#some ppl are adding some very choice replies to my posts which is fun + exciting (sarc) for me as the guy with the trans flag icon

[tea-and-secrets]

don't put radfem shit on my blog thank you.

[katsidhe]

coffeecustard

replied to your post

“Love your blog!! Your meta is *chefs kiss* So! I made an observation...”

I'm very curious what that makes me, because I was never shocked at Sam's decision, never felt he was disgusting, in fact I found and still find the s4 demon thing to make 100% sense in light of the info he had. I love your meta and I'm hoping one day you'll write what you think makes ppl like me feel this way -- accept Sam's actions and motives 100% no questions, because they make absolute sense to us.

You know, I think there is something interesting here. In some ways I’m in the same boat as you. The first time I watched s4 I was on Sam’s side, but while I never felt that he was disgusting or unjustified, I definitely understood why Sam felt he was doing something transgressive/something that potentially crossed a bright moral line. And that struggle, and the fear of intrinsic evil, was real for Sam (even without Dean/the culture surrounding him driving it home), and frankly added to my respect for him. 

So, textually I think it’s inarguable that the Show itself regards Sam drinking demon blood as morally questionable at the very least. Even setting aside Dean’s moralizing, the literal in-universe author of their books tells Sam it’s not right. Can’t get much more explicit than that.

But Sam’s guilt is a lot muddier compared to whatever Dean struggles with in s9, because it’s not just ~bad bc the show said so~. Sam’s lifelong feelings of innate uncleanliness, interwoven with the degree of suspicion with which Dean tends to treat him as a matter of course (which stems from John’s suspicions, the Family Cult, Dean’s absolutism, etc etc.), combined with the Show’s bias, make the separate factors really, really difficult to parse. All three have narrative effects that influence how the audience is likely to perceive Sam’s decisions. 

Like I touched on in my previous post, one first obvious reaction is to take a stance that most closely resembles Dean’s (and arguably the Show’s): something to the effect of, Sam means well, and some version of him is Good deep down, but he’s misguided; surely he can see that this stuff is Bad News and is all going to end in tears; really, he should go back to Normal. 

But sometimes, like in your case and mine, that isn’t the first reaction. Part of it for me at least is that pragmatism is a really attractive trait in my fictional characters, and I deeply respected that Sam was willing to set aside his own deep self-disgust because he could acknowledge that making use of the blood and his powers got undeniable results. But I also wonder if it might be the naysayer in me who wanted to be on Sam’s side in the first place, that wanted to revolt against what the clear narrative authority was trying to tell me. If it’s an instinctive reaction to be on the side of the party being assigned blame and called out for wrongness, the one being called abnormal and freakish in the face of persecution. 

The blood is a continuous action on Sam’s part, and an addiction with side-effects that are debatably causing harm to him. Sam has to make the active decision over and over to keep using it, and it’s one he visibly struggles with while the necessity wars with his shame, and while we as viewers fear for his safety in the face of both his friends and his enemies. All the while, Sam is painted as overtly deviant, in ways that tie in with his sexuality and with addiction, with his mental health, with him being, somehow, innately tainted. This, I think, can easily be fundamentally sympathetic. 

The Mark, in contrast, was one ill-informed decision, with inarguably harmful fallout for both Sam and Dean. Interestingly enough, Dean’s grappling with the Mark of Cain is basically never addressed as a choice? He finds out about the thing, accepts it without asking about terms and conditions, and is branded all in one episode; following this, his struggle is all about him internally trying to repress, control, or channel the urges the Mark gives or intensifies; never (to my recollection, anyway; feel free to correct me if I’m forgetting something in some s10 episode I’ve never rewatched) is he significantly wracked with regret over taking the Mark in the first place. I think this is typical of Dean. He felt he did what he had to do, so he’s not going to agonize over a decision that was made that he cannot take back. Sam doesn’t react the way Dean did in season 4, either--Gadreel aside, he’s on Dean’s side, quick to reassure Dean (and himself) in s10 that the Mark’s influence isn’t Dean’s fault. 

This definitely contributes to how we the audience view that decision, and since Dean is tormented but not terribly guilty, and Sam is supportive even while a victim, it’s easy to assign pity rather than blame. But for me, as a viewer, it’s a lot less interesting to watch Dean grapple when there’s little acknowledgment of how he made his bed in the first place, and, indeed, when there’s NO ONE in the narrative, not Sam, and not even Dean himself, who is in major conflict with that decision. 

In s4, Sam is resolutely the moral outsider. I think for some people it can have the effect of making his point of view MORE attractive rather than less, because it is transgressive on a level intrinsic to the fabric of the show itself. And that’s plain fun. 

[commander-rahrah]

RESIDENCY (AN OPEN HEART FIC): PART SEVENTEEN

Pairing: MC (Jordynne Holland) X Ethan Ramsey X Bryce Lahela; MC X Bryce; MC X Ethan

Masterlist: Click Here

Chapter Rating: T (Swearing)

Word Count: 3600+

Description: Ethan comes back to Boston after hearing about Jordynne’s suspension and upcoming hearing. Jordynne is upfront about her feelings to someone. Bryce finally says what he has been thinking for a while now.  

Disclaimer: Characters, storyline, and parts of the dialogue are taken from Pixelberry’s Choices. They fully own the characters, dialogue, backgrounds, etc. MC Jordynne’s background is my own creation, based loosely off of MC in-game’s personality and provided with more details.

Author’s Note: Typing up 3600+ fanfiction on your iPhone is not very fun. If my phone calls Bryce “Bruce” one more time I may rage. I have had scenes from this chapter stuck in my head FOREVER. I’m so glad to finally post this chapter because it also means I am getting closer to the 30 diamond scene with Ethan!!!!!!! 

Also, this fic is now at over 75K words total! Which is super crazy insane. 

As always any and all likes, reblogs and comments are VERY appreciated. If you would like to tagged for future updates, please reply or send me a DM to be added to the tag list. <3

PS: Speaking of the tag list, can you tell me if your tag works?! :)I’ve been having so many issues with it, and it drives me crazy. I have gone through it and edited -- realizing there was some ppl I never added (facepalm), new handles, etc. If you ever want to be removed please just let me know!

Taglist: @drakewalkerfantasy​ @owleyes374​ @lahelable​ @mayar-mahdy​ @paisleylovergirl​ @nicquix​ @emilymay100​ @octobereighth​ @llamasgrl​ @timmagicktoad​ @lilyofchoices​ @msjpuddleduck​ @mfackenthal​ @paulfwesley​ @ccolz88-blog​ @jooous​ @themingdynasty​ @perriewinklenerdie​@mindlessdreaminxo @jens-diamondchoices​ @omgjasminesimone​ @indiacater​ @chasingrobbie​ @writingsbymissy​ @binny1985​

Previous Updates: Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six Part Seven Part Eight Part Nine Part Ten Part ElevenPart Twelve Part Thirteen Part Fourteen Part Fifteen Part Sixteen

Song Inspiration: Ghostin’ - Ariana Grande

I know you hear me when I cry I try to hold it in the night While you're sleepin' next to me But it's your arms that I need this time 

Look at the cards that we've been dealt If you were anybody else Probably wouldn't last a day Every tear's a rain parade from hell

Baby, you do it so well

You been so understanding, you been so good And I'm puttin' you through more than one ever should And I'm hating myself 'cause you don't want to Admit that it hurts you

I know that it breaks your heart when I cry again Over him, mmh I know that it breaks your heart when I cry again 'Stead of ghostin' him

Previous Chapter: Part Sixteen

It was weird coming back to Edenbrook.

It looked different somehow.

Did it though? Maybe Ethan’s mind was just playing tricks on him. Guilting him for walking away from the place he had called his home for ten years.

It was still early — and especially after a night of triage — there wasn’t a lot of staff yet. The soft light of the sun rising was cast into the atrium, turning the white walls and floors orange.

Ethan ducked into the elevator quickly — avoiding any lingering stares or confused faces. He wasn’t sure if anyone would recognize him without his white coat and quaffed hair. Not many people had seen Dr. Ramsey is wrinkled trousers and threadbare sweaters. But this was an emergency.

He walked the familiar path to the chief’s office — hesitating at the door before finally pushing himself to knock.

He heard the familiar clicks of Harper’s heels before she opened the door. Her expression was stunned — blinking at the sight of him. Then it turned — her eyebrows furrowing and arms crossing over her chest. She spun on her heel — going back into the room, and leaned against the edge of her desk.

“So it just took dropping her name to get you back here, hey?” Her mouth was gritted into a hard line.

Ethan swallowed, shoving his hands into his pockets, “What?”

“Holland. You quit, leave us high and dry, dodge my calls, tell me to fuck off —,” Harper’s nostrils flared, “But one message about Dr. Holland being suspended and here you are.”

Ethan wasn’t sure what to say.

She sighed at his silence, “Well, it’s too late — she’s suspended and the preliminary ethics hearing is in a few hours. You can’t vouch for her anymore.”

“She’s a good doctor, Harper. You know that.” He stepped forward — his blue eyes big, pleading.

“She is. And it’s a shame that she probably won’t be a doctor anymore after this.”

His stomach tightened as she said that. He couldn’t imagine her not being a doctor — everything she had worked so hard for. It just couldn’t happen. He opened his mouth to speak, but she caught him off.

“You can’t do anything, Ethan. You don’t work here anymore — you don’t have a spot on the panel.” She shook her head, her silver hoops dangling off of her ears, “And there is no chance you’re testifying.”

He took his hands out of his pockets, putting them out to her, “If anybody in this place knows her character it’s me.”

“Exactly. You’re too close to this, Ethan...,” Her brown eyes betrayed her for a moment, “I know you have feelings for her.”

“I���“ Ethan blinked, his mind whirling. He did — he knew, Jordynne knew that. And apparently, Harper did too. How did she know?

She noticed the quizzical look on his face and furrow in his brow. “I’ve seen the way you look at her — I can recognize it anywhere. You used to look at me like that. Once upon a time.”

The pair stood in silence — remembering the time that they were together. Before their schedules and administration got in the way. Before bitterness and tension settled in. Before everything had changed.

“I don’t even know if something’s happened between you two — and I don’t want to. But if the council gets a whiff of it, Ethan — it’s over. She needs a fair, clean trial. And having the Attending she may or may not be romantically involved with testify for her will not help.” Harper stepped forward, grabbing onto the crook of his elbow,  “I’m not just saying this as administration Ethan, I’m saying this as your friend. The best thing you can do for her, for both of you, is to stay out of this.”

He chewed on his lip — doing his best to keep his emotions at bay. He wanted to hold on — to fight. His heart wanted to so desperately. But his mind — it knew better. She didn’t need someone like him. A failure. The heartless robot.

“I won’t interfere,” Ethan finally croaked, looking down at his feet.

“Good.” She finally let go of his arm, pushing her hands back onto the desk. “So are you going to tell me why you quit?”

He closed his eyes — his throat closing up. What was he going to tell her? That he had secretly been treating a patient in the newly constructed wing behind her back? Oh, and that patient was Naveen — both of their long-time friend and mentor. And he had handed him his death sentence last week. “I can’t.”

“No, Ethan. You just won’t.” Harper let out an exasperated sigh, before moving around to the other side of her desk. “I have a hearing to prepare for, so if you could see yourself out.” She started shuffling through papers — not looking at him.

He stood there for a moment — and nothing came to mind. Pursing his lips, He turned on his heel and left her office — closing the door quietly behind him.

_______________________________________________________________________

Jordynne sat on the edge of her bed — the mattress sinking softly, the soft white duvet wrinkling. She let out a loud exhale — her face buried into her hands, arms propped up against her knees. She was still wearing her blouse and blazer — her attempt to look professional for her preliminary hearing.

She wasn’t sure if it had worked. The formal hearing was still called. Chief Emery announced her official suspension until then. Jordynne had to turn in her badge and watch as Zaid and Ines reassigned her cases to the other interns.

She needed to be confident — she knew that. Everything was on the line. But it’s what she had needed to do. Walking around the hospital, hiding what she had done was wrong. She had given Mrs. Martinez a chance — hope. And even though it hadn’t worked out the way they had wanted it, Jordynne knew that Teresa would not want her to regret it.

But she still couldn’t fight the aching inside her.

Falling back onto the mattress, her blonde hair fanned out behind her. She needed to focus on the hearing — this was her career, everything she had been working for. But she couldn’t help the gnawing in the back of her mind, the pain that felt like a knife slowly twisting in her stomach.

She didn’t want to leave Edenbrook. She definitely did not want to leave Boston. There were so many unanswered questions, so much more left to learn and explore and see. And the people.

Jordynne gulped guiltily. The people — that’s why she didn’t want to leave. Was it people? A certain person? Her mind was reeling.

A soft knock at her open bedroom door caused her to blink back to reality. Her eyebrows furrowed — she was home alone, all of her roommates where working shifts at the hospital. And Landry hadn’t been to the apartment in days. Thankfully.

The tiny form of Sienna poked her head around the door, her almond eyes soft. “Hey, how you holding up?”

Jordynne pushed herself up onto her elbows, looking at her roommate quizzically, “Aren’t you supposed to be at work?”

“Yeah, I just came home for my lunch instead today.” She shrugged, trying to look nonchalant.

“Sienna...”

Her friend chewed her lip, “I just wanted to make sure you were OK.”

“You don’t have to do that.” She played with her fingers, looking down at the worn floor of her bedroom.

“I know I don’t have to. But I wanted to.”

“Right,” Jordynne murmured. Another sigh escaped her lips as she fell back onto the mattress.

“Hey, everything will be okay. You’re gonna rock this trial.” Jordynne felt the mattress sink a little as her roommate sat on the edge of it.

“It’s not just the trial.” She croaked out, blinking away tears as she stared up at the ceiling.

Sienna’s eyebrows furrowed as she thought, “Is it Br—“

“It’s Ethan.” She blurted out, interrupting.

Sienna was quiet for a moment, her eyebrows furrowed even deeper. “Ramsey?”

“Yes.”

“Dr. Ramsey?” She questioned again.

She nodded.

“The Doctor Ethan Ramsey?” Her eyebrows raises high on her face, her neck strained as he looked at her friend.

“Sienna!” Jordynne reached behind her and grabbed onto a pillow. She hit her friend with it lightly.

“Sorry!” She put her hands up in defense, “It’s just just — Wow... Ethan Ramsey. And you mean... like...”

“Yeah.” Grabbing the pillow from the floor, Jordynne clutched it to her chest and she laid back down.

“Wow.” She repeated, “Did you...?”

“No! We — we’ve kissed.”

“When?!”

Jordynne’s green eyes focused on the ceiling again, her fingers nervously picking at the seams of the pillow, “Miami... At the conference. And again, the night we found out about Teresa. Right before he quit...”

Surprise washed over Sienna’s face, “Miami?! That was ages ago! You’re just telling me now?”

“I didn’t know what to make of it then.”

“And what do you make of it now?”

“I — I don’t know.” Jordynne let out a sigh, “But with everything going on right now with the trial, and suspension, and Landry... I have so many things going on right now, but the first thing I think about in the morning is him.”

Sienna settled into the bed a little deeper, crossing her legs and staring at her friend, “Does he know that?”

“We —,” She hesitated, “We’ve never really gotten the chance honestly.”

Sienna bit her lip, looking worried, “Does Bryce know?”

Jordynne nodded, “Mhmm.”

“And how did he take it?”

“Oh you know, like an absolute angel.” Tears welled up in her eyes, “Haven’t really decided anything — since we’re casual and uh, since Ethan and I are just — well, nothing really.”

“Wow,” Sienna repeated again.

“Yeah.”

“How good were those kisses?” A huge grin spread across her face, and she poked at her friend's side.

“Sienna!”

“What? I mean, it’s Dr. Dreamy Douche — only like half of Edenbrook staff have imagined kissing him.” She purses her lips, attempting to hide a blush, “Maybe including me.”

“Kissing him...,” Jordynne paused, thinking. “It felt right. And that probably sounds awful with hiding it, and Bryce, and it being so ‘complicated’,” She air-quoted the final word, “But it did.”

“Have you heard from him since he quit?”

She clutched the pillow to her chest a little tighter, “No.” She whispered. “I don’t know if I’m more afraid of never seeing him again or seeing him again, you know?”

“Oh, Jordy,” Sienna leaned over and grabbed onto her hand, clutching her fingers. “He doesn’t know what he’s missing.”

_______________________________________________________________________

Coffees in hand, Bryce showed up as soon as his shift ended that night. He was greeted with shouts telling him the door was open — maneuvering into the apartment he saw the roommates spread throughout the living and dining room — picking at boxes of pizza. The familiar blonde was nowhere to be seen.

Closing the front door with his hip, Bryce walked in with his eyebrows raised, “Where’s Jordynne?” He asked.

Jackie nodded towards her closed bedroom door, before taking a large bite of pizza.

“She okay?” His eyebrows furrowed, pausing outside of the door.

He watched Sienna’s face fall before she quickly corrected it. “Yeah — yeah, she said the preliminary hearing went alright.”

Bryce studied her face for a moment, before nodding, “That’s good. I’ll— I’ll be back.” Still holding the paper cup in his hand, he used the back of his knuckles to knock quietly on her door, “Jordy? It’s me.”

He heard a soft “come in” from the other side of the door, and he slipped inside.  It wasn’t entirely dark in her room — there was a soft orange glow from the lamp on her bedside table, illuminating her figure as she laid in the bed.

Jordynne’s blonde hair was pulled up into a bun, her glasses sitting crooked on her nose as she hugged a pillow. Most of her body was covered by her white duvet, but Bryce knew she had her threadbare Oregon State sweater on.

“Hey,” He whispered, shuffling into the room and next to the bed. He placed one of the cups down on the nightstand, “I brought you a coffee.”

The corners of her pink lips tugged up, “Only you would feed my addiction at 9 o’clock at night.”

“Hey, I know how to deal with gremlin Jordynne any time of day.” He took a swig of his own hot drink, before setting it down next to hers. He carefully sat down on the bed, sitting in the space between her stomach and legs as she laid on her side. “So how was the preliminary hearing?”

“It was alright. Declan was there.” She rolled her eyes, “But this is what I needed to do. Teresa would want this.”

Bryce nodded along with her, before giving her a sad smile. “So if it went well, why are you hiding away in here?”

“I’m not hiding in here.”

“There are three large pizzas outside that make me think differently. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you say no to extra cheesy, greasy pizza.” He smirked.

“I—“ Her green eyes flickered to the door, betraying her, “I’m just not in the mood for it.”

He placed his hand on her side, squeezing her waist, “Talk to me, Jordynne.”

“You don’t want to hear it.” The pillowcase rustled as she shook her head.

“If it’s making you upset, I do.” He squeezed her again, Maybe I can fix it.”

“You can’t fix this, Bryce.”

He shrugged, “Try me.”

“It’s Ethan, ok?” She said quietly.

“Okay.” He chewed his lip, thinking for a moment, “You know, you don’t have to keep hiding this from me.”

“It’s just not fair to you. I don’t—“

But he caught her off, “Jordynne, I know exactly what I signed up for.”

She let out an exasperated sigh, “But I’ve made everything messy. And confusing. This isn’t what you wanted, I’m sure.”

“All I want is for you to not feel like this.” He moved his head until they were both looking at each other. His dark eyes studied her green ones, “So if that means Ethan... or me. Regardless of what happens, with the trial or with him I’m going to be here. Probably with coffee. Until you tell me not to be.” He slipped his hand into hers, squeezing it gently.

They stayed like that for a moment, before Jordynne sat up a little. Her face came towards his, and Bryce felt his breath hitch for a moment. Her pink lips grazed his cheek with a small kiss. “Thank you,” She whispered, a sad smile spreading across her face before she laid back down.

Bryce swallowed hard — burying the feelings that had flared up in him as she had neared his face. He had thought — well, it didn’t matter.  

He left a couple hours later — after finally coaxing Jordynne out of her room with the coffee and pizza and friends. He had sat across the table from her — unable to tear his eyes away.

Now, he was strolling down a sidewalk in downtown Boston. Opting to walk home instead of taking the subway — the crisp night air was turning his cheeks red. But he had needed the time to think and unwind. It was late now and everything felt heavy — his steps, the long, slow blinks of his eyes, among other things.

All at once the inky black sky opened to let out a shower of rain. It came down slowly at first, before turning into the large droplets that splatted against the sidewalk and Bryce’s face. Scrambling at first Bryce started to pull up the hood of his jacket, before laughing at himself. He was already drenched, soaked from the cool rain.

As he rounded the familiar corner near the hospital, Bryce’s eyes squinted at the familiar neon glow of a pub near his apartment. He could hear the thudding music from inside the building, muffled through the windows but getting slightly louder as patrons went in and out. He had never been inside before — usually opting for the familiar bar near the hospital instead.

As he got closer to the establishment, Bryce’s footsteps started to falter a little in the rain — noticing a figure stumble out of the bar. Just like him, they got immediately drenched by the rain — though the man had no coat like Bryce. He watched as he tipped his head back, letting the cold rain hit him in the face before barking out a hard laugh. Then the man looked to the side, finally noticed he was being watched.

Bryce studied his dark features before recognition washed over him.

It was Ramsey.

Ethan must have realized who he was too, cause in that moment he turned on his heel and began striding away in the opposite direction.

Anger boiled in Bryce as his steps moved faster to match with his — attempting to catch up to him. Jordynne has been constantly worrying, waiting to hear from him — and now he was in the city and still hadn’t reached out to her?

“Hey!” Bryce called putting after him, almost in a jog at this point. “Hey!”

“What do you want, Lahela?” Ethan slurred, finally twisting around to face him.

“What I need,” Bryce took him by the shoulders and pulled him under a nearby awning away from the rain. His breath was a little ragged, and he took a moment to take a few deep breaths, “What I need is for you to figure out what the fuck you want.”

“Excuse me?” Ethan was looking anywhere but at Bryce. He reeked of booze — the scent lingering on him even though his sweater was soaked. And he looked like, well, shit. The surgical intern had never seen the ex-Attending look so disheveled.

“This.” Bryce jabbed a finger into his chest, “You. Whatever this is — it’s killing her.”

He studied his face when he said that — noticing the guilt that washed over Ethan’s face. He knew who he is was talking about.

“What you’re doing is killing, Jordynne. I’ve never seen her like this. And it’s because of you.” Shoving his hands back into his jacket pocket, Bryce backed away from him a little. “So decide man, do you want her? Or not? Because she does. She wants you.”

The pair were silent for a moment, tension still slowly pulling between them.

Finally, Ethan spoke again. “You just admit to losing Lahela? Your girl wants me over you?”

Bryce’s nostril flared for a moment, but he pushed the anger back down. “I could give a shit about losing to you. All I care about is her being happy. And for some god damn reason, you do that for her.

I could care less about being her second choice. I could be her hundredth choice, and I would still be ecstatic. Because everyday with her is like winning the god damn lottery. And if you don’t fucking realize that, then you need to let her go. Because it’s killing her. And I can’t watch it anymore.”  

Ethan’s steely eyes were wide for a moment, and his Adam’s Apple dropped as he took a hard swallow. “How long have you been preparing that?”

“Since the moment I found out how she felt about you.” Bryce let out a long breath through his nose, “In my head, there was a pretty good right hook to your face too. But I figure I shouldn’t do that.”

“Thanks.” Ethan breathed out. Bryce watched him stumble a little towards the curb, before lowering himself onto it and sitting down. Ethan put his face into his hands.

Letting out a sigh, he sat down next to him — feeling his jeans get soaked from the water running off the sidewalk. “Why are you being like this?”

“Well, I would approximate that I’m at 0.15% Blood Alcohol Content right now. That probably has something to do with it.”

“That’s not what I—,” Bryce chewed on the inside of his cheek, “Then why are you drinking like this? To forget?”

“Maybe to remember,” Ethan said quietly.

The pair watched in silence as a car drove by on the other side of the road — hitting a puddle and sensing a large spray of water over the asphalt.

“I’m not what they think I am.”

Bryce’s eyebrows furrowed, “What?”

“Jordynne. Naveen. Harper. All of them. I’m not what they think I am.” Ethan waved his arm at himself, sitting on the curb, “This is the real Ethan Ramsey.”

“Jordynne doesn’t seem to think so.” He gulped.

“Well, she’s wrong.” Ramsey croaked.

“Maybe you should let her decide that.” Bryce put his hands on his knees and pushed himself off of the curb. “And stop ghosting her. Talk to her.”

“I—“

“No. This,” Bryce pointed to Ethan drunkenly sitting on the curb, “Is not helping anyone.”

Finally, he offered his hand out to Ethan. He hesitated, but then grabbed onto the surgical intern's tan hand and allowed him to help him up. “I still don’t like you though.”

“I know.”

“And you don’t like me.”

“Nope.”

“But I — we,” Bryce corrected himself, “We like Jordynne. So.”

“Yeah.”

Bryce didn’t say anything else. He noticed a cab turning the corner near them, and he flagged them down with a wave. “You too drunk to remember where you live?”

“Hyde Park?” Ethan asked through the open window of the cab. He got a nod from the driver, and he pulled the door open. Ethan paused with the door open, “I’d offer to share the cab, but I feel like if you spend any more time with me I risk getting that right hook to the face?”

“Yup,” Bryce said coolly.

Ethan barked out a laugh, before giving Bryce a final nod and slipped into the cab.

He watched the yellow cab pull away, and he finally realized how long he had been standing (and sitting) in the rain for. Pulling out his phone, he sighed when he noticed the time and pocketed it again.

What had he gotten himself into?

Part Eighteen

[pepucz]

Death Note personal thoughts

I saw a post about thoughts on “everyone goes to Mu” part of the manga by one of my favourite tumblr users - 13eyond13 and I originally replied to it, but I figured my thoughts were more about my personal feelings than adding something relevant to the original post, so I decided to post it totally separately here just for my own satisfaction. (also my English can suck hard, so if anyone decides to read this all, I’m sorry for any mistakes)

_______

I must admit I was rooting for Light and was truly a KIRA supporter at the beginning (till the moment he killed Lind L. Tailor), I also took the information from Ryuk about Mu as a fact for everyone just like Light did, but that's probably because I'm an atheist and I have lots of nihilistic thoughts, so Ryuk saying the “Mu” part would only prove my own views and beliefs - the nihilistic aspect of the whole story is also one of the reasons why Death Note remained one of my most favourite mangas of all my time and why I’m so happy to have my love for it fully restored and be actively back in the fandom...

So yeah I agreed with the original intention of Light with the Death Note, he was pretty careful with what kind of criminals he killed, he "wouldn't kill those who killed accidentally or without malice like car accident deaths for example" (chapter 47), but I didn't agree with his God complex, that was probably the first thing that didn't click right with me even though it does make a sense as Light wanted to set new rules for humanity by his own standarts, I just don’t like the idea of “God” or whatever, but the real endgame for me was the moment he killed Tailor, he didn't know if he was criminal, he killed him just because he challenged him. That was the point where I stopped rooting for him. I also saw killing Raye Penber and the rest of the FBI agents as even more unnecessary steps and also a pretty obvious way to cast suspicion against himself. But we wouldn't have a story if it wouldn’t happen 🙃 And I still loved his character even after this tbh :)

I must admit I don't value a human’s life as something more valuable than an animal's life (of course I do value my dearest's lives super lot, I would die for them anytime or rather I do continue living for them, but those lost humans' lives of people, whom I hadn't known personally, haven't heard their story or whom I simply didn’t like just don't spur any real pity for them in me, earth is overpopulated anyway, what truly upsets me in the worldwide spectrum is losing some extinct animal species - I even cry when I see the planet lost some animal species just because of the human greediness) and I'm sick of ppl making so much fuss over the loss of a human life than over animal's one especially if they don't know those humans personally. Death is part of the human life, sometimes it’s unfair how some lives end, but the World won’t stop spinning because of it and it’s not like humans are endangered species... it’s pretty much the other way around. I mentioned this bit of my feelings about general mankind because I was pretty irritated when the task force or someone in DN universe was upset with ppl dying even if they were/might be a piece of shit, just because it’s “human life!! Human!!”. Like - I loved Soichiro Yagami as a father figure and I really loved his love for Light, but I was totally done with him ruining L’s plans in Yotsuba’s arc XD Same for innocent Light in this arc, but at least he didn’t try to do anything that would ruin L’s plans just to stop the criminal’s deaths (Misa managed it in the end and everyone was satisfied thanks to that for the time being) XD

Back to the topic of using Death Note - I would plan to use it as Light did in the beginning, but target mainly animal abusers, it would also be super hard for me to find names and faces and 100% proof that they are the guilty ones. Also I would never think of myself as a God, that's totally stupid IMHO. I would be just a mass murderer like Light by human's standards. 'Murderer' is still a word invented by humans alone, so it wouldn't faze me as much as it fazed Light being called like that... Also maybe I would never use Death Note to the extent as Light did, because now even criminals have GDPR protection and their names and photos are often kept secret (which I find to be super unfair). Light would never commit a murder without a Death Note, and I’m the same (even though I can’t guarantee what I would do if I saw someone torturing animals/my loved ones in front of me.... I still think I would go berserk probably). Anyway even with knowing there is nothing after Death for sure, I would still try to make the world a better place by what I believe is right, I don’t care that it would seem evil to some ppl, I also don't give a shit there is no meaning for human's lives in the vast of the universe, I wouldn't care that this plan of making the World a better place would also mean nothing compared the whole Universe and its timeline... I would still try to do it, because it would satisfy me for the time of me being alive...

All humans have a choice to not hurt others, those who decide to do it especially when it concerns truly innocent human's lives or animal's ones (I truly hate humans, who abuse animals just for fashion, cosmetics, household products, money or for some sick sense of fun) just don't deserve their life in my mindset and I don't care how wrong it is in human society's view. I get especially angry when some criminal runs away from Borstal (because he is not put in prison as he is mentally ill and commited crime because of it) or from prison, of even worse when a criminal is released by the court for good behaviour or some shit and then that individual ends innocent life again.... in such cases I just get furious at the impotence of our laws because it means this individual can harm someone close to me too just as simply because “as a human” he still has all the human rights even after he violated someone else’s rights, that’s just super unfair. I also don't believe in real peace, human race is not capable of it imho. That's why we have to have laws... and here I’m getting back to Death Note - our laws serve the same purpose as Kira's law did in my opinion, only Kira was more successful because it was pretty definitive and striked even those who otherwise wouldn't give a shit about our weak laws. There are people who want to live peacefully and don't need any law for that, then there are some who live in peace just because of the fear of our laws' consequences and then we have those who don't give a shit about laws because it won't cost them their lives... + a small group who don't give a shit even it would cost them their life... (we don't have a death sentence in Czech Republic anymore as it was deemed too "inhuman", I must add that I must agree that there are crimes where it's almost impossible to convict the criminal as 100% guilty and it's better to just put them in the prison - as I already mentioned I would have a really hard time using the Death Note because I would be too afraid I might kill someone innocent). So Kira's idea about peace was no different than the current worlwide idea of peace with our laws.

Now to get somewhere else for a bit - I fell in love with L and Near and I was quite happy with the ending of Death Note and how Light was served and killed by Ryuk. I felt a bit of pity for his death, but it didn't traumatize me like L's (or Mello's) death tbh. I woudn’t really change a thing about L’s and Light’s deaths anyway...

When I look at the overal picture of Death Note, Light still managed to save more innocent lives than Near and L imho. During his time the crime dropped by 70% worldwide. 70% is truly a large number considering the worldwide measure. A lot of innocent humans didn't die because of rapists and murderers thanks to Light. But as DN is pretty nihilistic the world returned back to the old standards after Light's defeat and the crime percentage grew back as it was before Kira's reign. So defeating Kira served right only to people who's life’s purpose is fighting criminals - they need them to exist otherwise their job would be meaningless - and Kira almost took it from them. L's life purpose was solving crimes, but what would there be to solve if criminals were ceasing to exist? I see it as the main reason why he got involved in the Kira case at first even if he himself wouldn’t admit it. Kira was threatening his life's purpose. But of course that's just my impression. I still fell in love with L the most even if our views differed.

_________

Dunno if this whole rant makes sense or not but that’s just how I feel....

Death Note doesn't exist unfortunately and even if it would and I would get my hands on it, if it would be haunted by Ryuk, I would be definitely served by him pretty soon anyway, because he would probably get bored with me very soon 😂 I'm not a genius and I would be afraid of harming innocent beigns, so I would be extremely careful with using the Death Note.

Might try to bargain with apples but knowing Ryuk it wouldn't be enough to keep him from writing my name down sooner than my time is up 😂 I wouldn't even blame him 🙃 I'm simple and boring average woman, who is totally done with human race and most of the humans.

BTW I really love this little bit from the pilot chapter of Death Note:

"But that would probably mean you'd have to kill the majority of mankind." 👍

(might delete this whole post later because of my social anxiety or if I get too roasted for my opinions, because I'm a coward 😄 I do stand firmly behind my beliefs especially IRL but I also prefer to be invisible on public sites 😄)

[comicteaparty]

August 2nd, 2018 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on August 2nd, 2018, from 5PM - 7PM PDT.  The chat focused on Woohooligan! by Samuel Dealey.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY START!

Good day everyone~! This week’s Comic Tea Party is now officially beginning~! Today we are discussing Woohooligan! by Samuel Dealey~! (http://www.woohooligan.com/) For those new or in need of a reminder, discussions about the comic are freeform, so please feel free to bring up whatever you wish. However, every 30 minutes I will be dropping in a discussion question to help those who would like a prompt. These questions are totally OPTIONAL to answer, and you can pay them no mind if you wish. If you miss out on any though, they’ll be pinned for the duration of the chat once they’re posted~! Remember, constructive criticism is allowed, but the primary focus here is to have fun and appreciate the amazing comics that the community makes~! As a bonus, each chat a top comment will be picked and featured in the archives and on an ad for CTP! All that being said, let’s get started and have a great discussion!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite strip in the comic so far and why?

SamDealey

Hey, everybody! I'm Sam! Don't worry about me being here. You can ask me questions, give advice, dog on things you didn't like, or just ignore me, however you prefer.

Also, feel free to contact me if I can help with any of your projects (research, promo, tech, etc.) -- and you can get me on Twitter here: http://twitter.com/datafaucet

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱��

glad you could be here again sam!

lets see. i think my favorite strip is actually one of the ones that was super early on: http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/4 as a fan of perspective, i really just enjoyed that play on words since ive always thought vanishing point was a....strange choice of terminology for the concept. so i enjoyed seeing it taken super literally XD

SamDealey

A lot of people have said they relaly prefer either the early stuff or the late stuff... my style has changed a lot.

Yeah, that vanishing point strip isn't very widely popular, but a lot of artists really enjoy it.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i can see why theres that preference difference. the switch the late stuff was a bit awkward since it became more focused. but i think both sides have their merit. though admittedly in this case i do think a lot of my fave strips were the ones earlier on.

http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/23 that one as well was one my favorites. my family is 1) both cursed to never understand technology and 2) generally unwilling to listen to me. so man do i wish i was that guy who would reply so sarcastically and lead them astray. XD too identifiable

SamDealey

I also went through several visual style changes that were caused by changing tools... I switched to all digital when I couldn't find an affordable wide-format scanner in 2009, did some stuff for a while in Adobe Illustrator (and colored in Photoshop), then switched to Manga Studio 4.5 ... even the upgrade to MS 5 I think unexpectedly changed some things.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

WLLO

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

its bound to happen naturally anyway for a comic as old as this one. ppl change, but that also makes it interesting to watch. especially since your comic is one that will tackle current activities so it can be an interesting time capsule of sorts to see how humors and situations changed.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Oh hey Sam!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

welcome super~!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Thanks!

Sorry I'm a few moments late, was catching myself up on some art but I'm here now!

SamDealey

Hey, Justin! I think you might be the first one here.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

lol

Looks like I am

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

any favorite strips youd like to share super?

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/313

This one's pretty good.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

that one made me feel bad for telemarketers XD if only cause most of the ppl calling are sadly just trying to make a living. but i do enjoy that disintegration image XD

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

For a sec i thought that was a guy using a fidget spinner.

SamDealey

lol @ fidget spinner ... yeah, it's been shared a few times, but I hadn't heard much commentary on it... I don't really have anything against the people who work in telemarketing either, I just thought it was a fun joke about what sometimes feels like our societal priorities.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Lol

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

ah there is one strip i wanted to ask a question about

while youre here

SamDealey

Please do.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Also sharing another one I thought was pretty clever

http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/308

though I would never replace a computer with an iPad

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/238 this one with ayn rand. was there a lot of dialogue on this page just because there needed to be a lot of dialogue or was this intentional as an homage to the fact that ayn rand's novels are chalked full of monologues?

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

brb, need to go do something real quick

I'll be back!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

QUESTION 2. Besides characters in Amity’s storyline, there have also been several other recurring characters over the comic’s history. Whether old or recent, were there any characters that you particularly connected with? If so, what about them connected with you and/or made you laugh? Are there any characters you’d like to see make a return in some fashion, and in what way do you think they might still have potential? Lastly, in regards to Amity’s storyline, what other famous people do you think might pop up in hell and what do you think will happen with them?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Hiyo... I made it, but I only had a chance to read the series through to about comic #120. ^.^

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

thats okay. at least thats something

glad to have you here math

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

My fave comics are actually the ones with the parenting. I particularly liked the "grow a beard" one (I don't recall the number) as it ended up having a callback in a later entry.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i really miss that sophisticated zombie who was fighting for zombie rights. for the shallow reason i really enjoyed his personality.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Nigel was cool!

SamDealey

I wish I had been that meta on the Ayn Rand pages... heh... they're super-wordy like that because I had a hard time figuring out how to make her explain her "philosophy" more succinctly

Thanks, Math!

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I obviously gravitated to the parenting ones what with handling the 6 week old here, with a name very similar to 'Alex'. ^.^

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Oh hey a Math!

SamDealey

Ayn-Rand Libertarianism was very deliberately added to that story though -- it's a part of a longer meta-theme in that story about Heaven and Hell and our concepts of morality

Oh, yeah, the conversations with my oldest daughter. heh...

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/306 How'd I find this strip

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I'm leery of the political ones, I admit. I get the reasoning for them, of course (I tend to read the commentaries too, which is a large part of why it takes me a while to archive browse) but they make me facepalm more than smile.

That said, Nigel as an avatar for immigrant/racist tendencies was kind of genius.

I like when it's subtle that way.

Well, subtle in my dictionary.

Oh, and to be clear, I'm not facepalming over the comic, it's over the sadness of the world we live in.

SamDealey

@✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ Question 2 - ummm... I don't know that I'm any more connected to any specific recurring characters than others -- I think I can see splashes of myself in most of them but in a really generic way, like basic humanity type stuff

Thanks for the clarification, Math!

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I guess I've enjoyed Alex as a recurring character.

SamDealey

Oh, yeah, I don't relate to my daughter at all.

<sarcasm>

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Lol

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

ah that strip was definitely topical @Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨ . reminds me of waking up everyday seeing trump in the news doing something. @SamDealey darn it. ah well. it kind of works as an homage to rand's monologues anyway. thank you for answering though.

i did enjoy the strips about alex though. i thought that was just nice and heartwarming

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yeah, Trump's life is like, documented to end and back

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I wonder if it'll be in my future.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Have millions of people documenting every single pun you make?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

No, conversations with my daughter related to my writing and math comics.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

probably. O_O i mean you have a daughter so step 1 down that road is complete

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Sounds reasonable

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I remember when I first started reading, I was amused by Death in a couple of the comics. With using the opportunity of a reaped psychiatrist for a session, and commisserating with Rudolph.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Death vs a super badass Rudolph

sounds like some kind of sitcom

SamDealey

@✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ - Are there any characters you’d like to see make a return in some fashion, and in what way do you think they might still have potential? The princes of hell haven't appeared much lately with the exception of Lucifer -- they do have some involvement in the continuing Hellbent story. I've also thought about more Nigel strips where he struggles to work with other people on a PR campaign for zombies that involves the creation of a TV sitcom about a zombie family

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yes. zombie family tv sitcom

that would be amazing

especially if theres a forced laugh track

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

By the way, what was the deal with some of the comics saying "alternate ending in the comments"... was that only on deviantart?

I want to make a Rosanne joke, but I think I'd regret it.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

The world must have zombie sitcom

heck if we got a sitcom about dinosaurs what's stopping the undead from getting a chance to shine

and the jokes would be built around them being undead and general horror tropes

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

(The Rosanne joke is about the zombie sitcom, not alternate endings.)

I've been reading onwards in the background, and just got to the Klingon section. Ohmygawd, Klingons with doe-eyes.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i enjoyed the klingons strip. i just really enjoyed how it was framed cause i think it made the jokes work well

SamDealey

@✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ - Lastly, in regards to Amity’s storyline, what other famous people do you think might pop up in hell and what do you think will happen with them? The current official title for Amity's story is Hellbent (I know it's not readily apparent). Most of the famous people in Hell are there as a counterpoint to show that anyone who's remotely interesting doesn't get into heaven. They mostly don't plug into the plot in a meaningful way, but just are there to remind you that the interesting people are in hell, like Mark Twain and Edgar Allen Poe playing poker with Pappy, or Freddy Mercury who was just a punchline. It's implied that Amity slept with Jimmi Hendrix and Katherine Hepburn has become an odd kind of mother-figure to her (though Hepburn avoided having children throughout her life). The only other historical figure I currently plan to include for plot reasons is Nietzsche (god I can never spell his name)... I don't want to give too much away, but remember that he talked a bit about "the soul" and Ayn Rand really idolized a kind of misconception of his idea of the ubermensch -- "superman".... oh, and related to that also Atlas and I think Hercules, but they're only going to be on one page.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Ayn Rand meets Superman I could see.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yes i was hoping for nietzsche!

throws confetti

QUESTION 3. Though much of the comic series is non-sequential humor, the latter half of the series features a continuing story line involving Amy/Amity and her experiences in Heaven and Hell. What do you think will happen with Amity now that she is pregnant? Will she keep the baby, or will she decide having a child with Lucifer is too difficult? If she keeps it, what do you think the consequences will be? Do you think Amity will ever see her grandmother again, or will her grandmother stay in Heaven? Additionally, do you think Amity’s new reputation might get her into trouble, and if so in what manner? In general, what do you personally take away message wise from this storyline?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

alas not the question for you math XD

cause this is the latter half

SamDealey

@MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑 re: Klingons - Thanks! re: alternate endings -- for a long time I published alternate endings as voting incentives on TopWebComics -- you could only see the latest one. I still do it occasionally, but the bonus panels or alt-endings are now on Patreon, where all the backers have access to the whole archive. A lot of those alt endings and bonus panels are also in the books whether printed or electronic.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Yup, I'm not that far yet.

SamDealey

I also give out vol #1 for free to subscribers on my Woohooligan Weekly Dick Joke Advocate newsletter. http://woohooligancomics.tumblr.com/freecomic

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Ahhh, I see. Incentives is clever... it's nice when you have enough of an audience for that.

Though I suppose this is a heck of a looong runner. I'm impressed by that.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

in regards to question 3, i think amity will keep the baby. and i look forward to the baby shower. O_O gotta invite everyone who can make it entirely too awkward

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

The Vegas strip I just got to reminds me of the Yuri/Yaoi one from much earlier. I liked that one. (Those who know me know I'm always up for some yuri.)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

since math is still on earlier strips. http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/123/ i liked this skyrim one cause thats not where i expected the joke to go at all. never know what to expect when it comes to the arrow in the knee meme

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

....I phrased that very badly.

SamDealey

@✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ That's a lot of questions, but I think I can answer them in pretty short order here: - Amity is currently worried that she's carrying the antichrist -- I think that's warranted -- I don't want to give too much away about that plot, but Lucifer confirmed it's his son in the latest couple pages. - Keeping the baby and/or consequences, well -- spoilers. -- which of course means now you know the baby will be born - Amity will see Nanna again -- it's an important plot point, followed by some fun sex jokes - So far the trouble Amity's reputation has gotten her into has been largely self-inflicted -- she's become paranoid that Lucifer's billions of children are going to mob her, except that Delilah, who she knows is one of Lu's kids has already said basically "you get used to a lot of bullshit rumors around my dad -- it happens". But with her now carrying the baby in particular, that doesn't mean Amity's going to be less paranoid. - Messages taken away from this story? ... I don't know about "taken away" since I'm writing it, but I will say that I know what will be on the last page, and I bawl every time I think about it. It's not sad, just ... I hope it will be moving for others as well.

@MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑 re: long running - Thanks! I feel like I've not done a great job of keeping up with it -- like, when I did my latest Kickstarter I had it on hiatus for about a half a year. I'm fulfilling it now and just getting back to creating new pages. That's why it's only 317(?) pages after 12 years. If I'd published 1 a week consistently, it would be over 600.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Oh wow

also that comic

This is why you wear knee guards

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Eh, real life happens. I've had my comic on and off a bunch.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah no shame in that. its better to do projects like this at your own pace, whatever that pace needs to be.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Agreed(edited)

SamDealey

Oh, you meant "I'm always down on some yuri"

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

>Two females interacting >"Is this yuri?"

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i was glad that amity bonded with delilah. but i also just like delilah cause she was a surprisingly down to earth character.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Pfffft.

Now I'm at the Nerdgasm set. I have been to some of those kinds of panels.

SamDealey

@✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ Aww! Thank you so much, that's such a complement re: Delilah.

SamDealey

Delilah is a succubus and although she's not central to the plot, I hoped I could do some justice to addressing kink-shaming and sexual double-standards.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

ooh?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i really enjoyed in nerdgasm that part where they were like "the homestuck panel moved" and then suddenly the room empties. it reminded me of how 2 real that was back in the day where everyone and their mother was into homestuck and cosplaying trolls.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

A succubus as a recurring character sounds interesting.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah i really like delilah all around. cause i do think shes a good avatar for sexual double-standards and i also like her dynamic with amity cause of the whole dating her grandfather thing XD

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Makes family reunions awkward.

SamDealey

There will be a baby shower -- it won't be large, mostly the princes of hell, or... well, 4 of them will be there... Leviathan (Envy) won't fit in the room but will send a gift (snake oil) - Satan (Wrath) doesn't do babies, but will go half on a gift with Scratch (Greed) of war bonds. Bubby (Gluttony) will give her a live pig (he thinks it's better fresh), I'm not sure yet what Mody (Lust) will give her, but suffice to say it will be creepy... Lucifer will get her something as well, but I'm also not sure what yet, and Belphegor (sloth) won't be there, because Cthulhu fhtagn

Pappy, Delilah, Hepburn and maybe Nanna will be there...

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

maybe Nanna?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Asmodeus?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i dont think this will be a relaxing baby shower

will grumpy cat be invited? O_O

SamDealey

Asmodeus is Mody -- Lust

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

QUESTION 4. Though many of the comic’s strips revolve around nerd culture, there are also tons of strips that are topical to life, current events, and history. Were there any of these kinds of strips that you felt were personally relevant to you? What did you think of some of the more serious strips (like the one about trickle-down economics)? Regardless of strip type, were there any titles that caught your eye and made you see the strip differently? Finally, since we’re speaking on humor, were there any jokes that you struggled to understand?

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Anything Trump related, lol

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Ahhh, I see.

Oh, I'm pretty sure I miss a large chunk of the jokes. It's a bit different from my sense of humour.

SamDealey

Yeah, tackling trickle-down economics was interesting, because it's one of those subjects where you can kind of expect to not get much traction, but as I get older, I feel like that's one of a handful of subjects not getting enough attention, and I thought if people enjoy Adam Conover, then I should be able to get people interested in important subjects like that

I just now realized a lot of those questions aren't directed at me.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i really liked the visuals you used for the trickle-down economics one. i think they were well-chosen and well-placed to help explain things

thats ok

SamDealey

Thank you!

I am a huge fan of Conover's work by the way.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I've reached Canada Day. We try.

I found reading your answers to the questions interesting, for what it's worth!

SamDealey

Thanks, Math!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

ive overall enjoyed the breaks into the serious. i think theyve been interesting and well-researched. and sometimes its also just nice to break from comedy for a second

SamDealey

@✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ Did I throw you with any of the titles?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Wait, there's alt-text on these too?! When did that start? (Sooo much depth to all this...)

SamDealey

lol -- I don't remember when I started adding alt text... and I'm not sure if my most recent pages have them either...

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I'll echo Rebel on the well-researched part. It's the sort of thing that stands out if it's not there, but is easy to miss when done right.

SamDealey

Oh, I've also started publishing more comedy in other mediums lately as well -- prose on my Tumblr, and some YouTube videos -- currently working on a YouTube about free speech

Here's a recent one about alt-right propaganda

https://youtu.be/Xy0Barrlw3U

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

nah i wouldnt say thrown. i thought they were interesting for some of them and just had good plays on words. http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/80/ like that one for instant since its playing on the phrase "to hell with TOPIC HERE" and turning it into a jersey joke. XD

SamDealey

I know -- it's not comics.

Oh, yeah, back to Jersey

I'm not sure how many people noticed me using "rigor" as a slur to tie it to the word nigger

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

That's exactly the sort of thing I'd miss.

SamDealey

short for rigor-mortis, but convenient that it rhymes

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Did someone say YT videos?

You should try to see about making dubbed/animated versions of strips

SamDealey

The YT vid I'm working on right now is way too long -- I need to kill about 50% of it to get the length down to reasonable

I'm not sure if I'll delve into trying to animate any of my strips ... genuine animation is too labor intensive (I know, my oldest daughter, Alex does it), and I feel weird about still frame panels with voiceovers

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

thats fair enough. animation is a lot of hard work.

i didnt notice the rigor thing sadly. mostly just cause my mind read it as "generic insult slur"

like if you yelled banana angry enough you could probably turn that into a slur

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe you can hire Alex to do it.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

so didnt connect with what it was standing in for

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Banana republic?

SamDealey

I love the phrase "GOAT SUCKER!" as an insult

It's the literal translation of the word "chupacabra"

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Things I learned from watching the X-Files.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah. goat sucker always struke me as a funny insult cause of that XD

SamDealey

Ha! I didn't even know that was in an X-Files episode... I've seen a lot of the series, but not all of it

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

http://www.woohooligan.com/comics/209/ this is another strip i liked since ive been trying to find some of my faves. this taps into every problem ive ever had with zombie movies, particularly that last panel.

SamDealey

I never did see the fluke man

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I tend to either see all of a series or very little. It was a fluke. ^.^

No Nigel cameo there?

I've reached 200, woo.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i have to admit i was expecting nigel there

but then nigel didnt come

and i shed a tear inside

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

The reversal of expectations.

SamDealey

Nigel cameo in what?

Oh, the zombie movie thing

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

r.i.p. Nigel

SamDealey

Yeah, Nigel doesn't really fit in zombie movies -- he would just be giving it bad reviews on Yelp.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

SJ: That's zombie humour for you.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yup

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i hope his reviews sound overly fancy with lots of big words

ah this reminds! i also liked see moneybags a lot. what a perfect stand in for basically rich corporations.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Cools~

SamDealey

Oh, Uncle Pennybags from monopoly?

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I was surprised to see him actually

SamDealey

I always draw him with a monocle -- he's never had one in any of the official Milton Bradley merch

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

One of the things I want to address before the end here is the obvious passion. Not only in terms of some of the details in the comic art (from fake twitters to shading) but also the commentary afterwards. Lots of work went into this.

Kudos.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Seconding that, there's lot sof entertaining fun to be had with this series and I hope you never let anything stop ya, Sam.

SamDealey

Thanks, Math!

fake twitters?

Thanks, Justin!

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

One of the comics I saw in the last hour or so had a fake twitter feed... all about foodstuffs.

I remember the most random things.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Np!

SamDealey

I've found often that the pages where I have lengthy commentaries end up being shared a lot more -- like, I was really nervous doing a passage where Amity talked to Trayvon Martin, but those pages ended up being shared a bunch

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

You have a pretty amazing fanbase.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY END!

Unfortunately, the scheduled Comic Tea Party time is now up~! Thank you everyone so much for reading and joining this week’s chat~! We want to give a special thank you to Samuel Dealey, as well, for making Woohooligan! and volunteering it for our reading queue. If you liked the comic, please be sure to support Samuel Dealey’s efforts however you’re able to. All that being said, if you would like to continue discussing this week’s comic, we highly encourage you to do so~!

For next week, Comic Tea Party will focus on Himawari Share by Harmony Becker. As always, please use the next several days to read as much of the comic as you would like. We hope to see you next Thursday on August 9th from 5PM to 7PM PDT for the chat~! Until then, happy reading~! Comic: https://tapas.io/series/Himawari-Share