Tina’s expression and overall portrayal in Panel Two was bugging me – then i realised – she looks like the Grinch (as animarted by Chuck Jones) – or like any number of other Chuck Jones characters just before they Did Something…
Meanwhile back at the ranch — This clears up part of Tina 2.0’s origin, in that Nudge was there from the beginning. I wasn’t sure if Nudge had moved in later and taken over, or was trying to captain the ship from the beginning. Issue resolved!
Just before the Anchovy Incident, as i recall, Nudge and the legitimate members of the Collective were squabbling, and Nudge stated that it was she who got them up off the slab and out of the morgue.
And a pretty good one. At least one of the rats has apparently had brawling experience, Tina’s using her hands AND feet well…
If Tina’s been recounting her grievances with each punch and kick, that SHOULD be the end of it though. Unless she wants to hit her just for coming back.
…also, her father was a big-time narcotraficante, but he quite likely didn’t start out that way … which means she may have spent quite a few years living in places not far off the infamous “mean streets” (which, in its original context, is a reference to the British usage of small, cheap, tawdry, etc.).
I’d go one step further. Nudge is just learning that one of the downsides to being immortal is that past missteps and mischief always has time to catch up to you.
As Max Mercury says to Nightwing as Wonder Girl and Arrowette’s mothers begin to resolve their differences in the old-fashioned way, “Son, I’ve been around a long time; and i’ve learned one thing – the only thing a man can do about a catfight is bring along his own popcorn and cold drink.”
I know that Shelly and creepy girl have spoken before in the basement, but I did not know that creepy girl was corporeal enough for Shelly to put her arm around her like that.
No, the creepy part is that this is the first time that she’s appeared before anyone else. She appeared at S’s bedside all alone, and at the beach, she took/Shelly went to the Basement (Dream sequence-esque).
Now, she’s walking around the coffee shop. Question is whether Tina/Nudge see her too, or if she’s an actual hallucination of Shelly’s.
Creepy girl has been lurking around the coffeeshop a few times previously… most notably when Shelly was convinced to squish the heck out of one of the metal foaming mugs…
Probably. Still, if Shelly doesn’t break this up and Tina continues to cause damage to Nudge, Phix may be compelled to come forth and do something. We don’t yet know how much leeway she has with this do no harm thing where Nudge is concerned. Phix may be forced to stop it or put a nasty punishment on the Tina-demons, whether she wants to or not. Worse yet, one of the other Sphinxes might show up to do the job. If so, swift and remorseless retribution would surely follow.
The other sphinxes may not have the chance to interfere – the LIBRARY may send phix to the rescue if Nudge gets in any real danger, as the Library declared they BOTH had duty as librarians. Phix, of course, would not like doing anything close to pulling Nudge’s chestnuts out of the fire – and Nudge would (probably) almost rather take the beating than be ‘helped’ by Phix.
And if one of the sphinxes shows up, we just might get to see if it wants to deal with three golems who could make it into a rug in damned short order.
On another subject, I confess I am starting to get a bit curious as to what Mayahuel is doing at the moment.
That is a good question: A creature that can punch past the physical shell and smack the spirit inside… could it knock the soul right out of a golem? That would shut them down pretty darn quick…
At least we now know Shelly is aware of Creepy Girl’s presence. It even looks like CG is there physically given how Shelly has her arm around her. Poor Nudge. I thought her beating by Phix was bad …
Well, that was in the Library, where they can’t come to any real physical harm. When Phix conked her and she lost a horseshoe, all she was doing when she got up was rubbing her head.
The whole ‘Real World’ experience is not going so well for Nudge.
Much as I think Tina has a genuine beef here, I agree with Conscience in that somebody needs to referee. No hair pulling, no blows below the belt, and there’s WAY too little Jell-O in the ring….
As onr of Damon Runyan’s characters once said, “…sometimes it is a little hard to tell exactly where I hit them; when a .45 hits a rat it sort of hits him all over.”
From the looks of it, the fight has been going on for a bit, Tina has landed more than one blow, and Nudge is down, disheveled, and may, after that kick, be about to toss her cookies…
If I’ve understood Tina’s existence correctly, shes not so much upset at the living – more the fact that she now has an expiry date. If you’ll recall, because the demons are now ‘alive’, they will die when the body wears out. And no matter who you are, you are going to be slightly pissed at the person who took away your immortality.
Given what she has said to herselves before, the demons don’t really know what will happen to them when Tina dies. Nor is it clear how long she will “live.” She may not be immortal, but she may still be around for much longer than a typical human lifespan. The only thing really known is that they have no memory of their prior existance.
The living she was fine with. The time where Tina thought Phix was going to destroy her? Not so much. I think the punch was retribution for anchovies, and it’s going downhill from there.
From some of Tina’s internal squabbles we know the Collective was VERY upset with Nudge’s tendency to direct them, commit Tina to various things on her own, and in general to run things without consulting them. Demons, as we’ve seen, don’t LIKE being ruled against their will, and believe in payback…
Ow. I suspect this payback may be somewhat deserved, but still, ow. I hope Tina and Nudge can mend fences, because it looks like they’ll both have a part to play in upcoming events…
I think Nudge was a little bit optimistic in thinking of getting any sympathy from Tina in the first place. OTOH, tricksters in general don’t have much empathy for their victims and think it’s all in good fun. Where is the line between a trickster and a bully?
We’re still in round one. Opus the Poet commented on Nudge being beaten out of her clothes. Is she being beaten out of her clothes or is she growing out of her clothes? I wonder how the transformational spell works? If Nudge loses concentration will she “Nudge-out?” We’ll see how Nudge handles round two and whether or not Nudge holds a grudge. I don’t think Tina has to worry about repercussions from Sphinxes because the restriction to do no harm applies only to ‘humans.'(my guess)
I know that Tina is Hispanic/Latina and am assuming she’s Mexican since that’s where the Monica bus accident took place and from the Mexican theme in her cafe (papel picado, La Virgen Guadalupe, Aztec gods on the counter). I say that because I’m reminded of comedian Pablo Francisco’s routine on how great it is to have Mexican girlfriends since they’ll fight for you (which has been verified by my dating experiences at least).
Payback? Yeah, I called it in the first post yesterday. But this isn’t just payback, it’s an old fashioned beat down.
As strong as Shelly is, she may be a little reluctant to get in the middle of this “Reunion”.
I like how conscience is totally part of the action. And I hope that when this is all over, they can get back to their conversation because i want to know more!
One, this seems out of character for Tina. She’s never hurt a fly.
Two, I’m disturbed by how many commenters seem amused by a visceral beating. Yes, it’s fantasy, but still… ye gods.
Were I there, I would have been in the thick of it from the first, taking the blows for Nudge, trying to get Tina off of her. Because Tina has NO right to respond like this.
This is classic anger projection. Tina’s mad at Phix, but she can’t do anything to Phix so she takes it out on Nudge. Granted, Nudge isn’t exactly an innocent bystander in this matter, but it’s not like she planned for Tina to suffer at Phix’s hands.
…
And this is why I love this story. You can really identify with the characters, really believe in them and even get angry at them.
Remember, the demons are wild animals. Intelligent, yes, but wild nonetheless. Wherein a domestic animal would become irritated in a certain situation, it would still show the restraint which comes with proper training and the domestic breeding program. In that same situation, a wild animal can be sweet and loving one moment and totally out of control the next. I think this situation well illustrates one of the dangers Tina poses all the time. The facade of civility can break at any moment and she may have no control over her actions. Something characteristic of most wild animals all the time and humans and other domestic animals occasionaly. The wild animal doesn’t know when to stop either. That usually happens when the foe is lying very still. Breaking this up may be dangerous to Shelly. Luckily, that strength of hers should be enough to fling the participants to opposite sides of the room if needed.
Were I there, I would have been in the thick of it from the first, taking the blows for Nudge, trying to get Tina off of her. Because Tina has NO right to respond like this.
Tina has no way of knowing whether Tina has a right to be mad at Nudge – nor how much. And it’s happening Very Fast.
Wish i could remember the Damon Runyan story – not the one i quoted earlier – which begins with a gangster who’s been out of town for a while suddenly walking in to the back room at Mindy’s and, without warning, taking a shot at one of the guys hanging out and singing barbershop harmony.
That distinction is why so many people are liable to assault or battery charges. Too often, anger leads to attack. It is not justified, but that’s what happens.
I may be the only person here who feels unmitigated glee at Tina’s beating of Nudge. I hate smug trickster-type characters as a general rule and I am so very glad that she’s getting what she deserves. Probably not nearly enough, I might add.
Trickster usually means “raving schmuck whose schmuck-like actions are jussst this side of criminal.” However, those actions are sort of “waved off” because, oh, so-and-so is a TRICKSTER and that is what they do. They TRICK.
Kill your baby? Murder. Replace your baby with a changling and sell your actual baby into slavery? Trick. Steal a million dollars? Robbery. Cause someone to lose a million dollars, forcing them into prostitution? Trick. Doesn’t matter of the target is worthy or not, either. Most tricksters are schmucks regardless. Tricksters are the writer’s opportunity to make a character do bad things while still remaining cute and likable. FFS, then: write a likable(ish), evil character. See: Mike from The Walkyverse.
Sayn-Day wasn’t immune. Anansi wasn’t immune. Even Monkey King wasn’t immune. Eventually, tricksters will have at least some of their chickens come home to roost. It’s Nudge’s turn right now. But Shelly probably needs to step in soon.
Punch to the face for the anchovies (popular opinion), knee to the gut for scaring the shit out of them because they thought Phix wanted to kill them… what will they do next?
And I love how the conscience is watching with near null reaction but sympathy for Nudge… and Shelly is cringing and looks ready to bolt.
Ah, yes. Our Conscience tells us that we shouldn’t let friends commit homicide – or even GBH – unless, of course, they can get away with it…
Tina’s expression and overall portrayal in Panel Two was bugging me – then i realised – she looks like the Grinch (as animarted by Chuck Jones) – or like any number of other Chuck Jones characters just before they Did Something…
I see her expression as sweet as sugar…laced with arsenic.
Phil Foglio might have drawn hearts and rose petals around the word balloon.
Still some pent up stress from that last encounter with Phix, I see…
So much for the one-punch-and-done theory. :p
… takes bow…
Meanwhile back at the ranch — This clears up part of Tina 2.0’s origin, in that Nudge was there from the beginning. I wasn’t sure if Nudge had moved in later and taken over, or was trying to captain the ship from the beginning. Issue resolved!
Just before the Anchovy Incident, as i recall, Nudge and the legitimate members of the Collective were squabbling, and Nudge stated that it was she who got them up off the slab and out of the morgue.
And.. auto complete does it again…..
But, it’s not a fight without blows from both sides. Until Nudge can rally and try to land a blow, it’s just a beating.
And a pretty good one. At least one of the rats has apparently had brawling experience, Tina’s using her hands AND feet well…
If Tina’s been recounting her grievances with each punch and kick, that SHOULD be the end of it though. Unless she wants to hit her just for coming back.
Actually, i think it’s a knee. Much more devastating if delivered at the correct angle…
…also, her father was a big-time narcotraficante, but he quite likely didn’t start out that way … which means she may have spent quite a few years living in places not far off the infamous “mean streets” (which, in its original context, is a reference to the British usage of small, cheap, tawdry, etc.).
I dunno…
Being someone else’s ‘meat-puppet’ could make you just a little…
ticked!
She hasn’t “thanked” Nudge for the Anchovis on the Pizza yet 😀
Honestly? I’m on Tina’s side on this one.
Yep.
Still don’t see it. Sure, she could be scared, and that’s fine. But a full beatdown rage? Something else is going on here..
Called it 🙂
I like this new Tina
I think Tina has just a little bit of unanswered rage towards Nudge. Just a tiny bit…
I think Tina resents the hell out of having been a puppet to Nudge’s puppeteer.
And Nudge is learning the difference between being impervious to Time, and being impervious to harm.
I’d go one step further. Nudge is just learning that one of the downsides to being immortal is that past missteps and mischief always has time to catch up to you.
Just a liiiiddle bit.
If that’s a ‘little’ rage…
I wouldn’t want to be around when she is totalled
pissed-off!
Love the artwork and layout.
I hope Tina doesn’t stay this way.
I don’t care how hot they look, I am not getting any where near the middle of that !
As Max Mercury says to Nightwing as Wonder Girl and Arrowette’s mothers begin to resolve their differences in the old-fashioned way, “Son, I’ve been around a long time; and i’ve learned one thing – the only thing a man can do about a catfight is bring along his own popcorn and cold drink.”
*buys colddrink from creepygirl’s vending cart*
I know that Shelly and creepy girl have spoken before in the basement, but I did not know that creepy girl was corporeal enough for Shelly to put her arm around her like that.
Well, Monica could touch her own demons, and Tina touched the doubts of Monica and Jin. I think it’s kinda like that.
No, the creepy part is that this is the first time that she’s appeared before anyone else. She appeared at S’s bedside all alone, and at the beach, she took/Shelly went to the Basement (Dream sequence-esque).
Now, she’s walking around the coffee shop. Question is whether Tina/Nudge see her too, or if she’s an actual hallucination of Shelly’s.
Creepy girl has been lurking around the coffeeshop a few times previously… most notably when Shelly was convinced to squish the heck out of one of the metal foaming mugs…
You know, Pablo kinda snuck that one frame in the frothing cup arc, so I didn’t even notice it.
I wonder: why the “Tina” in Shel’s “introduction” dream sequence said “Mark her”….
(Oh, and I was talking about Tessa’s avatar previously.)
Upon seeing your avatar, I’m thinking that one of the other grievances against nudge was that she doesn’t make a very good cup of coffee.
And somewhere off on the sidelines, Phix is chortling …
Probably. Still, if Shelly doesn’t break this up and Tina continues to cause damage to Nudge, Phix may be compelled to come forth and do something. We don’t yet know how much leeway she has with this do no harm thing where Nudge is concerned. Phix may be forced to stop it or put a nasty punishment on the Tina-demons, whether she wants to or not. Worse yet, one of the other Sphinxes might show up to do the job. If so, swift and remorseless retribution would surely follow.
The other sphinxes may not have the chance to interfere – the LIBRARY may send phix to the rescue if Nudge gets in any real danger, as the Library declared they BOTH had duty as librarians. Phix, of course, would not like doing anything close to pulling Nudge’s chestnuts out of the fire – and Nudge would (probably) almost rather take the beating than be ‘helped’ by Phix.
But, it WOULD be funny to watch…………
And if one of the sphinxes shows up, we just might get to see if it wants to deal with three golems who could make it into a rug in damned short order.
On another subject, I confess I am starting to get a bit curious as to what Mayahuel is doing at the moment.
That is a good question: A creature that can punch past the physical shell and smack the spirit inside… could it knock the soul right out of a golem? That would shut them down pretty darn quick…
“Chestnuts”? Phix is a grrl trickster…
So Nudge has been well and truly tricked by a fellow expert…
Just a figure of speech. Would you prefer orchids?
nah, no problem I think… It’s not as if they can die, is it??
Tina can vent her anguish, and nudge can learn to ‘grow up’ a bit… 🙂
If she hasn’t grown up by now, she never will. I don’t think any number of “lessons” will change her and that’s fine with me.
Nudge’s face in panel 3 is priceless.
At least we now know Shelly is aware of Creepy Girl’s presence. It even looks like CG is there physically given how Shelly has her arm around her. Poor Nudge. I thought her beating by Phix was bad …
Well, that was in the Library, where they can’t come to any real physical harm. When Phix conked her and she lost a horseshoe, all she was doing when she got up was rubbing her head.
The whole ‘Real World’ experience is not going so well for Nudge.
True. Good point.
Much as I think Tina has a genuine beef here, I agree with Conscience in that somebody needs to referee. No hair pulling, no blows below the belt, and there’s WAY too little Jell-O in the ring….
Ahhh Jell-O wrestling…that brings back some fun memories…
I haven’t been here for awhile, but I’m thinking that it is a justifiable beat down.
Hit, there!
Agreed! However, I do believe that at this point Tina should be pretty much caught up.
While I feel a little (just a little) bad at seeing Nudge beaten up, I have to say Tina looks very pretty in panel 2 to me.
ooooooohhhhhh dang….yeah…what the mini demon said… 😮
Is it just me, or is Nudge getting beaten out of her clothes? I though I saw a bra and a navel in different panels.
A good fight, or bad one, for that matter, tends to dishevel one’s clothing…
Hmm Why the black eye? Didn’t Tiny hit her in the jaw yesterday?
As onr of Damon Runyan’s characters once said, “…sometimes it is a little hard to tell exactly where I hit them; when a .45 hits a rat it sort of hits him all over.”
…and I can vouch for that being literally true.
Ratburger, anyone…?
So, how many .45-hit rats does it take to make a reasonable sized ratburger??
How many .45 hit rats would a .45 hit if a .45 could hit rats?
Depends on how you define “reasonable” (one might make a White Castle mini-burger) and how much time you want to spend picking up scraps… :(P
From the looks of it, the fight has been going on for a bit, Tina has landed more than one blow, and Nudge is down, disheveled, and may, after that kick, be about to toss her cookies…
I wonder what Nudges eat?
OTH, Shelly’s Panel One reaction sounds more like it’s just a split second since Tina landed her first punch.
Crow (and her own teeth) at the moment.
Anchovies.
So Tina is upset for living?
not sure on this one.
I can understand the wanting to punch after thinking she was sphinx lunch but corpse movement?
If I’ve understood Tina’s existence correctly, shes not so much upset at the living – more the fact that she now has an expiry date. If you’ll recall, because the demons are now ‘alive’, they will die when the body wears out. And no matter who you are, you are going to be slightly pissed at the person who took away your immortality.
Given what she has said to herselves before, the demons don’t really know what will happen to them when Tina dies. Nor is it clear how long she will “live.” She may not be immortal, but she may still be around for much longer than a typical human lifespan. The only thing really known is that they have no memory of their prior existance.
The living she was fine with. The time where Tina thought Phix was going to destroy her? Not so much. I think the punch was retribution for anchovies, and it’s going downhill from there.
Can’t fault an anchovy punch.
From some of Tina’s internal squabbles we know the Collective was VERY upset with Nudge’s tendency to direct them, commit Tina to various things on her own, and in general to run things without consulting them. Demons, as we’ve seen, don’t LIKE being ruled against their will, and believe in payback…
OHH! Kick right to the baby basket… NICE! Also, am I the only one that thinks Tina in Panel #2 is hot!
Maybe if she were presenting the ‘Fabulous Showcase’. But, because she’s lifting up the battered head of an acquaintance, not so much…
but i love a girl who can hold her own in fight….
Ah, but the fact she’s holding up a female head makes it good for me.
Ayayayayay Mamita…Senorita’s..Descanso! Please. What uncontrolled rage and violence..Nudge really screwedthepooch with Tina ,I guess
Ow. I suspect this payback may be somewhat deserved, but still, ow. I hope Tina and Nudge can mend fences, because it looks like they’ll both have a part to play in upcoming events…
I hope Nudge can mend bones…
I think Nudge was a little bit optimistic in thinking of getting any sympathy from Tina in the first place. OTOH, tricksters in general don’t have much empathy for their victims and think it’s all in good fun. Where is the line between a trickster and a bully?
Well, at least we know: Tina may be all sunshiny, but she can definitely hold a Nudge…
Ba-dum-TISH.
Hold a Nudge? Just a Tina bit…
Ow ow ow
PHWEEEETT!! PHWEETPHWEETPHWEETPHWEET!! PHWWEEEEEEEETTT!!
“HAWTHORNE! STJASON! TWO MINUTES EACH! BAD PUNNING!”
We’re still in round one. Opus the Poet commented on Nudge being beaten out of her clothes. Is she being beaten out of her clothes or is she growing out of her clothes? I wonder how the transformational spell works? If Nudge loses concentration will she “Nudge-out?” We’ll see how Nudge handles round two and whether or not Nudge holds a grudge. I don’t think Tina has to worry about repercussions from Sphinxes because the restriction to do no harm applies only to ‘humans.'(my guess)
I’m not even sure this qualifies as harm. A heapin’ helpin’ o’ pain, yeah, but maybe not harm.
On the other hand, while it may sound a little inappropriate, I’m hoping to see angry tears, rather than just anger.
I know that Tina is Hispanic/Latina and am assuming she’s Mexican since that’s where the Monica bus accident took place and from the Mexican theme in her cafe (papel picado, La Virgen Guadalupe, Aztec gods on the counter). I say that because I’m reminded of comedian Pablo Francisco’s routine on how great it is to have Mexican girlfriends since they’ll fight for you (which has been verified by my dating experiences at least).
“We’ll kick his asé!” XD
Payback? Yeah, I called it in the first post yesterday. But this isn’t just payback, it’s an old fashioned beat down.
As strong as Shelly is, she may be a little reluctant to get in the middle of this “Reunion”.
I like how conscience is totally part of the action. And I hope that when this is all over, they can get back to their conversation because i want to know more!
I’m am VERY conflicted.
One, this seems out of character for Tina. She’s never hurt a fly.
Two, I’m disturbed by how many commenters seem amused by a visceral beating. Yes, it’s fantasy, but still… ye gods.
Were I there, I would have been in the thick of it from the first, taking the blows for Nudge, trying to get Tina off of her. Because Tina has NO right to respond like this.
This is classic anger projection. Tina’s mad at Phix, but she can’t do anything to Phix so she takes it out on Nudge. Granted, Nudge isn’t exactly an innocent bystander in this matter, but it’s not like she planned for Tina to suffer at Phix’s hands.
…
And this is why I love this story. You can really identify with the characters, really believe in them and even get angry at them.
~D.
Tina is letting her ‘wild’ side show. Yes, violence rarely– if ever– is the correct answer. Unfortunately, it is a common one.
Remember, the demons are wild animals. Intelligent, yes, but wild nonetheless. Wherein a domestic animal would become irritated in a certain situation, it would still show the restraint which comes with proper training and the domestic breeding program. In that same situation, a wild animal can be sweet and loving one moment and totally out of control the next. I think this situation well illustrates one of the dangers Tina poses all the time. The facade of civility can break at any moment and she may have no control over her actions. Something characteristic of most wild animals all the time and humans and other domestic animals occasionaly. The wild animal doesn’t know when to stop either. That usually happens when the foe is lying very still. Breaking this up may be dangerous to Shelly. Luckily, that strength of hers should be enough to fling the participants to opposite sides of the room if needed.
Tina has no way of knowing whether Tina has a right to be mad at Nudge – nor how much. And it’s happening Very Fast.
Wish i could remember the Damon Runyan story – not the one i quoted earlier – which begins with a gangster who’s been out of town for a while suddenly walking in to the back room at Mindy’s and, without warning, taking a shot at one of the guys hanging out and singing barbershop harmony.
Nobody knows why.
That’s like the first page or so.
And the rest of the story is the explanation.
(I need to get the “Runyan Omnibus” out again…)
1. Joel’s Law.
2. She does have every right to be mad at Nudge.
3. Joel’s Law.
She has no right to respond like that, I said.
She may have a right to be angry, but not to respond like that.
That distinction is why so many people are liable to assault or battery charges. Too often, anger leads to attack. It is not justified, but that’s what happens.
I may be the only person here who feels unmitigated glee at Tina’s beating of Nudge. I hate smug trickster-type characters as a general rule and I am so very glad that she’s getting what she deserves. Probably not nearly enough, I might add.
Trickster usually means “raving schmuck whose schmuck-like actions are jussst this side of criminal.” However, those actions are sort of “waved off” because, oh, so-and-so is a TRICKSTER and that is what they do. They TRICK.
Kill your baby? Murder. Replace your baby with a changling and sell your actual baby into slavery? Trick. Steal a million dollars? Robbery. Cause someone to lose a million dollars, forcing them into prostitution? Trick. Doesn’t matter of the target is worthy or not, either. Most tricksters are schmucks regardless. Tricksters are the writer’s opportunity to make a character do bad things while still remaining cute and likable. FFS, then: write a likable(ish), evil character. See: Mike from The Walkyverse.
When did the little Creepy girl become the least disturbing one in the room?
Sayn-Day wasn’t immune. Anansi wasn’t immune. Even Monkey King wasn’t immune. Eventually, tricksters will have at least some of their chickens come home to roost. It’s Nudge’s turn right now. But Shelly probably needs to step in soon.
Punch to the face for the anchovies (popular opinion), knee to the gut for scaring the shit out of them because they thought Phix wanted to kill them… what will they do next?
And I love how the conscience is watching with near null reaction but sympathy for Nudge… and Shelly is cringing and looks ready to bolt.
Kick in the posterior for making bad coffee?
Works for me.
Most likely it’ll end tomorrow though.
An inquiry: Should the comics still say 2010 at the bottom? [Copyright confuses me.]
I wouldn’t want to get in the middle of that.
WELL! that’s the first time I’ve ever seen Tina hit on another girl…
i guess it’s not the case where if you hit her hard enough, her transformation becomes undone