Just Be Happy 2015-04-08

[oldmanmickey]

I will probbly be wrong on all points but i got a mental picture of a fairly good looking enhanced MILF(mermaid mother) who is used to being the center of attention due to her figure who saw a teenager come in whos natural assets blew her out of the water so to speak. Think queen bee trophy wife the later years.

[shadowinthelight]

The fact that a prudish Mom complained is one thing- that the staff of the pool LISTENED is indication that said prude had some political clout of her own. 'Sali being dressed as described, the staff should have realised the absurdity of the complaint and responded accordingly- 'She who suffers from a flat chest' has SOME kinda pull to get Atsali tossed out.

Not necessarily. The pool staff that day could have been lazy jerks who found it easier to give Lady Compainsalot what she wanted instead of dealing with her.

[captnq]

Oh please...

Management was just thinking:

"Uh oh. Siren at a pool. She's going to drown guys just by taking a deep breath. Then she's going to start having sex in the showers. I don't want to deal with this crap. Ya know, any excuse to get rid of her."

[TazManiac]

I was having trouble Googleing 'racing one piece swimsuit' I even put 'competitive' in the front of it and was on my way to adding Olympic... when i noticed Opus had beat me to it.

Still, Image searches find way too many Models (capital 'M') in swimwear and not enough gals who actually look like they get in the water, let alone do laps.

Nonetheless, here is a link to a catalog pic of a Racer One Piece:

http://www.bluewatersports.com/shop/med ... 4001-1.jpg

(It's kinda a big picture...)

If thats whats considered racing type swim meet suits then I could see Atsali filling one out, waaaay out, but still. It's still a bathing suit, on the modest side compared to some, and with the board shorts... Artist's point made.

[AnotherFairportfan]

I was having trouble Googleing 'racing one piece swimsuit' I even put 'competitive' in the front of it and was on my way to adding Olympic... when i noticed Opus had beat me to it.

Still, Image searches find way too many Models (capital 'M') in swimwear and not enough gals who actually look like they get in the water, let alone do laps.

Nonetheless, here is a link to a catalog pic of a Racer One Piece:

http://www.bluewatersports.com/shop/med ... 4001-1.jpg

(It's kinda a big picture...)

If thats whats considered racing type swim meet suits then I could see Atsali filling one out, waaaay out, but still. It's still a bathing suit, on the modest side compared to some, and with the board shorts... Artist's point made.

She said it had a high neckline, and id be willing to bet it wasn't essentially backless.

[jwhouk]

Normally, I don't like to see people who are politically connected throw their weight around, but if the pool staff deferred to the prudish mom, then I think it would be completely in order for Katherine and Atsali to call in the big guns as a counter. After all Monica did say she would have Atsali's back if people gave her crap about her breasts.

So... I wonder what Mrs. Whatever-her-name-is's worst fear might be?

Being asphyxiated by an airbag?

[Akeche]

People come in and mention Phix and all that. It just makes me wonder...

Are the characters in the comic too powerful? Too well connected? I've thought about this ever since our main cast began to ascend to Paranormal-hood, and part of me still feels it's... Tacky? There was a certain fun aspect about these normal girls who were somewhat connected getting mixed up with a world they really had no idea existed before. But now those girls are some of the most powerful creatures in that world.


I almost feel like Paul backed himself into a corner with that, and it might be why Monica was put on the sidelines in regards to being the main character of the comic. Atsali is a different approach, but she's basically been yanked up into Queen Bee status at school simply by being connected to Monica and Phix. The comic went from being "A Paranormal Slice of Life" to something more akin to "A Paranormal Slice of the Rich & Famous"

Edit: Also holy crap, yeah a quick google search for "racing one-piece" and I can kind of maybe see how that would be an issue for Atsali and might have made it easier for the lifeguards to throw her out. There obviously isn't an example of someone who's anywhere near as busty as her in one of those, but if the school issued suit is any indication even a larger size would be clinging pretty tight.

[Boxilar]

People come in and mention Phix and all that. It just makes me wonder...

Are the characters in the comic too powerful? Too well connected? I've thought about this ever since our main cast began to ascend to Paranormal-hood, and part of me still feels it's... Tacky? There was a certain fun aspect about these normal girls who were somewhat connected getting mixed up with a world they really had no idea existed before. But now those girls are some of the most powerful creatures in that world.


I almost feel like Paul backed himself into a corner with that, and it might be why Monica was put on the sidelines in regards to being the main character of the comic. Atsali is a different approach, but she's basically been yanked up into Queen Bee status at school simply by being connected to Monica and Phix. The comic went from being "A Paranormal Slice of Life" to something more akin to "A Paranormal Slice of the Rich & Famous"

Edit: Also holy crap, yeah a quick google search for "racing one-piece" and I can kind of maybe see how that would be an issue for Atsali and might have made it easier for the lifeguards to throw her out. There obviously isn't an example of someone who's anywhere near as busty as her in one of those, but if the school issued suit is any indication even a larger size would be clinging pretty tight.

I sorta had that feeling when Monica "ascended" to full Jaguar Girl status. But if you go back through the archives, there are all kinds of hints that practicality everyone at the top of the paranormal power structure knows what Monica really is and what her full potential is. Most of them had probably seen the signs of "mortal ascending to demigod" before in Monica. It was a difficult and traumatic experience for Ms. M, but to to Phix, Nudge, and Euryle, it was the equivalent of a teenager going through puberty. Phix certainly took off the kid gloves with both Monica and Shelly once she perceived them as full adults in the paranormal community.

As I said, it was a little jarring to do an archive binge and see M go from a relatively normal person in extraordinary circumstances, but it does flow well when ready all together. And saying that, I don't so much see it as "Paul wrote himself into a corner." It's more like he showed Monica's growth and evolution up to the point where she became a full adult in the world of the paranormal, where before she was a child. The last arc with Monica that dealt with her relationship s with Kevin and Georgette was a sort of wrapping up of her story. She's still around, and I'm sure we'll still see her from time to time, but the major conflicts in her life have been resolved, and good storytelling is showing people in conflict, even if that conflict is all internal.

The shift to Atsali as the main protagonist gives us loads of story based conflict. Running down the list ,'Sali has to deal with her own discomfort with a body she didn't really want, and society's perception of that body. On top of that, she has to deal with prejudice against both halves of her paranormal heritage. Plus, she's dealing with celebrity status she didn't want based on who her mother is and her aunts are.

I get the sentiment that she's got a lot of status, "privilege" if you will due to her associations that she may not have "earned". But try to see it from her perspective. Atsali is an orphan who pretty much went from having nothing to having the world dropped in her lap, simply because she befriended Katherine. She's got a little bit of the Harry Potter thing going on where she just wanted a normal life, then got shoved right past that into a life of privilege and notoriety. She didn't ask for that, but there are going to be those who resent her because she didn't "earn it." But she's partly in the position she's in because she's a decent person and helped someone who she had no real reason to help, beyond emphasizing with them. And Jessie relayed that kindness by protecting her when she didn't know how connected Atsali was.

Yeah, Atsali has certain advantages and privileges, but her life is by no means conflict free.

[Akeche]

People come in and mention Phix and all that. It just makes me wonder...

Are the characters in the comic too powerful? Too well connected? I've thought about this ever since our main cast began to ascend to Paranormal-hood, and part of me still feels it's... Tacky? There was a certain fun aspect about these normal girls who were somewhat connected getting mixed up with a world they really had no idea existed before. But now those girls are some of the most powerful creatures in that world.


I almost feel like Paul backed himself into a corner with that, and it might be why Monica was put on the sidelines in regards to being the main character of the comic. Atsali is a different approach, but she's basically been yanked up into Queen Bee status at school simply by being connected to Monica and Phix. The comic went from being "A Paranormal Slice of Life" to something more akin to "A Paranormal Slice of the Rich & Famous"

Edit: Also holy crap, yeah a quick google search for "racing one-piece" and I can kind of maybe see how that would be an issue for Atsali and might have made it easier for the lifeguards to throw her out. There obviously isn't an example of someone who's anywhere near as busty as her in one of those, but if the school issued suit is any indication even a larger size would be clinging pretty tight.

I sorta had that feeling when Monica "ascended" to full Jaguar Girl status. But if you go back through the archives, there are all kinds of hints that practicality everyone at the top of the paranormal power structure knows what Monica really is and what her full potential is. Most of them had probably seen the signs of "mortal ascending to demigod" before in Monica. It was a difficult and traumatic experience for Ms. M, but to to Phix, Nudge, and Euryle, it was the equivalent of a teenager going through puberty. Phix certainly took off the kid gloves with both Monica and Shelly once she perceived them as full adults in the paranormal community.

As I said, it was a little jarring to do an archive binge and see M go from a relatively normal person in extraordinary circumstances, but it does flow well when ready all together. And saying that, I don't so much see it as "Paul wrote himself into a corner." It's more like he showed Monica's growth and evolution up to the point where she became a full adult in the world of the paranormal, where before she was a child. The last arc with Monica that dealt with her relationship s with Kevin and Georgette was a sort of wrapping up of her story. She's still around, and I'm sure we'll still see her from time to time, but the major conflicts in her life have been resolved, and good storytelling is showing people in conflict, even if that conflict is all internal.

The shift to Atsali as the main protagonist gives us loads of story based conflict. Running down the list ,'Sali has to deal with her own discomfort with a body she didn't really want, and society's perception of that body. On top of that, she has to deal with prejudice against both halves of her paranormal heritage. Plus, she's dealing with celebrity status she didn't want based on who her mother is and her aunts are.

I get the sentiment that she's got a lot of status, "privilege" if you will due to her associations that she may not have "earned". But try to see it from her perspective. Atsali is an orphan who pretty much went from having nothing to having the world dropped in her lap, simply because she befriended Katherine. She's got a little bit of the Harry Potter thing going on where she just wanted a normal life, then got shoved right past that into a life of privilege and notoriety. She didn't ask for that, but there are going to be those who resent her because she didn't "earn it." But she's partly in the position she's in because she's a decent person and helped someone who she had no real reason to help, beyond emphasizing with them. And Jessie relayed that kindness by protecting her when she didn't know how connected Atsali was.

Yeah, Atsali has certain advantages and privileges, but her life is by no means conflict free.

I'm not going to lie, I honestly feel as though Monica's arc is far from finished. Maybe I am the vast minority, but I never saw the relationship that Monica and Georgette suddenly had to be healthy. In fact I'd go as far as to say us seeing Monica at this pool gathering might determine whether Paul is taking that route with their relationship or not. She's been out of the comic for a very long time, and Jin is essentially sounding the call of "war" to help Atsali out. Aunt Monica was the very first to tell her that if anyone gave her beef about her boobs, then she'd take care of it. The way I see it is if she is absent... something is wrong, but she might also arrive and not seem entirely herself. Or I'm full of hot hair and she's there, as energetic as ever and everything is sunshine and puppies.

But I just don't personally feel like that sort of relationship can end on such a happy note. Really the whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth, because right as Bud is trying to diffuse the situation(someone very drunk coming into a bar and trying to VERY forcefully tell her friend that they're meant for each other and her current relationship is fake) Tina comes in with Deus Ex Machina bullshit and calls her off. I mean really the way she said it was so dismissive in the end, she may as well have said "These two are meant for each other, trust me! Huh? Kevin? Oh fuck Kevin, he'll be fine." The entire thing happened back in November, and the very last we saw of the Pixie she still seemed conflicted and angry. Hell that was the first time she went all Godzilla and breathed fire to try and vent her anger. Point being we've not seen her in a very long time, nearly half a year in fact. While you can brush things like that off as her simply being put on the side-lines the act of not using a character can be a story-point all on its own, she did promise to help Atsali deal with any issues involving her boobs and she has been going through a lot of that lately.

[Catawampus]

We should take into consideration that we have no idea who the woman was.

While it is very true that many of our main characters are in very powerful positions in the paranormal world, that does not mean they are among the most powerful. For instance, how will this be dealt with if it turns out that the woman was Calista's mother?!

Given Cricket's reaction to Monica, i doubt that her mother is gonna choose a face-off with the Jaguar Girl ... and even the fae need a world to live in, which sorta leaves out getting in Bud's face ... and most paras walk pretty light around apos and Phix killed and ate one of those ...

There's individual physical power, and then there's social power. The average healthy person can probably beat the stuffing out of many of the people working in Congress or the White House. To actually do so, on the other hand, would likely land that average healthy person in a very uncomfortable position when the SWAT team comes knocking at their front door.

Sure, Monica could probably do all sorts of unpleasant things to Calista's mother. But then she might end up with a war against an entire Fae clan. She might be able to win (or at least endure until it fades out) that sort of thing, but it would probably really complicate her life and cost her highly in collateral damages.