- The two conclusions being reached earlier

- The hypothesis being reached earlier

For the record, Ellen isn't coming up with these on the spot. These are things she's been told. What she's doing is organizing them into arguments.

(Which is still an impressive thing to do on the spot like that.)

LOGIC!

Upon realizing I was confused about the distinctions between inductive and abductive reasoning, editing this page turned into a speed run to learn about philosophical reasoning.

Napoleon and space aliens got involved.

The cause of my confusion turned out to be this: Not everyone acknowledges abductive reasoning.

There are plenty of videos that treat deductive and inductive reasoning as a dichotomy. It took me a while to realize that, and it affected how I interpreted what I was hearing. The line between inductive and abductive reasoning started to blur, and I wondered why abductive reasoning was even a thing.

So I read a paper by Charles Sanders Peirce from 1878.

Titled Deductions, Inductions, and Hypotheses (and read by me in a collection called The Essential Peirce, Volume 1), it argued for the necessity of hypotheses and how they differed from induction (it read like an early case for what would become known as abductive reasoning).

It also claimed that Napoleon existing was a hypothesis.

Numberless documents and monuments refer to a conqueror called Napoleon Bonaparte. Though we have not seen the man, yet we cannot explain what we have seen, namely, all these documents and monuments, without supposing that he really existed. Hypothesis again.

And I wasn't kidding about space aliens. From later in the paper:

Now, the facts which serve as grounds for our belief in the historic reality of Napoleon are not by any means necessarily the only kind of facts which are explained by his existence. It may be that, at the time of his career, events were being recorded in some way not now dreamed of, that some ingenious creature on a neighboring planet was photographing the earth, and that these pictures on a sufficiently large scale may some time come into our possession, or that some mirror upon a distant star will, when the light reaches it, reflect the whole story back to earth.

I’ll say this for the Napoleon examples: I will never forget them.

ANYWAY! I felt significantly less confused after I read that, and I changed Ellen's induction example. My earlier confusion had, in fact, resulted in the original actually being abductive reasoning.

Hooray for reading and hypothetical Napoleon being photographed by aliens!

Oh hey, there's an Eeevil Hope sketchbook today.

I hope you like logical reasoning!

There will be elaboration on what Ellen means next page, and I'll elaborate further in its commentary (WOO! LOGIC AND REASONING! YEAH!).

I first took an interest in types of reasoning when someone dared to point out that Sherlock Holmes rarely, if ever, actually used deductive reasoning. This bold claim seemed to be accurate.

I didn't take a lot of interest in it at first. I mostly thought, "that's neat," and occasionally thought about it. More recently, however, I've been looking a great deal into it! I've seen many videos, looked things up, read a book (GASP!), and I've reached what I consider a deductive conclusion:

There is no universal consensus on what these forms of reasoning mean.

Which, honestly, is fine. They're guidelines for reason, not literal, tangible things. What matters most (unless taking a test in a philosophy or mathematics course) is that they genuinely assist with reasoning.

I'm going to do my best to stick to what makes the most sense to me, and what would make the most sense for the characters in-context. I just also don't think I can "get it right" from everyone's perspective, and I say that on the basis that I've heard so many conflicting perspectives.

—

- Saturday EGSNP

- "Be wary of a unicorn looking for royalty"

"One of your statements is, in fact, objectively true, but you've reached another conclusion that is quite false!"

As previously mentioned, the EGSNP pseudo-canon* storyline Parable is NOT required reading. Anything relevant will be gone over in this story arc. In any case, what's being said was said by Mist very close to the end of it.

* Pseudo-canon because it didn't start out with that intent, and there's plenty of nonsense I likely would have changed had I known it would make the shift to plot relevancy. Fortunately, it was mostly a literal merging of multiple dreams, so a LOT can be excused by that.

—

- Thursday EGSNP

- "Two for us." "Yes. Two."

- Elliot transformed before sleep (also Tedd in case it was missed)

This is just me musing, this isn't official canon, but!

I'm considering the possibility that Grace's antennae still sense her surroundings to some degree while sleeping. Just like a loud enough noise could wake us up, a silent, unfamiliar presence could be sensed by Grace and wake her up.

I'm considering this because I think it would also allow Grace to navigate to some degree while sleeping. Not perfectly, but enough to avoid hazards and falling off of things (and possibly finding Ellens).

I also propose the simple explanation that Grace wound up over there due to what side she was sleeping on. She was simply facing towards Ellen, sensed a familiar presence, and made like a sleepy hedgehog to get over there.

Again, however, none of that is definite canon, and I'm not the boss of you if you have different conclusions.

—

- Tuesday EGSNP

For clarity, Rhoda did want to jump over one of the legs of the chair. What she did not want to do was clear two legs of the chair. She'd wanted a jump that was more challenging in height than distance.

I do wonder what it would actually be like to run over carpets and rugs at 1:10 scale. The answer would naturally vary by type, but I imagine it would commonly be weird. I ignore such potential complications here for the sake of simplicity, but it could come up at some point.

If ever you see a carpet that seems overly detailed in the style of fabric, be suspicious. I'm probably going to have characters run through it as though it were tall grass.

—

- Saturday EGSNP

Rhoda is at 1:10 scale in this and the previous page, making her six inches tall (15.24cm). The "ceiling" of the DVD structure is 5.25 inches.

I actually made that structure of DVDs in real life for reference. I didn't try to make the DVD cases in the comic match, but I used a box set of The Lord of The Rings, the Game of The Year edition of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and a box set of Parks and Recreation (which I haven't watched yet, but someone did borrow it from me once, so it's been watched by someone).

One idea I had for the obstacle course that wound up not getting used would have involved a ball. That ball would've been kept stationary on something, and Rhoda would have shrunk whatever that something was from a distance. That would've made the ball fall and become a roaming obstacle.

I think this was a neat idea, but staging it would have been difficult, and might have added another full page or two to the sequence. It also would've established that Rhoda can do something like that from a very far range (proportionately) while running without it taking a lot out of her, and I decided that wasn't something I wanted. The idea got cut for two reasons, each one of which would have been enough reason on its own.

Still, I do think it was a neat idea.

- When first we saw Rhoda in this arc

- When last we saw Rhoda

- When last we mentioned Rhoda (Rhoda being one of the people Tedd especially wants present while figuring out royalty because she is supposedly quite powerful as mentioned by Hope in the previous arc)

Rhoda!

This page didn't originally have the "Rhoda" narration, but between the similar hairstyles, the lack of earrings, the physical transformation, and the closed eyes, I've seen a LOT of mistaken identity being reported.

Funnily enough, this issue hadn't even occurred to me. It felt obvious in retrospect, but not once while originally making it.

At some point, I need to have a serious meeting to sort out how many characters have similar bangs and decide who are getting haircuts.

Fun!

I think I have the most fun behind the scenes when what comes next is a puzzle. Not a "I don't know what I'm going to do at all" puzzle, that's just writer's block. I mean when I know basically what I want to do, but there's something to figure out along the way.

What Rhoda's doing on this page is an example of the answer to one puzzle giving rise to another (how to start this part followed by how exactly to do it), and that, to me, is fun. If I know exactly what I'm doing and how I'm going to do it for too long, then it's just a thing I've got to get done. If I've only just figured it out and getting to create the result, or I'm figuring it out as I go, that's fun.

It's one reason I prefer loose story planning to having every last detail sorted out well in advance. It's genuinely less fun for me.

Granted, that previously mentioned writer's block is also not fun, so there's pros and cons. The best middle ground I can think of off the top of my head is to have enough planned out to not get stuck, but not so much planned that there's nothing left to figure out or play with.

—

- First EGSNP after False Kings went on break

- Most recent EGSNP

I was expecting to have another page after this in part 6, but editing makes fools of us all, so... Part 6 over, part 7 next Wednesday!

- The discussion waaay back in Sister 2 about magic buildups

- The specific page about having to sleep while transformed

- Realization of not getting energy buildups anymore in Sister 3

I didn't intend panel three as literal conscious thought. That's basically a summation of what Elliot remembered was relevant in that moment translated into words we can understand.

It wound up being a lot of text, however, so speed lines and italicized thought bubbles, GO!

I think a lot of thoughts in comics work out that way. Not all the time, but I figure there's a lot that's subconscious wizardry being localized into English.

Novels naturally do this less, as their narration can more efficiently address what characters are thinking about without breaking immersion. When we do get their thoughts in text, such as I want a sandwich in italics, I assume that's literal conscious thought.

—

- Tuesday EGSNP

- "It would not stay hidden for some reason." From Father.

- Ragnarok flashback during the Hope arc

- Seeing Ragnarok upon meeting Ellen

"It took THREE MOVIES! LONG movies! And the theaters didn't even have intermissions! Why did they stop having those? Honestly, they expect you to set for so many hours while drinking soda? It's ridiculous. Also, I think I'm thinking of something else, and that something else might be a prophetic vision of the future, because I don't know what a 'movie' is."

—

- Saturday EGSNP

- Start of Hope reacting to seeing Ellen

- "You haven't (hurt me)."

If going strictly by how applicable it is to real life, I'm not sure if the ethics of what Pandora did regarding her own reincarnation are worth debating. We can compare it to parents placing expectations on children, but it's a bit of odd as an allegory.

As one of those weird questions that comes up in fantasy and science fiction, however? Philosophical debate!

If you're going to reincarnate as a new person—possibly similar in nature, but minus all the nurture—is it ethical to pass along feelings the current you believe are important?

Do you have the right to do that to yourself? Does it matter that, in many objectively real ways, you'll be someone else?

Does the fact that it would still technically be you make it entirely up to you as you are now?

Please keep in mind that this is entirely fantasy "what if" nonsense (as far as I'm aware, anyway), so it's probably not worth arguing too hard about this.

Not that I'm even sure anyone's even going to discuss this, but figured I should at least try to get ahead of anyone throwing chairs at each other (or, more likely, using chair throwing text emotes).

—

- Thursday EGSNP

To be perfectly clear, authorial intent was that those were extremely innocent whispers about whether one bed would be appropriate under the circumstances for literal sleep, and they decided it was probably best to go with two.

I can't stop any other head canons, but then I also can't stop any head canons in which they're actually plotting a bank heist. Head canons are the wild west of canons.

I know you might have read that the lawlessness of the "wild west" has been exaggerated in fiction, but we also can't stop all the head canons out there that say it was complete lawlessness.

—

- Tuesday EGSNP

- Voltaire did, you know

- When last we saw Mist

One might think the Dunkel parents are bad at reading rooms.

They are not. The reaction would have been very different if there had been any hostile intent.

Whether a hostile maid would have regretted walking into that kitchen while Mrs. Dunkel was there is another matter.

And yes, not Mr. Dunkel. It's obvious because—What? No, not because she was in the kitchen! It's obvious because she said "oh!" and Mr. Dunkel would've gone with "oh?" Completely different!

How dare you, person I imagined while writing this.

—

- Saturday EGSNP

- When last Kevin was afoot (or I guess afloating)

Nanase is referencing information she, Tedd, and Ashley were given by Kevin in the canon EGSNP storyline Nanase and Her Fox. This storyline is not required reading, but hey, it could be fun! Eh? EH???

Anyway, after magic's not-change, it became harder for Nanase to think clearly while using her duplicate spell. She worked with Tedd to figure out how best to use it while still thinking clearly, and this subject came up during that process.

Kevin split the "intelligence" of summons into two types: Caster-Based, and Program-Based.

Caster-Based: Summons run off the minds of their summoners.

Program-Based: Summons use autonomous simulated intelligence (though Kevin phrased it as "artificial").

Kevin also asserted that, unless the summoner was absurdly powerful, Program-Based summons would inevitably have simplistic—likely animalesque—behaviors. There's a reason we've mostly seen Caster-Based.

Turquoise!

My understanding is that Fata Azzurra does mean "blue fairy," but "La Fata Turchina," the Fairy With Turquoise Hair, would be more accurate to the original Italian story.

I've been sent a few messages about this, but I have yet to give them my full attention. As such, I might revisit this for even further clarification and/or correcting of myself.

For now, I will say that my excuse for the immortal going by Azzurra is that she was choosing a name, and didn't want to go by Turchina. She was inspired by Fata Turchina, but chose something similar, Azzurra, instead.

Unless I wind up "um, actually'ing" myself in the next commentary.

—

- Thursday EGSNP

- "I do not understand anything I say."

Long story short? Simulated.

Fata Azzurra is Italian for Blue Fairy (or so my searches have told me), and is in reference to Pinocchio. As one familiar with the story of Pinocchio might well imagine, an immortal choosing to name themselves after the blue fairy likely had some enthusiasm for giving a semblance of life to the inanimate.

It's also possible that Azzurra felt the need to remind herself that it was, in fact, a semblance, and she did so a bit too thoroughly.

—

- Tuesday EGSNP

- Introduction of the summoned maid

- Voltaire's maids

- Voltaire's maids again (earlier in this arc, simply behind Voltaire)

- Hope promising to tell Tedd about her summoned maid

- Voltaire's maids yet again (still simply behind Voltaire)

I leave it to readers to interpret whether "MAID!" was diegetic (the actual sound made in-universe).

We're dealing with magic, here. A "MAID!" sound wouldn't be any less ridiculous than a maid with simulated intelligence being conjured within a room that exists within some manner of pocket dimension accessible by a doorway that can be placed anywhere without any sort of issues with atmosphere or pressure while effectively overlapping with other physical space.

There is the argument that someone would react to "MAID!" Considering the audience, however, that could simply not be enough to make them blink.

--

- Saturday EGSNP

- Sleeping as a cloud (EGSNP storyline Marker)

- Tedd's been warned about sleep (From Part 3 of Layers)

This was less a planned reveal and more two plus two equaling four.

I don't think I've specifically mentioned it in the comic, but I've considered Pandora sleeping for weeks on end at times unofficial canon, along with the reasons being one part boredom, one part being awake for long periods of time.

As a reminder, I only consider what's in the comic itself official canon. I can make claims down here, but they could end up never being confirmed canon.

Authorial intent has also been that Pandora didn't sleep at all during Sister 3.

It was while writing this page that I casually wrote Hope attributing the odd sleep schedule to immortal age. Immortals also become more powerful and mentally unstable with age.

Correlation doesn't mean causation, but that doesn't rule it out, either. At a minimum, it's worth considering as a potential contributing factor.

As for whether it really was a contributing factor, why are you asking me? I'm commentary Dan! Anything I say about canon might get disproven!

Speaking of Sleep

I actually got this page done with lots of time to spare. Yay. Which means it's time for me to stop writing this commentary and work on the next page for a bit. Bye!

--

- Thursday EGSNP

If you aren't around my age and weren't a kid who enjoyed arcades and video games, you might not understand why I gleefully bring up the possibility of pizza as power ups.

Or maybe you do! Ninja Turtles have had many incarnations and many games, after all. Either way, random boxes of pizza found in the strangest of places and providing health and/or super moves are nostalgic for me, and I indulgently bring them up here.

Besides, it illustrates the idea of why someone might want the magic food by equating them to video game power ups. IT'S HELPFUL!

It takes energy to get energy

Fun fact: Digestion takes energy! Not so much energy that you burn off all the calories from a meal just by digesting it (with some possible exceptions), but it's not free. What happens with immortals is undoubtedly different in a lot of ways, but that aspect of it is likely still applicable.

Considering this, for a mortal, eating food conjured by immortals when hungry would probably be worse than eating nothing. Granted, someone used to magic energy might be able to convert it to usable physical energy, and...

Wait a minute. I think I just tripped over backwards into how anime martial arts are a thing. The physical augmentation side of it, anyway. Huh.

It's been suggested that writing out one's thoughts are helpful, and apparently, they are! Write yourselves some essays, everyone! You might have epiphanies!

But, of course, everything I say down here is only canon once it's also said up there in the comic itself. So maybe we've solved anime martial arts, maybe we haven't. And maybe Elliot, Nanase, and Ellen should have some magic pizza later and see what happens.

--

- Saturday EGSNP

- Tuesday EGSNP

The next page after this will be Wednesday. I'm not satisfied with what I'd written, and I know I can write better.

This is not hubris! I'm simply the best writer ever. It's how I know I wrote something not good enough.

I'll see if I can work in at least one backflip (I don't think there'll be a backflip, but we'll see).

Looking Down

"It's a bit like with cartoon coyotes. I had to make sure you looked down."

"I refuse to believe you have that reference on your side."

"Oh, we don't, but we've been here a while. I'm very concerned by how much television Mist's been watching."

Not a loophole

One can be forgiven for reading Voltaire say "I vow to do that" and assume he's going for a loophole.

That's not a loophole. That's "it just took two panels for Saou to cover the contents of the vow, we're not going over that again on-panel."

Should one wish to headcanon that Saou had Voltaire repeat it properly, that's fine, but unnecessary. The "that" in context pretty much has to go along with what Saou described. The only way Voltaire's vow doesn't match is if he misheard or misinterpreted it. Whatever his genuine understanding of what Saou said was, he just vowed to do that.

So I guess there could be "a loophole" if Voltaire just did not get what Saou was saying.

--

- Thursday EGSNP

- "No greater punishment than helping you succeed"

- When last we saw Saou

- When last we saw Voltaire

I wound up writing this page the same day I made it. Not because the scene as a whole was a late idea, but because element(s) were missing from it that kept me from being happy with it.

I feel I can't elaborate on what those element(s) were without being too spoilerish, but I will say I'm happy with this version. I had to edit it down a bit because limited panel space is like that sometimes, but nonetheless.

Pizza

The missing element(s) was not the slice of pizza.

That said, I feel this page is improved a great deal by the pizza.

--

- Tuesday EGSNP

- Hope not loving loud crowds (start of Hope arc)

- Hope continuing to not love loud crowds (at the tournament when Susan shows up)

- Hope supporting a delay to having to meet people (page is from this arc, but technically happened the night of the tournament)

Earlier, when Hope created the second room, she was unfortunately not narratively savvy enough to realize that second room existing was going to be important to the story. That, or she believed that moment with the conjured punching bag was the room's job done, but no, it wasn't.

Not a lot of room

Tedd's house has a very nice basement, but that's not what I imagine in the Dunkel household. I had planned for that to be pointed out specifically, but it was the first thing I cut when editing this page. All that was going to be pointed out was that their basement was primarily for laundry, exercise, storage, and assorted basement things.

--

- Saturday EGSNP