Let's Burn Some Muscle!! p89
Added 2014-10-08 00:50:22 +0000 UTC
Comments
And I think we learn a lot here: Rhea is grasping at a thing of the past. Fun-lovin' cowgirl hoping things'll be like old times without considering what miss Alexis has been through.
Happy-Clam-911
2014-11-12 01:31:19 +0000 UTCIt's one thing to take genes from someone, mix them up and use them to create a new organism (heck, it's done routinely in our world with both humans and non-humans subjects). We could not yet do that with same-sex donors, but it's relatively simple change to already mature technology, the limitation factor in our world is mostly ethics, not the actual ability. It's TOTALLY different thing if you want to actually change genetic markup of the existing subject. Especially if you want not to just alter biochemistry, but to actually alter outward appearance. In our world we have some ideas about how to do that, but apparently even in LBSM world it's risky and somewhat unstable procedure (hence “the personalization and constant maintenance” Than lamented about on page 13). These two are WORLDS apart. They are not even remotely similar. Like creation of seaships and airships: one could easily create a seaship using wood and staws and people did that for thousands of years. But to create an airship one must know A LOT and the first one ever was made in XVIII century! I can easily buy the story where Cowloon specializes in picking correct combination of genes for the former process (desired sex of the offspring, color of eyes, hair and so on—some of these we could already pick up in our world BTW), but I SERIOUSLY doubt Cowloon could easily change Alexis' appearance and/or turn her into a cowgirl. Even if they COULD do that I doubt Alexis will enjoy “constant maintenance required”. Her existing endowments, most likely, require some occasional maintainance already, but I'm pretty sure it's still not as a big problem as what “gene grafting” would imply (or else Than would not have been so enthusiastic about Boost).
Khimru
2014-10-11 15:26:22 +0000 UTCYeah and then she said "Or maybe if that's not your cup of tea, I'm sure there are some women that could donate some genes. It's really no trouble at all, we're really quite good at that sort of thing around here!" GENE GRAFTING, <a href="http://www.patreon.com/creation?hid=965917">http://www.patreon.com/creation?hid=965917</a> what ELSE would "donate genes" mean otherwise? What else would you call "donating genes"? Sounds like genetic manipulation/gene grafting to me, something that Cowloon seems to take pride in(hell it's probably the reason they've all got Bovine characteristics).
Galka30
2014-10-11 13:21:16 +0000 UTCDid I forget about what… exactly? Rhea said, I quote, “Nope, no drugs. We like to use a process called “calving”. I don't think it'll be too tough to find a nice beau for you. Or maybe if that's not your cup of tea, I'm sure there's some women who would donate some genes.” Perhaps you've forgotten about calving part? Of may be misunderstood it? Although it's kinda hard to misunderstand it, it's not like that word has many meanings: <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/calving" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/calving</a> calv·ing: to give birth to a calf; also: to produce offspring looks like a joke around the fact that cows in our world never even see the “nice beau” and are, in fact, artificially inseminated. Certainly nothing like gene drafting. And sharp CEO does know if any experimental stuff is added to hir/her product or not, Alexis had no idea and it's not even entirely clear if she even heard about Brenna's fate before Than raised the question.
Khimru
2014-10-10 23:57:24 +0000 UTCRhea SPECIFICALLY SAID that they'd could do gene grafting from a cowgirl to get her to start lactating, or did you forget that? That's where the gene grafting came in and the very strong possibility that Alexis isn't entirely human anymore. Hell it could have been apart of the testing, since it only took 3 days or so for Alexis to more or less double in size compared to the 2 week growth periods that patch users got. Hell maybe Rhea asked for a subject from Than and Than never revealed it was Alexis until the sale was done and locked? That's a possibility, that Rhea didn't know she was "buying" her former friend at first. And Ysabel didn't tell her, for whatever reason. Anyway, what CEO knows exactly what goes in all their products beyond prototypes? But it is apparent Alexis wasn't too sharp a businesswoman compared to Than.
Galka30
2014-10-10 23:24:51 +0000 UTCHer corporation was her own? Really? That's why she had very vague idea what goes on in her own corporation? Recall page 12 where Than presented Ysabel's report and asked if Alexis is familiar with it's content and Alexis answered “maybe”… and on the next page Ysabel asked “is this also what you've been adding to your protein shakes”… and again Alexis had no idea what goes on. And how could you explain that in Prois Fitness (which was HUGE corporation: protein shakes are available in “most major retailers”) there was exactly ONE misfit Alexis was sure she could trust—Miriam. Heck, when she was unable to contact Miriam she immediately gave up and went with “guess I'm on my own”… does it look like CEO of a huge corporation with extensive security department would do? Even from the very beginning: when she talked with Chester Brooke she was all smiles and everything, but when she finished she was obviously disturbed by all the allegation (“I guess that went alright”). It ALL does not look like act of someone in charge. It looks like act of a formal figurehead. So much so that I even suggested that idea quite a few times before Rhea was even introduced! Recall how she did stuff which no seasoned CEO would do (including Than's stupid bet which she accepted without talking to anyone… not even Miriam). Heck, on Page81 Rhea said quite explicitly: “You let us use your company as a cover… and our experiments ultimately tanked the business” —and Alexis have not objected either. They happily went on to discuss Boost. It's REALLY hard to reconcile all the facts presented with the idea that “her corporation was her own”. They match another idea “Alexis' tiny gym with couple of trainers was used as a cover for a huge Cowloon-funded corporation where Alexis was just a figurehead” much, MUCH, *MUCH* better. And she, most likely, used the stuff that corporation developed to grow huge. Perhaps she wanted to have 10 000ls breasts (and, later, 60 000ls breasts), perhaps that was an accident (second time was not an accident for sure), but I doubt she was forced to become that big under a gunpoint. Both while she was a figurehead of the “Prois Fitness” corporation and when she was with Than. As for “gene manipulations”: I, again, don't know where your obsessions with them comes from. Really. Than's fascination with Boost was EXPLICITLY because it's not “gene manipulations”. Recall page 13 again: she was fascinated that Boost can make people grow huge breasts without “constant maintenance required for gene treatments!” I dont' see why they would suddenly throw that advantage to the wind and go with approach which, if Than is to be believed is already well-known in the LBSM universe. And as for “calving”… Rhea was clearly pulling Alexis' leg, plain and simple. Canving is NOT required to induce lactiation in primates (it may or may not be required for cowgirls, but Alexis is not cowgirl, lactation could be induced by much simpler means). The one thing which I still don't understand is still the question about wager. Well, not about Than's wager per see, but about request to ““encourage” Alexis' growth the best they could”. I find that hard to believe that Rhea knew nothing about it: Than's first attempt to convince Alexis to grow was demonstration of her own superiority (“While we wait I've got to ask… are you jealous? Oh? Really? That's good: I know if I were in the same situation, I'd do just about anything to get ahead”) and then presentation of “a solution”: set of Ysabel-produced patches. Too bad Miriam took then and Than needed to raise stakes with the contest. Then the wager you recall so often, of course. And note: Ysabel was behind both attempts and she was also the main driving force behind Boost development which, as we know, was sponsored by Cowloon. That, most likely, means that even if request to ““encourage” Alexis' growth the best they could” was known to Rhea, to (even if, perhaps it was not what she actually asked for). I just don't understand how this pressure AFTER “crash and burn” point could be recociled with “I still consider you my friend” idea… I hope we'll know soon.
Khimru
2014-10-10 16:58:37 +0000 UTCHer corporation was her own from what I saw. She didn't owe Cowloon anything from the looks of things. As for "being forced to grow" she took a chance at freedom in a rigged game. Now she's even worse off than she was before, she's practically a prisoner in her own body. As for the request, I think it was all Than's doing just so she could have a huge breasted chick like herself. Rhea just happened to find out later from Ysabel I wager and set up the "sale" with two-fold purposes: get back to seeing if BOOST was viable to increase milk production in Bovians and get her friend out. And we don't know if Alexis has refused to talk about it, this was a time skip remember? Several months later and all that. It's just at this point she wants nothing to do with Rhea's "consulting job". So...guessing from that she might have gone through with the calving or gene manipulation for the BOOST testing, and having gotten that out of the way considered her "debt" to Rhea paid and she just wanted to move on as best she can. Which currently, is running a gym with a figurehead because she's too damn big and heavy to even move anymore. That would make people pretty damn dour I think.
Galka30
2014-10-10 14:56:35 +0000 UTCWhy are you so sure that there were any “Alexis' own BE drugs”? Rhea said quite explicitly: “You let us use your company as a cover… and our experiments ultimately tanked the business” and then later she confirmed that said experiments were specifically Boost-related: “Do you know why we were developing Boost in the first place?” I find it EXTREMELY unlikely that Alexis have developed their own BE drugs AND covered another totally unrelated attempt of Cowloon to develop another set of BE drugs. Note that notes which Than found “on a single workstation” about test on Brenna were signed by Ysabel, not by Alexis! I'm not saying that it's IMPOSSIBLE that Alexis have gotten huge “all on her own”… it's just EXTREMELY unlikely. This will convolutes everything and explain nothing. The idea that Alexis was NOT a driving force behind Boost development and behind her own growth, on the other hand, explains everything perfectly: if “Alexis' protein snakes” were, in fact, developed by Ysabel, not Alexis, then she REALLY had no idea what they contain. If she was not driving the experiments then she had no idea about Brenna's fate. And the fact that she looked slightly guilty (“I guess that went well”) after TV show yet had no idea how to deal with underhanded moves of Than is explained, too—she covered for other people and have not planned to deal with law enforcement when the whole thing started! Sure, Alexis probably used not Boost specifically but some early prototypes, but in any case: her growth was, most likely, Rhea/Ysabel and Cowloon-realted, it was NOT result of “Alexis' own BE drugs”!
Khimru
2014-10-08 20:53:02 +0000 UTCI wasn't referring to Boost. I meant Alexis' own BE drugs. She got huge all on her own before Rhea got involved. I doubt she'd have been running a gym personally, since her bust was so big she needed the anti gravity bra. (wouldn't let me respond to your earlier reply)
BioYuGi
2014-10-08 19:00:19 +0000 UTCYou are forgetting one important fact: her corporation was not her own. Without Cowloon's help she would have been an owner of a simple gym—best case scenario. More realistically she would have been a regular worker in a health club. She's basically in more-or-less the same position where she would have been without Rhea's help and without Rhea's failure. Sure, she has unwieldy room-sized tits, but it's not as if she was forced to grow them at gunpoint—even the latest growth spurt was result of her explicit request. She could say that she was deceived by Than at Rhea's request (but have Rhea actually asked Than or just said something witty which Than misinterpreted?), but she hardly could claim that she's an innocent party in all that. Objectively speaking both parties should share the blame for that fiasco, but they could only work together again if they'll actually talk about it. So far Alexis refused to even discuss anything. That's not the way to a reconciliation. And last but not least: of course Alexis “get to have a say in what happens to her”—just perhaps not as much as same people, but then again most people have many other limiting factors (illness of relatives or friends, lack of opportunities because they are from poor neighborhood, etc). She's not in the worst position by far.
Khimru
2014-10-08 18:57:05 +0000 UTCBoost was Cowloon's product, not Alexis one. Rhea even said that explicitly eight pages back. One could not say that Alexis is wholly innocent but without Rhea's shenanigans she would have been in a gym similar to “Baron von Beefdeep's”—but in the flesh, not via telepresence and in her native land, not in Cowloon. Sure, Alexis behavior here is slightly infanltile, but Rhea IS responsible, too, there are no way to paint her as someone wholly innocent.
Khimru
2014-10-08 18:40:58 +0000 UTCEh, Alexis is the one that kept taking her own breast stimulants in the first place.
BioYuGi
2014-10-08 14:41:03 +0000 UTCAlexis is "dour" for a good reason.She used to be the owner of a major corporation,and having room-sized tits didn't bother her.Now her body isn't her own anymore,she's in some strange unfamiliar place,and she only manages a health club.Does she get to have a say in what happens to her?NO!
CZealot
2014-10-08 14:27:42 +0000 UTCExactly. Rhea could either be a friend who naturally should try to atone for her actions (even if she had no idea that it could lead to such disaster it's the result of series of events she started) or she could be “a great and untouchable materfamilias” (who “does not play favorites” and thus have no friends) but she could not be both to the same person at the same time.
Khimru
2014-10-08 12:46:53 +0000 UTCYeah except that ultimately it's Rheas fault she's here in the first place.
Galka30
2014-10-08 09:35:49 +0000 UTCWell, Alexis is better off here than in the hands of some other buyer, right? I mean she could have ended up a sex slave, or a bed. Here, she's been given a mobile body to do her passion in at the very least.
BioYuGi
2014-10-08 04:52:45 +0000 UTCcool thx
Ree Mcgee
2014-10-08 03:21:11 +0000 UTCNo, that's just a figurehead like Than had way back when we first met her. Alexis got a Bovine figurehead to get around Cowloon easier and not be completely confined to the Exhibition Hall. We don't KNOW if she went through with the genetic grafting or "calving", we haven't seen her real body yet since she last talked with Rhea over volunteering to test the viability of BOOST increasing milk production. If you look closely, you can see the interlocking "plates" that make up her skin.
Galka30
2014-10-08 03:13:14 +0000 UTCthink i missed something. alexis is a cow now (cowloon?). did the process of changing her get glossed over or something? I was hoping for something in the last few panels to put it in context or explain it or something. Didnt they request that alexis get her size increased and order her from than? why go through the effort of manipulating her to get bigger if they are just going to change? they could have just gotten any girl to fit this role.
Ree Mcgee
2014-10-08 03:10:32 +0000 UTCWell this definitely proves they were on friendly(VERY friendly) terms before going their separate ways(Alexis with her own corporation, Rhea going up the ranks in Cowloon).
Galka30
2014-10-08 02:06:46 +0000 UTCI can hear it now "Oh a friend? Who cost me my business, my freedom, my BODY. Who bought me and wanted to experiment on me! Such a GOOD friend.." Also, surprised that the Figurehead has that much detail on it.
Galka30
2014-10-08 02:05:30 +0000 UTCThat's about what everyone expected. And the moment where Alexis will explain why she's so “dour” is moved yet again. Good for the pace of comic, bad for our nerves…
Khimru
2014-10-08 01:00:07 +0000 UTCAh, finally, we get to hear something from Alexis! Venting time really allows perspective from characters.
Mason Dunne
2014-10-08 01:00:04 +0000 UTC
