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Author Topic: Oh, Sven ...  (Read 98163 times)

maddness

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Oh, Sven ...
« on: 05 Feb 2009, 18:20 »

I'm thinking he should run. Maybe change his name ... go underground. It's about to get angtsy.
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Malek

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #1 on: 05 Feb 2009, 18:25 »

Oh...

I thought this was gonna be one of those "OMIGHOD SO HOT BUTSEX" threads.

Thank you for proving me wrong  :-)

Also i agree.
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KeepACoolin

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #2 on: 05 Feb 2009, 18:27 »

Guaranteed, either he or her or both will be destroyed savagely.  Next week at some point we might see another "Litany Against Fear" reference (yay, Dune!).
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mdoyl44

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #3 on: 05 Feb 2009, 19:22 »

I think Faye is gonna be hurt and vulnerable and get drunk and say just the right thing in front of Marten that will make him question why he is with Dora when Faye is who he's always wanted.

Don't get me wrong, I love Dora, but the Faye-Marten thing is something we would all love to see.

If the Office can pull off Jim-Pam, then QC can pull off Faye-Marten.
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Jackie Blue

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #4 on: 05 Feb 2009, 19:42 »

Well, this strip is where the comic officially went about a thousand miles over the shark for me.

I guess Jeph is writing to his audience now, which is fine, but that audience won't be including me anymore.
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k

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #5 on: 05 Feb 2009, 19:50 »

Well, this strip is where the comic officially went about a thousand miles over the shark for me.

I guess Jeph is writing to his audience now, which is fine, but that audience won't be including me anymore.


What is it that you're objecting to in regards to this storyline?
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rofl

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #6 on: 05 Feb 2009, 19:51 »

I'm not sure how this could qualify as jumping the shark at all... Although I suppose Sven is a little bit like The Fonz.
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Jackie Blue

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #7 on: 05 Feb 2009, 19:58 »

Relationship-drama for its own sake, or the sake of pleasing the readers.  Also drawing a sex scene, I mean, really now...

You know how some people hate the "Kate-Jack-Sawyer" stuff on LOST?  That's what this strip reminds me of.  It just seems like poor writing to have Sven revert to having such incredibly poor self-control as to sleep with a random girl, when he has clearly been written to be trying to make up for his womanizing ways for well over 2 years worth of strips now.
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kjohnnytarr

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #8 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:09 »

I think Faye is gonna be hurt and vulnerable and get drunk and say just the right thing in front of Marten that will make him question why he is with Dora when Faye is who he's always wanted.

Don't get me wrong, I love Dora, but the Faye-Marten thing is something we would all love to see.

If the Office can pull off Jim-Pam, then QC can pull off Faye-Marten.


Really? Why do folks here assume that Marten and Faye are destined to be the hottest shit ever?
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count

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #9 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:26 »

Really? Why do folks here assume that Marten and Faye are destined to be the hottest shit ever?

too many 80's John Cusack movies I guess?
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Jackie Blue

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #10 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:29 »

Are you forgetting that the ending to The Breakfast Club completely sucked because Ally Sheedy's character decided to become a "normal" girl and hooked up with the jock?

Seriously I love that flick but I always turn it off before that part.  The whole point of the movie was to accept who you are and then, BAM, crazy-cool art-chick is in a stupid baby-blue dress.

SHENANIGANS.
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count

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #11 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:31 »

The whole point of the movie was to accept who you are and then, BAM, crazy-cool art-chick is in a stupid baby-blue dress.

maybe that's who she was?
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Chromekilla

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #12 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:31 »

Relationship-drama for its own sake, or the sake of pleasing the readers.  Also drawing a sex scene, I mean, really now...

You know how some people hate the "Kate-Jack-Sawyer" stuff on LOST?  That's what this strip reminds me of.  It just seems like poor writing to have Sven revert to having such incredibly poor self-control as to sleep with a random girl, when he has clearly been written to be trying to make up for his womanizing ways for well over 2 years worth of strips now.


Because obviously every reformation must happen overnight and nobody ever backpedals in real life. To me it seems to be completely in character. He is obviously a spontaneous type of person so its completely realistic for him to sleep with a random girl. As far as his progress is concerned... well, he is feeling bad while he's doing it right?

Faye will be pissed, but that just cements my view that she is an absolute bitch.
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SrMeowMeow

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #13 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:34 »

Fanservice, woo...

This comic is basically the manifestation of one of my two main reservations with QC.
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k

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #14 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:51 »


Faye will be pissed, but that just cements my view that she is an absolute bitch.
[/quote]

Yes, how dare a woman be angry about her lover having sex with another woman after she asked him not to? Total bitch.
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Jackie Blue

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #15 on: 05 Feb 2009, 20:52 »

Fanservice, woo...

This comic is basically the manifestation of one of my two main reservations with QC.

Thank God, someone agrees with me.
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Chromekilla

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #16 on: 05 Feb 2009, 21:31 »


Faye will be pissed, but that just cements my view that she is an absolute bitch.

Yes, how dare a woman be angry about her lover having sex with another woman after she asked him not to? Total bitch.
[/quote]

How dare someone sleep with someone else when they are in a non-monogamous relationship! Travesty!

They're friends with benefits...
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John911

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #17 on: 05 Feb 2009, 21:34 »


Faye will be pissed, but that just cements my view that she is an absolute bitch.

Yes, how dare a woman be angry about her lover having sex with another woman after she asked him not to? Total bitch.
[/quote]

 :roll:

Yeah, and the women who basically said to him "I don't want to be in a relationship with you, but I don't want you to be with anyone else either. So just sex?"

All of Jeph's central female characters are bascially fucked up in some way:

Faye: Unable to be intimate with ANY man beyond a physical relationship. Jealous that she is unable to be, while others are.
Dora: Massively insecure. Has a tough facade to hide her deep insecurities of being unable to control EVERYTHING in her life.
Hannelore: OCD, enough said.

 
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Is it cold in here?

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #18 on: 05 Feb 2009, 22:02 »

If this is poor writing, then it is well foreshadowed poor writing. We've had Sven tell Faye flat out that he's fine with her leaving if he sleeps with someone else. Words to the effect "Great, it'll save me the trouble of a messy breakup talk".
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kjohnnytarr

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #19 on: 05 Feb 2009, 22:11 »


All of Jeph's central female characters are bascially fucked up in some way:



Fixed that for you
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kaitco

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #20 on: 05 Feb 2009, 22:26 »

Really? Why do folks here assume that Marten and Faye are destined to be the hottest shit ever?

Um...? Because it is how the comic began and some people just cannot stop hoping that they will "eventually" get together?

All of Jeph's central female characters are bascially fucked up in some way:
Fixed that for you
I agree. Marten qualifies as "fucked up" in my book. His mother was a dominatrix and he allows himself to get practically bullied by this female friends. He is kind of a pussy and, if I met him on the street, I would probably treat the way Faye had in the first 500 or so comics.

Back to the "Oh, Sven..." thing: I almost feel sorry for him. He lacks any self control and he will be incapable of controlling even his bodily functions once Faye gets through with him.

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Cartilage Head

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #21 on: 05 Feb 2009, 22:44 »

QC? Moar like OC lolololol
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pwhodges

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #22 on: 06 Feb 2009, 00:00 »

oh noes!

Pleasing the reader is often at the back of a writer's mind; he'd like to continue making a living out of it, I guess.  As for Sven's behaviour, I've certainly seen real-life people do that in that timescale, and even for it to work out in the end - it's not unrealistic writing.  Nor is it the first sex scene, though it is a little more explicit than previous ones.
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SuperSUGA

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #23 on: 06 Feb 2009, 01:36 »

Fanservice, woo...

This comic is basically the manifestation of one of my two main reservations with QC.
I'll bite.

What's the other?
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sofiabailote

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #24 on: 06 Feb 2009, 01:47 »

Are you forgetting that the ending to The Breakfast Club completely sucked because Ally Sheedy's character decided to become a "normal" girl and hooked up with the jock?

Seriously I love that flick but I always turn it off before that part.  The whole point of the movie was to accept who you are and then, BAM, crazy-cool art-chick is in a stupid baby-blue dress.

SHENANIGANS.


I totally agree! I always felt that was soo unnecessary... I felt the same way about Shrek- why did Fiona had to be an ogre to end up with Shrek? The whole point of the thing was that looks didn't matter and the princess could love the monster... but noooo- they had to go and make them look the same, because, I don't know, people might be shocked!
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Uniquitous

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #25 on: 06 Feb 2009, 02:43 »

Nothing wrong with a bit of fan service every now and then... brightened up my morning, I can tell you.   

I suspect that regardless of Faye's reaction, Sven will be prompted to much introspection simply because he didn't enjoy the sex with Gina as much as he could have, due to being constantly distracted by pangs of conscience.  That is, should he survive.
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jolinwarren

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #26 on: 06 Feb 2009, 03:49 »

It just seems like poor writing to

I'm not trying to change your opinion, but it's worth noting that...

have Sven revert to having such incredibly poor self-control as to sleep with a random girl

She's not completely random. She's the one country singer Sven apparently likes.

when he has clearly been written to be trying to make up for his womanizing ways for well over 2 years worth of strips now

2 years in QC strips = 2 hours in real life. Or thereabouts.  :laugh:
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KeepACoolin

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #27 on: 06 Feb 2009, 04:17 »

I think Faye is gonna be hurt and vulnerable and get drunk and say just the right thing in front of Marten that will make him question why he is with Dora when Faye is who he's always wanted.

Don't get me wrong, I love Dora, but the Faye-Marten thing is something we would all love to see.

If the Office can pull off Jim-Pam, then QC can pull off Faye-Marten.
This would be a horrible move.  Dora is so much better a character than Faye.  Plus, it really would jump the shark (at least without major shifts in plot first).  If this comic's last strip is Faye and Marten confessing their love and making out in the rain, I will try to go back in time and stop myself from ever reading this comic.
« Last Edit: 23 Feb 2009, 18:33 by KeepACoolin »
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Lily125

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #28 on: 06 Feb 2009, 04:38 »


She's not completely random. She's the one country singer Sven apparently likes.


Thanks for pointing that out because I was just about to.  Also, it should be of some note that he realizes he is doing a bad thing.  The old Sven wouldn't have given it much thought.   

kurzon

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #29 on: 06 Feb 2009, 05:16 »

The random sex was almost inevitable.  It is Sven slipping back to past 'easy' behaviour.  It was easy to go along with what the hot singer wanted and, after all, he _has_ been telling Faye/himself that it's not like the consequences (Faye's inevitable explosion and departure) really matter to him.  It was a pure sex convenience relationship after all.

And over the next few months we get to see Sven find out of that was really true.

[Hopefully Faye's feelings of betrayal won't send her back into psychosis, but it might send her out of town for a while.]
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tuna ketchup x

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #30 on: 06 Feb 2009, 06:13 »

Now this is some questionable content amirite?

As much as it comes off as "woo fanservice" (though I'm sure there's more people who'd rather see a Hanners/Tai panel, the pervs) I think this strip does make some important plot and character points. It's pretty clear that Sven is NOT enjoying himself, which may be a first for him re: casual sex. Perhaps his relationship with Faye, as informal as it is, is the first relationship that's gotten into his head so much that he can't enjoy a random bang. It's not drama for the sake of drama, at least not totally. This marks either the beginning of a true relationship with Faye or a total clusterfuck that winds up with her back in the crazy house. Either way, it will be interesting.
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JellyfishFur

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #31 on: 06 Feb 2009, 06:47 »

It does make yesterday's guest comic a little sadder.

http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1333
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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #32 on: 06 Feb 2009, 06:52 »

Everyone seems to be calling this a random girl.  As jolinwarren noted, she's not. 

She's not completely random. She's the one country singer Sven apparently likes.

Sven is also not completely over his ways.  Like pwhodges mentioned, people have relapses. 

As for Sven's behaviour, I've certainly seen real-life people do that in that timescale, and even for it to work out in the end - it's not unrealistic writing. 

It happens.  Drug addicts who eventually kick their habits often have relapses.  They hurt the people they love.  And if we're going to consider this an actual problem that Sven can't control, you have to expect this kind of occasional relapse.  This one is made some what easier to explain by the fact this was a person that Sven admired and even then, he had difficulty in going through with the act.  He showed acceptance of the problem which as we've all heard is the first step in dealing with a problem.

My last point with Sven is this: unless Faye walks in on them, why would he be obliged to tell her?  Sometimes it's better to not tell things like this just to clear your own conscience.  We've discussed that in other threads in other places on the forums.  But as long as he realizes what he did and doesn't let it happen again, maybe it's best if he just eats the guilt and doesn't add that stress to an otherwise, possibly burgeoning relationship...  Just my two cents there...

As far as Marten and Faye, I guess I don't understand why that is so repugnant to so many people.  All in all, Marten and Dora seem reasonably happy.  Sven and Faye, not so much.  But why wouldn't everyone want to be happy?  And if Faye and Marten being together were to make them happy, why wouldn't that be a good thing?  It happens in real life that way sometimes.  Why not in a comic? 

As I've said in other posts, I'm not sure it's going to end up that way, although I could certainly understand it if it did.  So I think it's a bit premature to be saying this is it and that Jeph is playing all fan service.  Not that that's bad, you understand.  And I'm not even going to address the concerns about a sex scene other than to say this: if you're old enough to understand the subplots and consider all the different possibilities involved in a comic about relationships as cris-crossed as these, then you should be mature enough to deal with a little comic nudity.  There no actuals bits showing so I don't have an issue with it.

Those are my opinions... and you're welcome to discuss them as much as you wish... lol  :mrgreen:
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SrMeowMeow

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #33 on: 06 Feb 2009, 07:05 »

Fanservice, woo...

This comic is basically the manifestation of one of my two main reservations with QC.
I'll bite.

What's the other?

Oh, har. The way the characters all look at the "camera" when they deliver their punchlines in most strips.

And, to be clear, the problem I have with this comic (meaning this specific one, not the whole of QC) and all it stands for is basically that all the meaningless casual sex has a tendency to come off as the author's private fantasies and not so grounded in any coherent plot-line. Like...that comic where Faye is talking about having the alphabet trick done on her. I mean, Jeph's a guy, so that can't be personal experience - so, to me, it's just easy writing to titillate his audience (and himself?).

I don't know. I like the comic in general and I don't mean to dump criticism on it, but these are the two main things that interfere with my personal enjoyment of the comic.
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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #34 on: 06 Feb 2009, 07:09 »

Now this is some questionable content amirite?

As much as it comes off as "woo fanservice" (though I'm sure there's more people who'd rather see a Hanners/Tai panel, the pervs) I think this strip does make some important plot and character points. It's pretty clear that Sven is NOT enjoying himself, which may be a first for him re: casual sex. Perhaps his relationship with Faye, as informal as it is, is the first relationship that's gotten into his head so much that he can't enjoy a random bang. It's not drama for the sake of drama, at least not totally. This marks either the beginning of a true relationship with Faye or a total clusterfuck that winds up with her back in the crazy house. Either way, it will be interesting.

Excellent point, tuna... And exactly the one I was trying to make...
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Voltaireilicous

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #35 on: 06 Feb 2009, 08:10 »

Oh, har. The way the characters all look at the "camera" when they deliver their punchlines in most strips.

And, to be clear, the problem I have with this comic (meaning this specific one, not the whole of QC) and all it stands for is basically that all the meaningless casual sex has a tendency to come off as the author's private fantasies and not so grounded in any coherent plot-line. Like...that comic where Faye is talking about having the alphabet trick done on her. I mean, Jeph's a guy, so that can't be personal experience - so, to me, it's just easy writing to titillate his audience (and himself?).

I don't know. I like the comic in general and I don't mean to dump criticism on it, but these are the two main things that interfere with my personal enjoyment of the comic.

The camera thing doesn't bother me at all, it's just a stylistic choice, so meh.

But I never found the sex scenes to be purely titillating. They build up the individual characters, and part of these characters is that they talk about, and have, sex. Which isn't that unrealistic. In fact, as a woman, I do tend to talk about talk about these things in front of men. So, I just think it's good characterization.
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Pet Peeve

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #36 on: 06 Feb 2009, 08:26 »

Joined for this one message, because ya'll make me sick, and I'll never be visiting this pathetic subforum again.

The author is drawing and writing this comic to tell a story. It's not written to mirror the reader's relationships, or make them feel better about their insecurities, or to end in a way that makes them happy. If a plotline makes you unhappy, you are NOT allowed to say that it's a bad story just because of that. If you do, you need to seek professional help, because you're getting emotional validation out of a comic strip.

If you don't like the story, stop reading. But to claim because there's a sex scene (and a damn funny and story-appropriate one at that) that he's doing "fanservice" (especially stupid because there's only one minor character in the strip, and probably not one that freaky obsessives want to see naked), or that an activity is "out of character" when you don't *know* the character (you just think you do), makes you a worse-than-useless fan. What the hell is it with people who say "fanservice"? Losers.

I'm not saying that Jeph is Charles Dickens, but man, if Dickens had this horde of buttheads hounding him as he read each page, he would have never finished anything.

In a story, characters do things because a) the author thinks it will be fun, or b) because it advances the plotlines of that story. They don't do it solely to please the reader unless they're a hack writer, and in a lot of cases they SHOULD be doing things that piss the readers off, or at least make them uncomfortable. I think Jeph does a damn fine job myself.

P.S. Don't bother emailing me about what a bad person I am. Fake email address, and PMs will be laughed at because they prove my point.
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radamanthys

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #37 on: 06 Feb 2009, 08:29 »

Sven is not every other angsty character on QC.  He's a happy-go-lucky, arrogant person, and deservedly so.  He's attractive, rich, charming, and talented.
Faye, on the other hand is the abrasive fat chick with psychiatric issues.

His's dalliances have been well noted.  There is a very good reason Dora doesn't want Sven dating her friends.  Faye understood the risk and has already internalized it.

Plus, Faye was (read: began as) a conquest.  She was an impenetrable wall of negative emotion and sass.  That's the thrill for guys like Sven.

However, it's obvious Sven does indeed have his own manner of feelings for Faye.  It is entirely possible that his guilt is not over the manner in which it will harm their relationship, but for her fragile psychological state.  Just because there's a lack of commitment does not mean that there is a lack of compassion.  Up until now we have no idea what the true nature of his feelings are.  And in all reality, the status control in the relationship lies entirely within his hands.  Faye can try to call it off all she wants- he's already proven that his charm can break whatever emotional walls she puts up.  And get him out of trouble.


If anything, Dora will be the one to kill him.


(as far as the general nature of the comic is concerned- this is a Sven arc, and this theme is Sven's life.  He's a very sexual being.  Compare it to removing the coffee shop from Dora's arcs  It's not 'fan service' at all; it's good storytelling.)

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SrMeowMeow

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #38 on: 06 Feb 2009, 09:05 »

Joined for this one message, because ya'll make me sick, and I'll never be visiting this pathetic subforum again.

The author is drawing and writing this comic to tell a story. It's not written to mirror the reader's relationships, or make them feel better about their insecurities, or to end in a way that makes them happy. If a plotline makes you unhappy, you are NOT allowed to say that it's a bad story just because of that. If you do, you need to seek professional help, because you're getting emotional validation out of a comic strip.

If you don't like the story, stop reading. But to claim because there's a sex scene (and a damn funny and story-appropriate one at that) that he's doing "fanservice" (especially stupid because there's only one minor character in the strip, and probably not one that freaky obsessives want to see naked), or that an activity is "out of character" when you don't *know* the character (you just think you do), makes you a worse-than-useless fan. What the hell is it with people who say "fanservice"? Losers.

I'm not saying that Jeph is Charles Dickens, but man, if Dickens had this horde of buttheads hounding him as he read each page, he would have never finished anything.

In a story, characters do things because a) the author thinks it will be fun, or b) because it advances the plotlines of that story. They don't do it solely to please the reader unless they're a hack writer, and in a lot of cases they SHOULD be doing things that piss the readers off, or at least make them uncomfortable. I think Jeph does a damn fine job myself.

P.S. Don't bother emailing me about what a bad person I am. Fake email address, and PMs will be laughed at because they prove my point.


I figure the chances of you not coming back to read and re-read your little rant are about zero, because this is clearly all about attention, so I'll ignore your disclaimer and just jump right in.

Your opinion of what Jeph is doing is great. So is mine. And Jeph can ignore my opinion, I don't expect him to change the comic for me, and I never said he should. I just pointed out two things that bother me about the comic. But to say that people are NOT ALLOWED to criticize a story arc because it's what the author chose to do - is moronic. I can do whatever I want. I can keep reading and ignore what I see as imperfections; I can stop reading if it bothers me. You can come on here and make angsty, attention-seeking posts. It's a free world.

And I think it is fanservice to just slap a nearly explicit sex scene into a comic to spice things up. Anyway, this was never about the story arc to me, I'm not saying Sven's decision is out of character or whatever. This is just something I don't like about this comic, end of story.
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benji

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #39 on: 06 Feb 2009, 09:14 »

There is something particularly pathetic about registering for a sight just to tell it's users how pathetic you think they are.
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sandysmilinstrange

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #40 on: 06 Feb 2009, 09:15 »

Yeah, going out on a limb, I'd say you'll probably be visiting this subforum again.
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Sketchpad

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #41 on: 06 Feb 2009, 09:20 »

And, to be clear, the problem I have with this comic (meaning this specific one, not the whole of QC) and all it stands for is basically that all the meaningless casual sex has a tendency to come off as the author's private fantasies and not so grounded in any coherent plot-line. Like...that comic where Faye is talking about having the alphabet trick done on her. I mean, Jeph's a guy, so that can't be personal experience - so, to me, it's just easy writing to titillate his audience (and himself?)

Just because he's a guy doesn't mean he can't write female experience. That's what being an author is all about. If people only wrote what they knew, we'd have the most boring literary/art selection ever.
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SrMeowMeow

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #42 on: 06 Feb 2009, 09:38 »

And, to be clear, the problem I have with this comic (meaning this specific one, not the whole of QC) and all it stands for is basically that all the meaningless casual sex has a tendency to come off as the author's private fantasies and not so grounded in any coherent plot-line. Like...that comic where Faye is talking about having the alphabet trick done on her. I mean, Jeph's a guy, so that can't be personal experience - so, to me, it's just easy writing to titillate his audience (and himself?)

Just because he's a guy doesn't mean he can't write female experience. That's what being an author is all about. If people only wrote what they knew, we'd have the most boring literary/art selection ever.

I don't know. I guess you're right, but here's an example...there's some webcomic I saw linked somewhere called, like, Lesbian Space Pirates or something. I checked it out hoping desperately that it was at least written by a woman. It was, and turned out to actually be written by a lesbian, so, score, I guess  :-P My point is, you can see how a webcomic about Lesbian Space Pirates written by a man could easily come across as exploitative, right? I feel like there's a fine line between writing for a variety of characters of both genders, and just projecting desires on the characters or getting easy copy out of having some characters just having some gratuitous sex.

As I said, it's a) personal preference and b) a fine line, that for the most part I think Jeph successfully straddles. I mean, I do like QC. But I don't think it's unfair to sometimes complain when I think it goes too far in one direction or another.
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bfd

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #43 on: 06 Feb 2009, 10:20 »

But doesnt complaining about 'fanservice' and voicing what you think was done wrong should also be considered a ploy for 'fanservice'? If its not, then it seems like a big 'LOOK AT ME' ploy, where as its as if you just wanted to say someting for the sake of saying something. Meh, oh well, people of all types lurk these vast intarwebz...

I myself found today's comic very surprising, yet I wasnt taken a back, because I can see Sven getting into a situation like this. You had to know it was going to happen sooner or later, and in all honesty I kinda had Sven's intern girl pegged as the one it would happen with. And for the record, I LOL'd at Sven's line in the last panel, hehe.
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pwhodges

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #44 on: 06 Feb 2009, 10:22 »

Also, this story, like any other, is a slice of life, not the whole of it; thus, it can never be perfectly balanced in all respects.  So what?
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SrMeowMeow

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #45 on: 06 Feb 2009, 10:43 »

But doesnt complaining about 'fanservice' and voicing what you think was done wrong should also be considered a ploy for 'fanservice'? If its not, then it seems like a big 'LOOK AT ME' ploy, where as its as if you just wanted to say someting for the sake of saying something. Meh, oh well, people of all types lurk these vast intarwebz...

I admit that I post my opinions on things because I want people to read them and potentially be convinced by them...isn't that sort of the point of having a discussion? :-P
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zeku

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #46 on: 06 Feb 2009, 10:56 »

I, for one, am delighted.  I've been wishing for something to come along and destabilize the situation in QC world for a while.  The angsty relationship drama plotlines are why I liked this strip in the first place.  Do I speak up to complain when the plot isn't going where I like?  No.  It's Jeph's comic, and should go where he wants it to.  It has a large fanbase, and nobody is going to be pleased with every turn of events.

My personal opinion is that nothing especially interesting has happened since Marten and Faye had the "big talk" and he and Dora got together.  With the exception of the side plot about Steve and Meena, which seems to have been abandoned, but for a single disconnected strip showing Steve hitting the hooch. 

So I am hoping that Faye will find out about this, that Marten and Dora will fight about which of them is in the wrong, and that Sven will be racked with guilt and try unsuccessfully to get back into Faye's good graces, only to find that she and Marten have drunkenly hooked up after commiserating over their respective relationship troubles, and also that Faye has busted the Vespavenger out of the slammer, and that they've installed Vespa-bot's personality into Hannelore's robot boyfriend.

But that's just me.  If it doesn't happen that way, I won't start posting about how Jeph is doing it wrong.
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benji

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #47 on: 06 Feb 2009, 10:57 »

I don't know. I guess you're right, but here's an example...there's some webcomic I saw linked somewhere called, like, Lesbian Space Pirates or something. I checked it out hoping desperately that it was at least written by a woman. It was, and turned out to actually be written by a lesbian, so, score, I guess  :-P My point is, you can see how a webcomic about Lesbian Space Pirates written by a man could easily come across as exploitative, right? I feel like there's a fine line between writing for a variety of characters of both genders, and just projecting desires on the characters or getting easy copy out of having some characters just having some gratuitous sex.

As I said, it's a) personal preference and b) a fine line, that for the most part I think Jeph successfully straddles. I mean, I do like QC. But I don't think it's unfair to sometimes complain when I think it goes too far in one direction or another.

I'm not sure what to make of the implication that lesbian comics aren't exploitative because they're drawn by lesbians. Gedris tends to keep things relatively clean, but that's just her. Plenty of lesbian comic writers do explicit sex scenes. So why is a gay woman drawing gay women having sex not exploitation while having a straight man drawing straight people having sex is?
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SrMeowMeow

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #48 on: 06 Feb 2009, 11:33 »

I'm not sure what to make of it either. I feel like maybe it's wrong of me to think that (somehow) but it definitely colors my thoughts. If I read a lesbian comic with lots of sexual thoughts from the female protagonist, I would be pretty uncomfortable to find out it was drawn by a man. Somehow that feels pornographic in the hands of a man in a way that it doesn't if it's drawn by a lesbian. Is that wrong? I'm not sure. I'd feel the same way about a comic that contained lots of explicit thoughts and experiences about a male protagonist if it was drawn by a woman, by the way. It seems like vicarious exploration of fantasies rather than something honest. This is obviously more extreme than how I feel about QC sometimes, but I'm just making an argument.

I'm really not sure how I feel about my opinions on this, but I do hold them pretty strongly. I'm happy to debate them, though, and I'm also happy to change my mind.
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Jackie Blue

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Re: Oh, Sven ...
« Reply #49 on: 06 Feb 2009, 11:44 »

Just to be clear, the fanservice is, in my view, not the sex scene itself but rather the drama that he is creating by setting up a Faye-Sven Explosion.

Also, I think Jeph has been pandering to his audience (which, for the past couple years, has become mostly composed of people a decade or more younger than him who have very little in common with him) for a while now; this strip just made it super-obvious.
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Man, this thread really makes me want to suck some cock.
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