riderchop posted:

Safe Havens

Darthemed posted:

Popcom

Hwurmp posted:

Camelot is a gay place

Tiggum posted:

Wilbur's idealised version of himself doesn't need glasses, but is still bald.

Hippocrass posted:

Us Boys(April 20, 1912)

riderchop posted:

On The Fastrack

EasyEW posted:

Sally Forth

Selachian posted:

Invisible Scarlet O'Neil 7/22-24/43

Strontium posted:

Macanudo

Alhazred posted:

And also a physical abusive place. Jesus loving christ.

riderchop posted:

For Better or For Worse

Lynn Johnston posted:

April fell into a rain-swollen creek. Once again, a member of the family found themselves in mortal danger, once again, there was a rescue just in time. This ending, however, was not entirely a happy one, as Farley the dog died from the stress of his heroic struggle to save April. It was the first time that death appeared onstage in the strip, with all the grief, guilt, and heartache that comes with it. It would not be the last time.

Charles Schulz was now one of my closet friends and confidants in the business. When I told him I had to do away with Farley, he was genuinely furious. I explained that I had no choice. Since the strip developed in real time, the dog was much older than he should be, and to allow him to stay in the strip would be contrary to everything I was doing. When you're working in real time, you have to deal with life spans! He was angry nonetheless, admonishing my decision. He threatened to have Snoopy hit by a truck at the same time and taken to the hospital. "Then nobody will care about your stupid story," he said. He was serious, so when the time came to write the series, I didn't tell him. The episode came as a surprise-and he never forgave me. Rather, he never forgave April for falling into the river in the first place! Like some readers, there are cartoonists who take these characters far too seriously.

These longer, more controversial stories sparked plenty of reader feedback. My favorite letter was from a man in Michigan who wrote: "You made me sick when you wrote that story about the gay kid in For Better or for Worse. After that, I completely stopped reading your strip... Now that you have seen fit to kill of Farley the dog, I am NEVER going to read your lousy strip again!"

Lawrence's story and the death of Farley brought in an overwhelming flood of letters, but the stories of Sharon Edwards's paraplegia and Gordon Mayes's physical abuse at the hands of his alcoholic father also resulted in deeply emotional responses. Some readers approved of the topics and the way they were handled, some emphatically did not, but is was clear that everyone had been deeply moved on way or another and that the characters in the strip were believably real.

Although I never intended to be a conduit to open discussion about controversial subjects, I'm pleased to know that many of the strips have been used in presentations, parenting articles, books, and teaching aids. All of us face difficult issues in our lives. Death touches us all, sooner or later. Everyone, whether they are willing to admit it or not, has someone in their immediate family or circle of friends who is gay. Most of us know individuals who are disabled and others who are or have been the victims of physical abuse.

Since it is so important for me not to bring a character into the strip unless I can really "live” inside them and see the world as they do, I research my stories carefully, making sure the situations are accurate, possible and fair. I have had the privilege of letting others speak through my characters. If the world is a stage, theirs are the most compelling performances, and their stories deserve to be told!

Beth Cruikshank posted:

My particular role, since the beginning of FBorRFW, has been the unique honor or serving as the main "family veterinarian" to the Pattersons' various mythical pets. This has led to some interesting, if slightly bizarre, discussions with Lynn. the one I remember best went something like this:

"You're going to kill off Farley? Lynn, you can't DO that!"

"I have no choice." The voice on the phone sounded unusually grim. " You know my strip runs in real time. And since you just told me sheepdogs don't usually live past twelve, and Farley is already thirteen-well..."

"Wow!" I contemplated the likely reader reaction with awe. "So how are you going to do it? How on earth do you bump off the family dog in three panels and a punch line, and hope to get away with it?"

"I don't know. Farley is getting older and more feeble these days, so the setup is there. but I can't see the end yet."

"Well, there's one thing I can tell you about the end!" I said, with sudden conviction. "After all the abuse that poor dog has taken from those kids over the years, and the way you've made him the butt and fool of the family, you HAVE to give him back his dignity when he goes. Farley has to die a hero!"

"A hero?" Lynn said, startled. "Farley? Oh, come on! He's old and tired, and besides, everyone knows he's basically pretty dumb. He can't do some brilliant Lassie thing, like smashing through the window of the burning building and turning the combination of the lock with his teeth to rescue little Timmy before the dynamite goes off in the mine!"

"He doesn’t' need to have brains, just a bit of sheepdog instinct!" I said, "It's deep-rooted in them to protect their flocks, you know. Like April, for instance. Farley and April are close-he's bound to be protective of her. have him rescue April in some simple way."

"How?" The skepticism was now tinged with interest. "It has to be believable."

"Well, there's a ravine behind the Pattersons' house, with a creek in it, right? nothing is more of a kid magnet than running water. I've sometimes wondered why the kids never go down there. So have April fall into the creek when it's high and Farley drag her out. Simple, believable, minimum brains required. But definitely strenuous enough to set off a fatal heart attack in the poor old mutt."

"Hmm!"

"It's perfect!" I continued, warming to my theme. "Farley gets to die relatively painlessly, a hero, with dignity. Elly and John are then spared having to make the awful decision to take him on that last gloomy trip to the vet. what could be better?"

There was a lengthy silence.

"I’ll think about it," Lynn said finally.

The subject never arose again, and I soon forgot our conversation. Then I turned to the comics section of the paper one spring day and saw April headed down to the ravine with a toy boat in her hand and Farley and Edgar at her heels. I had proposed the idea frivolously, without much real thought. but as the story unfolded, I found myself wrenched with anxiety for April, and in tears by the conclusion. Lynn's ability to tell a story powerfully and well has never been better illustrated. And beyond a doubt, she gave Farley back his dignity in a most satisfying way in the end. Just as the doctor ordered!

Selachian posted:

Invisible Scarlet O'Neil 7/22-24/43

Selachian posted:

Rhymes with Orange

pencilhands posted:

Good Listener posted:

The gardening team is some of the stupidest poo poo in Kevin and Kell and that's saying something.

Aces High posted:

What is this Dr. Horrible poo poo?!

Cowslips Warren posted:

goddamn it, Flash keeps hitting it out of the park. it's like loving early Pixar. which scares me too.

pencilhands posted:

JethroMcB posted:

Rose is Rose

Larryb posted:

They even manage to make recap strips fun by doing it from a different character's perspective each time, it's impressive honestly.

Has the person currently behind it done any other notable work in the past out of curiosity?

Larryb posted:

They even manage to make recap strips fun by doing it from a different character's perspective each time, it's impressive honestly.

Has the person currently behind it done any other notable work in the past out of curiosity?

Explodingdice posted:

Lavender Jack is well worth a look. I think it's on webtoon and doesn't exist in paper form?

Larryb posted:

It is, yes. I'd never heard of it before but assuming the links still work I'll definitely check it out

pencilhands posted:

Doomykins posted:

THE APE WITH SEX APPEAL