[356]My Family...

[edzepp]

Nearing the end now.

Time to make an important choice, son.

So, there was no need for Annie to know that his family (and he) was dead. Thus is her innocence preserved for another day.

[pulvissolaris]

edzepp said:

So, there was no need for Annie to know that his family (and he) was dead. Thus is her innocence preserved for another day.

However, I find it somewhat strange that she has not made the connection. Shouldn't she at least suspect that fire kills? So, if the whole room has been engulfed in flames, shouldn't she at least suspect that the boy is dead?

[edzepp]

Good point. Hopefully Tom doesn't write himself into a corner. That said, I'm sure that some things are out of her comprehension range at this point in her life. We'll see.

[alya1989262]

I'm pretty sue Annie figured what happened. The 'something really bad' comment, as well as her expression when telling him "I think they are with my friends", point in that direction. Of course, she doesn't know what death is, but I think she now knows the boy and his family aren't coming back, and there'll be people crying (living in a hospital, she must see this a lot).

[Boksha]

There's no telling whether she's made the connection or not. It might not be the best situation to tell him.

[todd]

The first panel is creepy - but in a good way.

And I like Annie's words in the second panel - "You did something bad. But you didn't mean to." Sums up the situation as seen through a little girl's eyes perfectly.

[cenit]

Well, my guess is that she probably is very near to make the connection... I think it's obvious that boy initiated a fire and got killed by it... as well as family.

That doesn't mean Tom wrote himself into a corner, being this a very traumatic experience, a child could simply lock out the memory, or the knowledge regarding that event (she would still remember the whole thing, but not understanding it) in order to protect it's own psique.

Also loved Annie in pannel 2, both her words and the way it was drawn

[AluK]

I love how his realization of what happened comes with his charred self going away. Either that or Annie's pushing her reality, manipulting the way he projects his residual self-image.

[ceezedby]

Does the guide you go with determine which afterlife (or whatever) you end up in? Because with his parent and sister going off with different guides, the kid may not necessarily be reunited with them all.

And if everyone goes to the same place anyway, then why all these guides vying with one another? Point scoring?

Just wondering.

[cenit]

gotta ask tom about it

[Mezzaphor]

Hmm... Before, Annie's presence made the boy look burned. Now, she seems to be having the opposite effect.

The first panel is creepy - but in a good way.

So is the last one. No wonder the boy was scared.

[Asuka]

ceezedby said:

Does the guide you go with determine which afterlife (or whatever) you end up in? Because with his parent and sister going off with different guides, the kid may not necessarily be reunited with them all.

And if everyone goes to the same place anyway, then why all these guides vying with one another? Point scoring?

Just wondering.

In some mythology the purpose of guides are to lead you through trials, tests or even a judgment of sorts. So there may be an all-encompassing afterlife, but the trials you go through to get there is determined by who you go with. At least, that was my take on it.

[popo]

admin said:

cenit said:

Tom, is the fact that you go with one or other Guide dictates your afterlife? I mean, do all people go to the same place eventually or they get separated?

Everyone ends up in the same place. How you get there may vary.

For example, I don't know what would happen with the Dhoo, but if the boy went with Mallt y nos, he would be chased to the afterlife by her hounds.

[pulvissolaris]

popo said:

For example, I don't know what would happen with the Dhoo, but if the boy went with Mallt y nos, he would be chased to the afterlife by her hounds.

While The 'Dhoo would mean just one hound. A good argument for the big black canine side of the discussion.
However, both guides are rather evil, so whatever the boy is going to go through, it can not be very pleasant.

[Chromeleon]

pulvissolaris said:

While The 'Dhoo would mean just one hound. A good argument for the big black canine side of the discussion.
However, both guides are rather evil, so whatever the boy is going to go through, it can not be very pleasant.

As evil as minotaurs, I'd presume?

Evil in "real world" mythology does not always translate to evil in this one.

[fr4tbrn]

What I'd like to know is: can't the boy choose from all of the guides? After all, both the mother and father have their own guide "friends" (though I'd hardly call it that), so the boy should be able to pick from all of the guides, not just be limited to Dhoo and Mallt.

Then again, it may be because he is a child. He might not be allowed to choose until he comes of age... But that leads to my next question: if not everyone can see the guides, how does everyone choose which one they go with? Before they die, I mean.

[popo]

fr4tbrn said:

What I'd like to know is: can't the boy choose from all of the guides? After all, both the mother and father have their own guide "friends" (though I'd hardly call it that), so the boy should be able to pick from all of the guides, not just be limited to Dhoo and Mallt.

Then again, it may be because he is a child. He might not be allowed to choose until he comes of age... But that leads to my next question: if not everyone can see the guides, how does everyone choose which one they go with? Before they die, I mean.

I think he can't choose from the others because they aren't from the same culture, or even the same species as him. As far as we've seen, your guide is based on your religion/heritage.

[Boksha]

Yup, guides apparently have stuff like jurisdiction to worry about.

[cenit]

Yes, the whole argument bewteen the witch and the dog was that the mother legally belonged to the dog, and the father belonged to the witch... and their children must make a decision of who to follow, the sister actually went with the dog