Prized Displays

[Northern Chill]

Ahem....to get this thread back on track and discussing the story in question, I will say that Tek's art is great in this update..his use of shadows and different poses are well done and shows he's making great strides in learning all the techniques of Poser.

Northern Chill

[nageth]

As far as the protagonists lucking out and winning, it happens a lot and not just here. It is kind of a hallmark of SciFi. Admittedly, too much is bad. Star Trek fell into the trap of rephasing the tachyon emitters and Doctor Who now sonics everything that isn't wood. Still, we watch it because it is fun and while we pretty much know how it will end there can still be some fun moments.

That said, the moments when there is a grand strategy or something are amazing. And I don't think there is enough of that in the Metrobay (extended) universe. I think the only victory for the heroines where there was planning was Mind over Magic (Legion too if you want to be that extended). Almost everything else has either been catch and release or the protagonists (gender neutral since Impact saved the day in Bedazzled) have an ability specifically designed to foil the trap they are in. So I hope the drought in the heroines using critical thinking is addressed by a story soon (and there are several where I think this may happen, New Guard being one of them and the perma-cliff-hung Gothik Grrls being another).

And I mean no offense to any of the current stories. Quite a few of them are one-ish off cheesecake (e.g. Golden Opportunity) which are great for what they are (I don't go to Ironman and Inception expecting the same thing because of alliteration). The Drone stories don't even really involve the heroines yet (can't wait to see how that develops). Other stories I see more as developing character relations, which while it would be nice to see them working together (e.g. Loney Man) the fact that they aren't could be just as important (e.g. Body Image). And I am glad that the characters are being developed (I would like to see more of how Max got power because he is a bigger walking deus ex machina than Ring Mistress or even Silver Satin). And since this is a thread about Prized Displays, I am glad there seems to be some new character development here. (I'm looking for some "positive" development since Blackout turned into a very tragic character and Valient Grrl seems to be following the same path.)

Speaking of Ring Mistress. I'm fine with her having ability and talent that none of the other villains have with respect to robotics. Ted Twist could de-nanobot all the heroines having no stated prior experience so exceptional ability isn't unusual (and I'm glad Ted is back in a story doing more than slack off in his lab with LISA). Max keeps zapping all his robotics employees not named J.T. and Mikey so it isn't surprising APEX is lacking there. I don't quite understand how a telepath could be tricked by a robot unless Ring Mistress is a cylon but I'm willing to let it go since I don't expect everything to be explained immediately (especially considering the history of one-off stories coming back and turning out to be important). Maybe her robots aren't so perfect (e.g. Bea-bot gaining feelings for Enormica). Now if Ring Mistress suddenly learns KungFu and beats up Brown Sugar or something similar I'd be a little worried since she has shown no proclivity to fighting in the past (and she was surprised she won in Sword and Shield).

One last thing since Akon mentioned Ms. Metrobay, I would really like to see something happen there. She is basically an older version of Sparrow (Legion). Just stating my preference, I'd prefer she have explosive amnesia and start over from there. I think there is definite potential for the character if thrown out of the comfort zone of being the momma bear (not saying amnesia is the only route, just the easiest thing I could think up in 10 minutes).

So bullet points since I rambled:

• Lucking out okay as long as that isn't the only ending type
• Would like one or two stories where the characters can plan farther ahead than one page
• Max needs to step up (maybe he is...who knows who is doing the recent droning)
• Ms. Metrobay needs to grow in a new way (bad joke)
• I'm not the artist here so I don't have a full idea of what is going on/am only stating my observations

PS: And another mention Sword and Shield because I loved your work because I like your stories and art (2D and 3D). I look forward to it being finished eventually.

[Tecknophyle]

As far as the protagonists lucking out and winning, it happens a lot and not just here. It is kind of a hallmark of SciFi. Admittedly, too much is bad. Star Trek fell into the trap of rephasing the tachyon emitters and Doctor Who now sonics everything that isn't wood. Still, we watch it because it is fun and while we pretty much know how it will end there can still be some fun moments.

That said, the moments when there is a grand strategy or something are amazing. And I don't think there is enough of that in the Metrobay (extended) universe. I think the only victory for the heroines where there was planning was Mind over Magic (Legion too if you want to be that extended). Almost everything else has either been catch and release or the protagonists (gender neutral since Impact saved the day in Bedazzled) have an ability specifically designed to foil the trap they are in.

I just went and looked. These are the completed stories where the characters had an active role in defeating the villain, there's generally unqualified win, but did not include ones (such as King of Hooter Country) where they simply swooped in at the end to arrest the bad guy.

In Original Sin, Gadget Gal pulls a Deus Ex Machina brand gun out of her belt.
Magic Wand (Pink Pussycat), Nightengale fights her way free and gets control of the magic wand.
Twisted Tales has Ted Twiss pulling off a heroic act which frees Alpha Woman who then uses her TK to take out the Sentius mainframe.
The second Sentius arc ends with Marcy using her computer-based abilities and Mechana showing hitherto unrevealed resistance to Sentius's mind control (along with her known superhuman strength).
Digital Desires has Marcy demonstrating she's actually learned from past mistakes and had a failsafe mechanism programmed into herself.
The Platinum Earth crossover did have some actual superpowers demonstrated.
Mind Over Magic, as you mentioned.

Giving Gadget Gal a pass because she used a gadget, and Mechana one because there really was no reason to assume a mind-control ray designed for humans would work on an android, that's pretty much it. Ignoring (as I mentioned), the ones where the heroes don't have a role until the very end, all the other stories where they have a win have been, dumb luck, the effect wore off, something else happened the heroes had no active control over (Tasty Treats and the detonating breast milk, as an example), or they were simply let go (Hypnotica).

[nageth]

Nice list. I'll go ahead and comment since I didn't mention most of them.

In Original Sin, Gadget Gal pulls a Deus Ex Machina brand gun out of her belt.

I was disappointed by that. I almost would have preferred she was the one that sacrificed herself (momentarily) and Nightengale saved the day...somehow. Especially neat if Ms. Metrobay droned her.

Magic Wand (Pink Pussycat), Nightengale fights her way free and gets control of the magic wand.

I mostly ignored the Pink Pussycat stuff because they feel more like old comic serials/have a strict style as far as what happens. I mean, the heroines in those stories regularly use the word "fiend".

Twisted Tales has Ted Twiss pulling off a heroic act which frees Alpha Woman who then uses her TK to take out the Sentius mainframe.
The second Sentius arc ends with Marcy using her computer-based abilities and Mechana showing hitherto unrevealed resistance to Sentius's mind control (along with her known superhuman strength).

The lesson is Ted needs to get off his rear more often (and that Silver Satin is magic...joking).

Digital Desires has Marcy demonstrating she's actually learned from past mistakes and had a failsafe mechanism programmed into herself.

I was always confused by the ending. If she won because she had some sort of safe boot mode or something then I'll give her more credit. I just assumed she was stringing him along the whole time (which made little sense..."ah ha, and then when he gropes me I'll shock him!").

The Platinum Earth crossover did have some actual superpowers demonstrated.

I'm a bit disappointed that the PE crossover hasn't had more impact. Snowflake was the most effected (rightfully). But other than that there has only been implied guilt on the part of Silver Satin. As far as I remember, Jade Lightning shrugged it off as well as Brown Sugar. Knight Fighter showed some effects but the story is cliff-hung. Alpha Woman and Valient Grrl have their hands full the various drama so I'll let the whole Alpha Woman implied killing two people thing go (and these comics don't really deal with that anyway/no death here).

[Trishbot]

I'm actually very much enjoying this story. We haven't had a good crossover in a while, and it's great seeing so many sexy gingers in one place at one time.

The story is unique, the visuals are great, the cast is diverse, and the situations are sexy and full of potential. Yeah, I have my grievances about a few things here and there, but overall I'm enjoying the ride.

[Tecknophyle]

Twisted Tales has Ted Twiss pulling off a heroic act which frees Alpha Woman who then uses her TK to take out the Sentius mainframe.
The second Sentius arc ends with Marcy using her computer-based abilities and Mechana showing hitherto unrevealed resistance to Sentius's mind control (along with her known superhuman strength).

The lesson is Ted needs to get off his rear more often (and that Silver Satin is magic...joking).

Twisted Tales also has Alpha Woman finally saving the day by using a telekinetic shield to protect everyone from the resulting explosion.

In other words, the story had the good guys winning by a Heel-Face Turn and nearly Heroic Sacrifice performed by Ted, and some actual honest-to-goodness superheroing.

[Hector2]

Hi there MCtek:

Wow, this was a controversial issue, isn’t it?

The problem is that I need a lot of time to check all the posts, some of them have very interesting points, so I think I would made new post addressing each of them.

I want to talk about your work in issue 2: A lot of very interesting themes (the only think I didn’t like was the cover: Honey Clone -ha ha- and Enormica must be facing us) that are awesome: Could Honey Clone develop emotions like love? Or is she completely loyal to Mom? What about Dark Honeydoll? Their story is one the best I have seen here or in Hip comix.

But the very best part is the inclusion of Notre Dame and Sparrow. Oh my! This is incredible! It’s really great! How did you get those wonderful characters? Did you ask permission to Uroboros? The only other “crossover” were with Miss Metrobay kidnapping and “Space Station Venus”, that is an alternate universe. This is gonna be great!

Just one question: Could you use other characters from Uroboros Universe?

And just one petition: Could you please consider converting Notre Dame in a living trophy? She would look so nice in my any collection!

Thanks

Hector2

[mctek]

hey gang, i'll try to answer a few questions, I'll start with hector2

Wow, this was a controversial issue, isn’t it?

Certainly has my friend, not quite sure what to make of it atm. I only just started the story so many things can happen between now and then.

A lot of very interesting themes (the only think I didn’t like was the cover: Honey Clone -ha ha- and Enormica must be facing us) that are awesome: Could Honey Clone develop emotions like love? Or is she completely loyal to Mom? What about Dark Honeydoll? Their story is one the best I have seen here or in Hip comix.

All in due time ^_^

But the very best part is the inclusion of Notre Dame and Sparrow. Oh my! This is incredible! It’s really great! How did you get those wonderful characters? Did you ask permission to Uroboros? The only other “crossover” were with Miss Metrobay kidnapping and “Space Station Venus”, that is an alternate universe. This is gonna be great!

Yes, with other ppl's characters I do have to ask, and i thank Uro for this awesome crossover bit, in return should he want to, he can have some fun with sword and shield.

Just one question: Could you use other characters from Uroboros Universe?

Not sure, i really didn't ask about the others, something to think about.

And just one petition: Could you please consider converting Notre Dame in a living trophy? She would look so nice in my any collection!

Speaking of Ring Mistress. I'm fine with her having ability and talent that none of the other villains have with respect to robotics. Ted Twist could de-nanobot all the heroines having no stated prior experience so exceptional ability isn't unusual (and I'm glad Ted is back in a story doing more than slack off in his lab with LISA). Max keeps zapping all his robotics employees not named J.T. and Mikey so it isn't surprising APEX is lacking there. I don't quite understand how a telepath could be tricked by a robot unless Ring Mistress is a cylon but I'm willing to let it go since I don't expect everything to be explained immediately (especially considering the history of one-off stories coming back and turning out to be important). Maybe her robots aren't so perfect (e.g. Bea-bot gaining feelings for Enormica). Now if Ring Mistress suddenly learns KungFu and beats up Brown Sugar or something similar I'd be a little worried since she has shown no proclivity to fighting in the past (and she was surprised she won in Sword and Shield).

Ring Mistress is many things, a Kung fu expert is not one of them, she won her fight by accident, her suit gives her last min gadgets, but is hardly a match for anyone above human, the telepathy thing will be explained, about to get to it. ^_^; and no she's not from the future Akon, sorry. To be honest i did start out a fembot lover, so it's also my thing Doc just beat me to the punch.

So consider that the merits of your success on that story, and on these other stories. We may complain sometimes, but we do so because we do care what happens in these stories. You've captured our interest, and we all want these stories to be the best they can be. We want to see them through to completion, we want the villains to emerge as more complex, interesting people, we want the heroines to do more than be mindless body counts. And you've become a thousand-fold better at this since you began, so I have no worries you'll emerge from this stories a much stronger writer, artist, and creator. But the road to that path is rocky, and until then, I and others patiently wait for the wrinkles to be ironed out, the loose ends to be tied up, and the weight of unresolved stories to be cast off so we can all move on instead of being told to move on before we're ready.

Fair enough, and I did consider fallout, but at times i felt like i was getting tossed under the bus alot, which to me didn't seem fair, since i did work on this mostly on my own free time. I stopped for a very personal reason that I'm not going to get into here cause it's just that, personal and private. Still I'll contuine with my poser work and try to deliver something ppl will like, I know pretty well i can't please everyone, but i'll try.

MCtek~

[Hector2]

Hi there!

I must agree with Akonkid and Macrolass: Ring Mistress character is… a nuisance? There is something in her that I don’t like.

Problem is: I don’t know exactly what is it. Is her attitude? Maybe that, and that she always seems to come on top, even when she doesn’t seem to deserve it.

But the problem is Ring Mistress is everything I admire in a supervillain: Someone obsessed who repeats the name of Dougal (married to someone else, lucky guy!) every third phrase, an analytical mind, and besides all those defects, there is the soul of a dangerous stalker, almost a hunter.

I don’t mind that she has been capable of doing (after all, there are geniuses that revolutionize their fields, just look at Tesla) and she has done much more than any villain: She can clone people, she can modify people with nanomachines, she can “insert” skills in people (like cooking and cleaning) and she makes money from it, but I want to offer an alternative explanation (like the one Naget did) why she was capable to develop the better robot: because she is using cloning technology (that Uroboros has Cyren develop with success) and Honeydoll’s double is not a robot, is a clone, and for that she is an even better borg than Mechana or Lisa (I know, I know, this “explanation” doesn’t explain anything, but the idea of a robot or clone that can impersonate a super heroine is so great to me I can forgive that).

The part I most like about Ring Mistress is that she has achieved the dream: She kidnapped a superheroine, changed her (to her like) and not only managed to keep her as his wife, but she even help Ring Mistress to catch more heroines. The beauty of that.

But then, she is so smug. I think she is even more smug than Max. Well sometimes, so I am here waiting for her fall. Please please, she deserves a enormous fall, something more humiliating that the things that happens to Max (he deserves all of them, and more).

So, I have a petition: See Ring Mistress humiliated.

My second petition (I will risk contradicting myself) is to see a picture of Ring Mistress remembering the wedding with Fluffy? Oh, how Ring Mistress had have gloated!
Hector 2

[mctek]

Hey gang!

Sorry for late posting, real life smacking me in the face again. Thanking Uro again for letting me use his girls in this crossover. Hopefully today's issue solves a few things and adds a few more.

Prized Display #3

INTRUDER! Two heroines from the heroine group known as LOSH have come to pay a visit to the MCNorm Manor, they'll soon learn what the McNorms do to unwanted guests. Also we once again follow behind the robot clone known as Worker Bee, as we learn a bit more about the troubled machine.

http://www.mccomix.com/members/gallery2 ... emId=29289

[Tecknophyle]

Hey gang!

INTRUDER! Two heroines from the heroine group known as LOSH have come to pay a visit to the MCNorm Manor, they'll soon learn what the McNorms do to unwanted guests. Also we once again follow behind the robot clone known as Worker Bee, as we learn a bit more about the troubled machine.

While the reference to a mental cloaking device works fine, the "I don't remember who I got it from" isn't so much lampshade hanging as it is screaming "DEUS EX MACHINA! RIGHT HERE! SEE? SEE?"

Something like relief that a prototype she'd bought off the supervillain black market or or that she'd received in payment for a service, or something similar, would have worked better, I think. The story has already set up the premise that there's a business in tech trade going on amongst bad guys.

Of course, if the setup is that she received it from someone who then tinkered with her mind so she couldn't remember and dismissed it, well, that's okay then.

[Northern Chill]

Hey gang!

INTRUDER! Two heroines from the heroine group known as LOSH have come to pay a visit to the MCNorm Manor, they'll soon learn what the McNorms do to unwanted guests. Also we once again follow behind the robot clone known as Worker Bee, as we learn a bit more about the troubled machine.

While the reference to a mental cloaking device works fine, the "I don't remember who I got it from" isn't so much lampshade hanging as it is screaming "DEUS EX MACHINA! RIGHT HERE! SEE? SEE?"

Something like relief that a prototype she'd bought off the supervillain black market or or that she'd received in payment for a service, or something similar, would have worked better, I think. The story has already set up the premise that there's a business in tech trade going on amongst bad guys.

Of course, if the setup is that she received it from someone who then tinkered with her mind so she couldn't remember and dismissed it, well, that's okay then.

Here's the thing though...suppose RM had mentioned a specific name in reference to the device. A reader could complain "hey, we never saw that scene" and dismiss the reference the same way.

As is, this scene could set up one where RM checks thru a list of stuff going and coming in her little base of evil..given her tech genius, it's not out of the realm of possibility she can't instantly associate the exact details with every bit of tech she's acquired. RM could muse "hey, that doohickey I got from Belinda a while ago..mass enslavement of Metro U cheerleaders...where did I put that?"

Northern Chill

[cvn88]

I took the whole "I can't remember who I got that from" as an indication that somebody is helping RM from behind the scenes and that's a major reason why she's so far ahead of the game. Of course, it could be that she just acquires a lot of stuff from a lot of people - can't wait to see just what's going on here.

[Akonkid]

I took the whole "I can't remember who I got that from" as an indication that somebody is helping RM from behind the scenes and that's a major reason why she's so far ahead of the game. Of course, it could be that she just acquires a lot of stuff from a lot of people - can't wait to see just what's going on here.

I'll start with the flaws I got and move on to the good, because, like a few others, I'm still struggling hard to wrap my head around Ring Mistress and just how or why she's gotten where she's gotten (I could go on a whole 10-page rant on her if she ever gets her own "Character Discussion", but I'll try and be brief.)

Beyond the problems I have with HER robots being decades more advances than any others (did "Galatea" just have a Pinocchio moment and become a real girl?), Ring Mistress bothers me for two reasons:

1) Who she is - Granted, there's nothing really wrong with her personality or anything... but she is just so entirely unprofessional. She acts very carefree, caution-to-the-wind. Her schemes succeed despite there being huge, gaping flaws in her logic and holes in her plans. She's younger than practically any of her peers in the scientific field (Silver Satin, Ted Twiss, Belinda, Gilbert Petto, Doogan, Shelley, etc.), and yet, despite being barely out of college-age, she's just a hundred times smarter than everyone else whose been playing the same game for decades longer. I see Ted and Marcy studying and testing and working hard to make their equipment, I see Belinda creating Mechana over years and years of hard work and research, it explains how Gilbert works for decades to make his Doll-machine... and then Terra Creed waltzes in and apparently tops all the most brilliant scientists in the city that's the technological marvel of the whole world with practically zero effort on her first try. It would be like Snowflake suddenly becoming a much better leader and heroine than Ms. Metrobay on her first mission... the time, experience, and personality don't support the outcome.

For lack of a better phrase, it feels like she hasn't "paid her dues". She, as a character, just creates an anachronism I struggle to make sense of in the Metrobay world, and that's why I was still sort of hoping she was perhaps secretly a member of the oft-ignored Time Command storylines, because that would make sense. Even in THOSE stories, set hundreds of years in the future, robots weren't as advanced as Terra's nano-dolls. And, to spring off of her "I forgot where this came from", that just further shows how unprofessional she is. She BUILT these creations, and yet she doesn't even remember how she did it, where the parts came from, or why these parts work? Maybe that can be explained that someone else, someone more experienced, has been giving her a leg up, but otherwise it just confuses me. A good craftsman knows his tools and what their uses are; a bad one doesn't, and usually the end product shows this. Yet, again, Terra's "product" is better than any other, despite her apparently not putting nearly as much time, effort, or attention onto her craft.

2) What Ring Mistress Wants - What DOES she want? What is her motivation? To be better than Doogan? Well, she accomplished that goal in her very first issue, yet she apparently still has something against him. Does she want money, like how she was originally selling heroines as slaves? Apparently she can afford secret bases full of expensive robotic equipment that, as far as I know, is not directly funded by APEX or Max. Does she want love? She already brainwashed herself her old lover to become her wife. Does she want more knowledge and power? She's already the "smartest" woman in the world, able to create literal self-aware life while others are tinkering with the equivalent of LEGO blocks. And yet she risks everything on continuing to gather intel on the Superheroine Squad via her Honeydoll robots - but why? What intel would she use that for? "Better" robots? She puts herself at risk, and when "Galatea" shows programming she wasn't prepared for, she immediately ignores it. That's a huge red flag. I mean, compare that to Valient Grrl's birth, where the second she showed an ounce of individuality, Max freaked out and ordered a complete start-over because he knew that wasn't what he intended to happen. So... what does Ring Mistress want? Why is she still hanging around instead of packing her bags and millions of dollars and flying down to the Caribbean with her slaves and wife?

I mean, here's the deal. A villain needs to have something missing in their life to be a good villain. Belinda's freedom is limited to a prison, for example, or Max has his riches, but the one thing he wants most (Pink Pussycat) he can't have. Even Irene in this story lacks the approval of her Grandfather and the threat of being cut off from the family fortune driving her actions. Ring Mistress has EVERYTHING. She has completed her revenge. She has proven her intellect to the world. She has money. She has power. She has knowledge. She has a smoking hot wife. She has her freedom. She has everything anyone would want. So... why is she still around?

Okay, sorry for that bitch-fest. Now let me gush praises about the things I liked.

The ART - Leaps and bounds better than anything you've done before. It's amazing and inspiring to see how far you've come from your beginnings to where you are now. You've started to really understand and master lightning, posing, and effects. I'd say the staging still needs some work (don't be afraid to use some crazy camera angles and dynamic shots), but everything else is some of the best work on this site.

The CHARACTERS - Again, as much as I ranted about Ring Mistress and her robots (my least favorite part of this story), I adore what you're doing with Irene, Tulia, and her trophies (my favorite part of this story). Irene is just a far more sympathetic villain with a crazy cast of helpers, unique sexual quirks, an endearing accent, great motivation and plot characterization, a good look, human failings and setbacks, and still possessing ruthless ambition.

And, what's this? My favorite comic redhead Sparrow makes an appearance? Fantastic! And you captured her trash-talking, in-your-face style of banter perfectly. One of the reasons she's so great is because extreme personalities like hers just stand out and become lodged in reader's minds, and her appearance alongside her sister in this story is no exception. The call-back to her brainwashing in "Legion of Superheroines" and comments to Notre Dame were also appreciated.

Also, I do love "DarkHoney". While the outfit remains a little weird (she reminds me of a girl cosplaying as Umbreon Pokemon), I adore the idea of locking the "real" Bea inside her head and letting a new personality run amok in her body. She's truly a corrupted heroine, using her brains and body in a way that is both perverse, wicked, and a lot of fun to watch. She's a heroine, but in Irene's control, all those talents are focused on attacking and capturing those she would otherwise fight alongside. It's always fun to see a villain defeat and capture a heroine; it's always MORE fun to see a fallen heroine forced to do it instead.

The WRITING - While it's still a bit rough around the edges in places, you're finding you're groove for these stories. "Resort Tales" tone was all over the place (from funny to scary to tragic, sometimes between panels), but this is consistently hitting the same sort of goofy, sexy, superheroic peril fun I think most of us enjoy from these stories. For starters, it's good to see less complicated and abrupt story details and detours - you seem far more focused and confident, and it shows in the story and art. Characters are acting consistent now, plot points flow into each other, and the pacing of the issues is much improved. Like you're art, you've gotten much, much better over a short amount of time.

So, there ya go. I'm very eager for more. Looking forward to it, so keep up the good work.

[Trishbot]

I told Tek this before, and I still think it's true, but this is my favorite story he's done so far. I'm really enjoying it.

I've developed a thing for Tulia. I like how she's sort of a "free-will" servant and lover to Irene, who does what Irene says not because she has to but because she likes doing it. It's a nice change of pace.

Also... Sparrow and Notre Dame. YES!!!