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With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)

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TanaNari said:
General Body Dysmorphic Disorder. It's the meta-disorder from which the other dysmorphic disorders like furries, anorexia, plastic surgery addiction, transgenderism, and dozens of other disorders stem from. Strong evidence to suggest it, itself, is a form of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, but it hasn't been officially recognized as such by any mental health organization I'm aware of.

Real OCD, not Hollywood Bullshit OCD.

There's a helluva lot more to it than I'm going to get into here. In part because Totally Off Fucking Topic, but it shouldn't be too hard for you to look up information on it. Or PM me and I'll give you a more thorough rundown.
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It ain't that, I've already looked. Low grade ennui coupled with a love of new experiences (neophile) seems to cover it more than anything. I mean, I'm also depressed but that's more a mix of irl reasons and general brain chemistry fuckery, I believe.

But my point is, even before OL started making both magic and skitzotech more mainstream... why aren't there more people in DC doing stupid risky shit for largely nonvillianous reasons? Some people pay shitloads of money and go through years and years of pain and suffering to get gender reassignment surgery. The DC universe is a place where significantly better opportunities exist. I'd just expect to see more of that kind of thing. Furries who want animal features. Old people who want rejuvenation. Sick people who want health. People with, as you mentioned, general body dysmorphic disorder who desperately want to change some aspect of their being. For fucks sake, alien hand syndrome. There are people out there right now who would consume an energy field larger than their head for a chance at making their dick bigger.

Shouldn't these people be standing up and demanding access to what they believe will fix their problems, whether it will or not?

Remember this old spiderman comic?

lmeZ6SD.jpg

It's a joke, but it's also got a point. Replace 'dinosaurs' with 'catgirls' and remove the villianous aspect of forcing it on people, and this is absolutely someone I could imagine being real. Real life lacks people like this because in real life, lone scientists rarely invent shit. And it's hard to get the funding and cooperation of enough people to start a catgirl project. One, it's an awkward business proposition. Risky. Hard to make money off. Two, it's ridiculous. Nobody wants to be known as someone who worked on cat ear tissue graphing. Not when cancer is still an actual issue.

But in comics, random assholes get wildly improbable shit done all the time, by themselves. Just statistically, shouldn't there be more people that say fuck it, I'm going to invent a raygun that gives ginormous tiddies to whoever it hits, because that's my fetish?
 
Nugar said:
But in comics, random assholes get wildly improbable shit done all the time, by themselves. Just statistically, shouldn't there be more people that say fuck it, I'm going to invent a raygun that gives ginormous tiddies to whoever it hits, because that's my fetish?
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Oh definitely, but they won't explore it because that's totally NSFW.

Hence, it's left to the porn parody artists/writers.
 
Nugar said:
Just statistically, shouldn't there be more people that say fuck it, I'm going to invent a raygun that gives ginormous tiddies to whoever it hits, because that's my fetish?
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I have a handful of those scenarios in my stories.

CrossyCross said:
Oh definitely, but they won't explore it because that's totally NSFW.
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Mine aren't... it's a "reality ensues" setting... people who pull shit like that get buried in a pit for sexual assault, amongst many other charges.

Though to be fair, I wouldn't watch Shawshank Redemption at work, either.
 
TanaNari said:
I have a handful of those scenarios in my stories.

Mine aren't... it's a "reality ensues" setting... people who pull shit like that get buried in a pit for sexual assault, amongst many other charges.

Though to be fair, I wouldn't watch Shawshank Redemption at work, either.
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It should be NSFC, because most non work stuff isn't acceptable at most workplaces, but what we really mean if we wouldn't let children watch it.
 
Fuckin mods, man. "ruLE Two ApLLiEs tO FicTIOnal PeOPLe" my ass. How the hell are they going to be offended if they aren't real? To shorten a very long argument, if fictional characters can't use foul language, how are writers supposed to write realistic characters? Nothing of value has been lost in the switch to QQ, fuck.
 
Deadring said:
Fuckin mods, man. "ruLE Two ApLLiEs tO FicTIOnal PeOPLe" my ass. How the hell are they going to be offended if they aren't real? To shorten a very long argument, if fictional characters can't use foul language, how are writers supposed to write realistic characters? Nothing of value has been lost in the switch to QQ, fuck.
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Wow. It's like people don't remember how Tananari ended up here. He got shit on harder than zoat.
 
TanaNari said:
I'm curious, myself. I mean, I know the story about as well as anyone can, but I wanna see how it's viewed by not-me.
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Well, I mean, I suppose you could explain it yourself. But I didn't really pay attention to the meta threads, I always stuck to story-only. So I have no idea whats going on at all.
 
Right now Mr Zoat is in the realm of OSC for me as an author. I like almost all of his work, but there's a couple of things I have differing if not diametrically opposed viewpoints on, and one of those is the subject of the controversy that moved this story here to QQ. I know that I can't change his mind, and that he won't be able to change mine, so I'm agreeing to disagree.

So, Mr Zoat, welcome to QQ, and I hope you never have cause to move/quit again. It sucks that you had to move twice before, but I understand where you're coming from, even if I don't agree with your stance.
 
Z-E-R-O (part 14)
2nd January
15:39 GMT -5

"…Electro Lass, A Five Nine."

"'Electro Lass'?" Mr Hamill half-turns to stare at the zeta tube with a look of disquiet. "The fuck is that about?"

With the destruction of KordTech New York, the usual zeta tube station has ceased to be. I'm a little more saddened about that than I thought I'd be. While most zeta tubes are tucked out of the way to keep them from being staked out by the paparazzi, the KordTech one was both isolated and afforded a good view of New York City. Even though it was just as easy for me to get here by ring, I'd sometimes use the tube to get here because I liked taking in the view for a few moments. And now if they even include a tube in the new design they'll probably put it in a bunker underground.

I don't know. Maybe… John is all about the journey rather than the destination. I've been more of a destination sort of person. If I'm going somewhere, it's because I want to get there and do the thing. But… Maybe that's one of the things I should take away from this whole 'being dead' thing. I used to fly for fun, now I mostly do it when it would be inconvenient to walk.

"Just in case you decide you don't want everyone to know about your…" Beryl points her right hand at her head and lowers it, indicating Mr Hamill's transformed body. "Changes."

She shakes her head. "We wrap this up in a couple a' days an' then I'm drinking until I start to find this funny. What's the point in trying to keep it secret? Not like-." She pauses for a moment. "I mean, y'know, no disrespect or anything-."

"Superheroing isn't for everyone."

"And being one takes a bit more than getting powers."

Mr Hamill looks at her for a moment, then switches her attention to me, grins and points at Beryl with her right index finger.

"I'm familiar with the sentiment, Mister Hamill, but Squire actually does have a superpower." She lowers her hand. "And I'll caution you to be aware that you're probably not bulletproof, and if you're not bulletproof then you're not bulletproof in the country with the largest number of privately owned firearms in the world. Superpowers aren't a fix-all."

"She does?"

Anyway, the Embassy still has a zeta tube, so that's where we appeared. I lead the way out via the delivery entrance, a couple of tourists stopping to take pictures as we leave through the gate.

"Sure." Beryl triggers her kinetic belt and rises off the ground. "You alright to fly yourself home, or do you want us to call a taxi?"

Mr Hamill hesitates for a moment, thin strands of plasma forming and discharging around her body. Then there's a flash as she shoots into the air in a semi-controlled fashion, and Beryl and I take off after her.

"I'm not sure most people count 'improved inductive reasoning' as a superpower. That said, I'm pretty sure you know something about this… Whatever it is."

"It grants superpowers and causes physical transformations. Look for outbursts of superheroic activity with multiple superheroes who aren't seen together and are… Poorly trained."

"Already done. And sent to Robin. Not sure it'll be much help, though. America's got a lot of badly trained superheroes, and the statistics I'm using aren't exactly reliable. It's 'improved reasoning', not 'magical guesswork'."

She turns, flying backwards while I keep an eye on Mr Hamill. Fortunately she's sensible enough to stay high enough that her momentary lapses in control aren't resulting in her hitting anything. She's actually got a pretty good turn of speed.

"It wasn't you, was it?"

"If I had something like that, it wouldn't have fallen into the hands of an uncontrolled test subject."

"But you've heard of it before."

"I've tried tracking down all sorts of schizo tech. There was a.. rumour about a shapeshifting superhero in Colorado during the sixties who had a dial, but I wasn't ever able to confirm its existence. If I had, I'd have researched it myself. I don't even know what it looks like."

She folds her arms across her chest. "And you didn't mention this because..?"

"Because I've got stories about hundreds of devices whose existence I couldn't verify and didn't know anything useful about it?" I shrug. "John Constantine once sold a fake magic clock to this American millionaire and there was this one serial killer who thought he had the body of the infant Anti-Christ in a box…"

"Did he?"

"No. He had a rat. That was eating him. Because he went mental, stuck it in a box and taped it to his chest. I mean, I'm glad I caught him but the undead corpse of the Anti-Christ would have come in really handy last week."

"Hm. And how exactly would Jade feel about you using the dial to 'explore your feminine side'?"

"While she's on the other side of the galaxy doing Darkstar training? Not a lot?"

She nods, turning around to face her direction of travel once more. "You were trying to put him at his ease."

"It worked with Jade. People can get a bit stunned when they have to deal with superheroes at close quarters-."

"But if you play the lad they think you're one of the guys. Not a crazy snake monster."

"I'll settle for 'not a crazy cake monster'."

"And he calmed down a whole lot. Which also means that he's less likely to blow a hole in a wall again."

I frown. "Again?"

She points and oh. The flat Mr Hamill.. shares? With Ms Miller, is sporting a hole in the wall to the master bedroom. Mr Hamill is head downward-.

"Ur-gh."

Still working on his landings, but she managed that with a stagger rather than a collapse so it seems like she's learning. Okay, I think that was a window, but he took out some of the surrounding brickwork as well. I think I can handle that.

Mr Hamill walks around to the balcony door and reaches down to her right pocket for her keys before remembering that she's not wearing her own clothes. She knocks on the door instead.

"Am-? Amy, honey?" Her voice deepens as she tries to affect her original male voice. "You home?"

Squire lands beside her as she sort of fidgets nervously, not quite able to stand comfortably-.

Ms Miller opens the door. Mr Hamill's face lights up and she takes a half-step forward… Then stops when Ms Miller shrinks back slightly.

"Amy, those sidekicks told you I'm me, right?"

Ms Miller nods, her eyes alighting briefly on Beryl before moving up to take in me.

"Yeah. Yeah, I know, you're just… Kind of a lot to take in right now."

"I get it? I get that? This is.. pretty weird for me too."

I try to tune them out as I finish patching up the hole. Good as… Better than new, if not quite up to the standard of what I did for Holly. Still, I do prefer it when innocent bystanders don't have to suff-.

"You..? Joseph.. Hamill?"

I turn back to the entrance of their home as a couple of uniformed police officers walk up. Mr Hamill smiles.

"Yes, Joseph! I didn't think the paperwork would go through that qu-."

"You're under arrest, ma'am."

"What?"

What?
 
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Mr Zoat said:
"I'm familiar with the sentiment, Mister Hamill, but Squire actually does have a superpower." She lowers her hand. "And I'll caution you to be aware that you're probably not bulletproof, and if you're not bulletproof then you're not bulletproof in the country with the largest number of privately owned firearms in the world. Superpowers aren't a fix-all."
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Only bullet resistant, true, but she also has an elctro-forcefield that deflects bullets away from her.

"You're under arrest, ma'am."

"What?"

What?
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This is because of the Bank thing isn't it?
 
Grek said:
If Mr Hamill is a she, how come Red Tornado and Firebrand and Siskin and Nabu and all the other robots and golems in this fic aren't all 'it's?
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Firebrand started off disguised as a human female, Siskin was a human male, and Nabu started off as a Cilian (sp?) Male before uploading himself to The helmet. Not real familiar with Tornado's backstory, but he generally presents himself as male.

Valint said:
Eh, the Dial H comic was written by China Mieville, who I'd consider a damn good writer.

Inasmuch as it's 99% off doing its own thing, like an old-school Vertigo comic, I wouldn't smear it with the general Flashpoint brush.
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Meh, I checked out the Nu52 Dial H comic because I had been a fan of the old 80s version. Didn't enjoy it and dropped it. Of course most of the Nu52 comics I did enjoy got cancelled by DC, so obviously I wasn't part of their target demographic

RichardWhereat said:
It should be NSFC, because most non work stuff isn't acceptable at most workplaces, but what we really mean if we wouldn't let children watch it.
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NSFW def :p


Mr Zoat said:
What?
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yeah, I think that's a lot of that going around after that chapter... :p
 
Mr Zoat said:
t secret? Not like-." He pauses for
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Mr Zoat said:
h his right index finger.
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Mr Zoat said:
nately he's sensible enough to stay high enough that his momentary lapses in control aren't resulting in him hitting anything. He's actually got a pretty good turn of speed.
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Mr Zoat said:
n his landings, but he managed that with a stagger rather than a collapse so it seems like he's learning. Okay, I think that was a window, but he to
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PRONOUN TROUBLES, MY GOOD SIR.
 
So I'm just catching up with this after the move to this new site so if this is the Dial H for hero device isn't all that stuff temporary I kind of read a comic book having that in it for a little bit a few years ago and after a while didn't all the Transformations reverse on their own I don't remember it's been a long time since I read the book.
 
Bigreader said:
So I'm just catching up with this after the move to this new site so if this is the Dial H for hero device isn't all that stuff temporary I kind of read a comic book having that in it for a little bit a few years ago and after a while didn't all the Transformations reverse on their own I don't remember it's been a long time since I read the book.
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There are several versions of the Dial.

The original/main one cane be used to spell out many words as it has the whole alphabet, it has no built in time limit (this appears to be that version).

At one point, a user of the Dial attempted to escape a situation by dialing in 'Split', which divided him into his Good and Evil halves. The Good half created 2 lesser dials with just the letters H-E-R-O (used by the 2 teens in the old 80s version of the comic)
 
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