mid-morning ramblings

[yendi]

Well, I survived the presentation. Which was to only four faculty, and some TAs. *shrug*. I did well, though -- connected with their issues, made good points, etc.

I needed that high -- I'm still in a little depressive funk, partially based on what I posted last night, partially based on some other stuff, and partially based on chemistry.

Had both a huge calf spasm, and a renewed burst of the depression right before 11. Am better on both counts now.

With my insomnia last night, I read the first 2.5 volumes of Starman. I'd only read the first 1.5 before. I'm really enjoying it. I'm amazed at how good Robinson's writing was, and how nicely he tied together all of the previous Starmen (although some weren't needed, to be honest). The only other stuff he's written that I've read are The Golden Age (which I loved, but which is almost like a long version of every What If, done with the All-Star Squadron), and the delightful Leave it to Chance. I'll need to track down some of his other stuff. Though you can't pay me enough to read Cable, no matter who writes it.

Oh, and the best thing about the presentation this morning was that I was able to snag two more cups of coffee and a poppyseed bagel.

Comments

mmm.. starman....

[crowyhead.livejournal.com]

I discovered Starman at the public library last summer, and was pleasantly surprised. I used to eschew superhero comics as a rule, but now I'm dabbling, in part due to that pleasant experience. :) I have to admit I grew quite fond of Shade.

Re: mmm.. starman....

[yendi]

There are some amazing superhero books out there. It's one of the reasons I think Warren Ellis is a kook -- superhero is just another genre, and there's some amazing stories that can be told with it.

I like Shade, too, although it's weird seeing this take on him (having seen some of his 1940s era moments, when he was much more one-dimensional).

Re: mmm.. starman....

[crowyhead.livejournal.com]

*nods* I've been reading Astro City lately -- I really, really like a lot of the stuff Busiek's done. I'm fairly new to comics; I sort of started with the Sandman books at the public library about two years ago, and I've been sampling a lot since then. I have no patience for reading them issue by issue, though -- it's just not enough story at once! I'm a spoiled brat, methinks. ;)

Re: mmm.. starman....

[yendi]

I'm totally a graphic novel person. I'll buy individual comics, but I have such trouble remembering the stories! You've seen http://www.sequentialtart.com, right? They have some great reading lists and forums for folks just getting into comics.

I got halfway through the fifth Starman volume last night. Am getting more impressed each issue.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

Apropos of nothing, I've just got to say that that particular user-icon always makes me giggle. Always nice to see more 8-Bit Theatre fans out there, but in particular, that word balloon strikes me as hysterical.

[yendi]

(Apropos of something, I just won an ARC of the sequel to Sir Apropos of Nothing on eBay)

I adore 8-Bit, and had been looking for a good icon from it for a long time when I found that panel (I've certainly had plenty of .sig files from it). Unlike my Nodwick icon, characters from the strip don't make good icons by themselves (I mean, let's face it, they're eight bit!). But it was hard to find a good single panel or section -- most strips are just too busy (I seriously tried for the "+3 cookies of yummy" moment from last week, but couldn't clip it right). It's the only one of my own icons that I ever call up just for the hell of it.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

I've had problems clipping anything with text in it such that the text is legible. The 8-Bit quote that I hear most from my friends is "Argh! My brittle old-man hip!" (http://www.nuklearpower.com/comic/022.htm), which would clip nicely because there's no art involved. But that loses some of the fun.

Now you have me wanting to re-read the whole thing and see if I can find something suitable. Must resist urge to blow off work in order to become a better style-biter.

[yendi]

Well, it's not like re-reading all of 8-bit would be too painful. When I first got into Sluggy and Kevin and Kell a few years ago, I literally wasted an entire workday reading the strips (this was pre-cube farm, when I didn't have to explain why I had the giggles every ten seconds). 8-Bit would only kill an hour or two.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

Sluggy took me about three days worth of work. Fortunately, at the time I had a job where I had access to a T1 line, virtually no supervision, and virtually no job duties. There was a contract dispute going on, and I had nothing to do most of the time. Nice work if you can get it, and don't mind the boredom.

I'm amazed that someone else reads "Kevin & Kell." It's one of about half a dozen that I actually read daily, but I never see it on anyone else's list, and I associate that with the fact that it's so often cheesy, and it's so much like the average newspaper strip, as opposed to outre strips like "Something Positive" or geeky fun things like "8-Bit." Still, I like the ongoing storyline, and the whole basic idea behind the strip.

[yendi]

K&K was the first strip I discovered, and the reason I resisted Sluggy for so long, since I didn't think I'd have time for two strips.

I think you're absolutely dead-on about the reason it's not as hip. Other than the slightly adult content (lots of death), there's really not much about the strip that would prevent it from appearing in a newspaper (certainly the format is the same, not surprising, given Holbrook's experience). When people are dismissive of it, I remind them that Plan9 was formed specifically to give Kevin and Kell a dead tree home, and that usually shuts 'em up.

I also think one of the reasons for its lack of popularity (comparitively), is the fact that it's a stealth strip. At first glance, it seems like just some cheesy animals. But there's lots of social commentary, some great characterization, and some actual writing going on. Most folks miss that in a cursory glance.

The local paper doesn't carry either of Holbrook's other strips (On the Fasttrack and Safe Havens), which is too bad, as I really intend to check them out at some point. He's a local artist, and I've bought quite a few things from him at cons (I've got a signed K&K print, a mug, and a signed mousepad, at last glance).

[rollick.livejournal.com]

K&K was the first strip I discovered, and the reason I resisted Sluggy for so long, since I didn't think I'd have time for two strips.

Heh. Are you still just reading two strips regularly? I've got eight flagged at this point, though several only appear three times a week. They tend to sort of accidentally accumulate once you start talking to other people about the strips they read.

Other than the slightly adult content (lots of death), there's really not much about the strip that would prevent it from appearing in a newspaper

It can get a little morbid, if you really think about it. "Don't talk with your mouth full of maggots, dear." But yes, it mostly does that kind of thing in a cute way.

I also think one of the reasons for its lack of popularity (comparitively), is the fact that it's a stealth strip. At first glance, it seems like just some cheesy animals. But there's lots of social commentary, some great characterization, and some actual writing going on. Most folks miss that in a cursory glance.

Yeah, that's the main reason I don't try to recommend it to other people. On an average day, it's got some cheap joke about Kevin mowing the grass by eating it, or about computer IDs or some such. To get the impact, you really have to read a year's worth of it and get to understand the world it takes place in. I probably wouldn't have done it myself, except that Plan 9 sent me a pile of review books, including the first K&K volume, and it's easier to sit down and flip through a book of strips than read a hundred of them online.

I think one of the things I really like about it personally is just the whole concept of "The Wild," and of intelligent animals each making the individual choice about whether they want to wear clothes and live in houses or run around on all fours. I like a lot of the culture clashes that take place as a result of carnivores and herbivores living in proximity. The somewhat soap-opera-y aspect of the strip strikes me as a bit odd, though.

The local paper doesn't carry either of Holbrook's other strips (On the Fasttrack and Safe Havens), which is too bad, as I really intend to check them out at some point.

You can read 'em online, but the interface is clunky and they only seem to go back a couple of weeks. I used to read "On The Fasttrack" back when it launched, and I liked it -- it seemed different from the average strip -- but I haven't read newspaper comics regularly in many years. "Save Havens" is cute but a bit confusing to me. I suspect that they both require the same kind of backgrounding as "K&K," in order to actually follow what's going on behind the day-to-day gags.

[yendi]

Heh. Are you still just reading two strips regularly? I've got eight flagged at this point, though several only appear three times a week. They tend to sort of accidentally accumulate once you start talking to other people about the strips they read.

I wish! Sluggy and K&K were my first two, but I'm up to ten in my "daily comics" bookmarks area, and I've got another twenty or so bookmarked that I go through in small bursts when I have a chance. shadesong has an entire morning ritual didicated to her comic reading, and I lost count of what she's up to. Online comics are a major time drain.

I think one of the things I really like about it personally is just the whole concept of "The Wild," and of intelligent animals each making the individual choice about whether they want to wear clothes and live in houses or run around on all fours. I like a lot of the culture clashes that take place as a result of carnivores and herbivores living in proximity. The somewhat soap-opera-y aspect of the strip strikes me as a bit odd, though.

I like the soapy stuff, although that's mainly because it seems handled in a For Better or For Worse manner, with the characters reacting a lot more like I'd expect them to (as opposed to typical soaps).

You can read 'em online, but the interface is clunky and they only seem to go back a couple of weeks. I used to read "On The Fasttrack" back when it launched, and I liked it -- it seemed different from the average strip -- but I haven't read newspaper comics regularly in many years. "Save Havens" is cute but a bit confusing to me. I suspect that they both require the same kind of backgrounding as "K&K," in order to actually follow what's going on behind the day-to-day gags.

Yeah, that was my reaction. Whenever I'd go to one of the King pages and read two weeks of strips, I' enjoy them, but I realized that I was missing something. And both strips, from what I've seen, could have worked perfectly in the K&K world -- each gag was workplace, or computer, or relationship-based. So I figure the gags will resurface in K&K anyway.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

I wish! Sluggy and K&K were my first two, but I'm up to ten in my "daily comics" bookmarks area

Sometime when you've got time, I'd love a list. It looks like we have some tastes in common, so I'd be interested in seeing what you're reading. Heh. You might even want to make a "normal" entry out of it, considering this conversation is entirely off-topic and deeply nested in a days-old journal entry.

I like the soapy stuff, although that's mainly because it seems handled in a For Better or For Worse manner

Mmm, "For Better Or Worse." Now there's a strip I wish I paid more attention to, had a better source for, etc. That and "Foxtrot" are about the only reason I'd even look at a newspaper comics page any more. I do periodically go read a couple of months worth of "Foxtrot" at once.

I figure the gags will resurface in K&K anyway.

Really? I've never noticed any overlap.

[yendi]

Sometime when you've got time, I'd love a list. It looks like we have some tastes in common, so I'd be interested in seeing what you're reading. Heh. You might even want to make a "normal" entry out of it, considering this conversation is entirely off-topic and deeply nested in a days-old journal entry.

In fact, you may have hit on two potential posts I should be making. I've long considered making a rant about the "interests" section of LJ, as, nice as it is, it has a number of flaws (notably the 150-interest limit, as well as a few lesser ones). And I've been ponding a post on online comics for a while, anyway. I made one ages ago, when I first joined LJ, but my tastes have shifted a lot since then.

Speaking of shared interests, is the "Hepcats" listed in your list the comic book that Martin Wagner created during the '90s? It was one of my favorites, but I realize that it's a term that could refer to other interests as well.

Mmm, "For Better Or Worse." Now there's a strip I wish I paid more attention to, had a better source for, etc. That and "Foxtrot" are about the only reason I'd even look at a newspaper comics page any more. I do periodically go read a couple of months worth of "Foxtrot" at once.

Those are two of the ones I bother with when we get the Sunday paper, along with The Norm and Boondocks. I still have sentimental attachments to Doonesbury and Dilbert, as well, even though they're not exactly as funny as they used to be.

I figure the gags will resurface in K&K anyway.
Really? I've never noticed any overlap.

Oh, I haven't noticed any either, but they seem to be similar in tone and style, so I figure there's a chance of some recycling.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

I've long considered making a rant about the "interests" section of LJ, as, nice as it is, it has a number of flaws (notably the 150-interest limit, as well as a few lesser ones).

Hm. I'd like to see that entry. I hit the 150 limit with some surprise (didn't know there was one until I got there, wouldn't have considered it a restrictive limit before I actually hit it), and have since shuffled mine around occasionally. I'm never sure whether I'm better off including some of the more obscure ones (like singer Minna Bromberg, whom I removed because no one else on LJ had her listed as an interest) so if that one other person in the world who shares that interest ever starts an LJ, they can find me, or if I should stick to iterations of more significant interests (RPG, gaming, larp, larping, role-playing, role-playing games, etc. etc.) because if I don't have all the variations listed, it'll be harder for those people to find me, and there are more of them.

And I've been ponding a post on online comics for a while, anyway.

So have I, really. Maybe this'll be the week.

Speaking of shared interests, is the "Hepcats" listed in your list the comic book that Martin Wagner created during the '90s? It was one of my favorites, but I realize that it's a term that could refer to other interests as well.

It is indeed. I could smack him for not producing more. I'm disappointed that "Snowblind" never went anywhere.

I still have sentimental attachments to Doonesbury and Dilbert, as well, even though they're not exactly as funny as they used to be.

Unfortunately, the comics digest magazine I used to get, which included a month's worth of both strips in each issue, has since gone out of print, so now I have to go online if I want to keep up. Bah.

[podling]

Okay, I realize this is completely and totally random, but I read "Had both a huge calf spasm" as "Had both a huge can of spam" and was thinking, yeah, that would depress me too.

[yendi]

Nah. A huge can of spam would just make me all urpy.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a hacker phrase for a denial-of-service type of attack. "Their site wouldn't let me download porn 'cause I'm underage, so I opened up a big can of spam on their ass."

[podling]

Yeah, I think the word I was really looking for was "distressing", not "depressing". Heh.