Final Quest #22

My issue, Lunakat, is that all the things you mention were presented as bad. What we see in the preview isn't, at least not yet. I have some hope that in full context it will be different.

But with the tone-deaf way Winnowill's imprisonment was laughed off and the Game Of Thrones-style elements brought in recently, it's not a big hope.

Lunacat that's an impressive list of bad stuff you typed down.

From what I remember, the humans killed a lot of wavedancers in the past, and they were pretty upset about that. So maybe it is in character for the wavedancers to be happy with the death of humans. Maybe they don't see humans as other beings, who are kind of like them. Maybe they just see them as dangerous predators they need to get rid of at all costs.

(I made another post about this but it was eaten by the forum monster, or maybe by my own computer...)

I agree with a lot of what you're saying, Lunakat, but Sifra and Manga pretty much said what I was about to say, that all of this stuff was presented as bad. The times we've seen any elf or group of them partaking in any 'bad' behavior, they were either seen as initially shady , or are immediately getting called out whether by narrative or another character. Granted, we don't really know at all how this thing with the Wavedancers is going to go down, all we've seen is this preview page which seems kind of awful. And strange! Surge taught most of the wave dancers to pretty much almost hate 'landers' , but his son was all about undoing that fear mongering among his folk. So it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for them to be massively regressing. Anyway, I hope it gets cleared up. Reef in swamp thing mode seems pretty violent in order to 'protect'. We get it, Reef has PTSD and has found a way to deal with his PTSD that looks 'badass'. But someone really needs to out a leash on him when he gets like this. I thought Korfay would do it but she seems in on the action. I dunno. I just don't.

PS - I don't care whether Timmain eats or not, I just feel her apology felt phony and very convenient in terms of timing. But then I've never liked Timmain, only liked her very, very early on, and I've also always liked her in wolf form. As some kind of goddess, no, never. She and the palace are the cement shoes of FQ as far as I'm concerned.

It makes a ton of sense for the Wavedancers to regress-- they just witnessed the Djun's men massacre the humans who lived by the sea- including that nice old man who made the korafaye doll... But I get your point about how things are presented. There does seem to be less thought out into the story this time than earlier books. I will bet you anything that Korafaye stages a rescue and it becomes a teachable moment for Reef and the rest.

Yeah- Why do the elves need Trolls in the Palace?

Sifra wrote:

Lunacat that's an impressive list of bad stuff you typed down.

Thanks! It was straight off the top of the old noggin!

Zadzi wrote:

But then I've never liked Timmain, only liked her very, very early on, and I've also always liked her in wolf form.

She's silent in wolf form!

Brrr.... can you imagine if she could send clearly in wolf form - I mean, apart from like those two or three times the plot demanded she could? If we had to listen to her new-agey sanctimonious pontificating all throughout the wolf years?

I don't think she says much at all, much less pontificates. The end of book 4 being an exception.

I checked the site and yes, I concur, Timmain looks very thin in comparison to all the others. I mean, she even looks out of proportion in that image with the trolls and Sunstream/Savah behind her.

Maybe Timmain is slowly dissolving herself like Door did.

Lunakat wrote:

I don't think she says much at all, much less pontificates. The end of book 4 being an exception.

She is cryptic and sanctimonious

Zadzi wrote:

I agree with a lot of what you're saying, Lunakat, but Sifra and Manga pretty much said what I was about to say, that all of this stuff was presented as bad. The times we've seen any elf or group of them partaking in any 'bad' behavior, they were either seen as initially shady , or are immediately getting called out whether by narrative or another character. Granted, we don't really know at all how this thing with the Wavedancers is going to go down, all we've seen is this preview page which seems kind of awful. And strange! Surge taught most of the wave dancers to pretty much almost hate 'landers' , but his son was all about undoing that fear mongering among his folk. So it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for them to be massively regressing. Anyway, I hope it gets cleared up. Reef in swamp thing mode seems pretty violent in order to 'protect'. We get it, Reef has PTSD and has found a way to deal with his PTSD that looks 'badass'. But someone really needs to out a leash on him when he gets like this. I thought Korfay would do it but she seems in on the action. I dunno. I just don't.

I think Korafay wants to help Reef, but she doesn't really know how. I got that impression in their earlier scenes, as well.

Wingthing and manga, you make me laugh so hard! Really this forum is more entertaining than the comics themselves.
Yes, Timmain is probably trying to dissolve like Door did, but she is not very good at it so it takes her a while longer.

Wow, Timmain's attempt at humble supplication sure comes off as insincere and manipulative. She "can't do without" servants, is that it? As Zadzi pointed out, the one troll we saw in Futurequest was serving Anahvi and M'ren drinks. So that's not, like, super promising as far as greater equality in elf-troll relations goes. Poor Eldest Troll, I bet he'll be back to mop and bucket duty within a year.

I'm also pretty confused why Maggoty would give any kind of a hoot about Timmy much less be moved to tears just having her existence acknowledged by her.

I think I know how to describe what the writing in these issues feels like to me. It's a write by number style, similar to paint by number. It takes time and effort to draw the outline of the picture, but then you follow a preset effortless pattern of colors to fill it out that requires no imagination to complete.

I figured the trolls would wind up going back to the palace, but there's no compelling reason on their end for why. They aren't called to the beautiful spiritual wonders of the palace, if anything it's just another jewel in their collection of pretty things and i could never see it being a home to them. The trolls are the opposites of the elves, while the elves look up and dream the trolls dig deep and find pleasure in the things they can touch and work with.

It's like Wendy's decided the elves are the top of the pinnacle of achievement in race and all other creatures should strive to be like them. So much for diversity.

I also feel like there's an underlying vibe portraying the elves who want to stay as being the ones who are wrong, especially when Brill here seems to come across as feeling guilty for possibly wanting to stay.

The main purpose of this issue was to show new looks (I don't think I liked any of them) and to serve the 'emotional punch' we all knew it was coming. A twist you see from a mile coming isn't exactly a twist.

I guess Timmain has now a built in morality function?

Oh, and sparkles, sparkles everywhere

It is frustrating with the three new babies we will NOT see grow up ( or get to know )  :-/

Spoiler:

@Blackbird: of course we are going to see them; that's what time-jumps are made for; probably already next issue

Whose are the 3 babies to come??? Oooo I want to know!!
Ok, there's Venka's, Cutter and Leetah's and... ?????????????????????
Oh yes, Skywise and Timmain's! Am I right?

I wonder if the final issue will be a "where are they now?" kind of thing...?


Regarding this one...

I liked it. It had some sad moments, some happy moments. In all, it had momentum and and the feeling of wrapping up the series that I guess this has all been headed for.

And... it looks like Skywise finally grew up.

Good for him.

Oh, man. I got turned around and thought it was coming out next week!

Lunakat wrote:

I wonder if the final issue will be a "where are they now?" kind of thing...?

Wasn't there rumor about an additional issue once? This would be a neat prospect for it.

Holy drukk! This ish was the funniest thing I've read in ages! The contrived death! The maudlin farewells! The ridiculous new character designs!  Thank you Pinis for brightening my day!

Lunakat wrote:

I liked it. It had some sad moments, some happy moments. In all, it had momentum and and the feeling of wrapping up the series that I guess this has all been headed for.

It's easy to join your view on it, Lunakat. Better worded than I would be able to.