Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Mr. Skawronska]

I almost wonder if she just likes giving Marten a hard time.  A tough love to say the least.

I'm thinking that Dora is having a bit of sadistic fun with the both of them just becuase it was too good an opportunity to pass up.

I mean, first, the girl comes into CoD and pretty much CONFESSES, and Dora gets to scare the hell out of her all the while laughing that Marten turned her down.  Then, she gives Marten the "opportunity" to "confess" what happened, and when he doesn't, she gets to scare the hell out of HIM all the while laughing that she already knew Marten is faithful.

Dora may be an evil bitch, but she's an evil bitch for different reasons that some might think:  She's an evil bitch because I can see behind her righteous indignation someone who takes great pleasure in watching people squirm.

Do I hate her?  Hell no.  Hate the hairstyle, but I'll get over it.  Personally, I see this as totally in character for her.  She's just a bit TOO convincing this time.

I mean, she convinced most of you, didn't she?

Good job, Jeph.

Well played.

S

[tacothesmurf]

a bit off topic, but am I the only one who likes Dora's new hair?

[Superkid11]

Her issues aren't giant economy sized ones and she's not dumb, so at some point the information that Marten turned the girl down (girl is all embarrassed about it) will sink in and she'll come out of the red zone.

red zone.

I'd make a tasteless joke about that right about now... but I won't.

Though it is kind of odd to have her be totally fine with Marty seeing Hanners' boobage one day then act up about something like this the next. I'm not the kind of guy who blames everything on that time of the month but still.

[GreatGonzo]

It's never safe to blame anything on that time of month. And certainly not during that time of month.

[Mallli_kite]

The difference might be that she KNOWS Hanners.  Honestly, can you imagine Hannelore having SEX, much less hitting on someone else's guy?   If Hanners was possessed by, say, Jackie Collins and suddenly vixened all over Marten, when she came to she'd practically kill herself with guilt and sanitization efforts.  Dora wouldn't have to do a thing but watch and maybe give Marten a place to hide.

Dora was ok with it because Hanners is COMPLETELY safe.

[Rocketman]

4) We'd lose a lot of funny if she didn't have problems #1-3.  Rule of funny, guys.  Sheesh.

Generally, things have to be funny before the rule of funny comes into effect. And this abusive relationship is not funny.

[Blackcat Moebius]

The difference might be that she KNOWS Hanners.  Honestly, can you imagine Hannelore having SEX, much less hitting on someone else's guy?   If Hanners was possessed by, say, Jackie Collins and suddenly vixened all over Marten, when she came to she'd practically kill herself with guilt and sanitization efforts.  Dora wouldn't have to do a thing but watch and maybe give Marten a place to hide.

Dora was ok with it because Hanners is COMPLETELY safe.

I dunno... Dora's been suspicious, even of Hanners, in the past.

Exhibit A.

Exhibit B.

Can't find Exhibit C... it was another case of Dora warning Hannelore off Marten.

[Tiney]

I guess I should mention that I loved Dora's reaction yesterday with the broadsword, but that doesn't diminish the annoyance I have with her insecurities.  Eventually her insecurity issue has to be resolved, right?  Or not.   

[chrisa1]

A chunk of this discussion is why Dora reacts differently to the random girl asking for a date vs. Marten saying he saw Hanners' boob.

I think Dora's reaction also depends on who initiated things. In Hanners case, she was unconscious, so did not purposefully initiate the incident.

In the more recent case, random girl actually tried to start something with Marten. I think someone mentioned Dora feeling threatened; that is possible.

Also, to me, the tipping point of her reaction comes in panel 3. Yes, Marten is easily guilted. But when he asks Dora how she found out, in a manner that suggests he did something wrong, it's a pretty sure setup for a negative reaction.

More advisable might have been, in response to Dora's "NOTEWORTHY", for Marten to respond something like, "No, not a big deal at all. I told her I was in a relationship, and that was it." Almost guaranteed to take the wind out of Dora's sails. Marten's actual response added fuel to the fire.

And I don't think Dora is tweaking Marten. She looks pretty mad. And Faye's running commentary is funny!

[Superkid11]

"No, not a big deal at all. I told her I was in a relationship, and that was it." Almost guaranteed to take the wind out of Dora's sails. Marten's actual response added fuel to the fire.

I'm sure Marty's gonna learn that sooner or later.

[michi-love]

The difference might be that she KNOWS Hanners.  Honestly, can you imagine Hannelore having SEX, much less hitting on someone else's guy?   If Hanners was possessed by, say, Jackie Collins and suddenly vixened all over Marten, when she came to she'd practically kill herself with guilt and sanitization efforts.  Dora wouldn't have to do a thing but watch and maybe give Marten a place to hide.

Dora was ok with it because Hanners is COMPLETELY safe.

I dunno... Dora's been suspicious, even of Hanners, in the past.

Exhibit A.

Exhibit B.

Can't find Exhibit C... it was another case of Dora warning Hannelore off Marten.

Right, yeah, because Dora was totally serious in those cases.
Honestly, if Dora was actually warning away/feeling threatened by Hannelore, she would be more RAWR (hi, see the two most recent strips for what RAWR-Dora looks like in case you've forgotten) and less her easy-going, slightly-sarcastic jokin' self. And while she may have, in "exhibit B", been subtly marking her territory, she wasn't very concerned with it, even though Hanners had confessed to stalking him.

[Mallli_kite]

I dunno... Dora's been suspicious, even of Hanners, in the past.

Exhibit A.

Exhibit B.

Can't find Exhibit C... it was another case of Dora warning Hannelore off Marten.

I don't think the first example supports your argument. It IS an excellent example of Dora showing she's aware of her own insecure tendencies and making fun of them, which pretty much indicates a lack of serious threat.

The second one is certainly more vivid and detailed, but Hannelore's reaction is most likely EXACTLY what Dora was going for.  A woman cowering in abject terror at an even joking reference to being beheaded isn't likely to jump on the SO of the person making the threat.

And considering Hanners can't even envision using someone else shower http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1321r (pardon the lack of HTML, I'm dangerous to myself and others with any code)

And then there's this one

http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1315

And even in the infamous popped boob confession strip, Dora admits that Marten doesn't have much chance of cheating on her

http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1314

Of course, he came right out with that one because he felt guilty about it.  He didn't feel guilty about turning down the girl in the library and most likely did the guy thing with an unimportant detail and forgot it.

Then again, Dora is just maintaining in the face of her insecurities.

http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1300

I think Jeph has a handle on his characters and isn't going to fly that far off into insecurity land without some reason more solid than 'Marten Blows Off Girl Who Asks Him Out Because He's In a Good Relationship".  Of course,  I've seen writers/artists do unreasonable stuff with their stories just because they felt like it so there's no predicting, but so far he's done a good job so I'm gonna say past performance will predict future results.

In the mean time, I'm hoping someone rescues Steve from further episodes of "As the Bottle Turns" and that Will comes back with at least a little of his innocent idealism (and his virgin ass) intact.  I'm worried for Will.

[Norton Quintessential]

You know, Angus' departure is actually beginning to grow on me. Every time I think of "Born to Run", I see Angus in the next to last panel here: http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1310

[SuperSUGA]

People acting irrationally and inconsistently is pretty consistent with human behaviour, if that makes sense 

[Bushbr]

First off, long time reader first time poster.

moving on, why are you all acting like Dora completely ripped off Martens head? She didn't over react, she was a bit pissed, but she has some right. considering the fact she jokes around about beheading people and such, think how she would act if she really were pissed at marten. look at the comic itself Jeph did not change the style of words when Dora was talking to indicate anger (aside from a few bolded words, but who hasnt heard a mom or g/f stress some words when they are scolding you) nothing ended with an exclamation mark. I don't think she is reacting that dramatically to this. This isn't how dora acts when she is angry. when dora is angry everyone knows it. its not insecurity as much i think it is with annoyance. marten was annoyed by guys hitting on her, as most guys would be, and she is annoyed now that marten is becoming eye candy
So ease off Dora, she's not a bitch....right now....

I also agree that RandomCollegeGirl should become a staple character maybe she can sleep with sven and send faye back over the age, or maybe she will lesbo up with library chick *name escapes me* and hanners.

[Norton Quintessential]

That's actually a good point, Bushbr. She doesn't seem as bad on a second reading.

[Mallli_kite]

People acting irrationally and inconsistently is pretty consistent with human behaviour, if that makes sense 

TOTALLY agree, there, SuperSUGA -- but it doesn't fly so well in fiction.  Probably one reason so many of us like fiction  

[raoullefere]

Or Jeph is forum baiting.

I doubt he is a fisherman; you mean bating. 

Nope, he means baiting, as in luring (1) or taunting (2). Bating is what a falcon does trying to get off its perch. Or, I suppose, half of what a human does trying to, well, get off (fapping instead of flapping?). It also means putting shit on a hide to get the hair off, literally, but that's neither here nor somewhere.

I'm not exactly certain Dora is serious. She herself has baited Marten before, as I recall. But if she is serious, Dora would hardly be the first person to get nervous about such things, especially since Dora herself believes she pirated Marten away from Faye. Reacting this way doesn't make her a bitch so much as it makes her human. As for fiction, very often human consistency separates the popular from the, well, accurate. Which is to say good, to me anyway.

As for Jeph's comment, I don't understand getting upset about his statement, especially since I read the comic and then logged on to the forum quite confident I would see a "Dora's a bitch!"/"No, Marten's a jerk!" debate begin, complete with the occasional spate of idiocy. I would say Jeph needs to start an investment company except for the fact that all he seems able to predict is the very, very likely.

Oh yeah, Said it before, but I'll say it again: I dig Dora's do. (Which in retrospect may be an unfortunately worded statement. But I love alliteration.)

[Superkid11]

Yeah, it may be realistic but that doesn't make it any more fun to read. 

But yeah, at least Dora didn't go RAAAAAAGEE. Still, it's mildly irritating to see her acting that way... in which comic has Marten been annoyed at people flirting with her again?
Even so, Dora's not exactly directing her irritation very well. :/

[Is it cold in here?]

But if she is serious, Dora would hardly be the first person to get nervous about such things, especially since Dora herself believes she pirated Marten away from Faye.

That belief might make her more likely to get nervous about someone stealing Marten away from her.

[Kugai]

Or Jeph is forum baiting.

I doubt he is a fisherman; you mean bating. 

Nope, he means baiting, as in luring (1) or taunting (2). Bating is what a falcon does trying to get off its perch. Or, I suppose, half of what a human does trying to, well, get off (fapping instead of flapping?). It also means putting shit on a hide to get the hair off, literally, but that's neither here nor somewhere.

Hence my earlier Hook Line and Sinker comment.

[Bushbr]

But if she is serious, Dora would hardly be the first person to get nervous about such things, especially since Dora herself believes she pirated Marten away from Faye.

That belief might make her more likely to get nervous about someone stealing Marten away from her.

which is what i think is the main source of her agitation. she isnt mad at marten, she isn't mad at random college girl. she feels she stole marten from faye,so in her mind she knows marten can be stolen, so add that knowledge to the guilt she carries for "stealing marten", she is almost expecting marten to get stolen. eye for an eye as it were

[Siligero]

It's clear that given her history and whatnot, she would certainly be insecure over a matter such as that. What's mind boggling to me is how her insecurity translates to anger which she takes out on Marten. In my head, that doesn't exactly add up.

[Kartoon Kween]

a bit off topic, but am I the only one who likes Dora's new hair?

I love it!

[cgarci21]

I love Dora's new do. In fact, if I had long hair I would at the very least debate having it done.

As for Dora's reaction I don't think she has any reason to behave the way she did but that doesn't mean I can't see why she did it. I doubt she is over the insecurity that she was second best after the whole Faye/Marten/Dora love triangle debacle. And considreing she is naturally insecure, well it seems more reasonable.

Its not okay by any means but usually Dora see's reason before any of her insecurities get too out of hand. Which is a good thing considering the amount of weaponry sitting around at CoD.

[michi-love]

I like Dora's hair more and more each strip, for the record.

And anger is a perfectly reasonable  - though obviously not a particularly rational - way to handle insecurities, in real life, and being that QC does seem very realistic (at least in human behavior) it's almost expected that Dora would turn her insecurities about losing Martin in the same way she gained him into something angry.
Angry, silent worrying, or OHMYGODIMUSTBEBYHISSIDEEVERYSECONDOFTHEDAY.
Which sounds most likely for Dora to deal with her issues? She's not the type to be silent, she is NOT that clingy, and even more, she does seem like the quick-tempered type.

[Jimor]

Now that I've thought about things for a bit (hey, I'm an editor, it's what I do), I think I have a better idea of what's going on.

Overall, this group of characters is generally quite self-aware of their own flaws. That doesn't mean they have control over their reactions to a situation, just that when they get some time to think things over, they're usually willing to admit what they've done wrong, and even apologize when necessary. Even with the rough handling they toss at each other, there's usually a line they try not to cross.

In this case, I think Dora was expecting Marten to do his usual guilt trip confession so she could rib him about getting hit on, and when he didn't come through, the surprise coupled with the insecurities triggered this reaction. Afterward, she'll likely feel bad and try to make it up to him.

I think my main question is whether Marten will come back with a little bit of spine, which he has every right to do, or whether he'll meekly accept this and maybe even let it fester.

Meanwhile, if things don't quickly blow over, Faye will be seeing cracks in the Marten/Dora relationship, which will complicate her own feelings. I don't know if any of this is what Jeph has planned now that it's happening, but it's very possible that all this is something unexpected building out of what seemed a harmless joke (which often happens in real life too).

Or it all is just a one-off joke and something completely different will happen on Monday. While I like to analyze stories and characters to death (that editor thing again), I also am perfectly willing to enjoy the ride the author is taking me on. When I really want to control where a story zigs or zags, I write my own.

[NeverQuiteGoth]

Marten Marten Marten. The correct response (in panel three) is either "Oh, yeah, that." or "I stand by my 'no'."

[kaitco]

Or Jeph is forum baiting.

I doubt he is a fisherman; you mean bating. 

Nope, he means baiting, as in luring (1) or taunting (2). Bating is what a falcon does trying to get off its perch. Or, I suppose, half of what a human does trying to, well, get off (fapping instead of flapping?). It also means putting shit on a hide to get the hair off, literally, but that's neither here nor somewhere.

My many apologies. Even the grammar police can occasionally make a false arrest. 

But if she is serious, Dora would hardly be the first person to get nervous about such things, especially since Dora herself believes she pirated Marten away from Faye.

That belief might make her more likely to get nervous about someone stealing Marten away from her.

which is what i think is the main source of her agitation. she isnt mad at marten, she isn't mad at random college girl. she feels she stole marten from faye,so in her mind she knows marten can be stolen, so add that knowledge to the guilt she carries for "stealing marten", she is almost expecting marten to get stolen. eye for an eye as it were

I had not actually considered this earlier, but I this line of thinking seems very true. One of those "skeletons" Dora may be hiding is the fact that she still feels guilty about jumping on Marten as soon as it was clear that Faye was not capable of beginning a relationship with him. There may also be something in the idea that Dora still thinks she is just second best and not really what Marten wanted.

Dora has expressed a real interest in Marten since the comic was still in double digits, but it was not until Faye was "out of the way" and she knew that Marten would not have to actually choose her over Faye that she made her move on him. My vote is still on Dora's insecurities coming to light in that fourth panel, though I am now certain that this whole drama will blow over almost anticlimactically on Monday.

[michi-love]

though I am now certain that this whole drama will blow over almost anticlimactically on Monday.

... That would probably piss 99.9% of readers off.
I know I would be very upset. All that build-up, and then "... Oh, well, it was just a joke. And Faye's blood joke? She just doesn't want to mop up the spilled coffee!"

[kaitco]

It would piss me off too, but I could see it happening. I thought that this argument arc would last a little longer and grow a little more in-depth than it did, but mostly it had some laughs, sans-Dora, and then Marten did his whole "I'm-totally-understanding-and-such-a-great-guy" bit again. Personally, I am hoping that Marten shows some more backbone and just asks Dora why she is so bent on getting on his case about a non-event, but skepticism always bodes well for me.

[michi-love]

Yeah... Martin needs to come out and say, hey, I love you! Remember? Which means some little freshman girl asking me out at work doesn't even register on my "things that happened today" radar.
But, then again, this is Martin.
So we can't ask for too much, I suppose.

[MegaLexi]

It's clear that given her history and whatnot, she would certainly be insecure over a matter such as that. What's mind boggling to me is how her insecurity translates to anger which she takes out on Marten. In my head, that doesn't exactly add up.

Does for me, because I have the exact same problem. I don't know why, exactly, but when my insecurities bubble over it tends to translate in to an extremely emotional and sometimes physical lashing out. My poor kid brother can attest to what happens when I finally snap after all kinds of stupid, meaningless, petty shit keeps getting piled on.

[Mallli_kite]

As others have pointed out, anger reactions to incongruous things are common.  When a child does something hairbrained or dangerous, scaring Mom near to hysterics, yet comes back whole and unharmed, Mom will often turn from hysterics to relief to anger, with a solid mix of "Don't you ever do that again!  What were you thinking!", screaming, tears, smacks on the back of the head, and hugs.  Some people react to surprise, even pleasant surprises (like birthday parties) with anger.  Anger is often a follow up for fear and worry.

So, maybe Dora really was worried, then relieved, then angry. 


As Jimor said above, it all may be a one-off and we are all analyzing it to death.  I'll agree, too, that it's 2/3rds of the fun of reading anything.  Taking it apart is the job of the reader.  Usually the writer doesn't think about stuff nearly as much -- it seems logical or a good idea at the time, the deadline is looming "Hey, yeah, this will work" and -- TADA -- there it is.  I seriously doubt Shakespeare spent nearly the amount of time parsing his characters than legions of scholars have long after he made his money.

That was a rotten sentence, but I'm pre caffeine and take no responsibility.

[QuarterFire]

She probably thinks that Sven will steal Marten away.

[Mallli_kite]

She probably thinks that Sven will steal Marten away.

Well, THAT would be an unexpected twist, I'll admit.

[Blackcat Moebius]

She probably thinks that Sven will steal Marten away.

She'd like that, 'cuz then she could make a move on Faye.

[Bushbr]

She probably thinks that Sven will steal Marten away.

She'd like that, 'cuz then she could make a move on Faye.

cue the fan art!

i still maintain that people are overreacting about Doras reaction. doe she really seem SUPER-Ultra-Mega-Uber angry at marten to you guys? she seems just a bit peeved to me

[LTK]

though I am now certain that this whole drama will blow over almost anticlimactically on Monday.

... That would probably piss 99.9% of readers off.
I know I would be very upset. All that build-up, and then "... Oh, well, it was just a joke. And Faye's blood joke? She just doesn't want to mop up the spilled coffee!"

What build-up? All it was, was a comic that had a joke based on the previous comic. Here on the forum, just like Jeph predicted, 'a completely idiotic debate' is started regardless of his comment. Wasn't that enough to indicate that there really isn't more to it?

[GreatGonzo]

She probably thinks that Sven will steal Marten away.

Well, THAT would be an unexpected twist, I'll admit.

Not to all the Marven shippers, I imagine. 

[Norton Quintessential]

MAI FANFIC WILL FINALLY BE CANNON

[Mallli_kite]

I'm old enough to remember when it was all called slash...and it still scares me.  No desolate planets with just Sven and Marten, no being trapped on islands, no caves with mysterious hot springs appearing in the midst of terrible blizzards.

Yes, I repent the errors of my youth.

Fan fic can't be canon.  That makes it automatically not fan fic.  It does nothing to remove the horror, though.

Marten is just mild enough that he might react with pure stunned shock, unable to protest for a minute or so, but I can't picture Sven moving in for even lip action.  Hell, they don't even have a bromance going.

And would Dora commit fratricide before she pulled the whole Sapho thing on Faye?  (and you KNOW Raven would have her phone out taking pictures).

[roxy255]

Dora gets a little insane sometimes, and when that happens, it makes me feel like it's not Dora... it reminds me that Jeph wrote it, and usually you forget that they are fictitious because the characterization is so good. i don't know. I just can never buy that she would actually flip out at something like that. but what do i know.

[Norton Quintessential]

Fan fic can't be canon.  That makes it automatically not fan fic.  It does nothing to remove the horror, though.

It was a joke.

[Mallli_kite]

Fan fic can't be canon.  That makes it automatically not fan fic.  It does nothing to remove the horror, though.

It was a joke.

Yes, I was aware.  So was my reply.  Sorry you missed it.  I'll use a scope next time to improve my aim. 

[Kugai]

First HanTai

Next FayeDora

then  . . . . . .  PenVen

[michi-love]

The fixation of turning QC into a slashfest scares me, more than just a little bit.

[Kugai]

The fixation of turning QC into a slashfest scares me, more than just a little bit.

MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!

[Headwoünd]

You mean it doesn't bore you to death by now?
Odd.

[Kugai]

Life would be boring without the occasional odd person.