When last we left Spy Gal she had found out her husband, Jerry, was living a triple life as the founder of Valhalla and the villainous Third Man. Then she found out a whole bunch of other stuff. It’s been a rough day.
One of the things that was extremely important to me in this chapter–well, THE most important thing, if you must know–was getting Spy Gal’s reaction to this terrible news exactly right. By my standards. I say that because I’ll bet each and every one of you who regularly read SF have some idea of how this should be playing out. It’s one of those things that’s been coming a long, long time, so of course you’d have your own version in your heads. Some of you have already disagreed with how this is going. That’s okay. That’s part of the fun. I have very fixed ideas of who these characters are, but I know this story has been going on long enough that some of them mean just as much if not more to you. And you’ve got your fixed ideas as well.
I’ll say this: I’ve kind of long passed the point where I tell these characters what to do. They feel like real people to me, so I kind of let them tell me how they’re going to react to things. I never really thought that was a real thing, but I do now. They may live in my brain, but they live. That’s pretty exciting.
Big thanks to everyone who chimed in on the 7th Anniversary of SF. It’s not the biggest anniversary, but for some reason this one was a big deal to me. We’ve really gone the distance, haven’t we?
And sadly this isn’t the first time it happen to her, especially given her origin tale that also ended in heartbreak. š
Too true. Lucky in love she is not. Still, by all accounts, everything went well with her second husband… until the end.
Yup.
You really were a dufus, SG.
Now how long are you gonna sit and cry about it while the whole world is being attacked?
Frankly, I think she should just snap Jerry’s neck and then get on with saving the world and stuff.
Dang, dude. You are DARK.
I dunno, man. Considering her Origin story? I mean she is not a “nice” person. And Jerry seriously messed where he shouldn’t-a-been messin’.
I think that the first line would be even better with those statements interchanged: “I married- worse, I felt in love with a monster”. I think it has more impact. Even so, this strip is great and I was longing for it for a long time š
Have to disagree on the line, but I love that you’re thinking about it that hard. Much more to debate coming soon.
Ooh, mama’s gonna whip a fresh batch of whoop- your-narrow-behind that you ain’t NEVER gonna forget.
Oh, just you wait. I don’t know how anyone else will react, but my absolutely favorite thing about this chapter is where Spy Gal settles, emotionally, on the matter of Jerry.
“CAPTAIN SPECTACULAR’S LOOKING PRETTY GOOD RIGHT NOW, ISN’T HE, SPY GAL!” Someone needed to say it. Spy Gal got played, but quite frankly she was the one who made the choice to dump CS and take up with Jerry. She presumed to judge Captain Spectacular for wanting to find some peace and enjoy what time he had left. And what right did she have to do so? How many times is someone obligated to save the world? I think it says something about her own personality. Spy Gal has a lot of good qualities but she’s a rather selfish person underneath it all. She expects everything on her terms. When CS disappointed her she tossed him aside for someone who behaved the way she wanted rather quickly. We never got a glimpse of what her life was like with her unfortunate second husband Barry before C.O.W. (Cape of Wrath, always loved that name) killed him.
I appreciate your take, Andrew. I don’t know that I entirely agree, but I will admit that there’s room for your interpretation on all this. I think Spy Gal’s perspective on Cap is born of that great axiom “With great power comes great responsibility.” I don’t know how selfish that really is.
Rut Roh…that’s her “I’m gonna drown my husband in caterpillars” face, I’d know that anywhere.
Murmansk is still recovering from the time she drowned the winter ensemble of the Russian Ballet in caterpillars right in the town square. There was fuzz flying everywhere, inundating the passers-by…there wasn’t an azalea bush anywhere in the entire city that had a leaf on it for six months…
Oh, just you wait.
I feel awful for Spy Gal, she looks so hurt and angry and has every right to be. Jerry, on the other hand, (and this is a complement for Marc since the figure is so small, but so much is conveyed in that tiny figure) looks to be totally clueless. He has no idea, and probably never considered, how his “master plan” to win Spy Gal’s heart could hurt the person whose love he wanted most.
Good eye. Jerry’s reactions are pretty specific and I’m glad to see the time Marc is putting into them not go to waste!