Wapsi Square Forum

DilyV wrote:And Suzie is toting them around in her bra....

The crystal spider Suzie found was described as a "stargate buffer".

Actually, Lily was quite clear the crystal didn't belong in the stargate: http://wapsisquare.com/comic/but-i-know/

Sidhekin wrote:Actually, Lily was quite clear the crystal didn't belong in the stargate: http://wapsisquare.com/comic/but-i-know/

Yes, she did say that. That's because the stargate uses the Akashic records to store and move things, it doesn't need a buffer. All of which she says in the next days strip. I think she found one of the buffer crystals that Brandi put in place specifically for this event.

Sideromelane wrote:Now while I'm no expert, and while the pigmentation weirdness is not meant to be particularly noticeable in most cases, we've seen, um, a LOT of Katherine's skin in the comic. I'm sure some hints may have shown up before now if she WAS some sort of chimera?

I was wondering about that just last night, after my original posting... and then I remembered this. Pablo posted a note to the Forum which declared the slightly-dimpled appearance of Katherine's fundament as being due to cellulite, but... maybe that wasn't entirely the whole story?

My recollection is that in most human chimeras, the skin pigmentation differences (Blaschko's lines) are not obvious, although illumination of the skin with an alternate light source (e.g. single-frequency light) can make them stand out.

And, if Katherine is some sort of "crystal chimera", it's possible that her chimera fusion is at something deeper than a cellular level - possibly at the DNA level? She might have a consistent DNA pattern throughout her cells, but one which is a melding of the DNAs from six donors.

(This is very wild speculation, probably wrong, and I'm far from convinced that Kath is a chimera at all... she might be just one of the six which were stored in the single crystal).

I'm not sure that the allusion to Tuvix is entirely accurate... Tuvix was a chimeral fusion of two individuals of different species, who had been adults at the time of the fusion, and he apparently inherited memories from both donors. If Katherine is a chimera, the fusion occurred before birth... the donors may never have had any sentient consciousnesses or memories of their own (depending on their gestational maturity and the degree to which their nervous systems had developed prior to the fusion). Hence, Katherine really is Katherine - she's her own individual self.

Yep...brain is definitely in full "WTF-Reboot" mode now. I think that it's safe to say that there's a lot of room for speculation, and I'll leave it to the rest of you to fill that room up while I sit and watch.

Side note: Tepoz is such a liar! I mean, we knew he didn't always tell the truth before, but I was under the impression it was because he didn't always know the truth...so he filled in the gaps with his own fanciful ideas. Now it's clear that his history of lying is loooong. Granted, it might have been a merciful act for him to not tell the girls about their true history, but geez!

And where's Jin in all of this hubbub?

Julie wrote:Side note: Tepoz is such a liar! I mean, we knew he didn't always tell the truth before, but I was under the impression it was because he didn't always know the truth...so he filled in the gaps with his own fanciful ideas. Now it's clear that his history of lying is loooong. Granted, it might have been a merciful act for him to not tell the girls about their true history, but geez!

It's probably no accident that he was created using a weasel as the prototype.

Why does Bud look like a glowy-eyed mummy right now?

Maybe because she's supposed to BE a glowey eyed mummy right now (current job as tomb/temple guardian).

{Who's the genius who last worked on this tap set up? Half the fittings are metric and the other half NPT, with an even mix of quick-connex and compression threaded. Sheesh}

Just be glad none of it is Whitworth Fine.

starkruzr wrote:Why does Bud look like a glowy-eyed mummy right now?

I have the nagging feeling that Bud looks like she does (glowing eyes and mouth) because she is still a golem without her memories of self. Brandi has her memories but is hiding the truth from Bud just like Tepoz is. It is possible that until they can reactivate her memories of self she has to be treated like she is.
To go further, it is likely that the way the girls look is based on residual self image. They appear as they remember they looked. In Brandi's case, she looks just like she did when she was alive and Bud looks unfinished for the reasons mentioned before.

Timotheus wrote: {Who's the genius who last worked on this tap set up? Half the fittings are metric and the other half NPT, with an even mix of quick-connex and compression threaded. Sheesh}

Sounds like the eveready crimping machines I worked on, on my last job. The main plates would have #6-32, #8-32, 4mm, 1/4-20, and 6mm, and I think 8mm tapped holes all mixed together in various patterns. Yeah, it was very confusing. The machine was a French design of a German machine that they had bought.

The Tuvix issue is interesting, partially because I figured Paul would have the default be something like the babies are saved, but the mothers were booted outside, hence Lily.

Brandi should be more freaked out over lost babies and Chimeras, but she doesn't remember either here, so that makes sense.

The other interesting part of the Tuvix issue is it raises the question of whether are souls intermingleable in Wapsi, and whether they behave differently at different degrees of maturity. Are Bud and Brandi more untangleable because their souls are missing, or does it make the job that much harder?

Julie wrote:Side note: Tepoz is such a liar! I mean, we knew he didn't always tell the truth before, but I was under the impression it was because he didn't always know the truth...so he filled in the gaps with his own fanciful ideas. Now it's clear that his history of lying is loooong. Granted, it might have been a merciful act for him to not tell the girls about their true history, but geez!

I'm actually feeling more sympathy for poor Tepoz. He wants them to rediscover their individuality, but to succeed, he has to completely avoid reminding them of the Chimera. Of course he's going to lie. Monica was destined to become the Jaguar, and so he lied to keep her from blowing up, too. Not an enviable well of fear to climb out of.

And how much has he known about Katherine?

Ixnay on the eathday...

eatsthray.

Yamara wrote:I'm actually feeling more sympathy for poor Tepoz. He wants them to rediscover their individuality, but to succeed, he has to completely avoid reminding them of the Chimera. Of course he's going to lie.

That seems to be close to a classic question I remember from ethics and philosophy. You know something sensitive about one of your friends... disclosing it could easily (predictably) lead your friend to take an action which will get him/her hurt.

On the other hand, concealing what you know might lead your friend to take a different action, out of ignorance, which will get him/her killed.

So, do you disclose, or conceal what you know? If, in the former case, your friend gets hurt (as a result of knowing), do you bear more or less moral responsibility than if you concealed the truth and your friend died (an avoidable death) as a result?

Does the abstract good of "speaking the truth" outweigh the risk of harm? Do you do more wrong by denying your friend the right to make a freely informed decision, than the good you may do by reducing the risk to your friend's health and life?

What price free will?

It's an especially tricky issue where the GGs are concerned, because they wield so much power. I suppose in some sense they weren't "competent adults" when initially separated from the Chimera... but where and how do you steer through the tricky path of helping them once again become true individuals capable of being responsible for their own awesome power?

You're right, Yamara... Tepoz had a difficult job. The only "easy" solution for him might have been to keep the GG's completely under control - leave them in a "robots being commanded" state and suppress all of their indiividual identities

Dave wrote:

Yamara wrote:I'm actually feeling more sympathy for poor Tepoz. He wants them to rediscover their individuality, but to succeed, he has to completely avoid reminding them of the Chimera. Of course he's going to lie.

That seems to be close to a classic question I remember from ethics and philosophy. You know something sensitive about one of your friends... disclosing it could easily (predictably) lead your friend to take an action which will get him/her hurt.

On the other hand, concealing what you know might lead your friend to take a different action, out of ignorance, which will get him/her killed.

So, do you disclose, or conceal what you know? If, in the former case, your friend gets hurt (as a result of knowing), do you bear more or less moral responsibility than if you concealed the truth and your friend died (an avoidable death) as a result?

Does the abstract good of "speaking the truth" outweigh the risk of harm? Do you do more wrong by denying your friend the right to make a freely informed decision, than the good you may do by reducing the risk to your friend's health and life?

What price free will?

E.M.Forster wrote:If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.