That power dampener has been on Spy Gal’s arm for sooooo long, that some of you probably think it’s part of her outfit (I know some of you do–the fan art proves it!). Can’t remember why she had it on in the first place? Click on back to SF 11 (!) to see how it all started.
There’s a gas station on my way home from work where, 90% of the time I go there, someone asks me for money. Yesterday, it happened again. This time, I was the only one at the pumps The old black man in a wheelchair and army jacket was far away, up against the outer wall of the mini-mart. I’d never seen him before–it’s never same person twice, but it’s always somebody.
I cursed myself for not making eye contact for fear he would ask me for that which I’d worked hard for (well, worked for anyway). Assuming someone is a beggar is a pretty rotten assumption to make. It wasn’t until I put the pump back on the handle and turned his way that I realized what I thought was the grunting of a crazy homeless man was, in fact, him asking me for “spare change.” I told him I didn’t have any, which was a lie.
Let me back up. My policy is to give when people ask for it, if I have it. The guy near the McDonald’s two weeks ago got two bucks off me. I emptied my pockets for the woman at the grocery store a month back. I was glad I had more quarters than I thought I did. It’s the right thing to do and it sets a good example for my daughters. It’s not my place to judge anyone’s situation. If someone asks me for help, I give them the benefit of the doubt and give what I can. No, I’m not rich. Times are pretty tight right now and it’s been an unusually bad year, financially speaking. But I do what I can.
Sometimes, I like to do a little more than just give money. If you have a sickly look and stumble towards me before asking, I’ll usually put a caveat on my gift. If you tell me you won’t use it for booze, then you get the money. I’ll take your word. Most everyone makes the promise, but not all. Once, this one guy said, to his credit, “Nah, man. That’s alright.” And he walked away.
But it seems my generosity does have its limits. There’s something about not being able to go to certain places without the bother of someone asking me for what’s in my wallet. When I can count on it happening, it feels intrusive. I get irritated. I get impatient and I won’t make eye contact with people when I pump gas at that one station. When the man in the wheelchair asked me for money yesterday, I was bothered enough by it that I completely forgot I had change in my pocket. I didn’t have any bills in my wallet, but I could have given him my change if I’d been less focused on getting home quickly and how bothersome it was to not be able to pump gas in peace . Sure, I didn’t have much. Maybe 25 cents in pennies and nickels. But it was better than nothing. Which is what I told him I had.
Then, I got back in my car, cued my shiny new iPod back up, and drove away. I felt pretty darn wealthy in that moment and I didn’t like the feeling. At all. Next time, I hope I do better.
What about you? What do you do when someone asks you for monetary help?
ITEM! The Washington Post is looking for nominations for the best webcomics of 2011. The usual suspects are called out in the article–PVP, Hark! A Vagrant, Penny Arcade, xkcd, etc.–but maybe there’s room for an underdog? I dunno. If you think SuperFogeys is good enough to rank or you have another webcomic in mind as the best of 2011, why not head on over to the Washington Post and drop a comment? Or, you can email your nomination to comicriffs@washpost.com!
ITEM! Traditionally, The SuperFogeys takes a break for a couple of weeks around Xmas to make way for guest strips. Since we just had the big 5th Anniversary Celebration and all those great chapter recap guest strips, I’m not sure how much interest there is out there for another round of Xmas guest strips (not that they have to be Christmas or Holiday-themed–that’s just when we do them). What say you? If you’re interested in participating, please let me know in the comments below.
ITEM! You are pretty cool. How do I know this? You read SuperFogeys. Thought you should know.
Awwwwwww, yeah!
Heh.. donut-tron….
Can’t take credit for the nickname, but it is apt!
OH, YEAH, this is allll sorts of awesome. I’m liking this.
Maybe Jerry will feel remorse for putting Spy Gal in harm’s way with that power dampener still on her like that? I know. Didn’t stop him from sitting tight while she fought the giant troll. Just thinking though. Hey, you’re right, I did notice some fan art that had power dampeners on both her wrists like they were a costume piece.
There’s no doubt that when you unleash a giant robot onto a city some unexpected things are going to happen. Is this one of them? I leave that up to you guys.
This is gonna be good!
Well that just upped the value of my Spy Gal action figure. Too bad, second edition-ers!
Congrats! (I only wish it were real.)
I suppose they could just come out with a Donutron/Spy Gal combo set, with a removable power dampener.
[bleep] just got real.
Nice shot, Jerry. (It’s one possible interpretation.
)
All is fair game right now. But the end game… she approaches.
Finally – we get to see some serious Spy Gal action.
Which is more than CS will do unless he snaps out of it…
Hey man, CS is focused! When he gets that big win, you’ll wish you’d been nicer to him.
YEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSS!!! Oh it’s ON now! Or ‘off’, rather.
It’s both!
I was wondering bout that inhibitor. Did Jerry expect her to just sit back and watch the action or was his great plan going to backfire when he ends up getting her killed?
That tan-line’s going to take forever to fade though.
Thank you for noticing the tan line! That was something Marc threw in there and it’s always nice when touches like that are noted.
Only ’cause CS was too much of a douche to remove said dampener in the first place.
Now Gene is in trouble.
I would seriously not want to be Gene right now. Speaking of… where is that guy?
Yessssssssssssssssssssssssss. I have been waiting for that thing to be destroyed! Totally ready to see some Spy Gal kicked-into-high-gear action now!
I don’t know, man. That’s a biiiiig robot. If Spy Gal dies, I blame you.
You will blame no one but yourself, HEASLEY! You hold the lives of these people in your hands!!! No go forth and write bright futures with no conflict for each character!
That’s a great idea! Why oh why am I bringing down all this misery on these characters? Where is the fun in that?
Coming to SuperFogeys in 2012… Captain Spectacular and Spy Gal make up and go fight crime (that doesn’t exist anymore!) together, Jerry burns his Third Man suit and munches on jujubees for an ENTIRE chapter, Swifty finally gets some sleep and christens Elmo his new hero, Tangerine puts away the angst and becomes a motivational speaker for homicidal maniacs and serial killers, Star Maiden (if she’s alive) starts a children’s show about a talking bear that only her and the kids and can hear and becomes the next Shari Lewis, Soviet Sam finds a voodoo man who can bring back the dead and he and Money Man finally have that heart-to-heart and Sam gets the forgiveness he seeks, Dr. Rocket’s doctor calls with news that he read his chart upside down–no cancer!, Thrice Evil changes his name to just Thrice and becomes a benevolent genie who grants three wishes and there’s no bad consequences to any of them ever, and Space Pig goes home and tells all the Space Pigs to stop being evil and they do!
SuperFogeys in 2012… it’s gonna be HUGE!
Yes, but it HORRIBLY backfired and the Money Man was a zombie! Soviet Sam has to kill him ALL OVER AGAIN! The horror! The agony! The self-inflicted guilt! Think about it. It would actually make an awesome story. lawls
I know this is still a part of Jerry’s over all plan. With Spy Gal’s power dampener gone he can encourage her to move beyond Valhalla and nudge her on to doing more and get her further and further away from the Captain and closer to him. Not to mention he now has the ability to cause more havoc and not have to worry about her being harmed in the process.
It’s going to be really cool to see her use her full potential now to phase into that robot and do some royal damage.
Donut-Tron. Hilarious!
Mhmm, Coined that one myself. Megatron x Donut= Donut-tron!
I can’t tell you how tickled I am that it stuck too. Don’t question. That’s how the equation goes.
Was it you? I freely admit that I lifted it from the comments. I loved the nickname that much.
Yes sir, it was. And for the greater good I have christened the robot such. Use it in good health. Spread the word. The word is ‘Donut-tron’. And it is good.
Todd, you make a good point. Despite his protestations, the dampener coming off does seem to fit right into Jerry’s plans…
Awesome. The only thing I can see going wrong with such a plan is that the power dampener kept Spy Gal at Valhalla where Jerry was. Now that Jerry can walk again he could perhaps check out of Valhalla and go with Spy Gal. However, this creates a paradox. And that paradox is that he is also Dr. Klein and has to stay at Valhalla in order to run it. I suppose, however that maybe he could get Dr. Rocket to create a Dr. Klein robot or clone or something? I take that back. No clones. Too cliche.
I don’t think he was completely planning on her doing something so reckless and crazy. I think his intention was to be the big hero and have her swoon into his arms over the smouldering Donut-tron wreckage and go “Oh Jerry! That Captain is such a tool, and I’ve been such a fool! My hero! ~faint~” Even including the rhyme.
But NO! She pissed it off. Took the shot. And in the microbreadth of a millisecond that the the was destroyed and IT’S power kicked off? She kicked hers in to safety. An extremely calculated risk.
But then again, why not? It’s what you do in vegas. You gamble.
Too true. And you present a compelling opposing argument to this being an unexpected turn of events. Unless she’s falls into Sam’s arms. He IS wailing on that robot’s foot after all. Or, she could say “I’m awesome” and walk away from all of them.
Spy-gal: “Oh Sam…. I never realized until I fell into your arms after being slapped by a giant robot, exactly what beautiful eyes you have.”
Soviet Sam: “Guh! I mean… Da. In soviet Russia, eyes have you….. Come. We elope now.”
And then they lived happily ever after. Am I right? Right??
Dang it. Now I gotta rewrite the ending of this chapter. Thanks a lot.
It’s my pleasure. And you’re welcome.
lol
I like that ending. We should make an April Fool’s fan comic out of it.
you know…I almost didn’t comment on today’s strip because i thought it was just well done and just a normal part of the story…(but looking back at ALL the other strips EVERY strip has it’s reason…)
I have a feeling now that this dampener is off things with spy gal and jerry’s alter ego Dr. Klein are about to get heated once this battle with the robot is over and done with. With the apparent death of Star Maiden, and swifty dealing with the drama inside the casino, along with our re-introduction to time traveling swifty the fun is ONLY just starting
On that, I heartily agree. Teasing much of anything past this chapter would be a HUGE spoiler at this point, but while this is Jerry’s end game, it is by no means the end of the story.
HAH! Pay me!
I think your self-satisfaction is more than enough!
Wait, she was wearing something on her arm? I was too busy looking into those big beautiful eyes….
They are quite pretty.
WOW!
Just as I started to get scared she was going to get cremated…
That woman has smarts! :`D (when she’s not being stupid around the Captain)
Oh! And THANK YOU! I can read the site now! Colours are perfect!
So glad you approve! I like it much, much better now as well. Thanks for your help.
“That power dampener has been on Spy Gal’s arm for sooooo long, that some of you probably think it’s part of her outfit.”
Actually, I’m wondering if the puff of smoke is discoloring her forearm, or the lack of sun exposure left her with an awkward tan line.
I can confirm that it’s a tan line. Marc did that intentionally. Good job picking up on it!
I actually thought it was the smoke. It’s awesome to know now that it is a tan line though!
I’ve been waiting for this to happen!
Oh this is going to be so good, bring on a pissed off spy gal rampage!
I’ve really tried not to make guesses and theories over the years, but I can’t stand it any longer. Actually, I’m thinking more along the lines of a Star Maiden rampage that takes out the robot and gives them a much worse problem. Jerry’s plan causes so much disaster and heart ache for those he thought he cared about that he is discouraged, disillusioned and forced to consider his actions in the next chapter. Where does the Cap fit in? It wouldn’t be Brock to have him just save the day which would be expected and cliche, but he is after all the only one able to match Star Maiden’s powers and Spy Gal has given him an awful big reason to face himself and make a choice. Then again, that’s possibly too big a step for CS since, last we saw, he still didn’t have the guts and backbone to say something to the guy who sucker punched his girlfriend and killed one of his best friends, the fake Dr. Rocket (I admit that he did however grow stronger in the sense that when the real Dr. Rocket, technically “back from the grave” due to Cap thinking he had died until Death M.D. revealed otherwise, came to Valhalla and Cap realized it was a second chance to restore he and his childhood best friend’s friendship, being sobered by what he thought had been his friend’s actual death; I think the Cap deserves some credit for that character growth despite his current failings). With that track record, in the end it will probably be Space Pig who pees, saving the day, ha ha. Given the chapter opening with Soviet Sam, chances are that Soviet Sam’s views on a hero (and a villain) and his self-esteem/self-image will play a part, probably influencing or relating to the Cap and his actions this chapter, and perhaps helping build the Soviet Sam character up a little too and hopefully a few steps toward getting out of his ages-long self-inflicted guilt trip (or maybe not; but I know those strips at the chapter’s open serve a purpose overall in this chapter). Either way, I’m seeing A LOT of action and disaster coming our way. I’m also seeing the Fogeys wonder what happen to their plane and having to buy some tickets for a flight back home, lol. Or maybe that’s just how I would write it? Only time will tell.
But, seriously, I’ve NEVER been able to guess correctly what would happen in any past chapter or situation, so I’m sure that even if I somehow magically won the lottery here, that there are still going to be unexpected twists and surprises. And I mean it. Guessing where Brock’s writing is going (because it’s just that good and unexpected it seems) is like hitting the lottery.
For the record, by this point I thought Spy Gal would NEVER have the power dampener removed. I just completely forgot the possibility that it ever would even be removed. Should have seen that coming but didn’t. I’m glad though that it’s gone. I had been wanting it gone for some time. And think of the comedic value in her phasing powers? lol
It’s time for grandma to kick some ass!
The problem is because Jery revealed everything to his younger self before all this happened so while he may have had an idea of what he wanted to do, he has no idea as to what will happen. I guessing that Spy Girl losing the dampner was not what he envisioned nor was the robot going beserk and destroying half the Vegas strip in the process. If what Future Swifty said is any indication of what is going to happen, Jerry will reveal himself to be the Third Man, Zurida will be making an appearance and we remember what happened the last time she and Spy Gal crossed paths…
( http://superfogeys.com/2010/08/10/sf-origins-spy-gals-secret-mission-pg-4-courtesy-call/)
I’m sure there are other things that are going to happen which will have lasting consequences.
http://superfogeys.com/2011/01/27/293-good-actor/ – Future Swifty alludes to robot rampage?
http://superfogeys.com/2011/01/20/292-everything-was-chaos/ – Star Maiden is missing.
http://superfogeys.com/2011/03/23/301-hmph/ – Spy Gal’s future.