THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)
Comic Discussion => QUESTIONABLE CONTENT => Topic started by: willpell on 17 Nov 2010, 23:13
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Not that I'm at all surprised that this hasn't happened, since we all know that angst and conflict make for more interesting reading than "happily ever after". But honestly, my first thought on reading today's strip was "geese louise, Dora, just start a poly triad with Faye and Marten already." They live together, they're all extremely close friends, and they know each other's issues. If Dora's afraid Marten will dump her for Faye, the obvious solution is to say that Marten can have them both (whether he wants them both is his business, but either way, Dora could make it impossible for him to cheat on her with Faye by making permission to sleep an agreed-upon clause of their relationship). This problem would be terribly easy to solve if they would just think outside the box. (Whether this would improve the comic, of course, is another story.)
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And ... Dora's seen Faye in her underwear on a couple of occasions now ... Not to mention Faye interrupting the whole ear-fucking thing ... Not awkward at all!
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(http://b.imagehost.org/0595/breakup.jpg) (http://forums.questionablecontent.net/index.php/topic,25383.0.html)
Clicky
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Poly relationships take a degree of security and self-honesty that the characters don't usually show.
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Besides, I don't think Marten and Faye (or Dora, for that matter) would be into it.
Communism, people, communism.
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Poly relationships take a degree of security and self-honesty that the characters don't usually show.
Yep. An ex-roommate of mine got into a poly triad with a fellow she liked and his wife, both of whom were supposedly open to such things. Turns out the wife was not so honest with herself; she only liked the poly/open aspect when she got to pick the fellows who entered the relationship, not so much when he met someone else he liked.
The ex-roommate is now in a committed married relationship with the fellow.
D
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This can only end in Bourbon.
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Re: topic
I hope so.
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As I already said in the WCDT thread, I am putting 100 bucks on this prediction:
Dora and Marten will get back together at Henry's wedding.
This isn't my personal feelings about the relationship, I just see a good bet when I see one.
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I will say this: I think Jeph has perfectly captured the feeling of a breakup.
Moreso: He's captured what it feels like to be dumped for a crazy reason... and when the girl has already made the decision without you, and there's nothing you can say in the conversation that follows that will change her mind.
Dora's issue is very realistic, and the thing is, will Dora still be having that issue a year from now? 5 years from now? Doubtful, and because of that, there's a lot of potential for Marten and Dora. Marten probably sees that, and he could probably bring that up for discussion, but he wouldn't get any answers, and he'd still get dumped.
(not speaking from personal experience AT ALL)
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Moreso: He's captured what it feels like to be dumped for a crazy reason... and when the girl has already made the decision without you, and there's nothing you can say in the conversation that follows that will change her mind.
Yep. This part hits the nail on the head.
What's really sad is, in retrospect, how Marten was really never an equal in the relationship and as soon as he tries asserting anything, Dora just goes to break it off. I kinda liked Marten / Dora when it happened but this has really made me re-evaluate the whole thing.
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Basically, the problem was that they were fighting a lot, and Dora just came face-to-face with the reason for that: She has issues and she thinks that Marten took her as a second place trophy to Faye. This is an important realization in the relationship, and whenever any couple comes to that point, they should communicate and work through it. EVERY couple has issues like this, and most of can't even communicate them openly.
However, rather than seeing this issue as a hurdle to be overcome, Dora just ends it then and there, and again... nothing Marten can do to stop it.
Again, it's a very realistic situation. Kudos Jeph.
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*pops a cork*
I've been waiting for this for YEARS.
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Guys, Dora is trying to break up with Marten.
Doesn't mean it's over, not if he doesn't just cave and has a chance to have his say. Not if other people can get into her head and change the script she's running.
Please remember that there's also a mediator there, named Sven, who may have a grat deal to contribute.
I'm waiting before I nail this coffin shut.
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Guys, Dora is trying to break up with Marten.
Doesn't mean it's over, not if he doesn't just cave and has a chance to have his say. Not if other people can get into her head and change the script she's running.
Please remember that there's also a mediator there, named Sven, who may have a grat deal to contribute.
I'm waiting before I nail this coffin shut.
Bullshit, it is definitely over unless Marten's attempt to grow a set of balls the other day failed and they retracted back into his abdomen again.
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Seen this coming
Soooooooo who thinks Tai will try and have a shot at Dora now? :police:
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Maybe this is what Dora needs to realize that it's time to mature a little. Sometimes a bit of time apart is helpful to realize what's of value...
I don't think that Tai will go for Dora... Or if she does, I don't think she's going to get anywhere... Part of the allure of the strip is that it's about friends who get along, not Soap Opera-esque backstabbing and partner swapping...
But then I might be in the minority of people who like Dora, even if I don't like what she's doing lately.
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All I can really say about this is... DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG.
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Guys, Dora is trying to break up with Marten.
Doesn't mean it's over, not if he doesn't just cave and has a chance to have his say. Not if other people can get into her head and change the script she's running.
Please remember that there's also a mediator there, named Sven, who may have a grat deal to contribute.
I'm waiting before I nail this coffin shut.
Bullshit, it is definitely over unless Marten's attempt to grow a set of balls the other day failed and they retracted back into his abdomen again.
I disagree entirely. If Marten finally steps up *again,* by saying he's not ready to just let it go, that is not at all, as you so quaintly put up, having your balls *retract back into your abdomen again.* A relationship consists of two people. If one really desire to end it, then it's over. Dora's not giving me that vibe. It's more like, she loves Marten, but she doesn't think she'll ever get over her issues, so she wants to call it quits. She's trying to be a saint. Marten, if he truly does love her, (and he never was able to tell her that, possible foreshadowing), had better not just let her go that easily- otherwise his balls will just "retract back into his abdomen" because he will have, once again, allowed Dora to tell him what to do.
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What with his bitterness at the situation and his recent spine growth- I don't think Marten's gonna take this lying down.
At the very least, he's going to tell Dora exactly what's up- whether it's to her face or through a closed door.
Marten seemed too bent at the coffeeshop to let his emotions slide about walking on eggshells around Dora anymore.
I also feel Dora's using this breakup as a defense mechanism- something along the lines of "you can't berate an emotionally fragile person, even if they deserve it."
You know, in a sense-
Dora's insecurity and Marigold's self-loathing are quite similar.
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*pops a cork*
I've been waiting for this for YEARS.
Although I've read the comic since before the 100 mark, I just now registered for the forums to express how happy I am they're finally broken up. The comic can go back to being interesting again!
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Poly relationships take a degree of security and self-honesty that the characters don't usually show.
Absolutely true. I can't see Marten wanting one, Faye being comfortable in one or Dora being secure enough for one.
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First, that won't be the last of the two. Dora didn't kill the relationship because of not-love. Instead she has some f...riggin issues she should handle, maybe with professional help (it's the time again for the nice lady with the big couch in QC). I'd like to see them together again. There were a much better couple (more creepy, but still better) than most of the relationships I'd seen in that age-range in reality.
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Dora's not the only one with some things to work out. I mentioned early in the WCDT (like around page 9?) my theory on his relationship issues.
Right now, he's not a happy camper, but it's not just Dora that's making him that way. He's none too happy with himself, either, for trying to smooth everything over all the time until it built up like this. You could see it in 1797 (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1797), that slump of his in the last panels, it's an "Oh god, what have I done?"
What have I done. Not what did she do.
It's going to take a while before he feels he can handle anything again. He's pretty sure he didn't handle this well, how he missed all the warning signs, tried to just make it all go away. I won't be surprised if we see him asking Tai for some time off, so he can try to come to terms with how angry he got, how he feels that he lost control. I know a great many of the newer forumites felt it was long coming, and that he was less of a mensch for not doing so sooner and more frequently, but those of us with less explosive personalities do not find relief and catharsis from letting go like that.
Quite the opposite, in fact. It scares the hell out of us. Just thinking about the times I've lost it in front of my loved ones makes me start to shake.
OK, went from Marten to me way too quickly there. So I'd better stop now.
[picks up broom to sweep up the mess]
[realizes it's too flaccid to be of any use]
Damn thing...
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Ahahaha! Way to go, Marty! *high-fives*
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Dora's not the only one with some things to work out. I mentioned early in the WCDT (like around page 9?) my theory on his relationship issues.
Right now, he's not a happy camper, but it's not just Dora that's making him that way. He's none too happy with himself, either, for trying to smooth everything over all the time until it built up like this. You could see it in 1797 (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1797), that slump of his in the last panels, it's an "Oh god, what have I done?"
What have I done. Not what did she do.
It's going to take a while before he feels he can handle anything again. He's pretty sure he didn't handle this well, how he missed all the warning signs, tried to just make it all go away. I won't be surprised if we see him asking Tai for some time off, so he can try to come to terms with how angry he got, how he feels that he lost control. I know a great many of the newer forumites felt it was long coming, and that he was less of a mensch for not doing so sooner and more frequently, but those of us with less explosive personalities do not find relief and catharsis from letting go like that.
Quite the opposite, in fact. It scares the hell out of us. Just thinking about the times I've lost it in front of my loved ones makes me start to shake.
OK, went from Marten to me way too quickly there. So I'd better stop now.
[picks up broom to sweep up the mess]
[realizes it's too flaccid to be of any use]
Damn thing...
Hm, I don't see Marten as a explosive personality, per se. But we all have a point. A max. amount of Crap we're willing to take.
It is one of the things of the whole comic I really like about that character, that after beeing raised by a dominatrix, with the sometime-visits of her flirting dragqueen-coworkers in youth, the coming-out of his dad (which he knew would come sooner or later (sockdrawer *nugnug*)) and all the outher stuff, he's still the most mental stable character in that whole group.
@Mr. J nice Twitter post *(&//!&&§AS$"%&*
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(http://www.halolz.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/captainfalcon-yes.gif)
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Guys, Dora is trying to break up with Marten.
Doesn't mean it's over, not if he doesn't just cave and has a chance to have his say. Not if other people can get into her head and change the script she's running.
Please remember that there's also a mediator there, named Sven, who may have a grat deal to contribute.
I'm waiting before I nail this coffin shut.
Bullshit, it is definitely over unless Marten's attempt to grow a set of balls the other day failed and they retracted back into his abdomen again.
I disagree entirely. If Marten finally steps up *again,* by saying he's not ready to just let it go, that is not at all, as you so quaintly put up, having your balls *retract back into your abdomen again.* A relationship consists of two people. If one really desire to end it, then it's over. Dora's not giving me that vibe. It's more like, she loves Marten, but she doesn't think she'll ever get over her issues, so she wants to call it quits. She's trying to be a saint. Marten, if he truly does love her, (and he never was able to tell her that, possible foreshadowing), had better not just let her go that easily- otherwise his balls will just "retract back into his abdomen" because he will have, once again, allowed Dora to tell him what to do.
You are an idiot. I was talking about Marten turning into a gigantic weeping pussy and begging Dora not to break up with him and nothing else.
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Which explains why it was misunderstood.
'cause face it, no one else is thinking like you are!
Of course, if you'd take a minute to explain yourself...
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Yep. An ex-roommate of mine got into a poly triad with a fellow she liked and his wife, both of whom were supposedly open to such things. Turns out the wife was not so honest with herself; she only liked the poly/open aspect when she got to pick the fellows who entered the relationship, not so much when he met someone else he liked.
Funny, usually you think of it being the other way around.
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Hopefully martin and dora are over.
While no relationship is perfect martin's pragmatism and ability to understand where dora was coming from when she did something that might make him jealous or upset him was nowhere near equal to her hulking out jumping to conclusions and being overly bitchy. Every healthy relationship is give and take, and while dora was able to give tantrums and anger she wasn't able to take it. Granted she has her issues everyone in the strip has them and while she may not of been addressing them she will in time realise that she fucked it up the one good boyfriend she had.
Where it goes on from here with marten and dora is pretty much up to martin, He can avoid the coffee of doom and he pretty much wont run into dora any-more, Him telling faye that she shouldn't beat up dora seemed more of a subtle way that he understands that she has issues that he thinks are stupid and although hes torn he realises that she probably needs faye as a friend right now.
But this was the catalyst that leads to my prediction to the 2000th script. Faye arriving home from a date, stumbling over martins corpse dead from auto erotic asphyxiation while he was jerking himself off with a belt around his neck tied to a door like micheal hutchins a trully rock and roll way to die, truly he died the way he lived.
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Oh, please - if she finds a corpse. it'll be Pintsize's.
Not that Pintsize will be dead, it'll just be a corpse that belongs to Pintsize. He was trying to use Momo's electric shocks to re-animate it.
'cause he wants his own zombie.
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Guys, Dora is trying to break up with Marten.
Uuuuum.
"Trying" ?
Sorry, but she's MOVING OUT.
Its OVER.
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Snubnose, I know you're catching up, but look at the date. That post you quoted is from last week.
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am i the only one mildly upset that Martin just sat there looking like an idiot the whole time this was happening?
he made no attempt to interject any of his own opinions or though, he just sat back and looked funny.
that would have done a lot to reassure Dora that she was fulla shit on this issue.
just seems odd
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It's in character. You're not the only one here who was disappointed.
It's possible that he said something off camera but there's no reason to think so.
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It's possible that he said something off camera but there's no reason to think so.
Surely there's every reason to think so; the comic only gives selected momentary snapshots of the protagonists' lives and interactions.
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Would Marten-in-shock say anything more than "Guh?"
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Would Marten-in-shock say anything more than "Guh?"
he might say "Buh Duh Wha?"
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Not necessarily in shock - those are his "processing" noises.
I remember the days when big computers had speakers, and you could listen to the progress of your program :-)
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You still can. You just have to be able to listen hard enough.
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As I already said in the WCDT thread, I am putting 100 bucks on this prediction:
Dora and Marten will get back together at Henry's wedding.
This isn't my personal feelings about the relationship, I just see a good bet when I see one.
why would Henry invite Dora now that she's not Marten's girlfriend????
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Anyone want to take bets on how long it takes for Tai to make a play for Dora? Something tells me that she'll find a way to overcome her previous misgivings (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1778).
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Depends... when's the next time she'll be both around alcohol and Dora at the same time?
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At said wedding...?
I can just see her at the reception, pantsless, stumbling against Dora, saying something suggestive way too loud...
I know, I know, there's even less reason for Tai to be invited than Dora, but hmor me, OK?
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I don't think that Dora would let anything happen between her and Tai right now, even if both of them were drunk around each other which seems very unlikely to happen in the anywhere near future. Dora seems to be a little too messed up at this point to see anyone or even have a fling with anyone after what looks like the first part of her fully realizing whats going on inside her head instead of her just repressing her paranoia and feelings of insecurity.
I think that her and Marten still have feelings for each other but they both need time apart to solve some of there own problems they have with themselves first. I wouldn't be surprised if both of them took some time to sort things out with themselves first before looking for anything with anyone else and then both of them sorting things out with each other and getting back together.
Plus why would Tai be at Marten's Father's wedding. I wouldn't think Dora would even be there unless either she gets back with Martin before hand (which is unlikely) or he has already taken her up on her offer of being flower girl, which is just as unlikely
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Judging from 526, Dora does not believe in rebound sex.
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...which is in and of itself a lie, since essentially what she did with Marten was a "rebound relationship" - albeit with a relationship that never got as far.
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I don't agree that what she had with Marten was a so called "rebound relationship." She went out with him in the first place was because she liked him, and that was seemingly the only reason. She had not recently gotten over a nasty breakup and was looking for someone to settle for and drown her sorrows in. She went out with Marten because she genuinely liked him and he accepted because he genuinely liked her. He kept reassuring her of that but she couldn't keep the thought that she was the rebound out of her head. That's what led to her slight breakdown and their breakup.
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It might not have been a rebound relationship for her, but it might have been in some ways for Marten. After all, he was the one that had just been "let down" by Faye, so in that aspect, it might have been similar to a rebound relationship. And that's part of her worry, of course, that he was just "using her" to get over Faye, and that he was still holding a torch for her.
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Guys, Dora is trying to break up with Marten.
Yeah, I'm bothered by that, too. "When he finally stands up to her, she leaves." /quote
I wonder if there's some dark corner of her mind that isn't satisfied with the passive, easy-going Marten? Apparently all her other SO's were very different; what if she suspects she's not totally suited to a guy like him? Could this be a fascinating example of better happiness (an actually nice guy who loves her!) maybe not making her "happy"? Maybe (gasp!) she's already been thinking of leaving him, or feels backed into a corner and did it because it seems easier than working through her issues and becoming accountable and responsible for positive change.
What I'm suggesting is that (once again) she's not being completely straight with him (or herself, probably.) Maybe there's more that's problematic between them than she's expressing. People often leave out, don't realize clearly, or just avoid truths that don't fit the realtionship story, for a variety of reasons, from denial to self-protection to protecting the other.
(Also I suspect I'm pushing speculation here in a hopeful attempt to get the Dora-backstory... let's speculate away so Jeph gets tired of it and gives us canon!) :-P
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Judging from 526, Dora does not believe in rebound sex.
What she said was, "I don't want to be a rebound fuck,..." which I don't think precludes wanting A rebound fuck.
One could argue her big issue here is that she violated her own rule... Marten was emotionally rebounding when she pounced on him.
I EXPECT to see Tai invited, she's the only person he works with AND a friend!
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1. I think he'll take Hanners to the wedding, as "just friends". Although if there's anyone patient enough to work through Hanner's issues, that would be Marten. No sex? No problem, after this breakup, it's probably going to be a while before Marten's nads get back in gear. That gives Hanners some time to get *her* nads in gear.
2. After that stunt with Dora's pic and the fleshlight, I'm surprised Pintsize didn't get punted out the window. But to some shocks, all you can do it close the door and walk away.
3. Marten's Mom/Dora's premonition. Dora's going to get the personal attention from Marten's mom that she always wanted, but it isn't going to be at all pleasant for her. Mom might not even need to raise her hand or her voice to utterly devastate (from her standpoint) this b*tch who just hurt her precious boy. Mom may be overestimating just *how* hurt he is in her own mind, but -- no mistake -- he is hurt.
Although I do wonder why she's flying out *now*, when she didn't for the girl who dragged him away, crosscountry, for naught...
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Although I do wonder why she's flying out *now*, when she didn't for the girl who dragged him away, crosscountry, for naught...
We don't know that she didn't. When Marten told that story, he didn't know them well enough to bring up his mom. At the very least, he'd have no reason to bring her up to them.
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true, he had no reason to bring up his mom back then. also i dont see how even a emotionally unstable person could accuse marten of using her as a rebound thing, as she started it. i do think it was a play to break them up as she was so used to jerk SO that she almost could not process martens attitude so she thought he had to be dark and shady underneath, or just that she could not handle a nice guy after all the problematic relationships she mentally came up with reasons on how to break up. or she might just have security problems that can be fixed.