Portrayals of...

[frameacloud]

Comic for the week of February 3, 2007.


I don't have anything against these ways that people have for coping with death and grieving. Any way that you're able to accept a loss and move on with life is just great! Unfortunately, some of the ways of looking at death don't work for me, so some kinds of well-meant reassurance doesn't have the intended effect.

Take a look at the date: I drew this last June, but I thought it was too far off-topic, so I just stashed it away in my notebook. Thanks for letting me know that you're okay with exploring other parts of life than therianthropy itself in my comic. The third panel originally had more text in it, but I erased some of it because I didn't want to offend some well-meaning authors.

I named a lot of the recurring characters last March, along with other specific individual traits, but I could never work them into a script! So let it be known that the protagonist in this week's comic is Theodore "Thuban" Brown, the same dragon who was in the very first comic. Although Thuban isn't literally me or anyone else I know, I've used him a few times in the comic to retell some of my own experiences through, and I've retold some of Kistaro's experiences through Thuban as well. None of the characters in Theri There are supposed to be specific people I know, so don't worry, I haven't charicaturized any of you in here. The most likely thing is that I'm using the characters to describe bits of myself, or generalized things of the therianthrope and otherkin communities, but there's no one-to-one relationship of a character to a real person.

You may also recognize the girl with the algiz rune sweater; she's a deer therianthrope named Rosanore. The woman in the first panel is hard to recognize because her hair is pulled back (and I didn't capture her face very well...) but she's another recurring character: a mountain lion therianthrope whose name I haven't settled on just yet, even though her personality seems fairly clear to me. I'll have to write out some character bios sometime.

[Edit 2017-04-03: Updated links.]

Comments

[draco18s.livejournal.com]

The "they're in a better place" line of reasoning

Exactly my thoughts. Comforting someone who's just experienced loss is not my strong suit. Besides, if they are in a better place, what the heck am I still doing here?

[silussa.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't say better; more like one door closing, another door opening.

But then, after you remember dying a couple of times, it does tend to take a lot of the "OMFG I'm going to cease to exist" edge off.

Note: Be grateful for endorphins; it explains why women, after bearing a child, don't rip the male's nads off. ;)

[draco18s.livejournal.com]

Yeah, and reincarnation has its perks too. }:=3)~
I don't remember dying, or even if I've had any past lives, but it's something I believe stongly in.

[silussa.livejournal.com]

Well, I kinda suspected it...but remembering it really, REALLY strengthens one's belief. *wry grin*

Although remembering dying.....eh, no fun at all.

NOTE: poison is NOT a clean way to die; it's a horrible mix of cold and asphyxiation, then numbness and asphyxiation. I suspect one soils oneself along the way, but I was quite past noticing.

[draco18s.livejournal.com]

I know this is a horrible thing to say, but...
*LAUGHS!* I'll be sure to remember to not poison myself.
Or fly into a hill, as someone else's memories have their dragon-life ending (ok, less fly and more "hurled by storm wind").

[silussa.livejournal.com]

Wasn't self-poisoning. Envenomed blade.

That's what happens sometimes when you get caught trying to steal someone else's stuff.

But yeah, it DOES sound kinda silly, won't argue that. *wry grin*

[draco18s.livejournal.com]

Note to self:
Don't steal unless you're playing ShadowRun. };=3)~