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[DSL]

I'm addicted to QC. I mean, really, really addicted. As in, I want to know, and know about, these characters in a way I haven't been since I was 10 years old and wanted to hang around with the "Peanuts" gang. And I'm (just) old enough to be the dad of any one of this bunch. Yes, Jeph creates engaging characters about whom it is possible to care; yes, the art is good and steadily getting better -- but I can't explain my fascination. Provisional hypothesis: Jeph is good at creating archetypes which push just the right buttons and knows how to keep us wondering what happens next. Anyone feel like agreeing/disagreeing/taking this in a completely different direction?

[celticgeek]

I tend to agree with you (and since I do, yes, it's my problem).  And I'm (just) old enough to be the grandfather of some of them.  I found this comic when Marten got the job at the library (a link from from Unshelved) and have been reading it religiously since then.  Plus, of course, going back through the archives.

[Is it cold in here?]

The characters are more than "engaging", they've got that feeling of reality which makes you think of them as if they were real.

[pwhodges]

I'm (just) old enough to be the grandfather of some of them.

More than a mere possibility in my case - I do have grandchildren in their 20s (as well as one who's 2).

As for the comic, I can't really think of much different from what's been said so far.  It is  compelling, and though there are times when I find one or a few strips less so, nearly always they fall into place when reviewed with those before and after.  It's this quality of the parts being less than the whole that leads to some of the craziness in this forum, I suspect - if some particular strip had only become available with the whole arc it was part of, then much of what might have got said about it would have been seen to be irrelevant.  It also creates the need to go on reading to see that perspective that will make it work.  This is a tribute to how fully formed the QC world must be in Jeph's head, because much of the time he doesn't actually plan from day to day where the plot is going, but lets the characters show him (my interpretation, based on recollections of remarks he's made).

[horsefish]

Thanks for that insight.  it is a good way of explaining why it can be so jarring to go from reading the archive after one "discovers" QC (or any other episodic entertainment with strong story arcs - I watched all of Battlestar Galactica on DVD after it was done - never saw its original run and can't imagine waiting for those to play out a week at a time - even without the writer's strike...) to reading a strip a day.  I've posted briefly here and there about the phenomenon, and seen occasional mentions of it in the forum archives, but I've never been able to really put my finger on it other than to think "hurr, it sucks to wait instead of reading 100 strips a day"

I hope this thread takes off.  I like it.  I finally got my wife to start reading QC - actually she was bored and started reading the QC vol. 1 book that I left laying around a couple of days ago and got hooked.  She's at around 800 now.  She actually called me at work to talk about "the talk."  That arc goes a long way toward answering the title question of this thread.  Before that, I liked QC.  A lot.  After that, I really had respect for it.  Not that I didn't before.  You know what I mean.  


Also, regarding Paul's point above, sometimes I'm tempted to try to not read it for a couple of weeks at a time so I can take bigger bites.  Ummmm, yeah.  Haven't been able to pull that one off yet.


tl;dr  I totally agree with Paul; QC rocks; now my wife reads it too.

*EDIT*  I know it's bad form to quote the immediately preceding post, but I wanted to refer to a certain part of the post? Maybe it still wasn't necessary?  

*EDIT* Removed the quote .  Realized the "part" was like 80 % of the post and I guess it's obvious what I was talking about.  Still getting my sea legs in here.

[bicostp]

I think the 95% realism, 5% surrealism is perfect for getting you interested in the characters without being a dull slice-of-life serial. There's a learning curve for new readers, but the inevitable archive binge just gets them hooked like the rest of us.

*EDIT*  I know it's bad form to quote the immediately preceding post, but I wanted to refer to a certain part of the post? Maybe it still wasn't necessary?  

No that is a terrible idea and you are a butt for even thinking of doing it. <>
Yes I know I just did it. That's the joke.

[Antario]

for me its the excellent story and the incredibly witty jokes, especially the story structure is important to me in a good comic

[Carl-E]

I think I've posted this elsewhere before, but what the hell...

I saw QC linked a couple of times and tried to follow it from the beginning.  Got about 10-12 strips in before the indie references left me cold. 

Then one day, a few months (maybe a year?) later I followed a link again, and saw Hanners sledding down a hill. 

I had to know what led up to that, and started hitting the "previous" button.  Before I know it, I'd gone 100 pages or more backwards through the archive... it was fascinating, watching the plot lines devolve, seeing the characters come into play, it was a weird way to get to know them.  Then I went back to the beginning - I was already hooked, I had  to know how it all started, and got even more hooked as I saw the story unfold. 

It took about 2 weeks to meet myself in the archive, following the new strips forward the whole time.  That pretty much did it for me.  I have a hard time when I can't see the comic for any reason, and I even wrote Jeph an email praising his creation (he never answered, but hey, I didn't realize there were tens - no, hundreds of tousands of us fans).  Then I found the forum about a month later. 

Been a happy man ever since. 

[dragontart]

I read Number 1 to 1862 within two days excluding guest comics. Which means I found it unhealthily fascinating.
I guess it's just the way the story evolves, also that I find bits of me in most of the characters main personal traits (even though I don't particularly like any of characters).
Also, I laughed very hard quite some times and the jokes never seemed too off.
Since I read the whole thing in a short time the evolution/change in the comic's art was also interesting to watch.

[Kugai]

Because it is.

[horsefish]

No that is a terrible idea and you are a butt for even thinking of doing it. <>
Yes I know I just did it. That's the joke.

no you are a butt and this post is also a butt yes I know you were joking

[DSL]

A butt ... ? Skipped one:

WELL IF I LOVE IT SO MUCH I SHOULD JUST MARRY IT

I hear it has amazing wedding cakes.

[Nick and Marla]

The characters are more than "engaging", they've got that feeling of reality which makes you think of them as if they were real.

As much as I like OC, I don't really get that feeling.

Faye is too fucking frustrating and Marten is too damn perfect.

[dragontart]

Faye is too fucking frustrating and Marten is too damn perfect.

Marten..what? xD I actually find him kind of fucked up in the way he always submits to each and any tard around.
I'd also like to point out that many people in reality are too fucking frustrating.

[Odin]

Faye is too fucking frustrating and Marten is too damn perfect.

Wha--

(removed because the forum is full of humorless dicks)

For those that didn't recognize it or get it, remember the scene in the original Terminator where you saw the possible responses to a stupid question from the night janitor in the scummy hotel it was in?

[Blackjoker]

My own guess is that the characters are interesting enough that you can get invested in them. That and I do enjoy the anthro-pcs and their antics.

[Is it cold in here?]

PM sent.

[Monkey Says Yes]

When I first started reading QC two years ago, I actually pined for Faye and Hannelore there for a few weeks.  That's incredibly sad.  =)

[CrowFairy]

I've been asking myself the same question! And now I've asked my boyfriend, and he doesn't know why it's so addicting, either. I got him started about a week ago, and I think he's getting close to getting caught up. I'm so proud.  I did the exact same thing back in September.

For me, it's partly just how engaging the stories are. You can't help but wonder what's going to happen next. The characters are constantly surprising me and making me think. Sometimes the characters are almost too real. And it's also hilarious. My boyfriend keeps saying things like, "I keep expecting you to fall asleep like Hanners did!" and "Do you remember when the little robot [[He's referring to Pintsize here]] did (something)? I almost woke my roommate up laughing this morning!" It's something fun and interesting to talk about, because the characters are almost always doing or saying something worthy of discussion. I read a lot of comic strips daily, and most days, there's nothing worth commenting on. With QC, I'm often sitting and laughing to myself as I wish I could share the laugh with someone.

[Carl-E]

Well, now you can.  Welcome to the asylum...

[Nick and Marla]

Perfect may not have been the right word to describe what I was thinking.

Either way, I just don't feel that way about the characters.

[dps]

When did the posters here get so old?  I'm hardly a regular, but a couple of years ago I was one of a very few posters here who was past their early to mid thirties, and all of a sudden everyone is old enough to be the main cast members' parents or grandparents.  

[Is it cold in here?]

QC rapidly ages us.

[pwhodges]

Both Celticgeek and I have been around for several years, but I think the number of 35-50 year olds has increased.  But regular posters in that age range are probably still in single figures I would guess (and the same again at the other end of the forums).  I think we share the property of not showing our age...

[jwhouk]

43 here.

Maybe it's just a way of us trying to reclaim our youth through a bunch of hipsters?

[akronnick]

I must be the youngest member of the Grumpy Old Man Caucus, I'm only 35.

[Carl-E]

Maybe it's just a way of us trying to reclaim our youth through a bunch of hipsters?

Close - it's the realization that we never left that age.  Your personality is developing until your early 20's, it's the age you finally become yourself, and so it's the age you always identify with.  There are changes as you age, and you still grow and learn, but you'll always think of yourself as being around that age. 

At least, that's what my grampa told me on his 80th birthday, while belting out some popular tunes of his day...

Be sure it's true when you say "I  love you",
it's a sin to tell a lie!
Millions of hearts have been broken,
because these three simple words have been spoken!
I love you, I love you, I love you,
but if you break my heart, I'll die.
So be sure that it's true
when you say, "I love you",
it's a sin to tell a lie!

30 years later, and the man still haunts my dreams. 

[celticgeek]

True enough.  Anymore, when people ask about my age, I sometimes say "Sixteen."  And when asked about that, I say that "When I was sixteen, I knew it all, and didn't have all of these problems."

[horsefish]

Your personality is developing until your early 20's, it's the age you finally become yourself, and so it's the age you always identify with.  There are changes as you age, and you still grow and learn, but you'll always think of yourself as being around that age. 

I've never actually seen that as a general theory.  I thought it was just me.  I'll be 40 in a few weeks, and I still feel like I'm about 25.  Of course, my wife sometimes jokes that I'm as grumpy as 80 and as mature as 14 

"Get off my lawn!"
"But we were just..."
"hurr hurr you said butt"

[Is it cold in here?]

Part of it is the good balance Jeph makes between zaniness and drama. You never know what flavor of food pellet is going to drop when you hit the F5 lever.

[Carl-E]

But is that positive reinforcement, or just the daze of confusion?

[Shremedy]

Both Celticgeek and I have been around for several years, but I think the number of 35-50 year olds has increased.  But regular posters in that age range are probably still in single figures I would guess (and the same again at the other end of the forums).  I think we share the property of not showing our age...

It's probably "regular posters" versus "regular readers".  I signed on here in 07, haven't spent a lot of time logged in.  But I've been a regular reader from back when Jeph's art was still pretty rough, somewhere in the 200-300 range.  Hard to tell exactly where I started, having re-read the whole series from the beginning a couple times now 

[SJCrew]

Most of the time, we're just waiting for something interesting to happen in between lulls of randomness. The comic's drive was much stronger a while back, if you ask me.

[horsefish]

For those of us that came relatively late in the game and started with an archive binge, I think it's harder to tell what the pace of the comic has been over time.  Where there have been "lulls,"  it only took me five or ten minutes to get through them, not weeks.  Also, the dates of the archived strips aren't clear, so the waits between fridays and mondays are usually invisible, unless Jeph mentioned it in the newspost.  Likewise with guest strips, Yelling Bird and other continuity breaks - they don't seem to interrupt the flow when you're not waiting for the next strip.

[Carl-E]

Very true!  That's one of the reasons that so many webcomic artists seem to make book anthologies, as well. 

Aside from the ability to sell something concrete, that is. 

I'm fairly new to webcomics (except for xkcd, which I've followed for years), and there's definitely a difference in feeling between an archive binge and following a current comic.  The same was true of daily comics like Bloom County and Calvin & Hobbes, and their book antologies (incomplete as they were).  Cliffhangers don't really work in an archive or a book (unless you decide to stop at that point, and really, who could?), but they can really capture you when you're following it.  Arc resolutions are right there for the taking, not up in the air (or worse, left open to interpretation ). 

But that's not really part of QC's draw, or if it is, it's a minor part.  These issues are the same for any serialized art form.  Some are just done better than others!  I archive binged on a different comic recently, and found myself intrigued, but also saw several plot problems and character issues.  Now I'm debating whether I really want to follow it more, just because I started to care a little for one of the characters despite the poor writing. 

I think I just made my decision, too.  Life's too short!  [removes shortcut]

[sepik121]

Very true!  That's one of the reasons that so many webcomic artists seem to make book anthologies, as well. 

Aside from the ability to sell something concrete, that is. 

I'm fairly new to webcomics (except for xkcd, which I've followed for years), an there's definitely a difference in feeling between an archive binge and following a current comic.  The same was true of dailys comics like Bloom County and Calvin & Hobbes, an their book antologies (incomplete as they were).  Cliffhangers don't really work in an archive or a book (unless you decide to stop at that point, and really, who could?), but they can really capture you when you're following it.  Arc resolutions are right there for the taking, not up in the air (or worse, left open to interpretation ). 

But that's not really part of QC's draw, or if it is, it's a minor part.  These issues are the same for any serialized art form.  Some are just done better than others!  I archive binged on a different comic recently, and found myself intrigued, but also saw several plot problems and character issues.  Now I'm debating whether I really want to follow it more, just because I started to care a little for one of the characters despite the poor writing. 

I think I just made my decision, too.  Life's too short!  [removes shortcut]

By chance my good sir, what webcomic was it?

As for what drew me into the comic, originally it was the music jokes. I'm a huge indie fan (at least I used to be back in the day) so these jokes were just hilarious to me. I think I started reading this around early high school, late middle school (2004 or 2005 basically) and after a while it became the characters that really got me. I've almost always enjoyed the art changes Jeph has made over the years, so this has definitely become one of my staples in terms of webcomics.

[Carl-E]

I refuse to say.  Not on the grounds that it may incriminate me, but more because a) it may induce others to take a look (if they find it on their own and like it, fine, but I'm not gonna advertise) and b) I'm no critic, and I'd hate to trash someone else's favorite webcomic.  With the population in here, the odds are pretty good that someone else knows, reads, and even digs it. 

Suffice to say that by the time I caught up, it seemed like I'd been on a rather disjointed DnD adventure.  I think that's where the author draws his inspiration.  With some sex thrown in.  And, though the main character is somewhat intriguing, there seems to be no actual character development in over three years of archives. 

So if you know a webcomic like this, maybe that's it.  If you really want to know, I'll send you a PM. 

[mike837go]

I think I have just found my spiritual HOME! At 50 years young and 2 kids in college, I am old enough to be the main characters' father.

My input on the thread is that Jeph has created some very engaging characters that have grown [matured?] through the story. They are all damaged in some way and have overcome or are trying to overcome some serious hurdles in their lives.

Not only have the characters grown and changed, Jeph's artwork and writing grew with them.

Then Jeph throws in the randon SF reference (Dune seems to be his favorite). The absurdity that the robots bring. The NOT super heros! What about Steve's "temp job"?  [I'll also include the Indy rock references that I haven't a clue about]

I only "discovered" QC a few weeks ago and totally binged on the archive too.

Characters come-and-go, just like in real life. We call a bunch of people our friends and can't figure out why we keep them around...

I would also suggest that Mieville is Dora's familiar from her Wicca/Goth days. That would explain alot.

Lastly, I have been through quite a bit of psycotherapy in my life. I've had 2 Suicide attempts and I have been in groups with sufferers of OCD. But, I am feeling MUCH better now.

[Carl-E]

Welcome! 

Here's your GOM* card.  Dick brooms** are in the closet (where they belong when not in use). 



* GOM - Grumpy Old Men.  Theere's arather large contingent of us here, oddly enough.  As I'm sure you've seen after reading this thread! 

** Dick brooms (Short for Useless Brooms Made Entirely of Dicks, or UBMEOD) will take consideraby more explaining.  You can search the term in the forums, the first appearance was a reference about fanboys and girls, and how going against them was like holding back the tide with a ... yeah.  The imagery stuck, I'm afraid. 

[Skewbrow]

But, I am feeling MUCH better now.

There can never be too many Night Court references in this forum. Beats extraneous tvtrope links any day of the week.

Welcome to GOM! Some of us are actually also surprisingly contemporary. Alas, like the honorable Harold T Stone some of us are contemporary only in the time-warped sense of the word. But it doesn't stop us from enjoying the comic and the discussion.

[pwhodges]

...all you youngsters calling yourselves GOMs!  Me, I just negotiated deferral of my statutory retirement date* to allow me to stay in my job for another five years.


* which was the day before  the law changes to prevent employers forcing people to retire against their will!

[Carl-E]

Excellent work! 

And, though not yet at retirement age, I'm into Senior Discount / AARP territory.  And I can't afford retirement, I have years   to go on my student loans...

Hell, Reiver started GOM, and he's younger than me (I think)! 

[horsefish]

I turned 40 yesterday - does that qualify me for GOM?

[pwhodges]

I have children  younger than you, so what do you think?

[Skewbrow]

GOM is more about disposition and less about chronological age, isn't it?

[Carl-E]

Shh!  Don't wake him when he's talking....

 

[pwhodges]

Do you mean older than you?

Oops!  actually, both statements are true: my natural children are 41 and 39 - I also have a step-child who's 44.

[gprimr1]

It fascinates me because I used to live in the area the comic is set in. I spent time in Northampton, at Umass Amherst and Mt. Holyoke/South Hadly so it def is like memory lane.

I think it also features characters that we can relate to, maybe even see parts of ourselves in them.

And then just when it gets just serious enough, Pintsize says something absolutely ridiculous to lighten the mood.