Shock Value
- Thread starter The Wooster
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I don't think the comic was making a point about school shootings at all, just a point about shock value. I doubt you were supposed to read that much into it.Skeleon said:
OT: Yeah, I totally failed to be remotely shocked or offended by this, which I guess just totally proves the point. What actually did shock me is that the comments here have so far been utterly mundane too. Where are the all-caps death threats?
Is this really the internet or did I get lost somehow?
Oh, right, sorry. Let me scratch that itch for ya.Lunncal said:
*cough*
YOU DIRTY COMMUNIST KITTY-DIDDLERS! HOW DARE YOU JOKE ABOUT THE INCREDIBLY TOUCHY SUBJECT OF HIPSTER DADS! THAT'S IT! I'M GOING TO GO OUT NOW, GRAB MY KNIFE AND I AM GOING TO EFFIN SHIV ONE OF OUR CHICKENS AND MAKE SOUP OUT OF IT! SOUP!
YOU MADE ME DO IT! IT'S YOOOOOOOUUUUUR FAAAAAAAUUUUUUULT!!!
*cough*
On a different note... Mmmmm... Chicken soup...
I'm talking about the last few weeks, not today's specifically but as a series of direct attempts to rile up their standard audience. People against school shooting [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/comicsandcosplay/comics/critical-miss/13596-New-Xbox-One-Controller-Comic] Their attempt to offend has grown significantly beyond anything I recall in the past. This is why I'm asking if this range of offense is typical. I've heard of some pretty legendary pieces they've run that got people all hot and bothered but from what I understand, there is usually a buffering between them.Andy Shandy said:
Anyways, from a business perspective this makes sense if they are planning on striking out on their own. They have a patreon running that has nearly reached their desired amount. If people jump ship from CM to EDA then that should only support those endeavors.
However, I generally find the cartoons I linked funny. Today was a bit much but not personally offensive the other ones have been pretty humorous and not anything I care about. I'm just postulating about the possibility. The idea that this could be a savvy business move banking on the idea that making CM less enjoyable will elevate EDA as a comic. I have to admit, it is working on me. I am starting to look forward to EDA and not really looking forward to CM as of late.
Sorry if posing the question/scenario frustrated you in some way. But in the college of business I saw case study after case study of successful business practices that looked dumb from the outside but ended up playing out flawlessly by directing their consumers to a new target. This is practically textbook if so. It's most commonly seen when companies are trying to get their consumers to transfer to another more expensive service they also produce.
It looks like from their Patreon page that they are concerned about the possibility of the Escapist firing them and them having nothing to fall back on. That's a very understandable fear. Would I consider something like this were I in their exact shoes? Hmm... probably not. I probably wouldn't produce inferior art on purpose. I don't really see them doing that either now that I think about it. They generally stick to their own values and anyone else be damned. so that's a pretty strong point in the premise I'm presenting being wrong.
Perhaps they are planning to leave anyways. Tanking CM to push their new IP would provide more stable ground for the move. If the CM creators are upset with the Escapist over the way GamerGate went down then this isn't a stretch to imagine.MarsAtlas said:
On the other hand their Patreon confirms that they have no desire to stop producing CM. So as I've been stating, I could just be entirely jaded about this. If I were a betting man, I'd most likely bet on me being wrong or not bet at all. The hallmarks are there for this to be a concern.
They worked out an agreement with the Escapist regarding an IP they own? If so then they're in the clear. If not then there's still a potential issue.
They hinted that they were going to recently. That's the only massive controversy I really remember.Dalisclock said:
If anything, the comic made me wonder why we have so many attention-seeking hellions around, now. Don't most parents give plenty of opportunities for their kids to actually blow off steam or express themselves? Like, I dunno, suppertime debates or constructive hobbies?
That said, yeah. I wouldn't bat an eyelash if one of my relatives told me they're looking to transition and are also secret Wiccans who would rather focus on animistic beliefs. I think the moon could turn into a giant chocolate bunny that I'd be all "Oh, okay."
Until the tidal shifts hit us, that is. At which point we'd all be screwed.
That said, yeah. I wouldn't bat an eyelash if one of my relatives told me they're looking to transition and are also secret Wiccans who would rather focus on animistic beliefs. I think the moon could turn into a giant chocolate bunny that I'd be all "Oh, okay."
Until the tidal shifts hit us, that is. At which point we'd all be screwed.
Nope. But Anal **** and Death are both metal or punk bands, and there is probably some band out there called Anal Death or Death ****, so it works.BlackIronGuardian said:
How about being a Fleetwood Mac cover band? That sounds pretty apropos for a name like Anal Death ****.Colour Scientist said:
Its called having a sense of humor.Lightknight said:
Also, this one wasnt about school shooting, or about people against school shooting, in the last panel for the joke to work ("I'm running out of things to get pierced, Dave") it had to be them doing something shocking to drive the point of the rest of the comic home. It doesnt matter what it is and in no way is it about standing against something, it could be a variety of things as long as it was something that could be considered shocking (and as most comments in here show, this isnt even shocking in a webcomic, we are already like the dad in the comic).
So yeah, it seems like the lack of sense of humor blurs the point of the actual joke, something that also recently happened with Pillars of Eternity where the joke was at the expense of the "Hero in bed" and yet some people thought that the transgender was the one being mocked.
Speaking of twitter, I think senpai noticed someone:MarsAtlas said:
[tweet t=https://twitter.com/GreyTheTick/status/582946823515480064]
[tweet t=https://twitter.com/GreyTheTick/status/582946942625304576]
[tweet t=https://twitter.com/GreyTheTick/status/582961311300132864]
Note: I actually don't necessarily agree with these condescending sentiments made by Grey on twitter. I am however favoriting all of them while simultaneously thinking such a view seems heavily conspiratorial
Ah, I really wanted to use it for my college acapella team. It's been a while since we've been to regionals, but a new year and a new name could have really made a difference.Colour Scientist said:
I don't think Grey was being condescending at all. He had the courtesy to comment on what I admitted was an easily dismissible idea (but I didn't have any information to dismiss it) and he did so generally politely considering the epic burn tools at his disposal. He didn't owe me any kind of response and yet he did comment on it and now I know thanks to him.Skatologist said:
So he's saying that the Escapist is paying them enough to make Critical Miss their priority. If that's true then that tanks the theory altogether so long as EDA isn't intended to replace revenue should they leave. But they are only looking for $1,500 per month on Patreon which isn't much to live on for two people. Honestly, if they made a ton more and were able to do their own things more regularly then that would only give us more of the content we've come to look forward to.
Also, like stated, the controversy they're generating on Critical Miss with these is more likely to generate more views of these comics at least in the short term. I've got to assume that long time fans of the series are similar to me, in that getting burned once or twice by the comic is just part of the relationship they've created and well worth it. So the readership composition may not be as elastic with change as other industries present.
So maybe they're pulling out the big guns as a means to draw in readership and also advertise EDA at the same time. In that interpretation, The Escapist, Critical Miss, and EDA all win. It's not unlike the practice of click bait title in the industry as far as bringing in views but in this case its art and in a far more agreeable place than mere misleading and provocative title wording. Maybe this is actually an example of them trusting their fans to not get all butt hurt. That's a nice thought.
Hmm, that is the more likely and far less conspiracy theorist option. So that's my go to at the moment. The timing of the Patreon in addition to the other goings on at the Escapist (like with so many other sites right now) just had me worried that I was about to lose a comic I enjoy even if I see other people hating it. Hopefully I didn't offend the content creators with the theory I was presenting. It seems like I more perplexed them.