[Webcomic] PVP Discussion

To beat the dead horse, I do think the idea that writing an essay explaining why a webcartoonist who has been in business for more than a decade and making his living at that craft for quite a bit of that time should be allowed to join a professional cartoonist organization seems a little insulting, particularly when you were one the first in the field. Seems like they go for a highly arbitrary standard of "professional cartoonist".

Then again, he naturally handles that rejection publicly and like a moody teenager with a livejournal. No saying he's done anything to make them desire his membership, but for all his faults he's probably one of the best people (symbolically speaking) to admit as the first web guy in the organization. One of the first in the field, has made it his full time job for many years now, gave a damn about joining, etc. And he's not wrong about print comics jobs drying up and dying out, nor is he wrong that prominent print folks have been dismissive of web. He's like a living example of "strawman has a point".
I got the distinct impression he wasn't being kept out because they look down on webcomics (though they probably do). I think it has more to do with his wildly unprofessional and caustic rants. The guy is a walking shitstorm of drama.
 

figmentPez

Staff member
Some of the things said in a recent Webcomics Weekly podcast made me more sympathetic to Kurtz. He said that another cartoonist in then NCS cut off friendship ties with him over pressure from other NCS members. If that's true, it's pretty low to not only blackball him from the group, but to discourage even friendship with the guy as well.
 
If that's true, it's pretty low to not only blackball him from the group, but to discourage even friendship with the guy as well.
That's really the question, isn't it? Not saying he's lying, but he does like to frame his drama in the most melodramatic of terms.
 

figmentPez

Staff member
That's really the question, isn't it? Not saying he's lying, but he does like to frame his drama in the most melodramatic of terms.
Yeah, but Dave Kellet doesn't seem given to drama like Kurtz is, and that's one point he didn't challenge Kurtz on. He called him out on other things, though. (or maybe my memory of the podcast is foggy.)
 
Ok, so this morning's punchline made me laugh out loud. A little giggle, but laughter. I still like PVP a lot, but actual audible laughter is rare.
 
Scott's tweet in regards to the latest CAD "Guys, @timcad's real crime here was that neither strip was funny."
Here's the strip Scott was talking about: http://www.cad-comic.com/images/Strip1630.png
Tim changed the punchline because he caught some flack. I agree with Scott on this one. The original punchline has been a staple of stand up comedians for years, yeah, yeah, black people are noisy in movie theaters, not much effort there. The new punchline is less funny.

Figured it couldn't be a true PvP thread without a little CAD sprinkled in.

Oh, and Scott was wrong, webcomics did not kill newspapers, the iPad did:
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/vi...kson_jr_blames_the_ipad_for_killing_jobs.html
Facepalm
 
I actually liked the original CAD strip. I know it was racist but I still chuckled in that 'Oh! I'm going to hell!' kind of way.

I don't really care if it's the kind of punch line that comedians have been using for years, I though the delivery was funny. CAD has been really improving in its timing over the past year or two...I think Scott may be a little jealous. :p
 
W

Wasabi Poptart

I actually liked the original CAD strip. I know it was racist but I still chuckled in that 'Oh! I'm going to hell!' kind of way.

I don't really care if it's the kind of punch line that comedians have been using for years, I though the delivery was funny. CAD has been really improving in its timing over the past year or two...I think Scott may be a little jealous. :p
It didn't make me laugh, but it was more amusing than the rewrite. I have been enjoying CAD a lot more recently. PvP has it's moments, but I do not enjoy it as much as I used to. I started reading it again because I thought maybe the move to Seattle would improve something.
 
J

Jiarn

I'm going to have to agree. While CAD has progressively gotten better, PVP has only gotten worse.
 
It's CAD - of course Buckley went for the stupid, obvious joke, and just as obviously that he'd change it at the slightest implication that he did something wrong. He probably also banned everyone on his forums who mentioned it.
 
P

Philosopher B.

That CAD comic was an abomination. Not only did it try too hard in the first panel with its oh-so-wacky phrase 'Jesus punches an angel in the anus,' it relied on that old offensive chestnut 'them crazy black people in the theatre!' Kurtz may have forgotten what the concept of a punchline is, but by God, at least his strip is worth looking at. I also liked how the initial edit read 'Right, because all black men have glowing green eyes,' which was later amended to 'Because LOTS of guys have glowing green eyes.'

Buckley? More like Dumb Cluckley!
 
He mentioned that on twitter. He basically said" Oops. That's a good point." and "Lets pretend it's been a year."

I guess it just slipped his mind. I can understand that.
 
Well, they've been there for a few months. I think that a man who screams like a hysterical woman out of 50's movie would become legend pretty damned fast.
 

North_Ranger

Staff member
Yeah, I had to do a double-take as well. The combination of the new art style and the faux librarian look... it really makes her look 20-30 years older.
 

Zappit

Staff member
He's trying to tap into Frank Cho with the new style - at least for Miranda. It's not quite working out.
 
Jade's been looking like he's drawing her a little older for a while now. They seem less.. I dunno, sexy cartoon figure, and more curvy realistic-women.

Not that I have a problem with either :whistling:
 
K

kaykordeath

Today's was an amusing gag, but I thought it was executed kinda odd. Was Skull talking to himself? Breaking the 4th wall? And in either case, why? (Other than to get to the punchline).
 
J

Jiarn

He's so bad it hurts. I mean really. The mockery that his strip has become from what it was at one point. Cripes.
 

figmentPez

Staff member
I... wut... it... but... did he think that this would somehow work the second time when it fell flat the first? I don't get it. Maybe if Kurtz had set it up with a reality show taping the PvP offices, then had them in the "confessional" saying this stuff afterwards, it would make sense. It wouldn't be funny, but at least it wouldn't be totally out of nowhere. Even then, it would still be out of character for both of them. Skull doesn't speak that way, and Miranda would only admit to reading a book under duress.
 
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