I really want him to say yes. I mean, yes, loyalty to a brand name is a thing, but what does he truly lose? A sign. Being the main face of gamehaus can do a lot to keep the spirit of the dragons den; and it opens opportunities, rather than fighting an uphill battle for…. pride?
Cooperate, don’t hate.
I’m wondering what Lee’s long game is. Could he really be in this to help the market, with a modernized location (possibly with cheeto dust class filters for the card room?) in an area that will do better business, or is this all aimed at his dad? So many questions, can’t wait for the next update.
I’m pretty sure now his real grudge is aimed at his dad. He wants to destroy the Dragon’s Den, his legacy, feeling as if his father rejected him there and wanting to get back at him for that while showing he can do a better job of running a game store.
But I don’t think he really wants to hurt Sam, I never really noticed any actual hate between them before. Disagreements about the gaming scene maybe, but I don’t think he really wants to see Sam become a casualty of his own attack on his father, hence why he’s trying to get him on side here. Throwing him a lifeline as he probably sees it.
I’d suspected he was using Dove as a means of marketing his store (getting the word out to all his fanboys for increased early traffic). Now that Dove’s main use is over, him and his toxic attitude are not really needed from here on if he can reel in Sam as a business partner (probably as someone he also knows has actual experience of the gaming scene and running a game store and won’t tick off most of his customers).
Very satisfying that was too 😉 hehe.
I honestly have no idea what’s going on here anymore.
Sibling relationships are messy and confusing, and I have not had enough exposure to the Lee to guess what his actual endgoal here is nor the why. I do, however, love how readily he offered to kick Dove out on his kiester though.
I see what’s going on, he wants to destroy the den no matter what, BUT he is using Dove to the max unless he can get Sam whom has a great reputation in the area. Dove is the backup, SAM is the preferred. The goal is to shame his dad, not hurt Sam, which is why he’s making this offer. Now the question is, WWSM, or, What Will Sam Do…
If there is every a d20Monkey-based CCG, I will FRAME the card that has Phillip’s gobsmacked face from Panel 3 on it… because that right there is EVERYTHING.
Nah. The Santa arc is great, but once you’ve got magic in the mix, it’s way too easy to use it to fix everything. Kind of like the Star Trek transporter. I think Brian is going to be careful to restrict Santa power to proper Santa issues, which is probably the rule of the Mantle anyway.
It takes some skilled writing to avoid this trap, or in the case of Star Trek, some quick throwaways about communicator failure. One of the things I admire about Rowling is that she threaded this rocky obstacle course fairly skillfully, without falling into the “the wand fixes everything” trap.
Actually Lee has full knowledge of the Santa thing, after all the first time we saw him was around the time of the first Santa incident in the store when he did the smack down on his uncle and first had a taste of the power of the mantle, even though his dad was still Santa at that time.
Agreed, was seriously wondering if he was going to put that offer out…but yeah he did, and rather bluntly too. Worth it just to see Dove’s face realizing he’s very disposable in this business arrangement (he’s a supervisor, Lee is offering Sam the chance to be an OWNER, meaning he easily outranks Dove). Still gut tells me something else is afoot, this set up just screams devils bargain still.
I might have woken my upstairs neighbor with laughter….again, when I read panel three and saw Dove’s reaction. Among the web-comics I have read and still read, Dove may be the most despised character I have ever seen written. Granted that does make him a remembered and noticeable character, so thats a bonus to the strip there.
holy shit brian! we’re on a rollercoaster of emotions! first dove shows up and out come the torches and pitchforks! then lee shows up and we’re shocked and appalled and disgusted!
I actually feel for Dove. He’s at least a little invested in this project, and it’s just awful management to treat your employees like pawns who can be tossed for business purposes.
I mean… would you sign on as an investor/owner with a business operator who treated his employees this way? Clearly… Lee fed Dove a line about what he’d be in this new operation. And clearly Lee has no intent to live up to that promise.
I wouldn’t do business with someone who felt their word was so meaningless, and the people invested in their operations were so disposable.
…Yeah. It’s funny. Normally, I hate Dove, as he kinda represents the toxic players that exist within every community, but he is still human. The fact that Lee is willing to sell him down the river that easily is just…
It’s making me think Lee is like Vader. “I have altered the deal. Pray I do not alter it further.”
The actions of villains do not justify villainous actions by the heroes.
And, although I haven’t read the back issues for a while, there’s no evidence Dove isn’t good to his word as a person and as an employee. He’s just not someone you like.
Let’s reverse the scenario: what if Dove was the owner who had just done this to Lee his employee. Would it be fine?
This is becoming my favorite arc yet.
I don’t know if I hate Lee, love him, or love to hate him. So much conflicted emotions.
I can’t wait for him to pull his magnificent bastard move. Those last two panels seem to be setting it up.
Keep it up the great work.
The problem I have is this: Lee is throwing out a trump card this early in the game. It feels like Lee is either: a long-game player with many moves planned out, bringing Dove to shock Sam into siding with him (regardless of antagonist/protagonist leanings of Lee); or, Lee is flighty and prone to rash decisions, usually blamed on ‘instinct’ or other such unreliable things. Either way, I’m not sure Sam should continue talking to him, much less join forces with him.
…Dove completely misses the issue Sam would have working with him, but directly stating the issue Sam has working with him without realising it.
Mind you, if Lee is half as smart as he thinks he is, he may realise that Dove is bad for the long term as he tends to alienate anyone who doesn’t fit his description of a gamer. And I think Lee’s plan is just “make a successful business and prove myself”. Dove may be good for setup, but his attitude and personality make him unsuitable for positions where “the customer is always right”.
Well, seeing as everyone is weighing in, I suppose I can add my opinions as well….
I can see this having gone two ways in the beginning, between Dove and Lee. Either Lee wanted him on board to use as a throwaway later on, as a sort of bargaining chip to get Sam on board, or Lee thought this was a genuinely good idea at first, but noticed what a colossal penis Dove can be and saw this as the perfect opportunity to show him the door. Personally, I hope it’s the second option. I mean, Lee can be a dickish older brother, but he helped Sam out with the mall Santa debacle, so it’s clear he has his lil bro’s back.
Someone that cutthroat and willing to sever an ally without so much as a flinch is someone who will do the exact same thing to you as soon as it suits their purpose…
That said, I did NOT see that move coming this early in game. Nice hook!
Lee must be as intelligent as Sam and their father. Yet HE invited Dove aboard. I don’t think it was just to be a trump card to play against Sam, there has to be more to it. And I have to agree – that final panel is WONDERFUL!
Also i am not sure if this has been mentioned yet but…. lee looks way more buff than he did the last time we saw him. Is this just a style change or is he hiding evil eyes under those douche bro shades?
Hmm, I guess the “revenge” Lee was talking about in that limo was not “Dove’s revenge upon Sam.” Dove, you gotta get more specific.
I’m reminded of Babylon 5, in which there were two hyper-advanced races still hanging around; the Vorlons, who all the fans LOVED, and the Shadows, who all the fans hated. Even though the Vorlons would occasionally straight-up murder people, and the shadows just asked people what they wanted. But the Vorlons were cool and the shadows were represented by a dudebro salesman who everyone hated (played by Ed Wasser, who was actually pretty nice in person).
Likewise, Brian draws Lee to look EXACTLY like the guy who shoved us into our locker in high school, so we hate him, and we love Pops, even though he’s objectively an asshole. Maybe we’ve been misjudging them all…
You just can’t get better than the panel switch from panel two to panel four. I actually copy pasted, then blew up and framed this one, well worth the time.
Reading through these comments, I’m seeing a lot of great points. On one hand, there’s a lot of mistrust for Lee because of his betrayal of Dove (not that there’s anything wrong with that) and his plan to take down the Dragon’s Den. On the other hand, some warily trust Lee because of–again–his betrayal of Dove, as well as our last experience with him when he helped our friends in the mall incident. I have no idea what Sam will choose or how this will play out, but I can’t wait to see.
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HOVER-TEXT: Hm. That is a thing…
Ohh Ohhhhh this is gonna be good……Just seeing Dove get kicked in the ego like that was enough to make my day can’t wait to see where you go with this.
It’s part of the Trap!
I really want him to say yes. I mean, yes, loyalty to a brand name is a thing, but what does he truly lose? A sign. Being the main face of gamehaus can do a lot to keep the spirit of the dragons den; and it opens opportunities, rather than fighting an uphill battle for…. pride?
Cooperate, don’t hate.
I’m wondering what Lee’s long game is. Could he really be in this to help the market, with a modernized location (possibly with cheeto dust class filters for the card room?) in an area that will do better business, or is this all aimed at his dad? So many questions, can’t wait for the next update.
I know, right? Thought I had it figured at least twice now. What’s he up to?
I’m pretty sure now his real grudge is aimed at his dad. He wants to destroy the Dragon’s Den, his legacy, feeling as if his father rejected him there and wanting to get back at him for that while showing he can do a better job of running a game store.
But I don’t think he really wants to hurt Sam, I never really noticed any actual hate between them before. Disagreements about the gaming scene maybe, but I don’t think he really wants to see Sam become a casualty of his own attack on his father, hence why he’s trying to get him on side here. Throwing him a lifeline as he probably sees it.
I’d suspected he was using Dove as a means of marketing his store (getting the word out to all his fanboys for increased early traffic). Now that Dove’s main use is over, him and his toxic attitude are not really needed from here on if he can reel in Sam as a business partner (probably as someone he also knows has actual experience of the gaming scene and running a game store and won’t tick off most of his customers).
Very satisfying that was too 😉 hehe.
I like Lee now…
I honestly have no idea what’s going on here anymore.
Sibling relationships are messy and confusing, and I have not had enough exposure to the Lee to guess what his actual endgoal here is nor the why. I do, however, love how readily he offered to kick Dove out on his kiester though.
I see what’s going on, he wants to destroy the den no matter what, BUT he is using Dove to the max unless he can get Sam whom has a great reputation in the area. Dove is the backup, SAM is the preferred. The goal is to shame his dad, not hurt Sam, which is why he’s making this offer. Now the question is, WWSM, or, What Will Sam Do…
WWSD, not WWSM, sorry, I was distracted by a cat jumping into my arms as I was typing…
Oh DAMN…
Okay, you know what? I don’t care what happens with any of the rest of this story. Set it all on fire. Dove just got his hand smacked.
What a twist!
If there is every a d20Monkey-based CCG, I will FRAME the card that has Phillip’s gobsmacked face from Panel 3 on it… because that right there is EVERYTHING.
“Hm. That Is A Thing” is Brian’s Fantastic Four based Spoken Word Event. Sign-up starts next week, folks.
It was nice knowing you dragons den! BYE!
I wonder if this is the invisible hand of Santa getting involved….
Nah. The Santa arc is great, but once you’ve got magic in the mix, it’s way too easy to use it to fix everything. Kind of like the Star Trek transporter. I think Brian is going to be careful to restrict Santa power to proper Santa issues, which is probably the rule of the Mantle anyway.
It takes some skilled writing to avoid this trap, or in the case of Star Trek, some quick throwaways about communicator failure. One of the things I admire about Rowling is that she threaded this rocky obstacle course fairly skillfully, without falling into the “the wand fixes everything” trap.
Actually Lee has full knowledge of the Santa thing, after all the first time we saw him was around the time of the first Santa incident in the store when he did the smack down on his uncle and first had a taste of the power of the mantle, even though his dad was still Santa at that time.
The point is though that since Lee knows about Santa he’s not going to want to push things against Sam since he knows that Sam is buddies with Santa.
Dove being told to fuck off alone is a good enough reason to sign on but I cannot help but feel there are darker shenanigans at play here.
Agreed, was seriously wondering if he was going to put that offer out…but yeah he did, and rather bluntly too. Worth it just to see Dove’s face realizing he’s very disposable in this business arrangement (he’s a supervisor, Lee is offering Sam the chance to be an OWNER, meaning he easily outranks Dove). Still gut tells me something else is afoot, this set up just screams devils bargain still.
Philip’s face in that last panel… it is a sight that brings me to tears.
I might have woken my upstairs neighbor with laughter….again, when I read panel three and saw Dove’s reaction. Among the web-comics I have read and still read, Dove may be the most despised character I have ever seen written. Granted that does make him a remembered and noticeable character, so thats a bonus to the strip there.
Part of me now wants a side universe comic where he takes the deal & we go from there.
I second this motion
What kind of evil genius is Lee going to turn out to be!?
In all seriousness, I really don’t need to be able to predict in advance where this is going to be happy to be along for the ride.
This seems like it could get very dangerous, very quickly. Lee has a long game here, and it looks like he’s willing to be extremely cutthroat to win.
Sam, I’ve seen what happens when a community can’t support two stores. If he’s offering to drop Dove then at least consider the deal.
Holy cow, this story gets deeper and deeper.
Well, perhaps we misjudged Lee. It seems like a no-brainer from a business standpoint, if Lee is willing to let Sam handle the customer base.
Of course, the honey pot always *looks* sweet…
holy shit brian! we’re on a rollercoaster of emotions! first dove shows up and out come the torches and pitchforks! then lee shows up and we’re shocked and appalled and disgusted!
…now this. cant wait for the next one.
Thank you. I’m trying hard.
And I’m getting hard … sorry ^^
I think that Dove is Plan B and Sam is Plan A to Lee. Is the only think i can read Lee and his long game is still unknown. Nice job on this, Brain.
I love Dove’s expression. Best thing ever. THis is an awesome storyline.
I actually feel for Dove. He’s at least a little invested in this project, and it’s just awful management to treat your employees like pawns who can be tossed for business purposes.
I mean… would you sign on as an investor/owner with a business operator who treated his employees this way? Clearly… Lee fed Dove a line about what he’d be in this new operation. And clearly Lee has no intent to live up to that promise.
I wouldn’t do business with someone who felt their word was so meaningless, and the people invested in their operations were so disposable.
…Yeah. It’s funny. Normally, I hate Dove, as he kinda represents the toxic players that exist within every community, but he is still human. The fact that Lee is willing to sell him down the river that easily is just…
It’s making me think Lee is like Vader. “I have altered the deal. Pray I do not alter it further.”
Oh no…Dove is getting treated like…Dove treats people. Haven’t got a whole lot of sympathy for him.
The actions of villains do not justify villainous actions by the heroes.
And, although I haven’t read the back issues for a while, there’s no evidence Dove isn’t good to his word as a person and as an employee. He’s just not someone you like.
Let’s reverse the scenario: what if Dove was the owner who had just done this to Lee his employee. Would it be fine?
If Sam turns down Lee, and Dove stays with Game Haus…There’s going to be some serious trust issues between him and Lee. Might be Lee’s downfall.
Do it! Only on the condition that you actually get to physically kick him out of the store.
This is becoming my favorite arc yet.
I don’t know if I hate Lee, love him, or love to hate him. So much conflicted emotions.
I can’t wait for him to pull his magnificent bastard move. Those last two panels seem to be setting it up.
Keep it up the great work.
Well…I did not see that coming.
Take a picture, girlfriend!
Sign! SIGN!! Just to fuck with Dove.
Long time lurker, first time poster.
Dove’s reaction… please, good sir Brian, let me love you.
The problem I have is this: Lee is throwing out a trump card this early in the game. It feels like Lee is either: a long-game player with many moves planned out, bringing Dove to shock Sam into siding with him (regardless of antagonist/protagonist leanings of Lee); or, Lee is flighty and prone to rash decisions, usually blamed on ‘instinct’ or other such unreliable things. Either way, I’m not sure Sam should continue talking to him, much less join forces with him.
and suddenly I am back like magic
TAKE THE DEAL!!! TAKE THE DEAL!!! No… don’t open another stupid briefcase… Ah… come on! TAKE THE DEAL!!
…Dove completely misses the issue Sam would have working with him, but directly stating the issue Sam has working with him without realising it.
Mind you, if Lee is half as smart as he thinks he is, he may realise that Dove is bad for the long term as he tends to alienate anyone who doesn’t fit his description of a gamer. And I think Lee’s plan is just “make a successful business and prove myself”. Dove may be good for setup, but his attitude and personality make him unsuitable for positions where “the customer is always right”.
I want to like Lee for being so willing to throw Dove away for his brother…but….something feels weird and I just can’t feel like I should trust him….
Easy. Think about it. What did he tell Dove to get him to sign on? If he is willing to toss Dove aside…
Well, seeing as everyone is weighing in, I suppose I can add my opinions as well….
I can see this having gone two ways in the beginning, between Dove and Lee. Either Lee wanted him on board to use as a throwaway later on, as a sort of bargaining chip to get Sam on board, or Lee thought this was a genuinely good idea at first, but noticed what a colossal penis Dove can be and saw this as the perfect opportunity to show him the door. Personally, I hope it’s the second option. I mean, Lee can be a dickish older brother, but he helped Sam out with the mall Santa debacle, so it’s clear he has his lil bro’s back.
Brian, you mad genius you. I love it.
Someone that cutthroat and willing to sever an ally without so much as a flinch is someone who will do the exact same thing to you as soon as it suits their purpose…
That said, I did NOT see that move coming this early in game. Nice hook!
Betraitored!
Screwing Dove over does have a certain appeal…
Lee must be as intelligent as Sam and their father. Yet HE invited Dove aboard. I don’t think it was just to be a trump card to play against Sam, there has to be more to it. And I have to agree – that final panel is WONDERFUL!
Also i am not sure if this has been mentioned yet but…. lee looks way more buff than he did the last time we saw him. Is this just a style change or is he hiding evil eyes under those douche bro shades?
This is a Neutral Evil bargainer. Use law, use chaos, get me what I want. I can respect that.
Careful, Sam. Lee might be dangling short-term pleasure for the cost of your soul…or your Narrative.
Hmm, I guess the “revenge” Lee was talking about in that limo was not “Dove’s revenge upon Sam.” Dove, you gotta get more specific.
I’m reminded of Babylon 5, in which there were two hyper-advanced races still hanging around; the Vorlons, who all the fans LOVED, and the Shadows, who all the fans hated. Even though the Vorlons would occasionally straight-up murder people, and the shadows just asked people what they wanted. But the Vorlons were cool and the shadows were represented by a dudebro salesman who everyone hated (played by Ed Wasser, who was actually pretty nice in person).
Likewise, Brian draws Lee to look EXACTLY like the guy who shoved us into our locker in high school, so we hate him, and we love Pops, even though he’s objectively an asshole. Maybe we’ve been misjudging them all…
not really no, and what about the third race, not including human in Bab5?
You just can’t get better than the panel switch from panel two to panel four. I actually copy pasted, then blew up and framed this one, well worth the time.
Reading through these comments, I’m seeing a lot of great points. On one hand, there’s a lot of mistrust for Lee because of his betrayal of Dove (not that there’s anything wrong with that) and his plan to take down the Dragon’s Den. On the other hand, some warily trust Lee because of–again–his betrayal of Dove, as well as our last experience with him when he helped our friends in the mall incident. I have no idea what Sam will choose or how this will play out, but I can’t wait to see.
With the words of the great Nelson: HAAA HAAAAAAA!
Lee opening the store with Phil was unexpected. Offering to throw Phil out to bring Sam in was equally unexpected after the reveal.