23-05-11 another issue

[Adamas]

I too was wondering about Ace's Father myself. I mean, if it were a full moon out that night, Ace would also be in wolf mode. But chances are there he's probably like that because we wouldn't recognize him otherwise.

I believe the uncontrolled shapeshifting under Luna's light was like his furry hands. It was a puberty thing and Ace said that Werewolf females got through it earlier. Hopefully it works for the rest and he retains the ability when/if the Orb's effect is reversed.

[MonCappy]

That would piss me off if Dave and Giz did that. I honestly think that if they did the switch back in that manner, I'd be so furious that I would drop the comic for several months at the very least. While I would not take issue with Ace being restored to her birth sex, I would not like it to happen in that fashion. Ace has suffered butt monkey status enough. Let someone else take the role.

It seems that the only reason to keep Ace as a girl for this long is for his eventual reversal back to being a boy to be as massively buttmonkeyish as possible. Him getting Carrie'd inadvertently by the Orb wearing off while he's in a dress in front of the entire school would certainly fit the bill. Ace seems to be a goose that the writers are fattening up for the slaughter.

The thing is I like Ace as a character. Doing that to Ace would not be something I find funny at all. As I said earlier, if it happens that way, I'll be pissed off enough that I wouldn't be able to stomach the comic for a good long while. Frankly, if they are going to change Ace back into a boy it should be as a result of Ace successfully finding a way to deliberately change back and for no other reason.

[Ele]

I really do hope (s)he never changes back. I think it would ruin the relationships (s)he's in the midst of building with the other characters.

[Searcher]

Yea, Ace is a better woman then a guy ... plus I want to see him freak out everytime a guy hits on him err I mean her.


(Dress + Brooke) + Layla =

[Raamyah]

We never heard anything about Ace´s mom, did we? Not her name, not her whereaouts, not even a picture, nothing at all. After seeing how fast (Gr)Ace´s dad accept her genderswap and already got a nice dress and all for his daughter and even telling her to already think which type of boy she should consider to marry; i have to wonder: Does our (Gr)Ace now look just like his mother (just with short hair(?), bigger/smaller chest(?), as high as her mom(?). A young version of her?)?

If I was writing this, Ace's mother would have been killed by a vampire. A French vampire. Possibly related to a doll-carrying girl we all know.

Also, those are very good questions about the mother. I'd wager that she looks a lot like her mother, which brings me to another point:

I get a feeling that Ace's father is really out of it, and maybe just a little crazy. I'm not sure what to think about him, and it makes me wonder if he's really put Ace on the spot trying to force Ace to be a straight girl. I wonder if this would make Ace hide any attraction to girls that she might have.

I think the dad is a big goofball. He's a very laid-back fun person making the best of his family's situation. With the loss of his spouse, I'm sure he lives every day with a deep sorrow that he refuses to show to his child, so he overcompensates. Also, he may have always wanted a daughter, but has no clue about raising one. Ace had no idea about menstruation, which she should have had at least heard of. Also girls like dances and pretty dresses, right? So let's go to the dress shop right now! I'm guessing the dress is yellow or pink.

Jeez, Dad. Calm the hell down. Now we know where Ace's insecurities come from.

As for Ace's transformation, I hope someone finds a way to change her back into a boy...






...and that Ace refuses.

[Artemisia]

Well, we don't have confirmation of Ace's mother being dead, but yes, it would make sense given the fact that Ace is so clueless about being a girl. I get a feeling that he's operating on the traditions that were normal when HE was a kid, which could be a problem for Ace. I still think he's a bit, um, cracked though. That could be explained by him being a widower, though.

[Stonefoot]

Wow, lots of good comments already. Let's see - -
One reason not yet mentioned that Ace may more easily accept his status as a girl: His father likes Ace better (or shows it more) than before. For all the awkwardness, acceptance and affection count for a lot.

As for Ace and Brooke, right now Ace is still uncomfortable with attention from boys and Brooke has never had any, doesn't expect it, and would be totally thrown if she wore the dress and boys started hitting on her. The 'safe' strategy for them would be for Brooke to wear the suit and for them to go together. They could agree that they're 'just friends' pretending to be a couple (either tacitly or explicitly). They could finish this arc still totally conflicted, leaving things open for more confusion and hilarity in the future. (Another side of Brooke's conflict: wearing the dress doesn't really declare that she likes boys and not girls, while wearing the suit could be read as a sign that she likes girls... but she doesn't feel good about the way she looks in a dress and she does about the way she looks in a suit.)

And, poor Brooke, what if she wears the suit and all the guys start hitting on her anyway?

The DRESS!!!!!!!!!!!!
Poor Brooke must really be confused if she is still asking Ace for advice.

Useful advice doesn't have to be good advice. Hearing someone else state an opinion invokes a different type of evaluation than that involved in making a choice in your own mind. Sometimes hearing "Yes! You should do that!" will give you an immediate "What!? No!" reaction and you know the other choice is right.

If it's true that girls are attracted to men who remind them of their daddies, then Grace is in big trouble! Also, yes, it is a good thing that her dad has dealt with his gender switch so easily! Really, it is! A good thing! Too easily perhaps, but still a good thing!

Actually the evidence so far indicates that girls (like boys) are attracted to people whose appearance is similar to their mother's.

[MonCappy]

Well, we don't have confirmation of Ace's mother being dead, but yes, it would make sense given the fact that Ace is so clueless about being a girl. I get a feeling that he's operating on the traditions that were normal when HE was a kid, which could be a problem for Ace. I still think he's a bit, um, cracked though. That could be explained by him being a widower, though.

I do think Ace's general cluelessness about life as a girl seems to indicate at the very least that her mother isn't around. You would think after Ace transformed she would have sat her down and explained about just what Ace would be going through. Then again, maybe Mama Woflheart is still in denial about her son's transformation into a daughter.

[Artemisia]

True. I know that it can take a while for all of the stuff that a mother normally teacher her daughter at twelve to get imparted at a later age.

That often leads to very interesting questions and conversations.

[The Nick]

Everybody commenting about Ace's ignorance of female puberty proves Ace's mother isn't around...

...for most of his life, he was a boy. Usually, when parents give you "the talk," you get the gender-specific conversation concerning the birds and the bees. Even in crazy magically irresponsible schools, I don't imagine parents continue a potentially awkward conversation by saying, "Oh, in case you switch genders this weekend, this is how it works for the other sex."

[Don Alexander]

And, poor Brooke, what if she wears the suit and all the guys start hitting on her anyway?

If the guys there are like our forum, I bet a lot of them would!

[Artemisia]

Nick,

We're thinking that they didn't have the conversation AFTER Ace became a girl, not before. Since Ace's mother didn't talk to Ace about girl stuff after the switch, we think she may not be there any more.

[bokonondeemax]

When I got "the talk" it covered both male and female puberty changes. That was at school and not at home though; I never got word one on the subject from my parents. Frankly I was a lot more interested in what was going on with the girls than what was going on with myself.

[Artemisia]

My mother gave me two different talks. The first covered boys/girls. The second covered boys/boys and girls/girls as well as boys-who-are-really-girls-inside. We didn't cover girls-who-are-really-boys-inside or the respective sexualities involved in transsexuality because my mother didn't really know a lot about the whole issue.

[wrong wolf]

Heh! Ace is daddy's little girl.

Ace's dad really cracks me up. I can actually see him counting his grand kids before they're even conceived. More than likely he's already set up the spare room as a nursery.