Nimmel becomes a Breatharian (6/15/12)

[The Traveler]

http://dominic-deegan.com/comics/20120615.gif

Well, looks like he's going to have to man up.

[TerminusEst13]

Did she fucking moan as her last breath?

[FezzHead]

I thought the magic of the Sanctum was necessary for the archmagi to communicate. How can Nimmel still understand Ara?

[TheBlackPaladin]

I thought the magic of the Sanctum was necessary for the archmagi to communicate. How can Nimmel still understand Ara?

Not all of them need translators or a place to make them of equal size as those bigger or smaller than them as is the case of Eye guy for the first 2 and Masutel for the last one.

[IrishFino]

Isn't ara a common noise made in Japanese animes to denote confusion or being overwhelmed.

[The Traveler]

Actually, you know what I just thought of? Better storytelling would have been to have not shown whether Nimmel survived. Have a few scenes with a character in that cloak visible, looking more or less like Ara (IE, no face or limbs visible). Eventually have the cloak re-enter the main plot and oh wow is it Ara? No, it's Nimmel!

[Lumino]

Actually, you know what I just thought of? Better storytelling would have been to have not shown whether Nimmel survived. Have a few scenes with a character in that cloak visible, looking more or less like Ara (IE, no face or limbs visible). Eventually have the cloak re-enter the main plot and oh wow is it Ara? No, it's Nimmel!

No, because you guys wouldn't have accepted that. This is how it would have gone.

*See cloaked figure.*

'It's Nimmel because Mookie will never let him die!'

Turns out to be Nimmel.

'Told you so, Mookie sucks.'

He's got such a vicious fanbase that he cannot 'taunt' with death anymore. It's either 100% Dead or 100% alive.

[Darth Cariss]

Actually, you know what I just thought of? Better storytelling would have been to have not shown whether Nimmel survived. Have a few scenes with a character in that cloak visible, looking more or less like Ara (IE, no face or limbs visible). Eventually have the cloak re-enter the main plot and oh wow is it Ara? No, it's Nimmel!

No, because you guys wouldn't have accepted that. This is how it would have gone.

*See cloaked figure.*

'It's Nimmel because Mookie will never let him die!'

Turns out to be Nimmel.

'Told you so, Mookie sucks.'

He's got such a vicious fanbase that he cannot 'taunt' with death anymore. It's either 100% Dead or 100% alive.

Plus that just sounds like a bad idea anyway.

[daveshan]

Actually, you know what I just thought of? Better storytelling would have been to have not shown whether Nimmel survived. Have a few scenes with a character in that cloak visible, looking more or less like Ara (IE, no face or limbs visible). Eventually have the cloak re-enter the main plot and oh wow is it Ara? No, it's Nimmel!

No, because you guys wouldn't have accepted that. This is how it would have gone.

*See cloaked figure.*

'It's Nimmel because Mookie will never let him die!'

And yet, hypothetical us are 100% correct.

Turns out to be Nimmel.

'Told you so, Mookie sucks.'

See previous sentence.

He's got such a vicious fanbase that he cannot 'taunt' with death anymore. It's either 100% Dead or 100% alive.

No. No, he had a very, very forgiving fanbase. However, he ignored and mocked the fanbase; all the while never trying to adapt, improve, or even change.

[Lumino]

No. No, he had a very, very forgiving fanbase. However, he ignored and mocked the fanbase; all the while never trying to adapt, improve, or even change.

Not to be rude, but why should he cater to his fans? He wants to write his story, he chooses to share it with us. You are perfectly free to not like it, but to turn it into insults on the man and what he does is just immature. Also I am not sure I've ever seen this 'mocking' of the fanbase that you claim.

Whatever, this isn't the place to start a flame war over such petty things.

[BLjG]

Two things.

First - he mocked openly many ways. Saying he reads this stuff in newsposts then soon after saying he doesn't or ridiculously ridiculing it in the comic. More egregiously, learning that the fans LOVED Siggy, and so trying to run him into the ground with some of the worst written, retconned horseshit in all of webcomics.

Second - It's one thing to take criticism with a grain of salt. It's another entirely to stonewall out anything bad and only hear the good, while stubbornly refusing to change or improve. This has long been the case with Mookie, especially in his art.


And you say you don't want to start a flame war, then throw the first stone anyway by calling that stuff petty. Please. You know not who you troll.

[TerminusEst13]

Not to be rude, but why should he cater to his fans?

There's a difference between "catering" to his fans and accepting criticism and improving.

[PantherScott]

Lumino, the guy said before that he saw no reason to improve his work because he likes it that way. He charges people money to put in a half effort. The guy really doesn't like his fanbase. He thumbs his nose at them on a constant basis and has sent friends to attack us for the sin of making fun of the comic. He opens himself to criticism and then gets upset over it. The guy is a clownshoes and deserves to make fun of.

Sure, no artist should cater to the fans. But he does his story in part to mock anyone that doesn't like it.

[IrishFino]

No. No, he had a very, very forgiving fanbase. However, he ignored and mocked the fanbase; all the while never trying to adapt, improve, or even change.

Not to be rude, but why should he cater to his fans? He wants to write his story, he chooses to share it with us. You are perfectly free to not like it, but to turn it into insults on the man and what he does is just immature. Also I am not sure I've ever seen this 'mocking' of the fanbase that you claim.

Whatever, this isn't the place to start a flame war over such petty things.

You should spend the next few weeks reading through this forum from the start to now so you can properly see the evolution from a "nice" fanbase to a fanbase offering constructive criticism to a fanbase knowing they're being ignored to the bitter, bitter bastards we've become today.

I've read this comic for far longer than I wish to admit (2004ish-now) and been with the community for far, far longer than any normal person. There are other "fan" forums where the hardcore DD lovers went to. The ones that I've been to have since become like us, realizing Michael doesn't listen to anything other than what he considers criticism. The man thinks a Mary Sue is a character who's extremely good, not what it actually means, which is an Author insert that can do no wrong.

We've seen him make sketches that are better than his daily strips, but he refuses to improve the art because he "likes it" that way. He CAN draw better, he just DOESN'T want to. He makes the "easy" writing choice. He had the chance to kill Luna, but made excuses that it would turn Dominic into a bitter sad-sack. Siggy was a morally gray character that people enjoyed. He was a bully, but he was changing his ways. Because we weren't supposed to actually like Siggy, Michael tried to bastardize the shit out of him with some OMG HE'S RACIST YOU GUYS LOOK retcon. That's not good writing. That's writing to spite your fanbase.

There was a time where the fanbase really let him have it a few years ago and he made a newspost about how a "giant middle finger" was following him around all day. If I remember correctly, it was over the whole Rapewater arc.

Most people evolve their art and writing with time and practice. Michael has been stubbornly refusing for years.

[Stingra]

Indeed, you can't run around tossing accusations when you don't have any idea of the history behind this fanbase and the comic.

Keep trying, lumio.

[LordGolbez]

We've seen him make sketches that are better than his daily strips, but he refuses to improve the art because he "likes it" that way. He CAN draw better, he just DOESN'T want to.

Most of your arguments are valid. I think this one is a bit bs or makes certain assumptions you can't possibly know. Unless you know the difference in the amount of time it would take to draw DD as is or to draw each panel according to the quality of the sketches you've seen, it's unfair to assume that it's pure laziness that keeps him from drawing the strip like that. It's not only possible, but probable that he would have to greatly reduce his output in order to draw each panel at the level you desire. You may think that's something he should do, but that doesn't make him lazy to feel differently. I wouldn't agree with you either. If it's a choice between even more glacial plot progression for really detailed artwork and the current pace at the current quality, I would choose that the comic be drawn as is. At least as far as the character art goes, I feel that way. I will say that I would appreciate if he put a little more time into the art for battles involving magic, so that everything doesn't look like a beam attack. I understand I see things regarding comic art a little differently than most seem to though. I don't need extremely appealing visuals (sure, it's nice, just not required). I mostly just want them to be serviceable enough so that you can tell what's going on.

I know I saw someone on the board (maybe it was you) challenged this argument by saying learning to draw better makes you draw faster. That's a bit of specious reasoning. I'm sure if Mookie drew more higher quality art, he would be able to make art of that quality faster than he does now. It doesn't mean he would ever be able to make it as quickly as he makes DD at the current quality.

[IrishFino]

We've seen him make sketches that are better than his daily strips, but he refuses to improve the art because he "likes it" that way. He CAN draw better, he just DOESN'T want to.

Most of your arguments are valid. I think this one is a bit bs or makes certain assumptions you can't possibly know.

I stopped reading here. Why? BECAUSE HE'S ACTUALLY SAID HE LIKES THE WAY DOMINIC DEEGAN CURRENTLY LOOKS. I can't be assed to look for the Newsposts, but I'm sure someone will look them up for you.

[Lumino]

I'm not trying to say that you guys are all evil and horrible people or anything like that. Most of the arguments against the comic have been well thought out, or at the very least had at least some basis in reality and fact. I'm just saying that if you don't like something, say you don't like it and move on.

There is a massive difference between saying: 'I don't like the comic because of the bland plot, lazy art style and lack of danger.'

And 'I don't like the comic because I dislike the author.'

It's kind of a weird balance between the two that this forum has. Like 'I hate the comic because of XYZ, and it will never change into anything I personally find good because Mookie is a horrible person.'

That, to me, just seems like it is beyond the boundaries of good taste to be saying. I don't mind when people blast the comic, even though I enjoy it, because hell, I agree with a lot of their gripes. But when people start turning said gripes into personal insults towards a man who is basically putting his work out there for us to read, free of charge, it just doesn't seem like the right thing to do.

Hate Dominic and Luna all you want, but aiming the hatred at Mookie just seems kind of unreasonable.

[bahamutkod]

To paraphrase many a father: "I don't hate you, son. I'm just disappointed."

I'd like to think most of us don't disparage or hate Mookie as a person because of frustration with how poorly done his comic is. Most of us are frustrated at his refusal to take criticism that could genuinely improve his story and the like. Mostly it is frustrating because Mookie has expressed a desire to make a living off of comics like this. That means he would HAVE TO "pander to the fans" to some degree in order to create demand for his comics. The fact that he refuses to even listen to the slightest suggestions or possibilities that even hint that his existing comic isn't perfect baffles us.

That isn't to say that some of the decisions he's made and information he's put out wouldn't give someone a reason to dislike him as a person. I mean, to each their own but when you're convinced you need to try to shoehorn in a storyline not about a moral dilemma regarding rape but literally mention in a newspost that you want to create a sort of "sexy rapist" storyline, it suggests that most would be justified in calling you a reprehensible person.

Still, I try to keep my posts on topic regarding criticisms that he could improve to better market his comic and possibly improve both his writing and artistic skill for other venues of employ or use in a hobby. Sometimes I slip and get upset with him because he does something frustratingly cliched or tries too hard to make his good guys look like the good guys by making the bad guys look worse even if the good guys are doing things that bad guys do. Sometimes I slip and let some of his reprehensible beliefs and actions color what I say.

tl;dr - we all want to say our piece here, whether it would be heard or not and Mookie CAN deserve personal scrutiny alongside criticism of his comic if his words or actions reveal him to be reprehensible.

[PantherScott]

But when people start turning said gripes into personal insults towards a man who is basically putting his work out there for us to read, free of charge, it just doesn't seem like the right thing to do.

Hate Dominic and Luna all you want, but aiming the hatred at Mookie just seems kind of unreasonable.

That's the thing, he's not doing this for free. If he made no money off of this that would be one thing. I wouldn't be irritated at him. I would just chalk it up to a guy who's experimenting with different art and writing and finding his groove. He makes money off this. He get's invited to cons to tell people about his work. He sells shirts, he sells books. We may be able to get the comic for free, but that's advertising so he can make his money off his store. And since he has said he will not keep improving the art for the comic because he doesn't want to, that angers a lot of people here. Personally I think that's a slap to the face of his paying customers. "I put out as much as I think you're worth. Pay me!"

And there's a lasting war between us and Mookie. It's well known he sends people to attack us for not kissing his arse. So he deserves the counter attacks.

[TerminusEst13]

There is a massive difference between saying: 'I don't like the comic because of the bland plot, lazy art style and lack of danger.' And 'I don't like the comic because I dislike the author.'
It's kind of a weird balance between the two that this forum has. Like 'I hate the comic because of XYZ, and it will never change into anything I personally find good because Mookie is a horrible person.'

I can't speak for the others, but I've never said that.
Mookie is a horrible author, but not a horrible person. I barely know the dude--for all I know, he could be a swell guy that makes puppy plushies for orphans, so it's difficult for me to really speak on whether Mookie is a "good" or a "bad" person. He is, however, a horrible artist and author, has some outright wrong ideas on how to handle storytelling, and has made some really questionable plot points that often don't reflect well on him (i.e.: Trying to make a rapist a hero, every woman in a relationship is the pious and soft-spoken type, all the powerful/dominant women get brutalized and have lots of relationship issues)...but I still don't know him.

A lot of people sometimes interpret my snark and mockery as "you hate Mookie!", but I really don't. I love the hell out of Mookie, he's a hilarious guy with some interesting ideas. I've e-mailed him several times thanking him for comics and congratulating him for keeping on going as long as he has. I'm really eager to check out his next comic.
The problem is that his hilarity isn't always intentional, and his ideas are often much better conceptually than they are in execution. But just because I mock them, laugh at them, make jokes about them, and etc, doesn't mean I hate the guy's guts.
After all, if it weren't for him I wouldn't be laughing to begin with.

[LordGolbez]

We've seen him make sketches that are better than his daily strips, but he refuses to improve the art because he "likes it" that way. He CAN draw better, he just DOESN'T want to.

Most of your arguments are valid. I think this one is a bit bs or makes certain assumptions you can't possibly know.

I stopped reading here. Why? BECAUSE HE'S ACTUALLY SAID HE LIKES THE WAY DOMINIC DEEGAN CURRENTLY LOOKS. I can't be assed to look for the Newsposts, but I'm sure someone will look them up for you.

Doesn't matter. Just because he said he likes the way it looks, that doesn't mean it's the reason (or only reason) that he doesn't make it look better.

[IrishFino]

Doesn't matter. Just because he said he likes the way it looks, that doesn't mean it's the reason (or only reason) that he doesn't make it look better.

So then he's just lazy.

Either way you slice it, he CAN draw better he just WON'T.