2018/10/08 - Talking To The Camera

[Macsen]

Also, Lucretia is adorable when she's embarrassing her pups.

If that catnipjones-58 is Maxwell - he's totally looking to grief people. :3

I doubt he has a computer. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.

[GameCobra]

I doubt he has a computer. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.

He might have a switch. Fortnite is free on the switch!

[Welsh Halfwit]

If that catnipjones-58 is Maxwell - he's totally looking to grief people. :3

I doubt he has a computer. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.

He probably uses his owners.

[Adoring Fan]

Is rick wrapping up the comic? These past couple pages don't feel like his usual storytelling. They feel rushed and montage like as if its at the end of one of those movies where it go's "And this happened to Joe and this is what happened to Mo and Bob and Jim. Breat ended up finally getting that raise he wanted and went on to be store manager".

[NHWestoN]

Well, it has been a loooooong saga. The ending does seem a bit abrupt [although we don't have Maxwell dashing in with an "Everybody gets Married. The End" sign]. There are still some threads for later development dangling but, hey, it's Rick's World....

...and that still a great portrait of Lucretia!

[Gameb18oy]

My guess is he doesn’t want to miss more holiday strips like he did when he did temple crashers. I don’t begrudge him if he wants to do some Halloween stuff for the rest of the month

[rickgriffin]

[although we don't have Maxwell dashing in with an "Everybody gets Married. The End" sign].

It's still a failure on my part to forget that nobody actually watched Guys and Dolls and so don't understand why the ending in the comic is so abrupt. It's because it's ridiculously abrupt IN THE MOVIE. It was part of the joke.

[fenrirblack]

Anyone else think it's odd the game Deevee is ranting about is Twilight Princes? On the face of it, Twilight Princes is something I could definitely see someone ranting about, but that game came out before Deevee was born. He was born well after the DS era and Twilight Princes came out near the start of the DS era.

2006. It came out along with the Wii because it was supposed to be just for the Gamecube but things happened so it came out for both. Odd strip to show there. Although it’s odd that Rock even knows what Gameboys are considering how young he is.

Yes, the DS came out two years before Twilight Princes, but the 3DS didn't come out till 2011, so I say that still puts Twilight Princes in near the start of the DS era. The strip I linked to was my way of citing my quote because the alt text for that strip was Rockstar Hawk saying "Besides, we were born well after the DS era". I don't know how old the ferrets are of how fast they age, but "Gameboy" is one of the generic term for handheld Nintendo systems when the speaker doesn't know what they're talking about. It's like Jill calling Peanut's wii his "nintendo" at the end of the first arc.

If my math is correct and if the alt-text is correct that would mean the cubs are either 11 or 12 years old. But that would only be if they were born after the Wii came out which would mark the end of the DS era which doesn't make sense which means that the alt-text really isn't canon which means that they could still be older by two years or so. I still say they're high school freshman which would mean they're 14.

Hearing someone refer to any game system as a "Gameboy" other than a Gameboy is down right insulting. You might as well stick a dagger through my heart. I'll let "Nintendo" slide because it's not wrong just vague and annoying.

Real quick. this has been bothering me, what is DeeVee holding? For the life of me I can’t figure it out.

I think it's a Switch controller.

That was my original thought but but it's not shaped like a Joy-Con and the colors are wrong because the button under his index finger should be black. Plus why would he be using a Joy-Con when he's talking about Twilight Princess? Twilight Princess isn't on the Switch. Okay, yeah it's the Joy-Con I can see that was the intention since we already saw them with the Switch in this Chapter. I'm just putting this out there but it also could be the Wii Mini.

Yeah we’re annoying but I think (or hope at least) he knows it’s all in jest. Like I say things and recommend stuff all the time but I never expect anyone to take it seriously. Half of what I post is intended as humor. Except when it comes to Twilight, I’m dead serious.

The assumption is generally that people say what they mean. "You gotta say what you mean, boy!"

Just for clarity, I tend to use or to indicate a joke, and to indicate when I'm being sarcastic/facetious and/or generally not being serious.
(although this is not a hard and fast rule)

[/quote]

I know I should do that but it always seems so daunting and overly complicated considering how much I post. My posts are complicated because they are serious thoughts but it's really just me thinking out loud. I guess I can try to use them more and see what happens. Although in the back of my mind I wonder if it would make it even more complicated if they get misinterpreted.

[Cesco]

Actually, the wolves' updates continue. That's very good of your sons, Miles, due to becoming online gamers. Eheh, Lucretia's blog is made to embarrass her sons. Phew, fortunately, she knows the real name of those consoles. Nice part time job at the zoo, there Poncho can show his charm to the other wolves. That guy isn't a philosopher, anyway.

[fenrirblack]

I don't follow social medias myself, so I don't know what comment of Rick's everyone is talking about. I do know that we can get too attached to our theories and rather than accept diversity and agree to disagree we can sometime dig our trenches and ready the next salvo. We need to stop it. I am not an innocent bystander, I got a bit too attached to the "ceded" point at the start of this arc. I even resorted to online dictionary links. Then 30 seconds later decided it was too aggressive and edited them out.

What you are looking at right now is a screen with text. It doesn't smile, wink, wince, scowl. Just words and when the next person sees them, their mood will shape their perception. So if I just had the morning from the dark pits and see a post with edgy humor, I may see it as an aggressive statement. For the sake of ourselves, each other, our passion for the comic and our appreciation for the creator, I think we all, yes I include myself, need to do better.

No excuses. A lot of you are creatives, how would you like it if a few dozen people who claimed to be your fans told you "what you are doing wrong"? Not once but every time? Or they told you how you should shape the story for them? Not a good feeling.

I've heard it explained this way, consider the joy Rick gets for the comic and the fans as water in a bucket. New comic pops up, arc done, looking to the start of the next and the bucket is full of Joy Water. Then someone asks why one of the characters looks so different.

a dipper takes small bit of water out of the bucket

then someone jokes the next story better be about their favorite character

more water is dippered out.

someone makes a theory, someone disputes it and they argue

more water.

comment by comment, statement by statement, argument by argument, another dipper of water until the dipper scrapes the bottom of the bucket and we as a collective have stolen all the joy.

And we do it again
and again
and again.

no one of us does it all, but as a group the collective effect is still there.

This is me being serious.
Okay, then what would you have us do? In all honesty what is the point of the forum if not to discuss the comic. If we were to only shower Rick with praise we could easily do that on Twitter and Facebook and no one would need to bother coming here. The forum exists for those arguments, theories, and conversations. Think of it like this there is a time and place for everything. In an ideal world, the forum would be where you go to have conversations that will on occasion devolve into pointless arguments and shouting matches (I've had a few that I'm not proud of) and social media would be where everyone likes, favorites, and says "Oh this is so good, I love your work."
It is true, and I've said it once already, we should be more polite not only to Rick but to each other, but on the other hand where else would people go to "talk" about the comic other than here. I try to give Rick praise and compliment the comic while I'm here but I'm not going to stop making theories because where else would I go to say stuff that.

Saying that the "joy" of the comic is being drained is honestly diminishing the comic as a whole and saying it is not worthy of the same critical treatment of other literary work. People spend their entire lives devoted to analyzing, critiquing, and theorizing works of literature. Trust me, I've spent many hours listening to them. If you ask any of them none of them would say that their joy or other people's joy were diminished by reading or talking to other scholars on the subject. Isn't that what we are doing here? Aren't we are reading and enjoying the comic while simultaneously studying it. That is just how the literary world works.

True that saying "oh, this would be better if so and so showed up" or "if this person did this" but that's just a matter of perspective. You can either look at it as an annoying criticism or you can look at it as "Oh, this person is really engaged in the comic and really likes this character" and feel a sense of pride that you were able to create a feeling of pleasure with your work in that person. It is not a good feeling to say "your doing this wrong" but saying that generally saying anything other than praise is pointless. The best thing to do is to phrase the comment so that it is not negative or strictly praise but a critical comment that the author or artist and see and either take it at face value or take it too heart. Honestly, if someone is simply offended by simple criticism or questioning their or someone else's work then one they shouldn't read the comment, two probably doesn't need to be on the internet, and lastly shouldn't create stuff if you can understand or accept someone else's opinion. If I got upset every time one of my professors or classmates said something negative or critical about my writing I would not being a writer or getting my Master's degree. I won't deny it hurts when I see everyone else get praised for their story or poem and I get squat but I revise and move on.

I'll leave you with this thought,

[Gameb18oy]

And for a less serious comment, considering the usual rule of threes in any part of storytelling, who do you think will be in the last of these comics? I think it will go without saying King may show up as the third part should always contrast with the others, but I wonder who else it can focus on... okay Pueblo possibly, but who else as these seem to focus on three characters each time

[Adoring Fan]

[although we don't have Maxwell dashing in with an "Everybody gets Married. The End" sign].

It's still a failure on my part to forget that nobody actually watched Guys and Dolls and so don't understand why the ending in the comic is so abrupt. It's because it's ridiculously abrupt IN THE MOVIE. It was part of the joke.

Well, that explains that i guess XD

[NHWestoN]

Actually, Rick ....... I watched it ... and I caught it ... but, you gotta remember .... I'm a bit more ... um ... vintage.
Regards.

[fenrirblack]

Do you ever wonder how the whole Zoo system works? Like Poncho working part time so he leaves and goes home once it closes and I’m assuming arriviste before opening. What is it that they do? Back at the original zoo chapter the wolf said something that always bothered me “We’ve been entertaining all morning!” When I think about that I picture something. Like performing or juggling. Now Poncho is there so what is it that he can do that would qualify for payment besides just being a wolf? Do the other animals get paid like with money or is it just free room and board?

[Gameb18oy]

Do you ever wonder how the whole Zoo system works? Like Poncho working part time so he leaves and goes home once it closes and I’m assuming arriviste before opening. What is it that they do? Back at the original zoo chapter the wolf said something that always bothered me “We’ve been entertaining all morning!” When I think about that I picture something. Like performing or juggling. Now Poncho is there so what is it that he can do that would qualify for payment besides just being a wolf? Do the other animals get paid like with money or is it just free room and board?

I think someone suggested this before, but the most likely option, even if Rick I doubt would ever confirm it, is that he’s there to breed. Baby animals always bring in more customers after all. Though I personally think he might also be there so we have a familiar character to serve as a viewpoint if he sets another story at some point in the zoo.

[fenrirblack]

Do you ever wonder how the whole Zoo system works? Like Poncho working part time so he leaves and goes home once it closes and I’m assuming arriviste before opening. What is it that they do? Back at the original zoo chapter the wolf said something that always bothered me “We’ve been entertaining all morning!” When I think about that I picture something. Like performing or juggling. Now Poncho is there so what is it that he can do that would qualify for payment besides just being a wolf? Do the other animals get paid like with money or is it just free room and board?

I think someone suggested this before, but the most likely option, even if Rick I doubt would ever confirm it, is that he’s there to breed. Baby animals always bring in more customers after all. Though I personally think he might also be there so we have a familiar character to serve as a viewpoint if he sets another story at some point in the zoo.

Judging from that picture it does feel like that's the reason doesn't it. I love his smug expression. It kind of works two ways. One being" I'm laying here with a hot girl" and the other being "Suck it Miles, you said no but I won out in the end."
Anyone else notice that he's in the exact same postion as Miles

[Blackspots]

Okay, first You do Not mess with Twilight Princess! it is a gem that is sacred and flawless. And the best in the series.

Second, I think this was so funny and Rick has been reading too much Savestate.
Also is it me or does Rick dound like he’s getting annoyed on Facebook. His comment when he posted this strip was odd. It’s been happening a lot lately.

Lastly, who is Poncho talking too? More importantly, how the howl does he know who Stephen Stills is?

His comments on twitter show that he's been getting criticism for having an (political) opinion, and it reflecting in his art.

[TeflonCougar]

Is rick wrapping up the comic? These past couple pages don't feel like his usual storytelling. They feel rushed and montage like as if its at the end of one of those movies where it go's "And this happened to Joe and this is what happened to Mo and Bob and Jim. Breat ended up finally getting that raise he wanted and went on to be store manager".

This thought has been batted about since the start of "Temple Crashers II". It's still here. I don't think Rick would up and drop it without a proper announcement.

[Fish Preferred]

No excuses. A lot of you are creatives, how would you like it if a few dozen people who claimed to be your fans told you "what you are doing wrong"? Not once but every time? Or they told you how you should shape the story for them? Not a good feeling.

Are you kidding? That just makes it all the more fun to continue doing exactly the same thing they're complaining about.

I've heard it explained this way, consider the joy Rick gets for the comic and the fans as water in a bucket. New comic pops up, arc done, looking to the start of the next and the bucket is full of Joy Water. Then someone asks why one of the characters looks so different.

a dipper takes small bit of water out of the bucket

. . . Why? If a character looks different, and you're curious about why that character looks different, it only makes sense to ask why the character looks different. I'm certainly not going to be shamed into silence by the mere possibility that someone will become depressed by such a simple question, nor would I dissuade anyone else from asking on such feeble grounds.

It's unreasonable to expect everyone to get along just by tiptoeing around everything that might conceivably leave someone feeling personally hurt. This is the internet; people getting hurt by ordinary statements is a statistical inevitability.

then someone jokes the next story better be about their favorite character

So?

someone makes a theory, someone disputes it and they argue

So?

[Gameb18oy]

Okay, first You do Not mess with Twilight Princess! it is a gem that is sacred and flawless. And the best in the series.

Second, I think this was so funny and Rick has been reading too much Savestate.
Also is it me or does Rick dound like he’s getting annoyed on Facebook. His comment when he posted this strip was odd. It’s been happening a lot lately.

Lastly, who is Poncho talking too? More importantly, how the howl does he know who Stephen Stills is?

His comments on twitter show that he's been getting criticism for having an (political) opinion, and it reflecting in his art.

Um, what does this have to do with what you quoted? Also, while I do know he’s been getting criticized, some earned some not, I don’t think much of it has been political.

[KJOokami]

It's still a failure on my part to forget that nobody actually watched Guys and Dolls and so don't understand why the ending in the comic is so abrupt. It's because it's ridiculously abrupt IN THE MOVIE. It was part of the joke.

Never seen the movie, though I had friends in a stage production of the musical recently that I got to see. Twas a good show.

[Bandit1990]

You know, even though I've never played it, I kind of want to hear DeeVee's rant on Twilight Princess.

[fenrirblack]

Do you ever wonder how the whole Zoo system works? Like Poncho working part time so he leaves and goes home once it closes and I’m assuming arriviste before opening. What is it that they do? Back at the original zoo chapter the wolf said something that always bothered me “We’ve been entertaining all morning!” When I think about that I picture something. Like performing or juggling. Now Poncho is there so what is it that he can do that would qualify for payment besides just being a wolf? Do the other animals get paid like with money or is it just free room and board?

I think someone suggested this before, but the most likely option, even if Rick I doubt would ever confirm it, is that he’s there to breed. Baby animals always bring in more customers after all. Though I personally think he might also be there so we have a familiar character to serve as a viewpoint if he sets another story at some point in the zoo.

Judging from that picture it does feel like that's the reason doesn't it. I love his smug expression. It kind of works two ways. One being" I'm laying here with a hot girl" and the other being "Suck it Miles, you said no but I won out in the end."
Anyone else notice that he's in the exact same postion as Miles

Something else I realized is that DeeVee and Miles just totally ignored King's advice. I mean, I feel like any real authority with Miles or King has is non-existent at this point. I kinda feel bad for King, I mean he's a grown man in his late thirties and no one takes him seriously.

Oh my god, I just read the alt-text for that strip. "Hey twitch its ya boy Rockstar Hawk."

[Bandit1990]

King's advice was that he wouldn't recommend gaming as a career. DeeVee is also attending classes, so the game streaming is just supplemental income put on to something that he was probably going to do anyway.

Given the cubs are being billed as teenagers, the only "real" work they'd qualify for is Fast Food or Retail. I don't blame them for looking elsewhere.

[fenrirblack]

King's advice was that he wouldn't recommend gaming as a career. DeeVee is also attending classes, so the game streaming is just supplemental income put on to something that he was probably going to do anyway.

Given the cubs are being billed as teenagers, the only "real" work they'd qualify for is Fast Food or Retail. I don't blame them for looking elsewhere.

No one has explained how that works. I wonder if he's just lying to his dad so he can do it without being questioned or having to work in retail or fast food which is the equivalent of psychological and physical torture? "Don't worry Dad I'm totally getting paid for this." *Goes back to playing Breath of the Wild. Then complains when Wolf Link is summoned.

Actually if you want to watch someone complain about Twilight Princess I would recommend watching the Honest Trailer for it. It's both insulting and funny.

[D-Rock]

I'm aware of YouTube partners being a paid thing based on views, I imagine twitch does the same.

[biddyfox]

man, i really like housepets, and rick griffin who makes it! i really could ask for nothing more than what i already get from this really nice well drawn and written comic made by an artist/writer i like. thanks rick!

[rickgriffin]

No excuses. A lot of you are creatives, how would you like it if a few dozen people who claimed to be your fans told you "what you are doing wrong"? Not once but every time? Or they told you how you should shape the story for them? Not a good feeling.

Are you kidding? That just makes it all the more fun to continue doing exactly the same thing they're complaining about.

I've heard it explained this way, consider the joy Rick gets for the comic and the fans as water in a bucket. New comic pops up, arc done, looking to the start of the next and the bucket is full of Joy Water. Then someone asks why one of the characters looks so different.

a dipper takes small bit of water out of the bucket

. . . Why? If a character looks different, and you're curious about why that character looks different, it only makes sense to ask why the character looks different. I'm certainly not going to be shamed into silence by the mere possibility that someone will become depressed by such a simple question, nor would I dissuade anyone else from asking on such feeble grounds.

It's unreasonable to expect everyone to get along just by tiptoeing around everything that might conceivably leave someone feeling personally hurt. This is the internet; people getting hurt by ordinary statements is a statistical inevitability.

Now, here's the big reason I don't stick around forums very often to actually comment anymore. It's not quite how Teflon describes it exactly, it's not that my enjoyment of something is a finite resource.

No, the real reason is that I'm terrified of disappointing people. I don't make these comics with intent of ruining someone else's day (not unless I believe they're a terrible person and deserve it). I do it with the intent of making them feel a particular way, and with housepets my main goals are a mixture of humor and pathos and a bit of romance.

So, given that, how am I supposed to feel when I see a particular commenter come in day after day with very little to say about the thing I intended them to feel? So it seems like I've done something every day not to make them laugh, but to tick them off for whatever reason (often plot-minutia related)? Or I've confused them to such a degree they absolutely cannot let go of some minor mistake I've made in my artwork and have to post a six-post treatise on how this is obviously this-or-that which I never intended? Clearly, I've made a mistake and can chalk that up to some failure or other on my part (sometimes coming down to me not spending an additional two or three hours per comic drawing in absolutely everything because it absolutely cannot be implied to be present unless I draw it in-panel every single time?)

But what am I supposed to do THEN, even when I see such comments and subsequently do my best to address concerns, only to have it blow over their heads like there's nothing to notice? Or that the effort I put is in fine but now there's all these other things to complain about?

The only thing I can possibly conclude, in attempting to receive criticism graciously, is that I absolutely cannot do anything right no matter what I try. And it's really hard to sit down in front of a blank screen and figure out what to do next when the feeling is that failure is inevitable.

(Who cares about some rando commenter?)

You are absolutely correct, rando commenter. The other option is to NOT receive criticism graciously, at which point I'm going to be accused of being aloof, or annoyed and ticked off at everyone. This is, surprise surprise, ANOTHER thing which makes people angry. They do not enjoy that I didn't appreciate the same nitpick for the five hundredth time, or that they pointed out an art mistake by saying "did you change the style again" as though that DOESN'T obviously sound like a passive-aggressively smug way of saying "you suck and I noticed".

It'd be nice if I could just write them off then but that's not always how psychology works. If I write some significant negative comment off as a non-issue, that create the impression that I'm making this stuff for people who refuse to appreciate it, at which point it STILL comes back to the issue of sitting in front of the canvas and wondering why I should bother if it's going to only be nitpicked by people I'm trying to ignore.

And that also doesn't change another issue: when someone gets a bug up their butt about something in the comic, they don't just post about it. They ARGUE about it. See, I don't particularly care when someone has an issue with the comic or doesn't like it and says so, like any positive comment; that's why such a thing isn't a bannable, or even warning offense on the forum. But then there are people who must make multiple paragraph posts trying to convince other people that I've failed. Or worse, they try and convince others (even in unintentionally) that I, personally, am being awful, or stupid, or whatever given something that I decided to run in the comic.

So even if it is a rando commenter I decide to ignore, I still get the burden of worrying that they're rumormongering to the point of ruining things for the people who WERE enjoying my output the way I intended. This is why I took out the comments under the comic directly.

The only real solution is to remove myself from the comments entirely, at which point I get NO feedback, I get to feel like I'm not making this for anyone who appreciates it, and I get the additional anxiety all the time wondering if I'm actually making something that anyone really appreciates.

So if you decide to read all that and conclude "Rick just wants positive comments all the time so he can be coddled and doesn't have to face criticism" you are the reason that I'm not here, even for the positive comments. And if you read THAT and conclude "Rick is so bad at taking criticism he can't ignore it long enough to accept good comments" then I'm sorry you've never made anything in your life you've actually poured your soul into, else you might understand.

And if you read THAT and concluded "Wow, Rick, you seem tense, maybe you need to take a break", the answer is no, I'm fine. I'm talking about something I hate, of COURSE I'm gonna come across as peeved, and your attempt to sound concerned comes across as a suggestion that I should quit because I got some bad comments, which is the entire problem in the first place. I just need to pull myself away from reading bad faith comments as usual, and probably get some sleep, and I can keep going in the morning. Like I said.

[GameCobra]

Rick, It makes me proud to be a fan of the comic when you make comments like this in the forums.

I admit, though, i'm not exactly sure how to comment on the negatives and the positives of the comic constructively.

It's not like i can say "The comic arcs are too long!" and that's it. giving a constructive idea of why the comic is bad is difficult I find at times considering that the improvements you make to the comic are definitely better over the years. But maybe i'm overthinking it. x3

[fenrirblack]

Where do we go from here?

I honestly consider the forum to be like my workshops. It’s nice to point out the good parts and tell the author how much we like their work, it feels good to be praised. But we eventually have to sit back and listen to their concerns, questions, comments because that’s how we improve not only as artists but as readers and people. That’s the difference between an argument and a discussion. One only devolves into bickering while the other takes the time for all parties to come to an understanding. It is that understanding which is the foundation of the forum in my mind. If someone doesn’t like something or has a question the best thing we can do as fellow readers is to take the time to purposely and constructively aid them. If someone complains then maybe we should look at it and figure out their point of view. True they could just be a jerk in which case we move on but if it is a real concern then shouldn’t we try to find a solution? There are plenty of moments where I’m not 100% sure what’s happening whether it’s the comic, a book, or school and I count on other people to help me. I feel like most of the time they do.

My poetry professor told us something today that immediately made me think about a lot of things. If I remember it correctly it went something like “The more we improve as artists the larger the gap becomes between who we are and who went what to be.” Okay that was very wrong but it’s the gist of it. The point is, if there is a point, no matter far or wide the gap is we should always keep moving because we want to be better people tomorrow than we are today. That road is never ending just like a story (poem) is never finished only abandoned (another gem from my professor).

[Welsh Halfwit]

The internet can be a terrifying place sometimes.

We sit here, composing letters, like Humans have for hundreds of years, asking questions, making queries, saying how we feel as we did in one-to-one communications and we send them off. Then the entire world reads them. And everyone has their own opinion on them. And their own questions. So many people with questions and so many with different answers that things that, in the one-to-one days, led to discussions over a period of days or weeks, leads to arguments and venom in mere minutes. Words are taken out of context because we do not judge how words are read by others, only how they are meant by us.

We have not learnt how not to debate on the Internet yet.

Even though we have tried to.

I offer no advice save this. Be respectful. Other people may have a different point of view to you. That does not mean it is invalid and they have a right to that point of view. This is a place of friendship and kindness where advice is given to help, not hurt. Let's not end that.

[Dissension]

Where do we go from here?

Straight to bed, without dessert;

to the zoo;

to spaaaaaaaaaace;

or wherever you want, really. The comics will keep coming, you'll read and comment on them (or you won't, whichever). After all,

I just need to pull myself away from reading bad faith comments as usual, and probably get some sleep, and I can keep going in the morning. Like I said.

Nobody's gonna censor your comments or prevent you saying what you want, so long as it's in keeping with my rules. Personally, my outlook is that people are the only things that matter.

[fenrirblack]

Where do we go from here?

Straight to bed, without dessert;

to the zoo;

to spaaaaaaaaaace;

or wherever you want, really. The comics will keep coming, you'll read and comment on them (or you won't, whichever).

Yeah I was trying to avoid something so blatantly obvious and honest in hopes that maybe we could all learn something from all this. But thanks for saying what we’re all thinking in the backs of our minds.

[KJOokami]

Hey, Rick.

[Argent]

Hey, Rick, people don't argue about things they don't care about.

I'm sure DV cares about Twilight Princess.

(which Twilight Princess, BTW?)

(and what's he upset about?)

(or was that just a throwaway line?)

(do you ever feel you're being attacked by a flock of chickens?)

(I know, that was Ocarina of Time)

[Gameb18oy]

*Reads Rick’s post* well now I worry about if any of my comments have been a headache for Rick. Especially that last bit about taking a break, I’ve made a few comments about that (and a part of me still thinks it benefit him, but that’s neither here or now) and it’s not great hearing he dislikes comments like that as well. Guess I just hope he gets a better response to the next one. Looking forward to spoopy stuff coming later if he’s hurrying so he can have Halloween themed comics soon

[NHWestoN]

Three brief interjections...

1. I get up at 2:00 am to read your latest submission, Rick. That's how much I love your work. (Okay, there are other reasons; I'm old).

2. I don't worry about what I don't understand ... I wait for the next strip. And, being totally ignorant of gaming, computer, sci-fi, and other cosmos most of your fans frequent, that's a vast arena of ignorance. It in no way diminishes my enjoyment. You're not responsible for my ignorance.

3. I get teased, snarled, slapped, and poked at times here. Hey, I'm the twit who started the debated on Eudoant's gender. That happens in forums. Don't take it seriously, take it deliriously. Most folks here are kind and well-intended.


.... but now you know why I avoid facebook, Twitter, and other social media. Housepets! is much worth my shrinking life energies - those bilge pipes, not so much.

Regards.

[Sinder]

I don't make these comics with intent of ruining someone else's day (not unless I believe they're a terrible person and deserve it.

You should totally start doing that

I would read Hatepets all day, every day

[Dissension]

Oh, man, I love it. Please, please, Rick, make Hatepets! a thing

[Gameb18oy]

... I weirdly also would be on board with this. Might be therapeutic (or is the word cathartic?) for Rick and I'm sure even with the intent to offend he'd make it entertaining