fandomhigh | Advanced Criminal Justice, Class #4, Period 1, 01.19.06

[OOC: Internet at work is good! Yays! Thanks on many levels to

psycho_barbie for this class idea. Class Info Post.]

The lights were dimmed in The Tick's classroom today. A television was on. Popcorn had been made by a wee dragon and was readily available at the front of the class. The Tick and Lockheed were currently sitting at the back of the room, ready for a movie.

"Hello, class! Today is our last scheduled day discussing Bugs Bunny and the role of his cog in Justice. This class will be a bit different than the other discussions on Mr. Bunny, though."

"As it turns out, we may have been mistaken about Mr. Bunny's position in the Dartboard of Right. He isn't the Single 1. Nor is he Just off the Board. Nay, chums. He's not even the Bullseye! He is the Triple 20."

"And now, I have a short film for you to watch. It's only seven minutes long, so all will make sense shortly. Rory? If you could start the film?"

Rory hit play and a cartoon started. After the Merrie Melodies card, the title "Duck Amuck" came up on screen. For the next seven minutes, the class was treated to Daffy Duck being tormented by a mysterious animator. Finally, Mr. Bunny is revealed.

Rory stopped the DVD and Tick turned the lights back on as he returned to the front of the room. "Now you see. Daffy Duck - Mr. Bunny's only true rival, the greedy narcissist who has frequently tried to thwart Mr. Bunny for selfish means - is at the Mercy of Justice in the form of a paintbrush and eraser. Controlling these Drawing Tools of Justice? Mr. Bunny himself."

"I was thinking about what Callisto has said this past week about Mr. Bunny being a tool of the gods, going forth and leaving Justice in his wake. This film suggest that Mr. Bunny has great power to wield for Justice indeed."

"Now, I'm not claiming that Mr. Bunny is a Justice God or anything. That's a philosophy issue. This is a Justice class. I try not to mix and match subjects like that. I find it confusing. But his power must be noted. Perhaps he's actually a superhero! Perhaps he's a benevolent cosmic entity, curious about our culture and willing to stand up for our concept of Right while still having some chaotic fun! Or perhaps he's just a psychotic little bunny who has fun tormenting people!"

"So I present to you a question: Taking this film and our previous discussions of him into account, what do you feel Mr. Bunny's role in Justice is? Is he a Servant of Justice? Does he control Justice with a paintbrush? Is he a mere trickster, disrupting Justice except for when it suits him? On the Flipped Coins of Justice, does he come up Heads, Tails, or Standing Up On the Edge? Discuss, class!"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I wouldn't say he's evil, but irresponsible, maybe. And maybe he's making a choice for Justice, but he's doing it in such a way that may be counter-productive." Parker's getting frustrated. "How is Daffy served by being driven nuts? How is that Justice? Sure he's greedy and vain, but he needs therapy, not tormenting."

Parker frowns, considering Sam's second point, and admits, "You know, Angel may be onto something with the flirting here. This may be a really immature form of stalking. In which case, Mr. Bunny loses further Justice Points in his pursuit of amusement. Why can't he just say it with chocolates?"

"Of course he's irresponsible," Sam snorted with amusement. "He's a male bunny. And who says he's in it to serve Daffy at all? Although, I'd have to say that Daffy would have a pretty boring and lonely existence if not for Mr. Bunny. There's more to life then getting shot at by hunters, you know."

She shrugged. "Because chocolates aren't original. Every successful hero does something that no one else has seen before--they're unpredictible, and they get strength from that."

"Well, that's true. If it were Bugsina Bunny, there wouldn't be nearly as much general chaos. And maybe Bugs is not in it to serve Daffy; but in that case, Daffy is definitely his target and the idea of Justice goes out the window. Maybe Daffy would like to stay home, live a quiet life-- okay, that's totally not true, Daffy wants jewels and attention. But there's got to be a better medium here."

"Hero, my ass. He's an anti-hero, maybe. He's too morally unfocused to be a true hero. No wonder Daffy's not interested."

"So how would you like Mr. Bunny to handle the situation, Parker? Assume the Bunny does have at least a basic interest in promoting Justice, just for the sake of argument."

Sam leaned forward in her seat. "Obviously there's a bond of some kind between the duck and the bunny, and to keep denying it in the face of overwhelming evidence is just irrational. Daffy is interested, Parker. You hardly ever see him without Mr. Bunny around. On some level Daffy must like the harassment. Otherwise he'd stop hanging out with the bunny or just ignore him."

The Tick in no way indicated that Daffy's soulmate was Porky Pig.

But it would have been funny if he had.

"Hmmm. If he is interested in promoting Justice, and not just chaos and ridiculousness-- then there should be a reward system in place too, not just punishment. Right now, Daffy's only motivation is to avoid getting tormented. There needs to be a benefit for him in there too.

"Daffy's nuts. But you might be right. Which just argues for the theory that Mr. Bunny made him crazy with the continual rule-changing. Poor bastard. He should torment Mr. Bunny back, but it's possible he's handicapped by not having Bunny's abilities to change the scenery at will."

"But, in general, isn't Justice more about punishment than it is about rewards? And I think you're shortchanging the duck--he may want to avoid torment, but he's not afraid to pull out the explosives when the occasion warrants, either."

"Mr. Bunny made Daffy crazy?" Sam made a face. "The duck's name is Daffy, Parker. That implies that he started out nuts. If he'd been Sane-o the Swan, maybe you'd have somewhere to start from."

She began to gesture, well into the debate and not paying complete attention to what she was saying. "Maybe the duck needs to be more resourceful--it's not the bunny's fault that he's more creative. After all these years, the duck should be able to predict how the bunny will act to some degree and act (or react) accordingly."

"But Justice isn't just about punishment, it's about balance, isn't it? I still say that Mr. Bunny is in this for the amusement and possibly flirtation factor more than anything else. As for Daffy pulling out the explosives, how can that fight the ability to re-write the background material? How do we know Mr. Bunny isn't doing that in every single instance here, but we only see it this once?"

"Daffy might be a nickname." Parker really, really hates losing an argument, or she'd give up on this one. "Maybe he was just Donald Duck at one point, and now, he's dying his feathers and going by Daffy because of this bizarre conflict. It could happen."

"So, the duck needs to also become an avatar of chaos, and steal Bunny's paint brushes and re-write the script? But that would cause even *more* damage, and possibly hurt bystanders too." Parker shook her head. "Maybe Mr. Duck should know Mr. Bunny well enough now, but in this scenario, Mr. Bunny is always going to cheat. Because he's crazier than Mr. Duck, and looks at the entire world as his canvas to be re-written. It's nuts."

Advanced Criminal Justice, Class #4, Period 1, 01.19.06

Re: Talk [Class #4]

Re: Talk [Class #4]

Re: Talk [Class #4]

Re: Talk [Class #4]

Re: Talk [Class #4]

Re: Talk [Class #4]

Re: Talk [Class #4]

Re: Talk [Class #4]