# Order of the Stick - Book 5 Discussion Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 31, 2009, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323 "2009-08-31T04:09:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 289
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5762 "2013-05-20T10:10:47Z")
Holy shit. Elan made the Will save. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Shine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr_shine/32/464_2.png) [@Mr\_Shine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Shine)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5763 "2013-05-20T10:29:51Z")
A new contender for my favourite OotS strip ever. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5764 "2013-05-20T11:09:33Z")
I always knew Elan was smarter than he pretended. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5765 "2013-05-20T12:32:19Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > [New one up!](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0889.html) > > [spoiler]And Elan brings them out of it! Very insightful of him. > > I do note the interesting fact that we still haven’t seen anything of Belkar, even after the illusion breaks. I suspect revelations to follow in the next comic about what’s happened to him. Maybe he’s still stuck in the illusion still since he wasn’t at the illusionary wedding for Elan to wake up?[/spoiler] But you can see part of him in the second last panel. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5766 "2013-05-20T15:10:12Z")
I have another dumbe question for you guys! (Don’t worry, I’m full of 'em.) Was it ever explained why, on Roy, one shoe is always bigger than the other? ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5767 "2013-05-20T15:12:56Z")
Hmm, I see the runes are still glowy. The illusion now is that they broke the illusion. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5768 "2013-05-20T15:15:18Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > I have another dumbe question for you guys! (Don’t worry, I’m full of 'em.) > > Was it ever explained why, on Roy, one shoe is always bigger than the other? It’s been lampshades, along with other things in the art (eyes are also different sizes, nobody has a nose, etc). ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5769 "2013-05-20T15:27:19Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > I have another dumbe question for you guys! (Don’t worry, I’m full of 'em.) > > Was it ever explained why, on Roy, one shoe is always bigger than the other? That’s the stick-figure version of perspective (the “larger” shoe is the one closer to the “camera” viewpoint). > [@squeegee](#): > > Hmm, I see the runes are still glowy. The illusion now is that they broke the illusion. We still don’t know if Belkar broke out – he may have been shunted to a separate dreamscape when he “died”. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5770 "2013-05-20T15:40:07Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > Hmm, I see the runes are still glowy. The illusion now is that they broke the illusion. I doubt it. That seems like one rake too many. I take back my impatient previous post; nice to see them break out of it themselves. I figured V would show up and zap them out of it. Don’t think the glowy runes mean much except that the runes are still trying to zap them. Also, I can’t wait to see Belkar’s reaction to being left for dead through the whole dream sequence. (“So your great dream was that I’d die like a chump to random area-effect damage?”) ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5771 "2013-05-20T15:54:41Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > That’s the stick-figure version of perspective (the “larger” shoe is the one closer to the “camera” viewpoint). [Actually, one shoe really is bigger than the other](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0401.html). ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5772 "2013-05-20T16:23:25Z")
The word “childish” in the middle of the second comic is an interesting choice. It really jumps out as a harsh critique of Elan of himself, one that he’s not in the habit of doing. I think that one word signifies what will be a huge shift in his character from here on out. But time will tell. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5773 "2013-05-20T16:38:31Z")
Hah, I say to the GitP whiners who said the last strip didn’t advance the plot! HAH! ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5774 "2013-05-20T17:43:20Z")
So Elan saves the day. Unanticipated. Totally credible. Great strip. For a moment, I was wondering whether Nale wandered into the hallway and got enmeshed in the dream world. I’m guessing that Belkar hasn’t broken out of his false death-state, but we’ll see. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5775 "2013-05-20T17:49:22Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > [Actually, one shoe really is bigger than the other](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0401.html). That’s a joke about the perspective used in the comic. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5776 "2013-05-20T18:17:58Z")
I like the swirly effect of them coming out of the spell. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5777 "2013-05-20T18:59:02Z")
> [@Enderw24](#): > > The word “childish” in the middle of the second comic is an interesting choice. It really jumps out as a harsh critique of Elan of himself, one that he’s not in the habit of doing. I think that one word signifies what will be a huge shift in his character from here on out. But time will tell. I think it’s more an indication his character already has shifted. It’s been changing for quite a while. He had to learn to function on his own when he was locked up in the Cliffport jail and had to get to Azure City. His experiences with Therkla made him aware that consequences come from the choices he makes. His encounters with his father have taught him that he can’t accept illusions over reality. And now he’s reached the point where he’s brought all this together. Elan’s grown up. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5778 "2013-05-20T20:11:18Z")
> [@Dave\_Hartwick](#): > > But you can see part of him in the second last panel. Yes, I was tired and didn’t notice that at first. Still; you can’t see his eyes to verify that he’s out of the illusion. And given that he and his fantasies have been conspicuously absent in the shared illusion-world that seems significant. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5779 "2013-05-20T20:40:13Z")
So what was Draketooth’s probable plan for this trap? Intruders are momentarilly incapacitated by this trap, while Draketooth’s guards place the intruders in irons & gags, tossing them into a holding cell? ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2013, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5780 "2013-05-20T20:46:15Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > So what was Draketooth’s probable plan for this trap? > > Intruders are momentarilly incapacitated by this trap, while Draketooth’s guards place the intruders in irons & gags, tossing them into a holding cell? This trap is fairly deep within the pyramid’s defenses. Whoever gets caught by it will already have bypassed the illusions hiding the pyramid, passed a lot of traps, and presumably fought their way through the Draketooth clan. I expect the purpose of the trap is to stop the intruders in place and give the Draketooths time to regroup, raise their dead, and organize to take the intruders down, hopefully while they’re still stuck in the illusion. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2013, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323/5781 "2013-05-22T04:36:05Z")
So after all that, I’m hoping for an Belkar-illusion as character building as the one where Shojo told him to “play the game”. C’mon, Rich, make me proud. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323.md?page=288) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/order-of-the-stick-book-5-discussion-thread/508323.md?page=290)