Saint James Infirmary 446: Proportional Representation.

[Daphne]

[jmundt29]

Looks like Cait's adventure continues here.  Not exactly sure what the title means, but this is very interesting.

[jmundt29]

Three things.

1. Gorgeous art.  As always.

2. Astrid is in charge.  Good.  I begin to feel slightly better about Coates.  We'll see.

3. That sounded suspiciously like "No," about Adrian being invited.  Which is really too bad.  Of course, it does give Astrid the chance to stretch her wings as a villainess without Adrian's interference if that's where she's headed.  It would be nice to have Adrian included in some of this fun, just to see how Astrid might react to him.

Funny, this comes along at a great time.  It's something new to look forward to now that we've learned that Sawyer is more than slightly nefarious (thus problematizing Jacqui and Dani's date to perform at his establishment).

[Haight]

I agree with everything jmundt29 said. Especially how gorgeous the art is. I love Imani's expression in the last panel.

I think Caitlyn's face in the first panel is her 'speech face.' It's a pity that promiscuity is not looked upon as a favorable quality in an elected official these days. Maybe if the harem gets their hands on a mass mind control device like the tower they can fix that. And while I do understand our editor/writer's appreciation for poly relationships, here's hoping that Caitlyn's 'only him, forever' programming stays strong this time.

[Werdna]

  Not exactly sure what the title means, but this is very interesting.

Caitlyn, being a PoliSci major, would know all about proportional representation, and as a Poly Sci major and cheerleader, would know all about representation of proportions.

PR, as it's commonly known, is a method of electing legislators that depends on the proportion of votes received by party.  So, if Party A receives 33% of the vote, and the legislature consists of 200 members, that party gets 66 seats.  This contrasts with the Westminster-style method of "first past the post" election (which is also used in the USA), whereby the jurisdiction is divided geographically and the highest vote-getter in any particular riding (or district, to use the American term) gets the seat.  Continental European countries tend to have PR systems, so majorities are very rare in those countries.  Britain and its former colonies (e.g., Canada) tend to have more majority governments, because it's possible to put together a majority government with a plurality of votes. 

[/nerdy explanation over]

Sorry, I couldn't resist that.  I'm Canadian and we've got an election going on right now, and Caitlyn's thoughts on this are far more interesting than the advertising I have to put up with.

[mns_95125]

That last panel does sound a bit ominous, doesn't it?

[GodWilling]

It's always a thin line between ominous and promising.

Interesting to note the two names that happen to come to Imani's mind. If it's Erin and Mallory that Astrid is interested in then that's quite, er, ominous.

This episode makes it look more like it's Imani (cheerleader) --> Hitomi (cheerleader and Caitlyn's roommate) --> Caitlyn (cheerleader, Hitomi's roommate, SJI harem member) --> the SJI harem.

Does Imani's itchy ear denote disingenuousness, or is the wax the hypnotic element at work here?

And is there a preposition missing in the first panel or is the Nebraska Legislature a euphemism?

[Werdna]

Nebraska is the only unicameral state legislature in the US.  Maybe that's significant, that her numbers aren't high enough to include anywhere with a State Senate?

Man, I am a font of nearly useless political information today.  How do I even know that about Nebraska?

[GodWilling]

I used that other font: "At 49 members, the Nebraska Legislature is also the smallest state legislature."

But I don't think she meant to imply that she'd had two new sexual partners "up the Nebraska Legislature" today. Although, being British, I'm hard-wired to find that amusing.

[Haight]

If it's Erin and Mallory that Astrid is interested in then that's quite, er, ominous.

Well, yes, considering they're the two magic-users on the SJI side, but it might just be a coincidence.

[GodWilling]

but it might just be a coincidence.

Caitlyn goes to cheer practice (or whatever it's called) and catches up with Hitomi for the first time in a while. Hitomi has some gossip about her sex life. Caitlyn is intrigued. As they talk, Hitomi reveals that she has the hots for Caitlyn. Just this once Caitlyn is caught a little off guard, but she doesn't rebuff Hitomi's typically clumsy advances. Only then does Imani make her presence known (let's say), and she indicates her willingness to join in. It's notable that we haven't seen Hitomi speak since Imani entered that scene.

All we've seen of this encounter so far is Caitlyn's body being attended to by Imani and a particularly focussed Hitomi. As far as we know, Imani doesn't allow herself a little pleasure until she has casually issued the invitation that was presumably the primary purpose of all this.

Wouldn't it be awful if all this turned out to be coincidence?

I absolutely love the way that that's Caitlyn the strategist (whose very name is chess) sitting there reminding us of her ambitions for a brilliant political career even as she's (just quite possibly) being used as a pawn in Astrid's game. Amazing stuff.