9CL 11 Sept 2008 - make it stop
JGM
I mostly try to ignore it but today's strip is so repellent I must
vent.
Has any other group of comic strip characters descended this far from
being actual human-like characters into being insufferable, miserable,
cliched twits? It hardly matters who is snogging/slagging whom
anymore, since they all seem to be interchangeably manipulative,
passive-aggressive pricks.
I can't remember a time when a comic strip (besides the Duck, maybe)
made me feel physically ill, but I did today reading this. I guess I
have to figure out how to rejigger my chron comics page again and put
these people out of my misery.
JGM
George Peatty
>Has any other group of comic strip characters descended this far from
>being actual human-like characters into being insufferable, miserable,
>cliched twits? It hardly matters who is snogging/slagging whom
>anymore, since they all seem to be interchangeably manipulative,
>passive-aggressive pricks.
I thought today's 9CWL was very human .. Perhaps a slight overstatement, but
I cut BMcEl some slack for dramatic license ..
Dann
891cec...@d77g2000hsb.googlegroups.com.
> Has any other group of comic strip characters descended this far from
> being actual human-like characters into being insufferable, miserable,
> cliched twits? It hardly matters who is snogging/slagging whom
> anymore, since they all seem to be interchangeably manipulative,
> passive-aggressive pricks.
You disapprove of character development??
--
Regards,
Dann
blogging at http://web.newsguy.com/dainbramage/blog.htm
Freedom works; each and every time it is tried.
aemeijers
> On 11 Sep 2008, JGM said the following in news:b05ce192-4730-4c86-9edf-
> 891cec...@d77g2000hsb.googlegroups.com.
>
>> Has any other group of comic strip characters descended this far from
>> being actual human-like characters into being insufferable, miserable,
>> cliched twits? It hardly matters who is snogging/slagging whom
>> anymore, since they all seem to be interchangeably manipulative,
>> passive-aggressive pricks.
>
> You disapprove of character development??
>
wanted self-absorbed 'friends' clones, I'd turn on the TV, and find one
of the still-endless repeats. In real life, Amos'n'Edda would have
either (really)broken up by now, or be doing the deed and engaged. They
wouldn't be in a slo-mo high school Groundhog Day, stuck at the event
horizon.
--
aem sends...
Freezer
> On 11 Sep 2008, JGM said the following in
> news:b05ce192-4730-4c86-9edf-
> 891cec...@d77g2000hsb.googlegroups.com.
>
>> Has any other group of comic strip characters descended this far
>> from being actual human-like characters into being insufferable,
>> miserable, cliched twits? It hardly matters who is
>> snogging/slagging whom anymore, since they all seem to be
>> interchangeably manipulative, passive-aggressive pricks.
>
> You disapprove of character development??
Sure. This ain't it. This is regression. This is letting a
character's nastier, pettier aspects run unchecked by anything or
anyone, for no other reason than no one's sat Edda (or Amos or Seth
or...) down and told them (if I mat lapse into the beefwit
vernacular) to sit down and shut up. Which is fine if this had only
been going on for a week or two. Four months and counting? Not so
fine
--
My name is:
____ _
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| |__ _ __ ___ ___ ____ ___ _ __ | |
| __|| '__/ _ \/ _ \/_ // _ \| '__|| |
| | | | __/ __/ / /| __/| | |_|
|_| |_| \___|\___||___|\___||_| (_)
And my anti-drug is porn.
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http://freezer818.livejournal.com/
Antonio E. Gonzalez
wrote:
>http://www.chron.com/apps/comics/showComic.mpl?date=2008/9/11&name=9_Chickweed_Lane
I still like Evil Edda's face . . .
--
- ReFlex76
- "Let's beat the terrorists with our most powerful weapon . . . hot girl-on-girl action!"
- "The difference between young and old is the difference between looking forward to your next birthday, and dreading it!"
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Katana > Chain Saw > Baseball Bat > Hammer
aemeijers
> On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:57:41 -0700 (PDT), JGM <jgmc...@yahoo.com>
> wrote:
>
>> http://www.chron.com/apps/comics/showComic.mpl?date=2008/9/11&name=9_Chickweed_Lane
>>
>> I mostly try to ignore it but today's strip is so repellent I must
>> vent.
>>
>> Has any other group of comic strip characters descended this far from
>> being actual human-like characters into being insufferable, miserable,
>> cliched twits? It hardly matters who is snogging/slagging whom
>> anymore, since they all seem to be interchangeably manipulative,
>> passive-aggressive pricks.
>>
>> I can't remember a time when a comic strip (besides the Duck, maybe)
>> made me feel physically ill, but I did today reading this. I guess I
>> have to figure out how to rejigger my chron comics page again and put
>> these people out of my misery.
>>
>
> I still like Evil Edda's face . . .
>
>
>
before, IIRC.
--
aem sends...
Dann
@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net.
>> I still like Evil Edda's face . . .
>>
>>
>>
> She gets it from her Mama. We've seen Juliette mug in a similar fashion
> before, IIRC.
Gram has it without any need for mugging.
JGM
> Dann wrote:
> Change /= progress. I'm finding this strip less and less appealing. If I
> wanted self-absorbed 'friends' clones, I'd turn on the TV, and find one
> of the still-endless repeats. In real life, Amos'n'Edda would have
> either (really)broken up by now, or be doing the deed and engaged. They
> wouldn't be in a slo-mo high school Groundhog Day, stuck at the event
> horizon.
The TV "Friends" at least had some mutual respect and love as basis
for their relationships -- while the usual sit-com miscommunication
was still the fodder for tension and they have their jealousies and
flaws, the writers understood that they couldn't just be petty,
selfish, and manipulative of each other if we were to remain
interested. In 9CL the only relationship that seems to approach that
is the one between the big guy and the hairy guy.
And, now that I've calmed down a bit and let go of this strip, let me
confess that, as for Funky Winkerbean, I seem to be missing the gene
that would allow me to track the relationships and history of the
characters, even though I read the thing regularly. In reading
yesterday's strip, I have no idea what the blond girl and the geeky
guy (OK, I know their names) currently have going on, or not, and why
Edda is so overwhelmed with evil revenge/joy at the thought of being
asked to do this, or why she is being such a snot about it to Amos.
Maybe if I had this background more clearly, I'd be less repulsed, but
I suspsect it doesn't really matter -- when a character is being this
ugly, I don't want to watch, and this is just a particularly egregious
example of the way this strip has evolved.
JGM
unMichael
> And, now that I've calmed down a bit and let go of this strip, let me
> confess that, as for Funky Winkerbean, I seem to be missing the gene
> that would allow me to track the relationships and history of the
> characters, even though I read the thing regularly. In reading
> yesterday's strip, I have no idea what the blond girl and the geeky
> guy (OK, I know their names) currently have going on, or not, and why
> Edda is so overwhelmed with evil revenge/joy at the thought of being
> asked to do this, or why she is being such a snot about it to Amos.
> Maybe if I had this background more clearly, I'd be less repulsed, but
> I suspsect it doesn't really matter -- when a character is being this
> ugly, I don't want to watch, and this is just a particularly egregious
> example of the way this strip has evolved.
Amos was being an idiot by displaying fawning awe over that female
violinist, oblivious to the effect it might have on his girlfriend.
Then he was rigid about accepting any responsibility for their
argument and broke up with her.
That said... Run Amos. Run far and fast. Then, when you've run for
a while and are absolutely sure you're safe enough to turn around, run
some more.
George Peatty
wrote:
>That said... Run Amos. Run far and fast. Then, when you've run for
>a while and are absolutely sure you're safe enough to turn around, run
>some more.
Yeah, time for Amos to inquire into the witness protection program ..
Ted Nolan <tednolan>
I think the witless protection program would be more apropos.
Ted
--
------
columbiaclosings.com
What's not in Columbia anymore..
Carl Fink
up with her. I doubt it, because Brooke isn't interested in that sort of
logical character development, but Edda is a huge jerk I wouldn't ever want
to associate with, where Isabel is just a bit self-centered.
--
Carl Fink nitpi...@nitpicking.com
Read my blog at blog.nitpicking.com. Reviews! Observations!
Stupid mistakes you can correct!
ted.go...@gmail.com
> At this point, I like Isabel way more than Edda and sincerely hope Amos ends
> up with her. I doubt it, because Brooke isn't interested in that sort of
> logical character development, but Edda is a huge jerk I wouldn't ever want
> to associate with, where Isabel is just a bit self-centered.
Well, I'm not sure I would call it self-centered. From her
conversations with Berkhardt, it appears that Isabel has no interest
in Amos except as a challenge to conquer, with the implication that
she would lose even that interest after such a conquest. It is
possible that her interaction with Amos could change her in a positive
direction, but I don't think we have seen any sign of that.
That said, Edda _has_ been a jerk, and this whole arc has gone on way
too long to hold my interest.
ted
Veronique
> If I don't respond to this Dann post, the terrorists win.
>
> > On 11 Sep 2008, JGM said the following in
> > news:b05ce192-4730-4c86-9edf-
>
> >> Has any other group of comic strip characters descended this far
> >> from being actual human-like characters into being insufferable,
> >> miserable, cliched twits? It hardly matters who is
> >> snogging/slagging whom anymore, since they all seem to be
> >> interchangeably manipulative, passive-aggressive pricks.
>
> > You disapprove of character development??
>
> Sure. This ain't it. This is regression. This is letting a
> character's nastier, pettier aspects run unchecked by anything or
> anyone, for no other reason than no one's sat Edda (or Amos or Seth
> or...) down and told them (if I mat lapse into the beefwit
> vernacular) to sit down and shut up. Which is fine if this had only
> been going on for a week or two. Four months and counting? Not so
> fine
>
I haven't been reading the strip that long, and I don't remember to
read it every day, so my impression is Brooke really likes drawing
that Evil Edda face and that's why the characters are who they are.
V.
--
Veronique Chez Sheep
Veronique
> That said, Edda _has_ been a jerk, and this whole arc has gone on way
> too long to hold my interest.
Maybe Brooke will add a unicorn to it.
Joseph Nebus
>Amos was being an idiot by displaying fawning awe over that female
>violinist, oblivious to the effect it might have on his girlfriend.
>Then he was rigid about accepting any responsibility for their
>argument and broke up with her.
What came to irritate me about the plot I learned after the
fact, that the female violinist he couldn't shut up about was *not*
one of the other characters in the strip --- an acquaintance and thus
someone it would make fair sense to be jealous of --- but an actual,
real-world violinist of some renown. So Amos's infatuation with her
performing skill turned out to be a sort of celebrity-worship, and
that just made Edda all the more petty.
Yes, I know, they're, what, 18, 19, a reasonable age to be
petty and stupid. But, paraphrasing Get Fuzzy, it would help Edda
to be a little smarter if she's going to be mean.
--
Joseph Nebus
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Freezer
> Amos was being an idiot by displaying fawning awe over that female
> violinist, oblivious to the effect it might have on his girlfriend.
> Then he was rigid about accepting any responsibility for their
> argument and broke up with her.
Of course, the reason he was so rigid about it was that Edda wouldn't -
and AFAIK, still hasn't - told him *why* she was so angry.
Freezer
> Yes, I know, they're, what, 18, 19, a reasonable age to be
> petty and stupid.
As I've said before: Realistic and reasonable =/= Entertaining.
tu160
/clip/
> That said... Run Amos. Run far and fast. Then, when you've run for
> a while and are absolutely sure you're safe enough to turn around, run
> some more.
I agree totally. What I am hopeing, praying, for is that in
tommorrow's strip one of two things will happen. Either Edda will
return to the living room to find Amos gone, or Amos wil be there and
tell her something like "Well, the reason I asked was that the
director was going to have X replace Isabel, but I told him I wanted
to ask you first. But since you're not intrested, thanks anyway, see
you when I get back." and then he walks out the door.
And yea, Edda is being a total manipualitive bitch and Amos would be
better off running far and fast.
Robert Harrold
Hasn't Edda already said she would play for Burkhardt? Seems wrong
to suddenly tell him (Burkhardt) she is not going to play for him just
because there is now an opening to play for Amos.
.
Dann
$vX2....@bignews6.bellsouth.net.
> Hasn't Edda already said she would play for Burkhardt? Seems wrong
> to suddenly tell him (Burkhardt) she is not going to play for him just
> because there is now an opening to play for Amos.
Why, yes. Openings play a very important role in the current arc.
More seriously, I hope Brooke hasn't gone to all this trouble just to get
Edda and Amos seriously alone in Europe so that they can patch things
up*.
Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me. At
least she only wants to ride Edda's hobby horse one time and move on.
*I doubt any serious canoodling will occur.
J.D. Baldwin
In the previous article, Dann <deto...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me. At
> least she only wants to ride Edda's hobby horse one time and move
> on.
Count me in on the list of people who have come (at least somewhat) to
like Isabel in spite of the author's obvious intent. And I've *always*
been a little irritated by both Edda and her mother.
--
_+_ From the catapult of |If anyone disagrees with any statement I make, I
_|70|___:)=}- J.D. Baldwin |am quite prepared not only to retract it, but also
\ / bal...@panix.com|to deny under oath that I ever made it. -T. Lehrer
***~~~~-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl Fink
> Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me ...
Wow, what did I do to raise your opinion of me?
racs...@gmail.com
Baldwin) wrote:
> In the previous article, Dann <detox...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me. At
> > least she only wants to ride Edda's hobby horse one time and move
> > on.
>
> Count me in on the list of people who have come (at least somewhat) to
> like Isabel in spite of the author's obvious intent. And I've *always*
> been a little irritated by both Edda and her mother.
When Juliet was contending with the Old Boy bureaucracy of the
university and the thick-headedness of her students, the forays into
Jungleland were a fun way to cope. Once she retired, the question
became "what is she coping with?" My off-hours personality has jollied
up considerably since I quit working for people I hate.
And in those days, Edda would morph into Superlative Girl but didn't
have the sex and relationship issues she is old enough to be coping
with today. When she first got to the city and was venting on the
idiots at the corps de ballet, her mother's grumpy-ass personality
quirks worked. But I'm not clear on why she's being such a bitch to
Amos or why he's taking it. Childhood sweetheart or not, I'd find her
pretty discouraging to be around.
Mike Peterson
http://nellieblogs.blogspot.com
http://nellieblogs.blogspot.com
Dann
news:slrngcod8g...@panix2.panix.com.
> On 2008-09-13, Dann <deto...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me ...
>
> Wow, what did I do to raise your opinion of me?
What made you think I held a low opinion of you?
racs...@gmail.com
> On 13 Sep 2008, Carl Fink said the following innews:slrngcod8g...@panix2.panix.com.
>
>
> >> Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me ...
>
> > Wow, what did I do to raise your opinion of me?
>
> What made you think I held a low opinion of you?
Yeah, you should know Dann is the nonconformist around here.
Mike Peterson
Whoosh Falls, ME
Carl Fink
> On 13 Sep 2008, Carl Fink said the following in
> news:slrngcod8g...@panix2.panix.com.
>
>> On 2008-09-13, Dann <deto...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me ...
>>
>> Wow, what did I do to raise your opinion of me?
>
> What made you think I held a low opinion of you?
It was a failed joke. Your phrasing lumps me in with Isabel as someone who
has "become a more encouraging character ..."
Dann
> On 2008-09-14, Dann <deto...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> On 13 Sep 2008, Carl Fink said the following in
>> news:slrngcod8g...@panix2.panix.com.
>>
>>> On 2008-09-13, Dann <deto...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Like Carl, Isabel has become a more encouraging character to me ...
>>>
>>> Wow, what did I do to raise your opinion of me?
>>
>> What made you think I held a low opinion of you?
>
> It was a failed joke. Your phrasing lumps me in with Isabel as
> someone who has "become a more encouraging character ..."
Oops...<blush>
Gotta remember what's in your sig. <grin>
J.D. Baldwin
Not entirely failed. In fact, I would have beaten you to it if I'd
thought of a pithy enough phrasing.