41 thoughts on “Chapter 5: Lit, page 31.”

  1. Wow. I have to say I found Barney pretty obnoxious when we first met him, but these last few pages have been very humanizing for him. I was under the impression that he was some crazy dictator, but he’s just a guy who’s passionate about what he’s doing and wants to help people, and hasn’t quite realised that that isn’t “popular” enough these days. (Still on the fence about Reclamation itself, but it’s nice to see what’s motivating Barney anyway.)

    … please, Barney. You’re a sweetie, but don’t try to dance naked on tv for Reclamation. IT WON’T WORK.

      1. Skeletons which are probably what propelled him to start this movement in the first place, but there’s not a very large chance of them being recognized as such…

    1. I think from the beginning he’s been portrayed as a guy who got more personal attention than he really wanted. I think he just wanted to be a part of a group that helped people, and he wound up being the leader of a group with responsibilities that prevent him from doing the hard work he wanted to do. It’s just that this is the first time we’ve really heard him speak.

  2. …and it’s the real people, like Ms. Rodriguez, who will now convince him that he really does need to go on the tube and speak of the goals of reclamation to a wider audience.

    After all, Numbers don’t lie…

    1. Owwch.

      Cue the makeup guy. And wardrobe. Someone get Mr. John a top hat. And a cane.

      Know what *screams* “Man of the People”? A monocle.

  3. I can’t help thinking that if we saw Barney’s face in the last panel, it would just be a sad, puppy-dog “b-but I *wanted* that” face. An ugly puppy-dog face, but still.

    Also, I’ve kinda fallen in love with Dinah’s nose.

    1. Except how would puppy dog eyes work with those weird glasses of his? Ahh, the very thought gives me nightmares. XD

      1. He looks a LOT like a characterised version of my other half. And his glasses magnify his puppy-dog eyes. It’s REALLY hard to say no to them.

        However, he might just get angry because no one seems to be co-operating with him right now, I know if it was me in his position I would feel like I was banging my head against a brick wall.

  4. Umm… so Tuesday Prior is “the enemy” now? Isn’t that kind of a conspiratorial way of thinking? It’s not like she’s leading a crusade to wipe Reclamation out; she just talked about them once on her show and said she thought they were stupid. I guess my way of thinking just doesn’t gel with Dinah’s…

    I will admit, she’d make a good political campaign manager; she’s got the right mindset for it. I’m just hoping Rec doesn’t employ too many people like her.

    1. No, the Doves are the enemy, Tuesday is just the weapon either they or Rec could use to turn the tide of the battle. At least I hope they’re going to go for Tuesday, cause Barney + Nicki would be an utter disaster… :-P

      1. Point taken. Actually, that reminds me: where are the Cooks in all of this? Are they just agents of chaos, or do they have an agenda?

  5. For some reason I picture Dinah having a poster of Che Guevara in her room ( or the Templar universe equivalent there of)

      1. Maybe Zora 20 years from now. Except Zora is smarter, and would probably carry a huge knife.
        .
        Actually I could well see Zora joining the Rec – even better than I could see her joining the Jakes.

  6. Without this relating to Numbers in any way, I would like to say for the record I find overalls extremely sexy. Anyone? Overalls?

  7. This is the incentive that Barney needs–a reminder of how he draws people. One of his strengths, and the fact that his actions back up his words.

    As soon as he realizes that, he will become a leader of men and women.

    1. Except how much longer will his actions back up his words, if he’s forced away from the actions to do more words?

    1. I’m actually worried that I still don’t get it, but don’t bother, it’s probably gonna be something that’ll make me go “Is that it? Really?”

      1. If it helps, all I’m reading into it is “tuesday prior” (as in, “tuesday before (something)”), but if that’s not it, then I’m not getting it either. :-D

          1. I…*sobbing*…I…j-j-jus-ju-just d-d-don’t know what’s *blows nose* the reference. I’m sure people half my age are getting it, I feel worse than one of those Hitler parody videos where he can’t find Wally, hahaha!

  8. I feel so very sorry for Barney. . . try as he might, everyone wants him to do PR instead of real work. XD

  9. I really wish there was a wiki or something for Templar, Arizona. I keep getting interested in these little subcultures that get barely mentioned. I’m really glad there’s a focus on the Jakes for that reason, we get to learn more about them.

    I still wanna know more about those wicker-head people, and now I’m interested in this Numbers girl. What’s the Soviet Nine? Why is her name “Numbers”?? *interested face*

  10. Saddle shoes, poodle skirt, fan letter in gel pen and fainting spell not included.

    Nah, this is Reclamation!
    Work boots (check)
    Coveralls (check)
    Fan letter in carpenter’s pencil in the margins of a building document (check)
    Fainting spell (hell no)

  11. Building is what he knows, he wants it to be possible to just build houses and change the world. He resents the idea of doing anything political, only without realizing that his actions are as political as any spoken statement; that any attempt to control one’s environment is a political act. It’s a sad day when he’s forced to realize talking to people can be an effective method to change their minds. Sad for him, anyway. He’s so charismatic it might be the best day for everyone else. Except his enemies I mean.

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