Tom Sewell

I kinda think Jerry could sense an extradimensional immigrant, since Immortals seem to travel freely between dimensions. Say, why was Jerry at that party, anyway? Isn't he mostly hanging around Susan? Neither Nanase nor Ellen have told Susan about Diane, even her name, until now. The only reason I can justify to myself is that Jerry picked up on not-Tengu hanging around and decided to do something about it. Jerry would "remember" something about Nanase from the story of how Susan got her mark, and if he's been watching Susan for awhile, would have seen Susan with Nanase or at least heard them talking through web or phone.

Well, it would be nice if they took turns being pregnant, but while Ellen could have some issues with being male (although she was perfectly okay helping Sarah and Grace creating a male V5 form), Nanase's already tried out being male and didn't seem to have any problem once she made the switch. Hey, she even made a "Manase" doll for Ellen. BTW, "Manase" is a valid Japanese name--for girls.

Stay tuned. It's been a very long time since we've seen the Other Woman or even heard her discussed. Perhaps it's about time Susan told someone else about how she sees herself in the Other Woman. One more thing Susan and Diane have very much in common is that they both are extremely protective of their families. Susan has just defended her father despite what he did; Diane loves Rhea despite Rheas insufferability. And Diane wanted Nanase to be sure whether or not Susan knew she was adopted before telling Susan about Diane. I think we may take the tone of Susan and Diane's developing relationship from the cover page: tentative, Probably neither one wants to tell their families yet. Of course, this being Moperville, they'll probably wind up being interviewed by Carol Brown together after or perhaps during the impending hellstorm.

Rhoda can't fly...or can she?

I kind of think Helen and Demetrius are in more danger. Remember how pissed Nanase looked when she figured out they'd been manipulating Lady Andrea? Jerry was just trying to help. Speaking of Jerry, wouldn't it be nice of him to actually tell Susan he's not all that sure?

Twins aren't the same person. Clones aren't the same individuals. I floated the Diane-is-an-alternate-universe-Susan theory quite some time ago. It's still possible but then there's that darned Other Woman With Susan's Face I seem to refer back to in every new thread these days. Maybe I should start a thread about the Other Woman? Mrs. Pompoms has always been drawn in a distinctive way that looks nothing like Susan or the Other Woman. Mr. Pompoms' face has never been shown at all--it's even blacked out in one panel. His hair isn't shown as blond. The Other Woman Susan sees in her mirror could be a false memory in the real world, but it's out-of-place in the Moperverse. And speaking of that memory, there's no evidence that Susan has ever told anyone else that she thinks the Other Woman really looked like her. A few days ago I posited that her mom's drinking could be linked to her mom realizing that Susan is looking more and more like the Other Woman. But we don't know if Mrs. Pompoms ever met the Other Woman or even saw a picture of her. I see the Other Woman as a Chekhov Gun: If you put a gun on the wall in the first act, it should be fired by the third. And since there's no evidence that any of the parents who raised Susan and Diane have magical powers, the Other Woman provides a reason for their powers. Plus it provides a great story hook: Susan and Diane searching for their birth mother.

Yes, I meant Diane. Corrected. Thanks.

Lucy's longest dialogue is about how wrong Elliot is for Diane. And Lucy is totally ignoring her date at the mall despite all the little hearts floating around his head. Gay or not, Lucy has seen the review show, so she knows that Susan looks and sounds like Diane. Lucy may also may have picked up on the chemistry between Elliot and Susan. So there's a better motivation than rivalry for Lucy to try to deflect Diane from Elliot: Diane could get hurt.

She's The Other Woman With Susan's Face. I see Susan having another flashback when she actually meets Diane.

Actually the German tanks of 1940 or 1941 were all vulnerable to 37mm antitank guns. It wasn't until they ran into the T34 that they were outmatched. We get the impression from war movies that all the German tanks were giant Tigers with 88mm guns, but there actually weren't that many of them. The most-produced German tank of the war, the Panzer IV, was actually smaller than our Sherman, although the later models had about the same armor protection and a better gun--but not an 88. We decided to concentrate on building a lot of Shermans before we faced the newer models or the improved older ones. BTW, our Abrams of today is armed with a gun designed by the same company which designed the Tiger's gun.

I think Susan was five and hadn't started school yet. Indicators? She couldn't read very well yet, and she hadn't met Sarah, who didn't know Susan was a blonde until they were in high school.

That's an intriguing idea, except that why does Lucy go out with Diane and not with Rhoda? But Rhoda does seem more plausible as a Gabrielle than Lucy, and Lucy's very first snarky remark is aimed at Diane, not Rhoda, and right after Diane has once again mightily impressed Rhoda. Diane hasn't been shown to be a true queen bee; the only girls who seem to follow her are Lucy and Rhoda. In this she's unlike Diane, who, of course, started the Feminist Club at her school. Why would this be so? My theory is that Diane is seen as a boyfriend-stealer while Susan isn't. And if I'm right about Lucy, this isn't an issue for Lucy and Rhoda.

Hmm. Let's see: Lucy is into Xena (like Catalina) Rhoda was crushing on Diane Lucy's never shown as being interested in a guy Admittedly, we haven't seen very much of Lucy over the years, but it doesn't seem to be too much of a stretch that Lucy would really like to eliminate the "double" part of all the double dates she has with Diane. Or that Lucy sees Rhoda as a rival.

I get the impression that if Lucy had punched that guy instead of Diane, we would have seen teeth flying. That extra bulk is mostly muscle.

Maybe there's a small indicator that the cheating cheater who cheated is Susan (and Diane's) biological father. Why would Mr. Verres know about the cheating cheater who cheated, particularly if he didn't know about Diane until today? How about the cheating cheater who cheated being someone Mr. Verres worked with? That is, a mage. It would tie in nicely with Susan and Diane having the same powerful magical affinity. And if the Other Woman With Susan's Face is their biological mother, it would make it even more likely. And if the cheating cheater who cheated is a Man in Black like Mr. Verres, it would also give a wonderful explanation for his apparent complete absence since the divorce. Kind of like Tedd's mom, maybe?

Or along with the venerable Bishop Occam, we can choose the simpler and more likely explanation of the genetics of the the blondness of Susan and Diane. And this also might explain why Susan's dad would make the incredibly stupid move of letting the Other Woman to his home where little Tiffany might see her. The other woman could have seen Susan's dad anywhere, but if she really came to look at her kid... Now if Susan's mom, the one that's raised her, knows Susan has a twin sister, why would she keep it a secret from Susan? I think a plausible reason is that she's contacted Diane's adoptive family (or had them investigated) and decided it would be best to let things stay as they are. That doesn't explain the hospital records Mr. Verres saw (or was told about), but those could have been altered by the application of the "bribery" spell. Why? How about a hedge against future custody fights, especially believable if Susan was an extra-legal adoption. It might have even Susan's dad who did the bribing. Here's something else to chew on. Take a look at the very first sighting of Susan's mom. Notice the rather large glass in her hand? Is it possible that Susan's mom has noticed how Susan's looking more and more like the Other Woman as she matures?

The Shive commented how Susan's initial attitude to the idea of a sister was another similarity between Susan and Diane. Maybe that suggests a similar gradual acceptance is coming?

That could fit. Or be retrofitted. Tune in tomorrow. Or maybe wait for Part LXIV.

Taking another look at the last panel, I took another look at Lucy and thought about why she's so angry. Could it be that Lucy's packing a few extra pounds? (Probably more muscle than...not muscle.) Diane, on the other hand, is, let's face it, kind of skinny. Having a guy reminding her about carbs can be interpreted as "Hey, babe, don't go porky on me."

Susan knows her father cheated, so the possibility of half-siblings must have occurred to her before. And then there's that "Other Woman With Susan's Face." Either or both could explain why her surprise from the last page doesn't seem to last until this one. Or maybe some time has passed between the pages? Nanase doesn't seem to have told Susan yet that she suspects that the immortals who were guiding Lady Andrea onto the vampires were the same ones who recruited her and Susan. There's another really big shoe that could drop on Friday. Another similarity between Susan and Diane is that neither one of them wants to pursue a career in vampire control. Susan doesn't seem to have done any training; at least up until the vampire attacked her, Diane was much more interested in developing a real relationship. Maybe Greg will get a couple of new students?

Susan's mom (I hesitate to call her "Mrs. Pompoms" because I see her going back to her maiden name like, for instance, my ex-wife) does act privileged in some ways. On the other hand, she doesn't seem to have any servants to help her run that huge house, and she even does the cooking. It could be that The Shive just didn't want to draw a bunch of servants and maybe have to actually create them as characters, but, still, it seems odd.

Vwoom #1 “Where the Hell did that sword come from?”

Doubtful that Diane has change-blindness. Remember Sherlock Diane? Also, Diane's forte is stealth, which requires good situational awareness. If she were in my squad I'd put her on point. The only thing Diane was blind to for any length of time was her resemblance to Susan, and that only lasted a few days. What I could see is Rhoda shrinking herself to normal height for Diane, forgetting Catalina in her pocket for the moment, in case she's spotted. Or maybe down to doll size to sneak past Diane and Lucy. Speaking of Lucy, you all do remember she's the tallest of the regular female characters, don't you? Lucy might be even more likely to notice supersized Rhoda; she doesn't meet females taller than herself very often.

If Susan's mother knew she was adopted and has been covering that up this long, wouldn't she have considerable incentive to keep on keeping quiet? Especially if she had the birth records tampered with. Since we already have hybridized magical animals in the Moperverse--griffins--an elf fathering half-human children doesn't seem absolutely out of bounds. Remember, because magic. The Shive can do whatever He wants in the Moperverse He created, but I for one will be quite disappointed if He doesn't dispel at least one of these red herrings without midichlorians. BTW, have any of you out there gotten the reason why The Shive named George George?

You can't whack a chart with a laser pointer for emphasis. Or the heads of sleeping members of your audience. And the flashback I referenced before is actually titled “The Other Woman With Susan's Face” which seems a pretty explicit hint that she was Susan's mother. That page was made nearly ten years ago, and The Shive has also planted the idea that Susan's father might be Adrian Raven, but even if Susan's memory is ruled more fallible than Edward's background check, it's something that should come to Susan's mind when she sees Diane.