'll grow out of it, but she's still entering her teenage angst phase, not leaving it. If Jones picks Annie over Parley, it's an error of judgement. How so? The first priority for the Court's medium is to provide enough distractions for Coyote (and hopefully Ysengrin) that he won't get bored enough to play Mad Hatter's Party with other humans. No? It's been noted that Jones wears rather drab clothes, except a hot pink scarf on one occasion. Why is she wearing a ridiculously red scarf when talking to Jonathan? It's seriously hurting my eyes. She wore a party hat on one occasion. Also, in panels 1 and 4 why isn't Jones' scarf visible? Uh, it's under her collar or hair? ...okay, we all know Tom does it just to tease us, right?
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Post by msouth on Sept 26, 2012 17:29:01 GMT
I just wanted to add this where Jones explains one of the qualifications to be a medium: www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=374Parley might be a better choice, as Carver seems pretty in love with the forest rather than strictly unbiased. Parley seems pretty good about not caring. My question, though, is whether Parley has shown any ability yet? Or maybe Jones is making the recommendation based on the prediction of her father that she will have the ability, plus her level headedness? Also is psychopomp a separate job from medium? I don't remember what they said around that. OK, here's one more guess: They are going to establish a triumvirate. Parley has the level head, Smitty has the order, Carver has the chaos. Smitty interacts primarily with the court, Carver with the forest, and Parley runs all the negotiations because she's not biased in either direction.
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krael
Junior Member
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Post by krael on Sept 26, 2012 17:39:35 GMT
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pagophilus
New Member
a running joke that doesn't know when to die
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Post by pagophilus on Sept 26, 2012 17:42:37 GMT
Also is psychopomp a separate job from medium? I don't remember what they said around that. A psychopomp is a spirit that guides dead people or creatures into the ether. As far as I know, all psychopomps have been etheric beings and not humans, so it's not a really a "job" that any Gunnerkrigg kid can take. The one exception was Antimony, who acted as a psychopomp for her mother that one time. I don't think a triumvirate is the likely outcome because Jones says "SHE is the clear choice". This points to one medium, and that person is female. Frankly, I think it's going to be Antimony. Tom is just building up suspense to screw with our heads. edit: I'm a bloody ninja
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Post by exuberancium on Sept 26, 2012 18:34:30 GMT
I don't think Tom's trying to trick us here: I would be quite surprised if Annie wasn't Jones' recommendation. Consider this: Annie has been to the forest multiple times, and not only has she spoken with Coyote, Ysengrin, and Shadow, but she also made friends with the forest people and spent a summer there living with them. How better to understand them then to live with them for a while? Plus, Annie pretty much makes it her job to solve other people's problems: she's helped Zimmy and Gamma a few times, is trying to free Jeanne's spirit (granted, Jones (probably) doesn't know about that), helped a shadow man get back home then took him when his family rejected him, befriended a lonely ghost, and after Ysengrin attacked her she felt pity instead of rage and just wants to help him. Not to mention her experience as a young child when she helped the "undead" boy and the Psychopomps.
What more could you possibly want in a medium?
Now let's take a look at Parley: She's uh... said one sentence to Ysengrin and Coyote.
...
Yeah. She'd probably make a decent medium, but she doesn't exactly have experience.
edit: Okay, there's more going for Parley as medium than that (she did seem to get along with Mort after a little "fumble" and gets along with Shadow well too, but that's really not all that impressive.) Annie is still the obvious choice though.
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Necropaxx
Full Member
The natural choice for a shoulder to cry on.
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Post by Necropaxx on Sept 26, 2012 19:06:46 GMT
"The previous day"
Ahhhh KNEW iiiiit!
whatever, at least we get to see the Headmaster again!
My money is on it not being Annie, though like exuberancium said, there's not a whole lot of evidence to suggest it will be Parley.
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Post by atteSmythe on Sept 26, 2012 19:21:27 GMT
Normally I hate hate hate the "open with a shock, flash back to see how we go to the shock" opening. I think I like this one, though. We know what brought Annie here, but we're apparently missing other necessary information. Cool.
What do we need to do to get the headmaster admitted as an adjunct member of the smiles brigade?
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Post by keef on Sept 26, 2012 20:13:50 GMT
So we have to wait a bit longer before we learn what Jones is. How surprising... Bit more wild speculation: What if she was once one of Coyotes eyes (he seems to have many of them) and she took something heavy from him, like his conscience. Explains the 'You know I can take her' Explains her weight too, the conscience of a trickster god must be heavy.
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quoodle
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Just a man on a planet
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Post by quoodle on Sept 26, 2012 21:14:30 GMT
"The previous day"? So when Coyote called Annie, the new medium had already been decided (but not announced)? Do you think Coyote knew?
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pagophilus
New Member
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Post by pagophilus on Sept 26, 2012 21:28:23 GMT
The day before? So when Coyote called Annie, the new medium had already been decided (but not announced)? Do you think Coyote knew? I'm going to go with "no", simply because I think that Coyote doesn't know everything. In my opinion, his biggest flaw is his apparent lack of knowledge about the goings-on of Gunnerkrigg. He might be (near)omnipotent, but he's not omniscient and largely oblivious to, or at the very least apathetic towards, the happenings within the court. Evidence: he didn't know who Antimony was when he first met her, and he didn't know what caused Antimony's cut on her etheric form's cheek. So no, Coyote does not know who the new medium is. I think he's already accepted Antimony as the de-facto medium because of all her forest visits.
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Post by GK Sierra on Sept 26, 2012 23:13:55 GMT
What do we need to do to get the headmaster admitted as an adjunct member of the smiles brigade? Smear a little streak of grey poupon upon each cheek, and tap each shoulder with a brandy bottle. Then he'll be knighted.
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Post by Georgie L on Sept 27, 2012 0:29:26 GMT
So we have to wait a bit longer before we learn what Jones is. How surprising... Bit more wild speculation: What if she was once one of Coyotes eyes (he seems to have many of them) and she took something heavy from him, like his conscience. Explains the 'You know I can take her' Explains her weight too, the conscience of a trickster god must be heavy. Tom has jossed this theory before on formspring as far as I remember. Also I don't think coyote ever had a conscience, he's an immortal being which has (retroactively) existed since the dawn of time the only thing stopping him from destroying everything is that he would have no toys to play with, and he does so much enjoy his toys.
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Post by stephen on Sept 27, 2012 0:48:17 GMT
I'm betting that: (A) Jones chose Annie, but these latest events in the wood will force the court to change the choice to Parley. and (B) All this fiasco will somehow lead to Jones not answering annie's question at the beginning of the chapter. OR, the chapter will end right wen we catch up to present-day.
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Post by q3 on Sept 27, 2012 1:31:30 GMT
JONES: What am I, Antimony? I am the Court's next medium. You, Andrew, and that other girl were all clearly too incompetent for the job.
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Post by zaferion on Sept 27, 2012 2:02:16 GMT
JONES: What am I, Antimony? I am the Court's next medium. You, Andrew, and that other girl were all clearly too incompetent for the job. Can I...can I give you an internet, or is it too early in the relationship in my head for gift giving?
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Post by rafk on Sept 27, 2012 3:14:55 GMT
This awfully looks like Jones is leaving. Or something. Maybe that's what causes Annie to burst in. Her reaction isn't right for the news of being announced as not-the-medium (or being announced as the medium, for that matter). But if Jones is being announced as retiring back to Valhalla or something...
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Post by csj on Sept 27, 2012 4:45:53 GMT
This awfully looks like Jones is leaving. Or something. Well, everything thus far has made it seem that she was pretty much acting as an intern.
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Post by dante on Sept 27, 2012 6:49:49 GMT
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Post by GK Sierra on Sept 27, 2012 14:51:15 GMT
Jonathan's invisible thought bubble:
"On the one hand, I suspected Jones was doing this as a favor to Randy, and If there's one thing I couldn't stand, it was nepotism.
On the other hand, the doctor did have tenure and a bottomless army of Enigmarons. It was a tough choice, but then the easy ones never reached my desk."
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Post by descoladavirus on Sept 27, 2012 15:15:44 GMT
I just wanted to add this where Jones explains one of the qualifications to be a medium: www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=374Parley might be a better choice, as Carver seems pretty in love with the forest rather than strictly unbiased. Parley seems pretty good about not caring. My question, though, is whether Parley has shown any ability yet? Or maybe Jones is making the recommendation based on the prediction of her father that she will have the ability, plus her level headedness? Also is psychopomp a separate job from medium? I don't remember what they said around that. OK, here's one more guess: They are going to establish a triumvirate. Parley has the level head, Smitty has the order, Carver has the chaos. Smitty interacts primarily with the court, Carver with the forest, and Parley runs all the negotiations because she's not biased in either direction. Did you miss the chapter where Parley finally began using her abilities to teleport at will after admitting her love for smits and putting the party hat on Jones as a "HA-HA!"? I think Parley and Annie are both tied at the moment as far as "etheric development" is going. Both have managed a rough form of control over their abilities and have started exploring them, but haven't mastered anything and probably don't know even unconsciously even a tenth of what they could do. Parley's abilities are limited right now to teleporting (Admittedly with amazing accuracy) but are dependent on her relationship with Andrew. Annie has good control over her etheric self, and is learning more from Ysengrin, Renard, and Coyote, but has problems with her temper causing her control to last only as long as her self control. Currently she's dependent on the blinker stone. Of course etheric abilities won't be all Jones and The Court decide on. As for psychopomps, they're wholly seperate from mediums. A medium would likely have dealings with them, especially in situations like the boy who died in the fire, and in dealing with a trapped/stuck spirit such as Jeanne. Being a medium for the court is a tough job I imagine. Dealing with what the court wants, the forest wants, coyote wants, and what the psychopomps may ask for. (Note: I consider Coyote's wants and the forests seperate, while coyote seems to speak for the forest, the whole forest is probably fine with whatever he does as long as they keep the forest the way it is.)
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Post by balzac on Sept 27, 2012 15:59:54 GMT
It seems to me like a bid for Annie would not start with "she's the clear choice" so much as "now stay with me on this one til I'm done explaining"... Particularly since the last (only?) time Annie met the headmaster she nearly caused a diplomatic incident. Unless the court really considers Annie to be more closely related to Surma than we've so far realized, and thus in line for the throne by virtue of reincarnation. Or unless Annie's special relationship to Coyote makes her more valuable to the court than any sort of actual medium skills.
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Post by Lightice on Sept 27, 2012 17:12:17 GMT
Or unless Annie's special relationship to Coyote makes her more valuable to the court than any sort of actual medium skills. I find this the most likely thing to happen, here. While it would be interesting to have a twist here, it seems unlikely that Coyote would accept anyone but Annie for the job at this point. He would make any other medium's life miserable until they caved in and gave the post to Annie.
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Post by diantris on Sept 27, 2012 17:34:11 GMT
Or unless Annie's special relationship to Coyote makes her more valuable to the court than any sort of actual medium skills. I find this the most likely thing to happen, here. While it would be interesting to have a twist here, it seems unlikely that Coyote would accept anyone but Annie for the job at this point. He would make any other medium's life miserable until they caved in and gave the post to Annie. My thoughts, exactly. Coyote and the General didn't want to speak to anyone else once before, why would they now? Especially that Ys has no recollection of himself attacking Annie... (Coyote bothers me more with every *cough* 'event')
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pagophilus
New Member
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Post by pagophilus on Sept 27, 2012 17:50:04 GMT
It seems to me like a bid for Annie would not start with "she's the clear choice" so much as "now stay with me on this one til I'm done explaining" How would Parley be the "clear choice", though? Her special ability is teleportation. That's useful and all, but Carver can actually see etheric beings and connect with them in a way Parley has hardly ever exhibited (Mort? Jeanne that one time?). Ysengrin and Coyote certainly seem to prefer Carver, and they're the head honchos. Again, all signs seem to point to Carver, no matter how un-levelheaded she may occasionally get. Bear in mind that Surma was probably even more crazy back in her time.
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Post by Eversist on Sept 27, 2012 18:22:42 GMT
That's useful and all, but Carver can actually see etheric beings and connect with them in a way Parley has hardly ever exhibited (Mort? Jeanne that one time?). Not that this has anything to do with the current discussion, but the Court does not know about her interactions with Jeanne... as far as we know. And Parley got along with Mort just fine (although Annie had to help out). I have a feeling it's Annie too, but I just wonder why Tom doesn't just use her name on this page (other than to mess with us, like what you said a few posts back).
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Post by diantris on Sept 27, 2012 18:36:40 GMT
Not that this has anything to do with the current discussion, but the Court does not know about her interactions with Jeanne... as far as we know. Furthermore, they wouldn't appreciate this, considering they did a lot of erasing of the memory about her. It's interesting, though, that Jones seems to not know who Jeanne was, but simply observed, as she does it perfectly, that this was more than just coincidential question from Annie. Unless the founders erased it so well, that the present Court has no idea who Jeanne was, either.
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