The Legacy of Dominic Deegan II: Don't Be Clothed-Minded!

[Vinyadan]

I couldn't help but think of yelling bird

[Gez]

2022 March 9: https://www.dominic-deegan.com/comic/march-9-2022/
2021 December 17: https://www.dominic-deegan.com/comic/december-17-2021/

They're the same page. They're caught in a time loop.

[Celestia]

Why is the explanation always "This magic is not inherently evil. Bad Person twisted it and made it evil."? I want to see a story where the explanation is "Magic is a tool. It can be used for good or evil, but magic, itself, is neither."

Also, why is Snout so freaked out about this one spell that simply seeing it triggered a traumatic response? I'm not saying that's an unrealistic reaction; I just don't think it's earned. The scene of him getting attacked wasn't particularly more brutal or frightening than anything else that's happened to him throughout the story, so why is this one so special? Mookie is trying to force development where none has happened.

[Vinyadan]

Honestly, it's hard to tell. I don't know how these things work, and we don't know enough about Snout's world. Some sort of trauma response by reliving the time he was sent flying and then blacked out isn't too odd, although I believe it's the first time he has shown this sort of reaction, and it's another incoherent shift in narrative tone. To make myself clearer, he hasn't shown any carryover from when he entered the hole in the shack, or when he fought that deadly tree.

It is weird that he and the witch just stood there and watched, however. To me, it looks worse than banging a nymph instead of giving her a strongly worded letter. Maybe this will be touched upon, as it could be explained by Snout learning not to interfere after that time he was knocked out.

Arudak becoming a nationalist because he was insulted by a racist teacher and his circle while studying abroad does make sense, however. It could have been said in a less flowery way, but, for all we know, that could be how Arudak always talks (I know, I'm really making this up in my mind, it's just the usual inconsistency).

[Alcibiades]

Nothing in the last two pages needed to be said written, except maybe the relation between Mean Mage and Arudak.

The exposition word walls have actually gotten worse in this comic.

[Vinyadan]

Nothing in the last two pages needed to be said written, except maybe the relation between Mean Mage and Arudak.

The exposition word walls have actually gotten worse in this comic.

I wonder if Arudak is that talky because Snout cannot stop his speech, and that's why he chose him as a friend.

[Kantaki]

Nothing in the last two pages needed to be said written, except maybe the relation between Mean Mage and Arudak.

The exposition word walls have actually gotten worse in this comic.

I wonder if Arudak is that talky because Snout cannot stop his speech, and that's why he chose him as a friend.

Fun fact: Ink Witch is giving Snout the abridged version.
Arudak is actually even wordier.
And way ruder.

[Vinyadan]

Fun fact: Ink Witch is giving Snout the abridged version.
Arudak is actually even wordier.
And way ruder.

That would be a funny thing It would also be an interesting way to make use of Snout's handicap to show something surprising as he catches glimpses beyond the witch's translation layer.

[Kwatsu]

“How do we move forward?”

Even Snout’s picked up that his story’s going nowhere. And worse, it’s gotten stuck in this patronizing loop where everyone is constantly focused on his feelings. Can’t wait for him to be slightly inconvenienced by another ‘challenge’ so we can spend multiple pages watching him get a hug and a cookie and have all his friends smile creepily at him, because poor Snout felt bad for a moment.

[Gez]

* I should learn her name.

Yeah that's a common thread in Snout's Snoutical Snoutventures: women are nameless. There's Ink Witch, then Evil Ink Witch, then Weird Plant Woman, and now Lake Witch. On the other hand, the men, like Arudak and Rhannon Mhorgs and Daxetar Durnaks and Veth Hirkthi, they all have names.

Sure, there are named women, like Luna and Kazya, but they're not characters in the story, they're just bits of background lore. And okay, Kaianda did get a name eventually, and Ink Witch had some bull**** excuse about not telling her name, and I don't remember whether or not Arudak's angry rival has been given a name, but anyways. There's still a trend here. Men have names and are knowable. Snout gets to find out all about Arudak's backstory. Women are nameless and unknowable. The Ink Witch keeps herself a mystery. Lake Witch is also a mystery; she's there to help people along (and offer some sexual healing) but what are her motives for doing so? Snout can't figure it out.

So The Legacy of Dominic Deegan is presented as a story about solving a mystery. The mystery is supposed to be something about magic and divination and whatever stuff happened between the conclusion of Dominic Deegan, Oracle for Hire and this sequel story. But I think the real mystery in the story so far is: women. Snout's journey is one of a sheltered nerd living alone who is pushed to make friends and meet people, and so he's trying to understand the other sex. (And yeah, that's kind of sexist; but I didn't write the material.)

[Vinyadan]

The thing with the names definitely is weird: even the scholars at Arudak's place and the Sunflower immediately got a name. The three main women in this story instead are nameless, or got a name from Snout.

But I think it's also a problem about character development. In particular, Arudak is the only one with his story fleshed out. We know many of his current relations, we know his political and romantic history, we have an idea of his powers and abilities. We also know his conflicts (the jerk scholar, the ink witch, the karate master, the sucker puncher), and he is part of the story of Maltak, where the comic is currently set.

If we take Snout, we don't know anything about his background. We know he went to a library and had been horny before the story. That's all. Kayanda literally has no background. The lake woman keeps showing up, but isn't anything beyond a free service provider. And the same could be said about the Ink Witch, she provides translation and transportation, and the occasional accident*; her dealings with Other Ink Witch have yet to have any weight.

Ink Witch is actually reality bending because of how people seem to trust her, when she obstinately carries them in her jet, that already crashed twice and destroyed Snout's home.

[Kantaki]

New comic

No, Snout, don't follow her!
The secret is human mongrelfolk sacrifice!

On a second thought, hurry after her.

[Celestia]

And once again, Snout forgets to ask for the Lake Witch's name before getting naked with her. This had better not be a running "joke."

[Vinyadan]

And once again, Snout forgets to ask for the Lake Witch's name before getting naked with her. This had better not be a running "joke."

Maybe her name is Lesgenekkid?

On an unrelated note, I think Mookie simply forgot that, according to Ink Witch, the Chandak has such a thick accent, that the Witch found her hard to understand. But it would be a realistic detail, if she actually wrote standard "whatever they're talking" without signs of her accent because that's how she learnt its written form.

Thinking about it, given how DD relied on having numerous peoples, cultures, and languages, it's odd that I can't recall what they are talking. DD was a major donor to the library, so I assume Snout used to read Callanian? Now that I think about it, hand sign languages also are different based on the place you are, but Snout seems to bypass this problem by writing.

[Celestia]

Is it weird that the only question I have right now is why female Snout's chest hair doesn't continue to her boobs?

[Kantaki]

Because that would cover them up?
No point in pointless nudity if you then proceed to hide it.

...
I was joking.
Why do I feel like that's the actual thought process?

[Vinyadan]

Is it weird that the only question I have right now is why female Snout's chest hair doesn't continue to her boobs?

Cows are like that, too.

Actually, it wouldn't have hurt if female Snout had had breasts similar to udders. Weird, but recognisable, as Snout's snout.

One could also come up with something evolutionary, like "fewer parasites to bite the baby's face", although mongrelfolk is so varied in shape, it's hard to tell what drives them.

In the end, I do think it's to show that those are breasts, as they are the easiest way to show it's a female.

[Kornaki]

In the end, I do think it's to show that those are breasts, as they are the easiest way to show it's a female.

The lack of a giant dng is also a surprisingly good clue in this comic.


I actually stopped reading this a little while back, if she does have one of those please just don't tell me.

[Celestia]

Man, the story has really started to spiral at this point. This is, what, the fourth or fifth time Snout's been told that he's already on the path?

[Welf]

So, more anatomical details of Snout. Did we want to see that?

[Vinyadan]

So that's what that shining tower in the vision represented...

To be honest, I prefer this somewhat realistic silliness to the eerie nude snuggling. And at least Snout is now being driven by something (lust), about which he spends some lucid thoughts; which is something, given that we don't know that much of his personality.

[Celestia]

Him figuring this stuff out would be more impressive if he wasn't literally handed all of this information by other characters.

[Celestia]

Snout is going to sit around doing nothing and wait for the answers to drop into his lap? Wow. That is so different from his usual approach.

[Kantaki]

New comic

Time to wander around point- and aimlessly.
This time on purpose.

I guess it's some form of... "progress" really feels the wrong word here...

[Vinyadan]

New comic

Time to wander around point- and aimlessly.
This time on purpose.

I guess it's some form of... "progress" really feels the wrong word here...

In a normal story, this is where the character would feel stumped, go drink something outside, and, while sitting, see something remarkable on the square that coincidentally leads to a solution, or connect the dots through reasoning. Here instead it's just "jeez, the least I try, the better it is!" , and it's not like he was trying very hard earlier.

Snout reminds me a bit of Marten in QC, just drifting along, except Marten was well grounded in his setting and aspirations and the reader could easily reconstruct what was behind his choices. Snout isn't just lacking in grounding and characterization (he needs to be both a serious character and a caricature), but his story tries to be both slice of life (in an indulgent way) and quest driven.

At the moment, Arudak is probably the only well-rounded character. He has a past, an objective, something inside that hurts, and is well-connected to the setting, both in Maltak and outside. It's a bit hard to see the connection between his current personality and when he started out as the guy who robbed Snout, however.

[Silly Name]

In a normal story, this is where the character would feel stumped, go drink something outside, and, while sitting, see something remarkable on the square that coincidentally leads to a solution, or connect the dots through reasoning. Here instead it's just "jeez, the least I try, the better it is!" , and it's not like he was trying very hard earlier.

He has just begun to realise the universe will literally bend over to let him progress his "quest" by any means possible. He's reaching enlightenment! Soon enough he shall achieve CHIM!

[halfeye]

Enightenment via overeating? if that worked almost everybody would be enlightened.

[Vinyadan]

Lol... In spite of the lack of progress, I kind of admire the effort to flesh out the location. Now we know more about the local gastronomy than about Snout's life.

[Celestia]

Seriously, how many times are we going to get a page that just boils down to "Snout likes vegetables?" It doesn't add anything to the story and just wastes time with the same unfunny non-joke.

[Kwatsu]

Seriously, how many times are we going to get a page that just boils down to "Snout likes vegetables?" It doesn't add anything to the story and just wastes time with the same unfunny non-joke.

The vegetable jokes will continue until morale improves.