“Gotcha” could be short for “That’s a gotcha”, meaning “You got me”… a grudging admission on Connie’s part.
That’s not to disagree with your “Connie speaking what Shelly is thinking” idea, though… could be part of the same thing. It’s hard to be sure who’s the speaker, when two characters are as closely linked as these two… “Which person is speaking?” may not have an either/or answer.
Connie is using the second meaning to cover her claiming victory in finally distracting Shelly.
Shelly is delighted to have deduced the existence of the soul–as she should be–but she has (so far) dismissed a more immediately relevant question.
After several panels of strategies to derail Shelly’s line of inquiry, Connie finally tried a direct approach: asking for the truth. It’s even a kind of misdirection by elucidation.
“Why would I do that?” may be the more important question. And Shelly the Sage overthinks around it.
I like Dave’s interpretation. I also like that Shelly refused to be distracted by Connie’s insults and redirections. Old Shelly was borderline ADHD and would have risen to the bait. New Shelly has the calm and patience of an experienced predator. She weathered the storm nicely and drove her point home. It’s interesting that Connie is trying to avoid discussions about her creation. She may not remember it, but it’s clear she’s uneasy about her origins.
And on the subject of insults … did anyone else pick up on the ‘push-up bra’ comment? I thought it a random insult, but then I started to think about it … I think the Companion revealed something very profound about Tina’s nature with that remark.
Exactly. Connie’s insults and retorts were the verbal equivalent of sticking out the fur to make oneself appear larger, or tossing a rock behind your opponent to make them look and distract them.
Old Shelly would have fallen for it … new Shelly (we doin Shelly 2.0 now too? :D) ignored the distractions, saw past the facade, and stayed on target. Far more disciplined than she used to be.
Every child is uneasy when you talk to them about their origins. Seriously, have you ever talked to a child about the birds and the bees? Un-com-for-table let me tell you!
Similar discomfort, really. The “where?” question is unsettling to the young… but the “how?” becomes very uncomfortable at a slightly later age. To most post-puberty adolescents, the concept of their parents indulging in Phoenix Sports in the Cinnibar Crevice goes right into “La la la la I can’t hear you and where the hell is the brain bleach?” territory.
The elders of my family do a similar gesture, a sideways hooking of the index, and sometimes middle finger as well, with the comment, “eh-haw!” It’s used to say “That’s what you get!”, or “Try to be cute again!” It would work here.
Soul-as-catalyst or -glue or -spackle confirmed, I guess?
I don’t recall Monica’s demons having been described as suffering the effects of a memory wipe for having induced her crlash, though… did I miss that, or is a new datum, or is Shelly in error?
I was wondering the same thing, Dave. I could have sworn it was even specifically mentioned that M’s demons still had their memories and hence knew about all the resets. I forget what the explanation was for why Jin remembered everything but the other two GG’s didn’t. The only two demon sets that we knew to be wiped were Tina’s and Shelly’s …
But this is Shelly talking here, not a canonical review, so she could be in error and Connie is just too stunned to call her on it at the moment.
shelly may not know the others secrets(I’m sure its not a usual question- “do you remember being born”.. :/) … she has only herself and tina to go on… ??
And, if M’s demons weren’t subjected to the same memory-wipe punishment as Tina’s and Shelly’s (or managed to evade or reverse it) despite having been part of the same violation of the “thou shalt not conspire” rule… how/why?
Perhaps M’s demons were found to have hurt only M (by goading her in front of the bus) and were judged as being innocent of any direct responsibility for what happened to Tina? I get the feeling that tempting / tormenting the host human a demon is in, has always been fair game for demons… it’s been permitted by the sphinxes, at least.
It wasn’t M’s demons who hurt M…it was Tina’s (I thought). And I also was interpretting this to mean that Connie was created (with memory-wipe) because she was blocking Tina’s soul and absorbed it instead of blocking it…maybe? That would be who she “hurt”? If M’s demons didn’t hurt anyone, then no memory-wipe?
Good choice of words. With all the demons mashed into one by the impact of Tina’s sould there was bound to be con-fusion instead of fission. It’s all right over here in this corner.
In the other corner we have Paul weighing in with over 10 years of plot twists both sneaky and sublime. This is a multi-round event decided on points. I hate to say it everyone but I think we are losing.
They do EXIST! They are in the box with the cat.
As to the pun jar it turned out cheaper in the long run to set up an automatic deposit on my karma account. As long as the account doesn’t reach zero, the angry mobs won’t come looking for me. I still toss coins in for the ones even I find bad. For the good ones I just bask in admiration and get ready to dodge bullets.
Hmmm… “the non-hash brownie plate”… soooo …. THAT’s how understanding the realm of souls vs. demons is understood, eh?
“I am she and she is me and he is we and we are all together,”… no…. that’s LSD talking… hashish is more along the lines of “Our universe could easily be nothing more that a molecular structure in the edge of a fingernail of a large giant- who’s metabolisem is slower than our minds can comprehend- our last thirty billion years might be less that his comprehension of a nanosecond,”
“… wow, dude… I never saw it that way…”
The surest way to tell is to watch the effects (or by the taste, but that can be subtle)–and then duck into your time machine and go back a few hours. . . .
I vote for Tina’s. It’s the one missing in action out of those three. Monica and Shelly’s software is still installed and running. Tina’s running on an alternate OS. It’s a little buggy and certainly not designed for the hardware its running in.
You can never be too sure about anything with Wapsi, but yes, reasonably sure. Monica’s status as a glyph reader and doorway who died and came back gives her unprecedented control and awareness of her demons. But she needs the internal conlict they provide to act, otherwise she is directionless. That’s my take on it anyway.
wow… things seem to come together…
As far as I can tell, this must all point towards Tina’s sould being the mortar to hold Connie’s (Shelly’s) demons together. No wonder ina was so much creeped out by her in the boiler room.
The whole “little visit” conversation is mind-blowing, full of huge hints.
Things get too convulted in Wapsiverse, I keep forgetting details and connections.
Luckily, the good people of the comment-realm always dig up relevant bits (and I always end up rereading 100-something strips instead of work…)
What’s to be confused about? Shellinix manipulated events to force her once and future self to die so Connie would be created while Jin saved her AND Monica in the same day. Tina’s demons were punished for hurting Monica and thier memories were wiped then blocked from leaving by Shelly’s demons (probably at the behest of Brandi, possibly working through Phix) and Shelly’s demons were punished in turn for thier involvement by having thier memories wiped and were fuzed into a single entity probably with Tina’s soul as a catalyst. Everyone was doing thier own thing while working off what everyone else was doing, just trying to get it right, with Shelly, Phix and Jin trying to ride herd on the whole mess. It’s a wonder they got it all done in just 57 cycles. Just thinking about what they went trough to get it right boggles the mind.
Okay… so thanks to Locuranis, and the strip he linked to: http://wapsisquare.com/comic/underjinsnose/
I have a whole new set of questions…
1. How did Tina get the Key in the first place? it is obviously not time loop dependent, and as a result nobody “planted” it on her.
2. Of the billions of people on the planet, why Tina? What about her or her demons was so special?
3.by Shelly’s wording, its safe to assume the only time loop that has the car accident is this one… how did Brandi get to know Tina in the previous loop, if Tina wasn’t the barista of Mucho Mocha?
I have more, but I want to think about how to word them…
I’m liking someone’s analogy from a few days ago, that the soul passing through is a catalyst or like the particles they accelerate in particle accelerators and smash into targets. Those particles themselves aren’t usually that interesting, but the little bits that come off the target? So… smashing a soul into demons at high velocity might fling the soul who knows where but mash the demons into one entity.
Where that gets us in the plot, I have no idea at all.
Welcome to Wapsi Square, let me assist you to the Confusion Corner. its a made up breakfast nook in Mucho Mocha (tina’s coffee shop) where us commentors can gather when we are confused. You can bring your own beverages and snacks, or order something from Tina and Becky. Now, what are those question marks for?
Even going back and reading this one where Jin explained why the Tina collective were being punished, it still seems Tina’s demons are being manipulated by everyone else. Now I’m not sure if Tina 1.0 was in on it or was just another pawn as well. Either way, I believe that soul is somewhat/somehow related to/responsible for CG’s existence.
…I have Chex Mix for the Confusion Corner if anybody wants some.
Well I don’t need to spend any (more) time in the Confusion Corner, but that Chex mix would be a welcome change from all thw sweet stuff people have been bringing. Say does anyone feel like some tortilla chips and pico de gallo?
OK, lets see if I have all the data in order.
Monica’s demons blocked her soul from moving on. Monica is back in her body.
Shelly’s demons blocked her soul from moving on. Shelly is back in her body.
Shelly’s demons also blocked Tina’s soul from moving on, but Tina’s soul is presumably NOT back in her body.
Tina’s soul ends up mixed with Shelly’s demons, and somehow consolidates them into a single entity – Creepy Girl.
Now for the interesting/messy questions
— Is CG part of part of Shelly, or is she actually a separate entity built around Tina’s soul, or is she Tina and part of Shelly?
— In any of these cases, does Shelly really have any personal demons left? Could this have been what triggered the Sphinx conversion?
Think about it. Sphinxes hunt down demons that break the rules, wouldn’t make sense that sphinxes don’t have personal demons?
I can at least answer the last question! 🙂 Shelly has no more demons. All of them were consolidated into Connie. Connie says so when she began manifesting to Shelly.
is that why Connie is autonomous, and is mortal – and indeed can act as a conscience? that she has (*is*) a soul?
is this the *only* way that demons can achieve true mortality- merge with a soul, lose their identity, and take the next available doorway to the afterlife?
I think you’re correct about Connie… she’s semi-autonomous and mortal (tied to Shelly’s lifetime) because Tina’s soul played a part in her “creation”. We don’t yet know whether Tina’s soul survived “intact” within Connie, whether it’s been “dissolved” into Connie’s structure, whether it acted strictly as a catalyst and has since gone onwards to the afterlife, whether it still has any connection to Tina 2.0, or what happens to it (and to the rest of Connie) when Shelly and Connie both die.
As to whether this is the only way that demons can become mortal – we don’t know that yet. Tina is the other interesting case… her constituent Collective demons don’t know if they’re mortal (will they die when her body does?) or whether they’ll be released to inhabit another host (as is usually the case for demons). She’s wondered about this but hasn’t figured out the answer. And, recent events seem to indicate that Tina may be changing/evolving into something much more like a mortal “real person”. There’s been speculation that her demons might eventually combine somehow and become a single individual (which might or might not be or have a “soul”) but that’s all very speculative at this point.
At this point, with only Connie to look at as a definite example, we can suspect that you need a little bit of soul to make you mortal, but that may or may not be correct.
I predict plenty of good business for Mucho Mocha over the weeks to come – Confusion Corner is likely to be very well populated!
I thought she was an angry little hammerhead because she is Shelly from the time right after her mom died. Based on Shelly’s description of her childhood behavior as a bully, I’d say she fits the bill…
If Tina, the Drug Lord’s daughter, was a Brat Princess to begin with and part/all of her soul was caught up and stuffed into Connie with Shellys demons riding herd on her, maybe that’s why she cops such a ‘tude! She’s not getting her way with anything anymore so she’s frustrated, thwarted, snipey, rude and can throw a wicked millenium tantrum because of that. Maybe she’s also making discoveries about herself that are confusing and frightening her. “Growing up” can be scary, growing self-awareness(a conscience) can be too.
Daddy might not given her something that she wanted or thought she needed. Hell hath no fury like a spoiled child. Witness the Kardashian and the Hilton kids.
And you can be dingy and a brat at the same time. Sorta along the lines of “crazy like a fox”.
If I remember correctly, before she died, she was living in Florida and working as a psychiatrist. In might just be me, but I imagine that it would be a little hard for a “spoiled princess” to get through medical school.
Shelly is talking as if Jin wasn’t involved at all, but she was. She’s also saying that Monica’s demons were punished and wouldn’t remember, but AFAIK that’s wrong. I don’t remember any indication of that and Monica’s demons were allowed to harm their own host.
Here Jin’s demon tells Monica that her demons could remember what happened, but Monica wouldn’t have believed them: http://wapsisquare.com/comic/funnyhuh/
I didn’t think that Monica’s demons actually harmed her. She was chased by Tina’s demons, not her own.
Then again, Paul has told us in the past that the “truth” is not necessarily clear-cut since we learn things from people who don’t necessarily know the whole story. 🙂 Gotta love how that will throw a wrench into the mix!
But WERE Monica’s demons in on the crash? I thought they were as surprised by Tina’s demon’s actions as anyone. Also, they show little sign of having had their memories wiped, unlike Connie or the Demon Collective running Tina. Even so, they might have been told to block Monica’s Doorway, and they might know who told them to do that, but good luck getting any of them to talk.
What sucks there is, if there’s any fate to the soul’s existence after death (heaven, hell, or anything of the sort), you basically are facing said judgement 1-57 times. And I doubt you’re getting the same role of the die every time.
The frightening aspect about this whole concept is that in it’s own odd way it is beginning to make sense… still confusing as all get out. But then, no soldier sees more of the battle than his own experiance, and even Generals see only parts through second, third and fourth-hand reports. By comparing notes and confronting facts and theories, Shelly is gaining quite the insight and confirming it by exponding to Connie to see the reaction- Connie’s insults only confirm that Shelly’s comments are on the mark, THAT could be why she is not rising to the bait. Teenagers are quite predictable on that count…
@ Dave – My coffee comment from yesterday – not trying to cut into the cafe’s business – this was a “gift” to the Confusion Couch. I had also forgot to add that I would also bring a few spirits and liqueurs to add to each cuo . And – if you want cream/sugar – you’d have to bring your own as I never use them. I was going to offer Bushnell’s : Isley Mist (25 yr. old) Canadian Club and Jack Daniels Black Label – along with Hazelnut and Creme de Banan from H.W. G.&W. A teaspoon floated on freshly brewed coffee – along with the aroma in the air from the roasting – now that’s what makes the world settle down. And of course – Paul gets served first..
You’re definitely a person of fine taste and intent! The only problem I see is that you (and innocent bystanders) may be trampled to death by the eager crowds who will rush in through the door, seeking to take advantage of your largesse!
I’ll add a bottle of red beside the black in memory of my great aunt who drank no other commercial hard liker. She did indulge in the occasional tot of my grandfathers white lightning in her younger days I have heard.
I’m on my 5th archive binge and I just now made the connection that Connie was almost certainly who Phix was talking about during her last conversation with Tina…
Did Shelly just legitimately smart? Wow.
Also, what’s up with her fingers in last panel?
I think that’s a gesture which means “I gotcha!” or “I win that point”. I know I’ve seen it used that way… can’t remember where.
“Gotcha” could be short for “That’s a gotcha”, meaning “You got me”… a grudging admission on Connie’s part.
That’s not to disagree with your “Connie speaking what Shelly is thinking” idea, though… could be part of the same thing. It’s hard to be sure who’s the speaker, when two characters are as closely linked as these two… “Which person is speaking?” may not have an either/or answer.
Or…
Connie is using the second meaning to cover her claiming victory in finally distracting Shelly.
Shelly is delighted to have deduced the existence of the soul–as she should be–but she has (so far) dismissed a more immediately relevant question.
After several panels of strategies to derail Shelly’s line of inquiry, Connie finally tried a direct approach: asking for the truth. It’s even a kind of misdirection by elucidation.
“Why would I do that?” may be the more important question. And Shelly the Sage overthinks around it.
Why would she do that, indeed?
You guys are overthinking this thing. As usual. Connie is saying “Gotcha” as in “I got it” or “I understand”.
Which leads me to say, Connie if you understand that, please explain it to me. 😮
I’d say it’s a smoking gun. Or at least how I usually play it. Short fingers, snub nose revolver for the hidden shots
I like Dave’s interpretation. I also like that Shelly refused to be distracted by Connie’s insults and redirections. Old Shelly was borderline ADHD and would have risen to the bait. New Shelly has the calm and patience of an experienced predator. She weathered the storm nicely and drove her point home. It’s interesting that Connie is trying to avoid discussions about her creation. She may not remember it, but it’s clear she’s uneasy about her origins.
And on the subject of insults … did anyone else pick up on the ‘push-up bra’ comment? I thought it a random insult, but then I started to think about it … I think the Companion revealed something very profound about Tina’s nature with that remark.
Exactly. Connie’s insults and retorts were the verbal equivalent of sticking out the fur to make oneself appear larger, or tossing a rock behind your opponent to make them look and distract them.
Old Shelly would have fallen for it … new Shelly (we doin Shelly 2.0 now too? :D) ignored the distractions, saw past the facade, and stayed on target. Far more disciplined than she used to be.
Shelly 2.0?? PLEASE no…. :p
Its just ‘teen unsure’ kelly, VS ‘wise sage’ kelly 🙂 🙂
If you have to number, it would be 80,057… 😀
Shelly 57.0 was deprecated on her visionquest, with the 57.1 patch of Conscience.
Time Forest Shelly was 57.1.x : a lot of wonky beta tweaks that most users didn’t have to worry about.
Returned Shelly is Shelly 57.2 (Shellinx) and is a major upgrade.
So therefore our favorite barista is actually…
Tina 57.2.1 .
…
Not my fault if you geeks can’t keep your version numbers straight…
Well, now we know why Tina 2.1 keeps an icon of the Madonna on the wall in Mucho Mocha.
She’s just incredibly fond of the song.
“Like A Version”, of course.
(Drops a gold-plated 45 into the Pun Jar)
(Is it a record, or a gun befitting Tina’s crime-family origin? Tune in tomorrow and find out… perhaps!)
The reason Shelly 57.1.x was in beta so long was that Shellinx would have to be backwardsly-compatible.
:holds hand over pun jar, donations fall up into it:
I think after Shelly 2000, they went with the Windows naming conversion.
Shelly XP and Shelly Vista, my favorite version was Shelly 98!
Every child is uneasy when you talk to them about their origins. Seriously, have you ever talked to a child about the birds and the bees? Un-com-for-table let me tell you!
..but when you say ‘origins’ I think where, not how… 🙂
Similar discomfort, really. The “where?” question is unsettling to the young… but the “how?” becomes very uncomfortable at a slightly later age. To most post-puberty adolescents, the concept of their parents indulging in Phoenix Sports in the Cinnibar Crevice goes right into “La la la la I can’t hear you and where the hell is the brain bleach?” territory.
Almost the same thing… think about it.
The elders of my family do a similar gesture, a sideways hooking of the index, and sometimes middle finger as well, with the comment, “eh-haw!” It’s used to say “That’s what you get!”, or “Try to be cute again!” It would work here.
Soul-as-catalyst or -glue or -spackle confirmed, I guess?
I don’t recall Monica’s demons having been described as suffering the effects of a memory wipe for having induced her crlash, though… did I miss that, or is a new datum, or is Shelly in error?
Having read Brandi’s book, Shelly may know more about what she expected the demons to do at the takedown of the CM.
I was wondering the same thing, Dave. I could have sworn it was even specifically mentioned that M’s demons still had their memories and hence knew about all the resets. I forget what the explanation was for why Jin remembered everything but the other two GG’s didn’t. The only two demon sets that we knew to be wiped were Tina’s and Shelly’s …
But this is Shelly talking here, not a canonical review, so she could be in error and Connie is just too stunned to call her on it at the moment.
shelly may not know the others secrets(I’m sure its not a usual question- “do you remember being born”.. :/) … she has only herself and tina to go on… ??
Jin remembered the resets because she was in the room when May tried to destroy the Calender Machine.
And, if M’s demons weren’t subjected to the same memory-wipe punishment as Tina’s and Shelly’s (or managed to evade or reverse it) despite having been part of the same violation of the “thou shalt not conspire” rule… how/why?
Perhaps M’s demons were found to have hurt only M (by goading her in front of the bus) and were judged as being innocent of any direct responsibility for what happened to Tina? I get the feeling that tempting / tormenting the host human a demon is in, has always been fair game for demons… it’s been permitted by the sphinxes, at least.
It wasn’t M’s demons who hurt M…it was Tina’s (I thought). And I also was interpretting this to mean that Connie was created (with memory-wipe) because she was blocking Tina’s soul and absorbed it instead of blocking it…maybe? That would be who she “hurt”? If M’s demons didn’t hurt anyone, then no memory-wipe?
Ok Shelly is implying that Connie has all or part of Tina’s soul or…
Excuse me is this seat taken in Confusion Corner?
I think that is exactly what she is saying. Though it’s interesting that Shelly was previously described as a sage… now we are seeing why…
Good choice of words. With all the demons mashed into one by the impact of Tina’s sould there was bound to be con-fusion instead of fission. It’s all right over here in this corner.
In the other corner we have Paul weighing in with over 10 years of plot twists both sneaky and sublime. This is a multi-round event decided on points. I hate to say it everyone but I think we are losing.
I think the pun jar would like you to accelerate an offering its way for the confusion-fission line. 😛
And no donating a Higgs-Boson! We have to prove they exist first!
They do EXIST! They are in the box with the cat.
As to the pun jar it turned out cheaper in the long run to set up an automatic deposit on my karma account. As long as the account doesn’t reach zero, the angry mobs won’t come looking for me. I still toss coins in for the ones even I find bad. For the good ones I just bask in admiration and get ready to dodge bullets.
How about we Huggs the Bisson? Now that they’re no longer endangered now?
Unlike a few demons too close the the Mason-Extinction line.
Nope! Welcome!
Brownies? Cookies? Smores? Mt. Dew?
Careful with the brownies. Some are hash… don’t know which. 😀
We’ve asked Paul over a few times to help us out, but… I don’t know. He hasn’t come over, yet.
Anyone got a hookah? And a sitar? 😀
No hookahs or sitars here, but I commandeered the non-hash brownie plate, so everyone looking for them needs to come to me. 😀
Hmmm… “the non-hash brownie plate”… soooo …. THAT’s how understanding the realm of souls vs. demons is understood, eh?
“I am she and she is me and he is we and we are all together,”… no…. that’s LSD talking… hashish is more along the lines of “Our universe could easily be nothing more that a molecular structure in the edge of a fingernail of a large giant- who’s metabolisem is slower than our minds can comprehend- our last thirty billion years might be less that his comprehension of a nanosecond,”
“… wow, dude… I never saw it that way…”
Well it’s a good thing I just got back from getting them. Hookah and sitar! Let’s jam!
Also… how’d you commandeer the non-hash brownies? I got ’em mixed up and can’t tell which are which! How did you tell?
The surest way to tell is to watch the effects (or by the taste, but that can be subtle)–and then duck into your time machine and go back a few hours. . . .
You’ll note that Jim is over there snarfing the Hash. He’ll be there until Sitar-day.
Soon, Latka will arrive to take him home.
*drops a coin into the jar*
Just one coin? Sorry, but the jar is demanding much more for that one…
*THUD*
And, the other shoe finally dropped….
Yes, but whose soul did Shelly mash into Connie?
Tina’s, Monica’s or her own?
Or some combo of the three…?
I vote for Tina’s. It’s the one missing in action out of those three. Monica and Shelly’s software is still installed and running. Tina’s running on an alternate OS. It’s a little buggy and certainly not designed for the hardware its running in.
You entirely sure about that?
http://wapsisquare.com/comic/haveusback/
¿Entiendes?
You can never be too sure about anything with Wapsi, but yes, reasonably sure. Monica’s status as a glyph reader and doorway who died and came back gives her unprecedented control and awareness of her demons. But she needs the internal conlict they provide to act, otherwise she is directionless. That’s my take on it anyway.
What Boxilar said…
Well, the body is still moving, so maybe the real Tina might get to go back to her old fleshly casa.
But then, this would be Tina prime with little or no recollection of “the events we all know about but the rest of the world remains ignorant of.”
Maybe.
I’m still hoping for Tina’s soul to show up tied to a chair in the boiler room.
Well… if Connie is Tina’s soul, then she first appeared on a chair in the boiler room with a pair of scissors–
–anticipating that very possibility!
But Connie isn’t Tina’s soul…she just has that as one of her components. 😛
Big clue here:
http://wapsisquare.com/comic/underjinsnose/
and another clue!
http://wapsisquare.com/comic/littlevisit/
wow… things seem to come together…
As far as I can tell, this must all point towards Tina’s sould being the mortar to hold Connie’s (Shelly’s) demons together. No wonder ina was so much creeped out by her in the boiler room.
The whole “little visit” conversation is mind-blowing, full of huge hints.
Things get too convulted in Wapsiverse, I keep forgetting details and connections.
Luckily, the good people of the comment-realm always dig up relevant bits (and I always end up rereading 100-something strips instead of work…)
ah, thanks, guys!! 🙂 something to think about… 🙂
I’ll be on the CC with a muffin and memory foam pillow. Mmm. Muffin.
What’s to be confused about? Shellinix manipulated events to force her once and future self to die so Connie would be created while Jin saved her AND Monica in the same day. Tina’s demons were punished for hurting Monica and thier memories were wiped then blocked from leaving by Shelly’s demons (probably at the behest of Brandi, possibly working through Phix) and Shelly’s demons were punished in turn for thier involvement by having thier memories wiped and were fuzed into a single entity probably with Tina’s soul as a catalyst. Everyone was doing thier own thing while working off what everyone else was doing, just trying to get it right, with Shelly, Phix and Jin trying to ride herd on the whole mess. It’s a wonder they got it all done in just 57 cycles. Just thinking about what they went trough to get it right boggles the mind.
Mind if I have a seat?
Pull up a chair, Boxilar. I’ve been sitting in the booth for so long, I’ve left a butt-print even though the seat isn’t memory foam.
Oh dear….I hope that the cushion is fabric instead of vinyl…or getting up is going to SUCK for you. 🙂
Okay… so thanks to Locuranis, and the strip he linked to:
http://wapsisquare.com/comic/underjinsnose/
I have a whole new set of questions…
1. How did Tina get the Key in the first place? it is obviously not time loop dependent, and as a result nobody “planted” it on her.
2. Of the billions of people on the planet, why Tina? What about her or her demons was so special?
3.by Shelly’s wording, its safe to assume the only time loop that has the car accident is this one… how did Brandi get to know Tina in the previous loop, if Tina wasn’t the barista of Mucho Mocha?
I have more, but I want to think about how to word them…
I’m liking someone’s analogy from a few days ago, that the soul passing through is a catalyst or like the particles they accelerate in particle accelerators and smash into targets. Those particles themselves aren’t usually that interesting, but the little bits that come off the target? So… smashing a soul into demons at high velocity might fling the soul who knows where but mash the demons into one entity.
Where that gets us in the plot, I have no idea at all.
-JRS
??????????
Welcome to Wapsi Square, let me assist you to the Confusion Corner. its a made up breakfast nook in Mucho Mocha (tina’s coffee shop) where us commentors can gather when we are confused. You can bring your own beverages and snacks, or order something from Tina and Becky. Now, what are those question marks for?
And we have our own brand of imaginary beer as yet without a name. Take the bev of your choice, add a nibble of your choice and listen in!
Even going back and reading this one where Jin explained why the Tina collective were being punished, it still seems Tina’s demons are being manipulated by everyone else. Now I’m not sure if Tina 1.0 was in on it or was just another pawn as well. Either way, I believe that soul is somewhat/somehow related to/responsible for CG’s existence.
…I have Chex Mix for the Confusion Corner if anybody wants some.
Where
JinShelly explained. See what prolonged exposure to the CC will get you?Well I don’t need to spend any (more) time in the Confusion Corner, but that Chex mix would be a welcome change from all thw sweet stuff people have been bringing. Say does anyone feel like some tortilla chips and pico de gallo?
OK, lets see if I have all the data in order.
Monica’s demons blocked her soul from moving on. Monica is back in her body.
Shelly’s demons blocked her soul from moving on. Shelly is back in her body.
Shelly’s demons also blocked Tina’s soul from moving on, but Tina’s soul is presumably NOT back in her body.
Tina’s soul ends up mixed with Shelly’s demons, and somehow consolidates them into a single entity – Creepy Girl.
Now for the interesting/messy questions
— Is CG part of part of Shelly, or is she actually a separate entity built around Tina’s soul, or is she Tina and part of Shelly?
— In any of these cases, does Shelly really have any personal demons left? Could this have been what triggered the Sphinx conversion?
Think about it. Sphinxes hunt down demons that break the rules, wouldn’t make sense that sphinxes don’t have personal demons?
I can at least answer the last question! 🙂 Shelly has no more demons. All of them were consolidated into Connie. Connie says so when she began manifesting to Shelly.
Maybe that’s why Connie is such an angry little hammerhead. She’s the one that didn’t get away.
but she has another chance when shelly dies.
is that why Connie is autonomous, and is mortal – and indeed can act as a conscience? that she has (*is*) a soul?
is this the *only* way that demons can achieve true mortality- merge with a soul, lose their identity, and take the next available doorway to the afterlife?
hoo boy…talk about confused…
I think you’re correct about Connie… she’s semi-autonomous and mortal (tied to Shelly’s lifetime) because Tina’s soul played a part in her “creation”. We don’t yet know whether Tina’s soul survived “intact” within Connie, whether it’s been “dissolved” into Connie’s structure, whether it acted strictly as a catalyst and has since gone onwards to the afterlife, whether it still has any connection to Tina 2.0, or what happens to it (and to the rest of Connie) when Shelly and Connie both die.
As to whether this is the only way that demons can become mortal – we don’t know that yet. Tina is the other interesting case… her constituent Collective demons don’t know if they’re mortal (will they die when her body does?) or whether they’ll be released to inhabit another host (as is usually the case for demons). She’s wondered about this but hasn’t figured out the answer. And, recent events seem to indicate that Tina may be changing/evolving into something much more like a mortal “real person”. There’s been speculation that her demons might eventually combine somehow and become a single individual (which might or might not be or have a “soul”) but that’s all very speculative at this point.
At this point, with only Connie to look at as a definite example, we can suspect that you need a little bit of soul to make you mortal, but that may or may not be correct.
I predict plenty of good business for Mucho Mocha over the weeks to come – Confusion Corner is likely to be very well populated!
I thought she was an angry little hammerhead because she is Shelly from the time right after her mom died. Based on Shelly’s description of her childhood behavior as a bully, I’d say she fits the bill…
If Tina, the Drug Lord’s daughter, was a Brat Princess to begin with and part/all of her soul was caught up and stuffed into Connie with Shellys demons riding herd on her, maybe that’s why she cops such a ‘tude! She’s not getting her way with anything anymore so she’s frustrated, thwarted, snipey, rude and can throw a wicked millenium tantrum because of that. Maybe she’s also making discoveries about herself that are confusing and frightening her. “Growing up” can be scary, growing self-awareness(a conscience) can be too.
I doubt the drug-lord’s daughter was that much of a brat princess. After all, she was testifying against daddy…
And she was called “The drug lords dingy daughter” That is very different from Brat Princess.
Daddy might not given her something that she wanted or thought she needed. Hell hath no fury like a spoiled child. Witness the Kardashian and the Hilton kids.
And you can be dingy and a brat at the same time. Sorta along the lines of “crazy like a fox”.
If I remember correctly, before she died, she was living in Florida and working as a psychiatrist. In might just be me, but I imagine that it would be a little hard for a “spoiled princess” to get through medical school.
If it weren’t for the comments of the analytical crowd, I’d never understand what’s going on.
*tilt*
But I just keep a-comin’ back for more punishment
*holds out pun jar*
Yes discreet references to the days comic do count as puns.
of course, any and all puns posted need to be paid for…
And those not posted remain, they form their own punishment.
two wooden nickles and a small funny looking rock go in the jar.
Brandi played chess with the demons in order to get Jin fixed… but she didn’t see their endgame.
Shelly is talking as if Jin wasn’t involved at all, but she was. She’s also saying that Monica’s demons were punished and wouldn’t remember, but AFAIK that’s wrong. I don’t remember any indication of that and Monica’s demons were allowed to harm their own host.
Here Jin’s demon tells Monica that her demons could remember what happened, but Monica wouldn’t have believed them: http://wapsisquare.com/comic/funnyhuh/
I didn’t think that Monica’s demons actually harmed her. She was chased by Tina’s demons, not her own.
Then again, Paul has told us in the past that the “truth” is not necessarily clear-cut since we learn things from people who don’t necessarily know the whole story. 🙂 Gotta love how that will throw a wrench into the mix!
But WERE Monica’s demons in on the crash? I thought they were as surprised by Tina’s demon’s actions as anyone. Also, they show little sign of having had their memories wiped, unlike Connie or the Demon Collective running Tina. Even so, they might have been told to block Monica’s Doorway, and they might know who told them to do that, but good luck getting any of them to talk.
Even if they were in on it, Mon’s demons still only hurt her, so they would not be subject to memory wipe.
Poor kid. It’s one thing to not totally understand why you are how you are, but when somebody else does, it’s frustrating.
This is Comment #69!
WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
*turns and runs, streeking out of the cafe*
/giggitygiggity
CLG: “Look, there have been 57 Tinas at this point. Is it so bad if I ate just 1 of those 57 souls? She was a stoolie anyway. And souls are tasty.”
Tasty, but eating souls and drinking strong spirits can result in really terrible djinndigestion.
I wish you would stop using such genie-ric puns…
*clink clink*
C’mon dave you too!
I’m afrit I’m out of cash for the jar at the moment.
Can I simply toss in this nice old silver oil lamp? It just needs a bit of polishing… see?
(there is a small puff of orange smoke…)
We also do not know if the other Tina’s were going to testify against daddy. This Tina might have been the only one.
What sucks there is, if there’s any fate to the soul’s existence after death (heaven, hell, or anything of the sort), you basically are facing said judgement 1-57 times. And I doubt you’re getting the same role of the die every time.
Are you having it with some Heinz 57 steak sauce? Maybe a a soul food?
[drops in a…one bottle of steak sauce, which keeps body and soul together.]
The frightening aspect about this whole concept is that in it’s own odd way it is beginning to make sense… still confusing as all get out. But then, no soldier sees more of the battle than his own experiance, and even Generals see only parts through second, third and fourth-hand reports. By comparing notes and confronting facts and theories, Shelly is gaining quite the insight and confirming it by exponding to Connie to see the reaction- Connie’s insults only confirm that Shelly’s comments are on the mark, THAT could be why she is not rising to the bait. Teenagers are quite predictable on that count…
@ Dave – My coffee comment from yesterday – not trying to cut into the cafe’s business – this was a “gift” to the Confusion Couch. I had also forgot to add that I would also bring a few spirits and liqueurs to add to each cuo . And – if you want cream/sugar – you’d have to bring your own as I never use them. I was going to offer Bushnell’s : Isley Mist (25 yr. old) Canadian Club and Jack Daniels Black Label – along with Hazelnut and Creme de Banan from H.W. G.&W. A teaspoon floated on freshly brewed coffee – along with the aroma in the air from the roasting – now that’s what makes the world settle down. And of course – Paul gets served first..
You’re definitely a person of fine taste and intent! The only problem I see is that you (and innocent bystanders) may be trampled to death by the eager crowds who will rush in through the door, seeking to take advantage of your largesse!
I’ll add a bottle of red beside the black in memory of my great aunt who drank no other commercial hard liker. She did indulge in the occasional tot of my grandfathers white lightning in her younger days I have heard.
Since the Wapsi Square update is late…
…a random Wapsi Square link!
http://wapsisquare.com/comic/quitbeingapoop/
*Confusedly cowers, confounded, under the confusion corner’s couch cushions.*
So… Shelly 57.2.1’s Connie, and Tina 2.0’s missing soul are really… Connina? (1.0? 2.0?)
I’m on my 5th archive binge and I just now made the connection that Connie was almost certainly who Phix was talking about during her last conversation with Tina…