Oof. That chapter is one of the roughest, and while Worm has a lot of great moments, it’s one of those that made me realize what a fantastic writer Wildbow is. These aren’t just characters, they’re PEOPLE, with all the mess that comes with it.
I know, right? 6.9 was excellent.
“There is no guarantee any attempt on my part would be wholly successful”. You just said you control fate and decide outcomes you slimy slithery son of a—
Hah, yeah, that’s a good point!
I suppose this would be one of those places where my hypothesized Manton limitation to his power would kick in, but that’s exactly that – hypothesized, with no solid evidence in favor.
Also, assuming that was going to end with “son of a bitch”… I don’t think that’s quite the relation he has to Rachel. 😉
koolerestkid:
I don’t know if you figured it out already, but I have an idea for what the arc name “Hive” might mean. It might refer to the way the ABB kicked over a figurative “hornet’s nest” or “beehive” and provoked all the other villains into coming after them. Just a thought.
Ooh, I like this interpretation.
I can… kind of relate, so to speak. To the literal side of it.
regular-name:
Krix should REALLY read the Interludes before giving Arc thoughts.
It’s not the first time this has been suggested. Thus far my reasoning has been that the Interludes are more standalone bridges between the Arcs than part of the preceding or following Arc proper, but I suppose there must be a reason it keeps getting brought up.
But for all I know, the “read the Interludes first” crowd could be a vocal minority, so I guess… it’s time for a poll.
[submission] aaron:
I think the reason most people are saying to do the arc thoughts after the interludes (or at least the reason I voted “after”) is because they’re often crucial to the arc.
For instance, Danny’s Interlude gives us a better understanding of who Taylor is and how she thinks, as well as giving us insight into their relationship and clues us in on what Danny is thinking. Not only does this have an impact on how we perceive Taylor’s actions in the future (“Oh man, that’s gonna suck for Danny”), but it allows times like 6.9 to really be impactful because we know almost exactly what’s going through Danny’s head.
Sorry for rambling. Point is, the Interludes really add to the arc as well as future interactions, and we’d like to know your thoughts on how the whole arc holds together 🙂
Fair enough. They do often tie in more heavily with the previous Arc than the next.
Though I’m not sure the importance to the reading of future Arcs, other than the one immediately following, is relevant here. This isn’t about whether the Interludes are important in general (they are, no doubt there), just whether I should include them as part of the previous Arc.
[Tumblr post by incorrect-wormquotes, submitted as link by sharedvi]
DANNY: Anything you want to tell me about?
TAYLOR: No. Is there anything you want to ask me?
DANNY: No.
TAYLOR: Okay, good talk!
DANNY: One of our best!
Haha! Painfully accurate. :P
“Taylor does have someone who’s willing to point it out: Armsmaster.” Except he doesn’t care for her. He cares for his reputation and his reputation alone. A new hero recruited by him? Mucho cred for him, especially in a city like Brockton. And if he fails, what are the cons? A bug Master on a team that’s known for running away from things, no biggie. He hasn’t spoken a word of Taylor’s initial mission, hasn’t given even a sliver of trust and hasn’t tried to convince her harder not to do it.
He’s willing to point out the flaws with Taylor’s plan specifically because he doesn’t care for her… once, before leaving her to her downward spiral.
…I never said he did a good job of it.
The results are in:
So much for “could be a vocal minority”! I’ve been paying attention to the poll results through these 24 hours, and I don’t think I ever saw “before” at more than 11.12%.
So here’s the deal: From now on, Interludes will be treated as part of the Arc they’re following, for the purposes of not only Arc thoughts, but also tags and the Tebble of Constants.
This is partially because it seems like that’s how you guys view the Interludes, and partially so that people reading via the Arc tags get things in the correct order. It also happens to solve a minor issue with the tagging of asks that get answered in between Interludes and the following Arc, which is nice.
So yeah, I’m not sure if I’m going to apply this change retroactively, but at least that’s how I’m doing this going forward.
Micro-spoilage: In a well-intended effort to help me with scheduling, I’ve been told that this upcoming Interlude is “long-ish”.
(I’ve informed the person who said it that I’d prefer not to know this kind of thing in advance, but appreciate the thought.)
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