120 The Battle for Gobwin Knob, Page 108

[CaptC]

Nope. Some people, like me, has reasonable standards. Or simple is reasonable people. That is reasonable. Ok, I lost myself, but what I mean is that I won't like the comic any less if occasionally make use of tropes or cliche.

Thanks for that. I'll expand a little about my thinking, I'll admit my very short description of Dora as a redshirt leaves a little out.

Webinar has clearly been set up to suffer and possibly die. But note that getting the reader to care about a character and then offing them brutally is subject to just as many cliches. Heck, almost any plot turn is a cliche, you know? There's only so many ways to tell a story. Its not the choice of cliche, it's how it happens and how it's described that's more important to a good story.

(I'll not even mention that Webinar's whole "somebody else can do the job better" cliche tends to be very unfulfilling if that character is actually just snuffed out: "Yep, someone else probably could have, Webinar. You really sucked as a leader.")

I don't mind cliche that keeps characters I like alive. I sympathize with Webinar: New chick comes along, dazzles the prince, he listens to everything she says even though she is clearly bent on self-destruction... I've had a few friends with crazy-chick girlfriends. Drove me batty and curmudgeonly, just like poor Webby.

Then in the latest strip, Webinar acts quickly and correctly and gives his troops a chance. I foresee more of the same, he's being set up to be heroic now. It might end tragically for him still, but note that Dora shares the same fate as Webinar, most likely. So, either she's a redshirt and saves his butt, or she's gonna get to play the scene from Aliens in the air shaft with Lt. Gorman and Pvt. Vasquez, or she's there to set up some other cliche.

Take your pick, I don't care. I'll read the comic either way. I just want Webby to make it and have one last confrontation with Jillian. So I hope Dora's sacrifice will not be in vain.