Endtown by Aaron Neathery for January 17, 2012

So, who’s the condescending TS’er?

“Dear, dear Flask. It’s so nice to see you again. See that handbasket near the door? Get in, your journey is about to begin. As for the rest you muties, would you prefer tin, aluminum or stainless steel?”

“It’s not fair?” Seriously? That’s all she has? What is she, 16?

Ohhhh… dear.

true we are about to find out flask past

and did you notice ? that topsider knows flask s name !

and that transporter isnt as nice as petey was he didnt side with them (maybe thats why he didnt say a word all this time)

I have a feeling that Topsider is the reason Flask is who she is today.

The Endtown mini-comic that I produced for Comicpalooza 2011 is now available to YOU for the offensively low price of $2.50 (price includes s&h, international add $1 for each copy ordered ). Besides sporting a snazzy full color cover, it contains an all-new 22 page story that is available nowhere else. And just because I feel like doing it, I’ll sign and personalize (if desired) each and every copy I mail out. Simply pay via PayPal using my email address, aaronneathery@gmail.com, and be sure to include your mailing address. If you can’t pay with PayPal, send payment to:Aaron NeatheryPO Box 920558Houston, TX 77292And, just so you know, I’m completely open to donations. The cat and mouse that live in my head will thank you. :-).. and original Endtown art is still for sale. Contact me for details @ aaronneathery@gmail.com

I’m really happy with my Endtown original art. You can be, too.

Has Flask been collaborating? Or stringing the TS’ers along whilst being doubledouble crossed??

Flask has a lot of explaining to do, and it looks like it is going to be know.

Lets not count Petey out.

Whoo hoo!! NOW we’re gettin’ somewhere! This can’t help but be REALLY good! This plot line changes direction faster than a “wild mouse” roller coaster! I love it! Write on, Aaron!

dunh-dunh-dunnnhhh!

Cue Frankie Vallie…

It’s not often a Topsider acknowledges these folks as anything more than about-to-be-brainless animals. This is so very interesting…

The ‘Sider looks inside Through some window or door When did “he” join their ride How long’s he been there for? Perhaps he joined the group When they docked with the dome And now they’re in the soup And just might not get home As has been pointed out He seems to know her name (He might have heard a shout And now plays at a game) But I am of a mind To think he knows her past What story will unwind? Tomorrow, hurry fast! =|====/ Level Head Vote for Endtown 2.0 And for Doc Rat, too The Endtown Forum

This is the first time we have ever seen official communication between the Endtown and the Topside nations. That is – not curses and insults during a skirmish.There are many who say the only way this war can ever end is with one side completely wiping out the population of the other, and the only winner will be the one who gets the shot in first. And the only questions then are the tactics of the mission.Well I can see how the idea is appealing. Survival by killing everyone else. It has a very robust definitiveness. It has real-world parallels And the two sides have already crossed an irrevocable line: they have both tried to destroy each other. And any peace would be unstable, as betrayal would be so easy. And there is no larger world power to keep either side accountable. Peace between mutants and Topsiders must surely be impossible. And yet…There HAS to be another solution, a better solution. A more clever solution. If we are just going to accept a bloodbath until Endtown is the last man standing, then we deserve to go away for a while and think a little harder.Peace can never be achieved while the only interaction is between faceless soldiers, trying to take down enemy targets on a battlefield. It can only ever start – BEGIN to start – when the people in charge start talking. Or even people not in charge but who wield some sway nonetheless. People who decided that peace is less expensive than war, either in dollar value or its weight upon the soul.So, here we have communication between the sides. I fear it’s not going to turn out well. It’s already set up for gloating triumph, not negotiation. I do remember, though, that there are a coule of wild cards. Wally and Holly have solid moral compasses and a very practical compassion. And there is Linda, maybe as yet unseen to the Topsider in her mutated form. If the whole dummy rocket installation was a set-up, then she was being used as part of it – the bait put in place to be ambushed and killed. She may quickly lose her alleigance to her people when she understands this.A tiny wedge here, a tiny wedge there. A bit of communication, a bit of a chance to bridge the gap. An occasional action by one individual that achieves more than no action at all. The power of one.Do not ask me to go along with the goal of killing them all. Crazy as it may seem, I absolutely do not accept it.

I see three obvious directions to go from this point ( though given Aaron’s track record of excellence to date, I wouldn’t dare count any possibility out! ) : 1. Flask comes competely unglued, takes on the whole outpost single handed, and ends up a pile of kitty litter (I hope not), or 2. she goes into a monumental sulk, convinced that all the world is against her, forcing Wally to take over to get them safely home to Endtown (probably not too out of character for Flask, but a terrible waste.) or maybe 3. This latest revelation is the bucket of cold water Flask has been needing for a while. She refocuses her anger, makes up with Petey, and together with Wally and Holly’s help they throw a monkeywrench in the TS plans and hightail it back to Endtown to fight another day (a little sappy perhaps, but good for the storyline :-) ) Only time will tell…

Flask has now lost all of her badass-ness and reverted to a petulant teenaged girl. Just peachy.

Still no Holly…

Yeah, no one is here for no purpose. Even though Linda and Holly got off on the wrong foot (so to speak – very bad attempt at a pun intended) (see Oct 25, 2011) I think our mouse with the big heart will be the first to get through to our newly minted koala friend. Self preservation should kick in soon and Linda could prove a valuable asset.

Who is that Topsider? How does he/she know Flask? Will Petey be able to reach the rocket with all those mutts in tow? Will Linda have a chance to say some parting words to her son?.To be continued…

I can’t help thinking there are other factions besides the mutants and Topsiders out there, who may be keeping to themselves until someone does something threatening like launch a rocket. Aaron has hinted that some people were granted superpowers by the mutagen. Those people may have formed their own hidden communities. There may be gods to balance the monsters.

I’m in agreement with Jenner and Night-Gaunt49 regarding Flask’s behavior. She was already unhinged throughout the whole thing, and these last few weeks have really put her on a rollercoaster that’s gotten more and more extreme – starting with the unexpected appearance of Holly, then Sandy, both of which had a notable impact on her but she was still under control. It then builds up to the anxiety of knowing something’s amiss but not wanting to believe it, then the seesaw relief of potentially exacting her ‘revenge’ for her and Petey, Petey’s unexpected reaction (in Flask’s POV. She may have felt that he was the only one who’d understand her/that she felt kinship with regardless of whatever relationship they previously had), then the rocket was going to be derailed so they’d still succeed – but taking out Blackie’s revenge – and now nothing. Absolutely nothing but failure and feeling like a fool to the ones who’ve probably done this and worse to her before. So quickly she shifts from a feeling of empowerment to one of complete helplessness. She was tricked, her team is against her and she is without a weapon. Although it’d be bad ass for her to go GI Jane, Aaron’s characters tend to lean more towards how real people would react in these outlandish situations – and I’m sure most in Blackie’s situation would feel lost and overwhelmed at this point.

That may be true, or it may be an over-generalisation. We don’t know yet, and we haven’t gone much further to finding out. I every single Topsider a fascist bigot, or is there a range of sensibilities? Look back to historical parallels, perhaps. But remember: you could think that all mutant were bloodthirsty sadists if your only encounter had been with Captain Flask.

How could a cell work without towers? Plus what doesn’t make sense is, if you have a silo why set up a decoy in the first place? Also, where did Flask get her detailed info?

Poor Flask???NO- – -poor Endtown! The citizen (all of them) could be targeted, if Petey doesn’t come through with a major miracle.Great job again, Aaron, I’m back on the edge of my seat!

KUTGW,

Noreen

I still think Flash was some high ranking topsider till she mutated. Maybe a base commander, maybe even higher.

then she mutated and her former employees, friends, and allies turned traitor on her.

I had this sudden image of the topsider petting a white cat on his lap saying something like, “You have failed, Ms. Flask”.