First things first: I would be remiss in my duties as a writing contributor who also blogs on the side while reporting (official title – tentative) if I didn’t first link the main content of this entry. So here they are: your 2007 WCCA Nominees (whether you like them or not)!
If you’re in webcomics or you simply READ webcomics, you’ve seen this list, made your mind up as to who should win, who WILL win, and who shouldn’t even be on the list to begin with (Howard Taylor’s artwork on Starslip? O-V-E-Rated). Still, I love’s me some fiery debate, what some might even call drama, and so this little gem over at Fleen caught my eye. While most stories on the Fleen archives garner, on average, three-to-five comments each, some amass well over forty, usually due to the aforementioned debate breaking out. And lo! The god Kurtz doth bow down from his mighty mountain to deign what is right and righteous! Behold!
Because the WCAA appear to be webcomics giving itself awards. You're all patting yourselves on the back for kinda, sorta, maybe, not really accomplishing anything yet. [...]
The best part is where people get mad at me for being nominated in your pretend-awards because it takes up a spot for their chance to win a pretend-award.
in other news: f*** webcomics.
I bleeped the last line to keep it Lunchbox around here, but if you “work” in webcomics as either a job or a labor of love, can you honestly read that last bit and not feel the least bit threatened, if not really, REALLY f***ing p****ed o**?!?
(Deep breaths now, Midnight. Keep it Lunchbox, keep it Lunchbox… )
The worst part of these little spurts of Kurtz genius is that, outside of a scant few others, he has acheived a great deal of success in the vicinity of the webcomics milieu. But wouldn’t he have to go back and give the medium a big pat on the back for the HUGE boost, instead of decry that which bore him to greatness? Sure, the guy’s got an Eisner (or, as some might see it, a real award) for his work on top of countless WCCAs, but does that mean that first award from his peers wasn’t a great boost of confidence, possibly even the thing that DROVE him to win that Eisner? I might even posit that Kurtz’s first WCCA is the reason he gets up every morning.
As the later comments on that thread suggest, maybe a win-limit should be enforced to ensure the winners get that boost and then move on to do bigger and better things than cry foul on the very award that begat them? Many commenters compared the WCCAs to the SAG awards, which are also awarded by the peers of those in the film industry, but awarding something on that basis is completely different when the works they are judged on are created not in hours or days, but months, even years. Should the whole awards process for webcomics be reworked or even scrapped until we can get our act together?
If so, can we, as a community, impose an embargo on the awards? I’ll go you one better; to see to it that no one votes, let’s collectively black ball those who choose to defy the will of the masses! Need me to write it bigger? BLACK. BALL. You will never, ever find work in webcomics again. We will form search committees, break out the flashlights, there is NOWHERE you can hide that we won’t find you! To paraphrase the great, Sean ‘Puffy “P-Diddy”‘ Combs, Vote and DIE! Let’s get crazy up in here! Shake things up! Make webcomics the rockstar, edge-livin’, evil-cousin of comic books that everyone already thinks we are!
*ahem*
Discuss amongst yourselves, I’m going to seek the lowest point below sea level in the hopes that the wrath of the god Kurtz will pass over me and mine.
I can understand where you’re coming from, Scott. Perhaps I over-estimated the power that you wield within the comics world, but you have tried to do things to benefit it before, such as the letter to Amend. You’ve shown an interest in doing so. Basically, all I meant was that you have more connections than most of us. You’d have a better chance of organizing something if you wanted to. Not much more than that.
I can also understand your frustrations with the community, but man, don’t generalize everyone and lump them together. For every detractor you’ve got out there, you’ve got at least 2-3 supporters. If you just came out and said, “Some of you suck. You know who you are. Fuck you.” Even that, as harsh as it sounded, it would have been so much better, and even humorous.
I’ve been there, too. When we did Webcomics Idol, we had people who loved it and people who spewed shit about it – we just ignored those people. Do what you gotta do man, but don’t let your detractors get to you like that. It ain’t healthy, and that’s where you wind up hurting yourself.
Christ, what the community needs more than anything right now is to just cut this crap out. No more petty attacks, no more cheap shots, no more infighting. Kris is right when he says it doesn’t do any good, and we forget the whole reason for comicking is to produce great works. I’ve tried to play the role of diplomat in the past, and let me tell you that ain’t easy sometimes. It may be a pipe dream to just ask for a fresh start across the board, but at least it might be worth pursuing. These petty battles just hurt the image of our medium as a whole.
guys, I’m just yanking Chad’s chain. Jason Salsbury is, like my best friend. He lives down the street from me. I helped him start Pet Pro. I like Chad, and respect his work. I’m just busting his chops.
I really wanted to see some pigs in tophats. Is that so wrong?
You guys are fucking idiots.
Way to add to the discussion, Douche!
Seacrest….OUT!
Actually Larrik, you just might be seeing that pig in a tophat very soon:
http://chaddiez.blogspot.com/2007/02/sophisticated-pig-set-for-comeback.html
FYI, Wiz and I were already talking about bringing back the pig before Kurtz’s ‘insult’.
Last LAST thought about this thing between Kurtz and I: Honestly, I don’t know if Kurtz is busting my chops, did you? Another one of those things I had to assume, again. I don’t know the guy well enough because he hasn’t allowed me to know him well enough. I had no anger towards Kurtz before this and I’m not going to hold a grudge after. I like Kurtz. I just don’t admire him. He’s just another guy. I hope this year at the San Diego Comic Con, things could be cool and not percieved as any ass kissing. If not, oh well. I’m in the same boat as him, I feel, but he has 8 years on me.
Scott seemed to get it last night on the livecast after Kris gave his 2 cents. In the end, my point got across one way or another and that’s all I can ask for.
this is all so very clear to me now. I can’t believe I didn’t see this before. And I feel really stupid that I got drug into it.
The Midnight Cartoonist is Jason Sigler, a cartoonist and friend of Chad Diez.
Chad Diez is good friends with Wiz Rollins.
Wiz Rollins is the new writer of Yirmumah and friends with DJ Coffman.
I wonder how much of this article was planned in email between the four of you guys before you posted it?
This is the kind of stuff I’m talking about guys. Even the “news sites” of this community is victim to it. Is anything in webcomics “real?” or is it all a bunch of friends pretending and playing house.
Wow, Kurtz. You sound worse than the National Enquirer. Yes, those connections are true but NO E-MAILS were sent. This wasn’t planned at ALL. This was JASON writing an article, YOU being an ass from your comment then ME ripping you a new asshole because of it.
Keep your conspiracy theories to yourself and let this rest for christ’s sake.
Let it rest? Finally. Something we can all agree on.
This was the first Kurtz/Coffman/whoever else fiasco I was involved directly in, so that was a big thing for me. I officially now feel like I’m “in” webcomics. So thanks for that, fellas.
Secondly, Jason Sigler, hmm? I guess it COULD be true… I mean, I haven’t ever seen the two of us together. But Jason wears glasses and I CLEARLY have a mask. I’d say that’s theory disproven. HA!
And third, I only respond to this because, regardless of which of my personas wrote this article (which, I would like to reiterate, was written entirely in SATIRE mode), I do not make attacks on others, ESPECIALLY based on the words of friends. I know OF Chad and I consider him a brother in Bomb Shelter Church…er, I mean, Comics, but that had ZERO. Zilch. Nada. Nothing, to do with my writing this article.
If those guys are working behind the scenes to overthrow someone from their position as President of Webcomics, that’s their thing. Mine is to write, somewhat cleverly, about what I see fit and no one has any influence in that besides me.
Again, this could be me overreacting to more hyperbole from you, Scott, that should be construed as sarcasm, but if it’s not, it’s a personal attack on my character and I won’t have it.
I WILL, however, have some more attention. Anyone want The Midnight Cartooner on your Pod/Talkcast? Bidding opens… NOW!
Scott, you sound REALLY fucking paranoid now. I think if we played six degrees of seperation with Wiz Rollins, he’d be connected to everyone with the amount of strips he’s writing! The only time we e-mail is when he’s saying “SHIT MAN, I’LL HAVE SCRIPTS TO YOU SOON!” (like this afternoon. – I havent spoken to CHad Diez since seeing him all crippled up at San Diego Comicon.
So, no, there’s no DJ Coffman conspiracy here. I downloaded your podcast today and listened to it while I was working, and I have to say you kinda summed up your thoughts better that way, talking it out. The whole “fuck webcomics” thing at least. It’s harder to do that on a message board or text on a screen. Kris Straub seems to have the levelest head about what “webcomics” is, or his description of the “cottage industry” — It’s given me something to think about, and something I immediately agreed with.
I was also happy to hear that Pvp show #7 would be called DJ COFFMAN IS A COCKSMOKER. Thank you for thinking of me. Now, you guys have a lot of work to go do on your “let’s pretend” – “animated series” — and I should be working for my corporate masters at Platinum Studios right now.
GOODBYE FOR NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!! EERRRNTT…
try not to punch any gay guys on the way back to your drafting table.
You can read my reply to you over in the other thread.
At least Daku hasnt locked these things down yet!
I keep considering locking them, but every time I think I’m gonna do it, shit seems resolved, so there’s no need to lock things down here.
Let’s let it end here, shall we?
Shut up, Kahn! Eat my libel, you dark-haired son of a mother!
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Brandon, you mole-faced cheese-eating donkey’s uncle. I’ve got seniority on your ass, so watch it.
This is like watching ants fight over who is the biggest ant.
Can I be a fire ant? Because I’m hot, baby. Hottastic. SPICY! Yeah!
What were we talking about?
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