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Post by hnau on Aug 14, 2015 10:59:29 GMT
Seems like Tony's right hand *is* Annie's business. Maybe he does not want to raise false hopes that she could see her mother again. |
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Post by Jelly Jellybean on Aug 14, 2015 11:30:21 GMT
Commencing Opinion Modification Procedure... Changing <Opinion-of-Anthony> from <Ass-Clown> to <Crazy-Ass-Clown> |
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Post by justcurious on Aug 14, 2015 11:51:17 GMT
Annie is going to be looking for whoever got her father to maim himself. I do not think she will bear them good will.
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Post by TBeholder on Aug 14, 2015 12:02:58 GMT
Daedalus: If he knocks off the cold façade with Annie, that'd be peachy. But would it help him? The current score is still not in his favour. And help exactly in what? He didn't show any specific purpose or interest so far. I legit don't think he realized the full implications of what he was doing. From what it sounds like, Tony thought he was trying to pull back Surma from the afterlife, but his target was actually Annie, not some vague place in the aether like he thought. Well, he knew it can affect the "real" world after the first try. And apparently neither sought better knowledge of it before trying, nor doubted the words of Someone Very Helpful. Thus what we observe here is: lack of critical thinking rooted in (once again) hubris. I want to pat him on the shoulder or something, but from, like, a safe distance.  From a safe distance? Hmm... no, if Zimmy patted him on the shoulder so that he turned before punching him, it won't be the same.  I just want to point out that to a surgeon, their hands are everything, [...] Whoever is telling him to do this is screwed up. I'd also expect from a surgeon being used to act somewhat more responsibly than acting on random strangers "telling him to do this" (beyond "pass me that sandwich, please"). Not that we know this happened. and Tony needs to know that his daughter has not done totally well in his absence. He always could ask. By now he demonstrated lack of interest enough that any follow-up will come across as either empty politeness or a drama queen gesture. Even in the (unlikely) case it's not. I think this man might actually be disturbed To misquote Ms. Twigitt, it seems like Anthony's sensible side was nearly submerged by that point. I still think Tony's antagonism towards Annie comes from Zimmy saying she was from his little girl when she punched him, meaning Tony thinks it was Annie actively stopping him from contacting his wife through some etheric means. Well, obviously something like this. Now, anyone with a shred of common sense would ask himself whether Annie really have nothing better to do 24/7. But it doesn't work like this with people who are certain that the world turns around them. |
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Post by Sky Schemer on Aug 14, 2015 12:13:22 GMT
He flensed himself, to the bone, sharpened the finger tips, and replaced one of his fingers with a scalpel. I believe the scalpel is there to show he flensed his own hand, not that he replaced one of his fingers with it. |
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Post by Daedalus on Aug 14, 2015 12:25:10 GMT
Only the great Lord Siddell in his rhinna-tree lair knows. He knows all. He sees all. Sometimes he speaks. Oh Tom, let us hear your sacred words. I say most earnestly that, if something lives in a rhinna-tree, you do not want to hear its words. |
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Post by imaginaryfriend on Aug 14, 2015 12:58:43 GMT
I just want to point out that to a surgeon, their hands are everything, [...] Whoever is telling him to do this is screwed up. I'd also expect from a surgeon being used to act somewhat more responsibly than acting on random strangers "telling him to do this" (beyond "pass me that sandwich, please"). Not that we know this happened. Because his hand meant everything to him as a surgeon (the key to Anthony's story) is why it worked as an antenna, I figure. No pain, no high gain. That is an ungulate's dentition and on the previous page we saw an ungulate's hoof. Coyote is capable of taking such a form but it is not what he would usually do. Could have been Coyotagoat. Dickcharney? |
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Post by pxc on Aug 14, 2015 13:38:31 GMT
Can we curse on here? I hope so because shit this story is getting fucking dark.
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Post by nightwind on Aug 14, 2015 13:57:45 GMT
Not creepy. Nope, not creepy at all. You babies, are you afraid?
*bird chirps*
*runs for his life screaming*
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Post by avurai on Aug 14, 2015 14:24:05 GMT
He flensed himself, to the bone, sharpened the finger tips, and replaced one of his fingers with a scalpel. I believe the scalpel is there to show he flensed his own hand, not that he replaced one of his fingers with it. Personally, I think the page Zimmy punched him is what lost him his hand. It's out of frame. And since we see one scalpel in one of his fingers, I feel like that's intentional. Like the sudden impact and inertia of Zimmy's punch ripped his hand clear off, like that hand needed to be very precise and still and in one place then his body moved without it from the hit. Or it acted similar to what would've happened to Annie's hand if she talked about the tooth to anyone in the forest after Coyote put the bracelet around her wrist. That's just my guess though. |
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Post by pxc on Aug 14, 2015 14:48:53 GMT
I understand why people don't think the boar/deer thing is Coyote but the cackling, skeletal posture of it is very reminiscent. And no other creatures so far has appeared in multiple pages. Even if it's not Coyote, it appears to be the primary creature (mis)guiding Tony through this process.
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Post by ctso74 on Aug 14, 2015 14:52:58 GMT
edzepp, psybershadow, et al: What we need right now is a good heart-to-heart among all of the characters, where everyone explains their motivations and justifications. But we're not going to get that, because then there wouldn't be conflict nor a story. It would also cut down on the "comedy of errors" hijinks. I'm imagining a "Three's Company"-esque comic with Ysengrin, Renard, and Anthony as roommates. |
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karl
New Member
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Post by karl on Aug 14, 2015 15:17:51 GMT
Project: Antimony and Anthony GODDAMNIT HUG EACH OTHER ALREADY!
Description: Anthony needs a hug, especially from the person who has Surma's spirit inside her. Antimony needs a hug from her father. Refer to schematic 1.1. (not included here).
Items necessary:
- 1 - 1 litre bottle of whiskey.
- 1 - drinking glass (drinking hard alcohol from a mug is ughhh and no drinking for minors who could explode at a moments notice)
- 1 set - a room with a single door with a very complex mechanical lock with a timer that can be set for 12 hours and which can only be accessed from outside the room.
Plan:
- Step 1: Put the bottle of whiskey and the glass inside the room.
- Step 2: Put Antimony and Anthony inside the room.
- Step 3: Lock the door for 12 hours.
- Step 4: Shake.
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Post by aline on Aug 14, 2015 15:31:40 GMT
I'd also expect from a surgeon being used to act somewhat more responsibly than acting on random strangers "telling him to do this" (beyond "pass me that sandwich, please"). Not that we know this happened. Because his hand meant everything to him as a surgeon (the key to Anthony's story) is why it worked as an antenna, I figure. No pain, no high gain. We don't know if Tony's motivation for becoming a surgeon had to do with Surma alone, or if there was something else. But even in the later case, he still spent most of his career attempting to cure her. From what he says, his career also wasn't exactly his focus after her death. I'm assuming to him, being a surgeon wasn't much use if he couldn't save her. So it was only logical to use that skill a last time for her sake. I'm now eagerly awaiting the repercussions from his failing at this one last shot. I can imagine two possibilities: - After losing his hand for nothing, he finally accepted that he had lost Surma forever and decided on his own to go back take care of Antimony. He then decided that her life was a mess and that it was his job to tidy up. - He was contacted by the Court and pressured into coming back to take control of Annie, who had been recently appointed Forest Medium against their will, perhaps with threats of expelling her. In the past many people have speculated that the Court was behind some of Tony's decisions. Now that we know they tracked him down, that's a stronger possibility. The one thing I still can't see in this scenario is the reason of the Court for keeping away Annie from the forest. I remember Jones stating that the headmaster was hiding something. Perhaps they're not using Tony to control Annie, but rather Annie to control Tony. |
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Post by Jelly Jellybean on Aug 14, 2015 15:50:03 GMT
Maybe Anthony thinks he contacted Surma and Surma responded by punching him in the face for failing to save her.
If this turns out to be true, than whoever suckered Anthony into this is beyond cruel. Can Coyote be beyond cruel? Given Coyote's loss of both Renard and Surma, and Anthony's hubris, yes, I think Coyote could be beyond cruel. And Anthony was outside the Court so I don't think he was protected by Coyote's promise to not mess with the Court.
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Post by ctso74 on Aug 14, 2015 16:00:40 GMT
I'd also expect from a surgeon being used to act somewhat more responsibly than acting on random strangers "telling him to do this" (beyond "pass me that sandwich, please"). Not that we know this happened. Because his hand meant everything to him as a surgeon (the key to Anthony's story) is why it worked as an antenna, I figure. The feeling of sacrifice's worth is as old as time. I'm betting it has some merit in the Ether. Plus, he lost an antenna. I guess that explains his poor reception on the forum. I've been wondering about Deerletor and his Moldy Crew. Did they want an antenna themselves, but didn't have the resources until he came? Or worse. If the telephone call was perceived as talking into a tunnel (or vice versa), how did he perceive Zimmy saying, "Message from your little girl, mate"? It would be interesting, if he saw his hard-earned "gift" burn in flame, and then one of his new friends said the words. Maybe, they simply feed on pain. |
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Post by Trillium on Aug 14, 2015 16:20:11 GMT
The more I look at the last frame, the more I think that Anthony didn't amputate his hand before making the antenna out of it. He flensed himself, to the bone, sharpened the finger tips, and replaced one of his fingers with a scalpel. This is not the action of a sane man under his own control. You are right, that is not the action of a sane man under his own control. Whoever or whatever Tony' guides are they had way too much control over Tony. I hope they have lost their hold. Zimmy's punch may actually done more good than harm if that broke the connection. Tony's hand was already forfeit by the time she got involved. Tony by needs a lot of healing and he probably should not be Annie's guardian right now. |
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Post by imaginaryfriend on Aug 14, 2015 17:46:32 GMT
Because his hand meant everything to him as a surgeon (the key to Anthony's story) is why it worked as an antenna, I figure. No pain, no high gain. We don't know if Tony's motivation for becoming a surgeon had to do with Surma alone, or if there was something else. Either way what he did as a surgeon was an important part in who he was to himself if less so to Surma and Antimony. Lots of education and practice goes into that career path. I've been wondering about Deerletor and his Moldy Crew. Did they want an antenna themselves, but didn't have the resources until he came? Or worse. If the telephone call was perceived as talking into a tunnel (or vice versa), how did he perceive Zimmy saying, "Message from your little girl, mate"? It would be interesting, if he saw his hard-earned "gift" burn in flame, and then one of his new friends said the words. Maybe, they simply feed on pain. I've heard human flesh tastes like pork. I guess that makes Anthony (or his friend) a ham operator. Joking aside, if it's not Coyote then we may never know why these dudes are doing this. Maybe they feed on pain, maybe they're trying to help, maybe they recognize that Anthony has to do this if he's ever going to get past his wife's death, maybe they're trying to help him and they're just wrong, maybe they're just images in his own mind, maybe he's just close to the ether and they're RotD-like figures he's projecting on (the last two possibilities rolled together), maybe they're just curious to see if he's stupid/crazy enough to try this. But if you want some disturbing speculation wonder what Anthony's experience will be described as while he was touching his daughter's fire trying to reach his wife. Then wonder what it could have been for a guy this obsessed. |
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Post by jda on Aug 14, 2015 18:44:57 GMT
Who wants to bet that this antenna is somehow related to the arrow at the bottom of the Annan waters that trapped Jeanne? I do. |
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Post by jda on Aug 14, 2015 18:51:12 GMT
"No pain, no high gain." I seriously doubt that antenna would be over low gain... no isotropicness there. |
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Post by antiyonder on Aug 14, 2015 19:16:56 GMT
Its far too early to call it a Snape. Snape never did anything to reconcile with Harry himself before his death, and was openly antagonistic toward him. Anthony is still very much alive, and likely has plenty of time to reconcile with Annie. And unless I'm missing something, While it would be nice if Snape reconciled with Harry, why would he need to do so? At best he was the son of a woman he loved, while Tony is also Annie's father thus has some obligation to reconcile. Daedalus: If he knocks off the cold façade with Annie, that'd be peachy. But would it help him? The current score is still not in his favour. And help exactly in what? He didn't show any specific purpose or interest so far. Well if selflessness is beyond his capability, the need to alleviate his guilt could be a motivator in at least being more attentive. Especially if someone like say Don points out that the woman that Tony loves lives on in the daughter, thus being more caring towards Annie allows him to honor his wife and atone for his role in her death by being there for the last living remnant of her. Don could even point out that distancing himself from and neglecting his daughter means that he's making a mockery of his wife's death since she died to give life to Annie. |
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Post by darththulhu on Aug 14, 2015 19:38:56 GMT
Still not sure which outcome is going to be more horrifying:
1) Tony spins up the antenna, but never talks to Surma, or ...
2) Tony spins up the antenna, and DOES talk to Surma
Either way, the communication ends before he wanted to end it, so he might well still want to try it again
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Post by warrl on Aug 14, 2015 20:18:20 GMT
While I'm not willing to go so far as to say Rotting-Pig-Bro Psychopomp is somehow Coyote in disguise, I am rather curious just whose dead Rotting-Pig-Bro is in charge of taking to the Ether. My guess: Rotting-Pig-Bro is actually one of the reasons the psychopomps are in a hurry to get to the newly dead quickly. It (and its kind) are products of human nightmares. Not psychopomps, they have some other use for the dead. Tony seems very much on the edge of crazy. Which edge: near, or far? |
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Post by antiyonder on Aug 14, 2015 20:32:58 GMT
He does others an injustice by thinking that they would judge him as harshly as he judges himself. Well, for what it's worth, Kat judges him harshly and some of us who post here or just follow the story do as well. So he's actually not completely wrong on that score  . |
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artezzatrigger
Full Member
Ominous latin chanting
Posts: 185
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Post by artezzatrigger on Aug 14, 2015 20:41:01 GMT
Its far too early to call it a Snape. Snape never did anything to reconcile with Harry himself before his death, and was openly antagonistic toward him. Anthony is still very much alive, and likely has plenty of time to reconcile with Annie. And unless I'm missing something, While it would be nice if Snape reconciled with Harry, why would he need to do so? At best he was the son of a woman he loved, while Tony is also Annie's father thus has some obligation to reconcile. I don't particularly mean Harry (or anyone in particular), but isn't the issue that people had with pulling a Snape that the characters started idolizing him due to a reveal after his death, despite that this didn't change the fact that he was an absolute prick to anyone and everyone not named Dumbledore pretty much every day of his life with absolutely no regrets? Even J.K. Rowling herself admits in interviews that Snape actively bullied his students while being a bitter, spiteful man above all else in his everyday life.
I mean, I wouldn't expect anyone to still hate him after the reveal (I like the fact hes an imperfect character), but neither would I expect them to respect the guy enough to partially name one of their kids after him, y'know? The reveal absolves him of guilt over his fake betrayal, but doesn't change that he was a pretty dang terrible person.
Similarly, Dumbledore wasn't such an angel either. He was a chess master that took one hell of a gambit. But readers generally might be more forgiving toward him because he at least recognized how manipulative he was being when Harry met him in that afterlife-like place after tricking Voldemort into destroying the part of himself that got placed within him. I have no strong feelings one way or the other, but if thats not what people took issue with, then colour me confused. The difference in this situation being that Anthony is still alive. And unlike Snape, he isn't a big 'ol meanie who toys with anyone he can - to be honest, I'm not even sure hes capable of expressing such vindictive emotions, since Donny seems to be only person alive capable of getting him to express anything at all. But hes still around. He can still grow as a person. And thats why I think its too quick to be disappointed in this reveal, because it doesn't have to be the be-all-end-all that gets the other characters to change their minds about him. He still has the opportunity to achieve it on his own. |
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Post by TBeholder on Aug 14, 2015 20:55:40 GMT
I love the poignancy in contrast between this page and in the microsat chapter over whether Tony wanted Annie involved. Very sad! Donald must be facepalming in his mind. Again and again. Then again, probably he's used to this. I kind of get the feeling that Tony has never really seen himself as Annie's dad. As her guardian, sure. But not her dad. He kind of said it himself already, didn't he? "Is it your business?" Well, yes. There's always a question whether hyphenation has associative law, however. Annie is going to be looking for whoever got her father to maim himself. I do not think she will bear them good will. It was his choice. But this does not matter, because it's reasonable to assume that even if Anthony did not have a clear idea of what he's doing, these enigmatic helpers did. Which means, no variants here - unknown strangers doing something this convoluted which would incapacitate and possibly kill you fall under "important unfinished business", even if there's no suspicion that they may simply retry later. |
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Post by Sky Schemer on Aug 14, 2015 20:56:21 GMT
edzepp, psybershadow, et al: What we need right now is a good heart-to-heart among all of the characters, where everyone explains their motivations and justifications. But we're not going to get that, because then there wouldn't be conflict nor a story. Well, that, and none of the characters really has a enough of a picture of the events to be able to know what to ask from whom. Which kind of precludes there being a big clear-the-air pow-wow. Only Annie comes the closest, and that is because of what is happening now. She still doesn't know the details of Zimmy's involvement in Divine, though she may start to piece it together and figure out that it wasn't some dream. |
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Post by sable0aria on Aug 14, 2015 21:10:28 GMT
I don't know if anyone is going to understand what I'm trying to say here, I'm not good with words to begin with, and I haven't been sleeping well lately.(it's like my sheets have become infused with caffeine or something.)
It's amazing, and annoying how, to me, Anthony speaks of Annie in a concerned parental manner while still managing to make it all about himself. I know we are getting his disappearance backstory here, but he just seems to have assumed so much about Annie's feelings, while not making any effort to find out how she really feels.
The "Whatever Tony Found" creatures are seriously creepy, and because reading this comic has made me feel it could go either way, I'm wondering if they are indeed malicious, or just had as bad an understanding of the situation as Anthony did. I wonder if we will ever find out what they even are. I do think they are the reason Anthony does not want Annie to have anything to do with Gillette Wood anymore.
I'm also wondering why Anthony has such a useless prosthetic. My dad lost his hand in a farming accident, and has a hook prosthetic. While he definitely would not be able to do something like surgery it is really versatile, and Dad is able to do pretty much what everyone else can do. Dad certainly has no trouble feeding himself, unlike Anthony at the Donlan's dinner. Is it some kind of self punishment?
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Post by antiyonder on Aug 14, 2015 21:19:12 GMT
The difference in this situation being that Anthony is still alive. And unlike Snape, he isn't a big 'ol meanie who toys with anyone he can - to be honest, I'm not even sure hes capable of expressing such vindictive emotions, since Donny seems to be only person alive capable of getting him to express anything at all. But hes still around. He can still grow as a person. And thats why I think its too quick to be disappointed in this reveal, because it doesn't have to be the be-all-end-all that gets the other characters to change their minds about him. He still has the opportunity to achieve it on his own. I'll comment more on the Snape thing in a bit, but I guess my response to the revelation stems from well the wait. While there was definitely room to not hate or dislike Anthony, things like his excuses from being absent and his behavior upon returning are likely done to make him unlikable. But whether one liked, disliked or kept a neutral view, we all wanted to know what makes him tick. Regardless, my take was that Tom wanted to see how much he could make some of readers hate Anthony and thus withheld on any revelations for fear that it would make him likable enough that it would be hard to hate him. Even with some of the added sympathy he's gotten, I'd argue that revealing this info earlier wouldn't really backfired in regards to trying to make Tony as unappealing as possible. I kind of get the feeling that Tony has never really seen himself as Annie's dad. As her guardian, sure. But not her dad. He kind of said it himself already, didn't he? "Is it your business?" Unfortunately your response does clarify that. Incidentally I've wondered for quite sometime why Anthony never completely gave up custody of Annie if he dismissed any notion of them having a good father/daughter relationship. I mean while it would be presumptuous, I think Don and Anja would have been willing to adopt Annie. But the recent pages prompt me to believe that he refrained from doing so because he couldn't face them after Surma's passing. Though I also wonder if it's because he wants the perks of custody (power and authority), even though he doesn't want the responsibility. |
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Post by Eisenblume on Aug 14, 2015 21:56:34 GMT
Goddammit Tom. I hoped that Anthony would be a straight up bad guy and now you've made me like him and start to forgive him. Goddammit.
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