Hanging out with Wonder Wife yesterday, I discovered that she works with someone named "Khan".

I'm pretty sure that if I worked with someone by that name, they would end up being pretty annoyed by me. I just wouldn't be able to help myself.

Recently, I've quit reading the webcomic PVP, due to it's creator's personal and professional views on the webcomics industry, the comic book industry, his mostly negative view on fans, and his negative views on attempts outside of independent creators to create any new webcomics properties.

PVP's creator, Scott Kurtz, is very proud of his ability to independently create and run his webcomic property, it's printed books, and side projects of toys, plushies, tee shirts, and animation. I think that's great, and that he's worked hard to build up his property to deliver it to where it's at.

He's also part of a collective of several webcomic creators who run a website dedicated to helping burgeoning cartoonists in their attempts to create comic and webcomic properties. They've released a book, and often do video and podcasts on the myriad of subjects involved in running a successful webcomic (which btw, is THEIR way, and any other way is wrong).

When I began reading PVP, probably around 2001 or 2002, it was a fun strip, put out daily, with characters that were easily identifiable, and Kurtz did a good job of pushing the gags and jokes far enough so that the reader didn't get sick of them.

Somewhere, within the last four or five years, it seems that Kurtz became a victim of his own ego. Within the website that houses the PVP strip, Kurtz leaves himself plenty of blog space to post his thoughts on whatever comes to mind. I first remember thinking that he had a horrible attitude when he posted very serious thoughts about why he will refuse to shake hands with fans, at different comic cons. While I understood the health reasons he was stating, as to why he was making the choice, it was the tone in which he stated them that I felt was insulting to readers.

Over the years, he became increasingly belligerent to people whose views differed from his own, overly critical of the "industry" that allows him to create every day, and crass in his responses to those who would critique his own work. At the same time, he often posted sincere, well thought out essays on several sensitive subjects (such as when he was dealing with the death of his beloved basset hound, or the death of his friend Mike Wieringo), but even with those, there would slink around a slight stink of animosity and disregard for the reader.

It may seem like I'm picking on Kurtz right now, as this entire post has been about how his attitude has turned me off from reading his works. Normally, I try to separate the artist from the creation, if the work is something that I enjoy enough, knowing that artists tend to have this space in their head from which comes forth not only great works of comedy and drawing, but also snark and irreverence. That's the deal, though. As the main supporting property for his enterprises, Kurtz's PVP isn't THAT good, and it isn't THAT funny. While I appreciate a creator's view point on their artistic process (something which you rarely see Kurtz's blog posts, unless you pay for his expanded content), I also appreciate not being talked down to. Tone in writing is something that, quite simply, speaks of either not being trained to write it properly, ignorance of how the content is being delivered, or just the egoist attitude that ones product is SO good, that one needs not to bother with recognizing it.

I enjoy reading dozens of different webcomics, and several of the creators who put them out use that space to post their thoughts on any number of subjects that either directly influence what the strip is about, or hold satellite around it. There are plenty of rants to be read (Penny Arcade), content to download (Least I Could Do, Girls With Slingshots), and tee shirts to buy (Questionable Content). Within those creators' spaces, though, rarely do I read something that literally places them on a threshold above the rest of us, or is an unapologetic jab at fans or production companies. Most creators making it glaringly obvious (Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal) that their expletive ridden rants are tongue in cheek, or present their ideas so that their points are understood by all who read.

The Webcomics Industry is something that did not exist until this current decade. It's young, still growing, and (hopefully) will continue to do so. It's my thought that creators, by embracing all of the technological nuances of the 21st century, will become more and more successful, as long as they put out good content. Content is king, and always will be. For these creators, there are two sides of the fence, where you see some artists doing it all (creating, marketing, coding, etc...) and others concentrating on the creating part of it, farming out the promotion work to others. It's a great debate, and should you wish to read more on it, you'll have no trouble finding several different sources. I say, strength to all. Depending on the circumstances, it could be that all the artist wants to do is to write and draw, and let someone else be the agent of delivery. The guys and girls who do it all are people to admire as well, and set a healthy standard for new creators to look up to.

Managing a property, successfully, is what will help this community of creators and readers continue to grow. Understanding and appreciating readers and fans will hold its base; while abusing and disregarding them will ultimately lead to failure. I wish all who want to create art, to create; no matter their medium, and no matter their message. I also hope that creators understand that when they are lucky enough to find their niche, and nurture their property to become successful in its own right, that they should remember that it became that way because they delivered content that people appreciated. If that's pushed aside, and the need to hear oneself talk becomes so great that the content begins to matter less, they we can expect to see the expiration of the property once people begin to get sick of being disregarded.

Oh, hi there internets.

Sorry; been away for a while. How's everything? Good, good.

haHA!

I've been watching that new show Castle with Nathan Fillion, that started last year. In the preview for next week's episode, they have this character Richard Castle, dressed as CAPTAIN MALCOM REYNOLDS, from Firefly/Serenity!

*laffs* Man, that's AWESOME.

+ he dropped a Buffy reference RIGHT into the middle of the story.

That's good props to you writers, for giving those nudges to Fillion's Whedonverse fans.

I like this new Castle show. It succeeds despite itself. It's got some interesting stories, and decent direction. The star of the shows are its stars, and the chemistry between them. It's nice to see Fillion filling a role that lets him be a goof, and it fits.

I was in Borders this weekend buying the new diary of a Wimpy Kid book (even if you're not parent, read these; they're great), and I heard no less than three people ask for the new Richard Castle book. Since the character in the show is supposed to be based in the real world (Castle even has his own Twitter acct), the book was released to coincide with the launch of the new season for the show. I love when fictional properties break the fourth wall like this, and this show is doing it with books and pop culture jabs. Bravo.

Sketch cards of Padme, with a new issue & clear coat on them. episode I card was changed to match the vertical style of the others.

From Sketch cards

I'm listening to the soundtrack to Return of the Jedi, right now.

Anytime I listen to either this one, or the soundtrack to The Empire Strikes Back, I think of the mid to late 80s, and how my brother Shawn and I used to sit in the living room, and watch the Star Wars movies on this old, beaten VHS tape that had all three movies in a row recorded on it.

That tape must have been played thousands of times. It had been repaired with scotch tape and glue, and was forever sitting on top of the VCR, waiting to be played again.

When we were kids, we would sit and watch the movies, toys in front of us, quoting the films as they went along. It could be a Saturday morning, Tuesday afternoon, or a Friday night. Anytime was a good time for Luke & Co.

They are some of my favorite memories from when we were young.

Shawn turns 32 this Saturday, and in some ways I can't believe it. I know how old that makes me, and most days I can't believe that, either. There are times that we're hanging out together, and I know that we're adults, sitting there, talking about whatever, and it's the way it is. There are moments though, when we laugh about something, or share a common thought, and I have a flash of us sitting in our pajamas, in front of the old Zenith TV, watching scratchy, color drained scenes of Han and Chewie as we laugh at the same joke again... and it's always good.