I'm not in Jeph's head (for which he'd be thankful, if he only knew what was in my head), but I suspect that Claire is described the way she is to avoid giving anything away to new readers, while at the same time trying to offend as few people as possible, since there are plenty of people who have not learned to be accepting of people just the way they are. Acceptance goes both ways, and it doesn't happen overnight.
I really don’t know. I’m just spitballing here. Maybe he originally put her entry on the cast page before he had decided what her story was, and he just never got around to changing “sibling” to “sister” later on when she started “smooching Marten”.I'm not in Jeph's head (for which he'd be thankful, if he only knew what was in my head), but I suspect that Claire is described the way she is to avoid giving anything away to new readers, while at the same time trying to offend as few people as possible, since there are plenty of people who have not learned to be accepting of people just the way they are. Acceptance goes both ways, and it doesn't happen overnight.
Why would it be a spoiler to describe Claire as Clinton's sister? That's what she is, that's how that relationship was introduced, it spoils nothing about her being trans. Not being trans, I won't comment about the offensiveness of it, but I do not see how it's a spoiler.
I will say if someone's going to be offended by reading a comic with a trans major character, QC is probably not the comic for them...
Speaking of the cast page, am I the only one a bit disturbed that Claire is described as Clinton's "sibling"? Especially with Sven's description freely using the word "brother," it feels kind of transphobic. (...I was tempted to comment on the ordering, but I'm guessing it's for the benefit of new readers.)
No, no. The point there was that Sven’s description on the cast page calls him Dora’s brother, as opposed to her “sibling”.Speaking of the cast page, am I the only one a bit disturbed that Claire is described as Clinton's "sibling"? Especially with Sven's description freely using the word "brother," it feels kind of transphobic. (...I was tempted to comment on the ordering, but I'm guessing it's for the benefit of new readers.)
As for Sven, I don't quite remember he refering to Claire like that but we know he's a jerk so it's still in character for him
"Gus" Agustus (my own head-canon name for Claire's and Clinton's father)
"Gus" Agustus (my own head-canon name for Claire's and Clinton's father)
My personal headcanon is that his name is Claudius Tiberius Augustus. I'm probably wrong. :-D
I don't know if his father was a stick in the mud, but Claire & Clinton's opinion of their father (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2991) doesn't say much. It would be nice if their grandfather actually turned out to be cool, but I'm not holding my breath. I'm hoping that their father has a name like "Dipshit Knight" or something equally fitting."Gus" Agustus (my own head-canon name for Claire's and Clinton's father)
My personal headcanon is that his name is Claudius Tiberius Augustus. I'm probably wrong. ;D
I take it his father was NOT a stick in the mud like Henry? :D
Speaking of the cast page, am I the only one a bit disturbed that Claire is described as Clinton's "sibling"? Especially with Sven's description freely using the word "brother," it feels kind of transphobic. (...I was tempted to comment on the ordering, but I'm guessing it's for the benefit of new readers.)
...okay, this is really, really nitpicky and tangential, but I feel obligated to point out that "sibling" is not a pronoun.The poor nits don't stand a chance.
...okay, this is really, really nitpicky and tangential, but I feel obligated to point out that "sibling" is not a pronoun.
I feel as though Claire’s struggles with being trans have sort of faded into the background. Is it transphobic to say that? I sort of wish there was another trans woman in the comic so they could bounce their thoughts off each other. Or a trans man. I’d like it explored more fully.I got the impression that before she told Marten, the only people who knew were her immediate family. It seemed to her at that time that her struggle was insurmountable. What will people think? What will they say? What will they do? I have no doubt she was absolutely terrified when she told Marten. It was a leap of faith. But he was also the one person she knew she could trust more than anyone else outside her family (plus, I think she already had a bit of a crush on him at that point). Once she told Marten, and later Emily, and they were both completely OK with it, her struggle - while no doubt still great - was a little easier. Now that she is in a relationship with Marten, he has gone beyond simply saying that he's cool with her being trans, to demonstrating that he loves her just for her. Her struggle is not over, by any means. There will always be people who will think poorly of her. She's not broadcasting it to the world, but she doesn't need to, either. It's no one's business anyway, unless she chooses to tell them. She has found that her friends - and especially the man who is most important in her life - really don't care.
>I got the impression that before she told Marten, the only people who knew were her immediate family.Pretty much. It's not like she came right out and said "Only my family knows", but when she told Emily (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2573), she implied that Marten was the only person who knew, and then later when talking with Marten (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2901), she implied that Emily was the only other person who knew.
I have one of those vague uncertain things that's not really a memory that she said as much. Did that happen?
Mistakes can hurt too. An act of a trans-supportive person can be transphobic.
Jeph has earned the trust of the trans*community based on what I've heard from them. "Sibling" is the wrong word. Both are true.
.... And Brun might end up getting invited and can put a white ribbon on the harpoon.A nice new Blue ribbon and the harpoon would have to be a borrowed antique.