[Report This]Date: February 25 2024 8:31 PM Title: Chapter 7: In the Spotlight
Real nice flow and plot progression. I can understand Thomas's logic in taking a gamble on revealing Trish to the world, but it is a gamble all the same. Depending on how big Trish ends up becoming (thousands of feet tall or greater), I'd wager that there are those within the national security apparatus who would become paranoid and ruled by fear from the mere potential she'd have as a giantess, no matter how gentle she remained or how much restraint she showed in interacting with the outside world.
If she keeps growing to the point where she starts eclipsing skyscrapers, there might be those in the Pentagon, the NSA, the DHS, or some other bureaucracy who might believe she's too dangerous to be allowed to live and resort to an airstrike to take her out (maybe even go nuclear if she enters mile-high territory). Of course, you could end up having saner, more compassionate individuals running Washington in this story who decide not to be ruled by fear of what she's capable of, but that's your call to make in the end.
One point of note would be that if Trish does grow to the point of skyscraper-level height, both food and water would be a tricky thing to provide for someone of such size. The caloric intake would be astronomical by human standards, along with being able to clothe a human of such size. There's also the matter of finding a place to go to the bathroom, unless her metabolism makes it so that she no longer expels solid or liquid waste as she grows larger (in case you need a little "deus ex machina" to alleviate that kind of a concern). Finding a place to wash or shower would also be tricky once she enters Godzilla territory in the size department. She'd have to be using literal lakes to clean herself (unless she ends up outgrowing even those, then she'd have to turn to the ocean).
Anyways, all these concerns aside, I'm really enjoying the plot progression, as well as Thomas's ability to take command and control of the situation, despite him being so much smaller than her by this point. The chemistry between the two of them is really something.
[Report This]Date: February 11 2024 12:46 AM Title: Chapter 7: In the Spotlight
And Melanie continues to get closer to both of our protagonists. It's impressive how you've shown her relationship with each of them grow and made her so likable while devoting such a small portion of each chapter to her. You really maximize the impact of the scenes with her, yet you do it in a subtle way.
While we're on the subject of Melanie, I thought it was pretty telling that Trish could tell right away that Thomas had bad news while Melanie, his girlfriend, seemingly couldn't. That was a pretty nuanced way to suggest that Trish knows him better and is a better match for Thomas than Melanie.
We kind of saw a similar thing when Thomas realized that Trish was lying about not remembering the previous night. Yeah, her asking if he remembered anything else would make some people question if she was lying, but Thomas knew. He was familiar enough with her to know that she wouldn't have asked that unless she knew more happened that night. It's little things like this that continue to show just how well these two have come to know each other on a relatively short amount of time.
How Trish handled the morning after was certainly interesting. That she didn't just assume that Thomas had no interest in her after that shows that, on some level, she knows that he does. That she couldn't help but probe him about that night shows that she needs to hear him say it to be sure on a conscious level.
Perhaps more importantly on that front, I was surprised to see Trish actually consider allowing the government to take her. I thought she'd feel some guilt for some of those darker thoughts Patty Hotcakes had that night, but I didn't expect it to manifest in that way. I thought that was an incredibly selfless gesture on her part. She recognized what she could have done, even though she didn't do it, and thought about the safety of others before thinking about what was right for her (I'm sure the fact that it was Thomas she thought about taking advantage of really drove that point home for her).
But just the fact that she even had that thought in the first place shows that she's not going to abuse the power she has over people.
Thankfully, Thomas is there to save her from her own selflessness. And I like that it's emphasized multiple times that Trish wasn't sure about his plan and that she could have easily stopped him from pulling her along at any time. Despite that, she doesn't even try to stop him. She trusts him implicitly. That trust seems to supercede the doctor-patient relationship and her being a type-1 patient. She genuinely trusts that he cares enough about her to not lead her wrong.
We see just how far that trust goes later on when she realizes that she would do anything Thomas asked of her. Admittedly, this could be taken as a firm of obsession or dependence, but I don't think Trish's other actions back up those assertions. I really think it's just a high level of trust developed through the bond they share as friends (and the fact that they both want something more).
Thomas's actions also show that this trust isn't misplaced. He's not his usual, calm self. He doesn't even tell her to come with him when he pulls her to follow him. This had nothing to do with her being his patient or even his attraction to her size; he just didn't want something bad to happen to her. Despite him being pushy, I found that to be really sweet.
Trish trying to be strong to show Thomas that she's all better mentally so they can date was kind of cute and sad at the same time. I think it also shows that she isn't entirely reliant on him, since her own motivation kept her from falling to pieces immediately after hearing the bad news. I'm glad he got her to show her true feelings and let Melanie and him confirm her. Trish leans on Thomas a lit, bit, again, not in the way a therapist's patient usual does. She doesn't want to disappoint him, she wants him to be proud of her, and she just plain wants him. When she starts to doubt herself, she comes back to him. Like I said above, this toes the line between love and dependence, but I think we've seen enough at this point to know that her feelings for him are real.
Lastly, even though Dr. Vale went about things the wrong way and rightfully got knocked the fuck out for it, he does have a point. Threat to humanity isn't the right phrasing, I think, since, contrary to what Vale may think, Trish is still human, but there are some serious sustainability questions if her growth continues fir a couple years. The placement of his breakdown was good, as it reminds the reader that what qualified as a happy ending for this story is still pretty murky.
Is it Trish finding a cure and living g happily ever after with Thomas? Is it her growth tapering off at some semi-reasonable point and becoming Thomas's perfect fantasy? Or maybe it's as simple as finding a way for a miles-tall Trish to co-exist with the rest of humanity somehow. Will she even let herself grow that big, though? I think we're still pretty early in on this story, so there's still plenty of time to ponder that, but with everything that's been going on these last few chapters, it's good to be reminded of the long term stakes.
Anyway, excellent work as usually. I look forward to seeing which endorsement deals Trish takes on.