Comic 443: Far, Far Too Much Information

I want to start off this post by explaining that I am NOT going to complain about quirky relationships. The joke isn't about a quirky relationship (I don't put "light bondage" into the category of "quirky", for one thing); it's about a hilarious and painful mistake that the characters Deserve for being Dangerous Sexual Deviants. I like the rhythm of it too, with a noun at the top of each frame and then a sort of counterpoint description at the bottom.

I do have one complaint - this is very technical and you will no doubt find it boring. So skip it. But -

The bottom line, "Relationship After Camping Trip: Strained" should not be where it is at all. It nearly ruins the flow of the joke. Here's why - the bottom line is essentially acting as a caption. It is removed from the other frames, stretches the whole width of the comic, and is at the bottom. As such, it reads like a description or title for the whole comic (for an example of this being used more or less effectively, see comic 365). The caption can probably be read either before or after the rest of the comic and it will work about equally well.

But that's not the purpose the "Relationship" line serves - it should be read last. I posit that it would noticeably dampen the humor to read that line first. The "Relationship" line is the punchline. The first four lines are the set up - they are almost like a syllogism:

1. Virginia Creeper Looks like X and can be used as a rope
2. Poison Ivy Looks Looks Like Y and grows near Virginia Creeper
(implied conclusion [a] - they look alike)
3. Girlfriend is into bondage
(1 and 3 imply [b], that vines will be used for bondage)
4. Campfire is dark

All lead to implication [c], the punchline, namely that poison ivy was used by accident. Because we have to make that jump in our minds, it is funny. In many cases (puns being a good example, but many jokes fit) you have to make the conclusion yourself, and when you do, that's what makes it funny. Had the syllogism been spelled out, it wouldn't work as a joke, or at least, not nearly as well.

Yes, the last line is at the bottom, and so it is read last, but it would have been better to present it in the same form as the others - in a small box, and to make it clearly at the end. Yes, I know this would give you 5 boxes and maybe it would look weird, but Randall is a smart boy and I'm sure he could figure something out. A 6th box to add, or perhaps stretching out the two plant boxes.

Anyway, this just goes to show that while Randall M. can be funny, there are times when he just doesn't understand humor in the best way. Another example of this is in my long and complex thoughts on comic 398, which I have been meaning to dissect like this for a while. Sometime later (suffice it to say it's a sucky comic that would need only the tiniest of changes to be much funnier).

Anyway, that's all. Damn but I write a lot. Hope you didn't read that whole thing.


Update: A loyal reader sends in a version that uses the magic of photoshop to make this a better comic:

I find this much better. Tell me what you think, gang.