3314 Almost Said
on February 26, 2020
Chapter: The Boy
Characters: Eldwig Steward, Fasi, Flannet Hunter, Louis Steward the Younger, Naroasa, Philippa Steward
Location: Greyfort
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He is not very nice.
or smart.
He might as well tattoo "I will betray you to the Rannites ASAP" on his forehead.
I’m confused by Flannet’s threat, though. Is Philippa getting the window suite a good thing for her husband? A bad thing? Is he meant to care one way or the other?
Is Flannet subtly implying that Philippa might defenestrate the jerk?
*Widow*, not window.
Flannet is implying something worse than defenestration.
…no, old age is having no impact at all on my eyes. Why do you ask?
(Thanks for clearing that up for me!)
Widow, not Window. Flannet was going to kill him.
But… a window in the Widow suite would be good. Just saying.
Mucat, welcome to the club. And you elf kids, get off my lawn! Yeah, the ones 63 years old and younger! 😉
Wait, why are the DMs getting locked up again?
Because they’re still technically prisoners who’ve demonstrated in the past their willingness to betray their allies in the interests of their own self preservation. They can’t be trusted.
If the ladies were gonna betray Flannet, they would have done so in the field. Whether that guard knows it or not, he’s just the bellhop escorting them to their favorite room in the castle.
Thank you, figured they had proven themselves in the field
Guessing they need an official Royal Pardon
They feel better being in the dungeon anyway.
Because they think it’s fun?
To be honest they probably feel more at home in the dungeon than in a room in the castle 😛
Can this guy go one strip without being a bigger jerk?
Survey says…. NO!
Okay, dude is heartless and selfish, arrogant, rude, definitely heteronormative and potentially homophobic.
…just what do you plan to do with the guy, Mr. Morris?
Then again, I guess the arc is titled "The Boy", so I suppose he’s not the point of all this.
"heartless and selfish, arrogant, rude, definitely heteronormative and potentially homophobic"
one of those is not like the others.
The guy is definitely a jerk though, not particularly bright either.
I get that he is strongly portraiture to be a disliked figure, as that seems to be the role of the character, but please stop using made up words like “heteronormative”. It is exclusively used by bigoted people who like to blame straight (usually white) men for everything that has happened. Imaginary or not. You are kind of undermining your argument with that.
I’m sorry, I honestly wasn’t aware of that use (and that it would trigger such a strong reaction). At my university, we use it in a context not of blame shifting but to refer to outdated attitudes to gender roles and relationships. What I meant wasn’t "he’s at fault for everything that happened" but "he really needs to catch up to social norms in this time and age".
I’m sorry to say this, but the professors at your university is spreading misinformation. There is nothing wrong with gender roles, as long as this is the choice of the person. Any university that claims that gender roles are always a bad thing are lying and spreading far left politics.
They conducted several studies that showed that boys and girls are naturally inclined towards gender roles. And many working women have stated that they’d rather have traditional roles, but are shamed into pursuing a career.
Ultimately it must be the choice of the person. And shaming people that support gender roles (unless they want to force it on others) is NOT the right way to go.
Remember, university is not the real world, and there is a reason they are openly mocked:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=p8M2tg2RkIQ
Seriously? I mean, I don’t doubt that many parents, of either gender, would rather at least one of them could stay home to better care for the children and household. But I have never met a woman that said she was "shamed into pursuing a career". Most couples now days can’t afford to have either of them not working. People work because they need to, to pay the bills, and because the old norm of a single salary being able to support a family is very much not the case for most people any longer. While I am sure a few people exist that were shamed into careers by their families, etc, if a woman has a career, it is generally because either she wants one, or she can’t afford not to be working.
I have a university degree, and I really don’t understand this trend to mock education and science. It is positively dangerous. Is science always right? Of course not, and any decent scientist will freely admit that. You always have to adjust theory when new discoveries and data come in on a subject.
Do some words, in certain more insular communities, take on different meanings or connotations from the standard dictionary definitions? Are new words, without existing dictionary definitions made up? Yep, definitely. That is how linguistic drift happens. Blaming people for being exposed to a different connotation for a word then the one you are familiar with is counter productive and just… a bit silly. It doesn’t hurt to point out the other connotation, just refrain from casting blame or deriding a certain social group for it.
With all respect, Mr. de Jong, to state a word is used "exclusively" for one purpose is a powerful claim, and one that can be demolished by a single counterexample. So let me venture to give that counterexample: I’m familiar with the word "heteronormative", but I’ve never heard it used as you describe, to bludgeon people for things that aren’t their fault. Or hell, even to bludgeon people for things that ARE their fault; for that, wouldn’t you be more likely to call them homophobic, or just a bigot?
"Heteronormative," as I’ve always understood it, would carry very little sting if directed at an individual person. It’s all about societal assumptions that straight relationships are the expected and "normal" ones, rather than about a person harboring directly hateful views.
Again, I’m not denying that you may have heard the word misused as a blunt instrument to silence dissent. But to claim that it’s "exclusively" used that way is simply and empirically false and is — to borrow a phrase — undermining your argument.
On a lighter note, warm regards to Slissy and company, and thanks for loaning them to Rich for YAFGC. They’re great fun, and I can’t wait for more of their shenanigans. 🙂
Almost every use of "heteronormative" I’ve ever seen was used in the manner described by Niels. The only difference is whether it is done so bluntly or thinly veiled.
On a sidenote… straight relationships are the norm, therefore they are the expected and "normal" ones. It’s not a societal thing. It’s like expecting a "normal" person to not be quadraplegic. Simply a fact of life (and it means some of us can claim we’re not "normal" people).
…and since you said "almost" rather than "exclusively", I can’t even say your statement is provably false. Just that it differs sharply with my own experience of hearing the word used in completely different ways than you describe, and almost never as an insult. (Again, if one were casting about for an insult, there are better and more direct words out there!)
That whole heteronormative is only used by bigoted people argument is really funny when I’ve only seen the word heteronormative used by racist homophobic guys who don’t want to be labeled as such in mixed company. (idiots at a gay bar- the bouncer was unimpressed)
Heteronormative is not a made up word.
Heteronormativity is the belief that heterosexuality, predicated on the gender binary, is the norm or default sexual orientation. It assumes that sexual and marital relations are most fitting between people of opposite sex.
That’s what it actually means.
Language use and its potential subtext aside, I believe we’re in agreement here that our issue with Eldwig (among, perhaps, other issues with Eldwig) lies in his strongly implied objection to Lucas and Cadugan’s (same-sex) relationship.
His immediate contextualization of the marriage as social-standing-centric stratagem was also quite telling, wasn’t it? "Making this match work out" is quite charged phrasing, dripping with insinuation just beneath the surface, isn’t it?
Rich’s economy of word can be downright inspiring, says this fellow unable to answer a yes-or-no question without a few pages of stage-setting contextual exposition. I’m impressed by just how revealing a vantage point into Eldwig we’ve received, in such economical comic real estate.
Yeah, that’s what had me wondering. We got an impressive insight into the character of Eldwig – but barely anything about his son, aside from him being fiercely protective of his mom. But if I look at the arc title, I think that Eldwig is not supposed to be the central character.
We find stuff out about him by proxy, for now. I’m guessing the kid likes his mother more. Understandable.
I think from the way Philippa saves her husband – even if he cannot admit to it, shows that even with all his flaws, she still loves him. I don’t believe it is just a kind of marital duty. Of course, it could be some kind of Stockholm syndrome. From the example of my parents, it took quite a bit before my mother left my father in spite of everything. My father is a totally different kind of asshole from Eldwig, still an asshole though.
hmm. Interesting take- I took it as she wants to return hospitality/make the stay pleasant/say thank you/not get kicked out. That’s one aspect I enjoy about the comments: the varied perspectives 🙂
Flannet’s really 1 tough milf.
How did that guy avoid staying single? o_O
Arranged marriages can be miserable for any and all parties involved.
They don’t need to be arranged to be miserable, but that’s a very fair possibility given the exposition we have been subjected too as dissected by @Rancourt.
I’d guess : money
Should’ve left his loser ass to the Rannites.
They’d probably recruit him, given his attitude.
The most damning thing he did — trying to sell the others to the Rannites to save his own hide — Flannet might not know about, though her drivers do.
What Flannet saw on the cart makes Mr. Steward a coward with no regard for anyone but himself…terrible things to be, but not actual crimes. The deal he tried to cut with the Rannites makes him a slave trader, and for that he deserves a dungeon cell or a headsman’s block.
hey buddy, that Duke has all the authority to throw you in the dungeon. Follow his mother-in-law’s advice and keep your mouth shut.
That Duke has the authority to cut him down to size… literally
That Duke isn’t there, and I suspect they left instructions for Flannet to be in charge once she got back.
Owen, I think hope you and the rest of the deceased Barons give Eldwig the welcome he’s earned and deserves.
Lucas, I hope you’ll welcome Eldwig with a big, toothy smile. A big, toothy Werewolf smile.
Cadugan, you could show Eldwig your archery skills by shooting an apple off his head while you’re wearing a blindfold.
Nah, I think Flannet is more than enough to handle him. I mean, look at her children. They are all smart, brave, though, and quite capable of taking care of themsleves, proven by many occasions. If you look at their fathers, its quite clear, they inherited/learned these things from her. I think that tells a lot about Flannet, even without knowing much about her. Now add her charisma to it… I guess you get the picture. 🙂
I meant tough, not though… Obviously…
THAT bard, oh I didn’t mean to imply Flannet couldn’t handle Eldwig, just saying that Owen and the Barons should have some fun, too.
The Ghosts of Greyfort: "New Arrival!"
Ugh, that kinda suggests that Eldwig will divorce his wife and try to marry Flannet because the ghosts want to see the jerk burn. And I hope Rich isn’t going to use that.
I suspect this walking pile of prejudices will get a more fitting comeuppance, hopefully a nonfatal one. If anything, the world of YAFG is one where karma is real, where protagonists may suffer but we get to see them rewarded or punished in the end.
Oh it, did the guards know that Flannet took those girls out with her? Maybe the guards thought they had escaped and Flannet managed to track them down and re-capture them
Tney know. Flannet is standing four meters from the guards as they take the DMs back into custody; someone would say something if it were a wacky misunderstanding.
Besides, given the organizational skills it takes to run a castle, do you really think Flannet would forget to tell the guards she was taking the DMs with her, and leave them to search frantically for "escaped prisoners" who’d gone missing from their cells?
Was just surprised Flannet allowed it to happen is all
That she allowed the ladies an honor guard — complete with sharp pointy sticks — to escort them back to their favorite room in the castle?
Hey, they did a great job out there; they EARNED it!
They even get to wave both hands high as they go 😀
And isn’t that nice of that guard to scratch that itch in the middle of their backs 🙂
I’m not sure how someone with as little sense of courtesy and diplomacy managed to, allegedly, get a job at a royal court. But perhaps the King of Lanly has a prize Otyugh collection and needed a caretaker for them?
Or, King Lanly never met Eldwig before, and hid last employer recommended him just to get rid of him
> I’m not sure how someone with as little sense of courtesy and diplomacy managed to, allegedly, get a job at a royal court.
I don’t know if this was just a setup for your punchline (which was AWESOME), but if it was genuine, then I want to know where you work, so I can recommend it to people I know.
t!
Being unpleasant to the peasantry was usually enough to get your foot in the door of a lot of Royal Courts.
Yes, Eldwig seems to be extremely well qualified for that poo-sistion.
ding!
Brings a whole new meaning to Privy Council.
(And yes, I know what a privy council is)
If they have a position for, pain in the arse, I think he qualifies with full colours 🙂
I love the two of them giving each other the ol’ stinkeye in the final panel.
t!
Problem is: you _know_ he will cause trouble, hopefully, for the good guys, he will go to the dungeon first and attempt to ‘recruit’ the DMs
If it were just a question of their having been the bad guys up until five minutes ago that might be one thing. The fact that they were the bad guys up until five minutes ago *and* have lethal weapons permanently attached to themselves probably tends to swing the balance of presumption against them.
I wonder if Charles is going to be friends with Louis while they’re at Castle Greyfort? They seem like a good match.
And will we get to meet Louis Steward the Elder?
Well, the boy is old enough for fostering, and I’m sure his mother run’s an excellent estate regardless of her husband.
Some nice observational artwork there, on the way a pompous ass walks 😀
I feel like this willful young man and cads brother are going to get up to the kind of chaos only two children with nothing holding them back can get jnto
Something you said had me wondering: what’s the difference between ‘wilful’ and ‘strong willed’?
When applied to a person (rather than, for example, "a willful act", which just means intentional) ‘willful’ implies a level of stubbornness and obstinacy not present in ‘strong-willed’.
A strong-willed person knows when to stand their ground and does so; a willful person wastes energy standing their ground over trivia. Which is not at all unusual for a young person. If all goes well, willful kids grow into strong-willed adults.
(Oh, and also, "wilful" and "willful" mean exactly the same thing. "Wilful" was once the most common spelling; now it’s kind of unusual but still correct.)
Did a quick check because ‘willful’ has a red line under it, and wanted to confirm the meanings
To me, Louis is more ‘strong willed’ than ‘wilful’
Keep talking, buddy. Let’s see whether you can fumble five Diplomacy checks in a row… I believe in you!