Holy shit a new [CHAT] ???

[Almost Human]

Haha thanks! I don't know about deserving it but it def comes as a relief! I can't say much about the project but it is a game and it's one I'm really excited to be a part of so really this is all best case scenario! Sadly it does mean that updating the archives and the look of this place takes a lower priority again, but I guess that's probably no suprise to anyone since it all slowed so much since my job quest ramped up.
Thank you all for keeping me alive while I flailed and failed my way through the last year or so, haha

 

[Triangle Man]

Hi, AH! Sorry for the late reply, but congrats on obtaining the new job! I look forward to checking out your game whenever it comes out. Don't worry about site updates in the meantime, BTW - our current style is fine for now.

I finished my internship the other day and it went great, but now I'm feeling a little under the weather and will have to take some time to rest, I think. So life has its ups and downs still, I suppose.

At least I got to go out a little bit last week, which I really needed.

 

[Almost Human]

I'm so glad your internship went well! What ended up being your fave part about it?

And thanks I wish I could tell you guys all the details but alas I cannot, but I can say I'm their UI artist so it will be A LOT of work but I'm also really looking forward to it!

 

[canoe]

Congratulations on finishing your internship TriGuy! I hope you don't feel too much worse and that you bounce back with just some rest.

I continue to be over the moon about your new job AH. I am also so happy that you get to be a UI artist, which has always seemed to be the best fit for your skillset and interests.

I start my new job next week so I'm savoring my last days of having no responsibility (except being at home for all the service people who have to fix up the place I'm renting).

 

[Captain Zaven]

Hey people again! i'm done with my break. which, i think was a good break overall? i took a big ol break from my computer, hence the not being around here (but i was still way too much on my phone honestly). In fact, the only thing i really used my comp for over break was for filing my comic collection! i've officially got over 1000 data points for those three boxes, which, means i have even more comics than i thought. And i've got a lot more rare/ obscure comics that i initially remembered... here's hoping that Sweet Tooth gets a critically acclaimed TV series so i can sell my issue #1 of it (joking... depending).
Massive congrats on job-obtainment Almonds! i know that games take a while, so we can't be told for a while what it is, but i look forward to seeing your work on it!
and enjoy the maxing and relaxing canoe, you can hardly call being at home a huge responsibility considering how hard it is to get out these days...

 

[canoe]

Hi Zaven!! I am glad to hear that you both took a break and enjoyed the break! I don't have a lot of comics but I do have a lot of miscellaneous papers I've been lugging around forever so and I also spent a good chunk of my break going through them and trying to organize them better. It's a nice feeling!

My enjoyment of my last remaining time off is now being consumed with being nervous about my new job. Ahhhh I thought I'd be over this kind of thing by now >o<

 

[Captain Zaven]

Sitting here on Labor Day, with classes again tomorrow... i feel that nervous feeling as well. But! we will both overcome that feeling and crush the work that is ahead of us. Let us know how it goes!

Also, the final comics count ended up being 1310... and it's now up to 1315 since then. an average of around three comics a week for nine years really adds up... but i'm very happy with my collection, and the great thing about having comics vs. books is that they honestly don't take up too much space, even with how many that i have. Made me realize that i have a lot of backlog that i fell behind on during the school year though...

 

[Almost Human]

I'm so sorry for my silence guys, the last week FLEW by! Since my employers are overseas I've been adjusting to a new schedule that actually seems to fit my body a lot better (I know, what a shock, turns out I'm a complete night owl haha) and best of luck at your new job too, canoe!!
I don't actually know if anyone ever gets over the nervousness of a new job, I mean not only are you starting from scratch with all new people in an all new enviroment but you're kicking off a brand new routine at the same time! It's a pretty huge change, I'd say nervousness is well justified.

I'm quite jealous of that comic collection, Zav! I plan to move once I get a few paycheques under my belt and hope with the extra space I can start collecting again. I honestly love just taking a lazy day to reorganize my books and read a bunch as I do haha. I'd love any recommendations you have. I was reading Loki, Agent of Asgard a while back and loved it right up until it got all wound up in Marvel's stupid crossover events and lost its own plot. That sadly happens A LOT in comics and it drives me mad, especially when the writer clearly had to make a sudden, inorganic shift to shoe horn in the "universe wide" effects of some dumb money grab.
Or when abook is suddenly cancelled and there's this mad rush to get SOME kind of ending in, like that poor Constantine series that only lasted two trades and was so so promising in the first one.
Ah well though, so goes the industry.

 

[Captain Zaven]

Top series that i've got for mainstream comics: Ms. Marvel, Deadpool, and TMNT. Honestly the TMNT series that started in 2011 has been consistently banging for the whole series, though the space shit can feel a little... 1980's at times. okay, seriously 1980's. It's funny, when they have the parts where Krang is on earth, it feels pretty normal, but when they travel to dimension X, it gets corny. Deadpool is self-explanatory, but probably my favorite recent DP arc was Deadpool: Assassin. But the whole posehn/ duggan series was pretty solid, even when they had to incorporate the different overall marvel arcs into them. It helps that he's a fuckin weird character in the first place, honestly.
As far as more indie comics go... MIND MGMT by matt kindt was a hell of a lot of fun. Especially impressive art considering that he did the writing and art for the whole series.
I also cannot stop recommending Sex Criminals to people. the premise is that our main character has the ability to stop time when she orgasms, she meets a guy with the same power, and they use this power to rob banks. It's the sort of thing that takes a weird and goofy premise and uses it to explore characters pretty well in my opinion. and it has stupid sex gags crammed in (hah!) wherever possible.
Aaaaaand of course if you haven't read Saga, of course i'm gonna recommend that. It's a space epic about two parents and their child running from every government. Of course, basically everything i recommended there is over at this point....
Currently i'm collecting the new Buffy series (pretty good, but i'm a sucker for buffy stuff), Chu (a spinoff of Chew), Faithless (which... i just read for the story, i swear...), No Heroine (a three issue series about a lady who is trying to get clean from drugs but also has to deal with supernatural creatures), And i just picked up a new series called Lonely Receiver, that is about a lady who gets dumped by her phone (it's the future and phones can be robot girlfriends now).
the best part about reading weird shit outside of the main DC/ Marvel hoopla is: they only have to shoehorn in their own weird shit! and you don't have to buy every civil war comic to get the full story. cause i was admittedly pretty confused reading the Ms. Marvel story arc from that one... i was like "... so.... who's resolving this shit...?"
Also i have a first issue of Lobo, which, i seem to remember is a favorite guy of yours almonds? i have no idea where or how i picked that up, but i'm happy i have it. for some reason (the reason is my crow brain).

anyways, tomorrow i get to meet with the nurse who is going to be my preceptor for my clinical rotation! here's hoping that they're a good instructor and a fun person too.

 

[kaos]

Should try Immortal Hulk (horror), or basically any series by Ewing, i.e. comics.

 

[Triangle Man]

Well I kind of got busy the last little while with my new school Semester, so apologies on that front. Online classes just aren't the same as in-person classes, but I get quite a bit more free time due to having my commute cut down to nothing so I'm hoping to make the best of that to get in some extra work time and/or recreational time this year. It should prove to be interesting.

@AH - Thank you for the congrats on the Internship. My favorite part ultimated ended up being getting to try out Video Editing Software for the first time.

@canoe - Thank you for the congrats on the Internship as well. I'm happy to report that I did get a lot of rest and relaxation, and am currently setting about figuring out time management to make sure I don't burn myself out too much.

I hope that both of you are also enjoying your new jobs and that they continue going well.

 

[Almost Human]

Whoa! Thank you for all the recommends, Zav! I've read quite a bit of Saga but when the issues slowed down for a while so did my interest. I'll probably pick it back up again when I'm moved into a new place though. The rest of those are new to me, so I can't wait to check them out! Well, I mean, obviously Deadpool isn't new to me, but i haven't read that arc, you know what I mean, bahaha!

And yes!! I own A LOT of issues of the older Lobo solo run, so I'm glad you got to indulge a bit in it and enjoy it too! It's just stupid, blow shit up, space fun.

Also thank you, Kaos, I'll also check out Immortal Hulk when I can!

And thank you Tri, I love my job at the moment! conforming to a schedule is the hardest part right now since my body was spoiled by being able to sleep and wake up whenever I wanted for so long, but I don't really mind since COVID means I'm not missing too much while I adjust.

I'm also looking into moving but man it's not easy to arrange during a pandemic. I know that's a shallow thing to complain about in times like these but it does give me something to look forward to when things feel bleak, haha.
LOTS of family drama right now too. I can't say too much since it seems like people of authority are getting involved but fingers crossed this will all turn out for the best.
Sorryif I go silent for a little bit again, I'm still adjusting so finding time for anything aside from work or sleep is pretty tough at the moment.

 

[canoe]

Guess who's workplace closed early because of protests??? (mine, the answer is me)
I am glad to know people's passion for justice still burns bright even in such tiring times but I also want everyone to stay safe to the best of their abilities.

 

[Captain Zaven]

guess who isn't at work tonight because one of their coworkers contracted covid and they're waiting for their test to come back? (me, the answer is me.) I'd be happier if this didn't fuck with my money, but at the same time... i realized that i kind of needed an excuse to take a day to myself and not feel just awful about it.

It's good that people are being active in the protests, because frankly... these actions from our government have been unconscionable for a long ass time. I hope that they stay safe too, but i feel as though their safety is in the hands of the police officers, and less to do with what the protestor's actions are... which is exactly why people are mad in the first place.

Also glad you liked the recs Almonds! fortunately for me, when saga dropped off of updating was around the time that i stopped being at the comic shop weekly, so i was able to get the new issues in my pull without having to think about "how long has it been since this updated?" They are on a massive pause right now (i think two years and counting at this point?) so it's a fine time to catch up. Even though the series as it currently is left off on a huge cliffhanger. And no worries about having to take a break from this place every now and then! i mean hell, i took a break for over a year, but coming back felt like i never left in the first place.

 

[canoe]

Hey! I hope everyone is doing well and staying safe! It's October and I am already failing my lukewarm desire to participate in Inktober, or some variant of it. I am however on track to do the only October tradition I have reliably done for the past 5 years, which is watch Over The Garden Wall at some point this month. I worked on Halloween last year and wore a witch hat to work and one guy had the audacity to ask me "what are you supposed to be?"

 

[Almost Human]

I'm glad that you guys feel at home even after long pauses in the forum! This is all our little space on the web and it should never feel like a chore to post here, and it should also never feel like you can't post because you took a break.
That was always my goal at least, so I'm happy if it works that way!

I've never been able to fully commit to inktober. I've always had a dumb excuse but if things get slow around December, as they tend to do, maybe I'll do it then. I mean, Halloween is the best anyway so why not inject a bit into the worst month?

Also I'm excited to give you guys a bit of a work update! I love what I'm doing, I love my crew and I think they like the stuff I'm giving them (it's always a bit hard to get a handle on how people really feel about your work when its all online) but I will say that working pure nights is harder than I thought, mostly because covid has killed a lot of the conveniences I had depended on as a night owl last year, like the 24 hour grocery store. also I've found that some of my friends are very resistant, and even a little, I dunno, offended? by my schedule change? One in particulair is not taking the shift well, constantly inisiting that I should change my hours or when he wants to hang out or chat "just get up earlier" without realizing that when I go to bed at 7am, asking me to wake up before noon is kind of like me telling people if they were REAL friends they'd accept my call at 4am and socialize with me.
I don't mean to just sound like I'm complaining, things I think are going well and I'm looking for a new place for a fresh start, it's just a bit jarring that people associate waking up after noon to be either an act of laziness or something that I'm lucky to be able to do ("I'd love to be able to sleep until 2pm, scowled my friend's roommate) and it's like, if they thought about it logically they'd see I'm not getting more sleep?
Bahaha it's a small problem and worth it to put up with to have this job, but it's just so weird.

People are strange creatures!

 

[Almost Human]

ah danngit I also spent so long complaining I forgot to tell you guys about my fave October stuff which is indulging in all things horror and catching up on what I've missed during the less spooky months.
No spoilers I promise!

The Terror: so I watched all of the first season of The Terror on Amazon Prime and while it seems to have had a bit of a modest budget when it comes to special effects I really enjoyed it. I wasn't even going to check it out because of the generic sounding name until a coworker recommended it. Turns out it's called The Terror because that's the name of the real ship involved in this fictional retelling of a very real artic exploration from the way back days.

The Man of Medan: Keeping with my accidental theme of works of fiction based of real maritime mysteries, I finally played through this game. I loved Until Dawn and was hoping that this game would live up as a sequel but dang it does not. It's short, it's buggy, it's laggy and you can tell from earlier review copies that what we have now is nowhere near as gorgeous, probably because they had to strip out a ton of textures to make the dang thing even run.
I mean, it was alright, I liked the characters, the acting was pretty good, but somehow it would have made a TON more sense if this had been their first game and Until dawn had been what they made after learning from all their mistakes. Some scenes just don't line up (two characters will be sitting by each other and talking, and then after a quick cut you'll have those same characters but one is sitting alone and the other is approaching them and greeting them). It also felt like the whole story overall was lacking.
If you've played the Uncharted games this weird disconnect will feel familiar; like the creators came up with characters and locations and THEN wrote the story to justify them moving between these sets, so there's no real natural flow, and a lot of the things the characters (especially the antagonists) do just makes zero sense.

Animal Crossing New Horizons Halloween Update: Is this cheating? Bahaha i'm completely designing my island to incoperate all the junky Halloween stuff they're offering. So far none of the items have blown me away and none are creepier than the stuff I've made myself, but it's fun nonethless.

Canadian Thanksgiving was also this weekend but since everyone is split up by covid I doubt my family will do much. I did get a really cute video from my oldest sister though of my youngest niece at the zoo gobbling back at a turkey and being its best friend, so that was pretty sweet haha.

 

[Triangle Man]

Hello everyone. You're probably wondering what I've been up to lately, given my inaction here.

The answer has been a ton of schoolwork and almost as much quiet contemplation. The schoolwork has been a mile a minute, at least somewhat in part because of the continual string of assignments we keep getting assigned. I've also made a point of trying to watch a Horror Film every Saturday Night and so far that's been a pretty good time.

By the way as a cool postscript to the ill-fated HMS Terror Expeditions, one of the ships was found thanks in part to a historian interviewing elders and collecting evidence from Inuit Oral History for 30 years. That allowed him to make an educated guess as to its location that ultimately paid off.

Also, in terms of Games, it's honstly just been 'Fall Guys' and some mobile games at this point. I've also started reading something called 'Library at Mount Char' recently and its already shaping up to be a great time.

 

[Almost Human]

OooOoo which Horror films have you watched so far?
And which mobile games?

I heard about one of the ships being found! I really wanted to find an audiobook about expedition that included details about the ships and what they've found but it seems none are out yet. I'll have to be patient I suppose but dang I wants me them details!

 

[Triangle Man]

In terms of Horror Films, as of tonight they've been 'The Curse of Willow Song', 'The Void', 'Frightmare', 'Timecrimes', and 'Let The Right One In'. In other words, a pretty electic selection for the entire month.

In terms of mobile games its Pokemon Go, solitare, and a bunch of other free stuff from the app store. Not much to add there.

That excitement is entirely understandable. A bit of web research might turn up some articles about the expedition if you're that impatient, but otherwise it may be a good idea to keep an eye out for them.