OOTS #946 - The Discussion Thread

[MelTorefas]

Sweet mother of pearl. I did NOT see that coming. Durkon!

[HalfTangible]

....................

Whoa I...

Okay, that was friggen perfect.

[Dr.Gunsforhands]

...

...I feel like it would be a pain to have to reach down that far for her chalice all the time. Maybe she should make them carve her an end table or something.

[Ghost Nappa]

By the way, I totally called that Durkula wasn't the real Durkon, that he was a totally different person... a villain. So yeah, vindicated again.

Stake him!

Well that kills like a bajillion arguments at the same time.

And OH MY GOD that is some really fancy artwork.

Not gonna lie, I lost all of **** when I saw the final panels. It was like an evilgasm, but well, less evil.

[Shale]

What bothers me is that he got the accent right from the very moment he was freed. That's a ludicrously quick adaptation, although I figure Rich probably did it that way to keep the accurate predictions to a minimum.

He may have been studying up from the moment he was sired, but as unable to act during the thralldom as Durkon is now.

[Porthos]

*reads comic*

This is awesome!!!

*sees Durkon down below*

*gets sinking feeling*

*sees what's happening*

STAKE THE BLANKTY BLANK BLANK!!

NOOWWWWWWWWW!!!!!

===

OK, I'm better.

PS: Can Haz Stake Now, plz?

[ThePhantasm]

I'm not sure they were "giving him the benefit of the doubt" so much as having difficulty coming to terms with the notion that the real Durkon might be gone.

[Nilehus]

What bothers me is that he got the accent right from the very moment he was freed. That's a ludicrously quick adaptation, although I figure Rich probably did it that way to keep the accurate predictions to a minimum.

He did just stand there for a bit. That's probably when the demon(?) entered and subjugated him.

Durkon has always been one of my favorites, so this... This hurt to see.

[Scifne]

Poor Durkon!!!!!! It would be cool if he could try to make will saves.

[JennTora]

hm... So I was wrong.

Can't say it's my favorite plot twist...


but I'm nonetheless eager to see how it turns.

[Rakoa]

If that's how OOTS vampires work, though, anybody with a good Knowledge: Religion score should have known that wasn't Durkon. Of course, nobody on the Order has such a score, so.

It looks to me like this was a special scenario, mind you. Given Hel's comments on the matter and the fact that...well, that Hel is even here, directly (sort of)!

[The Kind Knido]

I thought Malack at first. But Hel mentioned that he was sired by "Nergal's Snake" (referring to Malack being his sire), so that wouldn't make sense. She did say this his spirit was birthed in her dark halls, though, which would indicate that this is an entirely new character, one we've never seen before.

Or Trigak was born in Hel's halls.

I really hope this means the crazy Trigak theory was correct, or at least for the most part.

As long as it's been Trigak this whole time. There really has been some hints for this.

[TRH]

Wait, Durkula really does worship Hel? So the crazy speculators were right? Again?

We're always right. Don't ever question us, you presumptuous fool.

[Jordan Cat]

This is going to be a very interesting turn of events.

I cant wait to see how this turns out

[zzyss]

Yikes. To me this looks like it's setting up an epic battle of the Gods. Thor and... Hel? (And probably the others, without going into stuff from the book exclusives)

[fractal]

So Malak really was destroying his friend, whatever he thought. Now that we see Durkula's real personality, it seems pretty unlikely that he would have chosen to remain with Malak after being released from thralldom.

And also, Durkula's claim that he is no more evil than (current) Belkar is revealed as a lie - even pre-Shojo Belkar never planned to ruin the world. For that matter, even Xykon doesn't plan it, although he's not trying too hard to avoid the risk.

[David Argall]

Actually, this gives us more reason not to stake the vampire. That should kill both. The Vampire must be raised first, which will not be easy with those vampire powers getting in the way.

[Nilehus]

Next prediction: Hel, Durkon, and Trigak are all the same person...

Redcloak's niece.

[ShadowFireLance]

So.
The Dwarf is actually Trigak . This makes all sense now.

[johnbragg]

I predicted Durkon as High Priest of Hel, but not like this. I was thinking more like RIPD or Constantine or Spawn, occassionally emerging from the outer planes to hunt down powerful undead. Not like this at all.

And yes, ad another faction to the list--what does Hel care about the Gates or the Snarl?

[Gwynfrid]

Several have said that this already, but it's worth repeating: This was a magnificent book - in art, in story, in characterization, and in comedy.

Come to think of it, it was maybe just a little less strong on comedy than earlier books. But then, the material was inherently darker so that's understandable. Even then, there were some fantastic laughs.

Kudos all around, for a job well done.

I'm not wishing you a well-deserved rest, even though it's deserved indeed, because I suspect preparing for print is just as hard work, and likely more tedious.

[Keltest]

I really hope this means the crazy Trigak theory was correct, or at least for the most part.

As long as it's been Trigak this whole time. There really has been some hints for this.

Obviously Trigak wasn't actually a Chimera, but instead a minion of Hel. He's been waiting for Durkon to die this whole time so he could take over.

[Porthos]

OK, calmed down a bit.

...

Only a bit.

Looks like Rich is going for the Libris Mortis interpetation of "maglin spirit" inhabiting the body.

Or Buffy. Which ever works.

PS: WHERE'S MY STAKE!!!!!

[Jordan Cat]

I'm drawing a blank here, who is Trigak again?

[Amarsir]

So Durkula is a totally different person. Hmmm.

I'm kind of disappointed just because I love seeing The Giant's takes on alignments and personality. And I think a Good person forced to become Evil is a fascinating development. An evil pretender who knows full-well what he's doing is also a compelling story, just not as unique.

Anyway, a dramatic end to the chapter and nice hook for the next.

[Angel Bob]

I knew it!

Well, some of it, at least.

Okay, only a small fraction of it: that Count Thundershield would come to serve as High Priest of Hel. Everything else caught me entirely off-guard.

I will say, I'm very glad to see the nature of vampires in this world made clear. Although this does raise questions about Malack's existence as a vampire. Huh...

[Amarsir]

I'm drawing a blank here, who is Trigak again?

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0018.html

[Dwy]

This is epic.

Couldn't have been happier with this one.

I'm really looking forwards to the next time Belkar and Scruffy have some alone time though.

[Iago]

On people who were good who get Vamp'd, as it was said before:

"You have to remember that when you see him, you're not looking at your friend. You're looking at the thing that killed him." — Giles, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

[aabicus]

I'm probably just slow but....is that Malack? She keeps calling him a serpent. Did he do something to hide inside Durkon before he died?