29 thoughts on “Spoilers: Last Ronin #1, What Everyone Wants to Know”

  1. What’s the pick-up here now that we know it’s Mikey? That Michelangelo Macro Series that came out a couple years ago looks pretty good.

  2. Grammatical experts, with the comms before the name….
    Isn’t that her asking if he (unnamed) is talking to Michelangelo?

    If it was her asking Michelangelo who he is talking to, wouldn’t the comms not be there?

    Who were you talking to Michelangelo? = he’s Michelangelo and she’s asking who he was talking to.

    Who were you talking to, Michelangelo? = she’s asking if he was talking to Michelangelo

    If my memories of HS English don’t fail me…which they very well may.

      1. So the debate always comes back to you use the comma to separate the words you are saying from the person you are speaking to. For example (and this is my favorite one)
        Let’s eat, grandma. (The comma shows you are saying let’s eat to your grandma)

        Vs.

        Let’s eat grandma. (Which shows grandma is in for a world of trouble and you are a cannibal.)

    1. No. Removing the comma would make the sentence grammatically incorrect. It’s meant to be read as “Who were you talking to ?” She’s addressing Michelangelo, not asking if the Turtle is talking to Michelangelo.

      1. Yup, that’s how I read it as well. Now, we could just be seeing sloppy editing (or misinterpretation from the writer) but as it reads, if she was asking the turtle the question and then answering, there would be a question mark after the question (where the comma is at) and then Michelangelo after with just a period would be the other way of doing it.

    2. I think if she was talking about Mike it would have a question mark after ‘to’, instead of a comma.

      1. That only applies if she was asking the turtle the actual question and then providing an answer to her own question before he replies. But yes, that and the way it’s written is grammatically correct now in the book. But I think even then after asking and providing an answer, there would still be a question mark after Michelangelo as well..

    3. That’s the way I read it, the ronin was talking to Michaelangelo.
      Then I read it again and now I’m not sure.

    4. Grammar rules states comma before the name of whomever is being addressed (i.e. statement proceeding comma is directed at subject following comma) when you put the adressee’s name at the end of the sentence; if it’s at the start of the sentence, the name would precede the comma, and the statement would follow it (e g. “Michaelangelo, who are you talking to?”). While the comma could go in the same place if she were asking some other person if they were talking to Michaelangelo, the context of the sentence and imagery allow for no other interpretation than she’s talking to Michaelangelo. You can’t forget that she’s responding to something he said to her and that there is no one else in that room (that we can see, anyway). She couldn’t have been talking to anyone else under those situational conditions because it would mean she could only be talking to herself if she isn’t talking to him.

  3. The comma at the end of the sentence definitely doesn’t denote two separate questions. If you ask someone a question and say their name at the end, then a comma comes before the name. This one isn’t really up for debate unless they purposefully put in a grammatical mistake to keep the mystery going.

  4. I don’t know… It might not be as ear cut.

    I mean earlier in the story, a voice in the robin’s head says Dude to which Ronin cuts him off and says no more talking.

    Only Mikey uses the term dude.

    So maybe while being out of it, he was indeed talking to Mikey in his sleep and April having heard some of the stuff he was saying while unconscious realized Ronin was “dreaming” or seeing possibly Mikey so upon Robin waking up, She asked, who were you talking to, Michaelangelo?

    Hmmm… Plot thickens!

    1. I understand what you’re saying about the ambiguity of the plot. But in terms of the final “mysterious” sentence, according to the English language, there is only one interpretation – she’s talking to Michelangelo. The writer could have easily made it two separate questions “who are you talking to?” and “michelangelo?” in which case it would be up for debate.

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