[2418] She always does this

[Timberwere]

Okay, so what has Zimmy done that makes her believe beating herself up is necessary because she deserves it?

[jda]

wELP.

[madjack]

Given how nasty her powers are and how little control she has over them, it wouldn't be a stretch to think she might have severely injured or killed someone in the past.

[guntherkrieg]

Finally, after fifteen years, we get a second chapter that tries to flesh out Gamma as a character and not as a plot device.

[wies]

That is sad, but not entirely surprising. She has been giving hints she doesn't like herself exactly.

Also, after going through traumatic experiences, both the body and the mind tend to behave as if it is still happening, sometimes even recreating it. So that also checks out. I hope the title points to a positive closure to this cycle.

[echo]

Alright guys clearly we're heading towards an Evangelion reference I'm just going to take my spot next to the penguin and prepare to clap, as we get Zimmy out of this ego trap.

[Eily]

Jan 20, 2021 8:05:47 GMT Timberwere said:

Okay, so what has Zimmy done that makes her believe beating herself up is necessary because she deserves it?

Didn't we get some signs that she feels guitly for involving Gamma in her problems? Also I can't remember where it was but it was hinted that she keeps Gamma isolated from other people on purpose, I'm sure this plays into her impression that she doesn't deserve Gamma.

That's probably not the main reason for the way she feels about herself, because it sounds like it was true long before she even met her, but it probably explains why she pushes Gamma away when this happens.



It sounds like this is the first time that Zimmy is reliving this memory with someone else involved, someone who doesn't just reflect her self hatred back to her. So it might be good for Zimmy.

[pyradonis]

So. Are those elf kids just echos of the kids from the past, clad in a form that fits Zimmy's present situation, or are they real, but influenced by whatever leaks out of Zimmy's mind?

Jan 20, 2021 10:32:35 GMT guntherkrieg said:

Finally, after fifteen years, we get a second chapter that tries to flesh out Gamma as a character and not as a plot device.

Do we, though?

Because until now Gamma has only explained stuff and mainly talked about Zimmy.

Jan 20, 2021 11:21:31 GMT echo said:

Alright guys clearly we're heading towards an Evangelion reference I'm just going to take my spot next to the penguin and prepare to clap, as we get Zimmy out of this ego trap.

I don't understand a word you're saying, but I liked the rhyme.

[zbeeblebrox]

“She always does this” :\
PTSD gets way more messed up when you can physically manifest your trauma flashbacks

[cremily]

Well. I was feeling like this was going to be like the last few Zimmyverse chapters in that, while some of my favorites in terms of presentation, didn't really advance the plot or our knowledge of Zimmy, Gamma or Annie, but in a single page I am not only emotionally impacted but engaged.


I don't think this is unexpected motivation for Zimmy though, even in her first chapter she's always been presented as someone disliked (although the idea of her presenting a science experiment doesn't seem quite realistic anymore).

I feel like the forest kids are real however, Zimmyverse seems to take parts of the present 'verse inside, it would be a marked departure for the forest kids chasing Zimmy to ALL be a part of the distorted reality. (Although we only seem it start with Annie around, plus given the recent disturbances, maybe Zimmy is working differently?)

[saardvark]

Jan 20, 2021 12:38:19 GMT cremily said:

I feel like the forest kids are real however, Zimmyverse seems to take parts of the present 'verse inside, it would be a marked departure for the forest kids chasing Zimmy to ALL be a part of the distorted reality. (Although we only seem it start with Annie around, plus given the recent disturbances, maybe Zimmy is working differently?)

welcome to the forum, cremily!

on the previous page tho, Gamma says of PlushRey "That's not you.  It's part of Antimony.  They all are..."  I read that to mean that only the Annies are real, while the others are based on Zimm's memory of the mean kids, filtered and projected onto a more recent memories of hers and Annie's interactions with elf kids.

(edited to clarify a bit...)

[blahzor]

so that's a pocket void then?

[gpvos]

Jan 20, 2021 13:48:32 GMT blahzor said:

so that's a pocket void then?

It's just the space behind the comic panels.

[noozoo]

Is it just me that is totally confused?

[Per]

Yous thought yous were doing protagonist-like things but it was me, Zimmy!

[lonestarf1]

Jan 20, 2021 13:58:12 GMT gpvos said:

Jan 20, 2021 13:48:32 GMT blahzor said:

so that's a pocket void then?

It's just the space behind the comic panels.

Just make sure you don't flex the wrong muscle trying to get into the space between the panels. This comic is still for young audiences after all.

[ctso74]

Jan 20, 2021 8:48:11 GMT madjack said:

Given how nasty her powers are and how little control she has over them, it wouldn't be a stretch to think she might have severely injured or killed someone in the past.

Or herself, thus her current "condition".

I know my pet theory, that Gamma/Zimmy are the same person, isn't true. Still, I can't help but frame that last sentence, with it in mind. Ow, the feels.

[stclair]

I am Zimmy's self-loathing.

[pyradonis]

Jan 20, 2021 12:38:19 GMT cremily said:

I feel like the forest kids are real however, Zimmyverse seems to take parts of the present 'verse inside, it would be a marked departure for the forest kids chasing Zimmy to ALL be a part of the distorted reality. (Although we only seem it start with Annie around, plus given the recent disturbances, maybe Zimmy is working differently?)

The thing is, they were only chasing her in the real world.

And Zimmy said before: "When it gets bad, things start to change. Like, for real."

PS: Welcome to the forum!

[fia]

I'm starting to guess that from the beginning of the scene we were already in Zimmingham, explains the clouded sky and why we couldn't tell which we were in. Then Zimmy's subconscious must have collided with Annie's and now they're co-dreaming. The kids appear as elves probably because Annie knew Zimmy lived near elves and there didn't have to be too much suggestibility for Zimmy to take it on.

To be honest I was wondering why the elves looked so very urban even in their hairdo's even though it's probably awkward collectively adapting to the Court. Must be combination of Zimmy's expectations and Annie's.

It's possible the elf kids are real and got pulled in themselves? They also seemed confused about why they were chasing Zimmy in the first place.


Renard must be there because of his link with Annie. Guess he's not as immersed in it as Annie for some reason which is probably why he can have a chat with Gamma.
Maybe this will all result in Annie returning the favor Zimmy did all those chapters ago in helping her with her dad problem. I'm feeling a bit better.

[foxurus]

I don't think it's fair to assume that Zimmy did something to make her feel like she deserves it. She very likely has PTSD from being on the streets and dealing with her reality distortion for her whole life. PTSD often includes guilt, shame, self-hatred, and suicidal ideation. When you've been harmed/unsafe/in pain for as long as you can remember, it's hard to believe that you're not supposed to be hurting.

(She's actually displayed a lot of the symptoms of PTSD, even stuff like trouble sleeping or concentrating. Hell, Zimmingham and her other hallucinations might have started, initially, as flashbacks and dissociation that were amplified by her etherical connection.)

[mturtle7]

Jan 20, 2021 14:06:53 GMT noozoo said:

Is it just me that is totally confused?

AHAHAHAHA no. Trust me, no. If you're reading GC and get confused, you can bet that even in the rare cases that Tom isn't confusing you on purpose, you are almost certainly in solidarity with other confused GC readers. And this is DEFINITELY one of the cases where Tom is confusing people on purpose. Any chapter with Zimmy & Gamma in it is almost guaranteed to be mind-f*ck central. I, myself, have no idea right now whether Rob & co. are the cause of Zimmy's flashback, or a consequence of it, or some weird mixture of both! "Living it again with elements of the court" is a very ambiguous kind of description that will probably become a lot more clear by the end of this chapter.

Also, seeing how matter-of-fact and resolute Gamma is when talking about Zimmy is almost as heartbreaking as Zimmy's situation itself. This woman has worked SO HARD for SO LONG to support her horribly traumatized girlfriend, with such little progress...GAMMA WHYYYYYYYY

[Gemminie]

Jan 20, 2021 19:01:55 GMT fia said:

I'm starting to guess that from the beginning of the scene we were already in Zimmingham, explains the clouded sky and why we couldn't tell which we were in. Then Zimmy's subconscious must have collided with Annie's and now they're co-dreaming. The kids appear as elves probably because Annie knew Zimmy lived near elves and there didn't have to be too much suggestibility for Zimmy to take it on.

To be honest I was wondering why the elves looked so very urban even in their hairdo's even though it's probably awkward collectively adapting to the Court. Must be combination of Zimmy's expectations and Annie's.

It's possible the elf kids are real and got pulled in themselves? They also seemed confused about why they were chasing Zimmy in the first place.


Renard must be there because of his link with Annie. Guess he's not as immersed in it as Annie for some reason which is probably why he can have a chat with Gamma.
Maybe this will all result in Annie returning the favor Zimmy did all those chapters ago in helping her with her dad problem. I'm feeling a bit better.

The question I was asking after today's installment was which came first, the elf kids chasing Zimmy or Zimmy's reliving of being chased and beaten up by some teenagers. I'm certain that the elf kids are real (well, they are in the real world – what we're seeing here might just be images of them). And what you're saying just sounds to me as if it could be the answer. Zimmy wasn't being chased by teenagers at first.

1. Zimmy sees the teens
2. Zimmy has a flashback to the incident from the past
3. Gamma tries to help
4. Zimmy pushes Gamma away
5. The teens get caught up in Zimmy's flashback and start chasing her, not even knowing why
6. This causes positive feedback: Zimmy's agitation increases and pulls them in even stronger, feeding more agitation
7. Then the chapter begins

As for the elf kids dressing in urban Court styles, we saw Idra (not a teenager) adapting to Court styles of clothing. Of course they're trying out new clothes, because they're available.

Why does Zimmy beat herself up? Because she got beaten up and that set up a pattern of abuse? That doesn't make sense unless it happened again and again. Or ... did she lash out at those teenagers and some of them ended up dead, insane, etc.? Or ... I'm always worried about what Tom said about Zimmy's parents.

Q: Are Gamma's parents concerned about her? What about Zimmy's Parents?

A: Zimmy's parents haven't really noticed she's gone. Gamma doesn't think about her parents.


Q: Do Zimmy's parents love her? Do they know that Gamma helps her in some way?

A: If they could remember her, they would be glad she is gone.


Q: Did Zimmy inherit her powers or condition from her parents? If not, will you be covering how she got them? Her parents must be something, to not even notice her presence.

A: Her parents were normal


Q: Are Zimmy's parents still alive?

A: They were last time Zimmy saw them.

Err ... her parents are alive, but can't remember her and haven't noticed she's gone? But if they could remember her, they'd be glad she's gone?

What I'm hopeful for is a change in Renard's attitude toward Zimmy.

[daria]

Jan 20, 2021 14:06:53 GMT noozoo said:

Is it just me that is totally confused?

Let’s hope Mr. Sidell will continue making his retrospective videos (on his YouTube channel). Once, these helped me to understand very much about the comic, many things about it I couldn’t understand by myself.

[daria]

What confuses me the most: what is the space/realm Gamma and Rey are located in? If this is ether according to Rey’s ether form here, what is Gamma doing in the ether? Even if her power-suppressing power is to be considered etheric, she is in her usual “form” here. Or is her being as usual even in the ether symbolizes the passiveness and “antipowerness” (¿wat?) of her power?

[daria]

Jan 20, 2021 19:12:58 GMT mturtle7 said:

Also, seeing how matter-of-fact and resolute Gamma is when talking about Zimmy is almost as heartbreaking as Zimmy's situation itself. This woman has worked SO HARD for SO LONG to support her horribly traumatized girlfriend, with such little progress...GAMMA WHYYYYYYYY

[/quote]


Gamma barely keeps Zimmy alive at the expense of her own life, supports her, as you said, but only that, I think. It seems like it is not in Gamma’s power to make Zimmy and Zimmy’s life improve.

P.S. seems like I quoted you wrongly.. I wanted this message to look differently. Didn’t figure this out till the end

[DonDueed]

So, Zimmy is reliving an incident from her past?  Wouldn't be the first time, as Runningflame explains so eloquently here.

[Corvo]

It's one of those pages aimed at raising social awareness! I guess this one is about Gamma's hair ray length fluctuations or something. Such social responsibility!

And I see lots of people recommending a therapist for Zimmy in the comments. Come on guys, we all know what would happen!

[csj]

Jan 20, 2021 12:14:38 GMT pyradonis said:

Jan 20, 2021 11:21:31 GMT echo said:

Alright guys clearly we're heading towards an Evangelion reference I'm just going to take my spot next to the penguin and prepare to clap, as we get Zimmy out of this ego trap.

I don't understand a word you're saying, but I liked the rhyme.

congratulations

[pyradonis]

Jan 20, 2021 22:22:19 GMT daria said:

seems like I quoted you wrongly.. I wanted this message to look differently. Didn’t figure this out till the end

Edit your post, switch from "Preview" to "BBCode" and remove the first instance of "[/quote]" that comes up in the text.

Jan 21, 2021 6:00:22 GMT csj said:

Jan 20, 2021 12:14:38 GMT pyradonis said:

I don't understand a word you're saying, but I liked the rhyme.

congratulations

This looks like a weird dream, or the cringy ending to a family friendly video game.