OOPS #366
This applies to many interactions in life. For example, if you’re calling up tech support, or to report a problem, or whatever else, then pouring your frustrations out on the person on the other end of the phone, who had nothing to do with your problem, will just make them defensive, and not motivated to help you past the bare minimum. However, if you set up the situation so that you’re a person genuinely in need, and the person on the other end is the only one who can help you, and you appreciate the time and energy they’re putting in to help you solve your issue, then that activates the ol’ empathy responses, and suddenly they’re a whole lot more motivated to put in the effort to get your problem solved, because you appreciate the help they’re giving.
Plus they’re probably used to just getting yelled at all day, and so the chance to actually help someone have a nice day is usually a sorely needed experience for them.
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played him like a fiddle.
Man these last four pages or so have just been a source of a bunch of incredible yinglet faces I’m starting to think that’s the only reason there’s character drama in this comic.
I think panel 2 is the most “animalistic” I’ve seen Vizlet look, which is fun also.
Let’s call the one in the last panel a “clam-eating grin”.
I was thinking the same thing!
Ahah, Narklet is tiny!
Well, yes. He’s a Narklet, not a Nark.
XD
Narklet does seem a bit smaller than the average yinglet, but I don’t think he’s tiny. In close-up panels, it’s hard to judge from head levels how tall a yinglet is, since their posture goes up and down all the time. In the fourth panel here, Narklet’s posture might be shrinking in surprise at Kass’s enthusiasm. If you look at the scene where Kattajak daydreams about shanking Narklet, it’s not obvious which of them is taller, though I think Kattajak probably is. Without a police-style lineup, it’s hard to know much than generalizations, like that Lippie is petite, Feeeena is tall, and Poak is a giant.
Well, that’s some solid wall of boring, ultraconservative lecturing she will have to pretend to be enthusiastic about, she just set herself up for.
Here’s to hoping he’s a flighty enough Yinglet to completely forget about it by next time they meet.
Forget?
Ran wants all of that information. Kas is going to end up with enough material to last him a lifetime or two of extra perks at the job.
It occurs to me that by cultivating Narklet, he has an eager source of information for Ran and the Trademaster on the ways of traditional Yinglet clans and the Yinglet government.
Yes, Kass was nakedly sent as a spy, but ultimately what they want to know rests entirely within Narklet’s head, or out of easy reach.
Vizlet hasn’t given him much but it’s not because she saw through the ploy, though she did, but because she doesn’t have anything worth stealing, and Kass still has things that she desires.
Social engineering Narklet is more-or-less the most dangerous but expedient way to get it, aside from beating it out of him or his underlings (and Brakka is out of reach at the moment), and while he’s reasonably educated & cunning, he’s still a naive, egotistical child.
Had Kass 2 minutes in a row to put his shoes on, beelining straight for Narklet would probably have been done earlier but his previous meeting was hampered by not knowing how to sleep or eat properly, and every minute after has been a series of things like your associate going murder crazy, a gang of malcontents stabbing your battle brother in arms, a kidnapping & small beating, watching the new hire get his face mutilated for you, dealing with a nonstop rolling panic attack.. so he’s been busy.
The “kidnapping and small beating” also included attempted rape.
Hooily tiplod, Kass! This looks like it worked out great!
Even Vizlet seems shocked that this just happened, and maybe she’ll want some lessons to get Narklet off her back a bit?
But… maybe Vizlet’s face is one of concern, because she knows what’s going to happen now?
Maybe Narklet won’t be as enthralled as Kass expects, but also maybe he will be? He’s already made the decision that Kass won’t come with them just yet, which is already amazing, AND Kass has ingratiated himself with the Patriarch. What if they become ‘friends’ over this, or the Patriarch decides that he and Kass should have eggs? This could be dangerous, still…
I know, right?!?! Those last two speech bubble from Narklet were a CRAZY about-face that practically (if perhaps temporarily) derails his earlier primary motivation… But yeah,…totally, like you I worry that this will place Kass into a potentially “at your behest” situation that he may have to carefully back out of to avoid being cajoled into any sticky expectations by Narklet now that he’s been personally “engaged” by Kass as the one to provide “guidance” moving forward… We could potentially be seeing some “cringe moments” on the horizon for Kass far worse than the simple garment-based misunderstanding with Poak…
Some possible concerns there. On the other hand, Narklet can be a wealth of information for Kass to supply to the Trademaster and Ran on the more traditional Yinglet ways and governance.
I think its more awe than anything. Most of her meetings with kass have been with him in some level of crisis or heavily guarded against her. this is easily the most ‘in his element’ she’s ever seen him. Not Kass the unfortunate victim of circumstance, but kass the quick thinking merchant.
Hmmm. You think a lot of yinglets are used to low level conversational manipulation? Yinglets in general seem very earnest.
IIRC it was mentioned during their first visit to the enclave that Vizlet was used to being able to manipulate other yinglets more easily. So that, along with the general lack of attention span leads me to believe they are pretty easy to manipulate.
Just realised how similar they look.
YaYA! Tis was brought up before, dey look like dey came from same hatching! Lots of oter people have ideas why, you could look!
As someone who works in tech support I would like to say, this, exactly.
It’s great to see that philosophy being used here by Kass
So here’s an interesting thought; the existence of diplomats between two cultures goes both ways. Kass should convince Narklet that he should serve as the conclave’s representative to Ivenmoth…and if the Trademaster is as clever as he seems, he and Ran would show Narklet how much their society has to offer. This might lessen the poor Matriarch’s burden as well.
Kass: (large amount of expert bushwah)
Viz: “What zhe hell– how did zhat WORK?”
A straight(forward) line is not always the shortest path after all.
Oh, I don’t think Vizlet is unaware of how that sort of manipulation works, but she’s shocked that Kass just pulled an expert-level schmooze out of nowhere! I think Viz is still having trouble remembering that she’s dealing with a person who’s probably older than she is and has a deep well of experience to draw from, and the fact that Kass spends so much time being awkward-ignorant-unprepared doesn’t help.
And here we see why Kass is the diplomat.
…also, that’s a very human set of gestures and handling overall, isn’t it. Have we ever seen a yinglet do the hand-on-shoulder thing? It’s not like Narklet is likely to notice, and it can be easily explained by Kass being ‘human-socialized’ or whatever, but still…
I mean Kass is the diplomat because Kass is the yinglet. Any additional fit for purpose is purely coincidental but appreciated!
Page 32.
Wondering if the shock here is not just Kass having executed well but Kass having applied social techniques that Vizlet does not know. It’s not only physical technology yinglets are behind in, probably! Social engineering is a body of knowledge too.
viz is fuckin FLOORED
I tink dat tis is interesting to see because Kass is doing a good job of acting like how I tink Patriarch Narklet expects a female to act. He even seems to be producing some… uh… feeemaleness! And da Matriarch Vizlet is super duper impressed, as she should be!
I wonder if Yinglets can wink, and if they do that cuz that face…
How could you forget page 31?
Let’s just hope that vizlet does not get the wrong impression from kass
I do hope things dont go quite as smoothly as Kass is confidently hoping they will. I want to see Narklet push boundaries that cant be easily sidestepped through sheer force of personality. Narklet could be a very terrifyingly interesting antagonistic force.
And at this point Vizlet realized “Oh shit Kass is ACTUALLY a good diplomat”
Hahah, way to shmooze Kass. Kass’ expression in the last panel is perfect.
Yes, Vizlet, *That Just Happened!* Now pick your jaw up off the floor and keep up, or you’re liable to miss something important. And you might want to bring Figgins along, because schmoozing is a high-level merchant skill that you’ll want your patriarchs to learn.