The downfall of Ctrl+Alt+Del...
- Thread starter pillota
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The word you're looking for is Telenovela.The Iron Ninja said:
Anyhow, I think you're actually mistaken about all this downfall stuff or have you forgotten the abortion story arch? Even Yathzee made fun of that one.
Ctrl + Alt + Del is obviously poor but why is everyone in love with penny arcade like it is any better? Every Penny Arcade Comic isn't remotely funny until you plough through a needlessly long monologue featuring a backstory to explain the joke, a few gems of information on gaming news and three quarters of a page of dramatic language. Only after reading through the backstory you can click his link back to the comic to give an "Oh I get it now" and close the webpage.
The reality is that Tycho can just type three to five points of news followed by a blurb on the comic and end it there. You as the reader can just avoid the website and look up the latest news yourself which will be far more in depth and won't be siphoned through his opinion.
The reality is that Tycho can just type three to five points of news followed by a blurb on the comic and end it there. You as the reader can just avoid the website and look up the latest news yourself which will be far more in depth and won't be siphoned through his opinion.
i don't know why there's such hate on Tim and his webcomic. Sure, he's deviating from the whole videogame theme, but sometimes you have to shake up established routine in order to stop yourself from producing the same old stuff. I mean, look at VGcats. Their comics do nothing but mindless parodies, and when was the last time they updated according to their schedule?
Isn't the backstory usually more of a "fireside chat" (best expression I could think of) than actually explaining the comic? I admit sometimes the backstory seems necessary (the current comic, for example), but most of the time you can read it alone and get the gist of the humor.
Technically it's called Cerebus Syndrome. Though I am not familiar with CAD from what I understand it has been in this mode for some time now. Anyway it all just looks like author wish fulfillment fantasy to me. Most webcomics hit a point where they can't come up with any more jokes so they start being dramatic. Drama is easy, comedy is hard.
Hoo boy, I guess I'd better admit it: I read Ctrl+Alt+Del. And by that, of course, I mean the past tense of "read (kind of annoying that the past and present tenses of that word are spelled the same)."
For me, the comic had its moments. In the very beginning, he made some decent self-and-not-self-referential humor, which was especially funny to me since I read a few of the comics being referenced in those early strips (that and I just have a weakness for fourth-wall jokes). Also, some of his standalone gag strips elicited a few chuckles; sure, quite a few of them were beaten to the punch (or possibly rip-offs, but I don't want to jump to conclusions), but some were still admittedly funny.
However, Yahtzee has already explained exactly the point at which even fans of the comic were suddenly let down: the shift to a "serious" story paradigm. What was this author thinking? The comic series was supposed to be built around comedy, or at least the attempt at comedy. As such, the characters themselves were pretty much one-dimensional foils that should have done nothing more than bounce jokes off of eachother. While characters in a comedy don't have to be so one-dimensional, and generally shouldn't, it worked sometimes for this comic.
Then, of course, the whole "pregnancy followed by miscarriage" story arc happened. The biggest flaw in logic when postulating this story was that any reader in their right mind would take a character like Ethan seriously. The guy is an obsessive man-child whose love of video games is only slightly eclipsed by his love of boobies. He was a ludicrous character through and through. And now you suddenly want me to sympathize with his pain? I'd like to point out right now that my sister also used to read the comic. Ever since the miscarriage, she hasn't so much as looked at the site.
At least just before the point of no return, the guy was still trying to squeeze in a joke at the end of the strip. The miscarriage comic itself? No punchline whatsoever. Then again, that might have been for the better; any joke made about miscarriage is in bad taste. This pattern of strips with no joke has actually continued on after that arc. These three strips, for instance: other than the "How many of those little bottles of booze are you legally allowed to serve us?" line (which is a really weak line, anyway), nothing in those strips can be considered a punchline by any stretch of the imagination. You know you're comedy strip sucks when you have to make an entirely different series of comics running parallel to the first called "Sillies."
Another complaint about these latest strips in particular: How the heck are they getting married? Weren't they married before or something? And even if they weren't and I'm just having a memory lapse, how can they just have a wedding in Jamaica on a whim? Could you imagine trying to tell that to any of your potential wedding guests? "Yeah, hey, uh, sorry for the short notice, but we're on a plane headed for Jamaica to get married right now, and if you could come, that would be really great. Bye!" Even if this was supposed to take place a few weeks or months after the plane strip, there is no indication of such a time skip. That third strip has to be one of the most confusing, stupid, and, most importantly, unfunny comic strips I have ever had the displeasure of viewing.
The short version: What little goodness this strip had has been destroyed by the author's stupid new direction.
For me, the comic had its moments. In the very beginning, he made some decent self-and-not-self-referential humor, which was especially funny to me since I read a few of the comics being referenced in those early strips (that and I just have a weakness for fourth-wall jokes). Also, some of his standalone gag strips elicited a few chuckles; sure, quite a few of them were beaten to the punch (or possibly rip-offs, but I don't want to jump to conclusions), but some were still admittedly funny.
However, Yahtzee has already explained exactly the point at which even fans of the comic were suddenly let down: the shift to a "serious" story paradigm. What was this author thinking? The comic series was supposed to be built around comedy, or at least the attempt at comedy. As such, the characters themselves were pretty much one-dimensional foils that should have done nothing more than bounce jokes off of eachother. While characters in a comedy don't have to be so one-dimensional, and generally shouldn't, it worked sometimes for this comic.
Then, of course, the whole "pregnancy followed by miscarriage" story arc happened. The biggest flaw in logic when postulating this story was that any reader in their right mind would take a character like Ethan seriously. The guy is an obsessive man-child whose love of video games is only slightly eclipsed by his love of boobies. He was a ludicrous character through and through. And now you suddenly want me to sympathize with his pain? I'd like to point out right now that my sister also used to read the comic. Ever since the miscarriage, she hasn't so much as looked at the site.
At least just before the point of no return, the guy was still trying to squeeze in a joke at the end of the strip. The miscarriage comic itself? No punchline whatsoever. Then again, that might have been for the better; any joke made about miscarriage is in bad taste. This pattern of strips with no joke has actually continued on after that arc. These three strips, for instance: other than the "How many of those little bottles of booze are you legally allowed to serve us?" line (which is a really weak line, anyway), nothing in those strips can be considered a punchline by any stretch of the imagination. You know you're comedy strip sucks when you have to make an entirely different series of comics running parallel to the first called "Sillies."
Another complaint about these latest strips in particular: How the heck are they getting married? Weren't they married before or something? And even if they weren't and I'm just having a memory lapse, how can they just have a wedding in Jamaica on a whim? Could you imagine trying to tell that to any of your potential wedding guests? "Yeah, hey, uh, sorry for the short notice, but we're on a plane headed for Jamaica to get married right now, and if you could come, that would be really great. Bye!" Even if this was supposed to take place a few weeks or months after the plane strip, there is no indication of such a time skip. That third strip has to be one of the most confusing, stupid, and, most importantly, unfunny comic strips I have ever had the displeasure of viewing.
The short version: What little goodness this strip had has been destroyed by the author's stupid new direction.
Exactly. I would argue that Cyanide and Happiness is a GOOD example of shaking up the webcomic sub-genre. It's original, but what makes it good is that it's actually funny. Concerned is another great one, although I wouldn't call the idea or concept "original."quickpaw said:
Go read the sillies section. all of them. NOW. and tell me those are not funny or gaming related
http://www.ctrlaltdel-online.com/comic.php?d=20030124
That's really all that needs to be said. I pulled it from that rant article (which was awesome,) and rest assured it is only one of many equally-horrible strips.
I, being used to Cyanide and Happiness-style humor, had a better punchline in my head once I hit the 2nd panel. Hint: It involved actions based on a literal interpretation of that 2nd panel. Hey, at least that would have been funnier.
That's really all that needs to be said. I pulled it from that rant article (which was awesome,) and rest assured it is only one of many equally-horrible strips.
I, being used to Cyanide and Happiness-style humor, had a better punchline in my head once I hit the 2nd panel. Hint: It involved actions based on a literal interpretation of that 2nd panel. Hey, at least that would have been funnier.
1. You don't need to read the news blogs to understand the comics in PA.hypothetical fact said:
2. Many people enjoy the well-written editorials that often speak about how many gamers honestly feel about the industry.
3. The jokes are often much more clever than any other webcomic, especially in gaming.
No, see, the sillies, (when they stay on topic and don't try "original" humor-see some of the Grim Reaper ones) are actually not that bad. Some of them are even pretty good, and I've chuckled out loud at a few.smallharmlesskitten said:
The have less pointless copy and paste, far far less dialogue, less stupid stunned mullet characters, more expressionistic drawing, less crappy plot, more videogame references and they have elephant loads more humor.
In my opinion, he should call it quits on the main comic and just do daily sillies. Use the wedding as a chance to tie up the storyline for good, then go all out the little 3 panel things.
Fix'dSamurai Goomba said:
Petty malevolence aside (I regret it somewhat):
The problem here, i think, is not that our boy Tim has lot the plot, it's that he cannot see that he has lot the plot. He forges ahead secretly knowing that there is a legion of silent fans that outweigh the vocal disapproval. Unfortunately, these people do not exist, or not in the number he envisions.
Tim, poor tim... The problem is not that you are terrible, its that you ignore the fact and take no criticism whatsoever. You can be terrible, we like some pretty terrible people. But to not realize that you are? Thats a sin, Tim. Unforgivable and asshatish.
I just can't wait for him to burst out with a comic saying "Trolled, Bitches!". It won't happen, but it would be nice.
