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[Carl-E]

Now, having a trans* actor play a cis* character would be revolutionary....

Yeah, that's something that I didn't think through - in Hollywood, anything that can be hidden, will be hidden. 

Make it openly trans*...

[jwhouk]

The trans* character was an extra in For Your Eyes Only. She was one of the poolside "women" of one of the bad guys, early on in the film; the main female lead (the Greek woman seeking vengeance) shot the bad guy just as he was about to have Bond taken away. I think her entire scene was a scream because the guy was dead when he hit the water.

As for the commentary: I didn't say the characters were necessarily PC in this fake "Behind The Scenes" thing. Remember: I made it where Dora and Sven are husband and wife, not brother and sister.

I will say this: I like WAYF's take on how Emily is just as Cloud Cuckoolander off-screen as she is on.

[Valdís]

She was one of the poolside "women" of one of the bad guys

Real classy, jwhouk..

As for the commentary: I didn't say the characters were necessarily PC in this fake "Behind The Scenes" thing.

Right.. "Politically correct".. As if it isn't just dead wrong on "Reality correct". You were the one writing with that attitude towards those issues, not them. Including characters you claimed you were writing as trans.

Remember: I made it where Dora and Sven are husband and wife, not brother and sister.

Been there, Dexter'd that.

TBH I like the conceit that Jeph didn't even know where Claire's character was going to wind up

I don't buy that. There are too many foreshadowing moments throughout her earlier appearances. [1][2][3]

[Loki]

I think the quotation marks referred to the individuals in question being the concubines (?) of the evil guy. Like how some peoples use the expression "my woman" instead of "my wife", I think it meant to signify that the girls in question were "the women" of the bad guy, not that their quality of being female was being questioned. This is just a guess, as I don't remember the scene and cannot read jwhouk's mind.

[jwhouk]

There was no really better way of describing it. Bond was trying to pretend he was someone else, and the masquerade was discovered.

FYEO was the first Bond movie I sat down and watched from start to end - and the first that I was old enough to remember when it was out in theaters.

[Neko_Ali]

The disgust over the statement is by putting "women" in quotations because you were including a transgender women there. Unless you were referring to Bond himself dressed up as a woman in that scene (and I don't remember any movies where he did that), the implication is that because there was a trans woman there, you had to put "women" in quotes because she wasn't a real woman. That is the kind of mis-transist crap we have to deal with constantly. "Oh, you are a woman, but not a REAL woman because you weren't born that way." I know it shouldn't have to be said, but trans people are a very much mistreated, demonized and (often violently) oppressed group. This makes us both easy prey to people who hate us, easy for even good intentioned people to say highly insulting things because  it's something everyone is used to doing (insulting and minimizing trans people) and makes us often internalize that hatred leading to depression and worse. Casual, even unintended insults like "women" are just the tip of an iceberg that makes the one which sank the Titanic look like a dinky, half melted ice cube.

The problem with cisgender people playing trans people in media is that there are a lot of trans actors and actresses who are routinely looked over for one reason or another. Then you have a role which is literally perfect for them, and they still get looked over often because they don't fit the idea of what the casting director thinks of for the role of a trans person. Which is usually someone who fits the biological birth sex of the character to show how they don't really look the part. Or someone who fits the stereotypical appearance post-transition so that you wouldn't guess they were trans without being told. Which completely cuts out the middle ground where most of us trans people fit. And then there is the casual insult that people feel a trans person couldn't accurately portray a trans character. That's like taking a role for a black character, giving it to a white actor in blackface and saying "Well, I just didn't think a black person could accurately play a black character."

[jwhouk]

Thing is, no one knew she was trans* when she took the role. The producers just needed a bunch of women to play "poolside extras" for the scene.

[Neko_Ali]

Why would that matter in any way though? I mean I'm assuming she wasn't cast as 'transgender pool girl'. And it doesn't at all affect or address the point that calling her a "woman", even indirectly, is very insulting....

[Carl-E]

TBH I like the conceit that Jeph didn't even know where Claire's character was going to wind up

I don't buy that. There are too many foreshadowing moments throughout her earlier appearances. [1][2][3]

Interesting.  Those certainly can be read as foreshadowing - however, having three little brothers, the third one can easily just be a sibling issue.  If I remember correctly, the second one was before Claire was even introduced (which comic was that from?).  Foreshadowing, but of her being trans?  Maybe, but hard to say for certain.  Could easily just be the usual sibling stuff - no one wants to be known for their siblings instead of on their own terms (no matter how bad those terms may be). 

And seriously, how many of us haven't felt the way the first one intimates at some point or another?  That's not a trans* issue, it's human. 

[Neko_Ali]

I tend to agree... While knowing what we know now, those scenes could have been foreshadowing... but it is very subtle. They could just have easily referred to something other than Claire being trans. So a bit of good writing if they are foreshadowing. There, but not beating you over the head with it.

[Masterpiece]

No, Claire was already introduced in the second comic. These strips all happened on the same qcverse day.

[Valdís]

Why would that matter in any way though? I mean I'm assuming she wasn't cast as 'transgender pool girl'. And it doesn't at all affect or address the point that calling her a "woman", even indirectly, is very insulting....

Yeah, what Ali said.

Interesting.  Those certainly can be read as foreshadowing - however,

It wasn't before she was introduced, she was around the library etc. 41 strips before that, people just didn't know they're related, hence why Hanners asks. C'mon, though, he uncomfortably dodges going into the accusation-sounding question on whether he has a sister (specifically gendered and in bold for emphasis) for fear of saying something wrong and then Claire gets all worried about what kinds of things he might've told them. She also mentions not being okay with how she was "designed" in that situation - without us having much of any hint she had depression issues.

This just seems like reaching to dismiss signs of it being planned, especially since Jeph said he's wanted to introduce a transgender character for a long time when Claire tells Marten, so certainly not just some spur-of-the-moment idea to make Claire fit that. Not saying it'd "for sure definitely be about transgender stuff" to our perception at the very moment those strips came out, but it's the thing that makes sense in retrospect as part of her character. I don't get why it'd be something better if he grabbed a random character and just went "This'll be the Trans one" at all, though.

I also don't know why you said "Bigendered Clinton". The early Claire-things on his Tumblr didn't say a thing about Clinton. [1][2]

[Loki]

She also mentions not being okay with how she was "designed" in that situation - without us having much of any hint she had depression issues.

I took it to mean that she was referring to the world at large being designed in a bad way - I'd argue one does not need depression issues for that... a look at the foreign politics news report would probably trigger the same reaction.

[Valdís]

That doesn't really make sense to me, Loki. She'd be a conscious AI in a simulated world to help Hanners become more adjusted. It'd only actually for-sure be a dick if you're an AI in direct contact with Hanners. I don't see much point in creating an alternative starving Saharan nation if she's just going to be hanging around the same east coast town whenever she's in it.

[Is it cold in here?]

The disgust over the statement is by putting "women" in quotations because you were including a transgender women there. 

That's the way I would read it if I had a trans person's life experience. If I'd read it that way it would already have been a moderation issue.

For the record, the owner of the forum values inclusiveness, the moderators are determined to have a safe environment for everyone, and the Trans 101 rules of etiquette apply to the forum. if Imaginary Hannelore Actress were a member here she would have gotten an admonishment via PM at the very least, with further action if she didn't have a multi-year record of treating people decently. Mistreatment of trans people is a violation of the civility rule. The moderator response in such a case might strike you as inexcusably slow but it will be inexorable.

BTW, with my moderator hat on, I'd like to thank people for providing wonderful examples of how to confront a statement uncompromisingly but civilly.

[cesium133]

I also don't know why you said "Bigendered Clinton". The early Claire-things on his Tumblr didn't say a thing about Clinton. [1][2]

I'm pretty sure he was referring to this drawing that Jeph made with both a male and female version of Clinton, before he started posting drawings of Claire.

[Latias]

As for the commentary: I didn't say the characters were necessarily PC in this fake "Behind The Scenes" thing. Remember: I made it where Dora and Sven are husband and wife, not brother and sister.

The fact that you won't own up to the fact that what you said was wrong and apologise says a lot about you. You have no problem spewing hatred and bigotry that hurts other people. You don't care that you're saying things that are extremely offensive, that the people you're degrading have feelings. Treating people as people isn't "political correctness". It's "not being a huge fucking douchebag".

You couldn't care less that what you've said is hurtful. Instead of apologising, you make excuses to justify your hurtful actions. You don't care about the people you've hurt with your words. You only care what people think of you, hence trying to excuse what you're doing. Even when you've hurt other people, you keep the focus on yourself rather than them.

[Valdís]

if Imaginary Hannelore Actress were a member here she would have gotten an admonishment via PM at the very least

Today's lesson: If you want to say insulting things, make sure it's in the third person?

I'm pretty sure he was referring to this drawing that Jeph made with both a male and female version of Clinton, before he started posting drawings of Claire.

Ah, so something unrelated to Claire from back in 2011, apparently as a general impulse he has with his characters. Would be neat to see other examples of drawings he's made like that uploaded.

[Neko_Ali]

Thank you, Cold. I would like to add that none of my statements were meant to be rude or insulting to anyone.  I was trying to point out that even among allies and in safe spaces, sometimes phrases or words can be used that are unintentionally insulting and hurtful. Often time the user doesn't even realize it... Culture for a long time has been very dismissive of anyone who isn't a white heterosexual male of appropriate religious background. Not that insults don't exists for people who fit into those categories as well. But in many cases, insulting phrases have become so ingrained into culture and language towards women, people of color, LGBT folk and what have you that people can use them without even realizing they are being offensive. I like to gently point those things out... largely I admit because I used to be one of those 'white heterosexual males of appropriate religious background', and when I started stripping away the layers of privilege I realized how deep and disgusting it was...

[Is it cold in here?]

Jeph's old Livejournal account has some sketches as well.

Hey, jwhouk, do you have any idea how offensive Imaginary Hannelore Actress was?

Was she speaking for you? Remember, I've heard lots of people just like that in real life, I don't know you, and nothing in my life justifies giving a stranger the benefit of the doubt.

Even if she wasn't speaking for you, what on earth was the point of including her?!

[Is it cold in here?]

I would like to add that none of my statements were meant to be rude or insulting to anyone.

I didn't take them that way. Your intent was clear.

I've been swatted on the nose with a rolled-up newspaper myself -- it was clear that it was correction and not abuse.

[jwhouk]

I would like to add that none of my statements were meant to be rude or insulting to anyone. 

Same here. This thread was more for absurdity than anything else. My apologies for any offense taken.

[Redball]

I never thought of this as absurdity. I've thoroughly enjoyed it as a sort of small-bore canon.

[jwhouk]

Faye being a Southern Baptist mother of two, whose pregnancy was "hidden" by the Space Station arc?

[Redball]

OK, OK, so it fires two-pound balls.

[jwhouk]

See, that's what this thread was for - to have fun imagining our favorite characters "out of character".

Of course, I think a more obvious one with Claire would be, "I don't even like books!"

[Is it cold in here?]

Who are you calling a small bore?

[Carl-E]

I also don't know why you said "Bigendered Clinton". The early Claire-things on his Tumblr didn't say a thing about Clinton. [1][2]

I'm pretty sure he was referring to this drawing that Jeph made with both a male and female version of Clinton, before he started posting drawings of Claire.

Thanks, Cesium.  I'm sure I'd never have found it on my own.  My archive-fu is getting weak with disuse. 

It wasn't before she was introduced, she was around the library etc. 41 strips before that, people just didn't know they're related, hence why Hanners asks. C'mon, though, he uncomfortably dodges going into the accusation-sounding question on whether he has a sister (specifically gendered and in bold for emphasis) for fear of saying something wrong and then Claire gets all worried about what kinds of things he might've told them. She also mentions not being okay with how she was "designed" in that situation - without us having much of any hint she had depression issues.

This just seems like reaching to dismiss signs of it being planned, especially since Jeph said he's wanted to introduce a transgender character for a long time when Claire tells Marten, so certainly not just some spur-of-the-moment idea to make Claire fit that. Not saying it'd "for sure definitely be about transgender stuff" to our perception at the very moment those strips came out, but it's the thing that makes sense in retrospect as part of her character. I don't get why it'd be something better if he grabbed a random character and just went "This'll be the Trans one" at all, though.

I also don't know why you said "Bigendered Clinton". The early Claire-things on his Tumblr didn't say a thing about Clinton. [1][2]

You make some good points.  Unfortunately, we don't really know if Jeph introduced Claire to be the trans* character he'd wanted, or if it was a later realization on his part - that she'd just been used as an intern initially, and in fleshing her out he made the decision (rather like what he's done with Emily's character, making her someone who appears to be a total ditz/outsider/god knows what).  The fact that we've seen nothing of Gabby is, I think, evidence that the interns were probably initially introduced as a Foil for Marten's development.  For some reason two of them appealed to him and he took them much further, one fulfilling a desire he had for a trans character, another filling the need for wacky in a comic (Hey, Raven's working on her Ph.D., after all...)

But I think you may well be right.  By the time of those foreshadowings, he probably did have her "reveal" planned.  Hard to say how far in advance he thinks these things out, but I get the feeling that it was sometime after he decided Clinton and Claire were siblings.  I'm not saying that they definitely weren't foreshadowings, but I don't think it's a reach to say that they may not have been - they're just too vague.  It's a situation of unknown intent, unlike the "FORBODE"ings Marten had to wave away in the Padma arc.  Not everything that can be read as foreshadowing was necessarily intended that way! 

And, of course, not everything that was meant as a foreshadowing gets read that way... 

[ZoeB]

The trans* character was an extra in For Your Eyes Only.

Point of order, Mr Speaker! Caroline Cossey ("Tula") is intersex, XXXY. As such she has the same legal issues from being born in the UK that I do.

Getting back on-topic, Randy the Bandicoot is played by an Australian stunt double, who wishes to remain anonymous. He occasionally visits the states. He does a lot of work with Jacky Chan, whose Australian connections go way back.

[WAYF]

SAMANTHA: I was really excited to be working on something that wasn't my school's production of Shakespeare for a change. I tried out for the part of Samantha, which was really the only kid role they had going. I was very lucky to get it actually. The section of the building our auditions were in was being renovated, and there was this ladder propped up against the wall leading to a hole in the ceiling, so, you know, I thought I'd have a look while everyone was waiting. Then I kind of... *laughs* actually, I got lost up there. Cause there was this whole hollowed-out section inside the building, and it was kinda like a maze. Then I got stuck in a really tight space, and had to yell and scream so someone could come and get me out. By the time I got out of there I was convered in plaster and sawdust. Jeph took one look at me and gave me the part. Apparently he'd wanted one of us to climb up there all along.
Funny thing though, I got interested in doing something for Questionable Content because my older cousin Harriet got a role here too. But everyone gets all shifty when I ask what character she plays.

(cut away)

TAI: I actually did get to meet Ellen Allien. Leave it to Jeph to actually bring a celebrity onto the set. Marten, Henry and Maurice knew in advance. I didn't. That reaction of me yelling at my phone when I saw that picture? That was real. I thought maybe she'd been and gone already and I'd totally missed my chance, but no, she was still on set. Watching me flip out, as it happened. So that's the single most embarrassing way I've ever introduced myself to a celebrity (but she also found it flattering, apparently).

HENRY: Jeph was actually pretty worried that the wedding, fictional though it was, would get disrupted, you know, picketed by the Westboro Baptist Church. I thought I took a pretty cavalier attitude to the whole thing actually, I was like "Sure! Bring it on! If they start shouting at us, we'll just extend the kiss by a good 5 minutes and see what they want to do about it!" As it turned out, there was one crotchety old farmer type from down the road who turned up at our location and started heckling us. Not threatening at all, but it was disruptive. Then, quite amazingly actually, all the guys at the fictional wedding paired up with other guys and made a big point of showing they were all about to make out in unison. Maurice's idea. Turns out he's far more cavalier than I am. *chuckles* The heckler left pretty quickly after that, I can tell you.

MAURICE: Is it bad that I was actually hoping the heckler would stay around for a bit so that all the guys would start making out? I mean, that's basically my dream wedding scenario! If I ever have a wedding in real life, I'm going to have that going on in the background the whole time. Synchronized man-kissing.

(cut away)

HARRIET: PETS. I run a PET STORE.


("Synchronized man-kissing" might be the best thing I have ever written.)

[Carl-E]

("Synchronized man-kissing" might be the best thing I have ever written.)

Only if it becomes an olympic team event. 

[cesium133]

Yelling Bird: THAT BITCH IS FULL OF SHIT. SHE RUNS A SEX SHOP!
*Harriet throws bottle of whiskey at Yelling Bird*

[Border Reiver]

Yelling Bird: THAT BITCH IS FULL OF SHIT. SHE RUNS A SEX SHOP!
*Harriet throws bottle of whiskey at Yelling Bird*

Harriet:  "You say that like they're mutally exclusive!"

[Carl-E]

OK, now I'm imagining a sex shop called "The "Pet" Store". 

[cesium133]

Harriet: Sure, we sell pets. What you do with them after you buy them is up to you.

[Is it cold in here?]

Deathbot 9000:

I wouldn't mind another appearance at all! They're a good crew to work with, very professional. They have to be. You have to be a precise athlete to do slapstick, and you have to have skill and razor-sharp timing to do comedy.

As long as I'm in front of a microphone, I'd like to remind everyone that you are still needed as a peace activist. I've been arrested five times at demonstrations -- we have to keep the pressure on.

[Carl-E]

<3

[ZoeB]

Deathbot 9000:As long as I'm in front of a microphone, I'd like to remind everyone that you are still needed as a peace activist. I've been arrested five times at demonstrations -- we have to keep the pressure on.

You win the thread.

[Storel]

Just want to say "Thanks!" to WAYF for reviving the thread. As a relative newcomer here, I'd never seen this thread before, and it is hilarious.

And another "Thanks!" to IICIH for giving me the mental picture of Deathbot 9000 as a peace activist! My head asplode...

[Carl-E]

It only does that if you disagree with Deathbot 9000.  He may be a pacifist, but that doesn't mean he hasn't got a temper! 

[DSL]

DEATHBOT 9000 DEFINES ... Sorry, indoor voice. Deathbed 9000 defines activism differently than most people!

[Storel]

DEATHBOT 9000 DEFINES ... Sorry, indoor voice. Deathbed 9000 defines activism differently than most people!

There you go. Now it all makes sense! 

[Carl-E]

Deathbed 9000? 


Autocomplete's a bitch...

[jwhouk]

DALE MORGAN: "Yeah, Jeph really surprised me when he said he wanted to do a story arc featuring me and an AI character. I was perfectly happy with my occasional guest-star gig on the strip, but he had this idea to explain about the shiny glasses. The 'Gendo' thing was Jeph's idea, but I kinda ran with it."

JEPH: "Dale and I met at Toronto Comic Con back in 2010. He was extra help for an anime-themed magazine a few booths down from Topatoco, and we ran into each other frequently during lunch breaks. The funny thing is, I didn't even plan on having him in the strip at all."

DALE: "Yeah, he invited me to drop in during the shooting of the strip, and I guess one of the extras they'd hired for that 'secret menu' scene had backed out at the last second. So he gave me the lines, and suddenly I'm a big hit on the forums. I went to work at my second job (ED: As a barista at Starbucks, ironically) and I had all of these people either saying 'Daaaaang' at me, or asking for a 'number 28'. It was funny."

JEPH: "A while later, I realized I needed someone to play a foil to Marigold, but couldn't settle on a character. I had a plotline set up for Sven to be that foil, but it didn't work out."

SVEN: "I was staying at home with our daughter while Dora was at work - and, as it turns out, I hate WOW. I prefer the Madden series." (pause) "Yeah, I know. Ruin my reputation and all that."

JEPH: "Dale happened to come to mind when I was writing the script, and he was willing to jump in. He didn't tell me he had once delivered pizza for a living."

DALE: "I actually did get propped once, like the line I used in the little storyline with Hanners and Marigold. It wasn't pretty." (winces at the thought)

JEPH: "I'd wanted to explain why his glasses glowed like they did, but didn't have the idea for a backstory until a few weeks ago. And suddenly, it just flowed."

DALE: "I'd always assumed they were either some kind of VR glasses that overlaid the regular prescription of the user, but then I got this script from Jeph, and... wow."

NARRATOR: The storyline is ongoing, of course, so we won't mention spoilers here. What you may not know, however, is the voice of the VR character "living" in Dale's glasses.

JEPH: "I knew for some time that she was a big QC fan, but I never realized how much she wanted to be in the strip. I thought it might be a bit of a stretch for her, but she's done a fantastic job with May's lines so far."

(Dramatic pause as we see an empty chair, and a figure coming in from the left to sit down. Then, the camera pans up to her face...)

(I'll let the NEXT poster tell us who the voice of May is...  )

[Carl-E]

The regulars here already know who May is...





Sorry, couldn't resist!   

[jwhouk]

I was thinking either Lady Gaga, or Madonna, or maybe even Lucy Liu?

[Carl-E]

Cyndi Lauper? 



Fran Drescher? 






Phyllis Diller? 










Carol Burnett? 
















No, I know!  Jane Lynch! 

[jwhouk]

No, I know!  Jane Lynch!

Oh Ehm Gee... PERFECT!

[Akima]

(I'll let the NEXT poster tell us who the voice of May is...  )

Margaret Cho?

[jwhouk]

Now that would be PERFECT!