547 | Power Outage

547 | Power Outage

September 11, 2011 | 10:32 pm, by Pascalle Lepas

I’m not going to point out the symbolism. That’s your job.



Comments

  • Anonymous

    awww. poor president.

  • Icewindy

    Awe, So saddd!

  • Darkcloudsblade

    Never thought I’d feel so bad for the guy…

  • Madcrimson

    Et tu Feonixe?

  • Cromell

    I wonder why assassinate him now. He’s clearly an idiot, that wouldn’t suspect a conspiration even if it sat on top of his head, and since he trust them this much they could continue to operate from the shadows. I don’t really see why they should blow their cover at all… meh, WORKS FOR ME :D

  • Page-Mistress

    Wanna know a secret, dude?

    …no one who works for you actually likes you.

  •  No, no! This is a very important doubt to have! You’ll feel very proud of it towards the end of volume 6 when some things become more clear!

  • Anonymous

    I remember a REALLY long time ago, something went wrong with some kind of global network or something, and the guy who was supposed to fix it was told by these two (I think) to just let it go. Will that be explained too?

    This is the only issue with webcomics that tell a story rather than doing jokes; important past details can be forgotten in time. Don’t get me wrong though, I love this comic and similar ones that I read, even more than the gag-a-day comics  :]

  • Anonymous

    A metal (steel?) knife? Seems outdated in a world of laser pistols and beam cannon arms and psychic magic. As Obi-Wan would say, “so uncivilized.”

  • Angela Griffin

    Et tu, Maxime? How convenient that the guy has a Latin-friendly name for declension purposes XD
    To be honest, I was starting to wonder when those two would FINALLY knock off the President…

  • Psionicost

    The Pres’ face.. Priceless. For everything else, there’s dumbass, it’s everywhere you want to be… NOT!

  • Psionicost

    The Pres’ face.. Priceless. For everything else, there’s dumbass, it’s everywhere you want to be… NOT!

  • Richard Dain

    I half expect the president to suddenly go psychic ninja on them, and then give a speech about how he knew all along >.> but that probably won’t happen :p

  • Richard Dain

    I half expect the president to suddenly go psychic ninja on them, and then give a speech about how he knew all along >.> but that probably won’t happen :p

  • True, but in some sci-fi stories, electronic weapons can be detected by certain sensors. A knife might be too primative for such sensors to notice. Psychic magic likely is undetectable as well, but I don’t think these two assasins have that kind of “weaponry”.

  • True, but in some sci-fi stories, electronic weapons can be detected by certain sensors. A knife might be too primative for such sensors to notice. Psychic magic likely is undetectable as well, but I don’t think these two assasins have that kind of “weaponry”.

  • Anonymous

    Hmm… that strikes me as a bit of a security flaw, not detecting daggers. But, for the sake of the narrative, it’s alright

  • I had the same thought as DigoDragon.  But even if we assume that the President’s security measures include metal detectors, these two are the highest ranking generals in the military.  It’s not unreasonable that their dress uniforms would include “ceremonial” blades of some sort, which would have basically the same metal content as functional blades.

    Besides, security mechanisms only go so far, if the people running them trust you.

    ;)

  • (Also, most metal detectors require power.)

    ;)

  • (Also, most metal detectors require power.)

    ;)

  • I think the pres. is about to get the point.

  • Anonymous

    Whoa, good points. Pascalle and Chris are really good at avoiding plot holes… there’s no way to put a hole in this narrative, it is rock-solid. Hard as steel. No, hard as tungsten.

    On that note, who does the writing for this comic? Does Chris do it, or does he have a different role in the creative process?

  • The power outage you’re seeing now is the direct result of the virus put into the system. It was designed to get all up in the GEF computers and, on this specific date and time, shut security and power down. No security cameras, no security system backups, no metal detectors, etc.

    This is addressed on the next page, so we won’t just leave everyone hanging. Although, we don’t go into super detail about it. A lot of it you are supposed to infer, I guess, until a little later.

  •  Naveed carries swords around and you’re questioning a dagger?  People still use knives in the Zap! universe. :P

  • I see what you did there.

  • Ramification

    They’re so lucky the President isn’t Schwarzenegger (because he only managed Governor)?

  • Fadedpsychosis

    ouch… poignant pun…

  • Anonymous

    You know, you made it too easy when you put the titles on the quick archive dropdown…  mind I absolutely love the feature!!!

    on a side note, I just realized that if the date at the bottom is accurate, I’ve been reading this comic for 7 1/2 years now…  you guys have come a long way, and the ride’s been worth it!

  • Anonymous

    so “thousands will die” so these 2 can re-enact Julius Caesar?  And they don’t realize this makes them just as bad as the one they’re taking down?

  • Anonymous

    Personally, I think blades are a far more civilized way to kill than guns…  at the very least they’re far more personal

  • Anonymous
  • An elegant weapon, for a more civilized age.

  • Hey, someone had to say it.

  •  Their original plan was to blame the assassination on the resistance, and finger the attack on Justin and Jason. (Grontar and Kasey rescued them, luckily, or they would have been publicly executed for assassinating the president).

    The virus was programmed to take down various outposts in a way that would mimic  resistance attacks. The idea was to drum up the casualties to that GEF citizenry would turn on the resistance.

    These two things combined would give the generals the power to launch a full-on war against the resistance and wipe out any dissidents.

  •  2013 will be our ten year anniversary! I want to publish a commemorative hardcover artbook around that time.

  • Considering the general theme here:

    Men at some time are masters of their fates:
    The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
    But in ourselves, that we are underlings.

    – Cassius, Julius Caesar, act I, scene ii.

  • Anonymous

    heck of an omelette they’re making…  and all this for revenge (on Phoenix’s part) for a war…??  I still don’t get how he doesn’t see that he’s doing exactly what he hates Billings for in the first place…

  • Anonymous

    buying it!

    yeah, that’s right, you guys were about 1 year into the story when I picked it up (Grivak!)

  • Anonymous

    Ah, but Brutus thought what he was doing was the right thing to do for the sake of Rome… these two are only doing it for their own sakes…

  • Anonymous

    believe me, I sometimes wish we could erase gunpowder from history…  maybe if I go back in time and kill off all the bats…

  • Safyrejet

    That’s my thought exactly.  Maximus.  HA!  When I manage to take over the world I’m gonna make sure never to hire anyone with a vaguely Roman leader-ish name to work under me, so as to avoid any possibility of poetic reenactment death type scenarios.

    I’m also liking the pun in the title.  Good one, I bet Pascalle and Chris have been saving that one for years.

  • I think you’re missing the point I was trying to make.

    Actually, I wasn’t making a point. I was quoting “Star Wars”

  • Actually, in the future, (specifically, the future in “Demolition Man”) Schwarzenegger WAS a president, thanks to a constitutional amendment that lets foreign-born citizens run for that particular office. (Interestingly, that movie came out 10 years before he ever ran for office.)

  • Wow, prolific punster that I am, I can’t believe that I missed that one. Good catch.

  • Hmmm, a plot hard as steel with sharp-wit dialog… OMG, they’re stabbing the president with the script! O_O

  • anonymous

    Um… Cloak and dagger anyone?

  •  Demolition man! I have three sea shells in my bathroom on purpose because of that movie.

    It is just an awful movie.

  • TeflonSoul

    Total unnerving deathglares in panel two.

  • Nico

    A knife causes a person to bleed out usually over a long period of time, sometimes hours. The shock of being shot by a gun and the sheer destruction it causes can often kill someone instantly. What’s more civilized now?

  • Nico

    I’ll just point out what everyone probably already knows. The symbolism of the “Power Outage” is that just as the building lost power so did the president.

Vote for Zap! First Time Here?
  • News

    • See you at Wizard World! - 2014-11-05
      Chris and I will be at Wizard World Tulsa this weekend (Novemeber 7-9!) at the Cox Business Center in Downtown Tulsa. Come see us if [...]
    • Volume 3! - 2014-07-22
      Hey! If you’ve been waiting to get Volume 3, wait no more! Vol 3 from Brainstorm Limited on Square Market
    • TGT Media Interview - 2014-06-28
      Sarah from TGT Media asked us some questions recently. Read her piece about Zap! here.
    • Read More

Advertisement