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Paul why yoo be gropin' gem? Prolly should have drawn his hands holding her shoulders LOL never mind. Paul to teh rescue, we'll catch that rascally rabbit.....I mean folf.
as usual if you wanna support my comics and get free stuff etc etc https://www.patreon.com/squiggle this is the place to go
Paul why yoo be gropin' gem? Prolly should have drawn his hands holding her shoulders LOL never mind. Paul to teh rescue, we'll catch that rascally rabbit.....I mean folf.
as usual if you wanna support my comics and get free stuff etc etc https://www.patreon.com/squiggle this is the place to go
Category All / All
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probably because normally she'd be in that room by herself strapped down...so she wouldn't beable to use it anyway. It didnt even occur to me that there might even be those in the private rooms. my sisters room didnt have one, but i think maybe thats because sometimes she when she wasnt strapped down it would be just too much temptation for her to continuously push it LOL
fun fact, in the hospital here the nurse button for rooms such as this (one where the patiant is restained) has a manual button held out of arms reach while restrained (which is no good to gem atm) but the heart monitor tends to be connected to an alert as well, so if she started to have hightend HBM or something was wrong the nurses would be alerted to her room due to the odd situation with her vitals, i.e if she was having a brake down and tryingt o brake free her vitals would be high, and they would need to satate her for her own safty, but thats in my local hospital i aint to sure of other hospitals :P
then again SHINY BUTTON *pushes it giggling*
then again SHINY BUTTON *pushes it giggling*
The hospital my sister was in didnt even have things like heart monitors. it was more like some strange hotel where all the doors were security code locked. lisa (thats my sisyer) was in the high risk high security ward and i dont think i ever saw her hooked up to any machines or anything and the rooms didnt appear to have anything of that ilk. however we are talking 10-15 years ago now so practices may have changed
i was sent to omaha nabraska for some work because i had internal bleeding, the hosptial can be discribed as a hotel/hospital. every room was like a mini appartment. 2 doors ((3 if you count the one to the potty room)) but that was the main entrence/exit door to the "apartment" then you had the door that lead from the living room to the bedroom area. whilst it was a hosptial, the doors had sec code l;ocks that while occupied by a patient was left unlocked at all times, but the code for the room during the patients stay was given to said patient, and then when they left the code was sapposidly changed for safty reasons. but those rooms didnt have a nurse/doctor allert button either. belive me i LOOKED heck i even looked under the sink, and in the fridge and i flipped all 4 mattress's on the 2 beds. ((2 mattress's per bed)) and there wasnt a single blue alert or call button to be found ANYWHARE how ever. there was a tellephone to call for room cervice, when i check the number listing on the phone handle i saw a speed dial button to call for emergency nurse or doctor soo there was that, but the beds chould be outfitted with cuffs do too the no fall railes that could be raised or lowered but never removed as the bolts were welded to the bed fraims.
Well in the hospital I was we had a there was the "special room". This was the room that had a window to the nurse room and this room was for "hard cases". One was a older man who was several month in a coma and couldnt do nothing and the other one was a young girl (late teens but adult after german standarts so over 18) witch did to much drugs. And even that room had this bottoms because they have to for safety reasons.
But hey it really adds to the tention. Can we have one of this typical "hospital emercany" shots were sombody runs down a hallway? ^^
But hey it really adds to the tention. Can we have one of this typical "hospital emercany" shots were sombody runs down a hallway? ^^
The last time I was in a hospital, a private room, and not a mental hospital, there was a call button running along the side of the bed, and it resided basically where my hand rested. That way, I didn't have to go very far to get it. You'd press it, and the nurse's station would answer via intercom. The intercom was usually in the head of the bed, and anything like a heart monitor, IV drip or such was usually up by the head of the bed also. If you were on IV pain killers, there would also be a button for the infusion machine where you could push it to get more painkillers, up to a predetermined amount in a certain period of time. Basically, it wouldn't let you kill yourself with morphine by injecting too much of it too fast.
However, since this is a mental hospital, it wouldn't have most of that stuff. I was twice hospitalized for suicidal ideation, and we didn't have call buttons or anything like that. But, then again, I don't recall anyone actually being strapped into their beds, either.
But, here's another question, a minor point. If Souffle met Paul in the morning, and told him that Gem had been having severe night terrors, how did they know? I'm assuming that she IS being monitored, one way or another. Might be a microphone in the room, or a camera in the ceiling, or just as simple as a nurse on her rounds. She would have told the doctor on duty, obviously Souffle in this case, and he would have had the restraints reapplied, if the nurse hadn't already done it, and possibly a change in medication to help her calm down.
However, since this is a mental hospital, it wouldn't have most of that stuff. I was twice hospitalized for suicidal ideation, and we didn't have call buttons or anything like that. But, then again, I don't recall anyone actually being strapped into their beds, either.
But, here's another question, a minor point. If Souffle met Paul in the morning, and told him that Gem had been having severe night terrors, how did they know? I'm assuming that she IS being monitored, one way or another. Might be a microphone in the room, or a camera in the ceiling, or just as simple as a nurse on her rounds. She would have told the doctor on duty, obviously Souffle in this case, and he would have had the restraints reapplied, if the nurse hadn't already done it, and possibly a change in medication to help her calm down.
But yet they would want to make sure everyone was ok, so the only way to do that would be to have someone come by on a regular basis and check on each patient and make a note of it, tick a little box on a schedule form, etc. (or nowadays probably use some kind of tablet app).
This is why I said a camera, in the ceiling, for instance. Use a wide angle lens, and the ability to move it around to 'scan' the room. That way, the nurses can sit at their station, and monitor everyone all at once. Now, in a regular medical hospital you might not have that, since you would have heart monitor, or something else . . . those things will scare the crap out of you if you accidentally pull one of the leads off . . ., but in a mental hospital, you're usually physically okay so they might do monitoring 'stealthily.' At least, you could keep tabs on people who might act differently if they don't sense being directly observed.
Besides, this IS the 21st Century, you know.
Besides, this IS the 21st Century, you know.
Paul is thinking like a lawyer, not a doctor. He found a key piece of evidence, came to the wrong conclusion, but it should move the story along and hopefully will get Gemma reintroduced to her father, Souffle. I still believe that Jack doesn't exist anywhere outside of Gemma's imagination, and that he's nothing more than a way for her to deal with the things that happened to her in her childhood that forced Child Protective Services to put her in Foster Care.
Well, I think his identity is fairly obvious. I'm more concerned about his intentions. Whether they were malicious as Gem perceived, or if that was all her stressed mind twisting the true events. How conscious was she during these events. Was it only enough to realize she was being restrained, seeing the doctor making a change to her charts, then a figure of her past returning something from her childhood? While all the words she heard were just the twisted makings of her recent dreams and nightmares? I can't say I see the conversation that took place on pages 339-340 actually being real. Gem's concept of reality is starting to blur slightly, getting worse with this run in of a person of her dreams and of her perceived past. Her mind is trying to think of what a confrontation with this man from her dreams would go down like. Hence the maniacal facial features, the melting like her dreams turning to nightmares, the creepy smoke, and the rather threatening and demeaning conversation. What was actually happening was this person in the real world finding Gem in this state and starting to come to grips with what they did. A longshot to be sure that Gem would be admitted to a hospital where this man worked but still a possibility. The doctor coming out and apologizing to Paul, not just a formal apology for her condition, but a sincere apology for being part of its cause. Handing off Grub, a symbol of the baby that was given up, that he held onto all these years. Using it as some form of apology to the currently only partially lucid Gem.
Anyway, I'm rambling far too much now, and hey, that's just a theory, a comic theory! Thanks for reading.
Anyway, I'm rambling far too much now, and hey, that's just a theory, a comic theory! Thanks for reading.
Actually, your 'rambling' pretty much lines up with my theories on the whole thing. In the past couple of pages, I've outlined what I think is real, and what I believe is made up in Gemma's mind. If you want to go back and search them, you'll see what I mean.
My comment on Identity was more about Gemma's perception of who. We know Souffle was the doctor since we saw him talking to Paul. We also know that Grub was pristine and new in the 'encounter' with 'Jack', but when Gemma woke up and was with Paul, Grub looked like he had been around the block a few times.
As to Souffle's intentions, it is my belief that HE was the one working on the drug, and somehow Gem got a hold of it and ingested, injected, or whatever. It messed with her mind somehow, at least her dreams. It's also why she was taken from Souffle and Nicole and put into Foster care.
It would also make sense that Souffle was working in the hospital, it would fit with his research from earlier in his life. Chance and coincidence would have brought them together at the local mental health facility.
Anyway, that's all my theory of how this goes down, I don't know anything from the Squig, so I'm anxious to see the next 20 pages to the end.
My comment on Identity was more about Gemma's perception of who. We know Souffle was the doctor since we saw him talking to Paul. We also know that Grub was pristine and new in the 'encounter' with 'Jack', but when Gemma woke up and was with Paul, Grub looked like he had been around the block a few times.
As to Souffle's intentions, it is my belief that HE was the one working on the drug, and somehow Gem got a hold of it and ingested, injected, or whatever. It messed with her mind somehow, at least her dreams. It's also why she was taken from Souffle and Nicole and put into Foster care.
It would also make sense that Souffle was working in the hospital, it would fit with his research from earlier in his life. Chance and coincidence would have brought them together at the local mental health facility.
Anyway, that's all my theory of how this goes down, I don't know anything from the Squig, so I'm anxious to see the next 20 pages to the end.
I think it goes without saying that this page absolutely demands one of your zany alternate dialogue spin-offs.
Is Souffle Jack in disguise? Is Jack a figment of her imagination or a memory brought about by Souffle's presence? Or is it another thing entirely? Can't wait to find out!
Is Souffle Jack in disguise? Is Jack a figment of her imagination or a memory brought about by Souffle's presence? Or is it another thing entirely? Can't wait to find out!
You missed it yesterday, the alternate dialog was about 'Funbags!' Notice where he has his hands in panel three. The alternate dialog was pretty funny, actually, but it would probably have an 'Mature' rating, at least.
If you go back a couple of pages, my personal opinion is that Jack is a figment of her imagination, and has never existed. Souffle doesn't have a twin brother. But, that's just my guess.
If you go back a couple of pages, my personal opinion is that Jack is a figment of her imagination, and has never existed. Souffle doesn't have a twin brother. But, that's just my guess.
When I was watching you yesterday draw this, I figured this is what was going to happen. Paul's expression as he's at the door wasn't one of anger but of concern. That's why I thought the 'SLAM!', or 'SUPER SLAM', if you like, , wasn't about him getting upset.
Now, Paul has come to the wrong conclusions for all the right reasons, and his actions will bring Souffle and Gemma back together, as long as he doesn't try to do anything physical to Souffle. Being a Solicitor, I don't think he will. OTOH, someone messing with 'his woman' might.
However, even if Gemma HAD told him Jack was in a patient's clothing, it wouldn't have mattered, since Souffle told Paul that she had been having night terrors, which would easily explain any 'confusion' over Jack's dress. Paul probably wouldn't, in the 'heat of the moment' connect that it wasn't Jack, but his twin brother Souffle. Gemma told him she saw Jack, so that's what's on his mind. The fact that he described Jack, and Souffle, to her only reinforces the idea that Gemma was correct.
As long as he doesn't kill Souffle, or beat him to a pulp, or pull a Lure on him and 'RAWR' him into submission, this should get sorted out pretty quickly. As our artist has said, there's only about 20 pages left in this story, so a lot of things need to come together very quickly.
Now, Paul has come to the wrong conclusions for all the right reasons, and his actions will bring Souffle and Gemma back together, as long as he doesn't try to do anything physical to Souffle. Being a Solicitor, I don't think he will. OTOH, someone messing with 'his woman' might.
However, even if Gemma HAD told him Jack was in a patient's clothing, it wouldn't have mattered, since Souffle told Paul that she had been having night terrors, which would easily explain any 'confusion' over Jack's dress. Paul probably wouldn't, in the 'heat of the moment' connect that it wasn't Jack, but his twin brother Souffle. Gemma told him she saw Jack, so that's what's on his mind. The fact that he described Jack, and Souffle, to her only reinforces the idea that Gemma was correct.
As long as he doesn't kill Souffle, or beat him to a pulp, or pull a Lure on him and 'RAWR' him into submission, this should get sorted out pretty quickly. As our artist has said, there's only about 20 pages left in this story, so a lot of things need to come together very quickly.
By the way, my comment about the 'twin brother' only applies to Gemma, I don't think Jack exists except as something in Gemma's head. Of course, Paul is thinking that Souffle is Jack, because as far as Gemma knows, they are identical twins.
I'm not sure how all of this is going to work out, I'm pretty sure Jack doesn't exist at all, but that's just me, with no inside information. It's a great plot twist, and I hope I'm right, since I don't want to have to undo all of my thinking cuz I was wrong. We'll see soon enough, I hope.
I'm not sure how all of this is going to work out, I'm pretty sure Jack doesn't exist at all, but that's just me, with no inside information. It's a great plot twist, and I hope I'm right, since I don't want to have to undo all of my thinking cuz I was wrong. We'll see soon enough, I hope.
Well, Grub and Souffle exist, I'm not too sure about you, Zee! Personally, I think you're just a manifestation of my desire to go to Las Vegas with my sister and brother in law the next time she goes down to play pool and poker.
By the way, I had the STRANGEST dream with you in it last night!
By the way, I had the STRANGEST dream with you in it last night!
Okay, this is really off topic.
For some reason, Paul had to go work overseas for three months, and our Squiggle got laid off from her job. I volunteered to babysit, so Sammy came to live with me instead of staying at home in a lonely house. Now, that's from England to the West Coast of the U.S., which is a ways to go, but hey, it's a dream. YOU were in Vegas, again, for some reason or another, and I invited you up to spend a week with your little sister. Since you're a big boy, I know you don't wear nappies, but you had an 'accident', so for a week you were in nappies all the time. I don't know, are you married? In my dream, you were, and your wife and I conversed while you were here, and we decided that you should be back in nappies ALL the time, and oh yes, since you were emulating your sister, we ought to probably dress you like her, too.
So, the upshot of this was before you got put back on the plane to go home, you were put in very thick diapers, and told not to take them off. Your wife, or new Mommy, was waiting there at the airport and she had new nappies for you, and some pretty dresses for when you got home.
Now, WHY I had this dream, I have no clue whatsoever. I'm rather stressed about not having a job, possibly losing my home and other stuff, and weird dreams come when I am stressed. I've just never dreamt anything about people that I only know from the internet, so take it for what it's worth.
Still, Sammy might find it funny that her big brother is back in nappies and now is dressed like her, too!
For some reason, Paul had to go work overseas for three months, and our Squiggle got laid off from her job. I volunteered to babysit, so Sammy came to live with me instead of staying at home in a lonely house. Now, that's from England to the West Coast of the U.S., which is a ways to go, but hey, it's a dream. YOU were in Vegas, again, for some reason or another, and I invited you up to spend a week with your little sister. Since you're a big boy, I know you don't wear nappies, but you had an 'accident', so for a week you were in nappies all the time. I don't know, are you married? In my dream, you were, and your wife and I conversed while you were here, and we decided that you should be back in nappies ALL the time, and oh yes, since you were emulating your sister, we ought to probably dress you like her, too.
So, the upshot of this was before you got put back on the plane to go home, you were put in very thick diapers, and told not to take them off. Your wife, or new Mommy, was waiting there at the airport and she had new nappies for you, and some pretty dresses for when you got home.
Now, WHY I had this dream, I have no clue whatsoever. I'm rather stressed about not having a job, possibly losing my home and other stuff, and weird dreams come when I am stressed. I've just never dreamt anything about people that I only know from the internet, so take it for what it's worth.
Still, Sammy might find it funny that her big brother is back in nappies and now is dressed like her, too!
Jack is a creation Gemma's mind, nothing more. He doesn't exist. As a little girl, she needed someone to blame for the things that happened to her, so she created Jack. Souffle is her father, and probably the reason that she's sick. I'm pretty sure that he was the one working on the medicine, and I'm also pretty sure that Gem somehow got a hold of it, and ingested, injected, or otherwise got it into her system. It explains her weird dreams, why she was put into Foster Homes, etc.
At least, it's one explanation, I'm sure our resident scribe/artist will be telling us all the details in the next 20 pages, which we might have done before the new year!
At least, it's one explanation, I'm sure our resident scribe/artist will be telling us all the details in the next 20 pages, which we might have done before the new year!
I had another thought along the same lines. I would have posted it on the previous page, but I didn't feel like going through the whole password recovery system and logging in for the first time in months.
What if Souffle isn't really Gemma's father or Uncle? What if she was abandoned at the hospital and Souffle was the doctor that happened to be around at that time. He felt pity on the baby kind of adopted her, or at least help take care of her long enough for her to go into an adoption center.
The whole story about Gem's past, might be a way for Gem to cope with the thought about being abandoned and knowing nothing about her past. Perhaps the recent case she was working on had something to do with family and she ended up mixing that case up with her own past.
Not that I like this theory. I view it kind of anticlimactic to the idea of Gem finding out she was the only survivor in a murder-suicide story, but it is a very realistic one. I'm sure quite a few babies get abandoned in the hospital and then have to go up for adoption, growing up knowing nothing about their past.
Gem's story might have started off with her wondering "what if" and then it progressed into her believing it, to where she is now. Eventually, if this theory is correct, she will have to come to terms of not knowing about her past or family. Only that she was found and taken care of, even if it meant going in and out of homes, and spending time at an orphanage.
What if Souffle isn't really Gemma's father or Uncle? What if she was abandoned at the hospital and Souffle was the doctor that happened to be around at that time. He felt pity on the baby kind of adopted her, or at least help take care of her long enough for her to go into an adoption center.
The whole story about Gem's past, might be a way for Gem to cope with the thought about being abandoned and knowing nothing about her past. Perhaps the recent case she was working on had something to do with family and she ended up mixing that case up with her own past.
Not that I like this theory. I view it kind of anticlimactic to the idea of Gem finding out she was the only survivor in a murder-suicide story, but it is a very realistic one. I'm sure quite a few babies get abandoned in the hospital and then have to go up for adoption, growing up knowing nothing about their past.
Gem's story might have started off with her wondering "what if" and then it progressed into her believing it, to where she is now. Eventually, if this theory is correct, she will have to come to terms of not knowing about her past or family. Only that she was found and taken care of, even if it meant going in and out of homes, and spending time at an orphanage.
It's an interesting theory, but it doesn't explain why she's having all of these weird memories and what's causing them. Babies also get abandoned in hospitals for other reasons, as well, as the mother is single, can't take care of another baby, etc. So, maybe no murder/suicide thing.
But, also, remember, Gemma was never adopted, she was in Foster Care, and went from place to place, person to person. That wouldn't happen in an adoption, at least none that I know of.
Hopefully we'll know more soon enough, either way.
But, also, remember, Gemma was never adopted, she was in Foster Care, and went from place to place, person to person. That wouldn't happen in an adoption, at least none that I know of.
Hopefully we'll know more soon enough, either way.
Maybe I confused some of those daycare scenes with an orphanage/ adoption place. I'm really hoping the dream memories are true and leading up to something.
Though if Gem came to believe her own story as an explanation to being abandoned, the dreams might just be playing off that. The furries in her dreams she might have seen before in her waking life. It could be the latest case Gem was working on that brought it on in full force. I don't believe we ever got to know what was going on with that case. My hunch was rather important and very personal to Gem. Hopefully it will be revealed later.
Really I am hoping that isn't the story and the memories, the burned house, her family are true memories, ones she's suppressed all these years. I am eagerly waiting to see what happens when Paul confronts Souffle. How Souffle reacts will give us a big clue.
Though if Gem came to believe her own story as an explanation to being abandoned, the dreams might just be playing off that. The furries in her dreams she might have seen before in her waking life. It could be the latest case Gem was working on that brought it on in full force. I don't believe we ever got to know what was going on with that case. My hunch was rather important and very personal to Gem. Hopefully it will be revealed later.
Really I am hoping that isn't the story and the memories, the burned house, her family are true memories, ones she's suppressed all these years. I am eagerly waiting to see what happens when Paul confronts Souffle. How Souffle reacts will give us a big clue.
I'm sorry. No, not really. Sammy will stream via Picarto when she draws sometimes, and when she was drawing this particular page, she was having fun with the drawing, particularly this panel, and was writing stuff on the drawing about Paul wanting to play with Gemma's 'Funbags' and she saying 'NO!' and then him leaving the room in a huff, with a 'SUPER SLAM!' of the door. She does that a lot, just to lighten the mood when she's drawing.
So, the comment doesn't apply to Shine so much as it does apply to what the Squig did on her stream.
So, the comment doesn't apply to Shine so much as it does apply to what the Squig did on her stream.
I don't see any reason why Nicole wouldn't be alive, at least from the way that I'm looking at it. We have, so far, seen everything from Gemma's perspective, her dreams, her memories. She's been through an awful lot growing up, and I suspect that a lot of her younger aged trauma has been repressed. (Ask me how I know that . . . or, better yet, don't ask me, and just take my word for it) Those memories are always there (unless there is physical damage to the brain), so, at some point, they are going to come forth to be dealt with.
So, we've see Jack ONLY from Gemma's point of view. How old was Gem when she was taken from her family? Not even two yet? That would leave some kind of really bad impression on a child that young, especially one as smart, talented and later on, educated as Gemma is.
Now, the dark house in her dreams has come up several times as a Fire, indicating that the family might be dead in some way or another, but then how do you explain Rasile and ZeeZee 'sharing memories' with her? Is there some sort of telepathy in this universe? I don't know. Or, maybe, it was just part of her longing desires. So far, no clue.
We don't know about Nicole right now, but unless something happened to her that none of us can know, at this point, I see no reason for her not to be alive. But, that's just me.
So, we've see Jack ONLY from Gemma's point of view. How old was Gem when she was taken from her family? Not even two yet? That would leave some kind of really bad impression on a child that young, especially one as smart, talented and later on, educated as Gemma is.
Now, the dark house in her dreams has come up several times as a Fire, indicating that the family might be dead in some way or another, but then how do you explain Rasile and ZeeZee 'sharing memories' with her? Is there some sort of telepathy in this universe? I don't know. Or, maybe, it was just part of her longing desires. So far, no clue.
We don't know about Nicole right now, but unless something happened to her that none of us can know, at this point, I see no reason for her not to be alive. But, that's just me.
I would say that we all are, Lauren. I do know that this story sometimes leaves me near to tears. Life has been rough lately, things are not going well in my corner of the universe, and I get emotional sometimes. Even this page has put tears in my eyes.
So, I hope we get a happy ending, too. I certainly hope that the ending will be Paul and Gemma's wedding day with all the family there.
So, I hope we get a happy ending, too. I certainly hope that the ending will be Paul and Gemma's wedding day with all the family there.
I had another thought along the same lines of Jack being fictional. I would have posted it on the previous page, but I didn't feel like going through the whole password recovery system and logging in for the first time in months.
What if Souffle isn't really Gemma's father or Uncle? What if she was abandoned at the hospital and Souffle was the doctor that happened to be around at that time. He felt pity on the baby kind of adopted her, or at least help take care of her long enough for her to go into an adoption center.
The whole story about Gem's past, might be a way for Gem to cope with the thought about being abandoned and knowing nothing about her past. Perhaps the recent case she was working on had something to do with family and she ended up mixing that case up with her own past.
Not that I like this theory. I view it kind of anticlimactic to the idea of Gem finding out she was the only survivor in a murder-suicide story, but it is a very realistic one. I'm sure quite a few babies get abandoned in the hospital and then have to go up for adoption, growing up knowing nothing about their past.
Gem's story might have started off with her wondering "what if" and then it progressed into her believing it, to where she is now. Eventually, if this theory is correct, she will have to come to terms of not knowing about her past or family. Only that she was found and taken care of, even if it meant going in and out of homes, and spending time at an orphanage. After coming at peace with that, then Gem will have to face the present. Who she is right now. Given this genre I wouldn't be surprised if there turns out to be a pill or magic potion that she could take to restart and continue her life again as a 1 year old. I gather this from the various Gemma drawings here. The only images of her adult form seem to be from this comic. Just about everywhere else she is drawn as a 1year old.
What if Souffle isn't really Gemma's father or Uncle? What if she was abandoned at the hospital and Souffle was the doctor that happened to be around at that time. He felt pity on the baby kind of adopted her, or at least help take care of her long enough for her to go into an adoption center.
The whole story about Gem's past, might be a way for Gem to cope with the thought about being abandoned and knowing nothing about her past. Perhaps the recent case she was working on had something to do with family and she ended up mixing that case up with her own past.
Not that I like this theory. I view it kind of anticlimactic to the idea of Gem finding out she was the only survivor in a murder-suicide story, but it is a very realistic one. I'm sure quite a few babies get abandoned in the hospital and then have to go up for adoption, growing up knowing nothing about their past.
Gem's story might have started off with her wondering "what if" and then it progressed into her believing it, to where she is now. Eventually, if this theory is correct, she will have to come to terms of not knowing about her past or family. Only that she was found and taken care of, even if it meant going in and out of homes, and spending time at an orphanage. After coming at peace with that, then Gem will have to face the present. Who she is right now. Given this genre I wouldn't be surprised if there turns out to be a pill or magic potion that she could take to restart and continue her life again as a 1 year old. I gather this from the various Gemma drawings here. The only images of her adult form seem to be from this comic. Just about everywhere else she is drawn as a 1year old.
I would have thought that was pretty obvious. Souffle is a doctor at the hospital. Gemma's been there at least two days now, in a coma for the first day (remember Paul waking up, and having said while she was out, he went back to her place), and then the following day, into the night, when 'Jack' showed up.
Insofar as I can tell, or guess, Jack doesn't exist, he never has. Jack is nothing more than a figment of Gemma's imagination. Souffle, on the other hand, IS real, since Paul met him, but Paul, at this point, doesn't know there is no Jack, and he thinks Souffle IS Jack. But, Paul can only go on what Gemma is telling him, and SHE believe there IS a Jack.
Also, notice, when 'Jack' gave Grub to Gemma, Grub was in like new condition, but then when Gemma is awake, and Paul is holding Grub, Grub has a broken antenna and is pretty frazzled.
So, where did Grub come from. IF Jack does not exist, and is nothing but a figment of Gemma's imagination, then obviously Souffle has had Grub the entire 30-some years. He may have kept it a token of his daughter . . . yes, Gemma is Souffle's daughter, his and Nicole's. I believe that Souffle was the one working on the drug that 'Jack' discovered, and somehow it got into Gem's system, which would explain why she was in Foster Care all her childhood and teenaged years. Souffle may have kept Grub to remind him what he did to his daughter. So, when Souffle was checking on Gemma, SHE saw Jack, in her night terrors, but Souffle actually brought Grub to give her, to help her, to assuage some of his guilt, and a small token to know that her family is still there for her.
Anyway, that's what I think is going to have happened. How do you like that tense there? LOL
Insofar as I can tell, or guess, Jack doesn't exist, he never has. Jack is nothing more than a figment of Gemma's imagination. Souffle, on the other hand, IS real, since Paul met him, but Paul, at this point, doesn't know there is no Jack, and he thinks Souffle IS Jack. But, Paul can only go on what Gemma is telling him, and SHE believe there IS a Jack.
Also, notice, when 'Jack' gave Grub to Gemma, Grub was in like new condition, but then when Gemma is awake, and Paul is holding Grub, Grub has a broken antenna and is pretty frazzled.
So, where did Grub come from. IF Jack does not exist, and is nothing but a figment of Gemma's imagination, then obviously Souffle has had Grub the entire 30-some years. He may have kept it a token of his daughter . . . yes, Gemma is Souffle's daughter, his and Nicole's. I believe that Souffle was the one working on the drug that 'Jack' discovered, and somehow it got into Gem's system, which would explain why she was in Foster Care all her childhood and teenaged years. Souffle may have kept Grub to remind him what he did to his daughter. So, when Souffle was checking on Gemma, SHE saw Jack, in her night terrors, but Souffle actually brought Grub to give her, to help her, to assuage some of his guilt, and a small token to know that her family is still there for her.
Anyway, that's what I think is going to have happened. How do you like that tense there? LOL
My guess is that Jack was really Gem's dad, but in his feud with his brother (and to an extent, his wife), he basically drove his whole family away. Now, either he died a long time ago, miserable and alone, or he's fairly close to it now. And if it's the latter, I expect Gem to end up finding him at death's door after tracking him down with the intention of confronting him over his treatment of her mother, only to end getting him medical help and ultimately saving his life.
Jennie, how many people, in almost any universe, move around on tendrils of smoke, can tie you down to a bed with tendrils of smoke, give to you a perfectly new, intact 35 year old toy, and then go away, only to have said 'victim' wake up, find she's in her bed, hospital straps, not smoke, has her tied down, and her 35 year old toys looks 35, broken, beat up, kind of worn, but still hanging in there for her?
Jack doesn't exist. My take on the Squigs wonderful story.
Jack doesn't exist. My take on the Squigs wonderful story.
The restraints are real ... and Grub is real. Someone was there. Someone who either looks, talks and acts like Jack ... or who can be replaced with Jack by Gemma's imagination. But there was a real person there. Whom Paul also saw, by the way.
And if he looks like a Jack, talks like a Jack and acts like a Jack ... what's the difference between that and a real Jack?
And if he looks like a Jack, talks like a Jack and acts like a Jack ... what's the difference between that and a real Jack?
Our talented muse is messing with us . . . or so my thoughts go.
All of my comments are based upon the premise that Gemma is somehow suffering from delusions brought on by emotional and mental duress from being forcibly removed from her home as a baby by Child Protective Services, or whatever the British equivalent is.
To paraphrase some movie somewhere, somewhen 'Sit down, strap in, hold on, this is going to be a bumpy ride!' as we go through my thought process on this.
We've been shown throughout the story that Gemma is having dreams of her childhood, memories surfacing, for some reason or another.
ZeeZee and Rasile have seemed to have been able to communicate with her to share some memories. Both of them seems to be alluding to some sort of disaster, or something, having to do with their father. Neither ZeeZee nor Rasile have particularly described anything to do with their father, but they have shown memories of having a good with with Uncle Souffle.
At some point, in her dreams, Gemma meets up with "Jack." She is terrified of him, but this is the first time we've met him though any form. Surprisingly, he looks like Souffle. Then, he tells his story of twins.
Now, from this point on, there are two characters, Souffle and Jack. BUT, outside of Gemma's dream, we have no knowledge of Jack. Shared memories from Rasile and ZeeZee only point to an unseen Daddy, but a seen Uncle, whom "Jack" refers to as his twin brother. In other words, there is no collaborative evidence of Jack and Souffle being twins.
Now, while you take a second to wrap your brain around that, the person in Gemma's room was Souffle. Sam has been nice enough to show us the people who are in her art work. Souffle always is included when Souffle is in the story, but never shown when Jack is in the story. So, when Souffle comes out of the room, and Paul confronts him, it IS Souffle. Now, whether or not Souffle is Gemma's Uncle, Father, or just someone from her memories, we haven't been told yet. But, consider that ZeeZee and Rasile have shown memories including 'Unka Souffle', let it suffice to say that he is probably related to her in some form or another.
Now, Gemma's dreams of her father, learning about her mother, the birthday party, etc., are all being told to Gem by 'Jack.' He is simply narrating events that took place 30 some years previously, at least in her dreams. One of the most telling scenes is when 'Jack' comes back to announce that his team has discovered this miracle cure drug. He wants everyone to come to the lab so that he can share this wonderful discovery. It's also Gem's first birthday party. They don't go, and infact, Nicole decides to take the children and go to Souffle's home. The key point here is that this is still all in Gemma's dreams, and we can't forget that.
Okay, fast forward several years, Gemma Polson is in court to prosecute a case, and somehow that case goes almost exactly like a dream she had of that case, and in her dream, she sees someone who, to her memory, looks either like Souffle or Jack. The real court appearance happens, and something in her mind snaps, she loses it, but on the way out, she calls out 'Jack!', but there is no response. When she calls out 'Souffle!', Souffle turns around and looks at her! He recognized her, and there was apparently great sorrow on his face. Or, maybe great pain?
Still hanging in there?
So, Gemma has her nervous breakdown, and ends up in the hospital. We know that her professional career is real, since Paul was at home, and responded to the news story on television. He went to the hospital, and saw one doctor, whom he spoke with, and made arrangements for Paul to stay the night, as required.
Gemma goes to sleep. Either she is visited by Jack, or she has, as Souffle told Paul later on, terrific and violent night terrors. Either Jack restrained her somehow, or Souffle or the hospital staff did using standard restraints. Jack gives her Grub, but Grub appears to be new and intact. Grub is there in the morning, but is far from 'new and intact.' He's got 30-some years under his belt, is missing an eye, and has a bent antennae.
So, how do we reconcile the differences between dream and reality?
Now, remember, the Squig (why do I see a helmet-clad, white racing suit wearing artist, sitting at her desk?) has not given me any information on this, and all of this is out of my own warped mind. So, I don't know how much of this is correct any more than you do (unless you know stuff I don't!)
Jack does not exist, anywhere, outside of Gemma's mind. He is a construct she built to help her overcome traumatic childhood memories that she has not been able to assimilate yet.
This miracle drug was created by Souffle.
The family DID go to the lab to see the discovery.
Nicole is married to Souffle.
Gemma is Souffle's daughter.
At the lab, somehow or another, accidentally, Gemma either injects, ingests, or otherwise gets the drug into her system.
The drug has some sort of effect on her, may have even put her in the hospital.
Child Protective Services intervenes and removes Gemma from Souffle and Nicole's family, putting her into a series of Foster Homes, from which other things happen to her, from her own memories.
All of this feeds into her own insecurities, and it helps her to create an evil monster on whom she can blame all of this on, and in her mind, she names him 'Jack.'
Anything bad in her life, she blames Jack for it.
So, after the court scene, Gemma ends up in the hospital. Since Gemma hasn't been adopted, her last name would remain the same as her birth parents, Souffle and Nicole.
So, now, Paul wakes up, and sees this doctor he doesn't know coming out of Gemma's room. He looks very harried, worried and concerned. He explains to Paul that Gemma has been having severe and violent night terrors, and has been put back in restraints. Paul thinks like a prosecutor here when he subconsciously evaluates Souffle, saying to himself that Souffle apologizes like this is his fault. Good call, Paul, you're absolutely right, it IS his fault! But, not out of malice.
Since Souffle was working on this drug, it makes sense that he is probably a psychiatrist or mental health doctor, and would be in a mental health facility, which is where Dr. Nick told us, as well as the television story, Gemma was. The hospital, in fact, IS a real place, in Aberdeen, Scotland, and it IS a mental health facility. Our Squig is taking liberties again, introducing real places into her story. The hospital, and where Dr. Kitsune practice, are both real.
So, anyway, it makes sense that Souffle would be working there, and it's also likely that he's been visiting Gemma at night (he may be a third shift doctor) to check up on her.
The night when 'Jack' visited the room, it was really Souffle, bringing Grub to her. Now, Souffle has had Grub for 30 some years. Maybe a keepsake, a memento, or a personal reminder to him of what he did to his daughter.
Gemma wakes up, still sleepy, still half in dream land, and sees Souffle. But, since she's still sleepy, and maybe still kind of in a dream state, her mind sees 'Jack' and the conversation with Jack that followed. However, it was Souffle she saw, and interacted with. She wasn't coherent enough to understand that, though.
So, she goes violent, and is restrained. Souffle leaves Grub, which obviously is still there in the morning, maybe adds a sleeping aid to her chart (the little change) and leaves the room after she is calmed back down and asleep. He may even stay there for a while to watch his daughter get back to sleep, and leaves just as she's starting to wake up, so she won't see him and be terrified again.
Paul meets Souffle in the hall, has his conversation with him, and then goes in, meets Grub, and then Gemma describes her 'encounter' with her 'father.' Well, yes, it WAS her father, but she doesn't know that yet. She describes an encounter with a figment of her imagination who is built off of her loving, caring and doting father. Her figment carries all the wrong that has happened to her, and she uses it to stave off the lack of understanding and knowledge of why she has been taken from her family.
As a solicitor, she has undoubtedly seen hundreds of cases of broken homes, etc., any of which, or a culmination of which, would help to build her tormentor.
The final outcome of this is that Jack does not exist anywhere outside of Gemma's head, but no one knows that, especially Paul. Gemma told Paul everything, but remember, she is seeing that through a filter of some sort of damage caused by a drug that affected her in some-as-of-yet unknown way. Paul describes Souffle, of course, Gemma says 'Yes, that's Jack!' and Paul, not having any other information, takes off to alert people that 'Jack', a figment of Gemma's imagination, is running around the hospital.
Our talented pen has also intimated that the end of the story is near, so this fits into a wrap of the story.
Gemma will be reunited with her family, and will have her dreams put to rest by learning the truth, the entire truth.
Souffle, Nicole, ZeeZee and Rasile are all real. Souffle and Nicole are her parents. ZeeZee and Rasile are her siblings. She will get to meet all of them.
She will have everything explained to her, and to the board of solicitors who will decide on whether or not she gets to keep her job, which she will (added incidental story line, I don't know if it's important or not, but I would want her to keep her job).
She and Paul will become engaged, and get married. Final scene of the story.
Anyway, if you've gotten this far, we've crossed the finish line of my thoughts on this story. As an author yourself, and a good one to boot, you can see the twists of the plot here. It makes for a good story, even if this ISN'T the actual story that is being told. But, a lot of little things, at least to me, point to this being the way that this story will end. But, hey, I've been wrong before, too!
Hugs!
All of my comments are based upon the premise that Gemma is somehow suffering from delusions brought on by emotional and mental duress from being forcibly removed from her home as a baby by Child Protective Services, or whatever the British equivalent is.
To paraphrase some movie somewhere, somewhen 'Sit down, strap in, hold on, this is going to be a bumpy ride!' as we go through my thought process on this.
We've been shown throughout the story that Gemma is having dreams of her childhood, memories surfacing, for some reason or another.
ZeeZee and Rasile have seemed to have been able to communicate with her to share some memories. Both of them seems to be alluding to some sort of disaster, or something, having to do with their father. Neither ZeeZee nor Rasile have particularly described anything to do with their father, but they have shown memories of having a good with with Uncle Souffle.
At some point, in her dreams, Gemma meets up with "Jack." She is terrified of him, but this is the first time we've met him though any form. Surprisingly, he looks like Souffle. Then, he tells his story of twins.
Now, from this point on, there are two characters, Souffle and Jack. BUT, outside of Gemma's dream, we have no knowledge of Jack. Shared memories from Rasile and ZeeZee only point to an unseen Daddy, but a seen Uncle, whom "Jack" refers to as his twin brother. In other words, there is no collaborative evidence of Jack and Souffle being twins.
Now, while you take a second to wrap your brain around that, the person in Gemma's room was Souffle. Sam has been nice enough to show us the people who are in her art work. Souffle always is included when Souffle is in the story, but never shown when Jack is in the story. So, when Souffle comes out of the room, and Paul confronts him, it IS Souffle. Now, whether or not Souffle is Gemma's Uncle, Father, or just someone from her memories, we haven't been told yet. But, consider that ZeeZee and Rasile have shown memories including 'Unka Souffle', let it suffice to say that he is probably related to her in some form or another.
Now, Gemma's dreams of her father, learning about her mother, the birthday party, etc., are all being told to Gem by 'Jack.' He is simply narrating events that took place 30 some years previously, at least in her dreams. One of the most telling scenes is when 'Jack' comes back to announce that his team has discovered this miracle cure drug. He wants everyone to come to the lab so that he can share this wonderful discovery. It's also Gem's first birthday party. They don't go, and infact, Nicole decides to take the children and go to Souffle's home. The key point here is that this is still all in Gemma's dreams, and we can't forget that.
Okay, fast forward several years, Gemma Polson is in court to prosecute a case, and somehow that case goes almost exactly like a dream she had of that case, and in her dream, she sees someone who, to her memory, looks either like Souffle or Jack. The real court appearance happens, and something in her mind snaps, she loses it, but on the way out, she calls out 'Jack!', but there is no response. When she calls out 'Souffle!', Souffle turns around and looks at her! He recognized her, and there was apparently great sorrow on his face. Or, maybe great pain?
Still hanging in there?
So, Gemma has her nervous breakdown, and ends up in the hospital. We know that her professional career is real, since Paul was at home, and responded to the news story on television. He went to the hospital, and saw one doctor, whom he spoke with, and made arrangements for Paul to stay the night, as required.
Gemma goes to sleep. Either she is visited by Jack, or she has, as Souffle told Paul later on, terrific and violent night terrors. Either Jack restrained her somehow, or Souffle or the hospital staff did using standard restraints. Jack gives her Grub, but Grub appears to be new and intact. Grub is there in the morning, but is far from 'new and intact.' He's got 30-some years under his belt, is missing an eye, and has a bent antennae.
So, how do we reconcile the differences between dream and reality?
Now, remember, the Squig (why do I see a helmet-clad, white racing suit wearing artist, sitting at her desk?) has not given me any information on this, and all of this is out of my own warped mind. So, I don't know how much of this is correct any more than you do (unless you know stuff I don't!)
Jack does not exist, anywhere, outside of Gemma's mind. He is a construct she built to help her overcome traumatic childhood memories that she has not been able to assimilate yet.
This miracle drug was created by Souffle.
The family DID go to the lab to see the discovery.
Nicole is married to Souffle.
Gemma is Souffle's daughter.
At the lab, somehow or another, accidentally, Gemma either injects, ingests, or otherwise gets the drug into her system.
The drug has some sort of effect on her, may have even put her in the hospital.
Child Protective Services intervenes and removes Gemma from Souffle and Nicole's family, putting her into a series of Foster Homes, from which other things happen to her, from her own memories.
All of this feeds into her own insecurities, and it helps her to create an evil monster on whom she can blame all of this on, and in her mind, she names him 'Jack.'
Anything bad in her life, she blames Jack for it.
So, after the court scene, Gemma ends up in the hospital. Since Gemma hasn't been adopted, her last name would remain the same as her birth parents, Souffle and Nicole.
So, now, Paul wakes up, and sees this doctor he doesn't know coming out of Gemma's room. He looks very harried, worried and concerned. He explains to Paul that Gemma has been having severe and violent night terrors, and has been put back in restraints. Paul thinks like a prosecutor here when he subconsciously evaluates Souffle, saying to himself that Souffle apologizes like this is his fault. Good call, Paul, you're absolutely right, it IS his fault! But, not out of malice.
Since Souffle was working on this drug, it makes sense that he is probably a psychiatrist or mental health doctor, and would be in a mental health facility, which is where Dr. Nick told us, as well as the television story, Gemma was. The hospital, in fact, IS a real place, in Aberdeen, Scotland, and it IS a mental health facility. Our Squig is taking liberties again, introducing real places into her story. The hospital, and where Dr. Kitsune practice, are both real.
So, anyway, it makes sense that Souffle would be working there, and it's also likely that he's been visiting Gemma at night (he may be a third shift doctor) to check up on her.
The night when 'Jack' visited the room, it was really Souffle, bringing Grub to her. Now, Souffle has had Grub for 30 some years. Maybe a keepsake, a memento, or a personal reminder to him of what he did to his daughter.
Gemma wakes up, still sleepy, still half in dream land, and sees Souffle. But, since she's still sleepy, and maybe still kind of in a dream state, her mind sees 'Jack' and the conversation with Jack that followed. However, it was Souffle she saw, and interacted with. She wasn't coherent enough to understand that, though.
So, she goes violent, and is restrained. Souffle leaves Grub, which obviously is still there in the morning, maybe adds a sleeping aid to her chart (the little change) and leaves the room after she is calmed back down and asleep. He may even stay there for a while to watch his daughter get back to sleep, and leaves just as she's starting to wake up, so she won't see him and be terrified again.
Paul meets Souffle in the hall, has his conversation with him, and then goes in, meets Grub, and then Gemma describes her 'encounter' with her 'father.' Well, yes, it WAS her father, but she doesn't know that yet. She describes an encounter with a figment of her imagination who is built off of her loving, caring and doting father. Her figment carries all the wrong that has happened to her, and she uses it to stave off the lack of understanding and knowledge of why she has been taken from her family.
As a solicitor, she has undoubtedly seen hundreds of cases of broken homes, etc., any of which, or a culmination of which, would help to build her tormentor.
The final outcome of this is that Jack does not exist anywhere outside of Gemma's head, but no one knows that, especially Paul. Gemma told Paul everything, but remember, she is seeing that through a filter of some sort of damage caused by a drug that affected her in some-as-of-yet unknown way. Paul describes Souffle, of course, Gemma says 'Yes, that's Jack!' and Paul, not having any other information, takes off to alert people that 'Jack', a figment of Gemma's imagination, is running around the hospital.
Our talented pen has also intimated that the end of the story is near, so this fits into a wrap of the story.
Gemma will be reunited with her family, and will have her dreams put to rest by learning the truth, the entire truth.
Souffle, Nicole, ZeeZee and Rasile are all real. Souffle and Nicole are her parents. ZeeZee and Rasile are her siblings. She will get to meet all of them.
She will have everything explained to her, and to the board of solicitors who will decide on whether or not she gets to keep her job, which she will (added incidental story line, I don't know if it's important or not, but I would want her to keep her job).
She and Paul will become engaged, and get married. Final scene of the story.
Anyway, if you've gotten this far, we've crossed the finish line of my thoughts on this story. As an author yourself, and a good one to boot, you can see the twists of the plot here. It makes for a good story, even if this ISN'T the actual story that is being told. But, a lot of little things, at least to me, point to this being the way that this story will end. But, hey, I've been wrong before, too!
Hugs!
There's a possibility you're right! But it's not the only possibility of course. Only Gem knows for sure.
Gemma's not seeing anyone real in her dreams, and lately, her waking life either. The ZeeZee and Rasile who have been acting as her advocates in her dreams, aware she's dreaming and remembering, are likely parts of her subconscious mind. They're not real either. Yes, they're echoes of real people who may well be alive somewhere. But unless there's some form of magic dream communication going on here, they're also generated by Gemma's mind.
There is some kind of dark father figure in Gemma's memory, whether it's based on reality or not. There are some deep emotional scars there. We saw a burned-out house and a damaged Grub, much like he's damaged now. There were traumatic events that happened in that house, and I don't think they happened in some hospital or lab, because they wouldn't have resulted in memories like that. That argues against your theory. So does the fact that we saw some of the memories that didn't even have Gem in them, strongly suggesting that they were flashbacks to real events, like the conversation between Gem's mother and Souffle about what Jack was doing.
Arguing for your theory is the fact that it's quite possible for a child not to want to believe that their loved ones are capable of bad things, to the point of inventing bogeymen who do the bad things and remembering the real people doing only good things. This would mean, though, that Souffle did all the bad things along with the good -- or at least that young Gem perceived that he did bad things -- and that she then invented Jack as the person who really did the bad things.
Gem-the-author told us some time back that Jack is not listed as being played by real-life Souffle because Jack is not a sympathetic character and she doesn't want people to attack real-life Souffle for being mean. She has reason to do this: when Kammy appeared as a special guest bully, people attacked real-life Kammy for it in the comments, which was kind of crazy of them but did happen, so Gem's been avoiding having the guest cameos do nasty things. I don't think the omission of Souffle's name in comic pages featuring Jack is a hint to a plot element.
I have my own speculations, but they've been wrong many times already. :) I had been thinking that perhaps Jack and Souffle were the same person, with multiple personalities. But with the flashbacks not involving Gem, I don't think so. I think Gemma had sealed away a traumatic past in her memories, including highly-charged ones involving an emotionally abusive father. Now that she's started to access her memories, she's unleashed all of that bad stuff as well. I think Gemma's been having a bad reaction to the drug Dr Kitsune gave her, possibly even ODing on it. This is why Jack and ZeeZee were in her house and Grub was in her fridge, and why the courtroom seemed to be reenacting her nightmare. And it's why she saw Jack dressed as an inmate when in reality Souffle was in her room, trying to help her. But it all goes back to her dreams, which are built on the memories she'd suppressed.
Paul saw the real Souffle. So he exists. ZeeZee and Rasile might exist too. Something happened that separated them. I'm thinking there was an accident that caused a fire in the house and Gem escaped and got lost, and they thought she was dead. Perhaps their mother is alive, perhaps not. But I still think there is, or perhaps was, a real Jack.
Gemma's not seeing anyone real in her dreams, and lately, her waking life either. The ZeeZee and Rasile who have been acting as her advocates in her dreams, aware she's dreaming and remembering, are likely parts of her subconscious mind. They're not real either. Yes, they're echoes of real people who may well be alive somewhere. But unless there's some form of magic dream communication going on here, they're also generated by Gemma's mind.
There is some kind of dark father figure in Gemma's memory, whether it's based on reality or not. There are some deep emotional scars there. We saw a burned-out house and a damaged Grub, much like he's damaged now. There were traumatic events that happened in that house, and I don't think they happened in some hospital or lab, because they wouldn't have resulted in memories like that. That argues against your theory. So does the fact that we saw some of the memories that didn't even have Gem in them, strongly suggesting that they were flashbacks to real events, like the conversation between Gem's mother and Souffle about what Jack was doing.
Arguing for your theory is the fact that it's quite possible for a child not to want to believe that their loved ones are capable of bad things, to the point of inventing bogeymen who do the bad things and remembering the real people doing only good things. This would mean, though, that Souffle did all the bad things along with the good -- or at least that young Gem perceived that he did bad things -- and that she then invented Jack as the person who really did the bad things.
Gem-the-author told us some time back that Jack is not listed as being played by real-life Souffle because Jack is not a sympathetic character and she doesn't want people to attack real-life Souffle for being mean. She has reason to do this: when Kammy appeared as a special guest bully, people attacked real-life Kammy for it in the comments, which was kind of crazy of them but did happen, so Gem's been avoiding having the guest cameos do nasty things. I don't think the omission of Souffle's name in comic pages featuring Jack is a hint to a plot element.
I have my own speculations, but they've been wrong many times already. :) I had been thinking that perhaps Jack and Souffle were the same person, with multiple personalities. But with the flashbacks not involving Gem, I don't think so. I think Gemma had sealed away a traumatic past in her memories, including highly-charged ones involving an emotionally abusive father. Now that she's started to access her memories, she's unleashed all of that bad stuff as well. I think Gemma's been having a bad reaction to the drug Dr Kitsune gave her, possibly even ODing on it. This is why Jack and ZeeZee were in her house and Grub was in her fridge, and why the courtroom seemed to be reenacting her nightmare. And it's why she saw Jack dressed as an inmate when in reality Souffle was in her room, trying to help her. But it all goes back to her dreams, which are built on the memories she'd suppressed.
Paul saw the real Souffle. So he exists. ZeeZee and Rasile might exist too. Something happened that separated them. I'm thinking there was an accident that caused a fire in the house and Gem escaped and got lost, and they thought she was dead. Perhaps their mother is alive, perhaps not. But I still think there is, or perhaps was, a real Jack.
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