So . . . that's Jade's sister, not Jade herself, in the first panel? Sure, she doesn't look anything like the Jade we saw in the previous strip, but she still looks, uh, exactly like Jade. It was a little odd, since I didn't expect Miranda to so much like her sister when put into a new dress and hairstyle. Then again, I'm not sure what else Mr. Kurtz could have done (Short of leaving Miranda with her midriff exposed and her hair unchanged).
It would be more clear with Jade actually in the panel (Which she can't be), actually, since they have different noses (Miranda has the implied-nose-through-nostrils thing going on, Jade has a whole nose). Still, it's tough to distinguish the pair on Fancy New Hairstyles Day.
Yeah. Over the last three years, Brent has gone from having the Guinness World Record for "longest philtrum" to having no philtrum at all at all. He's gone from having no chin to speak of to having a chin that Jay Leno would envy. His character model used to project a laconic and unflappable personality, but it now projects one that's more snarky and less casually sarcastic. I even imagine his voice being different: more Gilbert Gottfried and less Steven Wright.
I don't like this change. 2008 Brent is not the same character as 2005 Brent. 2005 Brent has been replaced by a Skrull.
On the other hand, over the last three years Kurtz has clearly moved from cutting and pasting sprites to hand-drawing the strip.
I hope this lame wedding is over soon... Iron Man is out... there's a little game called GTAIV you may have heard of? I remember when this comic was about games and pop culture. Be nice to see some of that which drew me to the strip in the first place.
Jeff: I'm fairly certain that PvP has always been about the lives of the PvP office staff not just games. While games and gaming culture are certainly an aspect of that, Scott has every right to tell the stories of his characters.
When Scotts done telling this story, I'm sure we'll get a few one offs that deal with "current gaming events."
If I recall correctly, it wasn't too longbago that Scott was getting a ton of crap for half hearted story lines. Now that he is commuted to a full on story, we get the other criticle pundits like yourself who are more interested in the gag-a-day format. Seems to me Kurtz is damned either way.
If you were a new reader, what on earth would make you want to start reading this comic? This arc is one of many that panders to Scott's love of his own characters, and does little to entertain anyone besides the existing fan base. Okay, so two of the main characters were wed, and there was barely any comedy in the storyline, right? If the arc itself didn't deliver any yuks, and the resulting marriage won't (seriously, what sorts of new jokes do you expect to see from a couple who were already ignoring each other to play WOW) then I call this whole arc the epitome of inanity and narcissism, which is why I started visiting this blog in the first place. Hey FSM, where's the beef?
Hi Chris: I agree, PVP has been about the characters and their interaction... but previously the interaction seemed to at least start with some game or pop culture reference? It's kinda turned into a soap opera at some point... I imagine it just happens as Scott tries to flesh out his characters more and more over the years. I think what 'anonymous' said is quite accurate 'panders to Scott's love of his own characters, and does little to entertain anyone besides the existing fan base' You can certainly see the love for his characters, but for a strip called 'Plaver vs Player' it seems to forget its roots sometimes? You are certainly correct that you can't please everyone! I still like the strip, and I'll keep coming back to see how things evolve.
Let's all remember that these characters were originally teachers at a public school. Scott changed it to a gaming magazine as a request by the online publisher that was hosting his comic. He's admitted on several occassions he's not a "gamer" by most respects. Trying to shoe-horn gaming stuff into the strip doesn't benefit anyone.
But yes, I'm looking forward to some gags after this arch.
This storyline is truly boring for those with no great investment in the actual characters, but surely anybody can let that slide for this one event. It's bound to be pretty important for the other type of reader as well as Kurtz himself.
Well, Scott did use photos of his wife in her wedding dress as a model for Jade on her wedding day so... some of the above comments might be deemed a little offensive.
People tend to look a lot different on their wedding days. Crazy done-up hair, fancy diggs, and a heap of makeup. It's not exactly surprizing.
Seems clear that Scott is changing and evolving his artistic style. People might complain about that, but that's just the way things go. This might be an attempt to effect some changes in Jade's design.
When Max powers is going to ruin the wedding and reveal himself as a supervillain who was behind all the problems at the Pvp universe (
kidnap Jade, and figth Brent, after Max is defeated , Jade falls in love with someone else... Tycho from Penny arcade who leaves her wife to runaway with the bride,
Then the ghost of his future child appears in front of Brent and tell hism that jade is being manipulated and he must again done the Iron-thor suit to save her again to be continued,,,
i do like the more detailed art style lately, but it still looks a little clunky and awkward when paired with the older, simplified art style (see: May 3rd, "Here comes the bride"). when characters drawn in a more 'realistic' style are right next to characters in a 'simplified' or 'cartoony' style, it seriously looks like they are from two different universes. like there is some weird Howard the Duck thing going on. i prefer the newer style, but i wish that scott would try to incorporate it into all of his characters -- or none at all.
More sappiness. While this one isn't as bad as Jade's line, the problem with this is that it implies that Jade has never seen Brent with his glasses off. Does he sleep in them? Does he have sex in them? Aren't the glasses more of a reader obsession than something that the comic references? (Am I making sense?)
Never seen him with them off? That doesn't make any sense and is not the impression I got at all. Obviously he likes wearing them a lot, but Brent knew how important it was for her to see his eyes when he promised to be with her for the rest of his life.
In short, I loved today's strip. It was a perfect end to the arch.
Scott's blog post is pretty touching too. I gotta say though, if the strip doesn't get any better I can't give him the next ten years he's looking for. But he's got enough fans that should keep him afloat no matter what :)
Congratulations to Scott on his tenth anniversary -- but he took down his first draft, which was grabbed by Google Reader. It was wonderful, though. Can't understand why he took it off.
"Today is the tenth anniversary of PvP.
"May 4th, 1998 the first strip went up. I remember that I was excited to have a paying gig as a cartoonist at the time, but I really didn’t care much about the characters at all. I didn’t know who they were, nor did I really care. My assumption was that PvP would not be 'the strip' that made it. It was a paid gig on the way, maybe. But not the one.
"Now, ten years later, I feel a sense of strange melancholy as Brent and Jade exchange their vows. I care deeply about these characters in a way that seems almost silly to express. I’m reminded of the movie Stranger Than Fiction and why I love it so much.
"What is more real? A person or the idea of a person? Is Brent real? Is he any more or less real than I am? Certainly, myself in the present is more substantial than Brent’s self in the present. But what about the concept of my future potential? Who will I be in a week, month, year or decade from now? At present, isn’t my own future fictional? Is Brent, Jade, Cole or Francis any more or less real than the concept of who I will one day become?
"When my mother died in 1996, I asked myself why I was so blindsided by the concept that I could lose a parent who was so young. It simply never occurred to me that my mother would not grow old with my father and die an elderly woman.
"Despite reassurance that my mother remained with me in spirit, I found no immediate indication that anything, either physical or etherial, remained. The only profound sense of her I could detect was seeing the impact she had made on other people. I found myself determined to become content with the concept that the way we affect other people’s lives is the only form of immortality we will ever experience.
"That’s not to say that I don’t have faith in the possibility that we’ll get to experience infinity in much more exciting venues. I certainly hope we do. But doesn’t it feel safe to find a way to become comfortable with the idea that the most we get in the immortality department is the mark we make on
"So please understand, that every time you take a moment to remind me how my work impacts your life, you do me a greater service than you might realize. And please try to understand, that if I ever get too passionate about all of this nonsense, it’s only because I’ve been foolish enough to hinge the fate of my soul on it.
"Thank you for giving me ten years worth of opportunities to make an impact on your life."
Oh, piss off vaultkeeper and all you others who stare down their noses at the accomplishments one man has made to the medium so that you can feel better about how little you've done. Scott has done a hell of a lot of changing and improving over the 2 years that I've been reading PVP. I admire the man and his work and his good ability to take the crap the trolls of self importance on this blog give him and discern between the good comments and the bad and improve it as he can.
That 'good ability' would be the one where he occasionally comes here and spits his dummy out, right? When he's not too busy "getting even" by messing up his own strip, of course.
i disagree. the way that scott colors his comic (with no shadows or depth) would do no added justice to the comic, and would more than likely screw it up a little. all the line work that went into the dress and ascots wouldn't be nearly as good if it was filled in a flat white/red/blue/whatever.
Actually, with the exception of guest comics (which don't count as canon, in my understanding), it is true that Brent has never been seen without his glasses. It has been the subject of several strips, which I am too lazy to try to track down. In fact, there was one where Jade and one of her female friends (can't recall which at the moment) asked if he always wears his sunglasses, even during . . . , to which Jade cuts her off with a positive reply.
Obviously, Kurtz views this as a very powerful action by Brent to show the drama and importance of the moment. It's as heavy on the cheese as the rest of the strip, so at least it fits, but personally I'll be all to happy when this laugh drought is over.
But it should be said that if you think that Brent revealing his eyes to the *audience* for the first time is the same as him revealing his eyes to *Jade* for the first time are the same thing, then you obviously don't know what you're talking about.
Actually, anonymous, the implication is that they *are* the same thing - everything that Kurtz has told us through the comic until this date is that even Jade has never seen him without his shades. It is ludicrous, of course, but that is hardly reason to discount it as possible in the PvP universe.
Achewood
In my opinion, there is no finer web comic than Achewood. You want subtlety of art and a one-of-a-kind worldview? This is it.
Penny Arcade
The classic. Gabe and Tycho are true pioneers in the world of web comics, and few have done more to expand the reach and influence of the medium. Plus they're funny.
Diesel Sweeties
Like PVP, DS has been coasting for some time. But it is worth reading, nonetheless.
PVP
Yes, I do recommend it; its very popularity is what recommends it. It is the ultimate example that web comics can have mainstream appeal, and shouldn't be disregarded by the industry just because they're web comics.
35 comments:
All I really wanted out of the wedding was to see Skull in a suit :-D
So . . . that's Jade's sister, not Jade herself, in the first panel? Sure, she doesn't look anything like the Jade we saw in the previous strip, but she still looks, uh, exactly like Jade. It was a little odd, since I didn't expect Miranda to so much like her sister when put into a new dress and hairstyle. Then again, I'm not sure what else Mr. Kurtz could have done (Short of leaving Miranda with her midriff exposed and her hair unchanged).
It would be more clear with Jade actually in the panel (Which she can't be), actually, since they have different noses (Miranda has the implied-nose-through-nostrils thing going on, Jade has a whole nose). Still, it's tough to distinguish the pair on Fancy New Hairstyles Day.
I swear to God Brent's mouth is going to escape out the top of his head if Kurtz keeps moving it any farther north.
Yeah. Over the last three years, Brent has gone from having the Guinness World Record for "longest philtrum" to having no philtrum at all at all. He's gone from having no chin to speak of to having a chin that Jay Leno would envy. His character model used to project a laconic and unflappable personality, but it now projects one that's more snarky and less casually sarcastic. I even imagine his voice being different: more Gilbert Gottfried and less Steven Wright.
I don't like this change. 2008 Brent is not the same character as 2005 Brent. 2005 Brent has been replaced by a Skrull.
On the other hand, over the last three years Kurtz has clearly moved from cutting and pasting sprites to hand-drawing the strip.
I'd prefer the best of both worlds.
I hope this lame wedding is over soon... Iron Man is out... there's a little game called GTAIV you may have heard of? I remember when this comic was about games and pop culture. Be nice to see some of that which drew me to the strip in the first place.
"2005 Brent has been replaced by a Skrull."
Bahahaha.
Jeff: I'm fairly certain that PvP has always been about the lives of the PvP office staff not just games. While games and gaming culture are certainly an aspect of that, Scott has every right to tell the stories of his characters.
When Scotts done telling this story, I'm sure we'll get a few one offs that deal with "current gaming events."
If I recall correctly, it wasn't too longbago that Scott was getting a ton of crap for half hearted story lines. Now that he is commuted to a full on story, we get the other criticle pundits like yourself who are more interested in the gag-a-day format. Seems to me Kurtz is damned either way.
please ignore the typos in my previous post. Was trying to type too fast on my iPod touch.
The very least I can say is that Cole looks effing adorable in today's comic.
If you were a new reader, what on earth would make you want to start reading this comic? This arc is one of many that panders to Scott's love of his own characters, and does little to entertain anyone besides the existing fan base. Okay, so two of the main characters were wed, and there was barely any comedy in the storyline, right? If the arc itself didn't deliver any yuks, and the resulting marriage won't (seriously, what sorts of new jokes do you expect to see from a couple who were already ignoring each other to play WOW) then I call this whole arc the epitome of inanity and narcissism, which is why I started visiting this blog in the first place. Hey FSM, where's the beef?
Hi Chris: I agree, PVP has been about the characters and their interaction... but previously the interaction seemed to at least start with some game or pop culture reference? It's kinda turned into a soap opera at some point... I imagine it just happens as Scott tries to flesh out his characters more and more over the years. I think what 'anonymous' said is quite accurate 'panders to Scott's love of his own characters, and does little to entertain anyone besides the existing fan base'
You can certainly see the love for his characters, but for a strip called 'Plaver vs Player' it seems to forget its roots sometimes?
You are certainly correct that you can't please everyone! I still like the strip, and I'll keep coming back to see how things evolve.
Let's all remember that these characters were originally teachers at a public school. Scott changed it to a gaming magazine as a request by the online publisher that was hosting his comic. He's admitted on several occassions he's not a "gamer" by most respects. Trying to shoe-horn gaming stuff into the strip doesn't benefit anyone.
But yes, I'm looking forward to some gags after this arch.
Unlike most brides, did Jade have to put on weight to fit into her dress? She's looking decidedly chubby in the single panel strip.
This storyline is truly boring for those with no great investment in the actual characters, but surely anybody can let that slide for this one event. It's bound to be pretty important for the other type of reader as well as Kurtz himself.
Kinda of saturday strip
gave me the feleing tha scott is tracing his old wedding photos.
I think the dress is just extremely unflattering. It's all puffy and such which would add twenty pounds to anyone.
But besides Jade looking chubby, she doesn't look like Jade! Am I the only who thinks that face is not Jade's face?
Well, Scott did use photos of his wife in her wedding dress as a model for Jade on her wedding day so... some of the above comments might be deemed a little offensive.
I am the one who said wedding jade doesnt look like jade. I stand by it.
People tend to look a lot different on their wedding days. Crazy done-up hair, fancy diggs, and a heap of makeup. It's not exactly surprizing.
Seems clear that Scott is changing and evolving his artistic style. People might complain about that, but that's just the way things go. This might be an attempt to effect some changes in Jade's design.
When Max powers is going to ruin the wedding and reveal himself as a supervillain who was behind all the problems at the Pvp universe (
kidnap Jade, and figth Brent,
after Max is defeated , Jade falls in love with someone else... Tycho from Penny arcade who leaves her wife to runaway with the bride,
Then the ghost of his future child appears in front of Brent and tell hism that jade is being manipulated and he must again done the Iron-thor suit to save her again to be continued,,,
i do like the more detailed art style lately, but it still looks a little clunky and awkward when paired with the older, simplified art style (see: May 3rd, "Here comes the bride"). when characters drawn in a more 'realistic' style are right next to characters in a 'simplified' or 'cartoony' style, it seriously looks like they are from two different universes. like there is some weird Howard the Duck thing going on. i prefer the newer style, but i wish that scott would try to incorporate it into all of his characters -- or none at all.
And the moment everyone has been waiting for -- the glasses!
More sappiness. While this one isn't as bad as Jade's line, the problem with this is that it implies that Jade has never seen Brent with his glasses off. Does he sleep in them? Does he have sex in them? Aren't the glasses more of a reader obsession than something that the comic references? (Am I making sense?)
You can almost hear the sound of Scott's wrist slapping against his thigh these last few strips.
Never seen him with them off? That doesn't make any sense and is not the impression I got at all. Obviously he likes wearing them a lot, but Brent knew how important it was for her to see his eyes when he promised to be with her for the rest of his life.
In short, I loved today's strip. It was a perfect end to the arch.
Scott's blog post is pretty touching too. I gotta say though, if the strip doesn't get any better I can't give him the next ten years he's looking for. But he's got enough fans that should keep him afloat no matter what :)
Congratulations to Scott on his tenth anniversary -- but he took down his first draft, which was grabbed by Google Reader. It was wonderful, though. Can't understand why he took it off.
"Today is the tenth anniversary of PvP.
"May 4th, 1998 the first strip went up. I remember that I was excited to have a paying gig as a cartoonist at the time, but I really didn’t care much about the characters at all. I didn’t know who they were, nor did I really care. My assumption was that PvP would not be 'the strip' that made it. It was a paid gig on the way, maybe. But not the one.
"Now, ten years later, I feel a sense of strange melancholy as Brent and Jade exchange their vows. I care deeply about these characters in a way that seems almost silly to express. I’m reminded of the movie Stranger Than Fiction and why I love it so much.
"What is more real? A person or the idea of a person? Is Brent real? Is he any more or less real than I am? Certainly, myself in the present is more substantial than Brent’s self in the present. But what about the concept of my future potential? Who will I be in a week, month, year or decade from now? At present, isn’t my own future fictional? Is Brent, Jade, Cole or Francis any more or less real than the concept of who I will one day become?
"When my mother died in 1996, I asked myself why I was so blindsided by the concept that I could lose a parent who was so young. It simply never occurred to me that my mother would not grow old with my father and die an elderly woman.
"Despite reassurance that my mother remained with me in spirit, I found no immediate indication that anything, either physical or etherial, remained. The only profound sense of her I could detect was seeing the impact she had made on other people. I found myself determined to become content with the concept that the way we affect other people’s lives is the only form of immortality we will ever experience.
"That’s not to say that I don’t have faith in the possibility that we’ll get to experience infinity in much more exciting venues. I certainly hope we do. But doesn’t it feel safe to find a way to become comfortable with the idea that the most we get in the immortality department is the mark we make on
"So please understand, that every time you take a moment to remind me how my work impacts your life, you do me a greater service than you might realize. And please try to understand, that if I ever get too passionate about all of this nonsense, it’s only because I’ve been foolish enough to hinge the fate of my soul on it.
"Thank you for giving me ten years worth of opportunities to make an impact on your life."
Oh, piss off vaultkeeper and all you others who stare down their noses at the accomplishments one man has made to the medium so that you can feel better about how little you've done. Scott has done a hell of a lot of changing and improving over the 2 years that I've been reading PVP. I admire the man and his work and his good ability to take the crap the trolls of self importance on this blog give him and discern between the good comments and the bad and improve it as he can.
That 'good ability' would be the one where he occasionally comes here and spits his dummy out, right? When he's not too busy "getting even" by messing up his own strip, of course.
Despite his accomplishments, I can't imagine him making more money off the strip than your average lower middle class guy.
And yeah, Jade looks weirdly overweight in most of these wedding photos. What the hell is going on? Her face is like one big blob.
Scott...
You're going to draw a strip this important, and neglect to color it!?
i disagree. the way that scott colors his comic (with no shadows or depth) would do no added justice to the comic, and would more than likely screw it up a little.
all the line work that went into the dress and ascots wouldn't be nearly as good if it was filled in a flat white/red/blue/whatever.
Actually, with the exception of guest comics (which don't count as canon, in my understanding), it is true that Brent has never been seen without his glasses. It has been the subject of several strips, which I am too lazy to try to track down. In fact, there was one where Jade and one of her female friends (can't recall which at the moment) asked if he always wears his sunglasses, even during . . . , to which Jade cuts her off with a positive reply.
Obviously, Kurtz views this as a very powerful action by Brent to show the drama and importance of the moment. It's as heavy on the cheese as the rest of the strip, so at least it fits, but personally I'll be all to happy when this laugh drought is over.
But it should be said that if you think that Brent revealing his eyes to the *audience* for the first time is the same as him revealing his eyes to *Jade* for the first time are the same thing, then you obviously don't know what you're talking about.
Actually, anonymous, the implication is that they *are* the same thing - everything that Kurtz has told us through the comic until this date is that even Jade has never seen him without his shades. It is ludicrous, of course, but that is hardly reason to discount it as possible in the PvP universe.
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