Comments on: retrogression

By: Lauren Z

Lauren Z — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 21:46:24 +0000

Personally I feel like Alison does on this one. Not a nostalgic step back but a tedious regression. I think the fact that she wants to relive it again in light of her real life issues recently, it just seems odd. Its like still wearing the wedding ring after the divorce or keeping photos all around of exes. Move on! I think she is living in the past for not necessarily good reasons.

And in terms of the FBOFW stories, I like the involved story lines, the more precise drawings, the strips that weren’t just one liner gags. Although I do feel the last few years, she was rushing through the plot. I often felt either left to dangle with a story line or it resolved itself much to perfectly, too neatly – ESPECIALLY the last story line with Liz and her ex showing up out of the blue and her fairly sudden decision to marry Anthony. Plus I think the work harassment story line was a bit to formula and unbelievable.

Ok – maybe after saying all that – maybe she needed to go back to what she was better at. Asinine one gag strips about mommies and poop.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 14:51:02 +0000

Honey, why worry your pretty head about it?

By: Halloween Jack

Halloween Jack — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 20:33:36 +0000

Maybe I'm a little more sanguine about redoing earlier works because I've read so many superhero comics, and redoing/retconning a character's origin is pretty much a constant thing. And don't artists in other media do this all the time? Witness the different editions of Stephen King's The Stand; even the "complete and uncut" version that was supposedly the original version had updates for cultural references that had become obscure since the first edition in the 70s. It seems that every other movie that's out on DVD has a "director's version" that is supposedly superior to the cut that made it into theaters, and so on. Even your coming out story in The Indelible Alison Bechdel is significantly different from the one in Fun Home, although the annotation in the margin of the former makes it clear that it's not necessarily the definitive version of that series of events. As for what's up with Lynn Johnston, I dunno really. But a recent rerun of a strip does make me wonder: the strip has Elly telling people that John does the dishes, and John later thanks her for lying to them about sharing household chores. I could see her wanting to maybe revisit that bit.

By: Bodark

Bodark — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 03:08:03 +0000

Lynn Johnston’s world was always nice to visit for citizen of the USA; the problems were the ones that could be seen and solved in domestic life, and not the giant gut-corrosive ones that you can’t solve in your spare time (you know, bats and bees mysteriously dying… wrong presidents, things like that) Maybe it’s easier to do that in Canada. I also liked her strip for the same reason I love Daumier, and DTWOF; she identifies with ordinary people, and likes them, even if she finds them very amusing. I hope she keeps going. I couldn’t live with only Sarah Palin jokes for the next decade…

By: Suzanonymous

Suzanonymous — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 03:59:42 +0000

mary anne, I didn’t mean anything negative at all, I’m perplexed if you were somehow offended. Birthday eve is the same thing as a day early, after all.

By: Glenn R

Glenn R — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 06:33:37 +0000

I’m so glad that CS mentioned the “Lawrence is gay” story line, because after that, I was alays and forever in Lynn Johnston’s corner. She got lots of hate mail but took her stand and did a nice, not to treacly story.

Also, the “bye bye Farley” story line; a grown man weeping over a cartoon of a dog dying. Several of the follow-up were too Hallmark sweet (the worst being Micheal’s girlfriend telling him to write about dead dog because “one has surgery when something needs to come out”), but still.

Anyway artists all have a crazy edge to them or they wouldn’t stand out. She’ll make a good go of it or it will fail… It is weird though, especially since little kids in 2008 are not doing all same things as in 1979.

NOW I wish there had been a debate about “Cathy marries Irving!” which murdered a certain other cartoon.

Finally – “most historic election ever” – I’m sad too only because I wanted to see my STWOF buddies arguing more in the primary. But it’s actually hard to say they would be unique in their views this time – Obama slightly less weenie than Kerry, which was the main DTWOF point.

This year is actually a rerun of 2008 (clueless R vs. cerebral D) and I’m sick that Obama still thinks there is a high ground to victory, that he doesn’t need to get angry or loud. There isn’t when you run against the Cheney-Rove-Atwater slimebag party.

By: Lauren Z

Lauren Z — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 03:55:52 +0000

yeah, I find the rehash boring and tedious. And who really wants to go back? Except people who are unfulfilled with the present. I too felt some of the character decisions and developments toward the end was odd and jumpy.

I miss the DTWOF gang too. Alison always kept these people in character. And any changes always made sense and she never cut corners with her stories.

By: Heterogenus

Heterogenus — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 02:52:21 +0000

Happy belated Birthday, Alison, and other virgos out there. I turn 58 in 3 hours . Here are some lovely Happy Birthday variations by Victor Borge on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZaLo0JfT6E&feature=related
I have been reading FBoFW since the early days, Lynn J says she wants to do it over but with her more refined style. I was a little disappointed,but eh,whatever makes her happy. I have enjoyed watching her 2D family grow as well as DTWoF family develop. Doonesbury too, Watching the aging process is kind of cool as we go through it ourselves. I actually complained when Paul Wright turned out not to be Mr. Right. I thought it was handled poorly to depict Paul as dishonest (he should have called her immediately, at least before the other lady moved in), Warren was a jerk, leaving Anthony at least as the good friend who cared for her. I thought lynn should have had Liz stay up there with people she loved, and Jesse, the kid who figured Liz was another teacher who would eventually leave them. So now, yeah, I still read it, for better or for worse. I really miss the DTWOF gang though, not that i am pressuring, i just check in occasionally. Many Happy Returns. Wait, where did the time go, 1.58 hours to go…….

By: Juliet

Juliet — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:38:37 +0000

Hello Marj! and happy belated birthday Alison. Have a great year!

By: Kate L

Kate L — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:39:39 +0000

Happy birthday to us all! Mine was September 9th. I know a woman who has her birthday on September 11th. She hopes to get the date back, eventually.