Well … i rest my case. Just hope that nastajia slaps the dolt and gives him the ditch for his outrageous and continuous stoopidity. Sorry scott, but the way you ve characterized this lad is not endearing. Shouldna be any happy end for that guy. 🙁 but then mebbe this is me just being unfair …..
Is this just another bit to show how great Dan is and how awful Alex is? If Alex would have just shut up, there would be no risk of Abbadon breaching the portal before it could be closed.
Taking a step back from the story, there’s a time for exposition, but this clearly wasn’t it. Putting it here anyway feels like poor writing. I’m not feeling that Alex is so worried about Nastajia that he’s not thinking clearly, but that he’s not capable of thinking at all. All the goodwill and emotional investment he’s earned for over the years keeps getting tossed away in the effort to play up the difference between himself and Dan. You don’t have to keep tearing Alex down to build Dan up. It’s not some sort of zero sum game.
A lot of people are blaming Alex for this, but this was all completely out of the blue for him, so yeah, dude’s going to ask questions–ESPECIALLY since Niviene was doing more talking than item chucking. So I blame her more, actually. She knew what was happening and should have sent the items over before talking.
Whoa guys, chill! Alex has just been kicked out of Dreamland, everything has been given over to his brother, he lost the love of his life, in the *Nightmare Realm* (the most dangerous place, and even though Alex knows Nastajia kicks butt, she was last seen being kidnapped)
Nivivienne just told him she could open the only place connected to Dreamland *for the last time.* She was his only hope of getting back. He is panicking and, like in Alex-fashion, he doesn`t understand all this new stuff about plants and he hasn`t seen the invasion. All this time he has been involved in the bigger plot of Dreamland, only to be kicked out when everything tumbles apart. I can understand his questions and he only asked “why” a few times, it`s Nivivienne who is doing all the exposition because this is the last time she can, she might die after this. We have seen all that stuff with the Nightmare Beasts happened, Alex didn`t.
Yes, their conversaion destroyed her hope of getting away, but Nivivienne basicly did this herself.
Also, it might be the pacing, but this might be a point in which Alex realizes his mistakes. We`re still at the “all is lost” part of the story, or the “it gets worse” phase, after usually the hero learns a thing or two or finally sees the light.
Hmmm… just a thought, but I could almost see Alex grabbing her arm and trying to pull her to safety despite the dangers of some kind of portal-y backlash… whatever she’d said a few pages ago. I’m probably misunderstanding something about that though.
Not totally out of the blue.. he was specifically waiting at the pool for her to show up, and he knows bad stuff is going down in Dreamland even if he doesn’t know the specifics.
No, actually, Niviene did that by constantly talking. As I stated before, all she had to say was “Flower that gives immortality, scabbard to Excalibur, Abaddon’s on my tail, you take them so they don’t get them, Portal open, here they come, got them? good, I’m gone.” Instead she had to give speeches…
Also, you all need to consider the thropes of heroism. Alex risking all their lives by jumping through the Portal so he can get back to Dreamland, dubious. Alex jumping through the Portal to save Niviene and defeat Abaddon? Gold. And if that gets him on the right side to reach Nastajia, all the better.
Alex cannot take the pot with one hand as placed on the side of it. She is the only one supporting the pot. He either adds his second hand or he pulls her up through the portal.
And what are Nastaje’s parents doing during all of this? They have not come to help take the items or to talk or to help pull Niviene out. So far they have just stood there.
Seconded. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s to never start judging the story until it’s complete: you never know how exactly it will all work out from the middle of the story. Just like a road trip to Vegas, you wouldn’t say your trip was completely ruined at the very moment you enter the desert without yet experiencing the Strip, right?
Scott has had his story planned for a long time now, and I have faith that he would not disappoint the fans by not giving us or his characters a measure of closure before it’s all over. We just have to be patient and wait to see where he takes us, regardless how tough that might be for all of us. After all, we’ve waited this long to see the end of the story, so waiting just a little bit longer shouldn’t be a huge burden. I know we all can do it.
It’s likely he will add a second hand to actually grab it. Or maybe he’s saying “Got it” in response to her instructions. That’s how I read it at first.
Not against Alex, per se… but realize that he’s ALWAYS been the one quick to action without as much forethought whilst Daniel has been forced to be the exact opposite by circumstances. His impulsiveness has gotten him into a LOT of trouble before, and this is no different from any other time except that – between their individual quirks – Niviene may pay a hefty price indeed.
I rather like Alex as a character, and seeing his general growth as a person has been amazing… imagine if you were -just- finding yourself, finding who you wanted to be with the person you wanted to be with forever… and then imagine that being torn from you. He is falling back into a reactionary pattern because he doesn’t know what else to do, and demanding answers because he is desperate. He is a FAR cry from the lovable idiot we began this adventure with. Still lovable, still an idiot at times – yes – but he now has something to fight for… and given the opportunity he will pursue every avenue until he reunites with Nastajia.
Not contending that… I absolutely agree that he’s acting his age and temperment, despite the fact that he’s begun to learn to grow beyond that and is finding his way into adulthood. 🙂
I have this sinking suspicion that Alex’s fate is going to be something like Christopher Reeve’s character in “Somewhere in Time”, where he loses his ability to be with his beloved, and simply wastes away to nothing due to losing all hope.
Everything has been taken from him. His hopes, his dreams (both literally and figuratively), any respect he may have gained, and become reduced to what he was before : a pale shadow of Daniel. Less than what he was before, with Daniel’s new powers.
He has gone from being the protagonist, to being the extraneous extra, the flunky, the mook, the Cautionary Tale of a failed hero.
I keep getting this vibe as the story goes on that everyone that talks to or about Alex looks at him with this sad sort of pity, that all of this would have been avoided if he had only gotten Daniel into Dreamland sooner. Yes, there were times were he was told he wasn’t supposed to be the King, but he stepped up and tried his best regardless. He became a better person for it. Dreamland was doing better for it.
Now? Now it seems like now that Daniel is finally there, it’s one beat after another to show that Alex was wrong, everyone else was right, he was being a selfish prick all along, and this is his comeuppance.
completely agree. it was two people having a conversation and one of them shoulda took action LOONG ago. uh he could simply grab her hand and PULL her up.
More than anything, it’s all the progress Alex made from the beginning of the story has been wadded up and thrown away and while I’ll not speak for others, it’s annoying the expletive deleted out of me.
It occurs to me that if Alex, after getting the potted plant and Excaliber’s sheath, pulls Niviene up through the portal, and entirely onto the shore, the portal may blow up from the instability but it is in Dreamland. This would destroy Abbadon’s minions and the portal. Alex and crew just get wet, and the Nightmare beasts cannot follow. Of course then our heroic party needs to evade Abbadon’s minions on Earth. (Hopefully Niviene will still have the power to convert to two-legged form.)
On page 1434 we saw Niviene first open the portal and her arm emerge from the lake. However, it was Merlin who took her hand and drew her up out of the portal into his world. It is likely that Alex can do the same, but he does not have Merlin’s magical skill to allow him to do it without disrupting the portal.
The sheath! Quick!!! And the place where Merlin is. And some nice chocolates wouldn’t hurt.
So, Alex destroyed pretty much any hope she had of getting away.
Yep. Our hero, ladies and gentlemen.
Well … i rest my case. Just hope that nastajia slaps the dolt and gives him the ditch for his outrageous and continuous stoopidity. Sorry scott, but the way you ve characterized this lad is not endearing. Shouldna be any happy end for that guy. 🙁 but then mebbe this is me just being unfair …..
Nooooo!!!
I get his desperation, but still bro. D:
Is this just another bit to show how great Dan is and how awful Alex is? If Alex would have just shut up, there would be no risk of Abbadon breaching the portal before it could be closed.
Taking a step back from the story, there’s a time for exposition, but this clearly wasn’t it. Putting it here anyway feels like poor writing. I’m not feeling that Alex is so worried about Nastajia that he’s not thinking clearly, but that he’s not capable of thinking at all. All the goodwill and emotional investment he’s earned for over the years keeps getting tossed away in the effort to play up the difference between himself and Dan. You don’t have to keep tearing Alex down to build Dan up. It’s not some sort of zero sum game.
A lot of people are blaming Alex for this, but this was all completely out of the blue for him, so yeah, dude’s going to ask questions–ESPECIALLY since Niviene was doing more talking than item chucking. So I blame her more, actually. She knew what was happening and should have sent the items over before talking.
Whoa guys, chill! Alex has just been kicked out of Dreamland, everything has been given over to his brother, he lost the love of his life, in the *Nightmare Realm* (the most dangerous place, and even though Alex knows Nastajia kicks butt, she was last seen being kidnapped)
Nivivienne just told him she could open the only place connected to Dreamland *for the last time.* She was his only hope of getting back. He is panicking and, like in Alex-fashion, he doesn`t understand all this new stuff about plants and he hasn`t seen the invasion. All this time he has been involved in the bigger plot of Dreamland, only to be kicked out when everything tumbles apart. I can understand his questions and he only asked “why” a few times, it`s Nivivienne who is doing all the exposition because this is the last time she can, she might die after this. We have seen all that stuff with the Nightmare Beasts happened, Alex didn`t.
Yes, their conversaion destroyed her hope of getting away, but Nivivienne basicly did this herself.
Also, it might be the pacing, but this might be a point in which Alex realizes his mistakes. We`re still at the “all is lost” part of the story, or the “it gets worse” phase, after usually the hero learns a thing or two or finally sees the light.
I guess Alex can kiss any chances to reunite with Nastajia goodbye!!! 🙁
upvote
Hmmm… just a thought, but I could almost see Alex grabbing her arm and trying to pull her to safety despite the dangers of some kind of portal-y backlash… whatever she’d said a few pages ago. I’m probably misunderstanding something about that though.
Not totally out of the blue.. he was specifically waiting at the pool for her to show up, and he knows bad stuff is going down in Dreamland even if he doesn’t know the specifics.
Sure, Alex’s fault, all of this. Made her hurry to the only place in the whole big ocean where she would surely be found, too.
C’mon folks, the Gold Medal of Ultimate Stupidity would go to the Lady of the Lake if this were a contest.
No, actually, Niviene did that by constantly talking. As I stated before, all she had to say was “Flower that gives immortality, scabbard to Excalibur, Abaddon’s on my tail, you take them so they don’t get them, Portal open, here they come, got them? good, I’m gone.” Instead she had to give speeches…
Also, you all need to consider the thropes of heroism. Alex risking all their lives by jumping through the Portal so he can get back to Dreamland, dubious. Alex jumping through the Portal to save Niviene and defeat Abaddon? Gold. And if that gets him on the right side to reach Nastajia, all the better.
Alex cannot take the pot with one hand as placed on the side of it. She is the only one supporting the pot. He either adds his second hand or he pulls her up through the portal.
And what are Nastaje’s parents doing during all of this? They have not come to help take the items or to talk or to help pull Niviene out. So far they have just stood there.
Seconded. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s to never start judging the story until it’s complete: you never know how exactly it will all work out from the middle of the story. Just like a road trip to Vegas, you wouldn’t say your trip was completely ruined at the very moment you enter the desert without yet experiencing the Strip, right?
Scott has had his story planned for a long time now, and I have faith that he would not disappoint the fans by not giving us or his characters a measure of closure before it’s all over. We just have to be patient and wait to see where he takes us, regardless how tough that might be for all of us. After all, we’ve waited this long to see the end of the story, so waiting just a little bit longer shouldn’t be a huge burden. I know we all can do it.
I can’t believe the number of people here that have turned against Alex.
It’s likely he will add a second hand to actually grab it. Or maybe he’s saying “Got it” in response to her instructions. That’s how I read it at first.
Not against Alex, per se… but realize that he’s ALWAYS been the one quick to action without as much forethought whilst Daniel has been forced to be the exact opposite by circumstances. His impulsiveness has gotten him into a LOT of trouble before, and this is no different from any other time except that – between their individual quirks – Niviene may pay a hefty price indeed.
I rather like Alex as a character, and seeing his general growth as a person has been amazing… imagine if you were -just- finding yourself, finding who you wanted to be with the person you wanted to be with forever… and then imagine that being torn from you. He is falling back into a reactionary pattern because he doesn’t know what else to do, and demanding answers because he is desperate. He is a FAR cry from the lovable idiot we began this adventure with. Still lovable, still an idiot at times – yes – but he now has something to fight for… and given the opportunity he will pursue every avenue until he reunites with Nastajia.
Alex is a teenager! He’s supposed to be impulsive and not think things completely through. That’s what teenagers do!
Not contending that… I absolutely agree that he’s acting his age and temperment, despite the fact that he’s begun to learn to grow beyond that and is finding his way into adulthood. 🙂
I have this sinking suspicion that Alex’s fate is going to be something like Christopher Reeve’s character in “Somewhere in Time”, where he loses his ability to be with his beloved, and simply wastes away to nothing due to losing all hope.
Everything has been taken from him. His hopes, his dreams (both literally and figuratively), any respect he may have gained, and become reduced to what he was before : a pale shadow of Daniel. Less than what he was before, with Daniel’s new powers.
He has gone from being the protagonist, to being the extraneous extra, the flunky, the mook, the Cautionary Tale of a failed hero.
I keep getting this vibe as the story goes on that everyone that talks to or about Alex looks at him with this sad sort of pity, that all of this would have been avoided if he had only gotten Daniel into Dreamland sooner. Yes, there were times were he was told he wasn’t supposed to be the King, but he stepped up and tried his best regardless. He became a better person for it. Dreamland was doing better for it.
Now? Now it seems like now that Daniel is finally there, it’s one beat after another to show that Alex was wrong, everyone else was right, he was being a selfish prick all along, and this is his comeuppance.
completely agree. it was two people having a conversation and one of them shoulda took action LOONG ago. uh he could simply grab her hand and PULL her up.
More than anything, it’s all the progress Alex made from the beginning of the story has been wadded up and thrown away and while I’ll not speak for others, it’s annoying the expletive deleted out of me.
It occurs to me that if Alex, after getting the potted plant and Excaliber’s sheath, pulls Niviene up through the portal, and entirely onto the shore, the portal may blow up from the instability but it is in Dreamland. This would destroy Abbadon’s minions and the portal. Alex and crew just get wet, and the Nightmare beasts cannot follow. Of course then our heroic party needs to evade Abbadon’s minions on Earth. (Hopefully Niviene will still have the power to convert to two-legged form.)
On page 1434 we saw Niviene first open the portal and her arm emerge from the lake. However, it was Merlin who took her hand and drew her up out of the portal into his world. It is likely that Alex can do the same, but he does not have Merlin’s magical skill to allow him to do it without disrupting the portal.
Exactly how did he do so?