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Faye and Angus talk and break up

11 (10.4%)

Faye and Angus talk and resolve to make it work

4 (3.8%)

Dora goes to confront Sven and finds him in bed with Faye

12 (11.3%)

Dora goes to confront Sven and finds him in bed with CLAIRE!

2 (1.9%)

Emily confesses her feelings for Marten

5 (4.7%)

Emily confesses her feelings for Claire

6 (5.7%)

Emily confesses her feelings for green peppers

25 (23.6%)

Clinton learns about the SS Martenclaire

24 (22.6%)

Station shows up in an AnthroPC chassis to pursue Hanners

6 (5.7%)

Penelope actually does something interesting or memorable

5 (4.7%)

Steve is seen eating breakfast, but he's having... pancakes?!?

6 (5.7%)

Total Members Voted: 98

[eschaton]

Maybe I'm dead inside, but I'm not only missing any squee, but starting to get actively irritated by Marten/Claire. 

Claire is fine.  I like Claire.  I just don't like how Marten is acting around Claire though.  It still seems way OOC for him...as if some pod person replaced him.  He's too chill, assertive, quiet, etc.  His "soulful looks" in the full face shots give me the creeps too.  Worst of all, MARTEN IS BORING!

I could excuse it as being "game face" due to it being a budding relationship, but Marten and Claire have been friends for months now in comic.  Marten should feel totally comfortable to act exactly as he always has, except for being open about his feelings.  But this just seems like a dramatic shift in his behavior. 

The sad thing is, I really liked the Wedding Arc back in the day.  I thought there was great chemistry with the warts of both characters up front and on display.  This just feels like...friggin fanfic honestly.  Can't wait to get back to more Faye angst.  Or robot butt jokes. 

[Kugai]

Marten is being a true gentleman here.


Clinton will be an ass about it and Claire will have to hit him with a bat.

[Estron]

Money-saving benefits aside, she missed out on romance during her teen and early college years and never got to experience the thrill of sneaking a boy into her room for makeouts under the watchful eye of her mother, so now's her chance!

Please indulge the curiosity of a 58-year-old, and tell me how far the term "makeouts" goes in today's audience.  Marten's "makeouts" with Delilah, for example, seemed to have included sex.  By that definition, Marten and Claire have had no makeouts yet.  In the bygone past, "making out" covered the innocent smooching as well as the bigger and better things.  How does it stand in today's lexicon, please?

[MooskiNet]

Claire is fine.  I like Claire.  I just don't like how Marten is acting around Claire though.  It still seems way OOC for him...as if some pod person replaced him.  He's too chill, assertive, quiet, etc.  His "soulful looks" in the full face shots give me the creeps too.  Worst of all, MARTEN IS BORING!

I could excuse it as being "game face" due to it being a budding relationship, but Marten and Claire have been friends for months now in comic.  Marten should feel totally comfortable to act exactly as he always has, except for being open about his feelings.  But this just seems like a dramatic shift in his behavior. 

I get what you're saying, and without some sort of dialogue between Marten and someone besides Claire (even himself, if necessary), we're not getting any insight into what's going on in his brain.

My read on it is that when Marten says he's super into Claire, he is, and I mean the "holy shit this came from nowhere but I'm goddamn crazy about you" kind.  Along with that realization came another:  he needs to be patient and careful in ways it would never have occurred to him to be before.  Claire's special, and not just because she's a trans woman.  She's got anxiety issues, she's in her first real relationship, and it's with someone who's nominally her boss at a job she wants to make a career of.

All of which is to say I think what Marten is doing is 'treading lightly.'  For someone who is as chill as Marten already is, that means just about turning into the fucking Buddha.


Edited to add:  I believe 'makeouts' is physical intimacy, and the level is sort of a context clue thing.

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

"If you meet the Buddha, kiss the Buddha."

[BenRG]

Or maybe this is a diabolical stress test on Jeph's part? He's deliberately drawing out Marten and Claire's sugary first date in an attempt to expose those forum members who are only interested when he makes his characters miserable or look stupid because of their stumbling attempts to interact socially?

[Nepiophage]

I suspect that JJ thinks we forumites are all strange and it doesn't really matter what we think.

[brew]

expose those forum members who are only interested when he makes his characters miserable or look stupid because of their stumbling attempts to interact socially?

I'm pretty sure that's an inaccurate assumption about those who dislike the current arc.

I find the recent comics too fanfic-like also. A couple strips is fine, but I wish this had moved on a week ago.

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

I think he's winding up for something. Dunno what yet... but something that'll make it worthwhile.

[Gladstone]

WEDNESDAY: Marten arrives at home to find Faye in tears hugging Pintsize of all 'bots. He sits down next to her and hugs her making a pithy remark about 'if you turned to Pintsize it must be bad'. We get to wait until next week to find out what happened.

I'm starting to wonder why there needs to be a "cliffhanger" for Thanksgiving week, though.  My archive-fu isn't very powerful, so I can't remember what occurred around Thanksgiving year by year, but I do remember that Thanksgiving Week 2012 involved Claire coming out to Marten at the lake party, with the two of them discussing the issue over coffee and Clinton jumping to conclusions due to his distrust of Marten.  The turkeys called it a "plot twist," although it really wasn't, and Friday's comic gave us some sibling interaction to round out the week.  No big drama or cliffhangers or anything, at least not in-comic (the forums were something else, though). 

Granted, I'm still crawling through the archives to find other Thanksgiving week strips, but the one above shows that there doesn't need to be a major OMG!moment for the turkeys to chat about (since they talk about QC all the time anyway).  Although there still could be--having Clinton jump to conclusions again due to his distrust of Marten would be a good parallel to two years ago.  But my vote is still on Faye.

Edit: Found the strip-by-strip guide, using that to look up previous turkey weeks.  2010's occurred after Marten and Dora broke up, 2011 was centered around Padma's impending move home, etc.  I'll look up the others when I have more time...unless someone else wants to do it instead?

[jwhouk]

Go back to strip 498, then start reading forward.

You will understand.

[Gladstone]

It has been a while since I reread the entire comic...

[DonInKansas]

I see Steve more as a waffle guy.

[Rghfrgl]

But my vote is still on Faye.

I don't know if there's time for that, Faye's got two strips to decide to move to new york/sleep with Sven/become a pro wrestler etc. So Clinton or some other drama happens when Marten walks Claire home or we just go into thanksgiving with a goodnight kiss.

And save the doom and gloom for christmas!

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

Not a creature will be left stirring, not even a mouse. Hannelore will have gotten them all.

[Gladstone]

I don't know if there's time for that, Faye's got two strips to decide to move to new york/sleep with Sven/become a pro wrestler etc. So Clinton or some other drama happens when Marten walks Claire home or we just go into thanksgiving with a goodnight kiss.

Or BenRG's alternative possibility happens, and starting next week we flash back 12-ish hours to see how Faye's day went.  Although that would really slow the timeline to a crawl...

[Natswash]

Please indulge the curiosity of a 58-year-old, and tell me how far the term "makeouts" goes in today's audience.  Marten's "makeouts" with Delilah, for example, seemed to have included sex.  By that definition, Marten and Claire have had no makeouts yet.  In the bygone past, "making out" covered the innocent smooching as well as the bigger and better things.  How does it stand in today's lexicon, please?

As a current College student I feel as if I have some level of ability to answer this. Anything from a decent amount of kisses in a given time space (usually if your lips only leave for a few seconds to a minute) to actually having sex. It depends on how honest you want to be with the person you're telling that you made out with some one.
Using Marten and Steve as an example for more honesty on the non sex end:
S: So how'd last night go?
M: It was good, we made out.
S: Right on, so when do you plan to see her again?
...
However if Marten and Claire actually did have sex but it was Faye asking, you could switch Steve for Faye and have Marten just being kind to a recently single friend.

[valkygrrl]

Comic, no goodnight kiss

[Natswash]

Please forgive my double posting: Comic's up and no more kisses for now

Warning - while you were typing a new reply has been posted. You may wish to review your post.

Scratch the double posting bit, I was ninja'd

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

Ah, he's become aware of his own zen. There's the Marten we know. And also the Pintsize we know, but he never left.

[Gladstone]

I just don't like how Marten is acting around Claire though.  It still seems way OOC for him...as if some pod person replaced him.  He's too chill, assertive, quiet, etc.
[...]
I could excuse it as being "game face" due to it being a budding relationship, but Marten and Claire have been friends for months now in comic.  Marten should feel totally comfortable to act exactly as he always has, except for being open about his feelings.  But this just seems like a dramatic shift in his behavior. 

Marten thinks it's pretty weird too.

[valkygrrl]

Prediction, next Sven appears in his underwear followed by Angus in his underwear. Dun dun dun!

[Is it cold in here?]

Faye is being happy on his behalf and supportive.

[Gladstone]

Prediction, next Sven appears in his underwear followed by Angus in his underwear. Dun dun dun!

Air guitar underpants supergroup!

[Rghfrgl]

Dates over and still nothing setup? Whelp, time for Hanners to kill everyone.

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

Oh, a setup would be easy.

*knock knock*
MARTEN: That had better not be Tai here to squee at me.
FAYE: I'll get it.

Walk panel

The door opens

ANGUS: Hey.

OMGturkeys and Yelling Bird after that, no resolution until Monday.

[Gladstone]

ANGUS: Hey.

OMGturkeys and Yelling Bird after that, no resolution until Monday.

Angus: Got Tai's text.  High five, bro.

[bhtooefr]

Anyone notice that Faye's into the hard liquor?

[marbledmurrelet]

I just don't like how Marten is acting around Claire though.  It still seems way OOC for him...as if some pod person replaced him.  He's too chill, assertive, quiet, etc. 

You don't like people showing new and unexpected sides of themselves? His behaviour still makes perfect sense to me, from experience. By your logic, my own relationship shouldn't exist - because I'd been a drama queen with everyone else for years, and he couldn't stand staying with one person and always had a very different "type" anyway. His on-and-off ex is still weirded out by how out of character it is for him to be with me, while people who know me (including myself) find it fascinating how chill I am around him. The person you're with can make a huge difference for the way you feel and act, and for me the SS Claireten is a beautiful example of this.

[Gladstone]

ANGUS: Hey.

OMGturkeys and Yelling Bird after that, no resolution until Monday.

Angus: Got Tai's text.  High five, bro.

(Continued)

Bros: BROS! BROS! BROS! BROS!
Marten: What the hell are you doing here?
Bro(s): We're neighbors!  Just moved in next door.
Angus: But--why were you all hiding in Faye's room?
Faye: There's, uh, there's something I have to tell you...

[Kugai]

The plot cliffhanger will be that there will be no cliffhanger

[DSL]

ANGUS: Hey.

OMGturkeys and Yelling Bird after that, no resolution until Monday.

Angus: Got Tai's text.  High five, bro.

(Continued)

Bros: BROS! BROS! BROS! BROS!
Marten: What the hell are you doing here?
Bro(s): We're neighbors!  Just moved in next door.
Angus: But--why were you all hiding in Faye's room?
Faye: There's, uh, there's something I have to tell you...

If Jeph to come to me and say, "you get to tell me one thing to do with the strip, and I have to do it," my reply would be: "NEVER show the bros arriving or leaving, nor explain how they got there." I suspect that's his plan anyway.

[Rghfrgl]

Marten is feeling very comfortable and he's not comfortable with that.

[Natswash]

Marten is feeling very comfortable and he's not comfortable with that.

So is he comfortable with being uncomfortable?

[St.Clair]

and Pintsize speaks for the forums. :p

[cesium133]

ANGUS: Hey.

OMGturkeys and Yelling Bird after that, no resolution until Monday.

Angus: Got Tai's text.  High five, bro.

(Continued)

Bros: BROS! BROS! BROS! BROS!
Marten: What the hell are you doing here?
Bro(s): We're neighbors!  Just moved in next door.
Angus: But--why were you all hiding in Faye's room?
Faye: There's, uh, there's something I have to tell you...

If Jeph to come to me and say, "you get to tell me one thing to do with the strip, and I have to do it," my reply would be: "NEVER show the bros arriving or leaving, nor explain how they got there." I suspect that's his plan anyway.

Chunky Bro invented a teleportation machine so they can go where they are needed.

[Meilu]

I agree with others who are complaining. Claire is fine, Marten seems like a pod person. I understand people change in certain relationships, I've done so myself... so maybe it isn't technically out of character, but his confidence is disconcerting, a little jarring. What bothers me is, even though he's normally fairly "chill", he's never been so sure of himself. If he had come to some revelation that he deserves to be in a happy relationship it might not bother me. I can see him not being aware of that on a conscious level, too, though, so maybe that revelation is coming.

I can also see this not lasting, in part because of Claire's inexperience. No matter how zen  Marten becomes, it may be just a matter of time.

[Lubricus]

For someone who is as chill as Marten already is, that means just about turning into the fucking Buddha.

He hasn't become the FUCKING Buddha just yet, apparently... 

[Platypodes]

The sad thing is, I really liked the Wedding Arc back in the day.  I thought there was great chemistry with the warts of both characters up front and on display.

Yeah.  And Claire would sometimes be flustered and nervous but would also snark at Marten and give him a bit of shit now and then in a hilarious way, and we haven't seen any of that since the romance officially started.

Marten's taking such a paternal role on this date. I get that Claire is nervous about her first date and that Marten as the more experienced one wants to help her through her nervousness, but do those things override everything else we've known about the characters and their relationship?  And if Marten is so into Claire, shouldn't he seem a little more excited about this?  A little giddy, nervous, lustful, all those normal things a boy feels when he's first falling for a girl?  Isn't staying totally chill even when Claire was clearly overcome with sexy thoughts about him a bit strange?

I think it's cool to have Marten grow as a character, and staying with a running gag of "Marten is a passive dork who doesn't know what to say to ladies" would get boring, but he could become a more comfortable and confident guy without magically turning into The Perfect Date Who Always Does Everything Exactly Right.

Please indulge the curiosity of a 58-year-old, and tell me how far the term "makeouts" goes in today's audience.  Marten's "makeouts" with Delilah, for example, seemed to have included sex.  By that definition, Marten and Claire have had no makeouts yet.  In the bygone past, "making out" covered the innocent smooching as well as the bigger and better things.  How does it stand in today's lexicon, please?

As a current College student I feel as if I have some level of ability to answer this. Anything from a decent amount of kisses in a given time space (usually if your lips only leave for a few seconds to a minute) to actually having sex.

I'm 35, and in the usage I'm accustomed to, "making out" definitely does not include sex.  Typical usage might include:
Person A: So, did you guys do it?
Person B: No, we just made out.
The spectrum of activities that count as "makeouts" generally range from prolonged kissing (more than just "a kiss") up to anything that can be done while both partners have their underpants on.

Based on that usage, I'd been assuming that Marten and Delilah didn't have sex, that they probably got as far as what older folks would call "heavy petting" and then fell asleep together.  Marten clearly had his boxers on when he woke up next to Delilah, but I suppose it's possible that they had sex and then he put them back on before going to sleep.

[ReindeerFlotilla]

Thanks to a timely sig, it occurs to me that the only reason Marten seems out of character to some is that they are selectively remembering Marten's character. It's not that he's usually confident and comfortable. He usually isn't. But he's certainly capable of it.

I know, I know. There's arguments against it. I'm sure your argument is really cool. Listen--

What do you know about Pokémon?[/i]

Marten's attitude during that encounter is pretty much the definition of confident and comfortable. The situation's different, yes. But then Marten's already showing the he wasn't expecting it out of himself. The key point is that the attitude is something we've seen from him before.

Isn't staying totally chill even when Claire was clearly overcome with sexy thoughts about him a bit strange?

In a word? No.

We've seen Marten in Three Romantic Situations before Claire. In Situation 1 he spent 500 strips mooning after Faye and never made a move. In Situation 2, Dora basically ambushed him. In Situation 3 it's heavily implied that he spent the entire run up being reticent about getting involved, and Padma but the move on him.

With Claire, Marten has always been "a gentleman." Drunk cuddles during sleep? Marten puts Claire first. Drunk Cuddle while awake? Marten backs off as soon as Claire suggests it (Should and Probably are hesitation words. Openings for cajoling. Not to Marten. No means no, even when phrased with should and probably). It's pretty much 100% normal for marten not to follow up. I think it would be asking too much in terms of character growth if he did. Already, people can't handle him deploying his confident side in a romantic situation. For him to develop sexual aggression too? That'd be a bit much.

[explicit]

I always just use the baseball analogy, seems easy enough. Makeout has never meant more than second base, if that, to me.

On for the boxers thing, I'm almost certain they fucked, while I never put my pants back on after sex (unless it's cold), some people do (one of my exes always did). Also, some people just use the hole in the boxers, though I have yet to understand why.

[BenRG]

It's interesting that Jeph has chosen to have Marten remark upon how he handled things on his date. Marten is aware that he normally isn't like this during romantic interactions; maybe it's a reaction to the girl in question. Claire is important enough to him that he measured every step because he wanted her to enjoy herself. It's nice that Faye was able to reassure him that it is a good behaviour characteristic. I suspect that, when the time comes, Marten will also be surprised by how passionate things will get.

We all knew that would be Pintsize's question. I also think that Faye is sufficiently nosey that she also wants to know how far Marten and Claire got!

Here's a thought: I think that Marten will be surprised by the number of allies he has. Faye, Dora and Tai at the very least. They all know how badly he's been burned before and they all want him to be happy. That means that they all have his back.

As for Claire? She was as nervous as hell! No surprise that her snarky side didn't come out much! Marten certainly realised this; that is why he had a focus on reassurance. He still seems to have enjoyed himself. He obviously didn't feel that he was tutoring Claire or anything like that.

[Lubricus]

I suspect Marten's weird calm and the following conversation about it with Faye means that he's actually falling deeply in love - something he might not have experienced before.

[HiFranc]

Something Platypodes said made me realise what's going on.  I can confirm from experience, having something else to do on a date does get rid of nervousness.  I always used to get too nervous on dates until I met my ex.  She's blind and therefore I was so busy audio describing what was happening around us that I didn't have time to get nervous.  The date went well because we dated for 4 years.  Similarly, I suspect that the fact that Marten was reassuring Claire down meant that he didn't have time to be nervous himself.  When things do progress, he'll be so used to being with Claire that he won't be nervous anyway.

{edit} And Ben RG put things so well.

[Rghfrgl]

 I don't think Marten's been acting that strange, clearly a bit different, but it feels like it's been properly built on. Relationship wise at least, he's figured out what he doesn't want and what he does want and he's doing something about it. A little confidence for once is in order.

Really, it's just how creepy he's being drawn sometimes.

[Thrillho]

I'm 26 and I've never once heard of 'makeouts' meaning anything other than just kissing with tongues. Frenching. Whatever you want to call it. Just not buh-buh-buh-BANGIN'.

I mean admittedly I'm British but I do work with teenagers and American culture and slang is infecting our youth like a virus.

[BenRG]

Walking (nearly running, actually) to work this morning, the following possibility for tomorrow jumped into my mind fully formed:

PANEL 1 (half-height)
CLAIRE is closing the door behind her

MRS A (off-frame): Good evening, dear!

CLAIRE: Evening, Mom!

PANEL 2 (half-height)
MRS A is standing in front of a bashful CLAIRE

MRS A: Such a gentleman to walk you home! So, how did it go?

CLAIRE: Well, we had a quick dinner, some ice cream... And we kissed an' stuff...

PANEL 3
MRS A (eyebrow quirked): Kissed? Is that all? Come on, Claire! A first relationship and a first date? Moms live for this stuff! Give me something to go on here!

CLAIRE (blushing): Mo-ooom!

PANEL 4
MRS A (starting to resemble an excited VERONICA): I mean, was there any petting? Did you let him touch your...?"

CLAIRE (speech bubble blocking end of MRS A's sentence): MOOOM!

PANEL 5
MRS A: I'm sorry, dear, it's just that I'm so excited about your first date! I mean, he's such a good-looking boy! Is his butt as firm as...?"

CLAIRE (beetroot red; same speech bubble trick): MOOOOOOMMM!!!

CLINTON (leaning in from out-of-frame): Claire had a date? Since when? Why am I always the last to hear about these things?!?

[ReindeerFlotilla]

I'm 26 and I've never once heard of 'makeouts' meaning anything other than just kissing with tongues. Frenching. Whatever you want to call it. Just not buh-buh-buh-BANGIN'.

I mean admittedly I'm British but I do work with teenagers and American culture and slang is infecting our youth like a virus.

I was well past 26 before I learned Roger had any meaning beyond A) a person's name, B) an acknowledgement of information received and understood. Kinda changes one's view of casting Roger Moore as James Bond.

Roger Moore? How could he possibly?

Anyway, it's always important to remember that just because we speak the same language, it doesn't follow that we speak the same language. That's something to put in the old fanny pack.

[Natswash]

Maybe it's just my school then. Or maybe everyone means something different. Probably the first one.
It is fun to watch British teens get infected by slightly out of date American slang and subcultures, almost as much fun as watching my friends succumb to the BBC. (I say living in California)

[Thrillho]

I'm 26 and I've never once heard of 'makeouts' meaning anything other than just kissing with tongues. Frenching. Whatever you want to call it. Just not buh-buh-buh-BANGIN'.

I mean admittedly I'm British but I do work with teenagers and American culture and slang is infecting our youth like a virus.

I was well past 26 before I learned Roger had any meaning beyond A) a person's name, B) an acknowledgement of information received and understood. Kinda changes one's view of casting Roger Moore as James Bond.

Roger Moore? How could he possibly?

Anyway, it's always important to remember that just because we speak the same language, it doesn't follow that we speak the same language. That's something to put in the old fanny pack.

'Fanny pack' is an amusing choice for a post about differences in language - anyway if you're American there'd be no need for you to know the British connotation of 'roger' as a verb. I'm fully aware of regional differences and generally pretty 'up' on them which is why I was surprised, but 'making out' was already slang, so I was just slightly baffled by the thought of it having two preposterously similar but still different, equally applicable meanings.

Maybe it's just my school then. Or maybe everyone means something different. Probably the first one.
It is fun to watch British teens get infected by slightly out of date American slang and subcultures, almost as much fun as watching my friends succumb to the BBC. (I say living in California)

The same is true in reverse I can assure you.