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Post by crater on Aug 16, 2021 19:02:55 GMT
"OH MY GOD AHHHHH MY INSTENSTINES ARE FLOWERS WHAT HAVE YOU DONE AATA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"
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Post by saardvark on Aug 16, 2021 19:13:50 GMT
[...] He seems to be brushing an errant leaf or flower petal from his suit as he says this. [...] Interesting. I assumed he had deliberately picked one of the two leaves that seem to be hovering over his shoulders in panel 2 (which, by the way, reminded me a lot of the hovering epaulets from Schlock Mercenary). that's it, Aata is the Field Marshal of Flowers! |
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Post by davidm on Aug 16, 2021 19:35:22 GMT
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mzpx
Junior Member
Posts: 71
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Post by mzpx on Aug 16, 2021 19:57:45 GMT
Just now on Tom's twitter. It's actually.. kinda cute? I was actually wondering about the gentle face touch and Shell's blushing on today's page, but mistook it for checking on the patient and having just recovered from almost certain death, but this image makes it look like there may be some unspoken love of sorts between the two. |
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Post by Gemminie on Aug 16, 2021 20:34:09 GMT
So if my wildspec imagined story about Aata is correct (TL/DR: he's a human with an etheric talent for healing, but was too far away to help when someone he cared about was hurt, and they died, so he vowed that no one would benefit from his healing ability until everyone could benefit from it, and worked toward making that a reality), perhaps his efforts to make etheric healing a reality have found a good home in the overall Court project to make all sorts of etheric benefits available to humanity (under Court supervision, of course). Perhaps the less you use your etheric talent in "unscientific" ways, the higher you rise in the Court hierarchy. Or at the very least, the higher-ups have to set an example, and it's much worse for someone highly placed like Aata to bend the rules.
That could all be completely wrong, and Aata could be some kind of ethereal being. It's just speculation.
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Post by shinkaii on Aug 16, 2021 21:36:03 GMT
Just now on Tom's twitter. It's actually.. kinda cute? I was actually wondering about the gentle face touch and Shell's blushing on today's page, but mistook it for checking on the patient and having just recovered from almost certain death, but this image makes it look like there may be some unspoken love of sorts between the two. How very shojo of them! So how will Court's plans to destroy all things etheric would accomplish their endeavour? Would it be something like "If there are no Gods then every human is a God"? |
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Post by mordekai on Aug 16, 2021 21:50:39 GMT
WEEEIIRDD, weird , wild theory: the "Program" is THEIR REALITY, a la Matrix style. So, basically all they are part of a colective simulated world, and being kicked out of the Program must be equivalent to dying or ceasing to exist/being deleted. Tha is why Tony in page 1558 mentions "[they were going to] banish her from the Court and the Program entirely". That would mean the Psychopoms would be... the Garbage Collectors rotine? There's enough coding and computing references in the comic that this isn't an idea to reject out of hand. How would that work? If their reality is a simulation... what is the forest? And Coyote? What about Asgard and the Aesir, do they exist outside of the Program?
Is the rest of the world that we have experienced (for example, Paz's home in Galicia) part of the simulation? If so, why would they have to delete pupils kicked out of Gunnerkrigg Court instead of allowing them to keep living in the simulated world outside of the Court?
If the world is a simulation, and being kicked of the Court means being deleted... what about Anthony and Surma while they were out of the Court? Why did they keep existing, if they were basically runaways (Anthony was hiding from the Court)?
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Post by TBeholder on Aug 16, 2021 21:53:42 GMT
Judging by this page, this was an action that will kick him out of the Shadow Men or out of Gunnerkrigg Court. 1. Not "out of the Shadow Men", but out of The Program. 2. Not "will", but Shell thinks it will. This also explains why Anthony is so committed to keeping Annie in the school and in The Program, he sees the removal of her etheric abilities via "The Program" as the only way to prevent his daughter from suffering the same fate as her mother. There are paper amulets. Anyway, IMHO it just doesn't sound this way. Rather, "The Program" consistently sounds like the ultimate carrot hung before all these asses. Which would explain the part in need of an explanation: how it's possible to make all these clubs, circles, coteries and cabals of the Court… full of mad scientists, dabbling magic users and as it turns out failed godlings(?)… suspicious, wilful and obsessed with their own pet project… actually cooperate some of the time. |
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Post by Runningflame on Aug 17, 2021 1:06:18 GMT
So how will Court's plans to destroy all things etheric would accomplish their endeavour? Would it be something like "If there are no Gods then every human is a God"? "When no one is super, everyone will be!" (Wait, that's not the quote...) |
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Post by Runningflame on Aug 17, 2021 2:11:56 GMT
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Post by saardvark on Aug 17, 2021 2:14:48 GMT
Aata appears to be "de-charging" or "un-Buddah-fying" in the final frame, as his head spoon starts to lose its white glow....
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Post by rylfrazier on Aug 17, 2021 5:50:42 GMT
I think The Court started with a general goal to understand the etheric realm and the wood, and they've gradually evolved to consider etheric creatures a threat to be controlled or destroyed and are suspicious of people who immerse themselves in etheric practices w/out scientific rigor. |
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Post by pyradonis on Aug 17, 2021 7:36:17 GMT
Of course it does, I always read Annie herself to be wondering about this. "For a place of science, there is much here that science cannot explain."
Just now on Tom's twitter. It's actually.. kinda cute? I was actually wondering about the gentle face touch and Shell's blushing on today's page, but mistook it for checking on the patient and having just recovered from almost certain death, but this image makes it look like there may be some unspoken love of sorts between the two. At least they do care about each other. Might be a mentor-student relationship, might be love, might be the former from Aata's POV and both from Shell's POV... we might yet find out. Although I'd find it a little strange, if all Shadow Men we know by name are in love with each other. |
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Post by blahzor on Aug 17, 2021 8:12:56 GMT
So how will Court's plans to destroy all things etheric would accomplish their endeavour? Would it be something like "If there are no Gods then every human is a God"? "When no one is super, everyone will be!" (Wait, that's not the quote...) when no one super only the smart are powerful |
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Post by pyradonis on Aug 17, 2021 12:24:19 GMT
"When no one is super, everyone will be!" (Wait, that's not the quote...) when no one super only the smart are powerful I think you meant to say "the rich". |
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Post by rabbit on Aug 17, 2021 15:02:29 GMT
Wild spec: That first panel bugs me (the roots have retreated for the moment, but they are no longer broken at the tips, are pointed at Aata, and his back is to them). Is another attack imminent? And if so, is the "failure" he is referring to not his use of etheric power in the last few seconds, but dying in the renewed attack that is about to come in the next few?
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Post by pinegreenjellybean on Aug 17, 2021 15:13:00 GMT
Just now on Tom's twitter. It's actually.. kinda cute? I was actually wondering about the gentle face touch and Shell's blushing on today's page, but mistook it for checking on the patient and having just recovered from almost certain death, but this image makes it look like there may be some unspoken love of sorts between the two. Yeah, was kind of thinking when I saw this last page... "wait, are these two... together?" I mean, Aata looks like he could be her middle aged father, so if you told me before this panel that they were a thing, I'd probably be weirded out. But the way they act here is so sweet? Tbf, I have Chronic Shipper Brain Disorder, but I never thought that vaguely evil-seeming Buddha and spunky androgynous action lady could be so cute? I guess I really do have a soft spot for odd couples and villains-in-love LAUGHING ON LINE Shell seemed weirdly "meh" about the chance of dying. "Oh, look, I'm being impaled with branches." There's still so much about the Shadow Men that we don't know. |
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Post by ohthatone on Aug 17, 2021 16:38:12 GMT
Just now on Tom's twitter. It's actually.. kinda cute? I was actually wondering about the gentle face touch and Shell's blushing on today's page, but mistook it for checking on the patient and having just recovered from almost certain death, but this image makes it look like there may be some unspoken love of sorts between the two. The picture implies a one sided crush. I know the face touching says otherwise but the picture makes me think he acknowledges her admiration but doesn't return the feelings? At least, not in the romantic way. Or maybe I just want it to be like that. Either way, now I want to learn what it is about Aata that makes Shell get blushy. |
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Post by saardvark on Aug 17, 2021 17:51:38 GMT
Just now on Tom's twitter. It's actually.. kinda cute? I was actually wondering about the gentle face touch and Shell's blushing on today's page, but mistook it for checking on the patient and having just recovered from almost certain death, but this image makes it look like there may be some unspoken love of sorts between the two. The picture implies a one sided crush. I know the face touching says otherwise but the picture makes me think he acknowledges her admiration but doesn't return the feelings? At least, not in the romantic way. Or maybe I just want it to be like that. Either way, now I want to learn what it is about Aata that makes Shell get blushy. He's really good at flower arranging? |
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Post by DonDueed on Aug 17, 2021 17:53:02 GMT
If nothing else, this page does seem to close down one line of speculation.
At least a few commenters have suggested that Aata is himself the Big Bad, the Top Banana, the Big Cheese... i.e. the highest authority figure in the Court.
Not so, it would seem, since there exists some unspecified person or persons who can kick Aata out of the Program for whatever his transgression was. So he's definitely not the Head Honcho.
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Post by ohthatone on Aug 17, 2021 18:03:21 GMT
If nothing else, this page does seem to close down one line of speculation.
At least a few commenters have suggested that Aata is himself the Big Bad, the Top Banana, the Big Cheese... i.e. the highest authority figure in the Court.
Not so, it would seem, since there exists some unspecified person or persons who can kick Aata out of the Program for whatever his transgression was. So he's definitely not the Head Honcho.
If we ever find out who the head honcho is and they aren't stroking boxbot in their lap during the reveal, I'm going to be very disappointed. Edit: oh hey, I'm a gunner now, when did that happen? Yay for promotions! |
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Post by Eversist on Aug 17, 2021 18:21:35 GMT
If nothing else, this page does seem to close down one line of speculation. At least a few commenters have suggested that Aata is himself the Big Bad, the Top Banana, the Big Cheese... i.e. the highest authority figure in the Court. Not so, it would seem, since there exists some unspecified person or persons who can kick Aata out of the Program for whatever his transgression was. So he's definitely not the Head Honcho.
I wonder if it's more of a board/there is no one big bad that enforces whatever rules the Court/the "program" holds itself to. Aata may have the power to collectively vote people out of the program, too. Also I'm of the mind that "the program" is just shorthand for referring to the Court at large (the education then employment/research positions), but I think I might be in the minority here. |
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Post by jda on Aug 17, 2021 18:44:12 GMT
If nothing else, this page does seem to close down one line of speculation.
At least a few commenters have suggested that Aata is himself the Big Bad, the Top Banana, the Big Cheese... i.e. the highest authority figure in the Court.
Not so, it would seem, since there exists some unspecified person or persons who can kick Aata out of the Program for whatever his transgression was. So he's definitely not the Head Honcho.
But then... maybe he can be the Big bad banana-cheese top head honcho??? Dare you to depict that. |
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Post by saardvark on Aug 17, 2021 21:45:09 GMT
If nothing else, this page does seem to close down one line of speculation.
At least a few commenters have suggested that Aata is himself the Big Bad, the Top Banana, the Big Cheese... i.e. the highest authority figure in the Court.
Not so, it would seem, since there exists some unspecified person or persons who can kick Aata out of the Program for whatever his transgression was. So he's definitely not the Head Honcho.
But then... maybe he can be the Big bad banana-cheese top head honcho??? Dare you to depict that. I don't even want to think about banana-cheese! |
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Post by lurkerbot on Aug 17, 2021 23:16:33 GMT
I'm curious to see if or how Aata's apparent actions over these last couple of pages can be reconciled with Coyote's warning that " his bitterness know no bounds". |
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Post by warrl on Aug 18, 2021 1:32:48 GMT
I'm curious to see if or how Aata's apparent actions over these last couple of pages can be reconciled with Coyote's warning that " his bitterness know no bounds". We're told that Coyote is not a liar... ... but that doesn't mean he never lies... ... nor that he is infallible. |
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Post by rylfrazier on Aug 18, 2021 4:18:00 GMT
That's Coyote's impression of him though - he sees him as endlessly bitter because they disagree, it's unclear about what but possibly it's something like "whether Coyote should just do whatever it wants".
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Post by Runningflame on Aug 19, 2021 1:56:42 GMT
Shell seemed weirdly "meh" about the chance of dying. "Oh, look, I'm being impaled with branches." She's probably a snowman. But then... maybe he can be the Big bad banana-cheese top head honcho??? Dare you to depict that. I don't even want to think about banana-cheese! Still better than head cheese. |
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Post by drmemory on Aug 19, 2021 2:51:28 GMT
Just now on Tom's twitter. It's actually.. kinda cute? I was actually wondering about the gentle face touch and Shell's blushing on today's page, but mistook it for checking on the patient and having just recovered from almost certain death, but this image makes it look like there may be some unspoken love of sorts between the two. The picture implies a one sided crush. I know the face touching says otherwise but the picture makes me think he acknowledges her admiration but doesn't return the feelings? At least, not in the romantic way. Or maybe I just want it to be like that. Either way, now I want to learn what it is about Aata that makes Shell get blushy. Good old "attraction to an older man in a position of authority"? See Police song "Don't Stand So Close To Me" for reference. |
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Post by speedwell on Aug 20, 2021 9:59:49 GMT
The picture implies a one sided crush. I know the face touching says otherwise but the picture makes me think he acknowledges her admiration but doesn't return the feelings? At least, not in the romantic way. Or maybe I just want it to be like that. Either way, now I want to learn what it is about Aata that makes Shell get blushy. Good old "attraction to an older man in a position of authority"? See Police song "Don't Stand So Close To Me" for reference. Tsk. We have to ship everything now, I guess. Good old Internet. I thought it at least possible he was her father or mentor, and he had rarely been demonstrative with affection or even emotionally available before. I inferred he had had a need to be in control of himself and things around him at all times, and was teaching her to be the same. |
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