Well that was a quick promotion.

Okay, this one has been bugging me for a while. We're talking Issue 3 here folks. Early Issue 3.

I get that Knowlton had been after Alan for a while to become an officer but even if that's the case how is it at all plausible that he got promoted from Private to Major? My suspension of disbelief can only go so far. Knowlton promoted him above every other officer we've seen thus far.

Which leads me to my next "it just bugs me." Where are the other majors? Shouldn't they be part of this rather important meeting? I mean... There must be at least one, right? Or is Alan it? If that's the case how is such an irresponsible officer (Alan's awesome but its true; he has hardly spent any time with his actual unit since being promoted) the highest ranking? And Knowlton just left that rank open just in case Alan decided to take it?

As you can see my "GAH! BUT WHAT? HOW?" has been building for quite some time.

Because of that and other things is why I think Alan is a borderline Marty Stu, if not a full-fledged one. He's just so *perfect*. It doesn't rub off on me well.

cremies wrote:Because of that and other things is why I think Alan is a borderline Marty Stu, if not a full-fledged one. He's just so *perfect*. It doesn't rub off on me well.

Agreed. I know we're supposed to love Alan and all, but I can honestly say I prefer Nathan. As to the whole promotion thing, I never actually stopped and thought, "Gee, private to major!" but it's a very good point. Oh well. What's done is done, unless Knowlton decides he's had enough of Alan's antics and demotes him. Artistic license, ahoy!

Re. Alan's promotion: I don't know what the criteria for major generals was back then, but it never struck me as too rigorous. Dr. Joseph Warren (Alan's cousin in Dreamer reality) was commissioned as a major general with zero military experience, except for some local artillery drilling and a few potshots at lobsterbacks in April 1775. And of course, he went to Bunker/Breed's Hill three days later to fight as a private. Knowing that, Alan was probably a little tweaked at his own promotion - I just looked back at that scene in the graphic novel, and he seems in shock.
It's possible you got the job via leadership skills and charisma (Alan has that!), even a year into the war. Shoot, Henry Knox got his initial military education from *books*, for heaven's sake! Back then, I think it was a combination of people skills and who you knew (with a few notable exceptions, of course).

I'm not sure why the rank bothers you, since I think the explanation was pretty reasonable. Knowlton had been (secretly) promoting Alan all along, but Alan refused to accept the commission because he wanted to be free to run off after Beatrice. So it's not like he actually got promoted from Private to Major - he just finally accepted that he was already a major.

And as for Alan being too perfect, I kind of giggled at that notion. If Alan was supposed to be perfect I don't think he would be dirt poor and nearly illiterate! (Although I guess the part where he can barely write hasn't been in the comic itself up to this point).

Speaking about the 'perfect' argument about Alan, it comes from the fact that Alan hasn't really given himself to any circumstances where the reader can see his flaws. One can argue that the fight was a rather terrible idea, but the case stands that he won against someone who had 12 other brothers and sisters, while he only had 4 others at home. Seemed rather unrealistic.

Sorry, I missed a conversational thread somewhere. What fight are you referring to? And how does having siblings help one win a fight?

You guys don't have to love Alan, but Act 1 really is the la-la-la phase of love & infatuation for Bea. He's hot, and they're in the middle of a war. The guy wants to save his lady! So he's in hero mode and that's what she sees.

We get to know more about Alan as a reader as Bea gets to know more about him. Try living with a person, you'll see a lot more of their faults. Enter: Act 2.

I always knew The Dreamer was a slow-build kind of a story. It's a crock-pot meal, not a microwave dinner. I try to make each single update as entertaining and satisfying as possible so the webcomic is fun to read and not a drag. But it still is a big story so a lot of things come out on the slow reveal.

Not to defend myself but: Promotions really were given out a lot more easily back then. For one, if you had money you'd just buy your rank in the British army. In the Continental army, Washington was desperate, and when he found talent, it was quickly rewarded and promoted. Joseph Warren is one example, Nathaniel Green, Henry Knox, Lafayette, Von Steuben... Alan has the benefit of a great record at Bunker Hill, and a notable relative. At this point in history, Dr. Warren was one of the most famous men in America. His death was a scandal. Brave young cousin of the doctor shows up, is heroic, doesn't crack under pressure? Sounds like exactly the kind of guy they need.

That was my motivation in writing it, take it or leave it! But there you go.

Alan refused his promotion for so long so that he could leave to rescue Bea when he needed to without that getting in the way of his officer's responsibilities. Now the two seem all mixed up, which is exactly what he wanted to avoid.

cc_rogers wrote:Sorry, I missed a conversational thread somewhere. What fight are you referring to? And how does having siblings help one win a fight?

I think the fight they're refering to is the one between Alan and Nathan (don't ask me which pages, but it's right after Bea sees her fight battle), you know? The one where poor Nathan gets beat up, and Alan comes away without a scratch...

Well, we learn in the short stories that Alan was quite the brawler in his youth, until his Aunt Mary set him straight, so it's not unreasonable that he'd be better-than-average at fist fights.

I just wanted to say.....

I'm perfectly fine with Alan being perfect!!

The only thing is, now I'm trying to figure out ways how Bea and him can end up together in reality.