NEW VOTING INCENTIVE!!! CHRISTMAS FEAR!!!
Okay, this is admittedly a partial voting incentive. It’s not done yet. But I’ve taken the Puck and Miranda element of the full image and created something goofy! Check it out! (And remember: fans who donate $5 or more a month get a say in what voting incentives run! If you want to join their controlling ranks, HEAD ON OVER TO PATREON and join the select club!)
VOTE FOR PUCK BECAUSE I’M DESPERATE!!!
As for this comic…
Eagle-eyed readers will note that yes, Tyler did eventually make good on that plan to visit the bubble tea shop across from the cancer center, mentioned in #409.
And I have to note that I really hate these hospital gift shops. Like, do they ever sell anything that anyone really wants? No. They just deal in generic clutter that no one loves but few really dislike, which makes the crap perfect for generic guilt-fueled gifts for loved ones and strangers alike. It’s a weird cultural tradition that we have, but I understand where it comes from.
I do not know why so much shelf space in this particular shop is devoted to fruits and vegetables with faces on them, but whatever. Honestly, the anthropomorphic food has a little too much quirky character to work as good gift shop fodder. I should have gone with more teddy bears.
I’m so early to this comic, there isn’t even any alt text.
There is now. I forgot to add it, then added it five minutes after the original post. early indeed.
I was wondering where the baby was. Then I saw her.
Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Film.
Is the 1st panel about the 1st time we’ve seen that scale – full figure about half the height of the panel? It felt to me that it really works to slow the action down, as the eye takes in all the stuff top to bottom and looky at the bottom there’s some dialogue!
Was this a deliberate choice for pacing or are you just messing around?
I only bring out long shots to establish scene: a change of location or some such thing. Like here. We need to know they’re in a gift shop of some sort, so the first panel’s useful. Not sure about the slowing of pace: you’re right on that, but it’s never been planned, exactly. I think a lot of readers tend to glance over a long establishing shot pretty fast, really. Though you are a more attentive sort, I’d guess.
I avoid the long shots mainly because in a humor comic, so much of the comedy is carried by facial expressions, and you can’t really see the faces much in the long shots. So I use them only very sparingly.
That’s interesting. I’ll never be a cartoonist, but I like to see how the magic tricks work.
Also the signage is amusingly honest, unlike much of the signage in gift shops.
I like how we see that all the stuffed animals are stalking Puck as the frame tightens. 🙂
They ARE creepy.
@Typeminer
To me it looks as if the BUNNY is staring at Robin’s BEWBS.
They certainly are nice, but are not shocking.
Robin has bigger bewbs than Daffy. But that should be expected, no? Especially by magic hospital gift shop bunnies
The bunny, to my mind, is one of those weird cross-eyed stuffies and is actually looking at his nose. They’re playing on a weird psychological preference for cross-eyed characters. We think they’re cute, for some reason. Alternately, we find wall-eyed characters unsettling or disturbing. Matt Groening famously played that up in ‘Life in Hell’ and ‘The Simpsons’, where he purposefully made his characters slightly wall-eyed to give the comics/shows a weird, off-kilter edge.
@Susan
You’d think a Magical Gift Shoppe Bunnie would have seen it all.
I loved “Life in Hell” with its one-eared rabbits, but I don’t like “The Simpsons.” Go figure
Hey one never knows those things may be suelfull in a zombie apocalypse…
They don’t taste very good. I can tell you that.
Get him a Teddy Ruxpin with a Mohawk on top, and long hair in the back with a Mashup of Mr. T singing 80s hair metal songs. Like, “we’re not gonna take no jibber jabber, fool”, “Pity the fools when wet” and the likes. But make sure that it comes with a Lego A-Team van.
What 80’s nightmare are you shilling here?!?
Some of the unshown ones. Mind you, I have a folder on Freddy Kreuger just off to the side.
I can’t think like Colin. But if it were my bf, he would want new 1636 novels (preferably involving Judy the Younger or Harry and his wrecking crew), rare steaks and wine sauce, or Scotch. He isn’t much into music or action figures. Well, I did give him a Princess Leia in the slave outfit our first Christmas together and it still sits on his computer desk. Me, I would want …never mind 😛
Colin is not a sophisticate like your boyfriend. Though the slave Leia figure would totally be a good choice for him.
Is “I did give him a Princess Leia in the slave outfit” a euphemism? [confused!]
Ooh. Now I’m interested.
That episode of “Friends” made me resolve never to do that. Not that he would like it. I think
@Susan
BF had betta’ keep his Leia CHAINED UP!
To keep her from “wandering”.
Evah since she was BANNED she’s become a Hot Ticket !!
(if, considering how hot she was in the first place, is even possible).
I missed my chance to get the Lego minifig. I’m still sad.
Mind you, I did get the Oola slave girl minifig (green tentacle-haired dancer), because that one’s also banned. Happy about that.
@Susan
BF had betta’ keep his Leia CHAINED UP!
To keep her from “wandering”.
Evah since she was BANNED she’s become a Hot Ticket !!
(if, considering how hot she was in the first place, is even possible).
She has a chain on her ankle that he keeps attached to the frame on his desk that holds my picture. The fact that she is banned is a major draw for him. He’s even more politically incorrect than I am, but, then, we live in Texas, so nobody cares, outside of Austin.
It’s funny. This one time I was talking with my stepdad. I was complaining how as a girl, I find gift shopping for guys to be difficult.
He then said “Really? Guys are easy to shop for. Girls are the ones hard to shop for.”
Enh, I find it’s really an individual thing. I am admittedly hard to shop for, and my wife will readily tell you that. The thing is, I don’t really care about surprises or the like, so I am happy to tell you EXACTLY what I want. In fact, I’m happy to purchase it myself. I’m also very, very happy to get gift cards. My wife, though, thinks gift cards and me buying my own gift ‘break the rules of gift-giving’ or something, so she doesn’t go along with that.
Alternately, my wife hates giving specific gift ideas to me. She is hard to buy for in a different fashion. I need to go out and just look for things that she’d like. This is harder than it sounds, because she has very particular tastes. I usually succeed, but sometimes fail.
Honestly, the whole gift-giving and gift-receiving thing stresses me right out, and I wish we didn’t do it.
My bf follows me around when we go shopping and when I find something that I like but can’t afford, he slips the shop clerk his card and, hey, presto, that gift appears on my birthday, Valentine’s day, or on Christmas. He doesn’t know he does that, but I do. Him, I just go to his wish list on Amazon or Dick Blick and there you go.
Guys are super-easy to shop for.
No matter what their Gal-Pal buys them, they pretend it is simply wonderful.
Then GF is happy.
And may actually make BF super happy when the lights are turned off.
😛
I’m not. I’m a bad liar. My wife is also a bad liar, though, which is good. We cannot hide it when we don’t like something. But I take solace in that, because it means our expressions of pleasure or happiness are consistently genuine. We know when the other is happy, because we definitely know when the other is not.
I’m “hard” to shop for in the sense that I rarely want or need anything and would rather not receive a gift or just get cash/gift cards. Even if the gift is something I know I’ll enjoy I’d probably be more annoyed in the moment about how much money the other person spent on me. Still, I think I’m much easier to shop for than the women I know who not only tend to be very picky about things, but also refuse to be clear about what they want.
I have no idea what, but I would say something that symbolises that Puck,still sees Colin as a man.
Ooh. That’s thoughtful. I like it.
A Mr. T.-dressup set?
That would be terrifying.
I like gerberas…
Traitor.
However, I own succulents and a cactus.
@Rock
Satan says: SUCCULENT
He can’t have my plants. =_=
are they presents?
The succulents are the descendants of gifts. The cactus, I bought for myself.
I never had an issue with gerberas personally. Didn’t know that people disliked them to begin with, so eh.
I’m surprised that Tyler actually did what he said he was going to do (I assumed it was going to be a one-off thing and nothing would come of it). I was wrong. Oh well.
As for the gifts, I can’t really argue with the gifts being fairly bland. I just tend to go to a nearby shop and buy something I know that the person will like.
Well, most guys feel the same about flowers in general. And your gift-giving approach sounds low-stress. I cannot argue with that.
For the past couple of years Baldie (my human pet), has been going lighter on the actual GIFTS, and Heavier on the CARDS.
You see, these days most adults (and even children) do not really wait until Christmas (or Birthdays) to acquire their goodies.
They just buy and buy all year.
But the ONE thing they DON’T BUY is their own Greeting Cards – so Cards remain the one special thing they are not likely to already have !
And if you’re browsed your Hallmarks lately, the cards are quite amazing.
Sound, LED’s, Pop-Ups, even little electric Motors combine to create cards that actually PUT ON A SHOW !
They can be very amusing, and someday, I predict, will be coveted by actual COLLECTORS. Much like early 19th century Postcards which often bring $100 or more on eBay.
The local toy shop in my town carries the best cards: ones that have scratch-and-sniff covers that smell like pizza, ones that have 3D bookmarks, you name it. I’m not as big on the Hallmark selection, though. I don’t want lights. Or sounds.
They should wait until Colin gets out of surgery and is awake and ask him what he would like.
@Greg White
A LEGO Mr. T Action Figure, of course !
Shh. Don’t spoil it.
@EG
oh, ok.
CLEARLY COLIN DESIRES IRISH LINEN LACE DOILIES !
Trust ME – (I’m not like the others)
*tries to imagine what my bf would hate to get* Um, how about some of those fake-Dresden tchotchkes with “adorable lads and lasses” with cupid’s bow mouths and rosy cheeks?
Uh, yeah. I’d hate that too. Mind you, my wife would also hate those. We’d collectively hate those. My wife and I don’t really like the same things, but we do HATE a lot of the same things.
@Susan
@EG
Worst “GIFT” evah ?
One Word: HUMMELS.
@Salem. Heh, my bf’s ex collected Hummels. So, no.
Funny, though…right now the thing Colin wants the most is being cut away…
They could get him a ball. Like, a soccer ball or something.
Maybe a trilon and perisphere.
I was puzzled by “trilon” (rotating element of changing billboards and gameshow displays) until I looked up “Trylon and Perisphere” which now seem very apt for Colin. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trylon_and_Perisphere#/media/File:Model,_Theme_Center_-_New_York_World%27s_Fare_-_1939,_c._1938,_Harrison_%26_Fouilhoux.JPG
@rewinn
Always liked the Trylon & Perisphere – and you’ve linked a wonderful example.
But being a compassionate feline, I always feel bad for those happy fair-goers.
Every last one of them would soon be involved, in one way or another, in a most tragic time of history – and soon.
And many would not survive.
Good to know our predecessors could be bold about imagery.
A “Spaldeen!” That way he could squeeze it and build up his grip! So he could help Puck open jars. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaldeen
That’s … odd.
According to my grandmother, that’s the only use for men around the house: to get things off high shelves and to open jars 😛 But, then, she had had a few bad experiences. Just trying to get Colin to be more manly. Mr. T would approve!
That newcomb guy is a real mystery. Ancient times have very scary stories in reserve.
The 1800s are NOT ancient times.
@EG
Yet ONE MILLION BC is no further from our grasp than ONE SECOND ago.
What’s gone is gone.
And the past is just a big mishmash of knights and cowboys riding dinosaurs over volcanoes, I suppose. NO THANK YOU.
Raquel Welch
Purrrrrrrrrrrr
Clackers. They can be fun, but for the Love of Dog, do NOT buy him clackers!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clackers
Heh.
“rewinn
Are FIDGET SPINNERS in Hopelessy-Lame-Land yet ?
Baldies hopes not.
I think he invested my College Fund in them, hoping to make a killing for Christmas.
Yes, fidget spinners are now in the ‘can’t give ’em away’ zone as a present. Gotta love fads. Though honestly, they ARE quite amusing.
@EG
SAY IT AIN’T SO !
(bye bye Harvard – sniffle)
She should order him a nice meal of Rocky Mountain oysters. Or maybe buy him some ping-pong balls. Something to replace what he’s lost.
(That makes me wonder… a woman can get breast implants after a mastectomy, so do they make +es+icle implants for men?)
As I understand it, they do, but it seems to me it would be a niche-market prosthesis. After all, the lack of an item in that area is not likely to be visible in normal social interaction. Also, I doubt medical insurance would pay for it.
They do make implants, though in the world of Canadian health care, they’re considered a cosmetic procedure and are thus not covered by public health care, so I think you’d have to pay for the procedure out of pocket. And honestly, I don’t get the point of them. I mean, it’s not like it’s a very publicly shared part of the body. I mean, really, even in a locker room situation, no one’s probably going to notice. Only someone you’re … um, romantically involved with would have the opportunity to notice.
I did not opt for such things. Mind you, I was a married father. My wife knew the score and certainly didn’t care about such things. And she was the only one who would ever actually see. Mind you, I guess if I were a single guy who got around, maybe I’d feel differently. I you have lots of partners, maybe you don’t want to have that conversation about what happened to one of your twins over and over again.
I have noticed when you buy gifts for guys you don’t know all that well, a nice bottle of wine is never amiss. For guys you know better, a bottle of whiskey is never amiss.
I don’t drink either. So I’m the exception.
@EG
Ok – Hummels it is.
For guys who draw voluptuous fantasy females on the Internet, a new fan art is never amiss. (Hmm- Puck putting a dead fish in Heather’s mailbox? Phoebe shopping in Victoria’s Secret? Colin using his call button to call a pretty nurse who looks like one of the ladies over at Liberty Meadows? (I know my bf can draw Brandy because he has done it on a dare) while Puck steams? Daffy arriving in San Quentin? On a Mississippi chain gang with Cool Hand Luke? The possibilities are staggering!
@Susan
Thanks for the Tips !
Purrrrr…….
(I really like Chain-Gang Daphne)
I draw ‘voluptuous fantasy females’? Huh. I never would have thought to put it that way. Not sure whether that’s a good thing or not.
@EG
Clearly Susan is referring to TRACEEE and Heather.
Oh, and Tammy.
In my books, Tracee is about the only character who (borderline) qualifies as voluptuous, and then only barely. I’d like to be better at drawing such body types, but I’m kind of a one trick pony; all my characters are slight variations on two basic body types (one male and one female). I wish I were less limited. And more talented.
vo·lup·tu·ous
vəˈləp(t)SH(o͞o)əs
adjective
(of a woman) curvaceous and sexually attractive.
If Puck and Phloebes aren’t voluptuous, I don’t know who is. I don’t buy the recent usage of using the word as a euphemism for of “fat”.
Well, sure. I’ll go with that. I guess the question rests on the interpretation of the word ‘curvaceous’ and how curvaceous we’re talking here. I would NOT say that I think of ‘voluptuous’ as a euphemism for ‘fat’, but I think of it as a word describing a very specific female body type that is REALLY hard to draw right. The great fairies from ‘Breath of the Wild’ are voluptuous (and in my male opinion, one of the best parts of the game):
https://youtu.be/W_RO4UUkAvQ?t=1m10s
Huh. She looks fat to me. And with big hair. 😛
She’s not fat; she’s voluptuous.
Well, I must admit the word VOLUPTUOUS is on its way to becoming synonymous with RUBENESQUE.
In my mind, Rubenesque is heavier. But I just looked up some Rubens paintings, and they … vary.
Rubens could do skinny. He just liked, er, voluptuous women. See his “The Descent From the Cross,” one of my favorite paintings. Have you ever read Kenneth Clark’s “The Nude” and seen what the ideal body type was from the middle ages till comparatively modern times? I recommend it. (BF keeps it on our coffee table to frighten the natives.)
I am familiar with the works of Sir Kenneth Clark. Especially that time he lost against Lancashire heavyweight Jack Bodel.
@Susan
Recent surveys conclude, that even in 2017, countries that are very poor and have little to eat, still prefer heavy woman (and heavy men).
It’s a sign of wealth and power.
Lol great last panel gag! Daphne gives the best lines.
Thanks. I try. Sometimes I don’t really know if the ideas are funny or not.
That’s not all Daffy gives, if you believe the boys at the gym 😛
SUSAN !
STOP THAT !
😛
Hee hee, if you insist. I couldn’t help myself.
@Susan
(pleeze don’t really stop – heh heh)
Colin: “All I really wanted or needed to be happy was the love and respect of a good woman.”
Puck: “Awwww…”
Colin: “So… you know… if you could find me one of those somewhere…”
Puck: “…”
@Hinoron
His dream did come true ….. then EPISODE 380 arrived.
So sad….
Hilarious. Yet way too dangerous.
Another poor choice: a nice bag of nuts.
http://www.giveitlove.com/these-funny-doctors-inject-a-dose-of-comedy-into-their-serious-work/13/
as a guy i can understand not being a drinker, but i think love of things that explode or go fast is a universal guy thing
Chanel was credited in the post-World War I era with liberating women from the constraints of the “corseted silhouette” and popularizing a sporty, casual chic as the feminine standard of style.
Arg, I can’t get it to post right. Anyway, after WWI, the “flapper” became the ideal feminine look.
Re: Voting Incentive
Ooooh-Weeee that Fruitcake looks good !
Actually, that fruitcake looks stunningly beautiful. (I love fruitcake.)
You weaponized fruitcake! You monster! Look how afraid Miranda looks! (And me, too. I use Christmas fruitcake as a doorstop, or a stool to reach high shelves when the bf isn’t home)
Well, this pic isn’t really complete. Just wait till you see what Miranda is REALLY afraid of.
Not…not a CLOWN carrying a fruitcake!!!!! *gets out the bazooka*
How long will it take for Colin to recover?
Not long, actually.
Skip the gift shop’s limited selection and go straight to Build-a-Bear, or some other large store that sells plushies.
You’re looking for a plushie squirrel –the animal that hides nuts away for the winter– holding a single walnut. (Actual walnut can be substituted if you can’t find a squirrel plushie holding a felt one.)
Colin: “You are a cruel, sick, bitch, and I love you.”
Puck: “Well, I wanted you to know it came from me…”
Creative.