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And now act three...

Tropical Storm Martenclaire meets Northern Hurricane Faye for disastrous results
- 32 (26.2%)
The Svenectomy begins
- 16 (13.1%)
Tai razzes Marten and Claire till they're both as red as Claire's hair
- 16 (13.1%)
Steve Eating Cereal: The Legend Continues
- 8 (6.6%)
Clinton finally finds out that big sister has a boyfriend
- 41 (33.6%)
5 straight days of yelling bird cloaca jokes
- 9 (7.4%)

Total Members Voted: 110


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Author Topic: WCDT: 2816-2820 (20-24 October 2014) Weekly Comic Discussion Thread  (Read 111108 times)

downtowneddie

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The first thing that came to mind? Marten's quote in #1666: "There needs to be a word for those brief moments of clarity where you realize just how profoundly weird your life is."

[edited to fix URL BBcode]
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SubaruStephen

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actually pretty lulzy

Yeah, you're right.  I can't stay mad for long.

Maybe all the puns on these forums have affected me, but I first read that as "Yeah, you're right.  I can't stay mad for dong."
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Jazzmaster

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Marten sure looks sad in panel one.  Must be the thought of Faye and Angus breaking up, which sucks because he was so happy just moments prior.
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mustang6172

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If I may comment on this robot interlude... Um, I'll tell you the problem with the scientific power that you're using here, it didn't require any discipline to attain it. You read what others had done and you took the next step. You didn't earn the knowledge for yourselves, so you don't take any responsibility for it. You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you even knew what you had, you patented it, and made it look like a dong, and packaged it, and slapped it on a plastic lunchbox, and now *bangs on the table* you're selling it, you wanna sell it!
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FunkyTuba

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This one makes me wonder if Jeph isn't angling for a crossover strip with Erica Moen's VERY NSFW Oh Joy Sex Toy
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DSL

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If I may comment on this robot interlude... Um, I'll tell you the problem with the scientific power that you're using here, it didn't require any discipline to attain it. You read what others had done and you took the next step. You didn't earn the knowledge for yourselves, so you don't take any responsibility for it. You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you even knew what you had, you patented it, and made it look like a dong, and packaged it, and slapped it on a plastic lunchbox, and now *bangs on the table* you're selling it, you wanna sell it!

PINTSIZE: "How can we stand in the light of dongs-scovery, and not act?"
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Spiritz

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Pintsize's Kickstarter must have hit a stretch goal or something.  It was supposed to be singing dildos.  Not singing, walking dildos.

I shudder to think what other "upgrades" are in place...
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Gladstone

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I shudder to think what other "upgrades" are in place...

Self-replicating nano-dildos.  Stimulating your pores.  Stimulating everything.
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Perfectly Reasonable

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valkygrrl

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I shudder to think what other "upgrades" are in place...

Self-replicating nano-dildos.  Stimulating your pores.  Stimulating everything.

Hard to imagine 'nano' being much of a selling point in the greater dildo marketplace.
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plusorminus

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<snip>

Um. You seem to really dislike Dora. Which ... whatever, but it really makes me distrust your analysis.

For example, in the strips you cite when you snarkily say that Dora seems to "accept" Tai, you conveniently neglected to mention that she talks things through with Faye, instead of flipping out and getting angry, indicating that she HAS been actively trying to deal with the issues that torpedoed her relationship with Marten. Moreover, she tells Tai about that and they both come to agree that NEITHER of them acted really awesomely in that situation.

And as for Sven, I reserve judgment on that until it is brought up again. As many other people have pointed out, deciding that someone is toxic to your life does not make you defective or an asshole. Dora's not taking a shit on his couch, setting fire to his cat, or hacking into his phone and sending nudes to potential record labels. She's saying that FOR HER, Sven's presence is one that is impeding her mental health. She has the right to make that decision FOR HERSELF. She does NOT have the right to make that decision FOR OTHERS. If Faye, who is a grown woman, decides she wants to deal with Sven outside of work, then Dora does not have the right to forbid that or threaten her over it. And yes, I said outside of work because CoD is Dora's business, she is the boss, so within those doors, what she says goes.

It's really off-putting to see how much shit gets piled on Dora, and I really have the feeling it's because she had the temerity to "get between" Faye and Marten.
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ReindeerFlotilla

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First the Singularity. Now this.

QC is going to end in an exponential explosion of self-replicating dongs.

Edit: Why do so many assume character analysis comes from a place of hate?

Neko_Ali

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Dongularity?
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plusorminus

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Edit: Why do so many assume character analysis comes from a place of hate?

Because usually it does. Next question?
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Aziraphale

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Edit: Why do so many assume character analysis comes from a place of hate?

Because usually it does. Next question?

Projecting much?
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ReindeerFlotilla

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I've had unflattering things to say about most of the core cast, but I actually like all of them.

I've certainly seen some commentators flatly state that they don't care for this character or that, so I gather it must be a thing, but I don't assume other people are hostile to a character just because they have a critical analysis. A different perspective is a good thing.

Disagreement over such analysis doesn't have to involve questioning the other person's motives or objectivity. There's enough demonstrated unequivocal hatred in the world. I can't completely understand the need to search for more, where none may exist.

That's probably why I don't watch sports.

plusorminus

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Edit: Why do so many assume character analysis comes from a place of hate?

Because usually it does. Next question?

Projecting much?

OK. So I wrote out something and got the "while you were typing ..." dialogue. So I did as suggested and reviewed my post, and calmed down a bit.

Here is the thing:

I like Dora. A lot. I identify with her. A lot. That said, I think she is a quite flawed individual who has made some grievous mistakes in-comic.

My issue is, is that it seems that there is never a counterbalance with her as there is with pretty much every character in this strip. Maybe it is uninentional. However, it is upsetting.

Yes, Dora's insecurities led to the breakup with Marten. She paid the price for that in wrecking a good thing and in losing his friendship at least for a time. She's actively trying to get help for her issues. She's attempting to be a good friend to him as she was before, while being also a good girlfriend to Tai and a good friend to Faye. She has tried to be a good sister to Sven. She's been wrong about some things he has and hasn't done. This is true. I do not know if the latest Sven/Faye stuff set Dora off or if it was something else.

But it gets wearing to see an entire analysis that basically boils down to "CRAZY DORA IS CRAZY" without anything redeeming shown. She handled herself admirably with the Tai thing. Tai's ex-FWB or whoever she was, was a bitch to Dora's face. It was uncalled for. And Tai really didn't handle it well either, but she didn't know better. Dora accepted this and understood that she, too, had not acted her best.

Yet, that didn't make it in that analysis. Nor did the fact that Dora has openly rooted for Marten in his post-her relationships and is, to all accounts, tickled pink that he and Claire might be starting something.

Maybe the person doing that analysis does not hate Dora, but the "CRAZY DORA IS CRAZY" read gets old. There needs to be more than "Welp, there hasn't been any Dora drama in a minute and CRAZY DORA IS CRAZY so she is going to go supernova and ..." Well, no. If she tries to get people to take sides in the Svenectomy, then she's wrong. If she even implicitly threatens to Faye that her future at CoD might be in jeopardy if she even breathes in Sven's direction, then she's wrong.

But she's not wrong to make a decision that cutting off her brother is in her best interest, and I really resent the implication that her doing so means that she's trying to set up some situation where she drags Faye into the mire. She didn't want Marten to tell Faye in the first place because of the Angus situation. Now that it's come to a head, do people really think she's going to gleefully sit Faye on the Sven powderkeg and light the fuse?
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AprilArcus

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Um. You seem to really dislike Dora. Which ... whatever, but it really makes me distrust your analysis.

There is plenty to like about Dora! She's a highly motivated self-starter who works crazy hours. She's an artisan about coffee. She's earned the respect and admiration of her employees and other business owners like Jim. I would love to work for her as much as I would hate to date her.

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For example, in the strips you cite when you snarkily say that Dora seems to "accept" Tai

I said what how?

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And as for Sven, [...] deciding that someone is toxic to your life does not make you defective or an asshole.

Of course it's Dora's prerogative to manage her relationships however she likes. It just seems as though she's scapegoating Sven in lieu of confronting the problems that destroyed her last relationship, and unless she changes course, I expect history to repeat itself with Tai.

Edit: Why do so many assume character analysis comes from a place of hate?

Because usually it does. Next question?

I don't even.

LilShortstuf

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I wonder if they'll strap a chariot to their creation and take another ride down the stairs.
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AprilArcus

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Maybe the person doing that analysis does not hate Dora, but the "CRAZY DORA IS CRAZY" read gets old.

Hi, my name is April!

I was digging into Dora's personality as part of an ongoing conversation that started in the last WCDT, in which some of us were discussing how the Dora/Tai dynamic seemed boringly free of conflict, and were speculating on what sources of new drama there might be. This is close reading. It's a way of enjoying a work of fiction.

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I like Dora. A lot. I identify with her. A lot.

And that's wonderful, but she isn't you, and when I write an analysis on a character, it is not a personal attack on the readers who like her. If you want to contribute something positive about her to the conversation, that's your prerogative! But please don't attack me just for putting down some observations I thought were interesting. If you feel like I've misread Dora or failed to present her perspective, please step up and do it! I would be fascinated to read such a thing.

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She handled herself admirably with the Tai thing. Tai's ex-FWB or whoever she was, was a bitch to Dora's face. It was uncalled for. And Tai really didn't handle it well either, but she didn't know better. Dora accepted this and understood that she, too, had not acted her best.

I don't see this at all. Tai introduces Dora to Allie. Allie makes a salacious gesture, which could mean anything from "Have fun with Tai! She's a handful" to "I got there first and I could go there again". Dora leaps to the worst possible interpretation, which is in character for her, and shows that she hasn't gone very far toward resolving her jealousy/paranoia issues.

Tai tries to defuse the situation by prodding Dora into bragging about her own past partners, which she thinks will give Dora a chance to strut her stuff and rebuild her bruised ego. This makes sense coming from her poly context, but Dora doesn't understand why she's driving at it and gets more paranoid and alienated. Then they talk to their friends, regroup, and have makeup sex.

The scene ends on a pleasant note, but we're still hanging on the ellipsis, and it remains to be seen whether or not Dora and Tai are developing real communication skills, or if they're using their physical rapport to paper over Dora's unaddressed-in-therapy emotional problems.

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Nor did the fact that Dora has openly rooted for Marten in his post-her relationships and is, to all accounts, tickled pink that he and Claire might be starting something.

This is like, the basic level of decency I would require of a real friendship, and does not deserve singling out for high praise.
« Last Edit: 21 Oct 2014, 22:10 by AprilArcus »
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HiFranc

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The first thing that came to mind? Marten's quote in #1666: "There needs to be a word for those brief moments of clarity where you realize just how profoundly weird your life is."

The next page is also appropriate (and calls back to when Fangus took off).
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Francisco

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The first thing that came to mind? Marten's quote in #1666: "There needs to be a word for those brief moments of clarity where you realize just how profoundly weird your life is."

The next page is also appropriate (and calls back to when Fangus took off).
The singing, walking dlido calls back to the sentient sex toys joke in that strip as well.
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J

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is anything in this world not a robot?
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ReindeerFlotilla

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Dora doesn't stop being a good person because she has issues. The Three core cast members all have issues, and they all have made poor choices recently.

Giving a truly fair and balanced analysis of any character would end up being longer, in word count, than the collected work of QC. People choose the elements that stand out to them, and try to fit them into a consistent whole. Sometimes stuff gets missed, Sometimes stuff gets left out because it's too cumbersome to try to shoehorn it in.

But that's the beauty of having a discussion, over simply writing a dissertation. Other people, with different perspectives, can come along ans say, "What about X?"

That QC allows room for those differing points of view is a sign of good stoytelling.

It stops being fun when people start assuming that those differing points of view aren't honest. Admittedly, casual language is messy, but there's a difference between seguing in with "You are being a bit hard on Dora, IMO," And "You dislike Dora." One suggests civil disagreement. The other suggests a moral failure.

Dora isn't trying to set up anything. I my self said Dora's decision was a setup to a misunderstanding, but I didn't say that why Dora did it. It's why Jeph did it. Writers' are gonna write.

Dora has issues. She's not crazy. She is a fictional character. Her issues are going to drive her into making mistakes, which chould be motivating forces for the story. I like Dora. She'll always be a-Dora-able to me, because I can relate to what drives her, even if I don't relate to how she expresses it. I certainly understand her better than anyone else in the cast. Her reaction to Sven's latest antics seems perfectly natural to me. It's only the fact that Marten tends to represent the voice of reason in other people's issues that gives me pause. Marten doesn't think a Svenectomy is a good idea. It probably isn't. (Marten's been wrong, so this isn't iron clad.) Seeing that it might be a mistake on Dora's part, means asking, "Where will this mistake take the story?"

Dora has, more often than not, been wrong in her assessment of Sven's actions. It's important to remember that his history of actions bears out Dora's point of view. She's not wrong because she's crazy. She wrong because Sven is acting in unusual ways.

A Svenectomy is neither right nor wrong (a mistake doesn't have to be wrong). Sometimes doing the right thing can backfire. A mistake in hindsight. But how Dora is handling it is not the best she could be doing. Dora is a core cast member. She can't make this kind of mistake without facing consequences for it. One hopes she'll learn something from it. But it's just as possible that the coming conflict is meant to finally turn Sven to the dark side. Just like the end of Fangus, the steps orward have to be poor choices made with the best of intent. Subtracting Sven Drama from her circle isn't a bad thing, if you consider Sven's history. (Even Sven would admit his history is shitty.) Hiding it from Faye is a kindness, especially considering what Faye's dealing with. Hiding it from Tai ...the ground is shakier here, but keeping drama out of the romance isn't a terrible thing to do.

The conflict, of course, is do Faye and Tai WANT to be protected this way. Tai's "I'm so glad WE'RE drama free" could go either way. Faye gets punchy when her agency is threatened. The one certainty is that this will go somewhere. Just because Dora's actions might be central to where it goes, it doesn't follow that we think she's crazy, or that we hate her.

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ReindeerFlotilla

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is anything in this world not a robot?

Hannelore.

In fact, everything not Hannelore is a robot.

Gladstone

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Hannelore.

In fact, everything not Hannelore is a robot.

No, everything not Hannelore is a simulation.

(Although those simulations may also be robots, and those robots are made of nano-dildos.  It's dildos all the way down.)
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ReindeerFlotilla

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Hannelore.

In fact, everything not Hannelore is a robot.

No, everything not Hannelore is a simulation.

(Although those simulations may also be robots, and those robots are made of nano-dildos.  It's dildos all the way down.)

Based on that, the simulation is self programming.

NemoX

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Questionable Content is often called a "slice of life" strip, something I feel very intensely. Tai could be the living image of half a dozen of my close friends from college. I spent the summer of 2007 playing Sven in a Dora-Marten-Faye-Sven quadrangle. As a trans woman, I love seeing how delicately and intelligently Jeph is painting a picture of Claire. But I also understand that what is a "slice of life" for me is deeply weird and alien to a lot of other posters:

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I just couldn't disagree more with any of this. It comes from a place of profound misunderstanding of a type of (mostly queer/poly) social dynamic that Jeph really gets, and that he's doing a terrific job of portraying. If there is a subset of the readership that are critical thinkers, who are interested in this topic but who don't have a direct experience of it, who I can reach with good expository writing and citations, I think that's a great use of my time.

I think the point of "slice of life" stories, if well written, are meant to give us situations and characters that we can relate on one level or another.
I mean, you mention how you can relate Tai to some friends you know from college among other things. And really, I think we all can see a little of ourselves in the characters. Myself for example, I have always been "the nice guy" in my circle of friends, I share some of Dora's control issues, Marten's passive complacency and lack of direction (I have learned to force myself to be more assertive as of late but still have the doubts), even have had periods of time where I took the Sven/Tai approach to relationships and was running around just being a bit more carefree. There are also characters we may admire and aspire to be like, in my case Hannelore, since she is the one that most often and consistently strives to face and break her fears. That is how you know that QC is a good story, because it does evoke that familiarity and sense of "I get this, I know where these characters are coming from".

But perception is painted by experiences. To use a recent example, Faye and Angus. Some people may have experienced a similar situation while on Faye's shoes. Some may have experienced it from Angus' perspective. There is also from a close friend, on either side, or even from a completely detached and non-invested perspective. Doesn't mean any of them are "wrong" or that any of them are "ignorant" of the social dynamics you mention. They are merely opinions. Even the same person will approach the same situation in different ways depending on what they are going through at the time. I like that you actually used the phrasing "I disagree with this" rather than "this is wrong" precisely for these reasons, and I thank you for that. Way too often fights and arguments start because people feel attacked when told they are wrong, rather than being told "I see your point, but I disagree because of this and this and that" and start an actual conversation.

And yes, I do acknowledge there are other times where one simply cannot relate at all because we have not experienced anything similar. In those instances yes, it's good to be educated about what may or may not be the real life motivation for a reaction. But even then, those explanations would be painted with a degree of bias just by the nature of the experience.

Now, that is not to say that it is a bad thing, quite the opposite, that is exactly what I feel this place is for. To share experiences and points of view, and maybe bring to other people's attention a fact or two they may not have known or thought about on their own. To have an honest adult conversation and come out of it having learned something new, even if our opinions may not change.

so...TLDR, thank you for presenting your ideas and opinions in an organized and friendly manner, looking forward to seeing more of your opinions and maybe discussing them should they ever be different than our own :)

Quote from: ReindeerFlotilla
But that's the beauty of having a discussion, over simply writing a dissertation. Other people, with different perspectives, can come along ans say, "What about X?"

That QC allows room for those differing points of view is a sign of good stoytelling.

It stops being fun when people start assuming that those differing points of view aren't honest. Admittedly, casual language is messy, but there's a difference between seguing in with "You are being a bit hard on Dora, IMO," And "You dislike Dora." One suggests civil disagreement. The other suggests a moral failure.

This ^

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Kugai

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plusorminus

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Hi, my name is April!

I was digging into Dora's personality as part of an ongoing conversation that started in the last WCDT, in which some of us were discussing how the Dora/Tai dynamic seemed boringly free of conflict, and were speculating on what sources of new drama there might be. This is close reading. It's a way of enjoying a work of fiction.

Would appreciate it if you lose the condescending tone, thanks. I'm a Master's student in English lit at a pretty damned good school. I know what "close reading" is. I also was a part of that thread speculating on drama and mentioned a few things myself about the Dora/Tai dynamic and how I actually agreed that it was a bit dull. Not a problem if you didn't notice and/or care about my contributions there, but I'm not feeling the contempt in the above.

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And that's wonderful, but she isn't you, and when I write an analysis on a character, it is not a personal attack on the readers who like her. If you want to contribute something positive about her to the conversation, that's your prerogative! But please don't attack me just for putting down some observations I thought were interesting. If you feel like I've misread Dora or failed to present her perspective, please step up and do it! I would be fascinated to read such a thing.

Right ... and I contributed "positive" things about her in a subsequent post, most of which you've chosen to ignore in favor of bashing me. Moving on ...

Quote

I don't see this at all. Tai introduces Dora to Allie. Allie makes a salacious gesture, which could mean anything from "Have fun with Tai! She's a handful" to "I got there first and I could go there again". Dora leaps to the worst possible interpretation, which is in character for her, and shows that she hasn't gone very far toward resolving her jealousy/paranoia issues.

Tai tries to defuse the situation by prodding Dora into bragging about her own past partners, which she thinks will give Dora a chance to strut her stuff and rebuild her bruised ego. This makes sense coming from her poly context, but Dora doesn't understand why she's driving at it and gets more paranoid and alienated. Then they talk to their friends, regroup, and have makeup sex.

The scene ends on a pleasant note, but we're still hanging on the ellipsis, and it remains to be seen whether or not Dora and Tai are developing real communication skills, or if they're using their physical rapport to paper over Dora's unaddressed-in-therapy emotional problems.

Yeah. No.

We have a woman, who doesn't greet Dora in any way and basically ignores her until Tai introduces them. Then still says nothing and smirks, and then walks away STILL NOT ACKNOWLEDGING DORA'S EXISTENCE. So ... no. I'm gonna choose to interpret the smirk as something not positive and Dora saying "She smirked at me" is not "leaping to the worst possible conclusion." She's stating a fact. A rude woman was rude to her, and Tai admits they hooked up, which puts her rudeness into context, but does not make it any more excusable.

Also you also conveniently leave out that Dora expressed to Tai - in a not-yelling, not-angry fashion - that she did not want to "rank" her against her past partners. Tai not only didn't take the hint, but tried to bring Marten into it. I think Dora can be excused for not wanting to rank her current girlfriend against her most recent ex-boyfriend, who is the underling of said girlfriend.

But to you, that's Dora being "paranoid and alienated."  :-\ Because she has the nerve to not want to talk about how many orgasms her girlfriend's employee might have given her in comparison to her girlfriend. Um ...

They acknowledge that they went to their friends for help and Dora jokes with Tai about it. They have makeup sex in part as an extended punchline and to square the circle from Tai's mentioning of her A game earlier in the arc. There's nothing in that to suggest that Dora is using sex to mask her anger or anything of that nature. There also has been no hint of Dora jealousy where Tai is concerned, nothing suggesting she has pushed Tai's boundaries, as Dora did with Marten, or the like. Dora is getting better. By degrees. She is hardly perfect. No one in this strip is. But Dora very rarely gets the benefit of the doubt, at best. At worst, her motives are completely misinterpreted.

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This is like, the basic level of decency I would require of a real friendship, and does not deserve singling out for high praise.

All righty then.  :-\

Right, I'm bowing out. I'm not going to derail the discussion, get an infraction, etc., for arguing uselessly on the Internet. We don't see eye to eye. It happens. I will cease responding to you hereafter, as I think we've reached an impasse.

@ReindeerFlotilla, you make very good points. I do agree that there are issues of agency at play here on its face. However, I'm one of those "Your rights end where mine begin" sorts. Dora has the right to make a decision for herself. We do not know - yet - if she is making the decision on the Svenectomy because of Faye. However, we DO know she made the decision to keep Faye in the dark. You are absolutely correct that it is a problem and that could come to bite her on the arse. When that arc started, I even said that I had no idea why Dora would even tell Marten, knowing how he has the propensity to spill the beans, even when he doesn't mean to, and that anyway, Faye knows when he's hiding stuff, and that if she finds out Marten knew about this and Dora didn't tell her, it will be A Big Problem. I'm hoping that when the Angus stuff blows over, Dora will tell Faye. Not to get her permission, because that's none of Faye's business, but to tell her "Hey, look, I just need you to know that I have decided FOR ME, that Sven is a poisonous influence and I'm cutting him out and barring him from the shop. Obviously this is just a thing I am doing and I don't expect you to follow suit any more than I would have expected you to stop being friends with Marten after we broke up. But I am telling you because you're my friend and I think you should know. I did tell Marten and I asked him not to say anything to you because you had all the Angus stuff on your plate. I'm sorry I kept you in the dark."

I really don't know what, if anything, she should tell Tai. Or maybe she's mentioned it already. I don't know. I suppose Tai should know, but tbh, I'm not really that invested in Tai/Dora. I am, however, invested in Dora and Faye's friendship, and I really think that in the coming days, they will need to lean on each other, so a huge blowup over Sven of all things, would sort of suck.
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Natswash

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Relationship drama aside, it would be cool to have the characters watch Angus on TV later on in the series.

We don't see anybody watching TV too often unless it's anime.

I'd be surprised if it doesn't pop up at some point.

Possibly somewhere down the line where Faye has a new partner and they see Angus on TV and there's an offhand comment that Faye dated Angus?
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AprilArcus

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Right ... and I contributed "positive" things about her in a subsequent post

I don't see such a post? I did quote you in the last thread in a way that seemed like cordial dialogue, but maybe you disagree.

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most of which you've chosen to ignore in favor of bashing me. Moving on ...

Bashing you? You called me snarky, condescending and hateful. All I asked was to be addressed by name if we were going to have a conversation.

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We have a woman, who doesn't greet Dora in any way and basically ignores her until Tai introduces them. Then still says nothing and smirks, and then walks away STILL NOT ACKNOWLEDGING DORA'S EXISTENCE. So ... no. I'm gonna choose to interpret the smirk as something not positive and Dora saying "She smirked at me" is not "leaping to the worst possible conclusion." She's stating a fact. A rude woman was rude to her, and Tai admits they hooked up, which puts her rudeness into context, but does not make it any more excusable.

Also you also conveniently leave out that Dora expressed to Tai - in a not-yelling, not-angry fashion - that she did not want to "rank" her against her past partners. Tai not only didn't take the hint, but tried to bring Marten into it. I think Dora can be excused for not wanting to rank her current girlfriend against her most recent ex-boyfriend, who is the underling of said girlfriend.

But to you, that's Dora being "paranoid and alienated."  :-\ Because she has the nerve to not want to talk about how many orgasms her girlfriend's employee might have given her in comparison to her girlfriend. Um ...

This is great! And very different from how I read it. Thank you for sharing.

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Right, I'm bowing out. I'm not going to derail the discussion, get an infraction, etc., for arguing uselessly on the Internet. We don't see eye to eye. It happens. I will cease responding to you hereafter, as I think we've reached an impasse.

And this is just... really upsetting. I don't understand what I said to make this so personal. I feel attacked, and I'm a little wigged out that I apparently have such poor control over my tone that I could have hurt your feelings so badly and still have no idea when or how I did so, despite going back over my recent posts looking for the slight.

I'm sad that you don't want to continue our conversation, and that sucks because you are smart and have good points, but I certainly don't want to make you miserable by engaging with you beyond your desire to do so.
« Last Edit: 21 Oct 2014, 23:29 by AprilArcus »
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BenRG

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The thing that really shocks me about today's strip is that Marten looked surprised! I mean, he's lived with Pintsize for years; you'd expect him to be used to things like this happening and for them to slide off of him like water off a duck's back!

Secondary thought - might that thing have a Roomba CPU? You know, the sort that spontaneously generates independent intelligence? :-o
« Last Edit: 21 Oct 2014, 23:28 by BenRG »
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downtowneddie

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The first thing that came to mind? Marten's quote in #1666: "There needs to be a word for those brief moments of clarity where you realize just how profoundly weird your life is."

The next page is also appropriate (and calls back to when Fangus took off).
The singing, walking dlido calls back to the sentient sex toys joke in that strip as well.

...and we've come full circle. Heh.
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LilShortstuf

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The thing that really shocks me about today's strip is that Marten looked surprised! I mean, he's lived with Pintsize for years; you'd expect him to be used to things like this happening and for them to slide off of him like water off a duck's back!

Secondary thought - might that thing have a Roomba CPU? You know, the sort that spontaneously generates independent intelligence? :-o

Because I have no idea where in the thousands of strips it is, especially because I believe it is a one-off strip, I have no link to it, but I believe there is a strip where Pintsize pulls some shenanigan and Faye and Marten don't react at all. They even say nothing he does anymore will bother or surprise them. Guess not.
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swapna

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The thing that really shocks me about today's strip is that Marten looked surprised! I mean, he's lived with Pintsize for years; you'd expect him to be used to things like this happening and for them to slide off of him like water off a duck's back!

Secondary thought - might that thing have a Roomba CPU? You know, the sort that spontaneously generates independent intelligence? :-o

Because I have no idea where in the thousands of strips it is, especially because I believe it is a one-off strip, I have no link to it, but I believe there is a strip where Pintsize pulls some shenanigan and Faye and Marten don't react at all. They even say nothing he does anymore will bother or surprise them. Guess not.

yeah, that was my first thought, too. He's probably mirroring our reaction since we haven't seen a lot of Pintsizes antics lately. And I really really hope that it's the kind that gets randomly intelligent, so Tai can have her sentient sex toy ;)

also: YESSS... finally a break from all the Fayangus drama and I'm so glad that it's not another Clairarten strip (her character hasn't got any more likable in the last few weeks)
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And this is just... really upsetting. I don't understand what I said to make this so personal. I feel attacked, and I'm a little wigged out that I apparently have such poor control over my tone that I could have hurt your feelings so badly and still have no idea when or how I did so, despite going back over my recent posts looking for the slight.

I'm sad that you don't want to continue our conversation, and that sucks because you are smart and have good points, but I certainly don't want to make you miserable by engaging with you beyond your desire to do so.

I was going to cover a few more points, but it seems like that might not be the best of ideas.

If it makes any difference, I'm nearly as baffled. I've never found your tone to be an issue. I'm going with the assumption that the subject is more deeply disturbing to plusorminus than I understand. I would like to know, but I will take the man in black's advice and get used to disappointment.

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I'm sad that you don't want to continue our conversation, and that sucks because you are smart and have good points, but I certainly don't want to make you miserable by engaging with you beyond your desire to do so.

I looked over my responses and they were ill-advised and rude to you. I have to really make an effort not to post things when there are other outside issues I'm upset about that have nothing to do with anything that happens here.

While there were some points I disagree with, I did not frame them in any way for a civil discussion to take place. Disagreeing with certain points you made does not give me carte blanche to jump down your throat or to ascribe motives or feelings to you that I have no way of knowing are applicable or not.

I'm sorry for my brattishness. There's no excuse. I'm very ashamed of myself right now. There's nothing you said or did or implied that warranted my responses. I feel horrible that I made you question yourself and caused you any disquiet.

I think that I need to let this arc play out in its entirety, Svenectomy included, before chiming in again. At the very least, I'll have a better idea of where the comic might be headed in the short term, and it's very possible that any drama involving Dora will have come - and possibly gone - by then.
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Pilchard123

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Quote from: Trollmaster, Master of Trolls
And down the stairs and out into the street and on a bus and all the way to Amherst

Oh dear...
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Quote from: Trollmaster, Master of Trolls
And down the stairs and out into the street and on a bus and all the way to Amherst

Oh dear...

Where the AI, Engineering, Psychology, and Sexual Relations Students/Teachers/Grads all had varying theories as to how it works and it's effect on humanity
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BenRG

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If Marten learns anything from this surreal moment, it is that he needs to pay attention when Pintsize tells him his plans for the day and be more proactive in vetting them.

To call giving a sexual aid autonomous mobility and, apparently, a primitive AI... excessive... and potentially dangerous is an understatement. As it is, the best we can hope for is for 'Dilly' to find someone who appreciates his special talents and is willing to be his friend.

Now I think about it, I believe that there is a sci-fi story about AI sex toys making the jump to friend and even lover with the resulting philosophical and social consequences. Those were biomechanical, IIRC, but there's no reason why a fully-electromechanical devices can't do the same...

*Shakes head* Sorry, coffee hasn't kicked in fully just yet.

[edit]
Fixed a few typos - I told you the coffee hadn't fully kicked in
« Last Edit: 22 Oct 2014, 01:13 by BenRG »
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AprilArcus

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I'm sorry for my brattishness. There's no excuse. I'm very ashamed of myself right now. There's nothing you said or did or implied that warranted my responses. I feel horrible that I made you question yourself and caused you any disquiet.

I think that I need to let this arc play out in its entirety, Svenectomy included, before chiming in again. At the very least, I'll have a better idea of where the comic might be headed in the short term, and it's very possible that any drama involving Dora will have come - and possibly gone - by then.

Thanks for that. I feel better, and I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts when you're ready.

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I, uh, would be interested in the above story for reasons.
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BenRG

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@ Loki,

It was referenced in a book I read on the history of English-language sci-fi a long while back (when I was still in school).
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ASB84

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I just couldn't disagree more with any of this. It comes from a place of profound misunderstanding of a type of (mostly queer/poly) social dynamic that Jeph really gets, and that he's doing a terrific job of portraying. If there is a subset of the readership that are critical thinkers, who are interested in this topic but who don't have a direct experience of it, who I can reach with good expository writing and citations, I think that's a great use of my time.

I suppose it just comes down to different perspectives. I certainly accept your take on the matter, and I hope that you can understand where I'm coming from too, even if you don't agree or believe that it applies here. My own philosophy and thoughts on dating friend's exes shape my own reactions to the actions of fictional characters, but I'm certainly not about to say that my reaction is the only reasonable one, or that anyone else's philosophy on the matter is wrong. Again, my reactions are just based on my thoughts about monogamous relationships.

It's like the debate about Dora's actions when she and Marten got together. Some people were fine with it, others thought that her actions (or at least her timing) weren't quite on the level. It's like the whole Ross and Rachel, "We were on a break!" thing in Friends all those years ago. To me, both sides have a point, you could reasonably look at it from both angles.

I think it would be interesting to hear your explanation of that philosophy, because you're quite right, it's not a take that I'm familiar with. Likewise, I'd be happy to explain where I'm coming from, if you were interested. I don't expect to change your stance on the matter, nor do I want to, but it might add further clarification about where I'm coming from.
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It just seems as though she's scapegoating Sven in lieu of confronting the problems that destroyed her last relationship
I have no idea where you're getting that from in the comic. Dora is hard on Sven, I'll grant, though with some reason, but where's the evidence that it is done instead of confronting her own insecurities?

A sentient, escaped dildo. A freedom-seeking phallus. And it isn't even Friday.  :psyduck:
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What a dick.
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Natswash

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If Marten learns anything from this surreal moment, it is that he needs to pay attention when Pintsize tells him his plans for the day and be more proactive in vetting them.
I seem to recall duct taping him to be rather efficient, although I wonder how that interacts with AI civil rights?

To call giving a sexual aid autonomous mobility and, apparently, a primitive AI... excessive... and potentially dangerous is an understatement. As it is, the best we can hope for is for 'Dilly' to find someone who appreciates his special talents and is willing to be his friend.
If not given a minor subplot (a strip of textless images would be fine). I at least want it to become a gag somewhere down the line
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Wait, it's heading to Amherst?

Tai might have some competition.
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