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idonotlikepeas posted:If the court grew from the seed bismuth, maybe it just kept on growing past what was actually needed by the people living there. That would explain a lot, actually. Honestly the entire setting is really anachronistic. How did the seed bismuth know to grow all those concrete buildings that just happen to resemble the houses constructed in Annie's time?
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Jun 21, 2013 19:05
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Laser Cow posted:She raises animals for vivisection. This comic is so uplifting. Is it explicitly vivisection? I thought it was just generalized experiments.
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Jun 21, 2013 19:11
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Blackheart posted:Tormenting? Ysengrin doesn't remember any tormenting going on. Yeah, that bit of speculation hinged on Ysengrin realizing it. I figured that may be the one thing to crush his faith in Coyote if it ever happened. He actually seemed (the one time we saw it) utterly fearful of Coyote during that, no longer blindly loyal and trusting. Fruits of the Sea posted:How did the seed bismuth know to grow all those concrete buildings that just happen to resemble the houses constructed in Annie's time? Because those houses do not exist! :coyote: Do we even know if the seed bismuth is a literal seed and not some weird metaphor?
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Jun 21, 2013 19:15
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VictorGrunn posted:Do we even know if the seed bismuth is a literal seed and not some weird metaphor? What we know so far about the Seed Bismuth and The Court:
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Jun 21, 2013 19:49
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Zenzirouj posted:What we know so far about the Seed Bismuth and The Court: A comprehensive summary right here.
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Jun 21, 2013 19:55
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VictorGrunn posted:Do we even know if the seed bismuth is a literal seed and not some weird metaphor? It's just bismuth:  Also what if all those graves grew out there too, and they already have names and dates on them...future dates!
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Jun 21, 2013 20:09
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idonotlikepeas posted:If the court grew from the seed bismuth, maybe it just kept on growing past what was actually needed by the people living there. VictorGrunn posted:Do we even know if the seed bismuth is a literal seed and not some weird metaphor? Judging from the Jones & Randy Disaster Productions Present: A Reconstitution of the Founding of Gunnerkrigg Court episode, it was probably a literal seed. Maybe not in the biological meaning; but it was, from Jones' best guess, relatively tiny, it was buried, and the Court grew from it.
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Jun 21, 2013 20:10
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VictorGrunn posted:Because those houses do not exist! :coyote: I've been taking it as a metaphor because of the alchemical themes of GC. I find alchemy fascinating, and have read way too much about it, which is part of what attracted me to the comic. The theme and imagery of alchemy means I can take nothing in the comic as anything other than metaphor. Remember, there are two things we know for sure about alchemists; 1. They were trying to transmute lead into gold. 2. They spoke exclusively in metaphors. As an addendum; Whether by intention of happenstance, Tom picking Bismuth for this is interesting. It was sort of an alchemical element with the metal isolated in the 18th century, right at the end of alchemy's run when modern chemistry was phasing it out. Its late arrival means it shows up in alchemical manuscripts from the time period, but it's such a recent discovery it fits in neither Paracelsus' list of alchemical elements (Salt, Mercury, Sulphur) nor John Dees' (Gold, Silver, Copper, Iron, Tin, Mercury, Lead), both from the 16th century. There's no real use for Bismuth in alchemical manuscripts, but it's there and mentioned, just never assigned purpose. So that's a huge gap Tom can work in and we have no idea what he's drawing from or suggesting or using.
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Jun 21, 2013 20:10
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Cat Mattress posted:Judging from the Jones & Randy Disaster Productions Present: A Reconstitution of the Founding of Gunnerkrigg Court episode, it was probably a literal seed. Maybe not in the biological meaning; but it was, from Jones' best guess, relatively tiny, it was buried, and the Court grew from it. Not necessarily. It could have been anything people could circle around. My guess is a little kid with extraordinary powers, possibly one bred from both sides. We already have a little girl with this story named Antimony, why not give her a predecessor named Bismuth?
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Jun 21, 2013 20:20
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Cat Mattress posted:That was the idea in Philemon. A well digger finds himself transported to a strange island, builds a Robinson Crusoe-style shelter, and the shelter grows with time. It eventually became a palace, then ended up covering the entire island. Inhabitants? Still just him, and the Robinson Crusoe-style servant (who complains about all the work it is keeping an ever-growing mansion tidy). I wonder what the purple flower deal was with Annie and Renard in that chapter. It's obviously somewhat similar to the flower business she did with Andrew and Parley, but also different obviously. Does anyone have any idea what kind of flower it could be?
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Jun 21, 2013 20:22
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I think I mentioned this before, but it's worth noting that antimony and bismuth have similar chemical properties. Quoting the Wikipedia article: "Bismuth, a pentavalent poor metal, chemically resembles arsenic and antimony... Bismuth metal has been known from ancient times, although until the 18th century it was often confused with lead and tin, which share some physical properties. The etymology is uncertain, but possibly comes from Arabic bi ismid, meaning having the properties of antimony or German words weisse masse or wismuth ("white mass"), translated in the mid sixteenth century to New Latin bisemutum.". Both of them are used in cosmetics, which always made me wonder a little about Annie's eye makeup. I'd say in terms of the seed, it's not going to be exactly literally a seed, but the fact that they consistently say the court grew from it suggests that it performs the function of a seed, starting a process that generated the buildings.
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Jun 21, 2013 20:47
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Hetty is seriously wigging me out, but that's not stopping me from being on the edge of my seat, as usual. I'm also glad that I was without much internet during the beginning of the chapter, so I got to read all the slow pages at once! Also: A Dapper Walrus posted:Here is a slightly more uplifting image of Renard as a young lad, posted by Tom on tumblr. What the gently caress, Siddell?
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Jun 21, 2013 21:30
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ShadeofBlue posted:What the gently caress, Siddell? It's true, Renard was one of those ugly fat babies.
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Jun 21, 2013 21:34
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SHISHKABOB posted:I wonder what the purple flower deal was with Annie and Renard in that chapter. It's obviously somewhat similar to the flower business she did with Andrew and Parley, but also different obviously. Does anyone have any idea what kind of flower it could be? I think it was just Jones starting her Parley/Smitty OTP operation subtly; like she's just distributing flowers around in a neutral way. Then when this fails, she pushes Smitty a bit. Alternatively, she may have just ensured somehow that everyone would be teleported. She kept a flower herself. How exactly this could have worked would involve the flowers' association by coming from the same bunch, Parley's attraction to them, and Smitty's powers to keep things neat and orderly. scary ghost dog posted:Not necessarily. It could have been anything people could circle around. My guess is a little kid with extraordinary powers, possibly one bred from both sides. We already have a little girl with this story named Antimony, why not give her a predecessor named Bismuth? That's kinda sinister, given the examples we have of things growing from bodies. (Dead Tick Tock; dead tree dogs, dead armbranch.) Cat Mattress fucked around with this message at 21:49 on Jun 21, 2013 |
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Jun 21, 2013 21:40
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Here's my understanding so far: -Court originated from the "seed bismuth" -there are examples of court technology growing, like plants. -actual bismuth crystals, when grown, are very geometric and have similarities to castles or mazes. -manually growing crystals requires a small "seed" of the material to build on. Example: man-made diamonds have 2 methods, being chemically grown OR made via high pressure machines. Both require a tiny seed diamond to get started.
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Jun 22, 2013 00:25
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ShadeofBlue posted:What the gently caress, Siddell? Reynard used to be a bit more of a Trickster. Seems like he doesn't really have it in him anymore.
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Jun 22, 2013 00:53
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Oz posted:Here's my understanding so far: Could the ether the court is harvesting be the raw material that adds to the size of the buildings?
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Jun 22, 2013 01:56
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The Red Queen posted:Could the ether the court is harvesting be the raw material that adds to the size of the buildings? Probably works the same way a forest works. Forests just sort of you know grow and stuff and hang out. Forests don't get old and dilapidated after a while, they are in a constant state of growth and renewal and reusing the old stuff to make new stuff. I doubt very much that the actual Court people are in control of this process, or at least they are in much the way a bunch of animals are in control of the way a forest grows.
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Jun 22, 2013 02:00
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A Dapper Walrus posted:Here is a slightly more uplifting image of Renard as a young lad, posted by Tom on tumblr. Renard on the left would totally be going "BLYEAHBLYEAHBLYEAHBLYEAHBLYEAH" as he dug into a meal of fresh mouse
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Jun 22, 2013 02:42
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SHISHKABOB posted:Probably works the same way a forest works. Forests just sort of you know grow and stuff and hang out. Forests don't get old and dilapidated after a while, they are in a constant state of growth and renewal and reusing the old stuff to make new stuff. I doubt very much that the actual Court people are in control of this process, or at least they are in much the way a bunch of animals are in control of the way a forest grows. I think this may be why, as mentioned earlier, the buildings in the court we see are all relatively modern, looking maybe... victorian? at the oldest. The Court grows all the time, the buildings change as new growth occurs. I agree, I think the Court (place) is basically the Court's (organisation's) more man made, technological version of the Gillie forest. It itself grows and changes and "lives" regardless of its inhabitants. We haven't seen the edge of the court aside from its border with the forest, but I wouldn't be surprised if it either stretches to a natural boundary (like a bend in the Annan) or if there are dudes hanging out at the edges making sure the tiny sheds and bricks that occasionally pop up get trimmed. We saw that the Tic Tocs grow and expand when buried in the ground. It could be the Tic Tocs's have a tiny Seed within them, or it could be a combination of certain related technology combined with somehow "fertile" soil of the Gillie Forest? perhaps the Court and Seed Bismuth could only have taken root here?
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Jun 22, 2013 02:49
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A Dapper Walrus posted:Here is a slightly more uplifting image of Renard as a young lad, posted by Tom on tumblr. He's so round. Give him to me.  Or make a plushy! I'd buy one.
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Jun 22, 2013 03:00
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Hetty isn't annoyed Renard is visiting this grave, she's annoyed that he's got to visit all of them. Yep, he killed all of those people, total badass back in the day.A Dapper Walrus posted:Here is a slightly more uplifting image of Renard as a young lad, posted by Tom on tumblr.
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Jun 22, 2013 03:46
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I can totally see the Renard on the left going "Hey Ysengrin! Ysengrin! Hey! Ysengrin! Hey Ysengrin! Yyyyyyysengriiiiiin! Hey! Hey! Hey Ysengrin!" for two hours straight.
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Jun 22, 2013 03:47
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Probably the Court and Forest initially grew together, before they were separated at the Annan Waters. Many of its inhabitants were likely forest-dwellers who left when the two divided. Although we really have no idea of the size of the Court's population.
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Jun 22, 2013 03:48
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SHISHKABOB posted:Probably works the same way a forest works. Forests just sort of you know grow and stuff and hang out. Forests don't get old and dilapidated after a while, they are in a constant state of growth and renewal and reusing the old stuff to make new stuff. I doubt very much that the actual Court people are in control of this process, or at least they are in much the way a bunch of animals are in control of the way a forest grows. Well, yes, but one of the most important ingredients in keeping a forest growing is sunlight, a.k.a. energy being input. It could be that whatever process keeps the court growing needs a constant supply of etheric energy, but can't gather it on its own. Also, all this talk of growing the court has me wondering about Kat's plans for "growing" Robot's new body.
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Jun 22, 2013 04:54
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God I hope it turns out Mort was the kid he killed e: which sounds horrible but, well
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Jun 22, 2013 05:01
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Kantesu posted:Well, yes, but one of the most important ingredients in keeping a forest growing is sunlight, a.k.a. energy being input. It could be that whatever process keeps the court growing needs a constant supply of etheric energy, but can't gather it on its own. She perfects the process, then *SPANG* the court's founders appear in a carefully orchestrated time burp and abscond with Robot, as he is the seed bismuth. *VOOP*
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Jun 22, 2013 05:13
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Zorak posted:God I hope it turns out Mort was the kid he killed Have Mort and Renard ever been in the same room or seen one another?
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Jun 22, 2013 05:23
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Zorak posted:God I hope it turns out Mort was the kid he killed Unlikely; we already have a different idea of Mort's death. Whenever he appears we can see part of a phrase written on the wall (first seen just before his first appearance), which is almost certainly "Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori," or "It is sweet and right to die for your country."
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Jun 22, 2013 17:04
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I always wanted, but never had the nerve to request a picture of Mort when he was alive when Tom did commissions. I just didn't want to be the rear end in a top hat to make Tom say, "No, he'll turn out to be significant later" or "Sure, he'll never be that significant in-comic so it's not a spoiler." I just really, really want to see him alive. 
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Jun 22, 2013 17:59
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Kantesu posted:Well, yes, but one of the most important ingredients in keeping a forest growing is sunlight, a.k.a. energy being input. It could be that whatever process keeps the court growing needs a constant supply of etheric energy, but can't gather it on its own. Growing non-living stuff has been a pursuit of Kat's from nearly the beginning of the comic.
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Jun 23, 2013 02:34
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There's a massive Young's Park that we already know exists, with a forest in it. We also know that it is sufficiently into the human-occupied part of the Court itself that it is a substantial journey away, even by maglev train. We can also guess that the entire park is surrounded by high-rise buildings, since every horizon shone from Young's Park has yet more buildings. The single octopus scene is actually the first instance we've ever had indicating that the universe the Court exists in even has a boundary. Given that the Court is apparently old and that humans only occupy a minority of the buildings, it is seems reasonable to suppose that the robots maintain the place. The students travel substantial distances just to go to a robot barber, someone has to keep the maglevs running.
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Jun 23, 2013 03:28
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ronya posted:The single octopus scene is actually the first instance we've ever had indicating that the universe the Court exists in even has a boundary. The Donlans have gone on holiday around Europe. Kat even sent Annie some pictures.
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Jun 23, 2013 03:36
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I've always wondered how the court fits in as far as Great Britain is concerned. Is it a secret, like Hogwarts? I suspect its in the wilderness somewhere. Is it known by the UK people or perhaps only the government or perhaps not at all? It appears large enough to be a city. is it considered a city by the UK or just a school with a large campus? This is what I think about.
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Jun 23, 2013 03:42
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Oz posted:I've always wondered how the court fits in as far as Great Britain is concerned. I always figured it was outside the bounds of the world (or something), as I remember it being mentioned that the court actually wasn't within the bounds of anywhere that exists in Great Britain.
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Jun 23, 2013 03:48
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ThatBasqueGuy posted:I always figured it was outside the bounds of the world (or something), as I remember it being mentioned that the court actually wasn't within the bounds of anywhere that exists in Great Britain. It's possible, but if so how are they able to travel to the normal world? Do you remember where that was mentioned?
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Jun 23, 2013 04:08
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The River Annan is a real river in Scotland. So it's entirely possible that the Court is in Scotland.
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Jun 23, 2013 04:12
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Jones mentions that it isn't an easy place to find. She's the sort for that kind of dry understatement.
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Jun 23, 2013 04:48
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Tom says somewhere that they generally use planes to get in and out.
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Jun 23, 2013 05:00
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Wow, Jones played matchmaker?
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Jun 23, 2013 05:06
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