^ 27 Comments...

1. Fred
   July 27th, 2010 at 8:37 pm

   Ya know, I’ve played with some people JUST LIKE THAT!

2. Wookie
   July 27th, 2010 at 9:02 pm

   This is too much like real life! There could be real danger, or terrible loss, but there is nothing that people will remember (or hold as a grudge) like a bruised ego. Great work (as always).

3. Aust
   July 27th, 2010 at 9:34 pm

   Waiit…. wait wait wait wait… this is over a BOARD GAME?! WHAT?

   *facepalm*

   Hah! Dude, that’s epic. Nothing says ‘bullheaded’ like holding a grudge over something stupid like that for… however long it’s been.

4. Wolfgang
   July 27th, 2010 at 9:38 pm

   I sympathize with Tethik… and a bit with Tor. I know I get very picky about games and can go on for quite some time. Though I don’t hold anything nearly this long. I’ve had long winded and heated arguments with someone, had a polite game with them later, and then gone back to long winded arguments.

5. ICWT
   July 27th, 2010 at 9:47 pm

   [Drop Jaw]* Howls*[/Picks Up Jaw]

   John, you’ve done it again!

6. Lebbrin
   July 27th, 2010 at 10:23 pm

   Damn it, I had to clean off the keyboard. (Never drink while reading a Zona update.) A board game? FIVE years ago? I LOVE IT! And an inferred slight at that. Well, he is the king of the Bull tribe.

   JED, you continue to amaze. That’s why I am here with my alt-F5 every Tuesday and Friday. Thank you for an excellent story!

7. AdamZero
   July 27th, 2010 at 10:37 pm

   Wait… WHAT?!

   John you magnificent BASTARD!

8. KarateCowboy
   July 27th, 2010 at 10:40 pm

   This is awesome. Such character. All the other comics are too busy trying to be super epic or slapstick sitcom funny. It’s done so naturally here. I love it, love it, love it.

9. KarateCowboy
   July 27th, 2010 at 10:42 pm

   btw –Tethik’s resemblance to Peter O’Toole is too much to be coincidence.

10. Matti
    July 27th, 2010 at 11:32 pm

    Tuntoch… Umm… what game is that? Is it that one Tula used to beat Gorshash?

11. LorannaPyrel
    July 27th, 2010 at 11:49 pm

    …

    EPIC WIN for our author.

    I will now shamelessly steal this bit of characterization for some other work I will do in the near future; when I become rich and famous for it, I will be sure to forget from where I learned this bit of narrative technique.

    ^_^

    Loranna

12. Elfguy
    July 28th, 2010 at 12:20 am

    So he’s been stewing over a move he considered a cheat eh? Why don’t they just do a rematch…

13. Acipenser
    July 28th, 2010 at 12:33 am

    Ahahhhahhahahahhahahaa!

    Over a board game! I did NOT see that one coming. Lover’s spat, indeed. Good one, JED.

14. Anna
    July 28th, 2010 at 2:07 am

    JED you are a marvel! Those egocetricities your characters have make them come to life. Absolutely LOVE it!

15. Lora
    July 28th, 2010 at 2:38 am

    *spittlelaugh* Hahahahaha! I understand Tethik’s exasperation. Tor is mad about an argument they had about a move in a board game five years ago. Seriously? Maybe Tor should learn to let minor offences go…
    Should be interesting to see how Tethik is going to ‘balance the cha’.

16. Gremalkin
    July 28th, 2010 at 3:34 am

    Now that the cards are on the table,
    i have to say i am shocked.
    There is pride and then there is stupidity. /Facepalm
    He is not a complete idiot, but some mental pieces are missing.

17. JR
    July 28th, 2010 at 4:51 am

    Didn’t see that one coming. (Which is one of the many reasons I keep coming back.) It will be interesting to see how the ‘balancing of the cha’ will be a part of the over-all plot. Can’t imagine this much build-up for little or no reason. Excellent as always, JED.

18. JEDraft
    July 28th, 2010 at 9:30 am

    Fred - Haven’t we all?

    Wookie - Thanks! And yes, if a face can launch a thousand ships, then a game of tuntach can keep old friends from speaking for five years.

    Aust - Yup. Naturally, it’s not *just* the game, but let me elaborate a little further down.

    Wolfgang - Tor is the king of the *Bull* tribe, not the Get-Along Gang, unfortunately.

    ICWT - Theng-kyew.

    Lebbrin - Yer welcome! Let’s hope you still feel that way next week.

    AdamZero - Well, that’s what my girlfriend says, (though she’s too sweet to say “bastard.”)

    KarateCowboy - The more emotionally realisitc you’re able to make the character, I find, the easier it is for them to be absurd without trying to be. Art Linkletter, many years ago, said it best: “People Are Funny.” And if you don’t know who he is, Google it! And Tethik’s aquiline looks have also been compared to Leonard Nimoy and others. I was not going for a look-alike, though a middle-aged O’Toole *would* have been a fine casting choice for him.

    Matti - Correct. It is the “chess” of this world, and both Erogenians and Kivalians play several versions of it.

    LorannaPyrel - Well, given that I steal most of the stuff I do from classic fiction anyway, be my guest. Nobody can copyright a basic storyline or characterization, otherwise Terry Brooks would have been sued into the Stone Age by the Tolkien estate. =D

    Elfguy - He’s not stewing over the move itself. heheheh…

    Acipenser - Thanks! People, huh? whatcha gonna do?

    Anna - Thank you very much! Tor and Tethik also thank you, from the little sub-reality they occupy in the back of my skull …

    Lora - See below about King BullHead. He’s not one to “let things go.”

    Gremalkin - Listen to what Tor says. The reason he tossed Tethik out and hasn’t spoken to him as a friend in five years is not the game itself, but how he handled the dispute. Bear in mind that this is a people that not only prides itself on openness and honesty but this particular specimen of Erogenian bullheadedness grew up in a time when *any* perceived insult to integrity could result in a blood duel. Tethik, like most sensible people,(even most Erogenians) gave way with grace on a point that he considered not worth fighting about. Tor, on the other hand, perceived that as meaning that Tethik considered him not worth fighting with. That’s actually the crux of it. It’s also one of the many reasons why it took centuries and a lucky coincidence of strong, intelligent leaders on both sides for the Erogenians and Kivalians to stop bashing each other over the head every time they met.

    JR - Well, after all the heart and head-wrenching we had in the previous scenes, I thought we could do with something a little less serious for a few pages.

19. JR
    July 28th, 2010 at 6:11 pm

    GOOGLE Art Linkletter? Am I THAT old? I would’ve hoped it would take many generations to get to that point. One of the smartest, cleanest. subtlest humorist of our times. Bill Cosby can come close, but, Mr. Linkletter set the standard. Doubt it will ever be bested. Rant over. (Patiently ["yeah, right." - think Bill Cosby's 'Noah' bit.] waiting for the next Zona installment!)

20. Hevaess
    July 28th, 2010 at 8:52 pm

    Oh you have got to be kidding me.

    Epic.

21. Wookie
    July 28th, 2010 at 9:53 pm

    I think I just found the perfect comment to this: “Mornington Crescent!”

22. Dromin
    July 29th, 2010 at 12:23 am

    Very nice. I like the slight scowl Tethik has in panel three - as if the very thought of saying such a thing about his friend is too distasteful to even consider.

    I don’t know why, but it’s the little details like that which keep me entertained and interested. Keep up the nice work.

23. Sage
    July 29th, 2010 at 4:01 am

    You KNOW how they have to settle this.

    Only the DANCE is powerful enough to heal this wound.

24. Uhl
    July 29th, 2010 at 6:59 am

    Let’s hope it’s not the “first” dance. Tee hee!

25. tricksterson
    July 29th, 2010 at 9:59 am

    One shudders to think about how Tor feels about the kid who stole his binkie as a child.

26. warnie
    July 29th, 2010 at 2:39 pm

    ahh so cultural differences are at the heart of this dispute. Tis no mere game as you have so eloquently said.

    Ok gotcha.

27. Sheela
    July 29th, 2010 at 11:30 pm

    Oh man, they acr almost like politicians!

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