IVAN’S 89-121 RECAP
Hey Jesse and everyone, I’ve made a recap of pages 89-121. I’ve probably made some mistakes and my style is a bit verbose, but hopefully this will help the lost readers a bit.
Serapis wanders through a forest and eventually finds himself on a cliff, where he throws away his mask, revealing his true face, which a blue bird lands on. Meanwhile, Adam is living at Serapis’ fortress, when an identical blue bird arrives and leads him to Serapis, who says he has a message to relay.
The newly-born ‘lizard man’ descends into the Pit of Tartarus and speaks with the Cyclops brothers, who have transformed into a large, brain-like creature, who says Iapetus and his army will ’surely be obliterated’ by Cain, and that the lizard-man needs to defend the jewel. It then gives the jewel to the Lizard-man, who plants it in his forehead. This causes a burst of light to erupt from Tartarus, which is noticed by Iapetus, but Lucifer urges him to ignore it. As this is happening, Cain approaches, running across an ocean, while Cronus and Themis watch. Themis decides it is too late to warn Iapetus of the futility in fighting against Cain, who immediately arrives and begins slaughtering Iapetus’ army.
Rhea, in the midst of her enraged animal murder spree, is interrupted by Ghob clapping. Rhea attempts to confront him, but Ghob insists she is unimportant and tries to leave. Ghob, disgusted by Rhea’s insistence on fighting him, begins to berate her, when Gaia arrives. Gaia tells him she did what he told her to do, and laments about the bad turn her life has taken. In the midst of her monologue, her face suddenly falls off into her hands, revealing an empty white void. Rhea, either assuming it is Ghob’s doing, or just taking the oppurtunity, launches into the fight and the two do battle. Ghob bites her arm up to the wrist, and in as a taunt, Rhea shoves her arm even further in his mouth, only for her entire right forearm to be melted off by the ‘magic sliz’ in his stomach. They continue to fight in spite of this injury.
Meanwhile, the Lizard-man emerges from Tartarus and his lizard and human halves become increasingly seperated. Iapetus asks for help against Cain, who is still murdering the army. Lucifer says he has ‘a man’ coming to help. In the middle of a destructive attack, Cain is attacked by the Lizard-man.
Somewhere in space, Michael is cradling Mithras, when a mysterious being greets him. Michael recognizes this being as Metatron. Michael becomes angry when Metatron says he can do nothing to help the situation and then states he will take Mithras away later. Metatron tries to reconcile him, and reveals that ‘our beloved Ain Soph could never have created this universe’. Michael says he doesn’t understand and becomes frustrated as Metatron encourages him to continue thinking about it. While Michael breaks down in tears, Metatron leaves, and Michael assures the sleeping Mithras that he’s gone. Mithras awakens silently, the face of Metatron reflected in his eyes.
WALTER aka ACK-N-ROTTEN’S 90-167
90: Serapis wanders through a forest, up a hill to the point of a huge cliff. He drops his helmet off the cliff; a blue bird lights on his head.
91: Adam wonders where Cain and Serapis have gone. The blue bird comes and settles on Adam’s head. Adam asks, “Did you just say my name?”
92: Adam jumps off a tower or rock formation and follows the bird into the forest.
In the process of jumping off the tower, he sh!ts himself just a bit.
93: Adam finds Serapis at the tip of the cliff, and the blue bird settles on Serapis’ head once again. Adam remarks that Serapis looks different, and Serapis offers speculation about this. Adam and Serapis are Not On the Same Page regarding this topic.
94. Serapis seems psychotic. His “junk is broke.” He says he has a message for Adam.
95. Someone who I THINK is Lapetus/Iapetuc (eps 77, 78) jumps down into the Pit to find Arges.
96. Lapetus/Iapetus asks the Argest and his brothers conglomerate. The eye-ee/brain-ee thing asks “Reptile Man,” “Can you see the future?” Arges etc. says that Cain is close.
97. Good-looking, Naked “Lapetus” asks, “You don’t think we can win?” and Argest, etc., says “not really.” “Lapetus” probes, “You’re just going to stay down here and hide?” and Arges etc. says, “basically.”
98. Intruiging, hard to interpret conversation between still-attractive Lapetus and Arges etc.
99. Lapetus very easily persuades Arges Etc. to hand over the crystal. Arges Etc. says, “seems like you should to have it.”
100. Good-looking, Naked Lapetus presses the jewell into his forhead. Tesseract?
101. Red-headed, flesh-colered Nommo/Iaputus says “WTF?”, contacts Lucifer. Lucifer says, “It’s cool.” Themis confirms to Chronus that her friend is coming from across the waters.
102. Double-episode. Chronus and Themis discuss interpersonal communication failures. Nommo/Iapetus fires his Ultimate Weapon to no avail; then sics his chemically altered badasses on Cain.
103. Cain dominates and moves towards the Jewell in Nommo/Iapetus’ forehead. Back in the forest, Rhea is kicking predatory mega-fauna-ass.
104. Ghob asks Rhea about her fight-readiness. Rhea says, “Let’s go.” Ghob is taunting, telling Rhea she matters not to him. He almost disappears into a tree.
105. Rhea (Zeuss continually on her back in the baby-pac) begs Ghob to fight. Ghob can’t quite “get” it.
106. Ghob is incredulous that Rhea wants to fight. Gaia pops in to the scene.
107. Gaia informs that Ghob that she has followed his instructions, and then complains to Ghob about her sleep disorder. Ghob and Gaia are not on the same page.
108. During her response, Gaia’s face falls off. Rhea is disturbed and attacks Ghob. Ghob tells her, “you’ll ruin us all.”
109. Ghob rolls out. Rhea attacks again and throws a punch, shoving her fist into Ghob’s gullet.
110. Rhea hammers Ghob, Zeuss crawls out of the baby-pack, and Gaia picks up her face.
111. Rhea feels the majic schlizz in Ghob’s gullet; Ghob bites Rhea’s fore-arm off just below the elbow, and laughs.
112. Rhea mounts a credible response; Zeuss watches.
113. Lucifer moderates a mystical joining between Iapetus and Lapetus.
114. Lucifer informs the resulting individual that Cain cannot be avoided.
115. Cain is kicking the chemcially altered army in the ass. Lucifer instructs Nommo/Iapetus to continue resistence.
116. Cain dominates, then is brought down with an “oof.”
117. We leave the Nommo/Cain battle and see Metatron contact Archangel Michael.
118. Michael expresses frustration to Metatron, and tells Metatron that his lil’ buddy (Mithras) will not be made available.
119. Metatron and Michael discuss metaphysics and the implications thereof.
120. Continued discussion of implications. Micheal remains frustrated and confused.
121. Metatron departs; Michael reassures Mithras that no further interference wll be tolerated. Mithras appears blank and open. “This ain’t over.”
122. One of Serapis’ hermaphro-dudes talks with Seth about Abel bieng in a coma. Cain and Lapetus/Iapetus talk sass; L/I is in the midst of some transmorgrafication.
123. Cain and I/L engage. Nommo comes into play (?).
124. Under attack from Cain, Nommo/I-L merge.
125. Nuclear interaction between Cain and N/I-L.
126. One of Serapis’ hermaphro-aids dressed in a red leotard asks Abel what Eve thinks about Seth’s Coma. Seth replies, “she’s got other stuff going on.” Meanwhile another Hermaphrodite, in a green leotard, is Doing the Nasty with Eve. In the post-coital glow, Eve says “I’ve been waiting for this;” the hermaphrodite responds that he’s been woring his away around the block and knew he’d get to her eventually.
127. In a room festooned with bear and elephant trophies, Eve’s paramour asks about Seth. Eve appears not to know about Seth’s coma, and gets belligerent with her lover, muffing him. She threatens to sic Adam on him. He replies that Adam isn’t even around, and that she’s a shitty mom for not knowing about her kids. She says they’re old enough to fend for themselves.
128. Nommo figures out that Cain is an “energy sponge;” the more Cain gets hit, the more powerful he becomes. Lucifer interjects that he must have a limit. and Nommo tells Cain he’s going to keep hitting him, to Cain’s elation. (Personal Fave episode.)
129. Cronus to Themis: “Run, dude!” They flee the BWOM-ish destruction of Ys (which is a city in Atlantis) brought about by the Nommo-Cain fight.
130. Scenes of destruction and flight.
131. Scenes of destruction and hopelessness from within the city of Ys. “…knowing that whatever we do; who gives a shit about us?”
132. While elephants carry away dead animals and faceless Gaia looks on, Ghob taunts Rhea and suggests she ties up her wound. She does.
133. Rhea finishes tying up her wound; Ghob tries to dissuade her from further fighting, pointing out that she’s at a disadvantage. They are interrupted the BWOMS and visual effects from the other fight. Ghob speculates Iapetus is involved.
134. Ghob seems to assume that Rhea knows something about Lucifer and the various threats they face together — but she doesn’t. He realizes she’s clueless. With continued BWOMs and visual effects from the Nommo/Iapetus vs. Cain fight, Rhea attacks again. Ghob begins to stomp her very seriously.
135. Ghob is stomping Rhea with conviction and authority. Zeuss, who has been watching since he crawled out of the baby-pack in episode 110, calls down lightning on Ghob to spectacular effect.
136. Double-episode. Staggered, Ghob falls. Rhea asks Zeuss, “Was that you?” Zeuss speas his second and third words, indicating he’s not really up for a chat, and falls downs. Rhea lovingly pulls Ghob’s head off; he bleeds out magic schlizz. Ghob’s head makes little nature sounds as he expires.
137. “Good fight,” Rhea declares. Zeuss stands back up and Rhea offers him Ghob’s head as a trophy. Zeuss declines. Rhea tosses Ghob’s head aside as it continues to spew magic schlizz. Zeuss notices that tiny Ghoblets, or Ghoblins, or red mini-Ghobs or whatever the hell you want to call them spring up from the ground where the magic schlizz lands.
138. We rejoin Serapis and Adam up on the bluff. Adam complains of hunger, but Serapis tells Adam that Adam cannot leave until Serapis remembers the message he has for Adam. Serapis suggests that Adam call up animals for food like in the old days. Adam replies that that hasn’t happened in a long time, and asks Serapis if he really believed that was “real.”
139. Serapis replies that it seemed real. Adam says he can’t remember things from that period — it’s a “Dream-time.” Adam asks Serapis if he himself remembers being born. Serapis replies that yes he does, and gives a vivid and inspiring retelling of the events associated with his birth.
140. Serapis speculates about how the circumstances of his birth contributed to his/her bad-assery. While he is facing out over the cliff engaged in his reverie, Adam looks at Serapis’ butt and thinks about ham.
141. Serapis continues to wax poetic about the nature of his bad-assistude. With Serapis’ bac still turned, Adam starts to sneak away.but Serapis lets him know that’s not happening. Serapis asks what it means to be the biggest badass in the universe. (In this episode, Jesse has made a correction in the first panel he noted that he wanted to make.)
142. Adam tells Serapis, “I don’t get it and you’re scaring me.” Serapis says the “weird vibes” are coming from him now, instead of from Adam, like back in the day when Adam could call the animals to him. “Is it because I’m you?” Serapis asks, and continues, “I don’t feel like me anymore.” For one panel, Serapis is transformed into a different physical individual. Then the blue bird leaves the top of Serapis’ head and flies away. Apparent Magic Schlizz starts to stream upward from Serapis’ head where the bird sat.
143. Adam shouts to Serapis to plug up the hole in his head, but Serapis contorts and starts to fall over the cliff. Adam runs forward and grabs Serapis by his wrist. The schlizz-stream continues. Serapis says his head feels hot, and Adam concurs that it looks that way.
144.Dangling over the cliff, Serapis announces he remembers the message. Before he can relate it, his face begins to split open, and the rainbow schlizz changes to red. Adam recoils in horror, dropping Serapis. Adam apologizes to the falling Serapis.
145. “Fly man Fly!” Adam urges as Serapis disappears into the clouds below. Then, to Adam’s amazement, Serapis’ new head pops through the clouds, followed by his whole, new gigantic red form, rising above the clouds and giving off red steam or mist.
146. Back in the Cain vs. Nommo/Iapetus fight (Jesse refers to him as “Lizard Man”), Cain is about to pry the jewel from Lizard Man’s forhead with the toes of his right foot. Just before he succeeds, Cain pauses with a look of alarm, and then changes to match the new Serapis form (while retaining his Cain size.) Currently, we get to see both Jesse’s color-corrected version and the original as well, where he forgot to change Lizard-man’s body color back to flesh-colored. Hats off to Jesse for getting this done; I myself can’t really figure out who all comprises this character anymore.
147. Lizard-man sees that Cain is morphing in and out of Serapis’ form. Cain realizes something is wrong and starts to tell Lizard-Man that he can keep the Jewel. Lizard-man, however, siezes the moment and slits Cain’s throat with a fingernail-slice karate chop.
148. Cain apparently expires with a skull-shaped death-rattle. Lizard-Man tells Lucifer “I don’t know how I did it;” Lucifer says “come one down.” Lizard-Man begins punching his way down through the earth.
149. Lizard-Man (Iapetus/Lapetus/Nommo?) continues to tunnel his way down through the earth using punches alone. Back at the other fight, Rhea and Zeuss contemplate the Ghob-lets. Rhea asks Zeuss his opinion. “Smash ’em,” he replies. Behind them, Ghob’s headless body continues to outpour copious amounts of rainbow schlizz. “Ghob, Ghob, Ghob!” the little red homunculi chant.
150. A fountain of rainbow schlizz continues to build and grow. It moves Ghob’s headless body. Rhea and Zeuss move out of the way of the growing mound of schlizz, from which a Ghob-colored bull’s-head emerges. To Rhea’s consternation and astonishment, a huge body, holding a sword, rizes up under the head, towering above her and Zeuss.
151. Rhea taunts the newly risen Ghob-Being, and punches him in the leg. He responds with a mighty “Oooooo”, and raises the sword for an apparent killing stroke.
152. Epic one-panel two-page spread in which the new Ghob apparently uses the sword to just tear up the landscape.
153. Noah punches his way through ice and emerges from the water beneath. A huge hand reaches down and pulls up Noah by the wrist, placing a ring on the third finger of Noah’s right hand.
154. Double-episode. Noah contemplates the ring Metatron placed upon his hand. The top of the ring is a golden disk with a five-pointed star (tip facing up.” “A” is above the top, “u” between the two left points, and “M” between the two right points. Noah says it looks familiar, and says it’s “mad nice.” Noah and Metatron discuss Noah’s progress in his quest. Metatron compliments him, but also warns him to not get too cocky. Noah comments on the cold water and the abundance of fire.
155. Metatron shows Noah how the water makes a path through the fire. When Noah asks about individuals who appear, apparently made of rock, Metatron says they’re probably just curious about the water.
156. Gaia, Rhea, and Zeuss watch the new ultra-Ghob roll around and tear shit up.
157. Flying through the chaos created by mega-Ghob, Rhea grabs one of the little red Ghobs and queries it. “Ghob Ghob Ghob” it says.
158. She declares it useless and smashes it. MegaGhob continues to swing the sword, tearing stuff up. We cut to Lucifer contintuing to encourage Lizard Man. Lucifer is upset when Lizard-Man’s tunnelt collapses in on Lizard-Man.
159. Lizard-mans collapsed tunnel fills with lava. Lucifer is pissed. Ghob roars. Noah notices the water-path through the fire splits, and when he trurns to ask Metatron about this, Noah sees that his guide has disappeared.
160. Faceless Gaia shows up to berate Noah about abandoning her. She says everything on Earth is falling apart. They have a difficult post-breakup conversation.
161. Gaia tells Noah that “The Earth is going bananas and is trying to tear Atlantis to bits” (this explanation is superimposed over a cut-away to Ghob’s new rainbow-schlizzy face). She tells Noah that it might help if he returned the keystone he stole from her tower. Noah doesn’t understand what she is saying, and tells Gaia she has to move on.
162. Noah says he’s a snake-man/man-snake. He tells Gais he’s moving to a “higher plateau” and she calls bullshit on him. She squats in the water and pees, telling Noah she’s going to stay there in the salty pee-water until he comes back to earth.
163. Noah continues to say every wrong thing to Gaia, and slips into the side path beside him. Gaia roars in rage.
164. Gaia reappears earth-side, her face on the grass beside her, still roaring in rage and frustration. Rhea taunts super-Ghob, who reponds with a sword stroe directly down to the top of her head. Zeuss runs in fear.
165. The tip of the sword begins to bisect Rhea’s head, while she resists with her stump, her remaining hand, and her muscular feet.
166. With the sword tip halfway down into Rhea’s head, Rhea continues to talk trash to Big Ghob. Suddenly Ghob pulls the sword up; with the tip embedded in her head, she rides up, still holding on with the right stump and and left arm. As Zeuss and Gaia look on in horror, Ghob reverses the direction of the sword again, cleaving Rhea clean in two. The two halves of Rhea begin their fall from the sy.
167. Back in Ys, Themis searches through the rubble for Cronus. We see him dead, impaled on a piece of rebar int he rubble.