Annotations


The title comes from a Velvet Underground song from their first album. Written by Lou Reed, sung by Nico. Here are the lyrics:

And what costume shall the poor girl wear
To all tomorrow's parties
A hand-me-down dress from who knows where
To all tomorrow's parties
And where will she go and what shall she do
When midnight comes around
She'll turn once more to Sunday's clown
And cry behind the door
And what costume shall the poor girl wear
To all tomorrow's parties
Why silks and linens of yesterday's gowns
To all tomorrow's parties
And what will she do with Thursday's rags
When Monday comes around
She'll turn once more to Sunday's clown
And cry behind the door
And what costume shall the poor girl wear
To all tomorrow's parties
For Thursday's child is Sunday's clown
For whom none will go mourning
A blackened shroud, a hand-me-down gown
Of rags and silks, a costume
Fit for one who sits and cries
For all tomorrow's parties
[GEW]

o [page 1] [panel 3] There is the planet that Dane saw in 1.04 page 15, Fanny's butterfly from her initiation, one of the minions from the Outer Church waiting to attack from 2.04 page 22, and possibly the Illuminatus! pyramid. [Loz] [panel 4] Not sure about the fish but apart from the team there's a UFO, the toadstools that Archons use to come into the physical world, Baron Zaraguin and ol' Chess Playing Bastard and his board. [Loz]

o [page 3] This looks like Mister Six. His role seems to be to meet and evaluate potential recruits to the Invisibles before notifying the group to meet and initiate them. [Loz]

o [page 4] [panel 3] Robin has a traffic light picture on the wall. The scanners outside the Invisible College use the same grading scheme when scanning arrivals (2.06). Is it symbolic of her pre-initiated state that it's on red? [Loz] panel 4: Is Mason using the Invisibles as a way of introducing himself to Robin or is he seriously considering making a movie as well. Considering how he discussed Speed in 2.01 as "Invisibles making movies for other Invisibles," it doesn't seem impossible. [Loz]

o [page 7] [panel 3] Note the black and white pattern of the floor, just like a chessboard. [DaT]

o [page 9] [panel 5] Robin says, "Fanny! Diet!"--a message Fanny in the future says she never recieved [issue 2.06, page 13]. When Fanny asked for the message, she puts special emphasis on it being a "Very. Special. Message." Is Robin Changing the future? Seems possible since she can now move about through time. Perhaps if you become a 4th-dimensional creature (As the Lord of all tears, Chess Player, Barbelith and Harliquinade are), you treat humanity as pawns in your own game, hence the chess board imagery when the time suit is activated. Maybe Robin is now a Player. [DaT]

o [page 14] [panel 2] The lines "A machine made of time, its moving parts are the days of your lives." and "Your little lives, powered by blood." are identical to the lines in 2.10 on pages 15 panel 4 and 16 panel 5, when KM and Edith are about to anoint the Hand of Glory. [Jess]

o [page 15] Based on how the 1920s team experienced this it could be said that Takashi has invented a machine which turns a human into an Archon. [Loz]

o [page 20] [panel 2] "Look it up in Brewer's." This is a reference to the 1894 reference text, The Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, compiled by E. Cobham Brewer. The actual definition of "Ragged Robin" is in the book and is also referenced at the following URL: http://www.bibliomania.com/Reference/PhraseAndFable/data/1033.html [AMJ]

o [page 22] [panel 3] The Lovers card is no 6 in the Tarot deck. Six "indicates adaptability and the ability to change in times of difficulty" whilst the card itself represents "attracion, love, beauty, romance, harmony and trials overcome... [I]n a relationship, this card shows that any problems will be overcome and that old bonds are still strong. The querent should be wary of taking things at surface value and should be aware that situations that appear to be negative may well come good in time." (Guide to the Tarot, Geddes and Grosset [pub]) [Loz]

o Speculation from Zenkidu: Rags to Fanny on Page 13, Panel 4: "You told me in 2010, when *everything* turned into a movie." Here's a thought: what if the Invisibles will give everyone--including the enemy--exactly what they want by evolving a (meta-)system that will allow everyone to create, and LIVE in, their own fictional reality. Create their own stories, rather than live in stories created by others. Since stories are all about words, this would explain the desire of the Invisibles (a la Cell 23) to undermine the either/or language of the Enemy by disseminating the language of aggregates gifted to humanity by the alien anti-bodies. It would also certainly explain Grant's thematic emphasis on Mason's obsession with movies. Other related thoughts: Maybe Robin (v.2008)--exploring the story of Mob and Co. in her deep isolation tanks and possibly changing history as she does so--is the pioneer of this leap in human consciousness. And maybe the nano-virus that will escape/be realised on December 21, 2012, will re-configure material reality sufficient to make it more easily amenable to co-creation with human consciousness? Just a thought.

o Speculation from Huggybear: What Zenkidu is saying reminds me of Morrison's final run on Doom Patrol: remember the nanomachines the Chief had created in his think tank? their purpose was to change the world atom by atom. i think it was the second to last issue of grant's stint on that book where rebis says something like "what if the nanomachines result in a better world?" To which cliff replies "but the people ought to be able to choose..." Which brings me to my question: if what zenkidu's saying has merit, how should we view the results of what happens on december 21, 2012? will people be able to freely choose to accept the conditions brought about by the nanomachines, or will they be forced?