Grrl Power VII: Let Me Explain For The Next Thirty Comics!

[Traab]

Figured we should start the new thread and this idea seemed to trigger a few likes. It seems apt considering we are getting EVEN MORE EXPLAINING coming up!

[lord_khaine]

it is kinda fitting. We have had a -lot- of explaining done. And are about to get more xD

[Shining Wrath]

Seriously, Deus? A faux-lightning strike for dramatic effect?

[Radar]

Seriously, Deus? A faux-lightning strike for dramatic effect?

He did order that specific device quite a while ago, so why wouldn't he use it given an opportunity?

[Traab]

Seriously, Deus? A faux-lightning strike for dramatic effect?

Oh please, we already knew deus is such a ham jewish people go to hell for shaking his hand. Honestly, this explains a lot. Its similar to the flash and how he lives in a world of statues. If he really is some sort of mega ultra ascended genius who is smart enough to do stuff like this while also smart enough to hide it, he must be absurdly BORED a lot of the time and have to come up with his own entertainment. Hence trolling people, his bring the thunder special effects, etc. He lives for these moments when people finally get what he is going after. Its probably a tough choice between this and confetti effects alongside "You finally got it!" banners. But he felt that was less cool so stuck with thunder.

[lord_khaine]

Yeah as weird as it sounds. This actually makes Deus more.. realistic? for lack of a better word.
All he has done. All he has accomplished. Its suddenly a lot more believeable now its revealed he is a metahuman.

And yes, it does also explain all the wacky hijinx. Quite possibly Deus is one of the most bored people on the planet.
Hence setting impossible goals for himself. Like building a global superpower from scratch. Or scoring Max.

[Traab]

Yeah as weird as it sounds. This actually makes Deus more.. realistic? for lack of a better word.
All he has done. All he has accomplished. Its suddenly a lot more believeable now its revealed he is a metahuman.

And yes, it does also explain all the wacky hijinx. Quite possibly Deus is one of the most bored people on the planet.
Hence setting impossible goals for himself. Like building a global superpower from scratch. Or scoring Max.

I think its less that its realistic and more that it provides a recognizable motivation for him. Up till now we honestly havent heard much about why he is doing this stuff aside from his likely trollish red herrings. So he came off as oddly lol random while also seeming to be serious.

[halfeye]

Quite possibly Deus is one of the most bored people on the planet.

I was bored once, lasted two whole weeks, then I got bored of being bored and it went away. It hasn't come back in 50 years.

[Kantaki]

I just absolutely adore Deus face here.
It's so wonderfully silly.

Also, probably the only reason he looked away from Maxima is that he knew he'd loose his poker face.

[Traab]

I just absolutely adore Deus face here.
It's so wonderfully silly.

Also, probably the only reason he looked away from Maxima is that he knew he'd loose his poker face.

You could just tell he has been WAITING for this moment. Like, he has been sitting on this reveal for who knows how long, just setting up the perfect opportunity, refusing to take the instant gratification of just saying it, and holding back with obvious deflections and such until he could do it right.

[lord_khaine]

I think its less that its realistic and more that it provides a recognizable motivation for him. Up till now we honestly havent heard much about why he is doing this stuff aside from his likely trollish red herrings. So he came off as oddly lol random while also seeming to be serious.

Well. Being rich could make you bored. Certainly a lot of rich people are excentric.
But this explains better why he is able to pull off all of this.

Its much less author fiat that lets him accomplish what he does.
And more that he is several steps ahead of everyone else.
certainly explains his wealth.

[Shining Wrath]

I have to agree, a Super whose power was intelligence would be running rings around the rest of us, seeing connections we couldn't see, inventing things we couldn't imagine, and probably making as much money as they cared to make.

And possibly trying to take over the world because intelligence = wisdom, from their perspective, just not any D&D player's.

[Dragonus45]

We are wandering back into a monologue I rather like here, talking about how intelligence is a really fuzzy concept and is more then just pure good at maths stuff.

[Radar]

We are wandering back into a monologue I rather like here, talking about how intelligence is a really fuzzy concept and is more then just pure good at maths stuff.

And that point about superpowers always coming with a standard safety package is also important. Almost everyone understands that point, when it comes to physical powers, but there is no reason it should not apply to any other superpower. So it is indeed logical that super intelligence would be a well rounded set of mental enhancements so that you do not go insane or something.

A real world example of getting something that looks like a superpower, is a medical condition of absolutely perfect memory - nothing is ever forgotten. Seems great? Think again...

[TeChameleon]

And that point about superpowers always coming with a standard safety package is also important. Almost everyone understands that point, when it comes to physical powers, but there is no reason it should not apply to any other superpower. So it is indeed logical that super intelligence would be a well rounded set of mental enhancements so that you do not go insane or something.

A real world example of getting something that looks like a superpower, is a medical condition of absolutely perfect memory - nothing is ever forgotten. Seems great? Think again...

That last bit reminds me a little of the island near(-ish) Narnia 'where dreams come true'. Sounds great, until you stop and realize that it's dreams, not daydreams. Ever have a really bad nightmare?

There is a certain logic to superpowers coming with built-in safeguards; I'm not sure I buy that super-intelligence comes with inherent benevolence, though. Super-intelligence coming with a safeguard that makes it so you don't end up dribbling in a straightjacket muttering 'it's full of stars!' or whatever, sure. A safeguard that keeps you from turning half the world into a mirror of hell so that the area you live is tailored to your exact desires and merest whim? Seems less likely.

[Dragonus45]

That last bit reminds me a little of the island near(-ish) Narnia 'where dreams come true'. Sounds great, until you stop and realize that it's dreams, not daydreams. Ever have a really bad nightmare?

There is a certain logic to superpowers coming with built-in safeguards; I'm not sure I buy that super-intelligence comes with inherent benevolence, though. Super-intelligence coming with a safeguard that makes it so you don't end up dribbling in a straightjacket muttering 'it's full of stars!' or whatever, sure. A safeguard that keeps you from turning half the world into a mirror of hell so that the area you live is tailored to your exact desires and merest whim? Seems less likely.

I don't buy it either, but it seems like the kind of argument an amoral super intelligence might make to justify it's bull****.

[Mechalich]

There is a certain logic to superpowers coming with built-in safeguards; I'm not sure I buy that super-intelligence comes with inherent benevolence, though. Super-intelligence coming with a safeguard that makes it so you don't end up dribbling in a straightjacket muttering 'it's full of stars!' or whatever, sure. A safeguard that keeps you from turning half the world into a mirror of hell so that the area you live is tailored to your exact desires and merest whim? Seems less likely.

Pretty sure Deus is claiming that he is benevolent, not that benevolence is attached to super-intelligence. His broader point seems to be that the safeguards attached to super-intelligence seem to protect against most of the common forms of extreme behavior commonly displayed by similarly empowered characters in other comics, with the Lex Luthor example being particularly pertinent (since Deus basically is Lex, with better hair, and Maxima is basically Superman, also with better hair). Lex regularly displays a particular fanaticism with regards to Superman in that he is beset by a desire to defeat Superman that is both futile and unnecessary. Lex can get almost everything he wants without confronting Superman, but rarely if ever goes that route.

There's also an interesting bit here in that Deus' rather extreme pursuit of sexual conquests could be drawn out of this protective mechanism. Because his universe's version of Superman is an extremely attractive woman, he can 'conquer' her in bed rather than via some physical confrontation or even by conquering the world. Yes this is patronizing as it gets, but it is less likely to have a lethal outcome.

[lord_khaine]

A safeguard that keeps you from turning half the world into a mirror of hell so that the area you live is tailored to your exact desires and merest whim? Seems less likely.

I think that between the lines, the argument against that is that a true super intelligence, not just a mathemathic genius like Lex Luther, would come with to much emotional intelligence and empathy to ignore that.
You know the old saying about a murder being a tragedy. A million deaths being statistics. Well its a problem for an intelligence big enough to comprehend that statistic as a million seperate murders.
The actions of Deus has always been debated. But there is room for the posibillity that his motives are indeed benevolent. And that he is working on improving living conditions in the most crappy part of the world.

There's also an interesting bit here in that Deus' rather extreme pursuit of sexual conquests could be drawn out of this protective mechanism. Because his universe's version of Superman is an extremely attractive woman, he can 'conquer' her in bed rather than via some physical confrontation or even by conquering the world. Yes this is patronizing as it gets, but it is less likely to have a lethal outcome.

I honestly just think this is because he is bored. And because he can.

[halfeye]

I honestly just think this is because he is bored. And because he can.

Boredom is not having anything to think about. It happens more to unintelligent people than clever ones.

[Radar]

Boredom is not having anything to think about. It happens more to unintelligent people than clever ones.

Or in other words, intelligent people will always find something interesting to do. This conquest book Deus keeps is probably just one of many things he does as a hobby/challenge to keep himself amused between working on the big projects. His penchant for dramatic ambience is also probably just to amuse himself. I kind of wonder if he has the same problem interacting with other people as the Holmes brothers (I cannot find the bit right after that with Mycroft commenting about living in a world of goldfish).

[lord_khaine]

Boredom is not having anything to think about. It happens more to unintelligent people than clever ones.

I doubt the validity of your sources on this.

And generally i think the consent is it takes more to stimulate a bright mind.
Thats also often seen in schools. Its often the smart kids who are bored because they dont find a challenge in the lessons.

[Traab]

Pretty sure Deus is claiming that he is benevolent, not that benevolence is attached to super-intelligence. His broader point seems to be that the safeguards attached to super-intelligence seem to protect against most of the common forms of extreme behavior commonly displayed by similarly empowered characters in other comics, with the Lex Luthor example being particularly pertinent (since Deus basically is Lex, with better hair, and Maxima is basically Superman, also with better hair). Lex regularly displays a particular fanaticism with regards to Superman in that he is beset by a desire to defeat Superman that is both futile and unnecessary. Lex can get almost everything he wants without confronting Superman, but rarely if ever goes that route.

There's also an interesting bit here in that Deus' rather extreme pursuit of sexual conquests could be drawn out of this protective mechanism. Because his universe's version of Superman is an extremely attractive woman, he can 'conquer' her in bed rather than via some physical confrontation or even by conquering the world. Yes this is patronizing as it gets, but it is less likely to have a lethal outcome.

Yeah, a lot of the lex stuff never made sense. Its like, the dude is (often) a super genius, and instead of picking fights from HIS position of strength, he keeps getting into punching matches with superman, and punching matches are where superman does a really good job at winning. You dont try to out think batman, you dont try to outpunch superman. Reverse the two and you might end up with better results. One of lex's most common complaints is that superman invalidates human accomplishment because he is this big ultimate untouchable alien floating above them, but instead of making his own human legacy where he is pasteur, salk, and rockefeller combined with stephen hawking, he would rather wield a glowing green battle axe and get knocked out by a living god who has to figure out the narrow window between "Able to defeat robot suit" and "Liquify squishy human" as the only reason the fight lasts longer than three seconds.

As for deus and maxima, I think its fairly clear that he has no negative feelings towards her at all. I DO think he is low key trying to seduce her, but I think he also just enjoys messing with her more. He is mr mxyzsptlyk without the omnipotent abilities. He probably considers the seduction attempt a fun long term challenge rather than a way to "conquer" her.

[halfeye]

As for deus and maxima, ... He probably considers the seduction attempt a fun long term challenge rather than a way to "conquer" her.

He seduces females a lot, he made Harem lose control, he admitted to Scoina while (eventually successfully) chatting her up that he'd been with a draguar (spelt?). It may be long term and fun, but he's not disinterested.

[lord_khaine]

Harem is likely the one case that might have had a secondary purpose.
Seeing as she is spying on her.
And so i cant see banging her as making it harder to distract or divert her.

[Mechalich]

He seduces females a lot, he made Harem lose control, he admitted to Scoina while (eventually successfully) chatting her up that he'd been with a draguar (spelt?). It may be long term and fun, but he's not disinterested.

He has a whole little black book full of all the different types of women he's successfully gone to bed with. Arguably he's collecting them kind of like Pokemon. It's at least somewhat understandable, he presumably finished going through however many of Earth's most beautiful women sometime before the comic began. Maxima is a unique being (super+alien goo) in addition to her beauty, which no doubt pique's Deus' interest. He's also been unable to close the deal so far, which appears to be rare for him, and Maxima's power and values are such that she's not vulnerable to his usual blandishments.

On the other side of it, Deus is presumably very aware that Maxima is on a very short list of people of 'actually capable of killing me outright' and he wants to avoid or at least put off that confrontation for as long as possible. So there's clearly mixed motives.

[lord_khaine]

I would argue that the main issue is Max's fanatic work ethic and slightly cynic personality.
Less so her powers as Deus has banged more than one Super.

Also uncertain regarding the bit about being able to kill Deus outright.
As far as we know any nut with a gun can do that. Its why Deus is carefull to keep the conflict in the area where he has superiosity.
The realm of words and oppinions. Instead of getting a blue battlesuit to duke it out with Max xD

[Traab]

He seduces females a lot, he made Harem lose control, he admitted to Scoina while (eventually successfully) chatting her up that he'd been with a draguar (spelt?). It may be long term and fun, but he's not disinterested.

Exactly. Like I said, its not some obsession with him like lex killing superman, its just a fun challenge he is giving his best go at to see if he can. Someone super intelligent with the wisdom score to go along with it likely has a really good shot at chatting up most women because he knows what they want and how to give it to them. He can tell who is interested, who could be interested with the right setup, and who flat out isnt interested and wont be. I bet he pegs maxima as on the far side of could be interested with the right setup and is thus an interesting challenge.

[Shining Wrath]

I think Deus is arguing in circles. Since he's super-intelligent, and thinks of himself as benevolent, ergo, super-intelligence implies benevolence, at least in his case, or so he believes. The problem is that a lot of bad people think of themselves as good people, including some quite clever ones. Arsenic and Old Lace, anyone?

[sihnfahl]

He seduces females a lot, he made Harem lose control, he admitted to Scoina while (eventually successfully) chatting her up that he'd been with a draguar (spelt?). It may be long term and fun, but he's not disinterested.

Draugr. He was probably referencing Skyrim.

Seeing as she is spying on her.

I'm leaning more towards gossipy than spying. She's not really giving up any real info, IIRC.

As far as we know any nut with a gun can do that. Its why Deus is carefull to keep the conflict in the area where he has superiosity.

Or a super watching over him to keep him from being hurt. Cause, you know, he DOES go out now and then.

I think Deus is arguing in circles. Since he's super-intelligent, and thinks of himself as benevolent, ergo, super-intelligence implies benevolence, at least in his case, or so he believes. The problem is that a lot of bad people think of themselves as good people, including some quite clever ones. Arsenic and Old Lace, anyone?

I don't think he sees himself as particularly benevolent, just a better option than most. I mean, he still uses bribery, blackmail, murder, etc, to get his aims finished. But I'm guessing it's the lesser evil, in his eyes, than letting the folks he targets run amok.

It's also a possible reason why he's raising Galtyn. Smart workers mean he can get tech workers. Which means companies he controls, in a country he effectively controls, in sole possession of making the technology he wants to market, with a lower risk of any corporate espionage.

[lord_khaine]

Hmm.. no Deus newer makes the argument that Super Intelligence should or would indicate benevolence.
He argues that a super intelligent being would be a terrifying thing. Unless said being were benevolent.