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Strip Search - Elimination #7
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Simply because the challenge is to create a strip, not create a first draft of a strip. Other strippers on the show are capable of completing their work in 90 minutes, but Lexxy isn't. That's unfortunate. Nobody said you have to do full color and shading and everything, but compare Lexxy's work to Abby's last elimination. Abby produced a black and white strip that was finished. So did Erika for that matter. Lexxy only sketches. This time, her joke was better than last time, and she won fair and square. But don't tell me that unfinished art is impressive when you've got other strippers doing much more work in the same amount of time. Lexxy won on the basis of her comedy, not her art. I'm not saying she's a terrible artist. She's clearly a good illustrator and has a successful career doing illustration. But this is a 90 minute comic challenge. She produces good character design, but she doesn't finish her comics.
And no, I'm not let down by the old Calvin and Hobbes strips. The art might not be amazing, but they are completed works. I'd say the same about old PA strips, too. Again, this is a challenge to create a strip, not a first draft. The other strips have been completed works, Lexxy's haven't been. Compare Lexxy's own work to itself, by looking at the character designs from Cloud Factory. We don't know how much time she took making those, but they're a lot better than her strips on Strip Search. If the eliminations had no time limit, I'm sure Lexxy would have far better art than most if not all of the remaining contestants. But that's not the show.
(You just say the letters)
I was thinking that due to the fact that Monica is one of the few artists in this competition that both draws and writes her own comics that would give her an edge despite this being her first elimination round. Lexxy really brought it on the writing front this time and it was much more punchy than her last comic.
Lexxy learned from that experience and went for the laugh when she made her dinosaur/rollerskates comic. Monica, on the other hand, did not have any previous experience with the elimination challenge and used the inspiration to create an arguably better more high-concept comic (which, incidentally translates MUCH better when you're able to see it all at once as opposed to a fraction at a time in the video).
What Mike and Jerry are looking for at this point is not artistic, high-concept comics. I'm sure they like and appreciate them (it's part of why the brought back Lexxy after all), but it's not the criteria they're judging on. They're looking for comic artists whose product is most similar to the Webcomics they already host.
Anyone who calls shenanigans on Lexxy winning versus Monica also has to call shenanigans on Tavis winning against Lexxy. Well, "winning" at least. I do not think Mike and Jerry realize what kind of advantage they gave Lexxy by allowing an eliminated contestant to come back into the house. She is the only one who got to learn from their mistakes in the elimination round. Nobody else left in that house is going to get that advantage.
[on a side note I do not believe Lexxy ultimately wins. she's already paypal pledging/kickstarting her Cloud Factory comic project - not a move someone makes with $15,000 in the bank and a job lined up in Seattle.]
Unless there isn't a winner yet. And as far as Mike has said, there isn't one yet. As per current knowledge, nobody has a job lined up in Seattle.
I think things got a little less "mock-antagonistic" as it went on.
Monica making reference to his shirt seemed very odd to me. There was no actual joke there. Just insult.
Nor will they, because it's not a job. It's office space and a bit of cash. (I know you know that, Gosling, just clarifying for some others since there tends to be a lot of misinformation on the prize in these threads).
Point being, presence of a kickstarter is not any indication on someone being a potential winner or not.
She does a lot of commissions. With the Kickstarter, she can finish up her current batch, not have to take another commission, and just get right to Cloud Factory with no distractions.
The other thing to take into account is the tax on the $15,000... Plus, even if it is a job and not just office space and exposure, moving to a new place means more money spent for cost of living expenses along with whatever other bills and debts that wouldn't just magically vanish once they win the competition.
So a Kickstarter doesn't really tell much.
Regardless of the layout, I always expect a joke in a comic unless I know that's not the point. But that only happens if I've started reading someone's work and I know, from perusing their archives, that not-funny is their M.O. Non-joke comics work much, much better as part of a larger whole, even if you only get that whole one page at a time. I don't think Mike and Jerry necessarily pick funny comics because of a bias as much as it's just incredibly hard to do a one-shot deal that isn't funny but still has instant appeal.
Monicaaaaaaaaaa </3
I can't live in a Monica-less world! This is unacceptable! Guess I'll just have to bookmark her site.
That being said, it's Mike and Jerry's business venture, they are the judges, and they are allowed to have their opinions and choose the artist that they think to be most worthy. But, if I were in their shoes, Monica would have been the clear winner.
Tavis had the superior joke last time, and he conveyed it well enough through his art, but compare his to Maki's comic (the gold standard for all-around greatness, in my opinion, though not necessarily the top in every judge-able category). Tavis falls short in several areas. He beat Lexxy, but Lexxy's comic wasn't all that good the first time around despite protestations to the contrary (she's improved since then in humor, though). He's done some good work on challenges, and I respect him a lot, but should he find himself back in the elimination chair against somebody stronger, I don't think he can pull it off.
Abby probably scares them all a lot now, because she took down Erika. I think now that she's gained some (here it comes) confidence, I think she's going to be a serious force to be reckoned with. She just needs to trust herself, and she'll go far. Just as long as the remaining challenges aren't all ping pong, of course...
I think Katie is in a very good position to keep winning challenges for immunity, plus she's got the redraw ticket. That woman has an incredible creative sense, and I think she's easily a final 2 competitor. She had some struggles on those first two days, simply because of the stress of being up first, and then again the very next night. I'm certain she's one of the most confident in the house now, and she's got the skills to back it up.
Maki talks about beards while everyone else is being anxious over stuff. He is cool, has hilarious timing, and great artistic skills. Like Katie I think he's got a great chance at being a final 2 competitor. He also has a redraw ticket, since he didn't use it the first time. I don't know why anyone would think he's the weakest link, since half of them have seen his winning elimination comic now, and they can talk freely about what goes on in there. I'd remind you of some of Maki's prior works they've seen before too, starting with his clear win in the very first social challenge (which was based on the same qualities judged in the eliminations). I think it's safe to say they've been impressed with him.
Lexxy just went up, so I don't think they'll send her in again the next day, which is the only reason I think she's safe, as much as I'd like to see a Tavis vs. Lexxy rematch.
A lot will depend on what the next elimination challenge is, how tired/stressed everyone is, and ultimately what the two words are out of the wastebasket of broken dreams. Tavis could easily win the next challenge and be immune. So could any of them, though. As long as Katie and Maki aren't put up against each other before the final 2, I think they'll both start knocking people off systematically, with Abby to assist. Any one of the three of them could easily take the whole thing. Tavis and Lexxy will both have to work hard to stay alive as the competition heats up. I could be wrong, of course. I was expecting Monica to bust out her usual funny (go read her comic now if you haven't yet) and defeat Lexxy easily, but she opted for a serious comic which is pretty much the kiss of death on this show. Anyone can have a bad night and throw it all away with one bad decision. The degree of exhaustion and stress they're all feeling could really be the deciding factor on any of the challenges going forward, which will have a big effect on who gets put up and how they perform once they're in there.
(You just say the letters)
We'll have to agree to disagree. IMO Lexxy's comics are simply drawn better than the rest. But that's beside the main point, which is this absurd notion that there's an objective level of "finish" that elevates a piece of art beyond "first draft" status. What's wrong with a comic that's drawn in a loose, rough style? What if she has ten hours to draw and that's still the finished product? What if the looseness is actually part of the charm and visual appeal?
Artistically her comics have been superior on their own and not just as a glimpse of what a final draft *could* be.
Sounds like you have never seen Maki's comic.
EDIT: Also, think Abby will have trouble in the future if she can't just rip off another comic again.
One of my coworkers just made a BSG joke about me being in the final five. Glad we're all on the same page, here.
A kickstarter is still a reasonable move if you want enough money to start your own thing, and not have to take commissions to make ends meet.
Here's the thing: go look at the first panel of Lexxy's strip today. Look at the gestures, body language and design of the bored kids. Look at the reclining girl. Those are not half-assed drawings. Whether you appreciate it or not Lexxy is not fucking around with her art. She can seriously draw.
I don't see the comic as being particularly deep. And the line that the dinosaur should be happy to have a job in the economy implies the skates were pulled out for their job.
They had a dream about skating for more medals, but instead skate as their job, to light lamps at night.
I think Monica's art was great, but Lexxy's comic reads better and is really funny.
For the hater who insist that Lexxy didn't deserve to come back, I'd counter that if all that matters is the Thunderdome, she may have two of the best comics produced in the Thunderdome, period.
I'm not going to analyze their comics. For once I think the elmination came down to a difference of taste rather than a difference of quality, or performance.
That said, this may sound a little strange, but... I suspect that being about dinosaurs gave Lexxy more of an advantage this time.
I like how the competition is becoming some sort of rollercoaster ride for Mike. Tears them down then feels bad later.
Both comics were good, and I would have been fine with either of them winning. Lexxy's comic made better use of the themes- certainly it's fair to give that one the nod- but Monica's comic will stick with me. I'll be thinking about that last panel for some time to come.
I love her somuch, and I liked the deepness/dramaticness of her comic, but for elimination, you have to bring the funny, which Lexxy did. I would have been an utter sarcastic bitch if Mike was grilling me, and seeing Monica shut down, I just wanted to hug her.
What? Explain yourself. She didn't rip off anything, AFAIK.
I didn't say her drawings were bad. There's a lot of attention to detail. You just said she drew better than all the others. And I said I disagreed with that based on what I had seen. Nothing more was meant to be hidden deep in the bowels of my message.
It seems to me that when the poking and prodding started Monica did not know how to respond, and she just shut down. As it continued she started to strike out aggressively. I think she would be a terrible fit for the office based on this and the clip at the end seems to expose an extreme pettiness that none of the other contestants have shown. In fact the whole shamehole scene was just painful with M&J was just painful.
The eliminations from here on out are going to be brutal.
She didn't, but there are ridiculous accusations that she did.
Well, she did put up the kickstarter the day after she got eliminated, and before she got brought back, she had made a buttload of money. Seems like something Khoo would do, or suggest someone should do as a strategic move... DUN DUN DUNNNNNN
On to my things:
1) ahdok beat me to the punch again, there were a few strips in Phuzzy that were about Monica wearing the green striped dress. When she started talking about stripes, I laughed because I immediately thought of those strips.
2) I'm wishing that Monica had gone with some funnier material. She brings the lulz in her comic, even with serious anecdotes she puts a punch line/comedic spin on them. Her entry, though beautiful, was not what I expected, and I was a little disappointed.
3) She absolutely had to not reply to "Why do you want to be a cartoonist" for her strip to receive the most impact. She went all in, but unfortunately, Lexxy had a better hand.
4) If a strip needs to be explained at this point, that will mean death for it. With gut/first impression judging, that's just the way it is.
5) I'm sorry, but I don't like Lexxy's art in this one. I think it looks sloppy. That might be her style, but in such a busy strip, it doesn't work for me like it did for the clown one.
6) The line "dicks on dicks on dicks" slays me.
7) Monica was perfectly countertrolling. It was like seeing two opposing wave functions cancel each other out.
8) With Monica gone, I'm all TEAM MAKI! 100% pineapple. Is there any doubt that I am? I just made a wave function reference.
Actually I thought it was pretty interesting that Mike didn't seem to get Monica's comic until Jerry broke it down for him, and only then did he really appreciate it.
To watch someone quietly draw for 30 minutes
Mike's trying to get a rise out of them, and it's hilarious when they fire back.
That's cool, but mike straight up said she'd be a pretty good fit
He said that in a sarcastic tone after she said something cruel to him.
Personally, I feel like both of Lexxy's comics are super well-drawn rough drafts. The positioning is incredible, but it doesn't feel finished. And to me that speaks to the real flaw that she has when it comes to comics: time. She can turn out the best art of anybody in that house, but compare the overall completeness of her work in Thunderdome to literally any of the winning comics.
I think her concept is funnier, but I think the deeply personal - but still lighthearted - nature of Monica's is every bit as compelling. Some of the best moments from Penny Arcade are the dead-serious breaks from the dicks and violence. "Mindcraft" was my favorite comic they ever made, and it wasn't a joke at all. I can see arguments for both sides, but I disagree with some of the arguments we heard them make in favor of Lexxy's.
Again, I look at what her other work is that she considers finished enough to show off. I compare that (which is quite good) to her two strips in the eliminations so far (very much sketches), and I think it's clear she wishes she had a lot more time to finish. I compare some of the strip art of other folks and it's more in line with what they consider to be a final product. They might want to fuss a bit, but it's basically done and they don't need another couple hours.
(You just say the letters)
I think he was quite serious in saying she'd be a good fit because of the way she was joking around with Mike.
And there is no conspiracy with Lexxy. They let her go the first time even though she turned in a fantastic piece. And this time she won on merit. When you suggest that Mike and Jerry are rigging the contest, you're calling them liars. They don't deserve that, and people making such unfounded accusations honestly should be ashamed.
Whoa. It's crazy how other people can watch the same exchange and come to such a wildly different conclusion. Personally I thought Mike's statement was 100 percent sincere.