Response to all those things: For Reals

My view on DC isn't that they shouldn't make sexy comics or that by doing so they're just terrible people. I think such a thing would be problematic in a shared universe, but blah blah I hate share universes anyway. Most entertainment does some sexual pandering, but I can accept that for things I like because I know it sells, these people have to make money, and I generally think that the upsides balance that out to "good."

But when DC hears this controversy and responds very specifically in a way that doesn't address the narrative, but instead calls-out how that narrative is executed (albeit with some merit), it doesn't give the impression of a company that's aware of the actual controversy. If "kids could read this!" was the complaint, they would've nailed it.

If they'd said "Scott Lobdell is one of our best writers and we trust the direction he'll be taking 'Red Hood and The Outtakes' over the next few months," that would've been in the ballpark. I'd be happy with that.

Incidentally, they told everyone who might be interested in getting their 12 year old a "T" comic that "T" means tits and talk about sex, which brings up an entirely new issue that immediately makes them look bad.

DC's made an impressive number of bold and boneheaded decisions this year. In my opinion, they were getting more "bold" hits than "boneheaded" ones until this moment. I don't even mind "Red Hood and The Ouroboros" so much; it's not meant for me and the people it is meant for probably don't care about how responsibly women are portrayed in the media. It's that if DC failed to address this, it would have merely backed up a lot of the sexist image they've accumulated lately--an image that's frustrating since they're in the midst of an effort to show more, and more different, people how awesome one of my hobbies is. It's even more maddening because that effort has come at the risk of losing at least some of their fan base that kept them afloat.

Instead, they replied with this tone-deaf WTF and I'm left wonder why any intelligent person would start looking into comics--the communities, the companies, and the actual product--and see something they'd want to spend time and money on.

It reflects badly one of my hobbies, and, in some small way, on me as well. Don't get me wrong; I'm still lined up to buy some "JLI" and "Stormwatch." However, if my money's going into the same pocket that makes and markets "Red Hood and The Outfielders," then "Schism" and the rest of my "Sandman" collection are going to carry a bit more weight than Booster Gold & friends or Travis Tritt & Friends.

Response to CA's response to DC's response to this 7-year old's response to "Red Hood and The Outlaws"

Y'know what? Now that I look at that title...

Never mind.


Return to your normal lives.

Link, in case you were curious.

Weekend Music: "Best Friend" by Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends

Guys, don't blame me here, sometimes I'm just a sucker for childish stuff.

The Boxes Precinct, Pt 05

Around me, there were cards spaciously laid out, unlike the tightly-packed rows of The Boxes. I was on a table; I’d been Chosen, but not yet Played. The other cards were similar to me, but just different enough. I’d heard about people having dreams where they’d show up to an important event in hilarious attire, but I’d never understood it. Now, here alongside so many cards—so many of which were strictly better than me—when I didn’t even know what was wanted of me, I understood. The sun shone unwavering above us, not crouching occasionally above the boxes before darting back below the horizon. This was near to the ultimate achievement and the hope it burned within each of us—born when the designs of uncles’ ink were impressed upon our mothers cardboard: being played.

Not dead, just really, really busy.

Usually, my job affords me a little bit of downtime to fuck around on the internet or to just write up blogs so I can post them later. Lately, things have been really, really busy. Like; I'm actually working for twelve hours of a twelve hour shift (minus poops).

Anyway, I'm sorry that Monday's blog was a rough cut that was simply in the queue. I'm not going to have anything tomorrow, so enjoy Friday's "Boxes Precinct." BP and the Weekend Music should keep updating for a while (things will be officially bad when that last scheduled WM posts on New Year's day).

Things should be less busy over the next few days and I can get the ball rolling again, but y'know, it all still depends on what my work looks like.

I also want to address some rumors--probably spread by seditious jump-dolphins--that this is also due in some small part to doing bonus maps for Portal. This is untrue.


Those distinctive *twhop* sounds are all in your heads.

Oh, hey, I finished Portal

Failing to possess the willpower to wait the full cycle, I played Portal about a year after it came out, sometime after being shown its full glory.

I didn't finish it because the final only boss battle had me pressing a button to open up a furnace hatch halfway across a room, then failing to pick up a little ball and drop it into the furnace before the hatch closed again. I returned to it recently when Yahtzee got me interested in Bastion and Painkiller and I downloaded Steam again.

I played through it from the beginning and it was still a lot of fun. My steel-sieve of a memory let me rediscover all of the puzzles again from the start (except for one part of room eighteen which I had to look up the first time and still remembered), which was awesome. When I got to the final showdown, I didn't know how I was going to beat it. I mean, I couldn't beat it the first time and it's not like my reflexes are getting any better with time, right?

Especially after playing Bastion and VVVVVV, I wasn't up for more incredibly frustrating gameplay, but hey, it's all part of the adventure, right? Yeah, it turns out I can just make little portals to drop the balls into the furnace. It's right in the name. In Portal, you can press buttons and make portals, and by the time I opened the furnace, I was all out of buttons.

Anyway, it's still a great game and as a bonus it has...well, bonus maps. They're regular maps with additional difficulties (one of which required me to advance from quicksave to quicksave merely because I am a mortal and have mortal failings!). They were great. 

My favorite involved a level full of cheerfully-voiced murder-turrets. In the regular game, you act as a portal-armed monster, stalking and destroying mischievously tipping them one-by-one. In the bonus map, they're each protected with a cage that keeps you from portaling, lifting, dropping heavy things on, or *gasp* tipping them. It changes how the entire level is played and it's incredibly fun because it presents more challenges.

Anyway, if you played Portal, this is redundant because you already know how great it is. If you haven't, I'm automatically somehow better than you now because I took two weeks to beat a game that came out five years ago.

None of this keeps me from hearing the little portal-making sounds all day though.

Weekend Music: Paul Williams in The Tonight Show

I don't know what this is or anything about it except ape costume and Paul Williams.