SEPTEMBER WEEKLY VOTING INCENTIVE!!! MAGAZINE COVERS!!!
The Puck cast appears on their own individualized magazine covers! How? I don’t know how! Why? That’s a mystery too! And remember, this voting incentive was chosen by special fans who donate $5 or more a month! If you want to join their controlling ranks, HEAD ON OVER TO PATREON and join the select club!
As for this comic…
Puck actually reappears in her own comic! Zounds!
Seriously, though, I had many more ideas for strips about the conversation between Colin and the surgical oncologist, but enough was enough. Even this comic’s content was originally planned not to feature Puck, but I was missing the rest of the cast. And if I can gauge anything by my pageview numbers, a bunch of readers are missing them too, because … yeah. Not so good.
Anyway, for those brave readers who are continuing to slog through this less goofy story arc, I salute you! Those who comment every week (or even just once to let me know you like my stuff), I salute you! And those who consistently toss a dollar (some even FIVE dollars) my way every month on Patreon, I SUPER SALUTE you! You guys all make this totally worth it!
Panel 4: The answer is so obvious – was there ever a question?
—
As for readership numbers – I am sorry that this story arc is not going to be has highly read as the zany adventures of all the rest, but I hope you feel good about its enduring value. Sometimes you just have to tell a story that is going to last.
Yeah, and I wouldn’t tell this story if I didn’t think it would kinda take the characters to some interesting places. Oh well. I do hope the readers that bail right now return eventually, because after this story arc is over, I promise a solid 200 or 300 strips worth of stupid, silly, regular content after this!
Doing this well takes balls. Well, one of them. Another way to look at this strip is awesome adventures of bad things happening to not-good people, and it’s only partly their fault. So…
I feel that your description really applies to life: the awesome adventures of bad things happening to not-good people, and it’s only partly their fault. That’s kind of beautiful.
@rewinn
I’m going for THIS is just another Zany Adventure.
Such a horrible thing just can’t be REAL !
( at the end EG will just fess up and exclaim MADE YOU LOOK !
Yup, I tell myself it is just an updated “Ow my Balls!”
Classic comedy from Idiocracy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_4jrMwvZ2A
We believe what we have to believe to get through the day!
Miranda says BJA ? !!!
EG, you should reallycheck with THE URBAN DICTIONARY more often – FIRST !!
What, the British Journal of Anaesthesia? That’s the first link on Google. And oddly in keeping with today’s theme!
@EG
That works for me !
I had eye surgery where I was forced to be awake for it… and the anesthetic wore off about halfway through… AND they couldn’t administer any more because of a greater chance of death, though more likely a greater chance of being sued.
If given the option, I’d have taken the slight chance of death too.
The feeling of one’s eyeball in another person’s hand… not good. Not good at all.
Yeah. I went with ‘slight chance of death’ and I don’t regret it.
Ow. And now my eye hurts.
I like your stuff. A lot. Seriously plugs at a heart strings of real life with enough absurdity to make it tolerable.
Glad I walk some sort of line properly. Thanks.
Loss of readership? I haven’t been commenting much cause this is a little too close to home, but I’m still here!
so…. I got some rope in the trunk, we can hogtie anyone who tries to bail… Just a suggestion…
Well, it’s actually not loss of commenters. The comments have been constant. It’s more the raw viewership going down. So it’s more the casual readers I’m losing, I guess. But whatever. This won’t go on forever.
Kinda bugs me when people say “I LOVE THIS HERE COMIC” but once it starts showing issues that’s affecting the creator, they start bailing… It feels off. I can’t put it in a better way.
Personally, I read Puck because it’s the one comic I look forward to the most during the weeks (I admit I only read a few at the moment, having dropped some, but Puck is generally the only one who makes me laugh on a regular basis).
In regards to the comic, I can’t really argue with taking the slight chance of death risk – the risk is low enough not to worry about (in my opinion).
Besides, if I had to stay awake during it, I’d probably end up KO’d from being too shocked/scared anyway.
Well, I don’t blame people for bailing on a comic if there’s a tonal shift that doesn’t agree with them. I mean, we’re all human, and we like what we like. I’m trying specifically to tackle this topic and avoid a drastic tonal shift as much as possible, but whatever. It still happens.
Webcomics are the most susceptible to this sort of thing, mainly because they’re usually the product of a single creative mind, and sometimes that mind wants to go in a different direction. There’s no producer or studio there to say, “Yeah, that’s not what your audience wants.” And then things go in directions that the original audience really doesn’t want. Though the creator does. Let’s call it ‘Pulling a George Lucas’.
Well that just killed my desire for a Puck prequel 😉
I actually have toyed with the idea of a prequel, though not a Puck prequel, per se, but a Phoebe prequel, set in the summer before she enrols in university. It’d be a comic book-style thing, not a strip, but honestly, I don’t have the time to do anything extra like that. So I think you’re safe from prequels here.
high school Phoebe makes me think of Veronica in Archie…
Only less evil…
Agreed. Even at her most oblivious and privileged, I can’t see Phoebe having Veronica’s sheer depth of vindictiveness.
I’m glad someone backs me on that.
Sometime evil skips a generation? Hopefully it’s a recessive trait. It’s been a long time since I read an “Archie” but I recall Veronica as being a genuinely unpleasant person (perhaps because her whole reason for existing appeared to either lording it over other ppl or acquiring the rather useless Archie – perhaps an example of early fanboy service?)
In contrast, Phoebe certainly appears not to have a gram of evil – her mistakes appear all to be out of innocence, not malice or uncaringness, the horns, tail and smokin’ hotitudity notwithstanding.
Although her closest cultural equivalent really is Veronica Lodge, Phoebe and Veronica could not be more different. You summed it up nicely.
Falling readership? I have been checking back more often than you update, just to reread the strip. Also, the magazine cover is cool – hope you have more in the works this month. Of course, dark humor (like making fun of cancer surgery) is right up my ally, even though the description was kinda cringe-worthy.
There’s three other magazine covers coming up, so stay tuned! And yeah, the dark humor stuff is always a bit divisive. There are those that dig it, and those that don’t. I’m trying not to alienate the ‘those that don’t’ too much, but hey.
traceee Traceee TRACEEEE
(TRACEEE Satan discusses the Health Benefits of Total NUDITY)
That’s the next TWENTY Magazine Covers –
?
Oh, Salem, you missed your medication again and are in a fugue state…again. *Injects 50 mg of Thorazine*
@Susan
Thankee !
Feel better now.
That’s the next NINETEEN Magazine Covers !
So going with Slight Chance of Death precludes Colin watching it. How ’bout the rest of us?
We don’t want to watch that. Believe me. (Besides, I don’t think the procedure is advertiser-friendly.)
Think of the video title: “Inside Colin’s Scr0tum!”
You oughta have a long talk with your swear censor. But, on the other hand, I like that zero in there.
That was my doing. I’m creative.
If having ballsy cancer for comments was “worth it”, your bar is _looow_ 😉
Well, I have a low bar.
On the lighter side, I love Miranda’s run-and-climb. Daddy is a natural jungle gym – and there’s that teapot!
She’s finally out of the ‘sack of potatoes’ phase, so now I can have her actually doing things. Like scaling the couch. It’s fun.
This is the best webcomic out right now. I’m surprised if your readership is down. You are keeping the comedy strong. I always thought comedy could take advantage of tension. Of course this topic does take it to the limit. Still, trust your gut.
Of course, I had a piece of yellow tail sushi yesterday that was partially frozen, so I know from suffering.
And now I want sushi. Even if it’s partially frozen.
But thanks, man. High praise indeed!
I agree. It’s tied with ‘Pibgorn’ for my fave strip
This reminds me of something that was said in a Rooster Teeth Podcast. Long story short, it was about a dude who had to have his bladder scoped, and had to have a camera shoved in his junk. One of the things his doctor said was “You know, most people don’t look.”
That said, I’ve had problems with local anesthesia; I started feeling feeling the thread when the doctor was stitching up my thumb when I was in high school, and again during getting my junk snipped. It wore off before they were done both times. Didn’t know what was going on in high school until my hand jerked due to “pain” when the doc was doing the stitches, but when I got my junk done, I blurted out “Doc, I can feel that. The anesthesia wore off!”
So yeah, that’s the other downside of local anesthesia. Granted, general can have that problem too, but it’s normally FAR stronger than local, and lasts MUCH longer.
Some people have problems with general anesthesia, but I didn’t. It was like ‘BAM!’ and I was out, and it felt like I woke up three seconds later, but it was after the surgery. My first thought coming out was, “Dang it, I thought I was supposed to have the surgery but instead they just moved me to this other room.” It took my brain a while to process the fact that time had, in fact, elapsed, and I’d actually been through the surgery already. Then the pain came.
I’ve also had problems with local like you. Though I’ve now always taken to telling them that I’m somewhat immune to their freezing, so they give me more, and wait longer, and that’s helped.
I would pick “None of the above.” What about a Spinal Anesthesia? The last orchiectomy I scrubbed in on (seven years ago) used one of those. I had a general for my last two surgeries. Most people who die during general anesthesia have heart problems.
Yeah, that’s what I’ve read since then, though they didn’t really give me any clarifier at the time. They were like, ‘general comes with slight chance of death.’ That’s it. I now read that the chance is under 1 in 100,0000 and only usually happens with heart issue cases. Would have been nice for them to tell me that at the time.
@Susan
Baldie tells me there is a type of Anesthesia where the pain is not blocked, but you are unable to remember it.
He tells he had that done, and it was great.
Sounds unlikely to me.
That would give me an identity crisis
@Buggle
You got me thinking…..
If that sort of Anesthesia makes you forget, how would he remember it was great ?
I’ll bet Baldie is just messing with me again.
That would be the wonder drug Versed, which causes amnesia. My last surgery, I heard the anesthesiologist say, “Here comes the Versed, Susie”…,and next thin I knew I was in recovery room with a taped up nose.
I do really enjoy your work. However, when you mentioned super salute in the comic comment, I thought about this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=al5bErqFrDQ
I learned from the best, man. THE BEST.
That has got to be one of the dumbest, most brilliant things I ever saw!
I would have picked the slight chance of death too. The Psychological Trauma possible by being awake through this is a danger of a much bigger calliber.
Yeah, psychological trauma is a factor to be considered. And avoided.
Also the problem of your blood pressure shooting through the roof from anxiety and popping a berry aneurysm. That would worry me more than a general’s slight danger.
So Colin will be completely asleep when he has the surgery.
I would do the same if that was me.
Fried chicken doesn’t come with a chance of death, it definitively shaves time away from your life expectancy. Like a cheese grater slowly filing away your hours until there are none left.
Regardless of the surgery, I’d always take general anesthetic if it’s offered. I can’t imagine not ordering the surgeon around to make sure he doesn’t lose a watch or a scalpel in my torso. That and there are some things a person just doesn’t want to see in their own body… like a person’s hands.
I’m pretty sure modern fried chicken approaches a zenith of unhealthiness that is so bad, one could just up and die right in the middle of the meal. Not sure how, but I’m certainly frightened.
Surgeons take off their watches when they scrub and leave them in their locker. In any case, all pockets are covered by the sterile gown. Scalpels are rarely lost, because the scrub nurse watches and picks them up whenever the surgeon lays them down and puts on a new blade. Hemostat clamps, now, are a different story… I have seen them lost and rediscovered when the instrument count is short and found in the viscera. The surgeon then thanks the OR nurses most humbly and courteously. He or she ought to buy them lunch.
Umm… would “local anesthetic plus handheld video games” be a viable option? I ask this with zero amount of jest. (I’d still probably go general anesthetic were I in the situation, but you know, it’d be nice to have an actual choice to make. Of course, if it were dental work… you will NOT get me in that seat unless I’m not awake for what happens.)
That … is a brilliant idea. Though the video game system would have to be sterilized, I’m guessing…
Actually, that would be fine with us all at Team OR, but the paitent’s arms have to be strapped down. IV’s, you know, plus the fear that they will try to ‘help.’ Maybe with your nose?
Probably a Switch, then, with a Joycon in each hand.
Ooh. That’s genius. Though the screen would have to be suspended over you somewhow.
As others have said, this is an effective balance to the more comedic elements. And my choice would definitely be the same as Colin’s in his situation.
Glad you think I’m managing the balance. And yeah. General anesthetic is king.
Oh, I should say that I really, really like Puck’s expression in the last frame. 🙂
Thanks. It took a few tries to get right.
I’ll bet. Nice work!
@EG
We all know you love LEGOS.
What do you think of MiniMates ?
Didn’t even know what they were until I just looked. Uhm… No. Ew. Gross.
For me, the Lego minifig design is steeped in nostalgia. It’s a classic: it’s goofy and weird, but its goofy, weird simplicity is its charm. The various minifig ripoff toys, though, like MiniMates and Hasbro’s Kreon line just don’t work for me. I feel like they’re trying to replicate that hard-to-define charm of the Lego minifig, but not quite getting it right.
I’m not really the one to ask, though. I avoid all building toys that are not Lego because of (A) blind brand loyalty, and (B) a lot of the other manufacturers aren’t very good. (Low quality plastic, poor machining, etc.) I will not, however, be buying the new Millennium Falcon set, priced at +$900 in Canada. Not because I can’t afford it, but because I have nowhere to put it. I mean, it’s the size of a dining room table. What do you do with that sort of thing?
Sorry, been busy with college lately so I’ve contributed to the lower page views a bit!
Oh, don’t worry, man. I never want to guilt people for having a life. And honestly, I find the comic reads better if you take a break for a year or so, then read a whole bunch all in sequence. So carry on! And don’t neglect college because of stupid webcomics!
I have a dear relative who has had eye surgery twice now, and opted for local anesthetic because they’re worried about full anesthetic damaging their brain.
….
They’re braver than I’ll ever be.
AAAAAAAAAAH. AAAAAH.
I convulse in disgust at the thought of having someone operate on my eye while I’m awake. No. Just no. The biggest no.
See? I’d love to say their courage inspires me.
I suppose I did get local for my wisdom teeth and adult molar extraction, but I was ….. not happy during those treatments, and it’s just not the same.
@EG
If I were going blind (God forbid), there’s no amount of pain I wouldn’t undergo so as to see again. Fortunately with modern techniques pain is not required.
Baldie tells me when he was a kid Novacaine was expensive, and therefore not used on children. Dental machinery was slow and used belts as motive power, and they had to drill his Molars deep due to the ravages of Coca-Cola. He tells me those hours on the chair were so pain-filled they have crowded out any good memories he may have had of his youth.
I think he’s just messing with me again, though.
I feel like Baldie has tales from a previous era, as if Baldie is perhaps an immortal who once churned butter and caught pterodactyls for their leathery hide. (I hear it was good for shoes.)
@EG
I’m not going to let him read that.
If I do I’ll be setting myself for hours of him droning on about his buddy Barney (deceased – tragic encounter with a Saber-Tooth), and all “the good times” at Slate Rock and Gravel Company.
I couldnt hardly read all the pregnancy stuff, so ill have to pass on the discomfort of this one too…i dont watch the surgery channel either.
The Colonel is perfectly ok performing surgery on mechanical things but not biological things.
Sorry.
Saw that answer coming. Because compared to watching half your manhood go, slightly risking death is nothing.
Agreed.
Drugs so powerfully numbing and I could remain fully aware of being sawed open during the procedure?
I’ve sometimes wondered if striking up a conversation with anyone in surgery will be distracting enough to get through all of the slicing and tugging. Maybe put on music?
You know what’s always disconcerting? How casual and chill surgeons and nurses are during an operation. I mean, it’s an everyday thing for them, but for you it’s a freaky, strange and stressful experience. And they’re chatting about their weekend during it.
@EG
It’s when they are NOT nonchalant that you should be worried.
EEP