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

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.9.

Episode Notes:

• The shoe drops on our emotions, sparing the plot
• It’s nowhere near as bad as 5.4 for Jenny
• At the spoiler warning, skip ahead 30 seconds if you don’t want to hear how this is different than what happens in Buffy season 2 
• Which came first, the chicken(ing out of talking to Danny) or the egg(knowledgement of her Under-desires)
• The comb-over as slippery slope
• Jenny finishes the letter
• Wait, Taylor likes friends more than the mission? Taylor??
• Brian gives Taylor a vision of online school, but Coil gives her a vision of villainous good
• It might not be that relevant right now, but would Taylor admit to wanting glory?
• Jenny’s on high alert for the snake man behind the snake curtain
• If the choice is between Taylor and Skitter, she can only choose Skitter
• Danny underestimates Taylors power… as a young adult
• Look, no one’s gonna listen about their comb-over when you’re re-traumatizing them 
• Is parental “bullying” inevitable?
• Bye, Emma!
• Now we get to see Taylor be a full Undersider! Yay!!
• We're almost at peak fanfiction time, probably
• This chapter is breaking our hearts with the mom stuff
• Taylor's struggle in this chapter is for authenticity
• The allure of black and white thinking and the freedom of villainy
• Why is Coil so invested in Bitch, anyway?
• Jenny figures out who Regent's dad is, probably
• The name game!

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-09/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.8.

Episode Notes:

• Jenny was right about Alec!!
• Will Taylor sell her soul for the ferry?
• Jenny loves Coil........as a character
• Coil is making all his promises contingent on practicality, not virtue
• How much respect does Taylor have for the existing government, really?
• The heroes are already unelected leaders... how else are civics different in this world?
• Ah, the temptation of competent tyranny (and of influence!)
• Coil as a foil of Armsmaster: he's a GOOD manager and a better prepper
• What's Coil hiding behind his snake costume? And what does it meeeeean?
• Coil needs Taylor to provide a better temptation for herself
• The real temptation for us, the readers, are the warehouses full of dogs
• Regent, the 15-year-old with the most backstory ever
• Lisa's the Coil of the Undersiders
• How does Coil's secret plan fit with Lisa's cops and robbers view of the world?
• Okay, but does Coil control everything or not?
• The hubris debate
• Hang on, is this why the Undersiders keep winning?
• Taylor's the real reason Coil's putting his plan in motion right now
• Coil and Tattletale and the question of transparency
• Ted's predictions from his first reading

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-08/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.7.

Episode Notes:

• Jenny might call it a wreck-tangle, Ted might call it a cutscene
• We learn that the Undersiders couldn’t have won on their own…
• …and should focus up, especially when Tattletale is down
• Jenny walks us through the play by play of how she experienced all these reveals
• We don’t really know anything more about the Travelers, but we do now see why they’ve had such a strong featured role
• Coil’s playing the big game and cares about making a strong first impression
• Once Taylor understands what it would mean to turn in Coil, will she still want to?
• Diegetic and non-diegetic Coil foils
• Tinker or not, does the gear make the hero?
• Meeting Dauntless makes the chip on Armsmaster’s shoulder even clearer
• Unfamiliar villains = Armsmaster's Kryptonite
• Trickster performs on cue and Armsmaster gets Loki'd
• Taylor should avoid the bad working environment of Armsmaster's Protectorate
• Lisa can read Armsmaster this well...but she hasn't read Taylor?
• Upsides for Armsmaster in his grudge against Dauntless
• Taylor just can't escape those unintended consequences
• Taylor's too cool to admit to her own hero worship
• What do we know about Coil beyond vibes?
• Jenny still doesn't know what the story is about
• The fight sequences have been impressively novel each time
• Circus is so cool and we're jealous of her pocket dimension
• These villains don't seem murderous...so what's their plan for these heroes?
• The horniest Taylor's ever been

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-07/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.6.

Episode Notes:

• This was so satisfying; we’re so happy
• Taylor with the witty banter!
• Armsmaster is quickly rising as our main antagonist
• Taylor's bugs are gonna go viral
• Thank goodness Armsmaster is both competent and unlikeable
• Does Armsmaster have technological assistance in keeping his cool?
• Does psychic shielding imply there are psychics, actually?
• The Undersiders operate so well as a team. Unlike the Protectorate
• New boss theories! If only Armsmaster hadn't abandoned all his friends when he got pretty when he got powers
• A need for codpieces
• Taylor doesn't try to spare herself in combat. What a hero (sort of).
• Pushing the bug envelope
• Taylor is the person in this scene with the most information of anyone, and she’s the one who wins
• Taylor and Armsmaster may not be able to come back from this
• Armsmaster is a guy who resists being tangled
• Bitch and Taylor's mutual respect (heart eyes emoji)
• The contrast between Taylor's inward insecurity and her outward scariness is so delightful
• Unfounded accusations of Taylor stinging innocents
• Turns out Taylor's motivational underpinnings are mostly... Emma
• We attempt a scientific analysis of Velocity's power
• What if the rest of the novel is just fluff, but tense fluff?

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-06/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.5.

Episode Notes:

• Will the heroes finally apprehend Skitter? Couldn’t happen when Armsmaster has this much hubris
• Armsmaster did his homework and we like to see it
• An embarrassment of embarrassment
• The tension comes not from whether the foam will work but when their luck will run out
• The suspense is getting to Jenny, but she can’t talk herself into thinking they’ll actually get arrested 
• Is Taylor getting more comfortable with using human shields?
• Chekhov’s Emma
• Lifestyles of the Rich and Capable
• The foam industry(?)
• Sadly, no new details on the Assault/Battery relationship (other than their cool power combo)
• Crossing her event horizon lets Taylor focus
• Taylor’s back on a roof, but everything is bigger
• Wait, so, what is Armsmaster thinking about Skitter at this point?
• Predictions

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-05/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.4.

Episode Notes:

• The plan? Jenny loves to (not) see it even though it’s a bad idea
• Does the narrative demand Taylor lose this one? What if we really want her to win again anyway?
• Before we do any analysis, Jenny pitches a pun-based strategy: Waiters Undersiders
• We dig into the villainous nature of “embarrass them”
• Jenny introduces us to the boss: Bruce Whyne
• It’s chaos in Brockton Bay, villain-wise, and we can’t quite make out any bigger picture
• How $1.25M might change the Undersiders
• So… what would actually happen next if the Undersiders got arrested?
• Taylor’s identity as a hero comes up against the reality of the tangle
• The nature of her escapist fantasy has changed from triumphant to penitent
• She’s honest about the importance of her new friendships, even as she lies to herself about other things
• Reluctant props to Armsmaster
• Speculation about Lisa’s deal in this chapter
• All the heavy stuff aside, the Undersiders are a delight in this chapter
• Predictions

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-04/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow

Jenny and Ted discuss Tangle 6.3.

Episode Notes:

• There's awkwardness! And sexual tension!
• We anticipate seeing why Taylor will stall on turning in the Undersiders
• The shit that's going down: Kaiser's gang and/or Bakuda?
• This caseworker knows how to wield her power
• Weird that Taylor doesn't connect the dots between Brian's apartment and his ill-gotten gains...
• ...or between Brian's future and her planned betrayal
• Oh hey, an authority figure who doesn't suck!
• Taylor's bad at the appearances game even when she tries
• Taylor actually does a pretty good job at talking on her feet in this chapter -- when she knows what she wants, and doesn't get too much in her head
• Wildbow's attention to detail works in both fight scenes and love scenes! Who knew?
• We're calling it: Brian is definitely interested
• Brian gets caught in the tangle of his two lives
• Why is Taylor such a grandpa about Aisha's outfit?
• Male gaze vs. female envy
• Is Brian up for the Aisha challenge?
• She seems fun, though, we like her
• Nice subversion of superhero secrecy stories
• What if Taylor ends up in a position where she can't betray the Undersiders?
• Does Brian even have any secrets? Because we're hearing a lot that he doesn't and it's making us suspicious

Links:

• https://parahumans.wordpress.com/category/stories-arcs-1-10/arc-6-tangle/6-03/
• https://www.patreon.com/Wildbow