Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT

WCDT: 2791-2795 (15-19 September 2014) Weekly Comic Discussion Thread

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hedgie:
Marten is pretty much a rudderless boat.  Claire could possibly provide him one if that ship sails.  I won't say more in order to not break the shipping rules.

Barmymoo:
I find it pretty sweet how they all look out for each other - Marten wanted to make sure that Angus was a decent guy when he suspected that Faye might be interested, now Faye is returning the favour. In general in my experience if your friends dislike your partner, it's not a great sign. They're more objective than you (usually) so more likely to see warning signs.

aphanisis81:

--- Quote from: Barmymoo on 20 Sep 2014, 08:41 ---We don't know anything about Claire's genitalia. For that matter we don't know anything about Dora's genitalia, or Padma's. Speculation about this is not appropriate, or respectful.

That being said, your post was as close to being acceptable as I think a post on this topic could get. But I really don't want to open the floodgates to a discussion on this issue.

--- End quote ---

I'm glad it was as close as possible to acceptable, since I consider myself an ally and was 100% going for a respectful and open-minded post.

But I feel compelled to point out that my post did not speculate about genitalia or even use the word. Rather, I was pointing out in a much broader sense that while Claire might rightly consider herself a woman, and it is (I believe) the obligation of society to therefore also consider her that way, it could be a tough hurdle to get past for a heterosexual guy who's only been with cis-women. For a lot of reasons. The genital-compatibility question is by no means the most important aspect.

So really, my speculation isn't about Claire's body but about Marten's mindset and comfort with his own sexuality. It seems to me an important question, and a far more interesting one than whether Marten feels it's ethical to date an intern.

Barmymoo:
My point is that this is a dangerous topic of conversation. Anyway, the no-shipping rule applies here.

KOK:

--- Quote from: aphanisis81 on 20 Sep 2014, 08:27 ---OK, elephant in the room:

Of all the reasons Marten might be into or not into dating Claire, I think we have to also consider the really obvious one: The trans issue. Marten's a cool, completely accepting guy, obviously, but being Claire's confidant about her transition and being in a romantic/sexual relationship with her could be two very different things. I don't care how open-minded and LGBTQ-friendly you are, or how accepting of the idea that Claire is, in fact, a woman, and that biology is not gender, etc., etc...for a lot of dudes, it would still be a big deal and something to come to terms with. I know that I wouldn't be able to date or sleep with a trans woman with the exact same mindset I'd have while dating and sleeping with a cis-woman. It's not a matter of prejudice or non-acceptance; there just wouldn't be any way to not think about that aspect of her and have it influence how I see her.

For these reasons, I hope Marten DOES embark on a relationship with Claire, not because I necessarily think they'd be an awesome couple, but because it would be fascinating to see these issues - which again, I think would be at least in the back of any straight dude's mind - being worked out.

--- End quote ---

I think that the very reasons you give point very strongly to this not happening. It would change the comic utterly. This has so far not been a comic about being trans, or gay, or an indie music fan, or traumatized by a parent's suicide or what have you. There are chararacters who are all these things, but none of these issues is the focus of the story. They are each brought up occasionally. Claire is not Clare Augustus, trans woman. She is Claire Augustus, library science student, intern, punster, sister, friend, who is also trans. Her getting into a relationship would change all that. Especially if the relationship is with the central character of the comic.

Of course Jeph might want a change. But until now he has been very firm about not going that way.

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