08/23/09 [DMFA #1035] - WHAT!

[FSharp]

If that's the case, wouldn't they *all* be dead? The Fae seem to be the only species that is truly immortal.

Hard call. The only things I can reference with any certainty are Mab and Fa'Lina's odd temporal relationship and that the Fae are somehow non-linear creatures.

So all I can suggest is that Mab might know two of her friends will die because she's been to a time where it's already happened.

Either way, this is an ambitiously sharp turn for the comic to take. Will be interesting to see how Amber handles it.

[Zedd]

Fate is never set, no matter how much people may proclaim the future.

But in a way, choice binds us all.

[Jairus]

Fate is never set, no matter how much people may proclaim the future.

But in a way, choice binds us all.

Hey, you stole that last bit from me! Even though there isn't enough in that phrase to properly express the idea behind it...

I'm wondering if Mab might choose to "die" in order to save those other three. Probably not, that would be trite.

[ChaosMageX]

Fate is never set, no matter how much people may proclaim the future.

But in a way, choice binds us all.

The future is not set.  There is no fate but what we make for ourselves.

[Ganurath]

Didn't Amber explicitely state that she has the characters change to fit the world, not the world to fit the characters? She was shooting down the Tri-Wing Dan speculation at the time, but I'll also take it as ammo to shoot down any speculation regarding diamond dust and Phoenix Downs.

[Lego3400]

She's already killed off charcters. 2. 1 in main story one in ablels story.

[Buhamet]

When it comes down to the idea of friends dying who have a boon, for some reason my mind has an odd idea as to a possibility:
Fa'Lina

Sounds odd, I know but Fa'Lina herself called herself a friend of Mab's during the Raid on SAIA arc (strip #581), and she has been able to create a rather amazing name for heself. The acadamy she's created could sorta be called a "Boon" as Cubi who attend there are more powerful than those who don't, so that's one way of helping out Dan.
Also, I think it's a bit much to be saying Dan might be a character to Die, because well............... the comic's called Dan and Mab's furrry adventures........ Kill off Dan, and you'd probably lose half your readers

[Garsemor]

Hey here's something to chew on, how do we know we meet all 5 of Mab's friends. Think about it, perhaps the 2 that will die are unknown to us. I am propably horribly wrong but it's an possibility.

[bdplague]

AAAAAAH.
I DONT WANT ANYONE TO DIEEEEE.


That being said of course, I most protest that as a very linear creature, I have extreme difficulty wrapping my head around the idea of a non-linear creature. O___o I doubt Mab knows because she was already knows - she may have just gone to the Pheonix's!

[SuaveIV]

Yeah, I was going to make some sort of comment about Cerebus.

Not that it is a bad thing, as the comic is quite enjoyable and I trust her skills as a writer and artist.

Five men enter... three men leave! >>;

...do you know how happy you've made me? 

but yeah, I quite positive that Amber can pull off the turn into serious-land...

...though I doubt we'll ever fully go there. It's just not in her mental makeup.

[Kafzeil]

Hmm...reminds of an idea I had for a DMFA Fanfic, though I never got around to writing. My ideas involved a nihilistic Tri-WIng 'CUbi intent on bring forth a Death God after his clan was wiped out, a Mengele-esque Angel, insanity, and country filled of pissed off Beings finally using technology to become just as big bastards as Creatures.

I wanted to do a Earn Your Happy ENding  style ending, but just couldn't picture how to do so. I like to think it's darkest right before daybreak.

[Technoire]

I still don't even have the slightest idea what "boon" refers to in this instance. And I am way to exhausted tonight to even contribute more to this conversation than my curiosity...

Maybe tomorrow.
G'night...

[Artanis]

"A blessing or benefit; that which is asked or granted as a benefit or favor; a gift; a benefaction; a grant; a present; a prayer or petition. A wish usually granted by a god to any person." (Thanks, Google define.)

In this context, given Mab's existence as a demi-god or similar, we're probably talking less about material or social goods and more about innate capabilities.

For example, Mab has befriended Jyrras. She provided him with a bit of magic to experiment on, stable until touched. It explodes in his face. Subsequently, Jyrras becomes the unwitting parent of two new forms of life. Potential boon: spark of life. This is all assuming we've seen foreshadowing (ret-con or otherwise) regarding these boons.

Jyrras could also have received his intelligence/inventiveness/genius from Mab's boon, but this could cheapen all his accomplishments; "Of all those things I did, what was from me, and what was from this power you gave me?" There is this possibility, however, we still need to figure out what could possibly make Dan hate Mab, and learning that all his accomplishments were due to some intervention on Mab's part could certainly do that. And, of course, many of her friends are also friends, so deaths due to her plan would also apply.

So, listing ("Friend - comma-separated list of potential boons"):
1. Dan - ?
2. Jyrras - spark of life, intelligence
3. ? - ?
4. ? - ?
5. ? - ?

I'll have to do an archive binge to get more possibilities, but it's late and I need to sleep as well.

[MT Hazard]

Fate is never set, no matter how much people may proclaim the future.

But in a way, choice binds us all.

The future is not set.  There is no fate but what we make for ourselves.

You cannot stop Judgement day, you can only postpone it, Judgement day is inevitable (and people wonder why so many dislike that film)

[Tapewolf]

When it comes down to the idea of friends dying who have a boon, for some reason my mind has an odd idea as to a possibility:  Fa'Lina

I think you might be onto something there.  The creation of SAIA (which may well be magically cut off from the rest of the world a'la Fae Kingdom) would be the boon.  It certainly changed the world for the 'Cubi.

As for the others, Mab 'grew up' with a number of characters including Dan.  Now, it's possible that he's marked although I'd hope not.  IMHO that would be a bit too bitter an ending.  However, I think the bulk of her friends are Lost Lake citizens.

[Moekii]

I like this direction, alot. It's not something I'm used to from this comic

I also enjoy the new update schedule. Gives me more to look forward to on the weekends!

[RobbieThe1st]

My take on all this is a bit different.
Mab says "when I arrived here... I made five friends." To me, this sounds like while Mab is many many years old, she only recently came to Furrae, about the time when Dan and co. were growing up.
"And I have given each of them a boon." - Thus far, you all seem to be looking at it as if it were a specific item/gift for each person. What if its not - what if it was simply a wish or magical aid, something none of them knew about, and none of them could willingly use. Something like a "get out of (1) death free" card perhaps? At least for Dan it could have been. Perhaps it even took the form of something less tangible; preventing a person from being in the wrong place at the wrong time, or making sure they were in the right place at the right time.

"only one friend's boon remains" - To me, it sounds like the above wish/nudge for four of the people has been used, only one is left - perhaps it will be needed for some special task?

"each of them has the potential to change their world" - I am guessing that, because of these boons, each of the five are in a position to greatly influence the world around them.

"one may even destroy it" - I am guessing that, due to the position each of them is in, they all hold great power. One of them has enough power to destroy the world if he/she does the wrong thing. I think this person is either Dan(because of his 'Cubi powers and Cyra ancestry) or Jyrras(because of his technological power).

"..It is hard enough knowing two of my friends will die." - I agree with several of the previous posters; It is most likely a situation where Mab's ability to see into the future has shown multiple paths; everything from two out of the five dying to everyone dieing in a planetary disaster. It may very well be that depending on the character's actions themselves, the two who die may change. Expanding on this, it may be that even Amber hasn't written out who will die exactly; but will be able to choose who at the last minute. Perhaps based on all of our comments(reversed or not)... Now, there is a scary thought.


-Robbie

[Tapewolf]

My take on all this is a bit different.
Mab says "when I arrived here... I made five friends." To me, this sounds like while Mab is many many years old, she only recently came to Furrae, about the time when Dan and co. were growing up.

I was about to take this idea from the other end, that if Fa'Lina is one of the friends (it's certainly possible) and that she made her five friends when she first arrived, her friends could be none of the contemporary Lost Lake characters.  They could actually be Fa'Lina, Destania, Pyroduck and one or two others who are (or may be) thousands of years old, and that while she likes Dan, her 'friend' is actually his mother.

However I don't think this is necessarily the case.  Firstly, it obviates Jyrras.  Secondly and more relevant to your suggestion, Fae may not have to follow time linearly.  It is entirely possible that when she first arrived (subjectively) she was able to make friends in multiple time zones concurrently.

[Naldru]

If Mab knew Dan when he was young, it also means that she knew Destania.  Could Destania be one of the friends?  (Edit: I take too long thinking about my posts.  I see Tapewolf posted the same idea while I was writing this.)  Here are my thoughts.  

As mentioned in the few previous strips, Jyrras is one of the five.  The question is whether he knew he was making a wish when he used the words "It would mean the world to me".  The boon is obviously the removal of the bangles.  

Destania, with the boon being the ability to keep her family safe by destroying her family's enemies.  That could be how she plans to deal with the dragons.

As mentioned before, Fa'lina, with the boon being the safety of SAIA against outside forces.  After all, the ability to keep dragons out would seem to be beyond the power of any cubi, considering the the ability of the dragons to destroy entire clans of cubi.

Dan is of course an obvious choice.  Assuming that he didn't waste his wish on a whim, such as  "I wish I had another ale", I'm not sure what his boon would have been.  He may be the one with a boon left.

And now we come to number five on the board.  It's been a while since anybody brought up the "Aniz is Dan's father" idea, and I think that its about due.  Suppose that Aniz was number five, and he was disgusted with his past that he wished to be a being.

On this basis, three of the friends will live for thousands of years, while the other two will die in a hundred years or so.

[ChaosMageX]

Fate is never set, no matter how much people may proclaim the future.

But in a way, choice binds us all.

The future is not set.  There is no fate but what we make for ourselves.

You cannot stop Judgement day, you can only postpone it, Judgement day is inevitable (and people wonder why so many dislike that film)

Yes, and when April 21, 2011 (the date given in the TV series) comes and goes, James Cameron (or whoever decides the next date) will start throwing dates at calendars spanning the next 7 years until they find another date that's catchy.

If they're smart, they'll pick a date in 2012, since that seems to be the most popular apocalypse year since 2000.  Why is it always the Chinese Year of the Dragon that's getting the bad rap?!

Has anyone noticed that Sky-Net tends to be a morning person, always becoming self-aware at early AM hours?  However, that may also be the product of darts and a print-out clock face.

Also, how do we know that Deeb's sister isn't the Furrae world's version of Sky-Net?

Maybe that's the world destruction that Mab is referring to, and if this computer becomes angry and confused and Jyrrus can't reassure it, then Judgement Day will occur in their world.

I wonder how close in design the bodies of Joshua and Dorcan are to T800 series models.

[Garsemor]

Well, since everyone is trying to figure out who are Mab's friends and who will die, what the boon might be etc... I will insted say what the possible ways of bringing them back would be.
1. Turn them undead (the curdest option if all else fails)
2. Capture there soul's inside artifacts and wait for android bodies to be invented (sorry about the quote Tape)
3. Persuade Kria to revive them the same way as DP (in case of adaptations being needed I'm fairly sure DP could be persuaded as well)

Sorry for being a little of topic but there are still many possibilities as to how to save them that haven't been mentioned.

[Ted Schiller]

Dan will die if he doesn't start taking souls.

Howevah, if Mab or Albanion tricks Dan into taking enough souls to get to the right power level, he could be .. ah .. annoyed.

With regards,
Ted

[Tipod]

If you argue about fate, I think you need to realize this all takes place in kooky mixed-up fantasy world. People there probably get destined to all kinds of things from dying on their 21st birthdays to becoming shoemakers for the rest of their lives

[Tapewolf]

Dan will die if he doesn't start taking souls.

At the moment, Dan would probably prefer death.  That attitude may change, of course.
Unless I'm greatly mistaken he'll have a pretty decent lifespan even if he doesn't - Cyra's power is liable to boost him too (unless she's one of the ones to be written off) and at the end of the day, souls aren't the only way to extend your life... just the easiest.

[Lucheek]

....
HUUUUUUWHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT

[TheDXM]

I don't think a little seriousness, or more importantly death, is going to make DMFA lose it's simple fun-loving charm. Plenty of 'serious' emotionally charged plot twists have occured in DMFA already, even if they didn't include death and Amber handled them just fine. The only difference is that death is a little more PG-13.

With that said, DMFA has a very large cast, and over the years some of characters have fallen out of the spotlight as new ones approached. If some of the characters need to be cropped out, it might be a bit more fitting to give them a chance of ending things in a nice hot pyre of fury than a happily-ever-after detail.

In any case I'm looking forward to the future of the comic. I love the nostalgia of this strip, and it shows how varied and special the details Amber has learned how to maintain in an atmosphere.

[rabid_fox]

I hope it's Dan and Mab, then the comic can be rebranded as The Pepsi Max Furry Adventures X2000.

[Shadowcatcher]

Something tells me the pan to Dan as Mab spoke about one possibly destroying the world was part of the steamroller foreshadowing on Amber's part. Could just be me though. I agree with what's been said though. Seeing as the 5 Mab's known longest as LL are Alexi, Dan, Wildy, Jyjy, and Merlitz.

Or maybe it is Dan who hasn't used his boon yet.  You know how he feels about magic.

[Wanderer]

  EPILEPTIC TREEEEEEEEESSS!!

Anyway. What happened to the fun-filled lighthearted comic that I remember through my nostalgia-tinted goggles? It's gone all serious and stuff.

[Tapewolf]

Anyway. What happened to the fun-filled lighthearted comic that I remember through my nostalgia-tinted goggles? It's gone all serious and stuff.

It does that.  Then it goes lighthearted again for a bit.  Then the cycle repeats.