![[NEGATIVE ONE]](neg1logo.jpg)
SEE COMIC SYNOPSES FOR OTHER NARRATORS
More Links:
Back to Archive
Title Synopsis
0001 meri lin #1: he really meant it First appearance of Meri Lin and Fred. Meri Lin goes to the doctor, finds out she is pregnant, and tells her partner, Fred. She worries about what her parents will think, but feels secure in Fred's arms.
0003 meri lin #2: opportunity First appearance (via flashback) of Meri Lin's parents and her sister Lissa Lee. Meri Lin and Fred discuss names for the baby and what sex they think it will be. A flashback shows a phone conversation between Meri Lin and her parents in which they threaten to disown her if she marries Fred, though Meri Lin thinks it's odd that the family chose America to raise their children "for opportunity" if she isn't really free to do as she pleases.
0005 meri lin #3: we made ourselves who we were A flashback details Meri Lin and her sister taking new names above and beyond their given names, and thinks about how she feels Fred is her husband even though they aren't married. The two tease each other about the sex of the baby again.
0007 meri lin #4: tying the knot Meri Lin and Fred have their own home ceremony in which they pledge their lives to each other in a carefree but meaningful "wedding." They exchange vows and plastic rings, and Meri Lin philosophizes about their relationship.
0009 meri lin #5: the baby's room The couple prepares a room for the baby and discusses names. Meri Lin has a weird feeling that the room itself is waiting for her baby.
0011 meri lin #6: for the first time Meri Lin's week of firsts: Her first maternity clothes, her first mood swing, her first visit with her sister since she got the news. She worries about what kind of parent she will be.
0013 meri lin #7: what am i in for? An update on the couple's preparations ensues. Fred begins working longer hours to pay for the extra costs of preparing for a child, so Meri Lin is left alone more often . . . so of course she fills the time by reading about what could go wrong and worrying herself sick about it.
0015 meri lin #8: halfway there Fred and Meri Lin get excited over feeling the baby's first kicks, and discuss being in awe over making a new life. Fred sings (badly) to the baby, and in light of their continued arguments about the sex of the baby, they decide that when they go for the ultrasound, they want the medical staff to tell them what gender it is.
0017 meri lin #9: women's intuition Meri Lin and Fred see their child on the ultrasound machine and get the news that it's a girl. Fred teases Meri Lin that she must be psychic for "knowing" it's a girl, though she plays it off as women's intuition. She doesn't know how she knew either, but feels as though she did, even though she doesn't believe in ESP.
0019 meri lin #10: high-strung that way Meri Lin's propensity for easy fainting is revealed when she does so after a nearby car accident startles her. She wonders if she will be an unfit mother because she passes out sometimes.
0021 meri lin #11: a historic struggle Meri Lin reaches the third trimester and begins to suffer some of the un-fun things about pregnancy. And in birthing class, the videos of mothers giving birth disturb and inspire her.
0023 meri lin #12: dreaming of my daughter Meri Lin has a dream that she's already had her baby, who looks exactly like her and suddenly begins growing up at an alarming rate. She wakes up suddenly when she realizes she can't remember most of her child's life, and realizes it's still the night before the baby shower. She acknowledges that she wants her daughter to hurry up, but not that fast!
0025 meri lin #13: shower Meri Lin's baby shower involves lots of guests, food, and goodies, but unfortunately when her parents arrive, they bring bad news: They're moving back to China, and they're leaving before the baby will be born.
0027 meri lin #14: you still have me Meri Lin unloads her fears onto Fred, and he comforts her, saying he will be there for her even though her parents can't be. The episode ends with Meri Lin feeling a little better.
0029 meri lin #15: stay calm The day has finally come when Meri Lin's parents have left the country, and now she feels alone. She is about to call her sister when she experiences her first Braxton-Hicks contraction and mistakes it for early labor, which causes her to panic and pass out.
0031 meri lin #16: due date Meri Lin's due date has come, but she shows no signs of needing to go the hospital. She starts threatening the baby out loud that she's going to be grounded for being late.
0033 meri lin #17: ready Meri Lin, now two weeks past due, is very tired of being pregnant and at her wit's end. She really wants to meet her daughter.
0035 meri lin #18: the rest of my life Meri Lin goes into labor, and Fred escorts her to the hospital in a cab. At first the labor pains are much less intense than she expected, but they quickly get worse, and Meri Lin worries. Once they enter the hospital, Meri Lin realizes that she will never be the same.
0037 meri lin #19: labor of love Meri Lin's hours of labor are chronicled, and she philosophizes on the ups and downs of the process. At the end, she's on the brink of actually having the baby, but she passes out.
0039 meri lin #20: she's perfect First appearance of Amanda. Meri Lin awakes with a start to find she's a mother. Fred, holding baby Amanda, explains that the child has a minor birth defect: She's missing pinkie fingers and pinkie toes, and otherwise she's healthy. Meri Lin looks her over and concludes, in typical new mommy fashion, that her baby is perfect. Lots of cute extras such as a footprint and a birth certificate, as well as some trivia, are included in this installment.
0041 meri lin #21: on exhibit The usual newborn details are taken care of, and all kinds of medical people want to see Meri Lin's baby. The baby has strange hands and oversized eyes, which are the source of many comments and questions. Fred has to change the wording of their birth announcement, and Meri Lin supposes everyone will just have to get used to being on exhibit.
0043 meri lin #22: bringing her home The Fisher-Ling family is at home once again, and they have visitors. Meri Lin is glad for the help, but irritated by all the attention. She just wants to be alone with her baby. She doesn't like some of the comments people make about Amanda's "quirky bits," and she's still coming to terms with being responsible for another life.
0045 meri lin #23: something about being a mommy Meri Lin realizes she loves being a mommy as Amanda enters her second week. She and Fred make mistakes and learn as they go. Meri Lin is concerned that her baby's ears, which she thought were just pinched from her newborn days, are going to stay that way--she looks like a baby elf. But she's healthy and happy, and Meri Lin knows they have a lot to be thankful for.
0047 meri lin #24: the most important thing Lissa Lee comes to visit the new baby, and Meri Lin shows off her daughter's progress in learning to reach for toys. The sisters discuss their parents' move to China and the importance of the baby.
0049 meri lin #25: a rational explanation Fred and Meri Lin admire their baby before Fred goes to work, and then while Meri Lin is having her usual quiet morning, she hears unexplained noises from the baby's mobile (which had run out hours ago). She comes in to find the toys inexplicably swaying like they're in a stiff breeze, and then she senses a strange presence in the room and runs out with the baby, thinking the room is haunted.
0051 meri lin #26: just because you felt a breeze. . . . Meri Lin tries to tell Fred about her strange experience, but Fred laughs it off and says there aren't any ghosts just because she felt a breeze. Over the next few days she keeps noticing odd occurrences, which she ignores in the name of not being so jumpy, but when she hears even weirder noises--and finally a CRASH from the baby's room--she can't keep ignoring it. Finding the mobile pulled out of the ceiling and the toybox tipped over forces her to keep trying to find an explanation. . . .
0053 meri lin #27: catching it in the act Fred didn't believe her again, so Meri Lin is left noticing odd occurrences and not knowing what to do about them. She keeps finding open windows and missing items, and wonders why she never catches this "ghost" in the act. And then she does. A book is floating over her baby's crib. She manages to not faint and save her baby, and then she determines that she has to find out what is in her house.
0055 meri lin #28: thank god After some dead ends with New Age consultants, Meri Lin manages to find a couple of men from the church who agree to come and exorcise the demons from her home. They end up witnessing a ball moving by itself and attack it with holy water and Bible verses. Meri Lin is relieved that she is no longer alone.
0057 meri lin #29: in her eyes The ball begins moving again despite the mini-exorcism, at which point one of the church men notice that Amanda's eyes are tracking it. They connect it with the baby and ask a lot of questions, trying to figure out if the baby is possessed. During an experiment during which Amanda is teased with her favorite toy being put out of her reach, the toy mysteriously floats into her arms, which makes the church men insist on a full proper exorcism. Meri Lin rejects this and kicks them out, having decided that the look in her baby's eyes was nothing but innocent. She isn't possessed; she just apparently has some kind of special powers. Meri Lin is full of questions without answers once again. . . .
0059 meri lin #30: this changes everything Meri Lin goes to the library and researches unexplained phenomena, settling on ESP books that tell her about the mysterious power of telekinesis. It sounds like what she's witnessed her baby performing, but what scares her is that there don't seem to be any documented cases. Her baby is one of a kind. She doesn't know what to do, but knows she can't let anyone find out. . . .
0061 meri lin #31: we're in this together Meri Lin has to break the news to Fred, who denies that anything odd is going on even when he sees it with his own eyes. Meri Lin encourages him to play with her until he believes it, at which point they will have to have a discussion about the future. She really wants him to figure out what they should do, but for the moment, she has to be the strong one.
0063 meri lin #32: the best for her Fred admits to Meri Lin that Amanda is a superbaby, and he says he thinks she'll grow out of it. Meri Lin makes him promise that the two of them will not let anyone find out about their daughter's powers in case scary people want to take her away.
0065 meri lin #33: my kitty-cat baby Meri Lin slowly gets used to her baby's growing tendency to levitate everything in sight, and the baby's independence saddens her. (She prefers a bottle to breastfeeding because she can hold it herself.) While trying to teach Amanda to hold the bottle with her hands, she ends up watching the baby open the bottle with her powers and dump milk all over herself. Meri Lin feels sad that the baby is only dependent on her when she wants to be.
0067 meri lin #34: necessary evils Meri Lin has kept Amanda out of the public eye since discovering her talent, but now she has to take her to the doctor for immunizations, and doesn't know how to keep her from levitating things. She manages to distract her by playing with her constantly, but when the baby gets the shot, her startle reflex engages and crunches a lightbulb, showing Meri Lin that the child can be destructive when she's hurt or surprised.
0069 meri lin #35: two milestones Amanda sits up without having ever rolled over. Meri Lin decides to try to feed her solid food, leading to the discovery that Amanda loves peaches. Meri Lin is happy to be able to put some "normal" milestones in the baby book.
0071 meri lin #36: just wow Meri Lin continues to see her daughter doing new and amazing things with her telekinetic powers, such as playing with toys and books and making whirlpools in the bathtub. She's a bit awed and scared, and wonders about what the future will be like for a person with such a power.
0073 meri lin #37: learning the rules After witnessing Amanda levitating a CAT from the other side of a window, Meri Lin wonders about the "rules" for her daughter's power and tries to figure out whether the ability depends on sight. She attempts to encourage the baby to play with toys using her hands only, but is unsuccessful.
0075 meri lin #38: discipline With Fred's help, Meri Lin decides it's time for Amanda to stop grabbing the baby food with her powers. It makes Meri Lin sad when they have to yell and clap their hands to make their baby obey them, but it does seem to work; she lets Mommy feed her instead of doing it herself, which is a small victory.
0077 meri lin #39: even if they're family Lissa Lee wants to visit the Fisher-Lings, but Meri Lin lies and says she can't because Fred and Amanda have mono. Of course, she's really hiding the truth about the baby's powers from her sister, even though she's family. Meri Lin gets upset that the baby's freedom depends on their success or failure in teaching her to behave, and she thinks it's terrible that Lissa Lee is going to miss Amanda's babyhood.
0079 meri lin #40: the idea of her Meri Lin takes pictures of Amanda for her mother, and philosophizes about what would happen if the outside world found out about her daughter's telekinetic powers.
0081 meri lin #41: for real and for sure After consulting with Fred, Meri Lin decides to call some people who know about parapsychology and see if she can discreetly get any ideas about how to raise her baby.
0083 meri lin #42: getting stuck Meri Lin is disturbed by Amanda's new habit of making things move back and forth while she's trying to go to sleep. While trying to stop the baby from doing it one day, she finds that her daughter can stop her from stopping her, and wonders how to proceed in discipline from that point. 0085 meri lin #43: she said it and she meant it Meri Lin takes a vacation to visit her sister, leaving Amanda with Fred. She shows off photos and alleviates missing her daughter with a phone call, during which she learns that Amanda has said her first word. 0087 meri lin #44: out Coming back from her sister's on the bus, Meri Lin sees a mother and child getting attention, and wishes her child could be taken in public. After a joyful reunion with her family, Meri Lin stubbornly decides to take Amanda out to a park, and lets her play with another little girl. She remembers through experience that the kind of attention SHE gets is not quite the same as other mothers since she has a peculiar child, and the playdate ends when Meri Lin has them make a quick exit after making a lame excuse to cover up one of Amanda's "tricks." 0089 meri lin #45: good day After experiencing some rather irrational anger in response to a bad day, Meri Lin resolves to try to have a good day, and attempts to revise her expectations and attitude toward her special child. 0091 meri lin #46: about time Meri Lin and Fred come up with a way to tempt Amanda to learn to crawl. But in their exuberance in celebrating the baby's new skill, they end up having to clean up baby puke. 0093 meri lin #47: another year wiser Amanda's first birthday celebration! The Fisher-Ling family celebrates Amanda's turning one, and Meri Lin reflects on what effects her baby's arrival has had in the year she's been alive. She also makes some predictions and has some reflections about the future. 0095 meri lin #48: in reach Meri Lin is disturbed by her baby's unusually fussy behavior, but soon realizes Amanda is just irritable because she's begun to cut teeth. 0097 meri lin #49: even so Amanda's teething doesn't cause constant tantrums, but the baby does seem more irritable than usual on occasion. She is becoming a bit more forceful with her will, and Fred responds by smacking her hand during mealtime, which subdues her. Meri Lin reflects on her love for her daughter and all her quirky bits. 0099 meri lin #50: no excuse, that's what After too many rain checks and excuses, Meri Lin meets with a friend she's been ignoring and also makes a new acquaintance. The two women make it very clear that they want to meet her baby and won't take no for an answer, and Meri Lin simply runs out of excuses and can't bring herself to stand up to them to preserve the baby's secret. The visit is cut short when Amanda, who now takes off her diaper whenever she can, makes a mess on Fred's arm and requires a bath. 0101 meri lin #51: up Amanda wants out of the playpen, so she learns to abide by her mother's wishes to keep her clothes on. She requests to be picked up by saying "up?" and her mother is very proud. 0103 meri lin #52: she's had enough Amanda's temperament worsens suddenly and now her parents' attempts at discipline backfire. Amanda throws her parents across the room and holds them there until she has finished eating the applesauce she wanted, and then she figures out how to get out of her high chair . . . by flying. 0105 meri lin #53: i think i got her Amanda's parents get ahold of their flying baby only to find out that she doesn't seem to want to trust her weight to them anymore. Shell-shocked, they watch her fly through the house and land on a bed for a nap. 0107 meri lin #54: someone stronger Meri Lin has an emotional crisis over the idea that she is not fit to parent a child as special as Amanda. She needs Fred's help to put it in perspective. 0109 meri lin #55: the upper hand Meri Lin makes some observations about her daughter's flying ability, and comes to some conclusions regarding how to get the upper hand in disciplining her. Amanda uses a spoon by herself for the first time. 0111 meri lin #56: too perfect Meri Lin makes some observations about her baby's tendency to use her abilities to assist her in doing normal things, and thinks about both the near and the distant future with Amanda. 0113 meri lin #57: a handful Meri Lin executes her plan to get Amanda in to see the doctor after she's fallen asleep from the sedative agent in a cold medicine. She is tempted to confide in the doctor, but knows it would get her nowhere. 0115 meri lin #58: cracking down When Amanda refuses Meri Lin's discipline suggestions and immediately follows that by making it obvious she wants to fly out the window, Meri Lin wakes up and realizes she could lose her child if she doesn't manage to instill certain rules in her. 0117 meri lin #59: how we do "up" Meri Lin gets help from Fred addressing her issues with the baby, and the parents realize Amanda can be bribed to sit on the floor and ask to be picked up with the promise of a hug. 0119 meri lin #60: the concept of losing her Fred hatches his plan for teaching Amanda which window is theirs just in case she ever escapes, but he has a disturbing revelation about how easy it would be for his daughter to escape if she's taken outside. He and Meri Lin decide to Amanda-proof their apartment. 0121 meri lin #61: the best balance Meri Lin continues her quest to improve her baby's dexterity, though it's pretty obvious Amanda is learning to depend on her powers for everything. But Meri Lin realizes she's proud of Amanda when she uses her ability well (like when she helps with little chores), so she's not really sure what attitude toward her daughter's powers she should aim to instill--or emulate herself. 0123 meri lin #62: in my arms Meri Lin and Fred share some togetherness time, and then Meri Lin ruminates over some thoughts about her baby and holds her while she sleeps. She misses how heavy her baby used to be before she began flying all the time. 0125 meri lin #63: being intimate Meri Lin and Fred spend more quality time together, and she ponders how amazing it is that Fred always seems to be able to anticipate her needs. 0127 meri lin #64: don't encourage her Meri Lin has to lie to her sister about visiting again, and as she watches Fred teaching Amanda a little roughhousing, she becomes alarmed. Meri Lin concludes that a child with no limits should not be encouraged to test them. 0129 meri lin #65: before she flies away Amanda rips the posterboard off the window and ends up outside in an adjacent window's flower box. Meri Lin holds herself together long enough to pull the baby back inside. 0131 meri lin #66: close to me As an after-effect of her scare with the baby's escape, Meri Lin clings to Amanda, ultimately angering her. Amanda expresses her desire to be alone by pushing her mother around and hiding under the couch. 0133 meri lin #67: giving in When Fred comes home he gets upset at the baby and demands she put the couch back, but she has her own ways of doing things, and Meri Lin realizes there's a point at which she and Fred will have to give in to what their baby wants if they don't want to get hurt. 0135 meri lin #68: christmas pictures Due to lack of funds, Meri Lin and Fred can only afford to send a family photo to their friends for Christmas. After failing to get the baby to help them remotely push the button, Fred's ingenuity saves the day. Includes a color drawing of the family. 0137 meri lin #69: another wild-child day Fred helps Meri Lin take care of Amanda during the holiday break, and she takes note of the relatively carefree way her partner handles weird issues, wondering if she ought to try to emulate him. 0139 meri lin #70: copying mommy Meri Lin notices that Amanda is trying to copy her motions during household chores, so she attempts to use this situation as a dexterity lesson. She finds Amanda really doesn't have much control over her hands at all, and she's not surprised. 0141 meri lin #71: no way out Lissa Lee puts in her request to stay with the Fisher-Ling family during summer vacation, and Meri Lin and Fred don't see any way they can refuse her. They decide that if they end up having to tell Lissa Lee about Amanda's secret, they'll just have to face it. 0143 meri lin #72: when she's older Meri Lin has a dream about Amanda's future. The images she dreams repeatedly contradict themselves, ultimately suggesting that Amanda survives to be a teenager but ends up having her own telekinetic baby, whom Meri Lin has to baby-sit. She awakens confused and overwhelmed. 0145 meri lin #73: she understands Meri Lin watches Amanda play pretend with her doll. She's surprised to see Amanda putting herself in the mother role and reprimanding the doll to use her hands when she eats, which tells Meri Lin that Amanda actually understands the difference. 0147 meri lin #74: her own way Amanda demonstrates her skill at crayon scribbling, and then when the phone rings she surprises everyone--including the person on the other end--by answering it and babbling some cute phrases into the receiver before hanging up again. Meri Lin is pleased that her baby is learning to use household objects, but she acknowledges that Amanda will always do it her own way. 0149 meri lin #75: sentimental A storm startles Amanda into breaking her window again, and while Meri Lin is comforting her, suddenly Amanda puts her whole weight in her mother's arms. Touched by the baby's apparent desire for protection, she calls Fred in to share, and he too is emotionally affected. 0151 meri lin #76: it worked Meri Lin's continued attempts to stop Amanda from flying and levitating things finally starts to work when Amanda responds positively to a verbal request and seems concerned about whether she's pleasing her mother. Meri Lin considers this a breakthrough. 0153 meri lin #77: another quirk Meri Lin screws up the courage to take Amanda in for immunizations and a checkup again, during which she finds out something unusual about Amanda's teeth. 0155 meri lin #78: still here Fred finds a displaced window screen on his way into the building, and worries that Amanda might have flown out a window again until he finds the baby (and Meri Lin) safe and sound. However, upon further investigation, they find the baby has dirt on her legs, which shows she was outside in the flowerbed again. Meri Lin finds it comforting that the baby went out but came back. 0157 meri lin #79: good news When Fred comes home with the good news that he's getting promoted (with a raise!), Meri Lin is happy to share her own good news as well: She hasn't seen Amanda levitating anything or flying for three days, so maybe there's hope that they won't have to reveal their secret to Lissa Lee. . . . (Unfortunately, Amanda immediately spoils her record by flying behind Meri Lin's back. They decide they're just going to have to bite the bullet and let Meri Lin's sister in on the classified info.) 0159 meri lin #80: open window This comic with no words pictures Meri Lin discovering Amanda's crib empty and her window open. She scurries around looking for her daughter, panicked, and calls Fred. She keeps returning to the open window. The last frame pictures Fred standing there with her. 0162 meri lin #81: out there Halfway through a breakdown that seems natural after your child goes missing, Meri Lin is surprised to realize she has a strength she didn't previously recognize. If Fred can't take care of her because he's also freaking out, she decides she has to be the strong one, and tries to separate herself from her emotions so she can focus logically on what to do next in order to find the baby. Thinking of her child miles away flying out amongst strangers is almost enough to return her to her breakdown, though. . . . 0165 meri lin #82: switching roles Meri Lin reports her missing baby to the local authorities, who take a description and photo for her "alert." Meri Lin then has to go give some moral support to Fred, who's a wreck. For once, she's the strong one. 0168 meri lin #83: temporary Unsure of what the next step is, Fred decides to go out to look for Amanda (taking a reference photo to show neighbors), while Meri Lin thinks about how no one can really prepare a person on how to deal with your child going missing. As long as she keeps telling herself that Amanda will be found, she feels that she will hold herself together. 0171 meri lin #84: just a window Flies are getting in the apartment, so Meri Lin and Fred decide to close the window even though it makes them sad to do it. Amanda can get back in, after all. Meri Lin calls her sister to tell her the baby's missing, and decides to make her own missing child poster for her daughter. 0174 meri lin #85: should've Meri Lin and Fred kick around ideas about what they could have and should have done to avoid their daughter's escape. They end up turning on each other in frustration, briefly blaming each other before reconciling. 0177 meri lin #86: don't worry Meri Lin and Fred get the disturbing news that their daughter's clothes were found far away in the Bronx, and ponder how it's almost funny how that means something completely different to the cops than it does to them. Meri Lin is sickened by the thought that her baby might be somewhere far away needing her, and is offended that the police carelessly said the words "don't worry." 0180 meri lin #87: my tragedy Meri Lin's sister Lissa Lee arrives. Though Lissa Lee wants to be strong for her sister, she seems to be a bit overwhelmed by the sadness when she arrives, and Meri Lin seeks to protect her sister from "her tragedy" because she automatically defaults to "Mommy Mode." Meri Lin congratulates herself on how well she's holding up even though the worst imaginable thing has happened to her. 0183 meri lin #88: back to work Now that Lissa Lee is in town (and has taken over the apartment), Fred feels comfortable telling Meri Lin he thinks it'd be a good idea for him to go back to work. She agrees that he can if he wants, and chooses to use her time constructively by putting up missing child posters. 0186 meri lin #89: real life While grocery shopping, Meri Lin finally lets the thought enter her mind that there's a chance they WON'T find their daughter, and the heavy thought of returning to life the way it used to be before Amanda was born is too much for her. She has a breakdown in the store and is assisted by other shoppers. 0190 meri lin #90: survival Meri Lin gets delivered back to her apartment after her breakdown, where her sister receives her. Meri Lin realizes that she has hit rock bottom and that there is nowhere left to go but up . . . and though she considers whether this makes her a bad person, she concludes that there's nothing wrong with wanting to live despite feeling like she's dying. She resolves to make each day brighter than the last even as she grieves.
Main Negative One Page
First Comic
Comic Index (Text Only)
FAQ