Tag: Parahumans

Interlude 13½ (Donation Bonus)

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

Oh hey, what have we here?

A look into Mannequin’s… wherever he keeps his think pan, perhaps? Maybe we’re about to see what he’s up to in Skitter’s territory before Skitter does, and get some insight into how his senses work?

(I still suspect one of them is temperature, but it’s definitely not just that. He’s able to read Scrabble pieces, after all.)

Or maybe we’re taking a break from Skitter and co. to check on Hookwolf’s side or the southern Undertravelers? Unless we follow someone outside the group who interact with them, the latter would have to be from a Traveler’s perspective, since Tattletale and Regent have both had Interludes already. In that case we’d probably end up finding out more about the Travelers’ secrets too.

Or, perhaps, we’ll be following someone entirely new. Ooh, or Sierra or Charlotte – I’m still hoping for an Interlude like that.

Well, one way to find out – let’s read some Worm!

End of Snare 13.2

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

Manny, I got your number
I need to make you mine
Manny, don’t change your number
201-2164

201-2164
201-2164
201-2164 

(don’t call that)

…wait… what if that’s actually what it is? Although it’s not like Mannequin can actually answer over the phone.

Anyway, this was a neat chapter. Some minor development on the Imp-Grue conflict, a skirmish with Mannequin that went super well (depending on whom you ask), and most importantly, we got some excellent development between Amy and Skitter! Just a shame Mannequin had to ruin the moment.

Next chapter, I guess it’s back north to deal with the threat Skitter believes Mannequin poses to her gang – which legitimately seems like something he’d do, but let’s not forget the Arc title. I’m sure there’ll be some form of trap sooner or later, whether it’s set up by Mannequin, Cherish or Skitter.

So yeah! See you then!

Snare 13.2

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

BANANA POWER, BANANA POWER, BANANA POWER

wait what?

uh

hi?

Yeah, that’s the ticket.

Hi there! It’s time for some more Worm!

Last time, plans were laid, teammates were mixed, webs were spun and Imps were pissed off. Well, one at least.

This time, we may be focusing on getting Grue, Genesis and Bitch settled in or near the Hive, unless Wildbow decided what we saw at the end of the previous chapter was enough on that front. Hopefully there’ll also be some focus on getting to know Genesis. There’s also a decent chance we’ll be going on a tour of the nearby territories.

Alternatively, we might skip right ahead to Mannequin’s trap. There are eight Slaughterhouse testing rounds to get through unless something/someone interrupts the game, so we might see some faster pacing in order to get through it all.

The best way to find out is to jump in, so let’s go get ensnared by this next chapter of Worm!

End of Snare 13.1

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

This was a fairly good planning chapter. We got implicit confirmation that Coil is still looking out for his subordinates, a mix-and-split tactic that’s going to let us get to know Genesis a bit better, a bit of conflict between Grue and Imp that I think will be interesting going forward, and a look at the growth in Skitter’s ranks!

Meanwhile, Mannequin is sneaking around Taylor’s territory, and he doesn’t have much time to waste. Taylor suspects he’ll resort to a trap, and between the title Snare and biosphere being meant to contain things, I think she’s right. Perhaps we’ll see that take shape within the next two chapters.

Next time, however, the focus may be on getting the new temporary residents of the Hive situated, possibly going on a tour of the territories, and maybe showing more of Genesis’ personality. (We saw some of that this time, though not enough that I really commented on it – she seems fairly upbeat, though, which I like.)

So yeah! See you soon for the next chapter!

Snare 13.1

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

Sugar. Spice. And everything nice. These were the ingredients chosen to create the perfect little Arc.

But Professor Wildbow accidentally added an extra ingredient to the concoction… Chemical Slaughterhouse!

Thus, ARC 13 OF WORM WAS BORN!

And it’s called…

Snare?

Interesting. In terms of its relation to bugs, that mainly makes me think of spiders and their webs. In a more (para)human context, that implies a trap of some kind, likely one that our protagonists are going to walk right into.

It’s also worth noting that we’re likely focusing on Mannequin and Cherish in this Arc, and Cherish’s power can be seen as her manipulating the webs of emotions and relations in people’s heads. She’s also been known to ensnare victims, like that one guy in her Interlude.

So, what are we in for this chapter?

Perhaps we’ll have Taylor going to check on Tattletale or her dad in person? Or maybe we’ll focus on her efforts to make things better in her territory?

Honestly, I really don’t know. First chapters of Arcs are almost as hard to speculate on as Interludes. I’m probably better off just jumping into it and seeing what’s up!

Arc 13, Snare. Let’s go. 🙂

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

End of Interlude 12½ (Donation Bonus)

Well, that was a very interesting one.

I got my wish – we did get to know Battery better, and it turns out she’s got some history with Cauldron. History that gave us some insight into how exactly things work when people buy powers from them! That was neat, though I’m not sure how important it’ll be in the long run.

We also got to see firsthand the experiences of someone getting her power through one of Cauldron’s vials. That was quite… bizarre. I feel like some of that is going to make more sense later on. I do think Battery’s power ended up reflecting her mental state – she has to stop, have a moment of calm, to charge up her power, which makes things around her comparatively calm and allows her to focus and act quickly.

We also learned the true relation between Assault and Battery: Battery became a hero specifically to take down Assault – then Madcap – but when she finally did it, he weaseled his way into becoming her teammate. It’s a beautiful tale of a long-lasting kismesissitude that seemed to turn red at the end.

Man, Assault is… quite the character. I like him as a character, but what an ass. Though at least he seems to have changed a bit over time.

(You know what happens when you assault. You make an ass out of Australia and Lithuania. Wait, what?)

And finally, there’s the matter of Battery’s third favor. She’s going to have to act against the PRT’s interests in this Slaughterhouse situation, especially when it comes to – for some reason – Siberian and Shatterbird. I wonder, did Siberian too get her powers from Cauldron?

But yeah… as far as I’m aware, that’s it for Arc 12! I’ll be back tomorrow for the Arc Thoughts, and then we’ll move on to whatever Arc 13 has in store for me! See you soon!

Interlude 12½ (Donation Bonus)

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

Howdy! It’s time for Interlude… uh, which one was it again? Let’s count them up:

1, 2, 3, 3½, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 8, 10, 10.5, 11a, 11b, 11c, 11d, 11e, 11f, 11g, 11h, 12… ah, yes, 12½!

Well, still makes more sense than “Act 6 Act 5 Act 1 x2 Combo!!!”.

So, what are we in for today? I guess I should just let Pastwell do the talking, since my predictions haven’t changed since the end of the last chapter:

Anyway, my predictions for next time are pretty much the same as for this one, though obviously without the one that actually happened in this chapter. I’m holding out hope for either Charlotte or Sierra’s POV, or for a check-in with someone on the other side of the rift Hookwolf created. I’d like to get to know Battery more, for one thing.

I suppose it’s also possible we’ll follow a Traveler and get some more information on what’s going on with Noelle and/or on the Travelers’ tight-knit backstory, now that Hookwolf’s schism has forced the Travelers’ cooperation with the Undersiders into the spotlight and Noelle has actually been seen.

Thank you, Pastwell.

So yeah! Let’s just jump right in and see if any of my suggestions come to pass!

End of Interlude 12a

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

Apart from Cherish’s Interlude, we’ve only really seen the Slaughterhouse Nine from the outside before, and mostly isolated from each other. This chapter was exactly what we needed: A chance to see them all together, from inside the group, and flesh out each of them and how they interact with each other.

The chapter went further to do that than by just showing them acting as a group, too. We also got Jack Slash’s insights into the motivations and vulnerabilities of each member, in the form of carrots and sticks, as well as some of the less obvious relationship dynamics in the team, such as Siberian’s motherly (possibly romantic, as skeevy as that is, but I said I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt and that’s what she shall receive) affection for Bonesaw. I love that. 🙂

Oh, and the Merchants are pretty much fucked now. That happened too. Turns out the answer to “Will Skidmark blend?” is yes.

Next chapter… hehe. So before I started writing this post, I peeked at the next chapter link to confirm that the two Interludes of this Arc were in a row without any surprise regular chapters sneaking in between them (though I didn’t think that would be the case), and I found out that apparently the other Interlude is called Interlude 12½. Looks like Wildbow still hadn’t quite figured out how to deal with these multi-Interludes consistently. :p

Honestly, it makes it feel like Interlude 12½ was an afterthought, like, “Hey, maybe I should have a second Interlude here, but I already named the first one without a letter…” I kind of doubt that’s the case, since it seems like Wildbow writes his chapters well in advance, but that’s the vibe that numbering gives me.

Anyway, my predictions for next time are pretty much the same as for this one, though obviously without the one that actually happened in this chapter. I’m holding out hope for either Charlotte or Sierra’s POV, or for a check-in with someone on the other side of the rift Hookwolf created. I’d like to get to know Battery more, for one thing.

I suppose it’s also possible we’ll follow a Traveler and get some more information on what’s going on with Noelle and/or on the Travelers’ tight-knit backstory, now that Hookwolf’s schism has forced the Travelers’ cooperation with the Undersiders into the spotlight and Noelle has actually been seen.

So yeah! Good chapter, and I suspect the next one will be quite interesting as well. See you then!

Interlude 12(a)

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

Hello, and welcome to Whose Liveblog Is It Anyway, where everything’s made up and the points don’t matter!

So! I think we’re done with Taylor’s POV for the Arc, unless there are some more chapters between this and the other Interlude. It’s time to see what someone else is up to!

I would like to get an Interlude from the perspective of Sierra or Charlotte, to help flesh out their characters more and show a bit of how they feel about being in Skitter’s employ from their own perspective. Considering there are two Interludes here, maybe I’ll even get both?

Alternatively, perhaps we’re checking in on a couple of the other groups, like for example the PRT (ideally via Battery), or the Slaughterhouse Nine? Among the latter, only Cherish has had an Interlude from her own POV, so all the other members are still available.

Whatever the case, I’m sure it’s going to be interesting. Let’s jump right in and see what we’ve got!

End of Plague 12.8

Krixwell JaceLeave a comment

This was a better chapter than I expected, honestly.

I was expecting a lot more moping than we got, and I think it’s a good thing that I was wrong. There’s only so much wallowing in guilt we can get before it gets stale.

The chapter still noticeably touched on the issue of Taylor not viewing the Mannequin fight as a success and more heavily on the subject of Dinah, but in a better way. Skitter finally opened up about the latter to someone whose perspective might help her to deal with this more healthily if she’ll just listen to him, and she’s seeing positive consequences of the former.

Regarding the latter, I think it’s nice to see that the swarm is growing now. I really like that Wildbow brought in some former ABB members for this, and Taylor’s plan to make the territory more livable for more people is very good.

Next chapter… is Interlude 12. That was the end of the Arc! As usual with Interludes, it’s very difficult for me to speculate on what we’ll be getting, but I’m hoping for either Sierra or Charlotte’s perspective.

So yeah! See you soon!