Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.9.

Episode Notes:

• The lost chapter of Worm
• Can Grue set his darkness to auto?
• We compare Night to Mystery Men and Scholomance
• How does Night’s power actually work? And how can they possibly beat her?
• We’re at the point in the story where we can fill a battlefield with over a dozen familiar cape names
• Will any heroes take this chance to settle a grudge?
• Ted gets on board with violence
• Ghosts aren’t real, Crusader!
• Why do powers have a family resemblance?
• A return to Mom (and Dad) discourse
• Just how close was Regent to killing Rune?
• Taylor knows the answer won’t change anything, so why is she asking Grue if he’s okay?
• The damage is really piling up over time
• Some Panacea theories

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-09/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.8.

Episode Notes:

• The pleasures of hidden plans
• What’s that? More power interactions? Hooray!
• Who needs romance when you have synergy
• Once again, knowledge is power
• Speaking of which, when are people going to learn not to underestimate Skitter?
• Despite its fallibility, Grue’s darkness is clutch!
• Wait, so, if his insides are hooks…? Huh?
• RIP legs
• Do morals get in the way of combat effectiveness?
• Coil's soldiers feel like red shirts even though they’ve all survived
• Oh yeah, this fight is definitely going to be worse than the one against the ABB
• Do Hookwolf and Kaiser ever get jealous of each other?
• Empire Eighty-Eight might have a too-many-capes problem
• Oops all Wolverines?
• Two adjectives are enough to give us major Regent feels
• The Taylor & Alec relationship hasn't really settled into a shape yet
• Is Brian trying to live up to Taylor's view of him?
• Brian's transparency vs. his one-way perceptions
• Cliffhangers vs. anticipation
• The Undersiders' powers vs. Purity
• We're rooting for a widespread baby-snatching program. And also more single-minded villain dads.

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-08/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.7.

Episode Notes:

• A disas(terous chap)ter!
• Credit where credit is due, Brian was NOT being paranoid
• Neither was Lisa, in that crossing this line leads to bad places
• What were they thinking, taking Aster like that? Both in principle and pragmatically
• Or did someone kick the hornet’s nest? (BUZZ BUZZ)
• Purity's white power, literally
• The thing is, there are a LOT of hornets
• Jenny assumes Coil is holding yet undropped shoes
• Even based just on what we’ve seen from E88 by the end of the chapter, this fight isn’t gonna go well for Skitter
• Taylor has to cover up in front of Brian because her hero is showing
• Brian disappoints Taylor and she shames him
• What if this all had happened before she confessed?
• Lisa splits the difference without taking a moral stance
• Jenny lays down her marker about what the story is about

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-07/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.6.

Episode Notes:

• Sophia: uh, wow, disturbing
• Worm ideology
• The real worm was the power we got along the way
• Sophia calls Taylor a coward but turns out Taylor's rubber and she's glue
• Re-hashing Emma theories
• Oops, reverse racism
• Keeping the bullies relevant
• Sudden Danny feelings
• Give Taylor a good boy fight any day
• She’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing in wolf’s clothing
• Taylor’s so honest, but Brian wouldn’t lie, right?
• This story doesn't need the will they/won't they narrative engine
• On a reread, Ted can’t accept that it was all in Taylor’s head
• If Brian won’t get in touch with his feelings, we will!
• Responsibility, stereotypes about women, control, and trauma
• Taylor is finally looking up dog psychology and Jenny feels so vindicated

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-06/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.5.

Episode Notes:

• Jenny was not expecting this trope!
• Taylor gets her perv on
• Was this kiss poetry or a subtle use of power?
• It certainly wasn’t subtle that Taylor was doing this to prove something to Sophia
• Brian keeps his cool
• Why have Sophia in this scene?
• The things Taylor likes most about Brian
• Alternative sleeping arrangements
• Taylor as Brian’s confidante
• Alec is the odd one out in terms of closeness to Taylor
• The costume metaphor of it all
• How seriously will Lisa take Brian’s demands of Coil?
• Predictions and names

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-05/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.4.

Episode Notes:

• The principle of pivot chapters
• This doxxing is fine. The timing, maybe not
• Can Bitch have a villain origin story if she's already a villain?
• Sorry, Lisa, turns out the unwritten rules are fake
• Lisa might actually have a conscience?
• The realness of neo-Nazis has us feeling differently about this whole thing
• Coil's already blending the cape and civilian worlds
• Lisa might be feeling a little powerless right now
• BitchBug. It's canon. You heard it here first.
• The lesbian coding of Bitch's sex advice
• Taylor's building a foundation of honesty with Bitch (for their eventual romance)
• What if Taylor followed Bitch's advice, though?
• Taylor the Bitch-whisperer
• Brian's misplaced Socratic method
• One way or another, the Undersiders will have to level up
• Passive bully victim Taylor is nowhere on the scene
• Does Brian want to be in charge?
• Kaiser's a nepo baby

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-04/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.3.

Episode Notes:

• It’s almost lunchtime, and we know what that means…
• Here’s Skitter!
• Just how rational is this brutality? And how disturbing?
• We greatly prefer a coldly rational combatant to a tropey Hollywood hero
• When Taylor fights, she leaves nothing on the table
• Surprisingly, Bitch holds steady while Taylor escalates
• Will this situation push Bitch toward taking Coil’s deal? 
• She doesn’t just have collies, she has colleagues!
• E88 are an uncomfortable presence in Brockton Bay and in Worm
• Share your swarm body Skitter fanart, please!
• Murder as initiation
• Taylor’s method of habitchuation

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-03/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.2.

Episode Notes:

• Bitch: a mystery box that's just as good when it's open!
• Bitch is just Undersiding for the dogs
• Taylor's working so hard at equalizing the dynamic
• Bitch as a chosen name rather than a cape name
• Bitch is a dog healer!
• Bitch brings out Taylor's impulsive side
• Power synergy in a non-combat situation!
• Dogs in packs, being socialized
• Wildbow is good at avoiding repetition
• We don't think Taylor's getting punched
• Self-soothing via bug viewfinder
• Are humans Coil's bugs?
• The recurring theme of helplessness
• What if Bitch gets attacked in a warehouse full of untrained dogs?
• The most prominent Worm so far
• With great power comes great people coming along to restrain your power

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-02/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Buzz 7.1.

Episode Notes:

• It’s a loft chapter!
• Why Bitch trusts Taylor and not Coil
• What Bitch, Alec, and Taylor have in common (or not), family-wise
• Alec has one foot out the door
• We’re heartbroken
• What, if anything, is Alec feeling?
• Well, he definitely felt something about Taylor’s bullies
• Taylor might need to keep a close eye on Alec…
• … or maybe not! He’s really tough to read
• With Heartbreaker out there, no wonder people are scared of Canary (and Gallant!)
• SomeBuzz
• The sparring is a symbol… of some future plot or something
• Brian’s a team lead but not a manager
• Taylor looks to Lisa to fill Brian in about Danny
• The Undersiders don’t share their personal feelings about Coil’s promises
• How pure are Taylor’s motives in joining Bitch for work?
• Predictions and names!

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-7-buzz/7-01/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.x.

Episode Notes:

• We're so invested in Canary
• Jenny is incensed about the "justice" system
• Feeling safe vs. being safe
• Wildbow is a master of adjusting our allegiances
• Canary the revolutionary?
• We analyze some power classifications
• We want to know so much more about this Birdcage tech!
• Dragon passes the vibe test
• How does the Birdcage deal with teleporters?
• Turns out Lung is funny! And surprisingly straightforward
• Tinkers sampling other capes' powers
• Bakuda and Taylor, united in sacrificing their bodies for combat
• Lung is calling the bluff of contingency planning
• We'd really like for either Bakuda or Lung to live to cause further trouble
• Canary is a cautionary tale for Taylor
• Bugs vs. drones, who would win?
• Jenny can't wait for the Undersiders to break into the Birdcage to rescue Bitch
• Bluey is obviously a paracanine

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-x-interlude/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow