So I’ve been waiting to read this arc, because I generally am biting at the bit for the next installment. However, having randomly caught this one, I’m gonna have to get caught up.
Side note: I would play the hell out of a Mantlebearer Game. Maybe a follow up or addition to Karthun?
it’s too bad that Dallas just lost her connections to the game publishers over Dove’s idiocy.. she’d have been a way for Sam to have gotten Karthun published.
Tolerate by total choice of our own but also a bit because we feel like being friends with him is something your required to do for those shining moments that remind us why we like him in the first place event thought those moments are padded by rageing and killing the integrity of the fantasy. Although that’s more than one word…
Ever the tough love, that one. Brett is extremely loyal to those he considers family and friends. And one way he shows that loyalty is giving them a swift kick in the ass when he feels they need it.
In Dallas’ case, she needs to be reminded that she isn’t alone, there are quite a few people who do have her back, and that running away isn’t the same as a tactical withdrawl.
Like I said before, she needs a mentor-type (who isn’t Larry) to help her get the skills she’ll need to not only survive this, but send the anony-tools not only packing, but bereft of all credibility.
Humm, not sure Santa is on point here. Unfairly losing your connections, money and influence because she “came out as a girl” on Brett’s best friends good hearted but really wrong advice,and from what we have seen trying unsuccessfully to fight back against a bunch of cyber terrorists in league with a loaded dice carrying cheater. Yeah seems to be her fault. Perhaps if Brett had helped against the evil puppies
Sure, the gaming group might not be able to help Dallas fight back against the Anony-trolls, but they’d provide one thing she desperately needs right now, and that’s a support group. From what I’ve gathered, Dallas has been trying to go it alone, which only works in bad fiction.
If she gets that support, Dallas will be able to dust herself off at least and not sink further into the hole she’s in.
Lies eventually come out of the woodworks anyway…and I don’t see it being any easier if it’d happen 1,2 or even 10 years from when it did (given the cybertrolls in question).
Brian, you ever read Sluggy Freelance? I haven’t in years, but holiday mantles was a thing for a time. Tiny sadist rabbit fought Santa annually and then went and messed up the other holidays.
“Pull your head out of your ass. Write your next game. Pitch it to other publishers. Make this bullshit controversy WORK for you. Quit raging at the world and move forward. By the way, Merry Christmas you filthy animal.”
*waves* New reader here. I binge-read the entire archive over the span of a few days. When I got to the comic just before this one I tried to click “Next” and there was this grey moment of disappointment when I realized I had reached the present! Loving these characters.
Hello Lisa H! Thanks for the nice comment and I am sorry you must suffer alongside the other readers who are caught up. DAMMIT BRIAN MAKE COMICS FASTER!
I’ve been thinking about Dar’s situation over the last few days. While it’s true Dove’s virulent mob inciting would have done some damage, I think even more damage came about as a result of Dar’s initial approach in the first place. By taking on the male persona of Dallas, Dar began her interactions with her customers with a lie.
See, here’s the thing – you can get away with lying to your customers for a time, but the truth will eventually get out there. Once it does, the one who pays for it, one way or another, will be the liar. As an example, the Zenefits CEO got sacked because he and his company lied to their customers in some particularly shady ways, with predictable results.
Now, Dar lied to her customers about her gender. In her target audience, the deception probably pisses them off even more because it implies she considers ALL of them unable to consider her merits because of her boobs. That in turn creates a massive backlash, not only for the deception, but for what they would consider her condescension.
Dove’s brand of lynch mobbing, which would have happened no matter what, would have had less momentum if Dar had been honest from the start. The truth out there from the beginning would have made Dove look like an ass as people played Dar’s game and loved them. Instead, offended consumers found their Trump savior and followed the spearhead for the incipient backlash. 🙁
I agree with this analysis but wish to add it is sad that the gender of a writer or artist matters. I do a lot of work in table top gaming biz and unfortunately there is a small but vocal group of [insert favorite hated group with a curse word “adjetive”] to whom things like gender race or sexual preference matters when the only issue is product.
The operative word there being small. Her being a girl won’t have had any real effect on her sales, for the simple reason that most people don’t give a shit. Phil and his crowd can get as vocal as they like, most people aren’t amenable to “you shouldn’t buy that, it was written by a girl”.
No, her real problem is in her head. She let Phil get to her, and has been self-destructing as a result. That’s an even bigger problem than her publisher dropping her for releasing a flop, since it sounds like she isn’t even looking for another one.
I have to say my first thought about a mantle bearer game was ugg x-mas but then i thought wait maybe there will be cool powers and stuff for saint pats and Halloween. those would also be realy cool chars in the comic especially if Trevor wins a drinking contest and ends up mantel bearer for saint Patrick’s.
/>
HOVER-TEXT: The Mantlebearer thing as a game is something I am kicking around.
I would love to see something like that. There are so many possibilities. So many.
Do it!
You can do eet Brian, bite his head off…, um I mean make the game!!
I await the kickstarter 😀
Do you have any idea how much I would love this?
So I’ve been waiting to read this arc, because I generally am biting at the bit for the next installment. However, having randomly caught this one, I’m gonna have to get caught up.
Side note: I would play the hell out of a Mantlebearer Game. Maybe a follow up or addition to Karthun?
it’s too bad that Dallas just lost her connections to the game publishers over Dove’s idiocy.. she’d have been a way for Sam to have gotten Karthun published.
She could kickstart it. And Brian could have his own Mantlebearer kickstarter timed to run at the same time.
Oh man! There could be an arc in the comic where they’re kickstarting it at the same time Brian is doing a kickstarter for the real thing!
That would be deliciously meta, but it would be a writing challenge to do an arc where the outcome is dependant on real-world events.
Now that’s more like the Brett we know and…. well, I’m searching for a word here, but I’m drawing a blank. Any help?
Tolerate by total choice of our own but also a bit because we feel like being friends with him is something your required to do for those shining moments that remind us why we like him in the first place event thought those moments are padded by rageing and killing the integrity of the fantasy. Although that’s more than one word…
Sister, isnt’t that the definition of love?
isn’t*
“Hey, you can’t talk to me like—”
“FUCK YOU, I’M BLEEDING FROM THE EARS ‘CAUSE OF YOUR SCROOGE-ASS BULLSHIT.”
Ever the tough love, that one. Brett is extremely loyal to those he considers family and friends. And one way he shows that loyalty is giving them a swift kick in the ass when he feels they need it.
In Dallas’ case, she needs to be reminded that she isn’t alone, there are quite a few people who do have her back, and that running away isn’t the same as a tactical withdrawl.
Like I said before, she needs a mentor-type (who isn’t Larry) to help her get the skills she’ll need to not only survive this, but send the anony-tools not only packing, but bereft of all credibility.
Humm, not sure Santa is on point here. Unfairly losing your connections, money and influence because she “came out as a girl” on Brett’s best friends good hearted but really wrong advice,and from what we have seen trying unsuccessfully to fight back against a bunch of cyber terrorists in league with a loaded dice carrying cheater. Yeah seems to be her fault. Perhaps if Brett had helped against the evil puppies
Sure, the gaming group might not be able to help Dallas fight back against the Anony-trolls, but they’d provide one thing she desperately needs right now, and that’s a support group. From what I’ve gathered, Dallas has been trying to go it alone, which only works in bad fiction.
If she gets that support, Dallas will be able to dust herself off at least and not sink further into the hole she’s in.
Lies eventually come out of the woodworks anyway…and I don’t see it being any easier if it’d happen 1,2 or even 10 years from when it did (given the cybertrolls in question).
You want to ask yourself “is going back to being a recluse going to help with any of that either?”
Brian, you ever read Sluggy Freelance? I haven’t in years, but holiday mantles was a thing for a time. Tiny sadist rabbit fought Santa annually and then went and messed up the other holidays.
Nope! I never have.
“Pull your head out of your ass. Write your next game. Pitch it to other publishers. Make this bullshit controversy WORK for you. Quit raging at the world and move forward. By the way, Merry Christmas you filthy animal.”
-Love, Santa Claus
Re: last panel, just perfect writing in regards to both characters; and Re: 2nd panel? Called It!
You did indeed! And thanks for the compliment! I always appreciate those.
*waves* New reader here. I binge-read the entire archive over the span of a few days. When I got to the comic just before this one I tried to click “Next” and there was this grey moment of disappointment when I realized I had reached the present! Loving these characters.
Hello Lisa H! Thanks for the nice comment and I am sorry you must suffer alongside the other readers who are caught up. DAMMIT BRIAN MAKE COMICS FASTER!
A Mantlebearer game? Do this. Make this happen and make it as glorious as Karthun
I’ve been thinking about Dar’s situation over the last few days. While it’s true Dove’s virulent mob inciting would have done some damage, I think even more damage came about as a result of Dar’s initial approach in the first place. By taking on the male persona of Dallas, Dar began her interactions with her customers with a lie.
See, here’s the thing – you can get away with lying to your customers for a time, but the truth will eventually get out there. Once it does, the one who pays for it, one way or another, will be the liar. As an example, the Zenefits CEO got sacked because he and his company lied to their customers in some particularly shady ways, with predictable results.
Now, Dar lied to her customers about her gender. In her target audience, the deception probably pisses them off even more because it implies she considers ALL of them unable to consider her merits because of her boobs. That in turn creates a massive backlash, not only for the deception, but for what they would consider her condescension.
Dove’s brand of lynch mobbing, which would have happened no matter what, would have had less momentum if Dar had been honest from the start. The truth out there from the beginning would have made Dove look like an ass as people played Dar’s game and loved them. Instead, offended consumers found their Trump savior and followed the spearhead for the incipient backlash. 🙁
I agree with this analysis but wish to add it is sad that the gender of a writer or artist matters. I do a lot of work in table top gaming biz and unfortunately there is a small but vocal group of [insert favorite hated group with a curse word “adjetive”] to whom things like gender race or sexual preference matters when the only issue is product.
The operative word there being small. Her being a girl won’t have had any real effect on her sales, for the simple reason that most people don’t give a shit. Phil and his crowd can get as vocal as they like, most people aren’t amenable to “you shouldn’t buy that, it was written by a girl”.
No, her real problem is in her head. She let Phil get to her, and has been self-destructing as a result. That’s an even bigger problem than her publisher dropping her for releasing a flop, since it sounds like she isn’t even looking for another one.
I have to say my first thought about a mantle bearer game was ugg x-mas but then i thought wait maybe there will be cool powers and stuff for saint pats and Halloween. those would also be realy cool chars in the comic especially if Trevor wins a drinking contest and ends up mantel bearer for saint Patrick’s.
Damn, no pulling punches, Brett.
Hey Brian do you gonna sell the Karthum setting in year in Gencon?
Why does Santa wear red? So his enemies won’t see him bleed.