September 22nd, 2020
22 Sept 2020 · page 1022 of 1306
just gals not being pals at all actually
Gonna skip next update as I need to time to prep a Kickstarter for this here book :O
Cast: Benjamin Thackerey, Heinrich Wolfe, Jack O'Malley, Nicola Barber, Nyree
Comments (113)
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I believe a ship has just set sail
Oh yes. Ship sailed, Just Kiss already ladies.
Seems just a trifle soon for that. I don't think we've even finished pulling up anchor yet.
Well, the ship hasn't sailed yet, but provisions are being loaded.
"Why are the witches laughing?" no idea Ben, none at all.
I ship it harder.
Panel four has two faces that launched a thousand ships.
Also, we now know that Nyree wasn't just [being facetious earlier](https://www.widdershinscomic.com/wdshn/july-21st-2020 "https://www.widdershinscomic.com/wdshn/july-21st-2020"). I mean, we already knew, but it's nice to have it confirmed.
I'd give one or perhaps several usds to see what panel 4 looks like in Mallovision, although maybe it wouldn't look so different, given the vibrant glow around Nico's expression.
Huh, she never got her shoes though apparently!
If she's staying for a few days, she'll probably be getting "City" and his friends to help her get some.
Well, at the time I said I would wait until Nyree and Nicola met before shipping them. They have met, and I now ship them.
Or at least that she's consistently facetious. But yeah, she definitely appears to be flirting here.
oh my goodness i don't think we've ever seen nicola so expressive! wonder what that's about!
Oh, dear.
The Shameless Hussy!
I know, right? I can't believe she has the nerve to show that much emotion while acting in her official capacity of police officer!
;)
Is it a universal rule that when a Barber meets their life partner it's always inauspicious? Wonder how Nora and Geoff met?
Or how Florrie met What's-His-Face.
(Really, what is his face?)
I think that there's a question about whether that meeting would follow the standard pathway. It's entirely possible that Florrie's husband isn't her life partner, just a convenient route to wealth and luxury.
Given that he doesn't get invited to the big family meeting in Find the Lady and Florrie's perfectly happy to be courted by Wolfe, I'd lay decent odds that you're right.
Alternatively: there isn't a Mr de Montfort and Florrie just needed an excuse as to where her money came from, because it's actually all from darstadly crimes.
#2 is my new head-canon. "Florence, Scourge of the London Social Scene"!
OK I didn't guess crimes but I had also guessed the "he doesn't exist" possibility. The crime part makes it so much better :D
For that matter, didn't women formerly pass themselves off as widows or married for various reasons - excuse a child born out of wedlock being a big one, but I suspect Widdershins' world has a lot less of the sexual double standard than ours in the corresponding year of... 1835ish.
So. If her husband doesn't exist, why claim he does? I can think of a few.
A. She's a Lady in her own right for some reason, and she pretends a husband exists to keep off fortune hunters. Alternatively, she's a widow, and doesn't want fortune hunters to grab her husband's fortune.
B. Still keeping away fortune hunters, but faking the title.
C. If her husband's parents were huge about him carrying on the family line, say - Nicola and Harry's parents have been a bit odd about homosexuality (calling Nicola's partners good friends, complaining Harry is too masculine) - then perhaps Florrie's a beard for her husband?
D. Florrie and her husband are best friends, and married for convenience - Florrie wanted her parents to stop nagging her, he's asexual, say.
E. Some other combination of above
The running joke among the commentariat here has been that she's his beard. Of course, there's utterly no evidence to support that claim, but since everybody seems to want to ship her and Wolfe, it's perfectly within the rules to make things up to support that.
I'm not sure if the year is any better than ours was or just the few people we've met are.
I suspect Eddie and Cat’s first meeting ended with him getting knocked out.
Cat grabs his beard, yanks his head down, and then slaps him so hard that she knocks him out.
This is my new head-canon
...Only if she was trying to do something completely different, like keep from overbalancing on an ice slick while trying to retrieve an airborne bottle of whiskey.
Pretty much SOP whenever I offer to buy a lady a drink, except I have no beard.
According to the Barber family tree his name is Francis De montfort. I think his first name has never been mentioned in the strip (not even in the Q&A bits between the chapters). I think the only other things we know about him are that he is rich and he is married to Florrie.
I'm betting Nora met Mr Fenton in quite the ordinary way.
I keep thinking it's a gun!
Me too! I was caught up in how scandalous the situation was, but took another look when I realized how strange it would be for Nicola to draw a pistol over it.
Nyree is my favourite character ever.
That "sniff" in panel 1... can she smell the gay attraction??
Who needs witch sense when we all heard Nicky's heart skip a beat
more like she's realising the fire smell is nicola- she absolutely doesn't need witch senses to figure the rest out
Neither does Wolfe :D
(need a bigger grin emoji)
Aw man. I thought for sure the suprised face + sniff was her getting a wiff of wolfe for the first time. We know hes alot to take in visually, id imagine its the same smell wise.
Women wearing masculine suits and in the work force and homosexuality are OK but bare knees are scandalous?.... Can I move to this timeline please? It seems like it'll be so much better by modern day.
I'll have myself an order of body length robes for masculine folks, while we're at it.
Personally, I am a fan of how common it is for people to wear vests. Sign me up, too, please!
I'm gay for this timeline
kinda victorian era,out of fantasy setting you would have though mind that christian influence was heavy,like extremely heavy
Nicola: Nuh uh! You don't know what I'm feeling! I can just lie about my feelings and no one will know because no one can see inside my head!
Nyree: Well, I'm a witch, so....
"True. I can't see inside your head."
Mal: Heh.
Someone apperantly not used to be on the defense it that game XD
Nyree is just the perfect social Troll, and Mall for sure knows whats going on :D
Nicola, you make it so easy. Nyree is going to have a field day. Though if you want an island getaway... wink
This page has me laughing out loud, oh my god 😂
I love the way Wolfe, ever the peacemaker, gets shoved out of the way.
Somehow it doesn't surprise me that Nicola's response to this situation is to go "SHE'S INDECENT AND INFURIATING AND I'M NOT ATTRACTED TO HER EVEN A LITTLE BIT, NO WAY, ABSOLUTELY NOT, STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT!"
I thought it was more like "Oh, my God, knees....I mean, that's indecent! People will be offended by your...wonderful...knees."
lol Back in those days, ankles were lewd. Ever see victorian swimwear? XD
True, but this is early Victorian: the era of Flashman and ebbing licentiousness. Women still had visible arms and cleavage. Lord knows how that all works out in the Widdershins universe, mind you. :)
True enough, you have an active Woman on the police force...In PANTS. Men in that age would have fainted at the thought of women actually wearing pants.
Not actually Victorian era yet, this is early to mid 1830s (not sure about the exact date in the comic) Victoria didn't become queen until July of 37 so this is still the reign of her Uncle William IV, and she is merely heir presumptive. Several characters have made references to the King though no name for said king has been given. The Princess that Harry tackled in "Vanishing Act" was most likely Victoria, though again I don't believe her name was actually used at any point.
That's true, but [the Crown Princess] did say 'not quite yet,' which I'm gonna guess means the year could be anywhere from '35 to '38. I wonder what scholars call the period between the Regency and Victorian eras.
"B-bb- baka!"
And there's this lovely bit from a previous Q&A about an ideal spouse.
Nobody ever actually wants what they say they want.
Ooor, they don't realize they've got it when they get it...
Nicola! That is not how you treat an emissary from a far-off land! Such intolerance for other people's cultures! pffft!
I all the expressions here, especially the laughing witches!
She needs to show her knees back in welcome ;D
For god's sake, man! Children might be reading this!
This is an ill-starred love affair, though. There are two possible outcomes: Capt. Barber follows Nyree to the anchor or they separate. (Nyree can't stay in Widdershins, and it would take an immense amount of coordination to get Nyree to Widdershins, since she can't open the City Witch's door and Mal can't open the Island Witch's door.)
Nicola implied earlier in the comic that her last relationship ended because her previous partner "needed someone to live for her", which Nicola couldn't provide. With that in mind and everything else we've seen of her, I think that she is very independent and needs time for herself (and her work). She is definitely not the kind of person who needs someone hovering around her all the time.
As for Nyree, we haven't seen as much of her, but she seems to get by on her own!
In a way, Mal will be standing between them, considering they'll have to pass through his door to see each other. Nudging Nicola ever more to having to get to terms with him :D
Edit: "Source"
[https://www.widdershinscomi...](https://www.widdershinscomic.com/wdshn/march-31st-2015 "https://www.widdershinscomic.com/wdshn/march-31st-2015")
:narrowed eyes:
Ah, yes. The hinges.
So...take a deep breath...close your eyes...and try to picture Capt. Barber going native.
I've got a great imagination, and...no. Just no.
I see, she didn't smell burning, that was smoldering.
There are definitely a few sparks between them
a bushfire ?
I get the impression in panel 1 that Nyree is being overwhelmed by Wolfe's presumably strong smelling aura (mixed with a bit of burning, of course).
Now I wanna see Nyree 'innocently' flirt with Wolfe, while steam comes out of the Captain's ears.
Nicola: 'She makes me so angry I want to kiss her- I mean kick her!'
Heh, this ship is going to be make the next few pages so fun (─‿‿─)♡
and Nyree won't misunderstand when Nicola is busy with work but still loves her :O
Here comes another ship!
I don't know about dinner, but this comic is delicious to read.
The Flirt is strong with this one.
I just want to say, Wolfe's face in that last panel is the funniest thing I've seen in a while in general. It's equal parts 'oh god I'm going to die in the crossfire' and 'I'm in Danger!' Captain Barber explodes. This is grade A meme material for sure.
To quote Mrs. Slocombe: "You have terribly exciting knees!"
The only thing indecent here is how much Nyree is enjoying this! She's having far too much fun!
Pff this is great.
So anyone else notice you can't actually see her knees?
But you can almost see her knees, and that’s even worse
Absolute knee territory! Scandalous!
I lived for two years in a place where seeing a woman's knees was scandalous, and by the end I was sort of shocked by my own knees.
I get you; In non-plague times, I spend several weekends and one week a year in 14th century European clothes for a hobby; by the end of any of them, I feel really weird letting my hair show in public.
under-knee. v. suggestive. fans self
Oh - so that's what trolls look like in the WIdderverse...
One more comment like that and I worry Nicola will explode with enough force to take out the block.
I wonder what sudden enamoring smells like...
Lavender, cinnamon and oregano.
So … how long do you all reckon it'll take before the Captain buys Indecent that dinner?
Yeah, Kickstarter!
I'm astonished at the prescience of my fellow audience members calling out how Nicola would call out the short skirt & how all of the high school dress codes would be proven right by said short skirt being "too distracting" for our noble policewoman.
Also Nyree is at peak Henry Barber in panel 4.
oh? oh ho?
YESSSS
ohhhhhhhhh lmao right i forget this takes place in the past lmao "THE WHOLE STREET CAN SEE YOUR KNEES"
Mal going to find a chair and some popcorn for this unexpected cherry on top of a surprising day.
This is a fairly explosive variant of romantic chemistry.
She's just a hunk, a hunk of burning love
Mal next update:
People who are able to smell emotions are dangerous! XD
Take all the time you need!
Where did Nyree learn her English? She's fairly idiomatic.
(I always figured Phix the sphinx in Wapsi Square learnt hers from British ORs in Egypt}
Spirit of Understanding. Smells like dried grass and lampblack.
Oh lord that last panel! Priceless.
oh my gawwwd hahahahaha
(even O'Malley is snerking from the side)
Actually going to call it here: Nicola Barber, Police officer and the Biggest Lesbian Tsundere this side of the English Channel.
I think Nyree is my favourite character yet.
I ship it.