Sluggy Freelance

I think Riff is still oblivious. Not that that speaks well of Zoe, considering how bad Riff is at his own relationships.

Also, worst timing ever to have that realization and say it out loud.

Oh, now that's really the wrong revelation to have out loud. Oasis go boom now.

Now all someone needs to do is tell Oasis about Dimension of Lame Zoe and we should have a pretty good Hiroshima blast on our hands.

The real question is can Oasis burn up the sleep chaf cloud before it knocks her out?

Heh. Riff is as oblivious about relationships as ever.

Please tell me he's not going to leave Bun-bun's fate hanging until next week...

Personally, I don't care about bun-bun. Actually, I hate him.

I wonder if Abrams is ever gonna kill off any of the main characters.

Unlikely, but it would be interesting.

Well, in Torg's dream Oasis killed two birdies. So far she's only killed one birdy (Monica) that Torg would know, so I figure we're at least gonna see another recurring character killed off, though not necessarily one of the regulars.

The sleep razors didn't work... Figures.

She doesn't look so good, though.

True... But this is oasis we're talking about. She's pretty damned close to being a Villain Sue.

edited 30th Jul '09 2:03:08 PM by Padur Karil

Really? I never thought of her like that. Sure the current arc is all about her and a lot of people are interested in dealing with her, but none of this is new. Herticorp has always been interested in obtaining her and Torg has wanted to find a way to deal with her obsession with him. Even her hypercompetence has already been established. This seems more like the convergence of a lot of plot threads.

Now if she just appeared out of nowhere, then yeah I would call her a Villain Sue.

I'd say Oasis gets killed a little too often to be a Villain Sue.

And yet she's always still alive anyway...

The sleep frisbees didn't work? Er, kind of tough to establish that when she staggered, fell over backwards, and got blown up. And I don't know- Oasis is a little too neurotic to be a real Villain Sue.

edited 30th Jul '09 9:16:32 PM by TeChameleon

I'd say Oasis loses a little too often to be a Villain Sue, regardless of whether or not she stays dead. Even against other bad guys - including the Aylee clone and her sister, Kusari.

I'd also say her status as a villain is in doubt. As Torg has said, she is innocent. She's not really responsible for what's been done to her head. Certainly anyone killed while she's in Override B-1 can be laid at the feet of Steve Hereti rather than Oasis.

She may be an antagonist, but that doesn't automatically make her a villain.

Oasis is much less of a Villain Sue than Bun-Bun is at any point. She's a nigh-unstoppable monster in-battle, but beyond that she's such a mess that it's next to impossible to even think of her as a villain. Even in-battle, her strategy is basically "get close enough to stab them".

I'm still hoping that this latest match is just an extended version of Let's You and Him Fight that eventually leads to Oasis gaining some firm sanity.

I see what ya'll are saying, and I guess it makes sense. And to be honest Bun Bun has been beaten several times, it's mostly just the fans who make them their Sue. (I've been guilty of this myself. He is my favorite character.)

Oasis is more of an Anti-Villain I guess.

Today's strip reaches what is hopefully the darkest part of the whole series. If you have been following and have not already read today's update - well why haven't you check then!?

I hope Riff managed to hit the DFA escape button. Poor Zoe though even if she survives she will still be a mess.

Holy crap! I missed the DFA - they're not dead, just in a different dimension . Hopefully NOT dying of burns, though.

edited 4th Aug '09 1:52:46 AM by DeathMask

Interesting spec moment. A member of the sluggy fanbase dug up a comic from the Kessandru's Well arc where the Book of E-vile was talking to Gwyn. It mentioned that it was protecting Zoe from the spirit world. I wonder if that protection is still there and how well it holds up against pyrokenitic bodysurfing ghosts.

link

...Ooooooooh... kay! Righto! ... I have to admit I am honestly wondering what's going to be happening to Zoe now. Going up in flames doesn't seem comfortable, escape plan or not.

Oasis isn't a ghost, according to the scientist that Torg just spoke to. Ghost's weren't their department. "Oasis is a weaponized ghost" appears to be a red herring.

This is going to be really hard on Torg. He's just watched Zoe die again. He probably won't remember the DFA escape button.

edited 4th Aug '09 10:50:08 AM by ccoa

I find today's update to be one of the best strips in the whole series. I really expected Torg to break down and go into rage but Abrahms kept him true to his character and retain an optimistic attitude while refocusing on his goals. It really contrasts with Gwyn's despair, who also remains true to her character.

Sluggy Freelance has officially gone back to being my favorite webcomic.

edited 4th Aug '09 9:41:57 PM by DeathMask