Dominic Deegan: Oracle for Hire, Mk. XLIV: Stunt Bro and Hella Jayden

[random11]

*SLAM*

"And stay out!
...
...
Damn, I hate stupid good guys, thought I'd never get rid of them.
Now I need to scrub my scrying pool, I shouldn't have let him use it"

[guttering flame]

The most impressive part of this, to me, is that Mookie managed to draw a background in one of the panels. Such as it is.

To me the backgrounds were especially bad this time. This sourceless light Jayden conjured looks like laziness on Mookie's part. Then when things go boom Jayden should lose her concentration along with the light. And how did they end up in a big hall in panel 4 (which is what it looks like instead of a narrow tunnel). Panels 6 and 7 are pure laziness and it took me a while to figure out what was going on in the last panel. The 2/3 white void in it are no help.

[Arakune]

It's clear Jayden likes to...



Ride others.

[T-O-E]

Damn, they've ruined ruined Rilian's plan to bury the treasure under a ridiculous amount of sand so far away from the ruin. Mantarays can't dig, fact.

[Myrdhale]

Damn, they've ruined ruined Rilian's plan to bury the treasure under a ridiculous amount of sand so far away from the ruin. Mantarays can't dig, fact.

Jayden ruins Everything, gosh!

The white magic shield that Jayden cast to protect herself and Stunt from the tunnel collapse gives me a case of the giggles. In my mind, Stunt had to walk against the shield (which managed to trap some sand in there with them) in order to move it through the sand like a hamster in a hamster ball. It's funny imagery to me, at least, even if it's not "officially" in the comic today.

I hate it when he does this. Everytime something 'gives him the giggles', it generally just ruins any pacing or intrigue he might have been able to achieve.

Edit: It's also pretty damn obvious what he was going for. No damn reason to explain it in the news post too.

Also, if Rillian is dead now, Mookie has officially moved on to trolling his readers by killing any characters they like.

[Veridis Quo]

The white magic shield that Jayden cast to protect herself and Stunt from the tunnel collapse gives me a case of the giggles. In my mind, Stunt had to walk against the shield (which managed to trap some sand in there with them) in order to move it through the sand like a hamster in a hamster ball. It's funny imagery to me, at least, even if it's not "officially" in the comic today.

Silly Mookie, physics don't work like that. In order for you to have that much forward momentum you'll need traction. Sand and round smooth round objects wouldn't provide enough momentum to push aside several hundred pounds of sand. Unless that magic shield I didn't know Jayden could use has the ability to push aside the sand.

Also, was it stated that Rilian was holding the tunnel open? If so, why was Masturel's presence not felt as he you know, tried to break into the ruins. That might provide some tension, Stunt and Jayden talk with Rilian while The walls constantly vibrate from Masturel's onslaught. Centuries old sand falls from the ceilings and new cracks appear in the foundation as Rilian gives them their quest.

Those 5 minutes Stunt was given might have had more significance if their was an actual reason to limit his scrying to 5 minutes. And Rilian conceding to letting the two of them take a detour would have been Rilian realizing that there is no more time and Masturel is almost through his defenses. With no time to spare he creates a back entrance that will lead them far away from the city, but he must maintain the spell to keep the tunnel from collapsing. Then today's strip happens and both Jayden and Stunt realize that something may have happened to Rilian, leaving them both stranded in the desert again with no help and danger right on their heels.

[TheLaughingMan]

The white magic shield that Jayden cast to protect herself and Stunt from the tunnel collapse gives me a case of the giggles. In my mind, Stunt had to walk against the shield (which managed to trap some sand in there with them) in order to move it through the sand like a hamster in a hamster ball. It's funny imagery to me, at least, even if it's not "officially" in the comic today.

So basically, "I ran out of ways to get our heroes out of this, so I copy-pasted that one scene from The Incredibles and just kind of over-layed white desert gloop for scenery?" I'm not quite sure what to make of that.

[Humbug]

Okay, let's go along with the comic and say Rillian is dead, Stunt and Jayden realize this, and Stunt STILL wants to get closure from his mummy first instead of delivering the treasure to Miranda? The only person who can protect him from the Archmages? Wtf?

There's absolutely no sense of urgency in this comic, Mookie keeps saying that things are going down, but the characters are just farting around. (both the protagonists AND antoganists) "Hmm, the Archmages are willing to kill to get to this all powerful artifact, I think I'll visit my mummy first, DERPY DERP!"
Ugh.

[Mewtarthio]

To be honest, I kind of hope this is the last we see of Rillian. If he's dead, after all, than Mookie can't ruin--

Of course. How stupid of me.

That being said, I'm granting myself a "Rilbot" card right now. If Rillian returns in the future and ends up worshiping the Dominus or something, I can play this card to retroactively declare that he did, in fact, die in this comic and replace himself with a lifelike Rillian Replicant Android.

[BlackDragonKing]

To be honest, I kind of hope this is the last we see of Rillian. If he's dead, after all, than Mookie can't ruin--

Of course. How stupid of me.

That being said, I'm granting myself a "Rilbot" card right now. If Rillian returns in the future and ends up worshiping the Dominus or something, I can play this card to retroactively declare that he did, in fact, die in this comic and replace himself with a lifelike Rillian Replicant Android.

"In light of the complete lack of urgency everyone else feels about saving the universe, I've decided to go to Discworld and live out the rest of eternity in peaceful retirement somewhere smart. If you need me, Rilbot here will attend to my duties. I sincerely hope I never see or hear from any of you again."

-Rilian, departing this universe for greener pastures

...I think I'll hold onto one of those cards, just because I'm not convinced Rilian won't single-handedly solve this entire crisis at precisely the moment Luna is in position to be given all the credit by the universe instead.

[Trazoi]

Sneaky Gate
Future Link

It's confirmed: the heroes have driven Rilian to simply not care anymore.

[random11]

Okay, let's go along with the comic and say Rillian is dead, Stunt and Jayden realize this, and Stunt STILL wants to get closure from his mummy first instead of delivering the treasure to Miranda? The only person who can protect him from the Archmages? Wtf?

There's absolutely no sense of urgency in this comic, Mookie keeps saying that things are going down, but the characters are just farting around. (both the protagonists AND antoganists) "Hmm, the Archmages are willing to kill to get to this all powerful artifact, I think I'll visit my mummy first, DERPY DERP!"
Ugh.

I hope that at the very least Stunt will feel bad for a panel or two for delaying these five minutes and maybe causing Rillian to die.


Also, I don't think he's dead. Rillian's character wasn't completely ruined yet, so he must still be alive.
Next time, we'll see Rillian in a destruction arc dedicated to him. Rillian will have amnesia, he will think for a while that he is a rock star, and so he will join Greg's band for one tour.

[Doompuppy]

I do love how Rillian's teeth have escaped his face in panel 5. I'm a crap artist, and even I see how completely "this is wrong, erase and redo" that is...

[Voice of Reason]

Honestly, although I suspect a great many of you will resent it someday, Rilian isn't dead. It simply isn't logical. He's the first and (arguably) most powerful necromancer in the world; he literally invented undeath. Now, Masutel could very well have a way to stop Rilian's unlife permanently, but as you can clearly see, he was crushed in by perfectly ordinary boulders. I wouldn't be surprised if he stood there on purpose so that he'd die and "resurrect" somewhere else before the Archmage gets to him. It's something that Rilian, as a character, would do.

[Trazoi]

Honestly, although I suspect a great many of you will resent it someday, Rilian isn't dead. It simply isn't logical.

This is Dominic Deegan. Logic has nothing to do with this.

Mookie's going to tell us one way or the other with his newspost. (Anything along the lines of "Is Rilian dead? Did he survive? I'm such a tease for giving you a mid-week cliffhanger!" means he's definitely survived.)

[Veridis Quo]

Wasn't one of the big things with necromancers the fact that they can disappear into the ground? I mean Jacob was constantly doing that whenever he needed a dramatic entrance/exit.

[Glass Mouse]

*twitch, twitch*

And you just KNOW Mookie's doing this because he's heard complaints that the stakes weren't high enough, and we'd like someone to die.....

[Oracle_Hunter]

I do love how Rillian's teeth have escaped his face in panel 5. I'm a crap artist, and even I see how completely "this is wrong, erase and redo" that is...

Listen, this man can't even keep track of his character's legs -- if he's not going to worry about someone being off model for an entire Arc then he's not going to give two figs about someone's face being off for a single panel in a sequence of lazy panels.

Also: Rillian's totally fine and everyone knows it. What's next for Wild Edge Part Deux?

[T-O-E]

Rilian isn't even trying anymore. He can't wait for the sweet embrace of death.

[Glass Mouse]

Also: Rillian's totally fine and everyone knows it.

I wouldn't be so sure. Rilian is competent, popular and hasn't had any Mary Sue powers manifest (the perfect barometer for Mookie's love).
Also, Dominic doesn't like him.

[Turcano]

Rilian isn't even trying anymore. He can't wait for the sweet embrace of death.

Well, if you were in Dominic Deegan, you would want to die too.

[elros]

I am sure Rillian will "pull a miracle save" just like every other DD character. I'm sure he has a trick that has never been mentioned before that will save him in just this type of situation.

BTW, am I the only one thinking that Miranda's "angelic gauntlet" is going to save the entire day? Everything else is just a distraction until a "deux-ex-momina" ending.

[Trazoi]

I am sure Rillian will "pull a miracle save" just like every other DD character. I'm sure he has a trick that has never been mentioned before that will save him in just this type of situation.

Rilian already has the power to either teleport or use that necromantic ground tunnelling trick which he used to use to appear and disappear whereever he wants all mysterious like, so it's not as if it would be completely out of the blue.

And he couldn't use this power to deliver the necklace to Miranda personally because

[T-O-E]

Rilian already has the power to either teleport or use that necromantic ground tunnelling trick which he used to use to appear and disappear whereever he wants all mysterious like, so it's not as if it would be completely out of the blue.

And he couldn't use this power to deliver the necklace to Miranda personally because

It's made out of a material which is so magical that it can't be affected by magic.

Sometimes magic is just magic.

[Nerd-o-rama]

I wouldn't be so sure. Rilian is competent, popular and hasn't had any Mary Sue powers manifest (the perfect barometer for Mookie's love).
Also, Dominic doesn't like him.

Mookie still pretty clearly finds Rillian entertaining, and he doesn't interfere with the story he's trying to tell, except to try and bait and switch into thinking there is a story. There's no need to assume he'll get Siegfried'd without warning.

[Traab]

Im thinking the next comic will be rillian calmly talking to manta ray. possibly with the cliche, "You will never find it, forever shall you be denied that which you seek." Then we get an off panel assumed death, which clearly means he doesnt die, (CAN you even kill the first necromancer? I mean, helixia had her escape from death thing and she was way less badass than rillian) His death scene will involve us seeing some crappy method of expressing manta rage, a powerup of a hyperbeam attack, followed by a dragonball z style dome of destruction seen at a distance by stunt and jayden.

The only way I would consider death a possibility, is if rillian had been spending his last moments at the scrying pool looking at the original leaf oracles image, or otherwise showing him reminiscing about those he expects to see again very soon. But no, he spent his time staring at jayden her her thief boyfriend instead, making sure they got out.

Or mookie will just stay boring and leave us assuming that rillian got buried under rubble, because rubble is a super necromancers kryptonite.

[multilis]

I do love how Rillian's teeth have escaped his face in panel 5. I'm a crap artist, and even I see how completely "this is wrong, erase and redo" that is...

Do you crank out a comic a day consistently for years?

Normally one expects more errors on a daily soap opera or sitcom compared to a weekly one. Same goes for comics. Many of other comics talked about in this forum are products of 2 or more artists/writers.

"And he couldn't use this power to deliver the necklace to Miranda personally because" - he is being watched closely, and likely usage of magic can be tracked. So he would either be intercepted/magic blocked or would lead to a battle around Miranda when he arrived.

Lord of the rings book for example... the wraiths could see magic users such as powerful elves but had trouble seeing others like hobbits. (When Frodo put on ring, wraiths could see him and elves glowed as bright light, gandalf explains after that he entered their world/was seeing things like they did. Later at breaking up of fellowship, Frodo again wears ring and goes to high place, and Sauron attention is quickly drawn to Frodo's usage of magic to view things. In another case, Saruman magic using orb is detected/caught by Sauron. In all cases the usage of magic makes it easier for enemies to find and catch you)

...

Lord of The Rings, why didn't Gandalf hop on an eagle and fly the ring/hobbits to mount doom by air? (Common argument)

Mount Doom: Seat of Sauron's power lots of references to his magic being stronger/overwhelming rest there, eg Elf magic light didn't shine there. Gandalf had already attacked flying wraiths using lighting bolts from ground. So fly in and Sauron would likely notice and zap or otherwise stop the eagles and seize the ring.

(Was LOTR horrible story because Gandalf entrusted the ring to wimpy hobbits as last hope, while the rest tried to distract Sauron? Gandalf's plan worked because Sauron did not consider it an option.)

[TheLaughingMan]

Do you crank out a comic a day consistently for years?

Normally one expects more errors on a daily soap opera or sitcom compared to a weekly one. Same goes for comics. Many of other comics talked about in this forum are products of 2 or more artists/writers.

A. Except soap operas have the decency to at least dress everyone in their appropriate costume, set the stage properly, and make sure the actors have all their limbs accounted for.

B. That's because those people realize they have a weakness and account for it. Look at Penny Arcade. Tycho isn't as skilled as Gabe in artistry, and Gabe isn't as skilled as Tycho in writing. As such, Tycho does (most, as far as I remember) of the writing, while Gabe picks up art duties. They recognize the talents they have and use them to the fullest.

Now, I don't think I'd ever say Mookie was a good writer, but look at some snarkers' attempts at fixing the art issues (like that one not too long ago with Stunt revealing his murderous tendencies to Jayden). That is a drastically improved comic, even if not necessarily good.

If Mookie cannot both illustrate and write his comic without greatly sacrificing quality on both accounts, then he really needs to get himself an artist who can pick up the slack or else save us his mediocre efforts.

And that's just assuming Mookie tries to make a quality product in the first place, which as proven time and again is sadly an unfounded notion.

[Helanna]

Do you crank out a comic a day consistently for years?

Normally one expects more errors on a daily soap opera or sitcom compared to a weekly one. Same goes for comics. Many of other comics talked about in this forum are products of 2 or more artists/writers.

And most of them also put out professional-quality work no matter how many people are working on the comic. Off the top of my head, Questionable Content and Gunnerkrigg Court update 5 and 3 times a week respectively with a one-person team. They do full-page comics, in color, with amazing art - QC is constantly changing and testing its art and GC's art is simply amazing - and its author/artist had a full-time job until recently. Of course, most artists actually care about what their art looks like, so that's not really up Mookie's alley.

Which reminds me, I should go donate to support Gunnerkrigg Court. I still can't figure out how he produced such a wonderful comic while dealing with a job.

"And he couldn't use this power to deliver the necklace to Miranda personally because" - he is being watched closely, and likely usage of magic can be tracked. So he would either be intercepted/magic blocked or would lead to a battle around Miranda when he arrived.

Gee, wouldn't it be great if there was a real magic system in place that would actually explain any of this, instead of 'whatever fits the plot at that exact moment'? I'm not saying that this is a terrible plot idea, I'm saying that Mookie's a terrible writer who can't keep his story elements straight and doesn't actually know what 'logic', 'reason', and 'realistic characters' are. Also, he should learn about Sanderson's First Law of Magic.

Man, Mookie's work ethic is pissing me off today for some reason. How the hell can you have a successful webcomic if you can't write or draw?

[Dandria]

snip

Point is, Tolkien was kind enough to give us actual explanations for what was going on in his books. Mookie? Not so much.

I mean, by reading Tolkien's work we learn why the company couldn't fly to Mordor (it's all there in the eagles character), or why the big, epic quest was given to a rag-tag bunch of adventurers (most of the players were really bad at optimizing, duh ), why Sauron couldn't defeat Huan, why the Valar decided to release Melkor from the grip of Angainor, etc. . .

On the other hand, by reading DD we get to understand exactly jack**** about Mookie's world. Can Rilian's magic be tracked by Masutel? Is he (it?) able to scry on the necromancer, and if so, how come it's not running after Stunt? What the hell is Acibek's Principle? Why aren't they all dead yet?! Seriously, as far as eldritch horrors go even Cthulhu is more proactive than the beast.

Normally one expects more errors on a daily soap opera or sitcom compared to a weekly one. Same goes for comics.

True, but they are still errors. I can understand the idea that they exist because Mookie is quick (even if we all know the real reason), but that doesn't make them disappear. Also: come on, there are missing legs! How could he forget a frigging leg?!