Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

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CrimsonQuill086
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Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#1 Post by CrimsonQuill086 »

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By the masks, Detritus is not letting this project go without a fight! And honestly, seeing the piece of Trace peering out makes it more frightening...Nice Save with Flora, mind.

'C'mon, chaps, you can do it, Maren needs a hand!

:maren: :flora: :trace:

(This is my first time posting comic topic, so I shall see how this turns out.)
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trantor
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#2 Post by trantor »

Wow - now it comes to the creepy part.
Old Trace vs new Trace :shock:
This is going the hard way and Maren as price in the middle.

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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#3 Post by Bellhead »

Normal procedre for posting the comic has been followed, nicely done. :) But two pages in one month? We're getting spoiled...

We kinda figured Detritus was a way for Trace to clone himself, though imperfectly.. I wonder if Detritus could be convinced of his wrongdoing the same way Trace has been coming to terms with himself? A bit more emotion-based solution than we were expecting, but it would be pretty on-par..
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#4 Post by Kyrit »

So are Nibs and Sythe just going to keep awkwardly standing outside of this room? I know Sythe isn't really in the best fighting condition, but it's been bothering me that we haven't seen him even at least call out to Maren or anything. Even if the roar Sythe heard on page 1153 lines up as late as pg 1156 where we last saw a roar effect on the page that means Sythe could have been trying to do something to free Maren the entire time that Rose and Trace had their little heart to heart.

I get that this is Trace's problem to solve, but why even bother bringing Sythe into the picture as early as Tom did if he's not going to be a part of this?

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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#5 Post by Elemental Templar »

Ok I just have say this:

The panel of Detritus is one of the best done To Date !!!

it manages perfectly encapsulate the simultaneous horror and tragedy he represents:

The right side resembling Trace's actual face, with a single pleading eye showing the state of desperation to not fail the one he loves again: While the left side remains dark, and twisted while simultaneously breaking down; to show the lingering horror of the situation as well as the degradation of the psyche it represents. All above a an equally blackened and decaying torso to show the broken shambling man that Trace once was.

Honestly, I don't know how and/or if Tom can top something like this in terms of dramatic tension but it's reason's like this as to why I've stayed with this comic for so long.
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#6 Post by Technic[Bot] »

I think i have mentioned before but it is worth repeating
Tec wrote:I am glad the comic ended up as some sort of fantasy romantic comedy instead of a horror comic. I am sure Tom is capable of producing some really unsettling imagery and i am not sure i could stomach that.
Guess i was right all along

Also.... What is exactly Detritus... made of?
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#7 Post by Elemental Templar »

Technic[Bot] wrote: Sun Feb 20, 2022 10:03 pm I think i have mentioned before but it is worth repeating
Tec wrote:I am glad the comic ended up as some sort of fantasy romantic comedy instead of a horror comic. I am sure Tom is capable of producing some really unsettling imagery and i am not sure i could stomach that.
Guess i was right all along

Also.... What is exactly Detritus... made of?
Being that the definition of Detritus loosely means waste of any kind, I think he's either made entirely of Black Mana (which is a waste product itself resulting from over-harvesting mana & the subsequent dying earth), or he's a sort-of "homunculus" made using Trace's flesh or blood and sustained by Black Mana (since he was one of Trace's Failed experiments)
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#8 Post by tony1695 »

So, Detritus' face. Is it just me or is that skull a bit... not human? A bit too animal, perhaps lupine? Mayhaps an explanation for what was done to Rose's body after she passed and Trace bound her soul to the estate?
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#9 Post by Bellhead »

tony1695 wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 10:11 am So, Detritus' face. Is it just me or is that skull a bit... not human? A bit too animal, perhaps lupine? Mayhaps an explanation for what was done to Rose's body after she passed and Trace bound her soul to the estate?
Not a bad theory, but I don't think so. The appearance definitely doesn't seem quite human, but I don't think that and Rose's physical body or appearance are related to that. Rose is, after all, a wolf with the ability to turn human, not the other way around. It would make sense for her suspended animated physical body to be that of her natural form, whereas it seems that her physical appearance is something she can alter at will to some degree.

Also, now that I get a good look at it.. It seems that it does mimic Trace's face, if you look at the mirror side, just with decay and blood leaking from its eye socket..

But on another note, panel 3. I think that's the most prominent Trace's cowlick has been in several years. Change in art style, character design, or a callback to the character he used to be..?
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#10 Post by Kyrit »

tony1695 wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 10:11 am So, Detritus' face. Is it just me or is that skull a bit... not human? A bit too animal, perhaps lupine? Mayhaps an explanation for what was done to Rose's body after she passed and Trace bound her soul to the estate?
Rose's body is suspended above everyone via vines/wires. When Detritus first showed up he came in from behind Trace and Flora as they were looking up at Rose's body. Rose was definitely not used to make him.

I think it is more likely that we are seeing one of the Masks, given that one called Trace its warrior. We probably did not see a face before because the mask was whole, but now it's broken and we can see underneath thanks to Stoney's attack.

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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#11 Post by Tornir »

Kyrit wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 2:01 pm I think it is more likely that we are seeing one of the Masks, given that one called Trace its warrior. We probably did not see a face before because the mask was whole, but now it's broken and we can see underneath thanks to Stoney's attack.
I don't think the Masks are (directly) involved. Remember when Neutral's mask was damaged? That severely compromised their powers, but Detritus seems relatively unharmed.
Also, why would they continue roleplaying a magical revenant? Why not just come out and directly challenge Trace?

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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#12 Post by Bellhead »

Tornir wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 2:20 pm
Kyrit wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 2:01 pm I think it is more likely that we are seeing one of the Masks, given that one called Trace its warrior. We probably did not see a face before because the mask was whole, but now it's broken and we can see underneath thanks to Stoney's attack.
I don't think the Masks are (directly) involved. Remember when Neutral's mask was damaged? That severely compromised their powers, but Detritus seems relatively unharmed.
Also, why would they continue roleplaying a magical revenant? Why not just come out and directly challenge Trace?
Only a mask benefitting non-humans would bother to challenge Trace. The only reason Neutral even bothered, was because she erased his memories to halt his genocidal spree, since she couldn't outright kill him.

That said, roleplaying a mortal, or a creation thereof, is exactly the Masks' M-O. That's how they interact with people, since they can't really directly affect anything otherwise; they can only manipulate the world from the shadows, as Neutral did to allow Trace and Flora's child.

On the subject of Detritus, I'm quite certain it's not a mask, nor involved with one. It seems to just be a creation made of dark magic, as we've been assuming since we first saw it. It was clearly made in Dark Trace's image, and as such, would contain at least a portion of his warped, damaged and fragile psyche. Such a mindset is easily affected with new, emotional developments, when someone they know and/or trust tries to stop them, or when someone challenges their beliefs with substantiated evidence, most of which is happening right now. That's more than enough of an emotional blow to (at the very least) crack the façade of pure darkness Detritus had been portraying up to this point.
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#13 Post by Kyrit »

Bellhead wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 3:14 pm
Tornir wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 2:20 pm
Kyrit wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 2:01 pm I think it is more likely that we are seeing one of the Masks, given that one called Trace its warrior. We probably did not see a face before because the mask was whole, but now it's broken and we can see underneath thanks to Stoney's attack.
I don't think the Masks are (directly) involved. Remember when Neutral's mask was damaged? That severely compromised their powers, but Detritus seems relatively unharmed.
Also, why would they continue roleplaying a magical revenant? Why not just come out and directly challenge Trace?
Only a mask benefitting non-humans would bother to challenge Trace. The only reason Neutral even bothered, was because she erased his memories to halt his genocidal spree, since she couldn't outright kill him.

That said, roleplaying a mortal, or a creation thereof, is exactly the Masks' M-O. That's how they interact with people, since they can't really directly affect anything otherwise; they can only manipulate the world from the shadows, as Neutral did to allow Trace and Flora's child.

On the subject of Detritus, I'm quite certain it's not a mask, nor involved with one. It seems to just be a creation made of dark magic, as we've been assuming since we first saw it. It was clearly made in Dark Trace's image, and as such, would contain at least a portion of his warped, damaged and fragile psyche. Such a mindset is easily affected with new, emotional developments, when someone they know and/or trust tries to stop them, or when someone challenges their beliefs with substantiated evidence, most of which is happening right now. That's more than enough of an emotional blow to (at the very least) crack the façade of pure darkness Detritus had been portraying up to this point.
The human-siding mask lost their pawn (Trace) because of Neutral. What better new pawn than a copy of him? It's proven harder and harder to have Trace snap back to the genocidal monster that he was, but Detritus? His entire being is built on Trace's hatred of Keidren. He may not be whole, but I could certainly see a mask resorting to trying to replace good Trace with the monster he created in order to proceed with their original plans.

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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#14 Post by Bellhead »

Kyrit wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 10:03 pm
Bellhead wrote: snip
The human-siding mask lost their pawn (Trace) because of Neutral. What better new pawn than a copy of him? It's proven harder and harder to have Trace snap back to the genocidal monster that he was, but Detritus? His entire being is built on Trace's hatred of Keidren. He may not be whole, but I could certainly see a mask resorting to trying to replace good Trace with the monster he created in order to proceed with their original plans.
Valid point, but Detritus seems more concerned with resurrecting Saria than killing keidren. I also find it hard to believe that Trace would create this thing, and NOT keep it confined or restrained somehow. A dark magic entity, that can't leave, and is dead set on different goals? Doesn't sound like a good warrior for human kind.

After all, Trace watched a keidran kill Saria, and Trace went mad with grief. Detritus is just a copy, and it's hatred could never be as pure as Dark Trace's was, especially back in the early days.
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Re: Comic for February 20, 2022: Soul Extraction

#15 Post by Technic[Bot] »

Bellhead wrote: Tue Feb 22, 2022 2:53 am
Kyrit wrote: Mon Feb 21, 2022 10:03 pm
Bellhead wrote: snip
The human-siding mask lost their pawn (Trace) because of Neutral. What better new pawn than a copy of him? It's proven harder and harder to have Trace snap back to the genocidal monster that he was, but Detritus? His entire being is built on Trace's hatred of Keidren. He may not be whole, but I could certainly see a mask resorting to trying to replace good Trace with the monster he created in order to proceed with their original plans.
Valid point, but Detritus seems more concerned with resurrecting Saria than killing keidren. I also find it hard to believe that Trace would create this thing, and NOT keep it confined or restrained somehow. A dark magic entity, that can't leave, and is dead set on different goals? Doesn't sound like a good warrior for human kind.

After all, Trace watched a keidran kill Saria, and Trace went mad with grief. Detritus is just a copy, and it's hatred could never be as pure as Dark Trace's was, especially back in the early days.
Occasionally Tom lore bits when he draws his comic or side sketches. Which are then subsequently lost to time If i remember when he made this: he mentioned detritus was just a program whose only function is to resurrect saria, once finished he simply terminates and ceases to exists. Yet despite that, and me usually joking of detritus being a failed DIY alexa, his pain seems real and more complex than what a simply necro golem would be capable of.

Detritus was a back up plan B. Had everything went according to plan he would remain dormant and Maren would be already Saria at this point. Old Trace considered him a failure and given what we have seen we can conclude he is really not up to spec. Hence he used Rose for a better orchestrator. Also Trace is a terrible programmer....
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