ChronosCat

Wow, this is at the worst end of the range of possibilities I predicted - and that's before we get to the part where we learn Magus doesn't trust Ellen to make her own decisions. (He knows Tedd has the TFG, so it should be pretty obvious even without knowing about Tedd's newest powers that it would be easy for Ellen to assume male form. Sure the TFG's effects are temporary, but it can be re-applied, and at any rate the fact that she has yet to even assume male form once when it is in her power to do so should go to show that having a male form isn't a high priority for her if it's something she has any interest in at all.)
I have a suspicion that Magus is actually quite conflicted about this issue and is doubling down on his prejudice in an attempt to justify his previous decisions and actions. This reads to me more like someone who is trying to convince themselves of their arguments than someone who is perfectly confident in what they're saying. Of course that only provides some hope he might be able to change, it doesn't help anything in the mean-time. (Edit: Come to think of it, it might just make things worse in the mean time.)
On a lighter note, yay for starburst background in six! (Although actually the image of smiling Terra in panel four lifts my spirits far more than a cool background in an unhappy panel.)
It would be rather nicely ironic to have Mr. "I Became A Man To Be Stronger" beaten by the super-powered female form of someone who spends most of his time in male form...

Wow, this is at the worst end of the range of possibilities I predicted - and that's before we get to the part where we learn Magus doesn't trust Ellen to make her own decisions. (He knows Tedd has the TFG, so it should be pretty obvious even without knowing about Tedd's newest powers that it would be easy for Ellen to assume male form. Sure the TFG's effects are temporary, but it can be re-applied, and at any rate the fact that she has yet to even assume male form once when it is in her power to do so should go to show that having a male form isn't a high priority for her if it's something she has any interest in at all.)
I have a suspicion that Magus is actually quite conflicted about this issue and is doubling down on his prejudice in an attempt to justify his previous decisions and actions. This reads to me more like someone who is trying to convince themselves of their arguments than someone who is perfectly confident in what they're saying. Of course that only provides some hope he might be able to change, it doesn't help anything in the mean-time. (Edit: Come to think of it, it might just make things worse in the mean time.)
On a lighter note, yay for starburst background in six! (Although actually the image of smiling Terra in panel four lifts my spirits far more than a cool background in an unhappy panel.)
It would be rather nicely ironic to have Mr. "I Became A Man To Be Stronger" beaten by the super-powered female form of someone who spends most of his time in male form...

Yeah, it was a thoughtful, well written story (or so I thought at the time; it's been years since I read it) but some of the world building was depressing. One thing that always stuck with me though was the idea that giving people the ability to change their forms easily would not necessarily end prejudice and discrimination, it might just change how they are applied and who suffers the most from them.

My bet is on him having been assigned female at birth, and using magic to change sexes later in life, but not bothering to change his legal name.
At any rate, note how he says that "people in this universe might find [the nickname Magus] less strange than my actual name", with emphasis on the "this" in "this universe". This implies that whatever the explanation is, people in his own universe wouldn't find it strange.

Susan was willing to play the game, at least in part, because the transformations that would happen to her would be outside her control.
But now she must chose a temporary transformation.
She must make that choice knowing that it is her choice alone.
She must make that choice knowing that the others around her know that it is her choice alone.
If you go into someone's home for a meal, you eat what you are served.
If you go to a pot-luck or buffet, your choices are limited to what has already been prepared and presented.
But if you are handed a menu, then the servers, the kitchen staff, and anyone who sees your dishes being presented knows that you have asked for that specific meal.
It can, at times, be difficult to publicly admit "I want this".

So it's confirmed, Catalina and Rhoda are both switches.  :-)

Well, he's a possibility too - but only if DGB stored his statue form in the warehouse, which given his track record seems like a poor choice to make. I think it's more likely he'll wake up in a secret prison somewhere, attempt to break free, and if successful track down Magus in a later story.

It is hard to imagine oneself in such a predicament as Magus was in, and who knows who he might have left behind that he felt desperate to return to, but, while I certainly wouldn't classify myself as a hero, I would like to think I would have either tried to find another way to contact Elliot and Ellen to ask for help (Pandora taught him to foul up machines and amplify emotions; use the same discipline that he needed to learn magic to figure out a way to foul up Tedd's machines in a pattern that shows intelligence and amplify Tedd's curiosity until she figures out someone intelligent is trying to make contact), or accept one's fate instead of violating Elliot and Ellen and risking Sirleck gaining a mage as a host.  That said, Magus has certainly revealed himself to be a very nuanced person in this arc.  He still qualifies as a villain in my mind.,
Plus, I think that Elliot will make sure Ashley and Ellen are gotten to safety once he as verified that Magus means them no further harm, but that look on Elliot's face promises an eventual beat down is imminent.

The Hawk has hatched. Little mice better beware. (Wait, Pandora says he's going to "grow". This being EGS we can't rule it out, but I doubt she meant the "grow" literally. So does that mean he's going to get even more powerful? Was she referring to something else besides returning to the physical plane when she talked about him "hatching"? Or did she over-complicate her analogy for the sake of drama?)
Also, I knew Sirleck wasn't boss material (at least from a combat perspective).
Ding dong the witch vampire is dead!
Sirleck is creepy, and she wasn't expecting him to suddenly appear. I'm sure if the battle had lasted long enough for her to help, she would have.
Or at least a red flag that Magus knew Sirleck was planning on possessing him, and was prepared.
Incidentally, this more-or-less confirms the theory that when Magus seemingly-accidentally hinted to Sirleck that he'd be a good host, he knew exactly what he was doing. This guy is crafty (which, actually, is a little surprising for an Elliot).

The Hawk has hatched. Little mice better beware. (Wait, Pandora says he's going to "grow". This being EGS we can't rule it out, but I doubt she meant the "grow" literally. So does that mean he's going to get even more powerful? Was she referring to something else besides returning to the physical plane when she talked about him "hatching"? Or did she over-complicate her analogy for the sake of drama?)
Also, I knew Sirleck wasn't boss material (at least from a combat perspective).
Ding dong the witch vampire is dead!
Sirleck is creepy, and she wasn't expecting him to suddenly appear. I'm sure if the battle had lasted long enough for her to help, she would have.
Or at least a red flag that Magus knew Sirleck was planning on possessing him, and was prepared.
Incidentally, this more-or-less confirms the theory that when Magus seemingly-accidentally hinted to Sirleck that he'd be a good host, he knew exactly what he was doing. This guy is crafty (which, actually, is a little surprising for an Elliot).

The Hawk has hatched. Little mice better beware. (Wait, Pandora says he's going to "grow". This being EGS we can't rule it out, but I doubt she meant the "grow" literally. So does that mean he's going to get even more powerful? Was she referring to something else besides returning to the physical plane when she talked about him "hatching"? Or did she over-complicate her analogy for the sake of drama?)
Also, I knew Sirleck wasn't boss material (at least from a combat perspective).
Ding dong the witch vampire is dead!
Sirleck is creepy, and she wasn't expecting him to suddenly appear. I'm sure if the battle had lasted long enough for her to help, she would have.
Or at least a red flag that Magus knew Sirleck was planning on possessing him, and was prepared.
Incidentally, this more-or-less confirms the theory that when Magus seemingly-accidentally hinted to Sirleck that he'd be a good host, he knew exactly what he was doing. This guy is crafty (which, actually, is a little surprising for an Elliot).

Okay, we've learned these new things in today's comic:
Magus paid attention in class at Battle Mage University (BMU). Magus qualifies as a Hunter in the Moperverse Ashley can scream at least as loud as Screaming Girl and that girl being chased by the vampire Susan killed at the mall. Some of the windows on the second floor do have glass in them (or did) Magus just knocked around a bunch of crates containing magical items that are no longer inactive. But that's probably not going to be a problem or anything, is it?

It's confirmed, Ellen was able to fight back because she's just that awesome. Er, I mean because she was born from magic. (And yes technically it's just speculation in-comic, but the commentary implies she's right about the "born from magic" idea.)
Meanwhile, Sirleck looks even more creepy than usual in the last two panels, but a lot less imposing. Seen from that angle, he looks like the sort of JRPG monster you can beat in two or three turns at most if you're the proper level for the area. ...Which is rather appropriate since I expect Magus is about to trounce him.

It's confirmed, Ellen was able to fight back because she's just that awesome. Er, I mean because she was born from magic. (And yes technically it's just speculation in-comic, but the commentary implies she's right about the "born from magic" idea.)
Meanwhile, Sirleck looks even more creepy than usual in the last two panels, but a lot less imposing. Seen from that angle, he looks like the sort of JRPG monster you can beat in two or three turns at most if you're the proper level for the area. ...Which is rather appropriate since I expect Magus is about to trounce him.

I like the 1st bonus strip on Patreon best.
 

It's confirmed, Ellen was able to fight back because she's just that awesome. Er, I mean because she was born from magic. (And yes technically it's just speculation in-comic, but the commentary implies she's right about the "born from magic" idea.)
Meanwhile, Sirleck looks even more creepy than usual in the last two panels, but a lot less imposing. Seen from that angle, he looks like the sort of JRPG monster you can beat in two or three turns at most if you're the proper level for the area. ...Which is rather appropriate since I expect Magus is about to trounce him.

If Elliot's current curse, as interpreted by the Diamond, is being possessed by Magus, then - the unmodified effect - of touching the Diamond would be:
1) A copy of Elliot that
1a) is permanently possessed by Magus,
1b) and can cause other people to be possessed by Magus
AND
2) A copy of Elliot that is can turn "I am possessed by Magus" on and off at will.
I can't see why either Elliot or Magus would consider #1b or #2 desirable.
For that matter, #1a doesn't seem particularly good from Magus' perspective. He doesn't want to possess someone else, he wants his own body. He wants just a copy of Elliot's body, not a complete copy of Elliot's body mind and soul.
But Magus said he intends to modify the effect of the Diamond - possibly shattering the object in the process. And he is a reasonably powerful (and at least somewhat educated) magic-user, in his own world. Perhaps he succeeds in producing different effects.
----
As for the comment of Susan's fairydoll spell looking a lot like Nanase's: that's because Nanase made all the inanimate fairydolls that Susan put in her marked box and summons magical copies of.

It's confirmed, Ellen was able to fight back because she's just that awesome. Er, I mean because she was born from magic. (And yes technically it's just speculation in-comic, but the commentary implies she's right about the "born from magic" idea.)
Meanwhile, Sirleck looks even more creepy than usual in the last two panels, but a lot less imposing. Seen from that angle, he looks like the sort of JRPG monster you can beat in two or three turns at most if you're the proper level for the area. ...Which is rather appropriate since I expect Magus is about to trounce him.

It's confirmed, Ellen was able to fight back because she's just that awesome. Er, I mean because she was born from magic. (And yes technically it's just speculation in-comic, but the commentary implies she's right about the "born from magic" idea.)
Meanwhile, Sirleck looks even more creepy than usual in the last two panels, but a lot less imposing. Seen from that angle, he looks like the sort of JRPG monster you can beat in two or three turns at most if you're the proper level for the area. ...Which is rather appropriate since I expect Magus is about to trounce him.

It's confirmed, Ellen was able to fight back because she's just that awesome. Er, I mean because she was born from magic. (And yes technically it's just speculation in-comic, but the commentary implies she's right about the "born from magic" idea.)
Meanwhile, Sirleck looks even more creepy than usual in the last two panels, but a lot less imposing. Seen from that angle, he looks like the sort of JRPG monster you can beat in two or three turns at most if you're the proper level for the area. ...Which is rather appropriate since I expect Magus is about to trounce him.

He's free! After all these years, Magus is free!

Just keep in mind that kids with actual, documented disorders have a notoriously difficult time getting them recognized and getting the services they need.  I find it a lot more likely that the district was deliberately obstructive and derelict in their duties to kids with genuine need, in order to avoid having to pay a dime more than the state would cover.  When the state raised the percent they'd cover, there were plenty of needy kids waiting, so of course they were able to meet the new limit -- and if the state hadn't had such a low limit, there were many more kids who should have gotten services who were denied strictly for budgetary reasons.
Honestly, which do you think is more likely -- that there's a vast conspiracy between the school district and hundreds of doctors to convince thousands of parents that their kids have disorders they don't really have, or that the state and the district are too cheap and/or financially strapped to pay for services for every kid who should get them, and simply refuse to acknowledge any more of them than they think they can afford?

Arthur wouldn't have had time to get extra agents to the facility, but he might have had time to make a quick call to the security guard. That might explain the lights being on (and would probably mean there are other things different from usual, perhaps some security spells active that wouldn't normally be), but it doesn't explain why there's no car. Unless the security guard's response to the news that the old artifacts were active was to get the heck out of there...

If Inger Støjberg got sacked, kicked out of Parliament and sent down to Den Haag to stand trial for crimes against humanity, I would party for at least a week. But I freely admit I wouldn't expect the American populace to care very much.
Because antidepressants have nothing whatsoever to do with happiness. That is sheer superstition. It is medication prescribed for a biochemical imbalance in the brain that causes depression. It allows those who suffer from clinical depression (such as me) to operate at a level much closer to normal. It takes the edge off the worst depressive episodes so I, for example, don't actively contemplate suicide. What it doesn't do is make me happy. In order to be happy, I need something in my life that would, say, make people who AREN'T subject to depression happy.

Still another way of putting it is that she flooded Ellen with an entire lifetime of memories without her informed consent, which however well intentioned can still only be classified as a violation of her mind and spirit.