Questions about the comic and fanbase
 

I haven't posted in a long, long time and I don't see many of the people I posted with around anymore either. We've either been banned or ran off by the community, it seems. Personally, I don't post because I don't like the behaivor of the mods and I won't discuss that further. We have personality conflicts and we wouldn't get along in real life, anyway. I tried to avoid them as much as possible and was able to fade away without angering them and I'm trying to do it again so they won't have the satisifaction. So don't get uppity.

However, after finally BROWSING through the forums, it seems to be that the community has shifted its fanbase. When I was around, BM and Fighter were king, and now it seems RM and Theif are in charge. Anyone else feel that way? RM was a whipping boy, and I prefer him that way. Over time, RM has taken on more of a core leadership role, with even Thief following him. I don't like the majority of the newer comics, but I read them because I want to know how the story pans out. To me, it's like the low-point of the movie. The part that's terrible and you hope it gets better soon. Or maybe just the part where they ran out of budget or one of the actors died and they had to edit in stock footage. But I've paid my 7 bucks so I'll sit around till the end.

I think it has to do with the younger fans popping up. From what I read, the majority of forum-goers are young people. Young, venomous fans and they affect the character changes. Maybe not the plotline, but character behaivor. Character behaivor changes naturally, but I believe the fans have affected the changes.

So there you go. You know I don't like the newer comics, you know I don't like the mods, so don't talk about that. The point of the thread is the fanbase's favorite character and how that character has switched amongst the cast over time and how it may affect the development of the plot.

Also, don't post with "I'm 14 years old! I'm not young" or "I'm 43 years old!". Maturity isn't a number.

I kindof agree with you, I was convinced when one of the biggest topics is 8-Bit Yugioh lol!

But, in some ways, this is better.. when BM and Fighter were king, things were so pessemistic and pointless, Theif was screwing everybody over, they were in constant ignorance, and nothing seemed to really matter, now, the plot is moving along, they seem to trust eachother a little more, and have found common enemies (Like the bitter old Republican lol..) who can keep them from being thier normal deliquint selves.

In layman's terms, this shift in personality is a turn for the better, now The Light Warriors know how to get R dun.. lol!

Meh. I am & will always be a Garland fan. I enjoy the antics of the Light Warrior gang, but when you come down to it, you always get comedy gold from the G-man.

Ahem.

As for the Light Warriors, I don't think I've ever had a favorite. In fact, while you cite the shift from BM & Fighter having a monopoly on the fanbase, to Thief & RM getting their props. Well... I think that's just because people finally have started to appreciate their antics. Brian started with BM & Fighter, so they kinda took center stage from the start. People were bound to notice the other regulars sooner or later.

As for the maturity of the forum goers, I don't think there is any difference between the current rabid Thief/RM fans & the rabid BM/Fighter fans that have been here all along. I've been around from the very start, and I'll tell you that the occasional upswell in younglings isn't anything new. They'll post a few times & either walk away, or grow up a bit.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Well except for the face eating & linkage to gay porn pictures. Thanks be to the Gauds that there's *NO* more of that.

SWB
PS - Its a free country, and you've every right to your opinions, but you really could have kept that first paragraph to yourself. It really has nothing to do with the current conversation.

Sadly,
No one cares about the poor King Steve fans... much like King Steve himself...
I will now sit back and cry...

Wow. You have so little faith in Brian to think his FANS sway him? I have to disagree with you there. Characters grow and change. (At least in well-written stories, and I think this one is. Matter of opinion of course.) BM in the very beginning was a lot darker I feel. When he seemingly acted conflicted over the use of the hadoken in front of WM, it meant he actually was putting thought into his actions. Of course, very recently he used it on a teammate. So he hasn't changed that much.

But the changes his character made (and will continue to make) are a result of the story. NOT the fans. Saying anything else is disrespect to Brian, and frankly, will earn you more ire than you could really want.

And I can't help but take a shot at the ego you have on display. "I tried to avoid them as much as possible and was able to fade away without angering them and I'm trying to do it again so they won't have the satisifaction." With an attitude like that, I can see why you would have problems getting along with some people.

And how is a person supposed to respond to threats of immaturity? What kind of a tactic is it to make an accusation, then set it up to where any arguments are nullified?

Does this even belong in the comic thread? It would probably be better placed in the Discussion area.

The Wandering God

Up until the last three comics I agree with you in your intuition that RM and Theif have seemed to taken over group leadership for a time. While I find it refreshing to see the LW moving onward on their quest, I can see how some of the comedy that we get with BM and Fighter as the powerhouses of the group has been lost.

I don't feel it's the fanbase that has been changing, but rather the views of the older fans as they watch the entire LW group going though a long journey. I find it akin to many novels with multiple charachters or my own D&D campains, every scene is part of a chapter that focuses on the individuals who make up the core of a group. Take most late Star Wars books as an example, the majority of them have our core group of charachters ( Han, Luke, Leia, the droids, and many many many other charachters the majority of whom have been invented over the years.) often split up and have individual tasks that they are persuing. Most authors will seperate each chapter to focus on one or another group as they move simotaniously, a formula that has kept one of the largest fanbases in the world following the main story and other books following a massive plot.

Another example is my own DMing style. Often when my groups find themselves in a new town, I will focus on one or two members as the "main", or most important to the plot, charachters for a time. Untill either a resolution, or a suitible cliffhanger shift our direction to the next task. I see Brian doing something similar here, focusing small plot arcs on individual members of the LW (take, for instance, when BM defended the ship against the terrors of the deep, icebergs, and the DW simotaniously.) while remaining an eye or two on the big changes coming into the LW's world.

finally, the forums themselves definatly have many young, vemomous people inside of them, because those are the people who initiate a large response to major turns of events faster. Then, as a consiquence, the people with cooler heads either leave, or take their turn quenching the flame. Personally I'm just coming back to these forums after a very long abence (and yes I was reading the reaction threads and comics whenever they came out.) and I've really only felt the urge to step up after the literal explosion caused by class changes.

I've said my peace.

I don't think that first paragraph was necessary at all Meh. I've been lurking around here longer then I can remember even before I made an account. I don't think the community has shifted much at all. You really just got your major camps if you will for each main character and it only may seem to shift due to members coming and leaving quickly while an old core stay around.

Now as for the comic I think it just gets better and better. It seems with each major arc in the story Brian's writing becomes better and better in the case of RM we have moved from Red Mage is incompetent (the Werewolf incident comes to mind) to as Red Mage famously says "My plans always make sense it's the laws of physics that get in the way"(Cold Fusion). All the characters in their own ways.

Finally as for this supposed Community favorite character effecting the plot I don't think so. Brian has already stated many times that he had this entire thing planned out from the beginning. The forum may help with material for the funny gag comics or may irk him so much as to hammer a point home (BB being dead for good) but this is the exception I believe.

But hey that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.

All I can say is that based on the evidence in these forums, if the fans were pushing the direction of the comic then A. Black Mage would be the undisputed star of the show, 2. Black Belt would hop out of his grave, do a little dance, and be like "Yo sucka fools, I's Black Belt, no punk fire fiend gonna put the ice on me!", D. Black Mage would be boning the shit out of White Mage.

Do all the 8BT forum veterans make really long posts? Or is it just my twisted imagination?

They just have learned by now to give their posts thought so that they don't say something stupid. Hence why they haven'y been banned yet. They also know that if they don't expand their thoughts, people may seriously misinterpret them. In other words, they seem to be mature and thoughtful, or at least look like it.

There are exceptions to the rule, but that seems to be the gist of it. Also, they don't seem to do it all the time, just when they are debating.

Oh, and note. Not long post therefore not long time member. It does seem to be true.