Hey all you S*P comic fans. Did you just read the latest batch of panels Randy posted? I’m interested in reactions, though please try to use spoiler boxes.
I’m just… shocked. And pissed that Faye suddenly died. It just doesn’t seem fair that such a firecracker of a character should go out like that. Maybe it works that way in real life, but I don’t read comics for the reality quotient
Comments?
Crap, that came out of left field. I thought this storyline would just end with
Fred telling Faye he has alzheimer’s, which is tragic enough. But now he’s left with alzheimer’s and an empty house.
PSST - Spoiler boxes near the top of a post can be read by people mousing over the thread title…
I wasn’t all that surprised by Faye’s passing. To be honest, I thought though that it was more likely that Fred would die all of a sudden. It’ll be interesting to see how far he’ll take this storyline, though.
Just saw this about half an hour ago. 
Damn you, Milholland!
jayjay, at least you saw it half an hour ago. I saw it last night right before I was planning to go to bed. It was so out of left field to me that I couldn’t get to sleep for about another two hours.
It sucks a lot, but that’s the way of having a comic with some commitment to character development, I suppose.
I read it first thing this morning. Damn.
Randy blew my mind with that. Arrrg!
Randy, once again, has proven that he understands existential pain and suffering. He’s just darn good.
And it’s exactly the kind of jab, jab, shot to the jaw that you expect to see from him, even if you never see it coming. A Joss Whedon sort of rat-bastardy thing.
Like I wrote in my LiveJournal, it was an unexpected punch in the virtual gut. Quintessentially Milhollandish, in other words.
I haven’t been reading lately, because the dial-up connection makes it distinctly un-fun, but can anyone tell me where I should start reading to make the most sense of this? Should I just begin at the beginning of Just Today or should I start at A Grip on the Situation or even before that? Help me, please, kind Dopers.
That’s difficult…the story arcs with Davan’s parents interleave with the Boston stuff so much that it’s hard to direct you to the relevant parts.
It starts, more or less, with Golden Age Pt. 6. Take note of the last panel.
Then the second half of Home Again, Home Again, from Pt. 4 through Pt. 6.
And then straight through Just Today, starting at the link and through this morning.
Thanks, jayjay.
Well, shit. That was . . . depressing. And the little tag under the strip (“Sometimes it’s about fear.”) was just the little kicker at the end. What on earth will happen now?
Yeah, when you read it straight through like that it really is. At least in regular continuity it was broken up by actual comedy-type stuff.
I’d just like to note that I reread today’s strip again and, once again, misted up. Damn you, Milholland!
Call your parents. Tell them that you love them. Now.
If you can, visit.
But that’s the best bit about S*P! Sure, trapdoor alligators, sex midgets and cornholing hillbilly trees are fun, but it’s always been the reality bits that make this comic different - Scotty’s suicide, Davan’s depressing job, DND nerds’ utter lack of socialisation - whistling-past-the-graveyard humour is better than constant zany.
Yep. The only thing two-dimensional about these characters is the way they’re drawn. They actually mature and grow. And that’s what makes S*P so good.
Well, that and Ultimate Snark.
Yeah, as indicated above, I agree with jayjay and MrDibble. It’s an amusing read, but it’s also a story, and that’s what keeps it from stagnating and choking on it’s own nastiness.
Indeed, just look at Monette’s development from the beginning of the strip (worst lesbian, ever) to currently (steady girlfriend, real home, etc.).
RIP Faye.
Also, Mike. Went from completely obnoxious and socially-deficient nerd/geek/gamer to the voice of freakin’ reason (within his comic book/gaming shop milieu) and an actual friend to Peejee.