Comments on: It’s Only A Model

By: Gil

Gil — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 23:25:50 +0000

Camalot!

By: dmbgrunt

dmbgrunt — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 19:40:35 +0000

Huh… I might be misreading the clues after going back through the archives, but I am beginning to suspect that Tiffany’s “Male” form was NOT her natural form, and that the “Protection” from hostile magicks she’s manifested since the unicorn appeared, and Faden’s errors in the Asylum have combined to create the arcane contamination.

By: jmucchiello

jmucchiello — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 15:21:46 +0000

Looking back, my biggest confusion is the cast of characters has grown significantly since the strip entered the city. The comic really needs a cast page. I thought the deacon was among the confessors who were escorting Teresa out of the ball. He wasn’t.

In any case, it’s a free comic. The “new day dawning” transition was a bit abrupt. Hopefully it’ll all make sense in the next few comics.

By: MNH

MNH — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 04:52:47 +0000

@Khamya
Have read for a while. I don’t care about the destruction of unsexy armor, I want sexy clothes destroyed.

By: Tajz

Tajz — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 04:22:28 +0000

Ok,
This discussion leads me back to a point I made before and was called out on this before, but the strip above points back again to my question about spells that @Windsinger called on before on this http://www.exiern.com/?p=1749 ‘Focused’. From @Cryptic’s posting and the link to http://www.exiern.com/?p=1349 ‘Pig tailed Peasant Girls’, I have to reaffirm my belief that it was two spells that caused Tiff to briefly turn into the shorter; longer-haired; more “femininely-submissive” personality.

As the King says to the Deacon in these couple of pages he (Urtica) DOESN’T want a passive female as his bride. Which means that the songmages must have cast a spell (the 2nd then) to cause this personality shift; the end cause to make Tiff/Typhan accept “her” new feminine identity (always referred to Tiff as a her since I started posting – only a few weeks ago, but taking your cues @Cryptic). This implies that Faden/Peonie/Urtica/Theresa – other songmages expected the person who was to save Peonie from Faden in the VERY 1st five pages to have said savior turn into a woman that Urtica would bed and crown (lets be honest here and considering the “sexy” nature of this comic, come on”) which would then imply that Peonie was expecting to be defenestrated as it were.

True, I haven’t reread the whole comic to verify this; but I have in fact read every single strip (heh, since page one when the narrator 1st introduces the story and you realize that the old guy likes to speak aloud, but he is the only one to break the 4th wall as it were.

By: CrypticMirror

CrypticMirror — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 17:35:21 +0000

I think kingie probably already knew about Denver anyway after this strip: http://www.exiern.com/?p=976 he’s probably made a mental note to deal with it when and if it becomes an issue.

By: meps98

meps98 — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 17:20:26 +0000

One thing yet to be resolved is that one of the priests has recognized Denver as a proto-dragon and was only prevented from revealing it by being rendered unconscious by a timely blast from the Fractured. Presumably he was rescued by Tiff and has informed his superiors of the discovery, who have informed the King. What’s next for the dragon/scholar?

By: CrypticMirror

CrypticMirror — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:05:00 +0000

@jmucchiello
Tiff already sorted the weakness out on her own (for now at least, it is still a sword of Damocles), plus from what we can see here is not in the deleted scene, so any reaction to the exact reason on her weakness is still to come (especially since Peonie was in on it too). The collaring was just a restraining bolt, and put on Theresa until her “trial”. However the idiot that put it on her had no idea that the King had a use for her and was acting on the Deacon’s previous orders. Which leads to point one, the Deacon, after having given the orders to silence and detain Theresa[1], was found to have been holding info back from Urtica. Urtica then bitched slapped him in the ego, threatened his head on a spike, and ordered him to back off and have “priestess” Theresa sort Tiff. This is all in the comic. After that it was 100% certain that if Theresa survived the (k)night she would be reinstated and be the person to help Tiff if needed. We aren’t missing anything that was not already explained.

[1]Lets not call Theresa[2] by her former name, its pretty clear she has disowned it and is happy in her new identity. Its rude to call a trans individual by their old name. See here for a general overview: http://www.transmediawatch.org/guidance_approaches.html
[2]An argument could be made for Tiffany/Typhan-knee, particularly in the early stages of the strip, but since Tiff seems to be, if not happy, at least resigned to her current gender and name then it is probably best practice to use female pronouns and name for her. However in Theresa’s case there is no doubt at all how she feels (which is why her mere presence winds Tiff up so much).

By: jmucchiello

jmucchiello — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 03:57:52 +0000

@Cryptic: What? Thomas/Theresa was not silenced until http://www.exiern.com/?p=1410 which happens after the poisoning scene. So how was it taken care of? In fact, at the point Theresa was silenced she was just about to explain to Tiff why she was so weak and the Deacon stopped her from explaining it, in direct contradiction to what he was told to do in 1349. So explain again how the resolution of this is “extra”. I am hoping since Tiff is about to see the King she will ask and he will at least give us the short version.

By: meps98

meps98 — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:16:38 +0000

Tiff got her muscles back but kept the long hair. Hair that long has got to be a pain in the a** to take care of, though sexy as all get out. Interesting that Tiff referred to Teresa/Thomas as “that woman”. A subconscious sign of acceptance?

By: Khamya

Khamya — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:23:09 +0000

@MNH have you read the comic before or is this your first one? Because the more Peonie and Tiff get covered the more interested the method of removing the covering the authors devise.

I’m quite curious to see what shreds Tiff’s armor and leaves her naked. Since we all know it is happening eventually.

By: GrimGhost

GrimGhost — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:59:10 +0000

@Cryptic — no, not my nerd card! Do you know how much money I rake in as technical consultant for McGee on >NCIS

Okay, I get how they let Teresa wear the priest robes again. But isn't there a uniform code for those things? I'm pretty sure that taking scissors to the brown cloth covering her upper chest and stomach muscles isn't allowed.

By: CrypticMirror

CrypticMirror — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 14:39:29 +0000

@GrimGhost how can you be a fantasy fan and not know of Monty Python? That’s it, we’re revoking your “nerd card”!

@jmucchiello It is an extra, we already know what would happen from this comic:
http://www.exiern.com/?p=1349
Urtica bitch-slapped the Deacon in the ego and told him exactly what was going to happen. The extra comic is just how the deacon sold it to people to save face. It isn’t essential to the comic, it is nice to know, but it is really just detail that in the main comic would interfere with pacing so probably would be there anyway.

By: chemiclord

chemiclord — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:45:02 +0000

Monty Python reference.

By: GrimGhost

GrimGhost — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:44:06 +0000

Would someone explain the title, “It’s only a model,” to me?

By: MNH

MNH — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 05:14:08 +0000

Tiffany needs to take dressing advice from Theresa.

That armor doesn’t flatter her at all.

By: Tajz

Tajz — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 03:56:47 +0000

I love how Theresa is collared and being prevented of utilizeing her songcasting with a choker, yet her “special” priest(ess) version keeps the choker + plunging neckline and ever important bare-midriff. Ah the vagaries of videogames and comics since the the 90s on female sexuality… not that any guy (and some girls) would be upset about a little more skin.

By: jmucchiello

jmucchiello — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:38:35 +0000

Annoying that the “extras” in the ESArchive aren’t really “extra” if they explain things not in the public comics. Is there going to be a short version of how the church let her “herself” for those of us not interested in the normal “extras”.

By: Insectoid

Insectoid — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:23:05 +0000

Apparently Tiffany has forgotten that Teresa was going to help her with her curse (before she was collared).

By: mrd143

mrd143 — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:01:22 +0000

note to self don’t post too soon after taking meds. I get a little confused.