Latest Page Discussions/Comic Update Chitchat

[MR_PLINKETT]

Also in other news. Do you know how pissed off onni is gonna be at taru and or torbjorn when he wakes up.

 

[Róisín]

Vafhudr, a number of folklores contain such things, including the Egyptian, Celtic, Australian Aboriginal and Old Persian, but in all of them, it is a rare thing that only happens a few times in each mythos. Far more frequent is the transformation of the dead or dying person into something else which survives, be it a star, an island or some artifact or creature which can help their companions. I'm half expecting a little snowy owl to start turning up in Lalli's and Onni's dreams.

[Purple Wyrm]

Also in other news. Do you know how pissed off onni is gonna be at taru and or torbjorn when he wakes up.

 

I was just thinking about that. The entire support crew better hope they don't get 'struck by lightning indoors'.

This is going to be just awful for the two surviving Hotaikenens. Onni will blame himself four times over (for not going when asked, for letting Tuuri go, for not intervening sooner in the battle and for not being able to do anything after it), Lalli will blame himself for not protecting Tuuri during the battle and not realising what she was thinking when she just spoke to him, and they'll likely blame each other for exactly the same reasons.

[Antillanka]

It's 2am, I've been crying for 6 hours, and I want to hug a puppy and step out of time. And I missed Tuuri saying something like "I love you, brother" before leaving. And not even leaving a goodbye note for Lalli.

[Shine]

Sooo, that just happened...

Um, the sea is pretty?

Er...

Anyone want come to Egypt with me? I hear De Nile is a lovely river.

[Sc0ut]

Anyone want come to Egypt with me? I hear De Nile is a lovely river.

Way ahead of you buddy. I already requested fic where this doesn't happen and Tuuri goes on to have many other adventures on tumblr. *sets up a hut on the lovely bank of De Nile and starts making cocktails for whoever wants to join*

It's 2am, I've been crying for 6 hours, and I want to hug a puppy and step out of time. And I missed Tuuri saying something like "I love you, brother" before leaving. And not even leaving a goodbye note for Lalli.

*hugs* We don't know if she left any notes yet, I guess - though the way things went down, it looks unlikely.
Do you think receiving art would make you feel a little bit better? I'm taking small requests to help people get over this. Let me know if you want something (not just Antillanka, anyone reading).

I was just thinking about that. The entire support crew better hope they don't get 'struck by lightning indoors'.

This is going to be just awful for the two surviving Hotaikenens. Onni will blame himself four times over (for not going when asked, for letting Tuuri go, for not intervening sooner in the battle and for not being able to do anything after it), Lalli will blame himself for not protecting Tuuri during the battle and not realising what she was thinking when she just spoke to him, and they'll likely blame each other for exactly the same reasons.

Yes. Onni will tear *everyone alive* a new one, including the mages in their sleep. It's gonna be the only glorious (if misguided) thing that comes out of this. Unless he goes join Tuuri, that is. I don't put anything past Minna at this point.

I'm curious how Emil will react. It's gonna hit him hard because he was in denial (like me), but he might escape sinking into a depression purely to support Lalli. For that matter, I'm even more curious how Lalli will react. It seems he was expecting something bad, but judging by his reaction, it wasn't THIS. More mistakes to beat himself up for? :/

Anyway, between two depressed team members (soon at least three because I can't imagine Emil holding it together well), Sigrun's injury and the loss of the tank (and their link to the outside world with it, now that Onni's in a coma), I expect a genre shift towards more typical survival horror, at least for a while. Some time ago I was looking forward to such a change in the comic. I don't mind getting it, but it sucks that Tuuri had to be the one sacrificed for it. I wouldn't have been too happy with any of them dying, but it seems especially cruel that it was her, who only got to live her dream for a bit, and was a complex and fun character to have around.

[wavewright62]

I've been keeping up the mantra, "Tuuri is a fictional character" for quite some time now, and it is helpful.  I love the artwork on the multipage dump.
 I'm a little unsettled about condoning her suicide, though, it must be said.  Yes, she is terminally ill and wanted to leave on her own terms, I get that. But her clear-eyed and rational expression does not jibe with the spontaneous act of this suicide without preparation, it somehow bothers me.  I'll think on it some more. 
I also worry about members of our fandom who have been struggling with their own illnesses.

[SectoBoss]

I think what's hitting me the hardest over the last few pages is that for me, and maybe many of us, Tuuri was the one who deep down we all identified with. Sure, we might wish we were as badass as Sigrun or as worldly-wise as Mikkel. But when it came to it, it was Tuuri who was closest to us and it was through her eyes we saw the world of SSSS. When she was peering from the train window hoping to catch a glimpse of her first troll, we were right there over her shoulder, eager to see what the Rash done. When she stood in awe of the ruins of the old world, so did we, although we were more impressed by Minna's artistic skills. Her inexperience, curiosity, and yes, ill-founded optimism were ours too. And unlike Reynir, the comic's other 'green' character, who nearly had a heart attack when he learned where he'd pitched up, she couldn't wait for the next adventure, for the next discovery. Just like us, eagerly hitting F5 for that next updated page. So it feels not just like we've lost a beloved character - for me, at least, it almost feels like I've lost a piece of myself.

I don't know if that actually makes much sense. After all, I didn't get much sleep last night. Can't imagine why... 

[Fimbulvarg]

I'm calling it now. This comic is going to be a deathfest with Reynir being the third last to die.

Maybe, but it would sort of ruin the point of the prologue introducing the central family names if you kill off the only Madsen, Eide and Arnason in the main cast. Unfortunately for Tuuri there were Hotakainens to spare.

I think black would be a fitting colour for the chapter survivor ribbon given the present mood of the community.

[ZanarNaryon]

QUESTION FOR AN IGNORAMUS.

Can you trade a soul for a soul in finnish paganism? Like a life for someone dead.

I know shes gone, but I'm curious if that works.

No, but the hero Väinämöinen traveled to Tuonela, the realm of the dead.

Also in other news. Do you know how pissed off onni is gonna be at taru and or torbjorn when he wakes up.

 

Probably even worse for Reynir. He outright stated that "Everyone is fine". Even though it was on Tuuri's request, Onni is still gonna be pissed.

[Quirkwood]

I think what's hitting me the hardest over the last few pages is that for me, and maybe many of us, Tuuri was the one who deep down we all identified with. Sure, we might wish we were as badass as Sigrun or as worldly-wise as Mikkel. But when it came to it, it was Tuuri who was closest to us and it was through her eyes we saw the world of SSSS. When she was peering from the train window hoping to catch a glimpse of her first troll, we were right there over her shoulder, eager to see what the Rash done. When she stood in awe of the ruins of the old world, so did we, although we were more impressed by Minna's artistic skills. Her inexperience, curiosity, and yes, ill-founded optimism were ours too. And unlike Reynir, the comic's other 'green' character, who nearly had a heart attack when he learned where he'd pitched up, she couldn't wait for the next adventure, for the next discovery. Just like us, eagerly hitting F5 for that next updated page. So it feels not just like we've lost a beloved character - for me, at least, it almost feels like I've lost a piece of myself.

I don't know if that actually makes much sense. After all, I didn't get much sleep last night. Can't imagine why... 

Well said. I see what you mean, I see how many readers could identify with Tuuri, even though I didn´t (the Lalliness is strong in me). Representing the curious reader´s perspective was probably her role in the story, and now the story is changing direction. I´d add that she was the only ray of hope left in the expedition, she kept wanting to enjoy the experience she had wished for her whole life. Not even something as trivial as a troll-wound could stop her, she literally refused to let it get her down (when she told Lalli to stop acting sad, for example, I think she didn´t want to let their adventure turn into something purely unpleasant). Now they´ll have to find their light somewhere else, and it´s going to be a hard and long process.
I´ve often been annoyed at her for going out in the world even while being literally, mortally allergic to it and for dragging Lalli along for company, but I still liked her, in the end. Now I feel guilty for disagreeing with her! What the heck is this comic doing to me?! Send help.

[viola]

Oh wow. I should not have read that at work because now I just want to sit here and cry but I'm at work at my desk and I can't just start bawling. Right? Agh. I don't know if I can do this. Wow. I don't think I've ever been hit so hard by a character death in my life.

WAIT. HOW IS LALLI GOING TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE OTHERS NOW??????

[thorny]

I'm a little unsettled about condoning her suicide, though, it must be said.  Yes, she is terminally ill and wanted to leave on her own terms, I get that. But her clear-eyed and rational expression does not jibe with the spontaneous act of this suicide without preparation, it somehow bothers me. 

She's about to be a serious danger to everybody else in the group. She's not only protecting herself from becoming permanently trapped as a troll; she's protecting them from her trollself. It's a genuinely heroic action.

I remembered after posting last night that I'd been thinking earlier that, without the cattank, they'd have no way of dealing with a trollifying Tuuri. If the tank had still been functional, it might have been possible to lock her up in one part of it, or to tie her up, and in either case to haul her along without massively endangering the rest of them. But if they're walking? How would they possibly manage? The only thing I could think of was if they could keep her unconscious, either by dosing her with the serum (which I think produced a coma) or possibly if Mikkel's got medications that could accomplish that -- but whatever he's got must be a limited supply, and might be needed for some other emergency. And they don't actually have the serum, do they? They've only got information about it.

And as far as doing it suddenly: I don't suppose she knew exactly when she'd become dangerous. If she didn't tell the others, she'd be risking them all. If she did tell the others -- then what? Wouldn't one of them have had to kill her? Would Lalli have tried to keep her alive? Maybe she was envisioning Mikkel coming at her with a syringe full of whatever killed the mama cat and Lalli launching himself at Mikkel trying to stop it.

I do think she might have left Lalli a letter -- maybe tucked into her jacket. But again, I sometimes think the whole comic is about miscommunication. To have excellent communications suddenly appear at this point seems not entirely plausible.

ETA: Also, she had a pretty specific sign from her gods -- who, in that world, are unquestionably real. She says "I really thought [ . . . ] someone over there would be looking out for me." And she gets an answer: there's the swan. Someone over there is indeed looking out for her -- but that doesn't mean she's not going to die. It means they're ready and waiting to give her soul a ride to the next world.  -- again, in the world of SSSS, that is real beyond question. Signs in this world that we're living in can't be trusted.

[Solokov]

After ARTD... I still don't like the swan...

[urbicande]

I will not cry at work. I will not cry at work. I will not cry at work. I will not cry at work. I will not cry at work.

If I say it enough maybe I'll believe it and stop.