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Hilarious once she actually starts to TELL people.

6 (9.7%)

Not the sign of a very stable individual.

22 (35.5%)

She's GONE CRITICAL!

2 (3.2%)

Useless once she needs a kidney donor or something.

6 (9.7%)

Untenable.

5 (8.1%)

Unusual.

1 (1.6%)

Undeniably uproariously...

0 (0%)

Wait, what's a simile to "laughable" that stats with a U?

4 (6.5%)

Spathe Ham with Waffles and Wieners!

7 (11.3%)

...okay, that last one *sounded* funny in my head...

9 (14.5%)

Total Members Voted: 58

[bhtooefr]

To me, it seems like Claire's run through the scenario of dating Marten mentally, and even though she knows she isn't dating him, she subconsciously thinks she is at some level, and treats him as if she were in some ways.

No, I don't have any personal experience with doing that in the past, why do you ask?

[TheCallMeFez]

Did Marten and Claire start dating while I wasn't paying attention? Lets look at the evidence.

• She doesn't want him to move away.
• She's blushing.
• Marten seems unsurprised by the sentiment.
• They seem to be holding hands just off panel.

So when exactly did something happen between these two? If it didn't already, I think it is just about to.

I never really figured them for a match... although I know you all did.

Yea I thought she was blushing too, but if you look closely it is actually freckles

[Zebediah]

It's possible that Claire takes comfort in the idea that when she finally figures herself out enough to start dating, Marten will still be around.

Except he may not be. I was that guy once. She never did figure herself out, and  I moved on.

No, I don't have any personal experience with doing that in the past, why do you ask?

We all process events according to our own personal histories, don't we?

[TheBiscuit]

It's possible that Claire takes comfort in the idea that when she finally figures herself out enough to start dating, Marten will still be around.

Except he may not be. I was that guy once. She never did figure herself out, and  I moved on.

Marten was pretty much that guy once. Didn't work out.

I remain unconvinced it ever does.

Yea I thought she was blushing too, but if you look closely it is actually freckles

You're probably right. She's still making cute eyes at him though.

To me, it seems like Claire's run through the scenario of dating Marten mentally, and even though she knows she isn't dating him, she subconsciously thinks she is at some level, and treats him as if she were in some ways.

That's very insightful. I wonder if Marten is aware. I could go either way on that one.

Poor old Marten, his job turned into a Harem anime. Now he has the weird one and the shy one (meaning no disrespect; both are archetypes of the genre) both interested in him. Next thing you know, he'll walk in on one of them showing their boobs and he'll get his face slapped. I think there's room for Hannelore in this too, as the totally unavailable one who is still (somehow) kind of in love with him. Or at least she was once.

I apologize if this consitutes shipping. I don't think it does, but I'll take my lumps willingly if moderator opinions vary.

[Rghfrgl]

It's possible that Claire takes comfort in the idea that when she finally figures herself out enough to start dating, Marten will still be around.

Except he may not be.

He may end up in another relationship. But I think she's certainly right that he's not going anywhere. Even if he tries to get his shit together I don't see him uprooting again, even if you ignore that it's a comic and it's not just going to toss out it's whole cast. For better or worse, I think he cares too much about the friendships he's built up to actually leave town.

[Near Lurker]

To me, it seems like Claire's run through the scenario of dating Marten mentally, and even though she knows she isn't dating him, she subconsciously thinks she is at some level, and treats him as if she were in some ways.

That was my thought, too - I read a little bit of backpedaling in panel 3.  (Not to mention the time she sleepwalked into his bed...)  Marten's scared of the wrong intern.

[GarandMarine]

Aww, Claire likes having Marten around.

My first thought.

Must. Not. Unfurl. Sails.

Fuck that. All hands aloft! I want every scrap of canvas we have!

If Marten friend is now in a harem anime (doubtful) who's the yandere one... oh. Wait. Hanners. Most likely to start stabbing people any way.


You know I really wish I had Marten's problems. I really do. He's got a fucking EASY job on a women's college campus where half the work seems to be chasing amorous staff and students out of the stacks while paying more then enough for a nice three story walk up that's walking distance from work, food, bars and everything else you would want, lots of friends, an active social life, a band, and let's be real here, even ignoring Emily and Her Redheadness Claire plenty of romantic prospects. I mean it's a fucking city. There's lots of girls in cities. Some of them even like skinny indy rock dorks who play guitar.

[Shjade]

If Marten friend is now in a harem anime (doubtful) who's the yandere one...

Pintsize, obv.

[Roboduck]

Or... maybe she just likes having him around, period, no romance? Marten is a very good and trusted friend to her, especially since AFAIK he's the only person she told about her being trans. It always confuses me a little if I see two characters I read as friends and all around me the shipping starts.

Oh, and disclaimer - I have a history of completely missing social cues, so that's probably a lot of insecurity and mild paranoia ("What did I miiiss!"  ) on my part, too.

[Rghfrgl]

especially since AFAIK he's the only person she told about her being trans.

She told Emily a bit ago. It ended in hugs.

[Barmymoo]

Yeah no, they aren't dating and I don't think they're going to start either.

[Is it cold in here?]

Jeph will probably tease us about it ruthlessly.

Has there been a scintilla of evidence Claire is even looking for a romantic relationship? She's got a lot going on in her life and may have decided she's better off for now without the complications. Having Marten as a Justafriend may be ideal for her right now.

[Kugai]

Marten's set, unless they decide to do what this Florida university did: bookless library.

Great Maker!!  THAT'S NOT A LIBRARY!  iT'S A HOTEL FOYER!!!!!!


PLOT TWIST

Everybody moves with Angus

[Loki]

There's also the fact that plain coloured t-shirts are the most common clothing item among young adults. Is it really odd to see little variation? Personally, I only own about five outfits.

Waitwhat. Most people I know wear shirts with some kind of ornament or witty sentence on them.

[cesium133]

There's also the fact that plain coloured t-shirts are the most common clothing item among young adults. Is it really odd to see little variation? Personally, I only own about five outfits.

Waitwhat. Most people I know wear shirts with some kind of ornament or witty sentence on them.

I mostly wear T-shirts with logos or whatever on them, that I often got for free. A lot of them are from conferences, where the recruiters from companies give grad students T-shirts with the companies' logos on them. I'm currently wearing one of those.

[Zwammy]

I'd wonder if Claire hadn't been raiding Hannelore's closet at some point, as Hanners has worn a similar dress in the past. 

Nah, all the girls in the comic except Dora purchased a copy of the dress because they all thought it was cute, and coordination is done to make sure none of them wear it at the same time. Dora thought the dress sucked like Toto.

[Smallest]

Yea I thought she was blushing too, but if you look closely it is actually freckles

You're probably right. She's still making cute eyes at him though.

It could be both.

[Vincent Adultman]

You know I really wish I had Marten's problems. I really do. He's got a fucking EASY job on a women's college campus where half the work seems to be chasing amorous staff and students out of the stacks while paying more then enough for a nice three story walk up that's walking distance from work, food, bars and everything else you would want, lots of friends, an active social life, a band, and let's be real here, even ignoring Emily and Her Redheadness Claire plenty of romantic prospects. I mean it's a fucking city. There's lots of girls in cities. Some of them even like skinny indy rock dorks who play guitar.

Yeah, seriously. It makes it kind of hard to take his mopey woe-is-me attitude seriously. He's not whiny, but for someone who has it pretty good he never seems very happy. Seems lately nobody has any "real" problems so they have to resort to making their insecurities and minor social slights a Big Freaking Deal.

Also, all this relationship drama is getting old. You could change the backgrounds into a high school at this point.

[TheEvilDog]

That's the thing though, Marten doesn't really "have it good". At best, he's settled for what he has, as he's always done. Right now, he's in a decent enough job with a decent place and quite a few friends. The problem is, Marten has never really shown the initiative to go out and get those elements of his life, it's always been someone else's actions - he got fired from the office job, Faye wanted to go to a large apartment, Faye went up and spoke to him and Steve in the bar.

Everything in Marten's life has been a reaction to what others have wanted or done. And everything will remain the same for him unless he can become that bit more confident and determined. I'm not saying Marten is a coward, far from it, it takes a lot of guts to move across a country for a girl (not a lot of brains, but that's a different story), but the guy has no drive to take chances for himself.

That is Marten's real problem and it is a big deal because the guy will never be truly happy because he just keeps settling for whatever.

That is Marten's central conflict.

[GarandMarine]

Self actualization vs. Being in a pretty solid living condition are very different things. Marten's got a good gig. A lot of people settle. It's a normal part of the human condition in much of the world. Shit job for survivable pay, doing something you enjoy on your own time when you have energy. Rinse, wash, repeat.

Let's go to Maslow's shall we?



When we're talking about living conditions we're talking about tiers one and two. Marten friend's pretty solid there. Tier 3 as well, not one but TWO dads, a mom who is very loving... in her own special way, lots of friends. No current romantic partner, but Marten's done okay when he's actually been in the saddle even if he is a bit shy about getting on the horse. Or ends up facing the wrong end on occasion. Marten's issues are solidly spread across four and five. His confidence is no where to be found, and while he has friends we've noted in this very forum on many occasions that Marten gets maligned by said friends fairly often. Now I personally think those friends respect him, but it might not feel that way to Marten.

What Marten is reaching for in his life is meaning. Purpose. He has his passions and desires, but just can't seem to run with them. Understandably so. Risks are fucking scary. It's even harder to take risks when you don't even have the semblance of a game plan. I'm not going to bother and dig it up, but during the unemployment ark Dora asked him what he wanted to do his answer was "Something with music I guess". Hardly something to aspire to. Rock god? Okay there's a way to plan for that. Music professor at SMIF? Very plannable (step 1: gather more black mail on the faculty... uh... get music graduate degree *cough*). Music blogger/journalist? Well maybe not, we saw how long that blog project lasted.

So I'd say Marten's issue isn't so much his ability to take chances. As we've noticed he can be brave when he needs to be. However where Marten runs into trouble is the same place many of us do. Setting a course so we know what chances to take. How many people do you know who are doing there jobs because that's their dream job? How many people do you know who, as childhood fades can even tell you what their dream job is?

All the wind in all the sails in the world won't help you if you don't know where your destination is. "All I ask for is a tall ship, and a star to steer her by" we all have the metaphorical ship. Some in better condition then others fair, but the star. Ah the star. Without that a ship may as well be beached.

So when I say I wish I had Marten's problems, it's sensible to feel that way when you're struggling or having issues with work, food and shelter, rebuilding a social circle and being lonely, the more base of the needs on Maslow's... it can be appealing to have those base needs taken care of and struggle instead with the more ethereal.

[Vincent Adultman]

Everything in Marten's life has been a reaction to what others have wanted or done.

Heh, being reminded that he's had a decent life pretty much dumped into his lap with little or no effort doesn't make me any more sympathetic to his "plight." That's a good post, Garand, but being the blunt prick that I am the only thing I can think is "Suck it up, you big baby." Get a hobby. Those of us still struggling for the first two layers of the pyramid don't bitch and mope that much.

Same thing with Dora. Oh, boo hoo, Sven has it better than her and said some dumb things. Worse than Hitler. When has Sven ever stolen from her? Or lied to her? When has he ever left her stranded somewhere or left her somewhere to fend for herself while he went off to get high or seek other selfish needs? He's kind of a douche, but I know plenty of people who have actual bad people in their families and still keep them as family. Get back to me when Sven's fucked her girlfriend, crashed her car, and stolen her purse to buy coke. Maybe then she can complain, but this "he has bad timing and is kind of a jerk" thing is bullshit. It's also barely even her business. What, were things going too well, and now she needs to create a problem? Can't let the woman who was literally throwing men across her coffee shop earlier in the comic take care of her own shit?

One thing I have to applaud is the "Hanners misses Marigold" thing earlier. Hanners was all "we haven't hung out in a while, we should hang out." And Marigold was all "oh yeah, sorry. Let's totally hang out." And then they did it. Two adults. Solving a minor social problem. Without turning it into Drama-palooza. Awesome.

[KOK]

Marten's set, unless they decide to do what this Florida university did: bookless library.

Why does this remind me of the cheese shop sketch?

[Pilchard123]

Or ends up facing the wrong end on occasion.

My horse is stuck in reverse! Plus, it's missing its head, and it has a really weird looking butt!

That's because you're sitting on it backwards, Frank.

OOOOOOOH, that explains why it didn't like that apple I tried to feed it.

[Is it cold in here?]

Oh my. Music professor as a goal is one of the most insightful ideas I've seen here.

You see, sometimes even the low-level jobs at universities come with tuition benefits.

Marten likes studying music and has shown some interest in teaching it.

He'll be constantly surrounded by people who share his interests if he succeeds.

I'm impressed.

[Thrillho]

I had to make an account to say that this a really contrived and ham-fisted way to force this drama. Can't anything ever just blow over in this comic?

Why would you read a comic in which things blow over?

'Mom has cancer!'
'Oh shit!'
'No, wait, she's better now.'
'Oh, okay. What a great day we're having!'

[GarandMarine]

Oh my. Music professor as a goal is one of the most insightful ideas I've seen here.

You see, sometimes even the low-level jobs at universities come with tuition benefits.

Marten likes studying music and has shown some interest in teaching it.

He'll be constantly surrounded by people who share his interests if he succeeds.

I'm impressed.

I've had that bouncing around my head for awhile. When he's not drinking, moping, having coffee or dealing with teh dramz, Marten's life revolves around music. He's spoken fondly about his own music education and honestly if you want to get paid for something you're obsessed with, being able to teach the subject related to that thing isn't a terrible way to go about it. Depending on SMIF's grad student program a lot of Master's and Phd programs are "paid' by the school provided you work for the school in a research capacity. That's a bit tougher with music, but theory is a thing that exists.

[Method of Madness]

Also, if Smif is anything like Smith, their grad programs allow men to enroll.

[Vincent Adultman]

I had to make an account to say that this a really contrived and ham-fisted way to force this drama. Can't anything ever just blow over in this comic?

Why would you read a comic in which things blow over?

'Mom has cancer!'
'Oh shit!'
'No, wait, she's better now.'
'Oh, okay. What a great day we're having!'

Wanting one thing to either not become a problem or just come about in a less hacky way isn't the same as wanting a comic where no conflict ever happens. You know this, I don't have to actually explain it.

[Is it cold in here?]

Seems lately nobody has any "real" problems so they have to resort to making their insecurities and minor social slights a Big Freaking Deal.

QC has always been a light-hearted comic where people don't have the kinds of life problems they have in Something Positive, to pick one example. If your tastes run to heavy drama then QC will never satisfy you.

[Vincent Adultman]

Well, it's not like I'm new to the comic. I know the tone. However, it seems to have shifted a bit from the light-heartedness to frickin' Degrasse.

[Smallest]

When has Sven ever stolen from her?

Well once.

[jwhouk]

When has Sven ever stolen from her?

Well once.

Twice.

[Redball]

Whenever I see a complaint in these threads about the pacing of the story or the amount of drama, my eye goes first to the forum member's post count.

[Vincent Adultman]

Well, I was content to just read the comic every day and enjoy it for the past couple years until I had something to gripe about.

[DSL]

I won't say we don't gripe, but that's not all we do here.

[Rghfrgl]

I won't say we don't gripe, but that's not all we do here.

This is true. We also make puns and ship Marten and Claire as subtly as we can so there's plausible deniability.

[Orkboy]

This is true. We also make puns and ship Marten and Claire as subtly as we can so there's plausible deniability.

We also use false sarcasm when we can't manage the subtlety. 

[techkid]

Also, during busy periods, some people like to modify and repost the new replies notification.

Warning - while you were thinking of (and subsequently searching for) this warning post, no new replies have been posted. Proceed, or whatever.

[jwhouk]

One of these days we need to have a "post of the year" poll. That one would probably get some votes.

[Detachable Felix]

'Mom has cancer!'
'Oh shit!'
'No, wait, she's better now.'
'Oh, okay. What a great day we're having!'

"I can confirm that I definitely have breast cancer."

[Aimless]

She can tell Tai in her own time. The only possible drama I see here is between Dora and Faye, which will be resolved by positive changes, and between Dora and Tai, who may be a little hurt that Dora'd tell Marten but not her, and that'll either be all right or they'll eventually decide they're kinda meh together and somewhere down the line Dora will realize that she needs to do more to improve her situation than to cut and shuffle people.

[Thrillho]

'Mom has cancer!'
'Oh shit!'
'No, wait, she's better now.'
'Oh, okay. What a great day we're having!'

"I can confirm that I definitely have breast cancer."

'Johnny is such a good man!'

[Rghfrgl]

J. Jacques Jameson tweeted

I JUST DREW AN ENTIRE COMIC WITH CLAIRE WEARING THE WRONG OUTFIT D: D: D: D: D:

Hey, he caught it early.

[jwhouk]

Someone wanna tackle this week's WCDT?

[Carl-E]

J. Jacques Jameson tweeted

I JUST DREW AN ENTIRE COMIC WITH CLAIRE WEARING THE WRONG OUTFIT D: D: D: D: D:

Hey, he caught it early.

Before posting = early (from our point of view)

After drawing the whole thing = late (from his). 

[Kugai]

Someone wanna tackle this week's WCDT?

With or without Shoulder Pads?

[sofiabailote]

When has Sven ever stolen from her? Or lied to her? When has he ever left her stranded somewhere or left her somewhere to fend for herself while he went off to get high or seek other selfish needs? He's kind of a douche, but I know plenty of people who have actual bad people in their families and still keep them as family. Get back to me when Sven's fucked her girlfriend, crashed her car, and stolen her purse to buy coke. Maybe then she can complain, but this "he has bad timing and is kind of a jerk" thing is bullshit. It's also barely even her business. What, were things going too well, and now she needs to create a problem? Can't let the woman who was literally throwing men across her coffee shop earlier in the comic take care of her own shit?

oh man, my thoughts exactly.