NEW MARCH VOTING INCENTIVE!!!
That’s right! There’s a NEW St. Patrick’s Day voting incentive and it was chosen by fans! Patrons on Patreon who pledge $5 or more a month get a personal say in what incentives are coming your way! If YOU want to put your two cents in, then my HEAD ON OVER TO PATREON and join the select club!
VOTE FOR THE LUCK OF THE IRISH!
As for this comic…
First, AH HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHA! HA!
Second, let me offer a fourfold defence for those who would like to kill me right now:
1) It is my humble opinion that every show, comic or other long-form story project is allowed one extended dream sequence. ONE dream sequence. No more. No less. That means that I shall never pull the ‘It was all a dream!’ thing again. Ever. Scout’s honor.
2) Let it be known that unlike most ‘dream sequence’ narratives, this one was planned from the very beginning as a dream sequence, and it actually will have some potentially lasting relevance to the story at large, and will affect Puck as a character. That’s (to my mind) the most annoying element of a dream sequence narrative: that it nullifies the events that unfolded. Well here, the events and their significance do have somesignificance … for Puck, at least.
3) I feel like this was a somewhat blatantly obvious dream sequence, in all honesty. That’s not an excuse for it, really, but I don’t feel like I falsely advertising too hard here. I mean, people have been screaming in the comments section that it was a dream sequence since this story arc began, and guess what? They were right.
4) If you still want to kill me, at least you get to see Phoebe in her ridiculously skimpy nightie. See? You can’t stay mad at me, right? (In fact, the original draft of that panel had her wearing an even skimpier version of it, which after I colored it just looked insanely skimpy, so I had to alter it. If you want to see the original super-skimpy version, you’ll have to head on over to Patreon to check it out HERE.
And if you still want to kill me, I’ll understand.
Puck 380
NEW MARCH VOTING INCENTIVE!!!
That’s right! There’s a NEW St. Patrick’s Day voting incentive and it was chosen by fans! Patrons on Patreon who pledge $5 or more a month get a personal say in what incentives are coming your way! If YOU want to put your two cents in, then my HEAD ON OVER TO PATREON and join the select club!
VOTE FOR THE LUCK OF THE IRISH!
As for this comic…
First, AH HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHA! HA!
Second, let me offer a fourfold defence for those who would like to kill me right now:
1) It is my humble opinion that every show, comic or other long-form story project is allowed one extended dream sequence. ONE dream sequence. No more. No less. That means that I shall never pull the ‘It was all a dream!’ thing again. Ever. Scout’s honor.
2) Let it be known that unlike most ‘dream sequence’ narratives, this one was planned from the very beginning as a dream sequence, and it actually will have some potentially lasting relevance to the story at large, and will affect Puck as a character. That’s (to my mind) the most annoying element of a dream sequence narrative: that it nullifies the events that unfolded. Well here, the events and their significance do have somesignificance … for Puck, at least.
3) I feel like this was a somewhat blatantly obvious dream sequence, in all honesty. That’s not an excuse for it, really, but I don’t feel like I falsely advertising too hard here. I mean, people have been screaming in the comments section that it was a dream sequence since this story arc began, and guess what? They were right.
4) If you still want to kill me, at least you get to see Phoebe in her ridiculously skimpy nightie. See? You can’t stay mad at me, right? (In fact, the original draft of that panel had her wearing an even skimpier version of it, which after I colored it just looked insanely skimpy, so I had to alter it. If you want to see the original super-skimpy version, you’ll have to head on over to Patreon to check it out HERE.
And if you still want to kill me, I’ll understand.
It was less of a ripoff than the final episode of “St. Elsewhere”. Besides, you promised character development. 😉
There will be, we’ll see it during both remand and the upcoming trial.
I promise. (I don’t guarantee, but my promises are hopefully worth a little something.)
You should’ve run with it until April 1st!
But April 1st this year is a Saturday!
Would have been cool just to throw everyone for a loop and post on Saturday!
I am nothing if not terribly timed.
Why is Robin FULLY DRESSED AND SLEEPING ON THE COUCH ?
Check the start of the story arc and the answer is clear.
Apparently Robin slept all through the afternoon and evening, although some kind soul made an effort to place a small pillow under her head.
(Was it Colin or Phoebe ? Couldn’t be Daphne. I’m calling Colin, because Phoebe would have used a frilly pillow.)
Was it the FULL MOON that finally awoke Robin ? Time to HOWL ?
And now Phoebe’s TAIL is a full TWO-METERS long ? (don’t change it. After being tail-less for most of my life, long tails are my new thing.)
Yes, you noticed the pillow. The pillow placer is a mystery, but it’s a sign that Puck is indeed loved.
Phoebe’s tail varies in length according to the requirements of the scene. It ranges between four and seven feet. I feel I’m allowed that creative flexibility.
@ElectricGecko
Phoebe’s tail varies in length according to the requirements of the scene. It ranges between four and seven feet. I feel I’m allowed that creative flexibility.
You’re just pulling her tail.
Am I right ?
Why did he put a pillow under her head (I’m assuming it was Colin) but not cover her with a blanket?
@ Buggle
“Why did he put a pillow under her head (I’m assuming it was Colin) but not cover her with a blanket?”
Why did the Pillow-Placer not just force the pillow ONTO HER FACE !
( wow. too mean. i just surprised myself there. it’s just that Robin been presented as a humanmonster since August, and it will take me a while to get re-accustomed to the real Robin. that is, an inhuman monster. )
@Buggle: Depending on the season, it can get really hot and muggy in Ontario. A blanket might not be appreciated, although removing shoes and socks might!
It very well could have been Daphne. In fact, I opine that it actually was. Reasoning: she does actually love her mom (though she’d never admit it), there’s no one around to see that she did it, and no one would even question her on it. It’s the perfect crime.
I’ll support that.
Because she’s the mother of a small child. In that situation, you steal your sleep when and where you can.
Amen, brother!
Holy Cow !
I looked that up.
It was awful.
Just like the writers spit in the fan’s faces.
In regards to he St Elsewhere finale.
Oh Dam.
(called it)
You did.
I must admit it was fun while it lasted.
But as citizen of
RomePucks-Ville, I demand BREAD & CIRCUS.Read: A HUMAN SACRIFICE
How about a bread circus? Bunch of French loaves on the trapeze?
well called, cat! I have no circus to offer you, but I may be able to provide some melodrama…
*Standing alone on a deserted moonlight beach, DLKmusic waves wistfully at the ocean with a tear in his eye*
“Goodbye, Pheobe-Freckles. Goodbye… *sniff* We barely knew you, but know you were loved…”
*Fade slowly to black*
They’ll remain in the voting incentive for another week or two.
I used Photoshop to remove the freckles. Hee hee
@Susan
I’d like to see that.
And while you’re at it, could you create yet another, alternate, incentive ?
In that one have a few freckles lose their grip from Phoebe’s shoulders, and, you know, plummet to a centralized (ummmm) “Safe Landing?”
@DLKmusic
So sad…
(boo hoo hoo hoo)
Crap, now my fur is wet.
Well, this actually makes sense. The idea that scaring someone could make their freckles jump off is just utterly preposterous.
@Shan
Harumf !
I totally bought it.
(but as my brain is roughly the size of a Canadian Walnut, consider the source.)
It did break from the logic of the comic somewhat. We’ve never really deviated from somewhat normal existence in the main depicted events of the comic. The freckles popping off was just a touch too surreal for this.
It is also possible I was making a sarcastic comment about something being unrealistic in a webcomic that also features a possibly immortal fairy, human hybrids, the daughter of the Devil, the actual Devil, and Colin as an English teacher.
Well, the logic of this strip seemed to be that all sorts of (likely) mythical critters could exist, but they would not actually do anything that blatantly violated the laws of the universe as we understand them. There’s Puck’s strength, ok (but that faded as the comic grew) and longevity (which we don’t really see happening – Puck never meets the great-grandchildren of an 18th-century ex) but otherwise the supernatural element AFAIR is just morphological diversity.
Although Colin as a teacher must have been a miracle.
We live in an age of miracles, my friend. An age where even Colin is employable.
No-one’s saying Colin is unemployable. There’s good money in being a medical test subject for starters …
@rewinn
I doubt Robin is an actual fairy.
A HARPY, mebe.
(a moonlighting harpy)
@rewinn: “Puck never meets the great-grandchildren of an 18th-century ex”. That would be a GREAT story arc.
@Salem: “In English folklore, Puck, sometimes known as Robin Goodfellow, is a domestic and nature sprite, demon, or fairy.” I guess Demon would fit
http://img06.deviantart.net/0fb4/i/2013/217/d/b/puck__robin_goodfellow__by_wakawaka21-d6gumva.jpg
@Susan
Robin has a brother ?
Naw, her hairdresser just got carried away that day. As mine frequently does.
my only question is: wher did the dream begin?
as for ‘killing you’, yeah right. that woud mean a REAL LONG wait for updates. Nah at worst I would ‘banish you to Bimbrook’ (and have the lanc wake you up early on weekends)
NOT BINBROOK! Their basements always flood.
The dream sequence started at the beginning of the story arc. Everything after THIS COMIC was a dream.
News I just received over secure channels from the former Sean Harrington is that you’d be better off in Binbrook. Something really bad must have gone down in Langley.
You really should have thought about the implications of this before upsetting the apple cart like this. Well, you’ve made your bed, you now have to lie in it – with one eye open at all times.
I think that’s enough crossing the idioms for now.
I think it was ironic that on Puck 351, the first comic in the actual dream sequence, Daphnie refers to “jumping the shark” in relation to Puck’s freckles.
By the way, your pant legs are a little wet. 😛
http://www.networkedinsights.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/fonz_shark.jpg
Man, could you imagine if the Fonz jumping a shark was all just a dream? That would be like DOUBLE shark jump!
http://i.imgur.com/XzQx5cy.jpg
POP! (Mind blown!)
(Pop: It’s not just for ending dream sequences anymore!)
Black helicopters have already removed him to an undisclosed location where you’ll never find him. In unrelated news, Spying With Lana now has a new artist.
And ‘Spying with Lana’ suddenly loses all its readership on account of the new artist not being able to airbrush nearly as well.
Don’t be silly. This is real life. Being the Internet and cyberspace in general, it takes people at least a few weeks at the least for people to cotton on.
How else could Gone With the Blastwave be making almost $400/month on Patreon after updating on average once a year.
P.S: You do get how Witness Protection works now, don’t you?
The only thing that could kill that comic is CLOTHING.
I knew it it was the voting incentive that brought back!
Well, the voting incentives did keep Puck with freckles, you’ll note. So yeah. That was a bit of a hint.
Or it could have just been you being lazy.
What are we to conclude from this week’s voting incentive then? Is O’Phoebe’s Fake Irish Pub part of Puck’s dream?
It’s a fake subset offshoot of a fabricated dream. Or just normal Phoebe cosplaying as an Irish barmaid. It is fake, after all.
The only Irish themed pub I’ve ever been in was in Kyoto.
(Kyoto, Japan – just so we’re clear.)
Wow. That’s a long way to go for a fake Irish pub. I just have to go, like, a few blocks.
We have a strange situation here. We have a fake irish pub ran by an authentic irish proprietor. You’ll walk in, see everything completely over the top and stereotypical, and there he is with an accent. You’ll think he’s just acting, but on the street he’s still using the same accent when it would make no sense.
So it’s a weird experience.
Well, fake can have a kernel of authenticity inside it. Like that ‘pancake syrup’ that markets itself by claiming, “With 10% REAL MAPLE SYRUP!” Oh boy.
@Nick Manly
Let’s cut to the chase.
Is it authentic Irish BEER !
@SalemCat That I don’t know. I am a rum drinker, not so much beer. But it’s got a lot of beer ads I don’t recognize that look rather irish.
@Nick Manly
They probably do carry authentic Irish Tequila. 🙂
For what it’s worth, I think you have used your one allotted dream sequence to maximum effect.
I’m glad you approve. Your vote of confidence means much.
Apropos
Some of the greatest dream sequences: M*A*S*H, Newhart, Dallas, A Midsummer’s Night Dream, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
Some of the wurst? Liver.
I don’t remember liver’s dream sequence very well. But anything to do with liver really is awful.
Liver may be the wurst, but brats have delicious dreams.
But Bottom only *assumed* it was a dream sequence. It all turned out to be real.
Speaking of which, did Oberon used to be Puck’s boss or something?
In MSND, yes. In this comic, who knows?
I crave, CRAVE an explanation for the play in this world.
Too bad there isn’t one. Frowny face frowny face frowny face.
You troll! 😛
Hee hee, in Broole McEldowney’s graphic of MSND, Puck/Pibby is sleeping with Oberon.
@Susan: I’ve always read MSND as kind of a game/foreplay between Oberon and Titania, everyone else is just a pawn in their war as to who gains sexual dominance.
Puck sleeping with Oberon? I don’t think Titania would like that very much.
PS. For the English Teacher that might be going into an epileptic fit over that particular synopsis of MSND, I will remind him that I DO live in Southern California!
Well, that synopsis can be valid, from a certain point of view.
Which is why the Liver’s dream is wurst.
Well, I liked the magical freckles. I also liked Phoebe’s having magical freckles and being beplaided.
Plaidsome? Plaidful? I’ll have to think about that one.
I believe the word is ‘plaidiated’.
Ah, yes… the result of being exposed to way too much plaidiation.
@DLKmusic
Wouldn’t it be hilarious if Phoebe appeared next week, innocently sporting her Plaid Phoe-Buck Outfit ?
I foresee…. Colin! Hiding under the kitchen sink again!
Predicting the future of cowards cowering is so easy.
To quote the great and eminently quotable Douglas Adams … “Zaphod did not want to tangle with them and, deciding that just as discretion is the better part of valor, so was cowardice is the better part of discretion, he valiantly hid himself in a closet.”
What makes this most wonderful is Phoebe being alarmed, but not really surprised.
How often has Puck acted out her misunderstanding on Pheobe before? And yet they remain BFFs.
As the T-Shirt that I own (blatant plug for the store full of Puckabilia) says… “BFF’s out of Convenience & Habit since 1998”
Never did I put it more succinctly! And hey, you have that t-shirt? I have that t-shirt! We’re shirt buddies! And, like, the only two people practically in this whole world who have that shirt!
I think this sort of thing has played out many times before, given Puck’s spotty memory, penchant for minor brain injury and unreliable filter.
It’s Puck isn’t Puck apart of Shakespeare’s Midsummer’s night dream? i think you have a bit of leeway in this :3
Yes. I almost quoted Puck’s speech to the audience in the comments here.
Aw.
It was a horrible dream, but ….. the potential for character growth for everyone was just so …..
You know?
I’m torn between relief and sadness.
Ride the emotional roller coaster. The ticket is made of sorrow!
And the ice cream is made of wrath!
I should have picked it up with the unrealistic de fracking and the fourth wall breaking, but it was only hard to tell with this comic.
And it is my humble opinion that dream sequences that are not blatantly obvious are cruel tricks played by creator to get a reaction out of the audience, though this was less cruel than most.
Chrispy or Precocious once did an arc where we had weeks of dream sequences, each week showing a series of awful events happening to the main characters, finishing the week with their death, and “it was only a dream” then pulling the same thing the following week.
See, that’s cruel. This here… This is only kind of cruel.
Quasi-evil….so to speak. lol
https://memecrunch.com/image/52028577afa96f7933000014.jpg?w=400
Pam just walked in and seen Bobby alive and well in the shower.
WHAAAAAAA?!? Oh, you gotta love that.
Actually, is no one else surprised that Phoebe’s reaction is “What did I NOT do now?” She doesn’t think she’s being accused of something, she is being accused of having not done something.
Well, it’s more that she thinks she’s being falsely accused of something, because she’s probably been falsely accused of doing things many times before by Puck.
Puck better damn well stick by her when Phoebe goes through a crisis, because that’s the only reason Phoebe should be putting up with her.
Interesting to note that for Puck, the breaking point where she could no longer tolerate the nightmare and had to wake up, was when she was in danger of losing Colin for good…..
It IS interesting, eh?
I certainly think so.
It think this whole dream sequence says something about how Puck views her family. *What* it’s saying is something we’ll have to puzzle out.
One thing, at least, seems to be that she’d need to turn into an utter beast like Tracee to ever abandon them.
I like that interpretation! 🙂
I laughed way too hard at Phoebe’s question about what she (didn’t) do this time.
I had a feeling since some time ago it was going to be a dream (what with Puck losing her freckles and such). After last week’s strip, I was more or less sure but I figured you might have something planned that proved it was, in fact, NOT a dream. I was wrong. Oh well.
I honestly don’t think I could have continued in that narrative and brought the story back to normalcy. Like, I could have done it, using a bunch of crazy plot contrivances, but I’d feel that there would be way too much baggage there. First, we would be stuck with a Puck who just decided to abandon her family. Even if she went back on it later, that’s an ugly decision that (I feel) would push the character from ‘lovably flawed’ to ‘I don’t really like this chick no more’. Also, it would leave a lingering sexual tension thing between Colin and Phoebe, which I really would NOT want in the comic. That sort of love triangle tension thing is just dumb. I mean, it’s in all sorts of stories, but … no.
Yeah, you have some points there…
You mean after all this drama it was all a dream? Unless this is a dream and Puck’s still out in Hollywood…
Now THAT would be worthy of Inception !
TRACEE (concerned): “What’s wrong, Robynn, you look like you’ve seen a ghost !”
ROBYNN (softly laughing): “Oh, it’s nothing. I just had a silly dream where I returned to Hamilton and was upset Colin was with my ex-roomate. As if I would CARE !
TRACEE (amused): “Come on, girl, we don’t want to be late for the orgy !
This is reality. No dream within a dream. I promise.
We’ll ignore for the moment that it’s an online comic strip and I’m reading it at a moment where they wouldn’t want any witnesses…
Still a better love story than Twilight *shrug*
You could apply that to pretty much any work of fiction. Including fiction that contains no love story. As in, “Waiting for Godot is a better love story than Twilight.”
That meme will never get old! Never!
“Twilight” lost me when I was watching thetrailer. Old hag: “But she is just a human!” Blech
Buffy Week at the AV Club, commemorating the show’s 20th Anniversary!
Buffy Week
Well, played (said while stroking my beard pensively). Love the second frame. The lighting, the expression, the sound of the dream ending (who knew there was a sound for that!?). Well played indeed.
I thought that dreams should, in a perfect world, go ‘pop’.
Weasels also “POP”.
fourth wall breaks are always fun! somehow thought the whole being blond and freckle transmigration was a dream. could always go to hollweird but good to see some resolution of the arc!
Resolution! It’s worth its weight in gold. Even though it doesn’t weigh anything…
DREAM SEQUENCES are so last week.
Roll in the ALTERNATE DIMENSION STORYLINE.
Seconded!
Salemcat, do you write for every anime I’ve watched recently? x.x’
@Katrina
“Salemcat, do you write for every anime I’ve watched recently? x.x’
I’ll take that as a compliment !
It’s a heck of a lot better than “SalemCat, do you write all that awful anime that I can’t stand to watch…”
@Katrina: Now that “Candi” is on hiatus, I watch no anime at all. And am very happy with stories with no bug-eyed, big-bosomed, trashily-dressed females. Or ugly guys with weird hair
I feel that there aren’t bug eyes here, but I think you ARE reading a comic with big-bosomed trashily dressed females. And Colin’s pretty ugly. And his hair’s pretty weird.
Not all anime have those things….
At least they have noses, not commas, and normal sized mouths. I won’t repeat what my bf says about the size of anime girls mouths. But then, he’s old
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Eg1EjdPQ8jc/maxresdefault.jpg
Is Rick & Morty actually anime ?
Because I’d say it was just a cartoon.
And is pretty much the only thing that makes me Laugh-Out-Loud.
(other than Puck, of course)
@Susan
Those ANIME GURLZ have mouths ?
(oh wait, there they are. i was distracted)
@EG
“Colin’s pretty ugly”
HUH ?
(well mebe by Canadian standards.)
@the cat: “Rick and Morty” looks like it was drawn by someone in love with Matt Groening’s drawing style, not anime (IMHO)
@Susan: “Ugly guys with weird hair”? HEY, I RESEMBLE THAT REMARK!
Are they making boring, thick, multivolume comics about you? THen you are safe :p
Hey, for cartoon men, anime guys are pretty good-looking. Of course, I probably say this because they don’t look very different from the anime women, lack of boobs aside… 😛
And Rick & Morty is no anime! It’s a cartoon with an adult rating!
Well, honestly, if it makes you feel better, we can say that the dream started an alternate dimension (splitting from Puck Prime) and now exists somewhere in the multiverse. And if anyone wants to start up a fan fic or fan comic detailing the events in that world, BE MY GUEST!
You know that feeling where you regret something straight after you said it if not as you were in the process of saying it? …
Well, NOW I do.
*secretly opens her fanfiction folder*
If I had any actual ambition I’d take up that offer, HOWEVER, everything would be drawn Stickerlude-Style
AWWWWWW! It was just gettin’ good!
(Kicks a old, tin can down the road…features downcast.)
You ain’t no fun, Mister! 😉
That’s me name! Electric ‘No Fun’ Gecko!
@Hernshound
You said it, man !
Just to repeat myself, from two weeks ago, THIS would have been fun:
I suggest next week Electric Gecko can both take a well-deserved break, while giving his loyal readers some long overdue titillation.
All four panels should be BLACK, with only Speech Balloons visible.
Squeeka Squeeka Squeeka Thumpa Thumpa Oh Baby Oh Baby OH BABY !!!!
Of course, the following week would show what really happened:
Colin repairing the Screen Door while Phoebe handing him the tools.
I have to admit that I didn’t see this coming.
So congratulations ElectricGecko, you surprised/pulled the wool over the eyes of at least one fam.
Good to know my faulty magic still works sometimes.
I have to admit that pulling the wool over my eyes is not as much of an achievement as either one of us might like to think.
Shhh. Don’t say that. Let’s just exist in blissful ignorance where we’re both super geniuses and no one ever says anything to the contrary.
Ha, suspected this from the moment the freckles exploded 😛
You, sir, are a secret genius.
Naw – you were being really obvious and silly and anyone who was butt-hurt needs to calm down. It’s a comic.
“At the least, even if the reported dream was in other respects in itself a fairy-story, I would condemn the whole as gravely defective: like a good picture in a disfiguring frame.” JRR Tolkien, “On Fairy-Stories”
Is it still a “Dream Sequence” if the arc is presented from the beginning as an actual dream ?
Good question.
@EG
Any dream that is presented AS a dream, and has no intent to deceive, is not an actual storyline Dream Sequence.
Thus Daphne could be shown falling to sleep, and dreaming she and
TaylorTyler, as King and Queen of the Prom, would be perfectly ok.(Flashbacks are not Dream Sequences, either.)
Oh, Tolkien can stuff it.
(Face a complete mask of shock and horror)
BLASPHEMER! May Morgoth send Gothmog himself to devour your soul for such a heinous statement!
lol
@Hernshound
Perhaps the mob will get its Human Sacrifice after all !
I consider it sort of sad that I know who those are.
LOL
Welcome to the geek club mate! I’ll send you a membership card and super-secret decoder ring in the mail as soon as we get more supplies in.
I know who Morgoth is, but I don’t recall Gothmog…
Gothmog was “the Lieutenant of Morgul” at the Battle of the Pellenor Fields, presumably named after the Chief of Balrogs in the First Age. (I can hear it now: “Oh, Daddy, what shall we name him…”)
You have mentally scarred me, Susan, thank you.
Nooo Ohhh Uhhrr Buuuh. The oldest trick in the book! For shame, for shame… Arghhh.. ARG! gasp gblrz
@GhostlyYorick
And we all thot you’d be pleased that Phoebe is available again !
Yes, I was in mourning… That Dastardly Gecko tricked us all!
Check out Phoebe’s original, scantier Nightie in Patreon, and you’ll mourn no more !
This is below even the standard of someone without any standards…
I don’t think I’ve ever been better described: “below the standard of someone without any standards”. Perfect!
Hey, I’m all about the oldies! This is a comic which employed an amnesia story arc, for crying out loud! You don’t get more hackneyed than that!
So true….
*asks innocently* So, we can expect a clone in the next one?
No clones. Clones are almost always a point in the narrative where everything just gets scrambled and can never be unscrambled.
What about long-lost twins? Or multiple personalities? Or estranged relatives coming back?
Ooh! Good ideas!
Or, um, talking animals ?
Amnesia! Nah, you’ve already done that…
” Talking Animals ?”
Technically, Daphne qualifies.
I’m still waiting for Puck’s parents to show… See how Colin deals with HIS inlaws!
@DLKmusic
“I’m still waiting for Puck’s parents to show… See how Colin deals with HIS inlaws!”
Mebe it was Robin’s mom, who was in the wheelchair, that Robin punched ?
I think she’s dead now.
Then Robin’s dad died from a broken heart.
So, they won’t be showing – unless – Robin simply stuck their corpsies in the basement and is still cashing their Pension Cheques.
We’ve never seen the basement, have we ?
Or maybe they showed up in the eight years that Puck’s forgotten…
@Buggle
“Or maybe they showed up in the eight years that Puck’s forgotten…”
So long ago that their basement corpsies are desiccated ?
(much preferable to the juicy variety, IMHO)
I’m still rooting for Robin’s parents to be Oberon and Titania…
That would present some… interesting… In-law issues!
Seconded!
Coward! You should have gone full “Newhart” on us fans and have Puck awaken from this dream into a black and white world and declare to the “McNiven University Registration Officer” that she had turned down the Humanities offering and decided to see what “Broccoli University” is offering – So just after Puck 7 but before Puck 8 !
Well, I suppose that can happen next week.
Even better….
Puck awakens in a Victorian Asylum: Padded Cell, Tattered Straight Jacket, Head shaved bald, a dim, flickering Edison Bulb suspended centrally from the ceiling its sole feature.
It is revealed via disembodied Newspaper Headlines that, as a young teen, she hatchet-murdered her entire family after “voices” told her she was a Fairy, and it was her destiny to kill.
She is an ancient crone now; her entire life has been nothing but wild fantasies dreamed up so as to escape the crushing boredom.
(I’m scaring myself, now)
@theCat: It’s “Strait Jacket.” adjective, Archaic.
5.
narrow:
Strait is the gate.
6.
affording little space; confined in area.
@Susan
Once again PUCK reaffirms its place as the #1 Scientifically Accurate Educational Web Comic.
thanky !
(Psst – it was a fellow fan who, long ago, alerted me as to when to use it’s and when to use its. I’ve never forgotten.)
I am sensitive to that, too, but I used it right: contraction if “It is,” not possessive :p
@Susan
Oh yes, I wasn’t questioning your usage of its or it’s at all. I see know how you may have thought so, tho.
Just affirming that I’m not likely to write “Straight Jacket” ever again.
I can be trained.
Ah, but the dream is over. And Puck is awake in whatever number of colours this world of yours is in. So assuming that Puck did graduate from McNiven, she does have the “option” of improving her Humanities course with graduate courses…
Good God! I just realized that Puck can pull a Colin, and enter Broccoli University’s Education programme !
She wouldn’t have the patience for it. And I think that Puck would survive as a teacher for approximately three seconds before immediately losing her license.
Aww….Phoebe still has that big picture of her younger self on her wall…
PORTRAIT OF AN UGLY CHILD – $25
Glad you noticed. The pic had to find a home somewhere, right?
Well, let’s see….
How old is that portrait ?
It is of Phoebe in her early teens, and Phoebe’s current age is…..
Wait – Wait – No, we’re not going THERE again !!
I STILL WANT TO KILL YOU GECKO
While Phoebe’s nightie does mollify me, as does the glimpse of Phoebe’s room, I will only hold off for SIX COMICS. I better see some character development by then, or I will make my way to Canada come hell or high water, with helicopters and land piranhas.
Aw, come on. Six comics? That’s pretty tight. You gotta give me at least another full story arc!
That evac helicopter will be touching down shortly.
You don’t need a full story arc to show character development! And six weeks is how long it’ll take for me to properly train the land piranhas, so count yourself lucky.
@Buggle
“I STILL WANT TO KILL YOU GECKO”
Bad Buggle, BAD !
Quit channeling Susan !!
She’s our resident homicidal maniac.
( and I mean that in a good way – in case she’s listening )
I don’t wanna kill EG. Just Daphne. And she is just a cartoon character. And down the list from “Garfield”, the dumb cat in “Rose is Rose,” Jeri in “PreTeena”, Holly in “Stone Soup,” and Calvin.
I feel strongly that Daphne is a direct spiritual successor to Calvin, so I take that as a compliment.
Well, one doesn’t have to be Susan to be a homicidal maniac! And besides, we need a homicidal maniac whose rage isn’t just directed at one character (and sometimes Salem).
@Buggle
But real question is: did you take Susan’s Online Course: Homicidal Mania 101 ?
(I failed. I tended to “play” with my
victimfood too much.)No, but now that you’ve mentioned it, I’m signing up.
Phoebe page 380:
Phoebe, unholy spawn of Satan, also awakens
Would that be a better comic? I sometimes wonder.
Well Spawn’s actually … ha ha ha no, I can’t even begin to try to finish that sentence.
I’ll admit to being profoundly disappointed. At the same time, I was kind of giving you kudos for being bold enough to have your title character “leave” her own comic.
You ruined it, man. My life is a lie! (j/k! I’m fine.)
I’m curious to see where you go with this. It would be kind of cool if Robin/Puck continued to see Phoebe as a rival (as her freckled “dream self”).
I’m curious to see where I go with this too. Assuming I go somewhere.
Well, even if you go nowhere, that’s still somewhere , in comic/story terms…right?
So does that mean Puck might actually start to, um, appreciate the people in her life more, especially Colin?
(Pregnant pause before guffawing breaks out)
@Dueeast
“(Pregnant pause before guffawing breaks out)”
You nailed it.
Oh, don’t make fun of something that everyone would love to see! (at least, I would)
… like Virginia?
With the COMMENTS reaching and exceeding 200 these days, could it be time to expand the RECENT COMMENTS section ?
Not everyone lurks (like me), and probably would enjoy seeing the last 12 (or 24) hours listed.
Especially when someone comments on the Archive. Most of us would never know they did.
Second the motion!
Thirded!
Passes motion.
*flushes*
O M G
It has occurred.
I’m not even mad. Call me shortsighted but I pretty much fell for it, so right now I’m more in the vicinity of admiration, and a fair amount of relief!
See, naysayers? Not EVERYONE hates me! I have a vote of confidence! Someone liked it!
That’s how they get close to you before striking while your guard is down. Now will you please take your seat? The chopper’s about to take off and we’d rather you didn’t fall out.
Are you *sure* you got that chopper from a reliable source? (sly smile)
It’s a black bag operation, so of course not.
And you haven’t checked under the seat?
I was thinking one way to snap puck out of blond mode would be for phoebe to kiss him and waM lookit sort of happened lol
And, in a way, it did!
We should be able to conclude something concerning this weird family unit, in that Robin’s first sociopathic implulse was directed towards her long-time female friend, and not her common-law husband.
On the other hand, Robin may have already disposed of his body.
(and any witnesses)
Truly, her anger is misguided, for once…
hhmm much like the run away freight train i envisioned.
but……
What a prime wasted opportunity at a really good April fools joke… couple more strips and then have her dream sequence end after the first…boom April fools, and you would have suckered all of us…
o_O
Never waste an opportunity to waste an opportunity! XD XD
Well, I consider my material to generally be one big missed opportunity, so that makes sense.
well played.. you really had us there for a second.
So far I’ve got a roughly equal collection of ‘well played’s to ‘poorly played’s. I wonder what the final count will be!
You’ll find out one day – specifically, in six weeks, when you’ll meet your maker. (Unless Puck shows that she’s grown as a person)
@Buggle
“You’ll find out one day – specifically, in six weeks, when you’ll meet your maker.”
Oh God Oh God Oh God.
Buggle hacked the Russians and found out we have just SIX WEEKS to live.
(where is that “Bucket List” of mine ?)
Calm yourself, Salem – I was speaking of my Grand Plan to eviscerate Gecko with land piranhas if he doesn’t deliver on my demands.
@Buggle
So you DENY you’ve been speaking to the Russians ?
I should think a denial is unnecessary, since my plan to destroy Gecko with helicopters and land piranhas is well-known, as well as the fact that ultimatum is six weeks…
@Buggle
“I should think a denial is unnecessary, since my plan to destroy Gecko with helicopters and land piranhas is well-known, as well as the fact that ultimatum is six weeks…
Warn me when’s it’s go-time.
I’ll need to HIDE.
Damn you. Now I have to figure out how to make that nighty.
well, Kimmy, you start with about 3 inches of material, and….
Don’t try. It defies physics.
Also she had quite a nap on the couch. It was light when she started, dark when she woke up. Even if it’s an hour or under, I couldn’t imagine Puck not being bothered by any of the other denizens of their house…
Funny how EIGHT HOURS Puck-Time (assuming Robin got a full eight hours rest) translates into THIRTY WEEKS our time.
Time dilation effect.
It’s also why a certain recently installed new government feels like it happened years ago when it actually hasn’t been two months yet.
She needs the rest. They let her sleep. They are kindly.
And tired Puck woken prematurely is cranky.
…all of them?
Well, all of them sometimes are kindly out of fear.
For the record, EG, I loved the resolution… I just miss the Phoebe freckles!
***fade to black***
I’m glad the fourth wall remains intact. Or does it? I’m confused.
It’s been shattered a few times, actually. In non-dream dialogue. Though the fourth wall breaks DID increase in the dream world. Not sure what means, really.
Hacky storytelling?
On a subconscious level, maybe Puck knows she’s in a comic strip…
Aw damn, consider me caught sir. I feel so dense but I respect and understand your story choice.
Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!
Hey, I’m not trying to betray anybody! I’m just serving the peoples! (Not well, maybe, but…)
It’s a Firefly reference.
Your relatives were involved.
Now that Summer, and its general dearth of decent TV, it may be time for me to revisit Firefly.
It’s totally worth watching twice.
Or even three or four times.
Hey, Geck! Have you noticed that comments have spiked since the inclusion of (almost) sex in the current arc? I’ll bet you have.
@Susan
That’s just another reason EG should have extended this to April 1st.
Another 2-3 weeks of flirting would have been fun.
And it would have been an awesome joke !
(oh well. i’m certain the new arc will be fun as well !)
I might have done that, but honestly, I’m currently not wanting this story to overstay its welcome. And it’s already longer than I planned. The initial plan I had for this story arc didn’t even include Tracee in it. My plan was basically to skip from the phone call with agent right to Puck ready to leave, but it felt emotionally too sudden, and it didn’t have Tracee. So the story arc lengthened. As it is, though, now I’ve thrown off my master plan a bit. My initial plan was to end the next story arc at strip #400, allowing for a nice, neat conclusion to a possible print copy, running roughly strips #200 – #400. As it is, though, we still have a good five or so comics to go while we wrap up this story arc, and the next one will probably clock in at 30 strips, so… I’m going to miss that cut-off.
And in all honesty, I don’t know whether I’ll even assemble a print copy of volume two. The last one was an incredible, overwhelming amount of work, and was purchased by very, very few people. Maybe if I went to conventions and needed something to sell, it would be worth it. As it is, though, I think I might consider my first foray into print books to be my unsuccessful last.
I may not be able to illustrate or write but it looks like my special set of skills come into play here.
You know where to find me.
@EG
Yeah, books are falling out of favor fast.
I do still read, but always buy used.
I’d recommend you spare the effort.
Some BUMPER STICKERS would be nice, tho.
Oddly enough my top choice would be Satan saying something funny.
No one will buy the bumper stickers. (Well, maybe one person will buy the bumper stickers.) I’ve found that I can apply that statement for all potential physical merch: “No one will buy (insert merch here)” and I’m almost always correct.
You should check out eBay.
At least the cost and effort for a Bumper Sticker is very small.
But, yeah.
People are cheap.
I’m thinking small 2″ die-cut stickers; not large rectangular ones.
This eBay listing: 500 2×2 Custom Printed Full Color Outdoor Vinyl Car Bumper Sticker Decal Die Cut for $79.99 works out to 16 cents each.
A strip of three or four (Puck, Phoebe, Satan, Tracee) would fit in a #10 Envelope and ship cheaply.
I’d bet people would be happy to pay $5 for them.
It’s important to add Puck’s Web Site to the Sticker for advertising.
Some people who sell these have their children do the shipping for pocket money.
Just a thought.
Well, perhaps. But I think the comment frenzy is more due to the soap-operatic plot devices and emotional manipulation. But it HAS been fun.
The spike in Patreon pledges are where it’s at.
Money talks and you know what walks.
DEUS EX… Oh, publish Phoebe’s phone number and we’ll call it even. (Of course, then SHE may come looking for your head…)
You should look up Brooke McIldownreny at the next Calgary Expo, April 27-30. http://www.gocomics.com/pibgorn
I have bought two of his Pibgorn compilations, especially the Pibgorn “Midsummer Night’s Dream, which I have reread like ten times. I am nagging him to publish his “Romeo and Juliet.”
Getting to the next Calgary Expo is, for me, about as expensive as getting to Europe. Canada’s a big country with few people, meaning that flights are incredibly expensive.
And there’s an example of a dude hanging out at comic conventions and hawking his wares, which I’ve never done (and, due to the particular demands of my day job, can almost never do). If I did that, it might be worthwhile. As it is, I’m simply selling through cyberspace, and people don’t seem to like to buy real books through fake space.
The Author of the Web Comic “Shotgun Shuffle” has an extended story of his experiences at a Comic Convention.
I don’t want to put words in his mouth, but it seems to me he tried hard to put a positive spin on a depressing experience.
It seems that the unique artist gets lost in a flood of mainstream vendors selling mainstream superhero and anime merchandise.
I’ve heard great things about comic conventions and depressing things about comic conventions. I’ve been to the big Toronto Comic Con and it was, well, mostly mainstream vendors doing mainstream stuff. I counted one internet-based comic stand there. That was it, in the giant convention center room. Just one. I’ve heard that different cons have different types of vendors, though. Some are really friendly to internet types. Who knows? (I certainly don’t.)
*Amazon business model suddenly collapses*
Well, they’re selling things people want. That’s the difference.
Are you sure it’s not making people want stuff they previously did not even know existed, let alone have any previous awareness of?
(You might see where I’m going with this …)
Puck changed into her STREET CLOTHES, first?
She was wearing her street clothes when she went to sleep. See strip #350.
Also also…Puck is fighting with Phoebe over *Colin*?
Good point. Even for fiction, that is stretching credibility to breaking.
Well, you people aren’t being fair to Colin.
Apparently both Robin and Phoebe are simply into men with BIG responsibility.
The mind boggles at the impossibility.
Puck’s just really possessive, I’m sure…
@Buggle
Puck’s just really possessive, I’m sure…
Buggle did IT !!!!
She made THREE HUNDRED !!!!
For the very first time ever – and surely not the last.
(and it was not long ago 200 was hit for the first time)
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand that’s a record! (I think)
Puck’s at home once again with her freckles and red hair.
God’s in His heaven—
All’s right with the world!
THERE IS HOPE YET !!
Puck’s blind rage could escalate quickly – Phoebe, Colin, then even Daphne !
At some point a kind soul will swoop up Miranda, and race into the street, looking for help.
Stan from next door Crackistan will NOT help, but will call the Police by himself (violence is bad for business).
Puck will be hauled off; her assault (murder?) of “Wheelchair Woman” will be re-visited, and she will be sentenced to LIFE IN PRISON.
This will give our lovebirds time to smooch again.
Happy Ending
In the 4th panel Robin is screaming DIE YOU FRECKLE-FACED…..
Well, what is the noun obscured by Phoebe’s speech balloon ?
I’m guessing the missing word is FRIEND.
(i could be wrong)
You know when you’re right. And you, you’re always right!
Yep.
Even when I’m drastically, completely, totally, unequivocally in absolute error, I’m still right – kinda – when viewed in a certain way.
I suspect you are right about it starting with an “F…” but I, personally would go with “B…”
My bf says that she should go with a “W…”, but then, he is old
The actual word may start with a ‘b’. And while the ‘b’ word has been used many times within this comic, I’ve managed to get this far without having the two female leads use it against each other, and I’m slightly proud of that, so I wanted to have my cake and eat it too. Thus, in print, the record still stands.
FREAK would work.
Phleebles has been promoted to Co-Lead with Puck? News from Bree, but Sure as Shire-talk deserved 🙂
Well, in my mind. Though I always find it interesting looking at the cast page and seeing how many comics Puck is in compared to everyone else. She’s in almost twice as many strips as Phoebe. So I guess Phoebe is still a supporting character, statistically speaking. But in our hearts…
And you open the door and you step inside
Where inside our hearts …
This is your life
I thought that Puck, Colin, Daphne and Phoebe were all the the main characters…
We Need Eleven More Comments To Hit Three Hundred For This Week.
( and do not forget to vote )
I’m working on it!
Spam, spam spam, spam..
Spam, spam, spam, spam…
Lovely Spam, Beautiful Spam!
…Monty Python?
Yewbetcha. Sung by Vikings. Spam actually isn’t bad, fried in butter, but, then, what isn’t?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_eYSuPKP3Y
Pretty Funny !
I should kick myself for not seeing this coming.
The freckle symbiote thing was taking it a bit far even for you. 😀
I’m not sure whether to be flattered by that remark or not. 😉
By all means, be flattered. I was just going to enjoy the ride and see where this goes. I got “got” but it’s all good, fam.
So… It was a dream… Which took place, in part, at night… And one could infer took place in midsummer…
Well played, lizard. Well played indeed.
If only I were clever enough to say that was intentional…
I feel pissed off,
and yet it should’ve been obvious!
Because what form of magic hijinks,
would be the removal and transfer of dead skin cells?
Well, I’m sorry. Truly, I am. And it was obvious to some, because the comments section was full of people writing ‘this is totally a dream sequence’ throughout the whole story arc.
@EG
Oh.
Most of us that were “spilling the beans” were simply trolls, jerks, cats – or all three.
Doesn’t mean it wasn’t the best arc – evah !!!!
And it was all just a…WTF?!
I take it you didn’t see that coming.
As far as I can remember, this is the first time a dream sequence fooled me – as in I was not aware it was a dream sequence before it ended. I laughed, as you point out it was rather easy to see, really. Maybe I was tired today.
Anyways; very well written comic this, almost every strip is a lot of fun to me and an unusually high percentage actually provokes the rare real laugh! 🙂
Well, it’s good you weren’t reading in the comments or you’d have had it spoiled. About three comics in, there was a bunch of people who were crying, “Dream sequence!”
I’m glad the comic works for you. I do try to balance narrative and comedy. It’s … hard. But I have the advantage that I only produce one a week.
@EG
At least THREE of that “BUNCH” were just me.
I have no Filter.
1. Awwww, Puck loves Collin!
2. Ha! ha ha ha ha ha!
3. I think I purpusfully ignore things what whatever it is that other people noticed. Just so I get the full effect.
4. I don’t know. Somewhere in my head, Phoebe wears flannel pajamas. I think that’s MY sense of humor and has nothing to do with Phoebe. It’s a goooood think I’m not a writer.
Well, flannel pajamas have their place. It is just my opinion that said place is not on Phoebe.
Headcanon: the events we all read really occurred, but Daphne figured out what happened between Phoebe and Colin only a day or two later. After a quick phone call to Puck, (doesn’t matter how she knew Puck’s new number. It’s Daphne, she has her ways.) Puck grew jealous and angry enough that she actually used her Fae magic to reset everything, altering the memories of everyone involved, herself included, all wrapped up nice and neat in a conveniently explained and just as conveniently excused dream sequence.
You know, the sort of thing Puck is infamous for?
Yeah. May or may not be what actually happened.