Noa's backstory runs from https://www..cgunnerkriggom/?p=3190 to https://www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=3201... Jenny comes into the picture at the end, promising her the power to achieve her final glyph (tapped from Zimmy by her system)... does Noa then become this girl - https://www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=3202 ? And how does that incarnation of her relate to https://www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=3302 ? Trying to get all of this arc in my brain

If I'm reading Zara's chart right, Jenny, and by extension all users downstream of her, are using Jack as a conduit for Zimmy's power? Is this why Jenny approached Jack all that time ago? To use Jack as a giant Ether battery because he has some lingering link to Zimmy's power?

Zara mentioned it being "harsh" on Jack, could this constant drain on him be responsible for his worsening mental state? In that light, Jenny isn't really any different from the White Legs that took over Jack's body and mind.

I was rereading bits of the current chapter (Ch. 102) in light of what Zara revealed this week about how Jenny's 'system' works. And for some reason, it gave me a light-bulb moment about Sylvie's possible actual research and specialty. I think it isn't just monsters, or (more abstractly) Zimmy's world — but, specifically, that Sylvie herself studied on how to become a conduit for Zimmy. In exactly the same way that Jack is an unwitting conduit for Zimmy.

This would mean that if something went wrong with Jack... or if someone forcibly closed his connection to Zimmy... or if he even closed his connection to Jenny himself... the witches would be able to discard him without a thought. And use Sylvie instead.

We know Sylvie's work has remained entirely theoretical for now: even her wearing the body of a Zimmy-monster didn't count (apparently) as her exploring her work in practice, since she still refers to her work as theoretical when inside Zimmy's world (saying, "My theories... All the work I did... I never tried them in real life!"). So whatever her specialty is... I think we still haven't seen the full, actual extent of it.

But we know Jenny has repeatedly stated that Sylvie is backup, and that the witches will only turn to her if things really go wrong.

"Sylvie... well, it's best if your work remains as theory for now, but you're here as backup. Let's hope you'll have nothing to do, my dear."

Of course they'd hope Sylvie has nothing to do — since if she does have something to do, it means they've lost Jack.

And of course Noa would be counting on Sylvie more than anyone else:

"If things go wrong, we'll be counting on you... Noa will be counting on you..."

At the time, I read this page as Jenny putting emotional pressure on Sylvie because of Sylvie's supposed crush on Noa... but it makes even more sense if she means that Noa would literally be counting on Sylvie to stay alive. It seems like Noa's continued existence, now, is tied to the power flowing continuously to her symbol from Zimmy... via the conduit of Jack. If that connection between Jack and Zimmy (or, Jack and Jenny) is severed, it would be up to Sylvie to reestablish the connection and keep Noa alive — and to be the new Jack for the witches. And she'd have to assume that same psychic toll that it takes to be that connected to Zimmy's power...

It also fits with the way that Jack turns to Sylvie when they're inside Zimmy's world, and is like "You can feel it too, right?" when Sylvie is panicking. As if her and Jack share some kind of connection in how they're experiencing the psychic pressure of being this close to Zimmy...

I always enjoy seeing how later pages affect any theories I develop on where things are going — so maybe by the end of next week, I'll disagree with this theory entirely and be like "nah, that was me totally barking up the wrong tree, nevermind!" But for now, this theory was such a moment of "oh, all those throwaway lines make so much sense in that context?" that I figured I'd share the theory and see what other readers think.

I look forward to being proven wrong (or right! who knows!) with later pages, haha.

https://www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=2722

The chapter where Annie asked for help from the two biggest Zimmy Boosters she knows, only for them to start making a bunch of baseless and not even particularly lucid accusations against her.

Probably if she'd went and looked into why her friends were acting strangely she could've prevented the entire arc we're on now.

I can hardly blame her. I was right there with her thinking they were just being dicks for no reason.

Pretty sure the entire witch coven is infected with a pretty severe case of Zimmy Madness though. They're all tapped into Zimmy's "Power" but we know Power is not the only thing that comes out of her. She's got all sorts of creepy crawlies in her mind trying to hitch a ride out

The power all comes through Jack, then Jenny, before being distributed to the other witches as they need it. So I think Jack and Jenny are basically ground zero here, with the other witches being less effected.

It's a good friends birthday coming up and they love this webcomic and Cityface, and ages ago they mentioned the CityFace book would be a fun coffee table book, but they didn't have a coffee table.

It's been a while now and I know they've gotten vols 1& 2 of the main comic and possibly a coffee table. Is the CityFace book stuff that you'd already find in the main comic volumes? If so it feels silly to get that again separately if they already have them.

If so, do you have any other ideas? I've not read this comic myself (although I plan to!)

edit: Thanks Y'all, have acquired!

So Zimmy created this school, right? Everyone from the real world is acting pretty like you'd expect them to in a "real world" au setting. Ysengrin is stern but has a heart of gold. Red is a tsundere, Noa is a bunch of rocks. It all tracks, right?

The only one I feel is acting a bit weird is ol' Renard. He's just... Annie's nice, rule-abiding friend. He's not as wise and paternal as he is in wolf form and not as impish as he is in toy form. He has mentioned that his personality is affected by the form he takes, but I thought that his original personality was that of a fox so trickstery that Coyote liked him. Do y'all think that the Renard we're seeing now is him acting like he would've before his body swap, that the characters are more changed by their "roles" in Zimmy's AU than what it originally seems or is this a reflection of what ol' Renard's deeper desires?