[2067] Waiting

[todd]

If this is the start of the final book, the big changes being permanent won't be much of a problem.

If there are still a few more books after this one, however, the consequences of this arc could raise some difficulties for Tom. As in: "I've got a great idea for a Kat chapter - but I've had the Court lock her up and be extremely unforgiving about it, so I can't do that. I'll try a chapter about Parley and Smith - no, the Court's done the same thing to them. Maybe about Shadow2 and Robot - no, I've had the Court do the same thing to them. Aaarghhh! I've rendered almost the entire cast out of the story, and nothing but a miracle can undo this!" (Or at best, a constant struggle with no room for "fun break" chapters.)

[pyradonis]

Nov 7, 2018 15:03:04 GMT OrzBrain said:

I want to know why things haven't been fixed more. Doesn't the Court have all kinds of construction robots and self growing buildings and stuff? Is this really the Court, or is it a Loop trick?

Buildings in the Court have often been shown to be in a state of disrepair. The first time was on page 3.

[heranje]

Nov 8, 2018 12:49:07 GMT todd said:

If this is the start of the final book, the big changes being permanent won't be much of a problem.

If there are still a few more books after this one, however, the consequences of this arc could raise some difficulties for Tom. As in: "I've got a great idea for a Kat chapter - but I've had the Court lock her up and be extremely unforgiving about it, so I can't do that. I'll try a chapter about Parley and Smith - no, the Court's done the same thing to them. Maybe about Shadow2 and Robot - no, I've had the Court do the same thing to them. Aaarghhh! I've rendered almost the entire cast out of the story, and nothing but a miracle can undo this!" (Or at best, a constant struggle with no room for "fun break" chapters.)

I suppose it depends on how you see the narrative of Gunnerkrigg Court. If you read it more like an episodic story, like a TV series that retains the same basic premise, then those are all problems. I've always seen it more like a gradual narrative progression, which yes, is divided into chapters with semi-self-contained storylines, but with each building on the next to tell a story about the Court and Forest and the conflicts and connections between the two. Right now, that conflict has absolutely come to a head, and I'd honestly be disappointed if the conclusion of this arc was a return to normal with the Court stable again and Kat, Annie and the others back attending classes, having the same kinds of hijinks and adventures they've had throughout the story. To me though, that doesn't mean this has to be the final book - just a climax in the underlying conflict between Court and Forest, Science and Magic, which has been the core tension of the entire storyline. Tom is an excellent storyteller, and I'm sure his plan (if it includes this kind of major revolt) would also include a way to keep all the main cast relevant, though perhaps in different roles and situations than we're used to. Perhaps a conflict followed by a new kind of stability (Eglamore, Anja, Donald & The Gang take over the Court?). If the death of Coyote and Loup declaring war on the Court isn't the trigger for a large narrative shift and some kind of large-scale change on the Court side of things as well, though, I'd find it pretty anticlimactic.

Again, "traitor Annie" is most likely not the story Tom is going with, because he's a cleverer storyteller than me and I don't doubt he'll surprise us. But I don't think it'd present an insurmountable obstacle for the story - just a change.

[jda]

Or maybe, all the gang has been in prison all this time, taking the fall for Loup destruction, the lost search parties, and the "death" of the Medium.