Episode 641 - Bodycast
Jun 26, 2023
Injuries, especially to the head can be extremely bad but people are hit over the bonce and knocked out in popculture all the time. In violent sports like boxing or MMA it's often a goal, it's a common thing in games too, the “KO” is a staple. In TV shows, movies and comics it's seen as a kind way to deal with an enemy, people will even do it to their very best friends to protect them from going through with some scary activity, often knocking them out and tying them up and then taking their place or something. Knocking people out has become so memed that the fantasy version has replaced the real version and it's even influenced how we think about it.
Topics and Show Notes
We do the same thing with spies (no spy mission is ever like James bond, Mission Impossible, Kingsman or Archer, which actually tackles the knockout meme realistically), the concept of losing one's virginity (no, “popping a cherry” in not a thing, hymens do not need to be broken), Ninjas (nothing at all like popculture), and the idea that anyone would ever wear a giant sword on their back to go into battle (no one ever did that because it's impossible to use).
The reality is that loss of consciousness caused by sudden force to the head is incredibly dangerous and can lead to brain damage and even death. Even “putting someone to sleep” using a sleeper hold, a pill, injection, or gas is dangerous and not to be taken lightly, unlike the moronic idea we have of its safety from pop culture.
The inspiration for this cast was my own experience with unconsciousness due to a riding accident I had last week where I fell off an cantering horse, was knocked out and then had amnesia till I came back to full awareness some time later with no memory of the incident. So we're chatting about injuries in webcomics and pop culture and how the handling of them is different from reality. i.e all those times people get shot harmlessly or dig out bullets from their shoulders… (doctors will often leave bullets inside a person and not dig them out unless there's a safety issue).
What stupid pop culture versions of injuries are you aware of or have you used yourself?
This week Gunwallace has given us a theme inspired by Conscripted - Wiry electric guitar burns into the hot desert sands with this metal meta version of the classic “Arabian Riff” (also known as “The Streets of Cairo”, “The Poor Little Country Maid”, and “the snake charmer song”). A very interesting tune popularised in the late 19th century by American Sol Bloom and has since become the characteristic sound of the middle east in pop culture. Gunwallace’s version for Conscripted is heavy, fiery and strong.
This is Gunwallace’s second take on Conscripted, the first was a more calm and contemplative piece in Quackcast 545.
Topics and shownotes
Links
Featured comic:
The sagas of Seelhoe - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/news/2023/jun/20/featured-comic-the-sagas-of-seelhoe/
Featured music:
Conscripted - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/Conscripted/ - by Dragonsong12, rated E.
Special thanks to:
Gunwallace - http://www.virtuallycomics.com
Ozoneocean - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/ozoneocean
Tantz Aerine - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/Tantz_Aerine/
Banes - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/Banes/
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Episode 640 - Aliens
Jun 19, 2023
We base our images of aliens in comics on aliens in TV shows and movies mostly, because those are the ones we all know. But movie aliens have been generally based on humans because it's less expensive, easier to come up with a costume and makeup for an actor, and it's also easier to make those aliens relatable. “Aliens” even THINK the same as we do, have the same motivations, wants, needs, prejudices, opinions… Almost 100% of the time aliens in media are US, just a weird version of us: distorted reflection.
Episode 630 - Entitled
Apr 10, 2023
The Quackcast this week is about entitled bossy Karens. In fact it was originally going to BE “the Karencast” but the whole “Karen” thing is a bit sexist and pejorative. So why a Quackcast on overly entitled people then? Well aside from we stealing it from Tantz's newspost on Friday, those kinds of people make great minor villain characters. They can be comic relief baddies but they can also be deceptively dangerous when they really DO have connections to back up their arrogance!
Episode 621 - Live Laugh Love
Feb 6, 2023
Toxic positivity can take all sorts of forms, but I think it's most easily recognised by someone telling you to be happy about something when you just don't feel it. It's a really odd, nasty, weird feeling when a person tells you you're basically not allowed to be grumpy or even neutral, you MUST be happy. How many times have we all been told to “smile” by someone?
Episode 620 - losers are human too
Jan 30, 2023
My idea was to talk about social pariah characters, people who it's socially acceptable to laugh at, despise, or even hate. They can be the uncool people, the dorks, the dags, the idiots, the overweight, the ugly, the old, the out of touch, the over the hill… On the extreme end they could be monsters and criminals. Generally they're written pretty two dimensionally as a collection of cliches, but when the writing goes beyond that to lend them humanity is when it goes to the next level.
Episode 618 - The grass is always Greener
Jan 15, 2023
The Saying goes that The Grass is Always Greener on the Other Side of the Fence. Envy and jealously are destructive, negative feelings that either lead to bad outcomes or just make you feel pretty crappy. It especially affects creators! We get down about our artwork, our writing, the popularity of someone else's comic etc and we wish WE were as good as them and wonder why we aren't… maybe we're just not as good? If we could only just have their talent, their luck, their skill then WE'D be awesome too. it's just not fair…
Episode 615 - Happy Christmas!
Dec 26, 2022
Happy Life Day! Hahaha! Merry Christmas for 2 days ago… This week we're talking about the “Christmas specials” that populate entertainment media this time of year. No particular reason for it, it's just because it's seasonal! It's not always Christmas focused there are the occasionally hanukkah things as well, and in the northern hemisphere this is the season for traditional winter festivals afterall.
Episode 605 - Myth of Freedom
Oct 17, 2022
“Freedom” is the catch cry in so much historical fiction but it's usually an anachronistic piece of nationalist fantasy. You fought for your lord, for pay, your honour, your small region, etc, not for “Scotland” (i.e. Bravehert). Even today it's generally propaganda: e.g. The Invasion of Iraq being called “Operation Iraqi Freedom” and Russia's invasion of Ukraine being all about “freeing” the Russian speaking areas from “oppression”. We alter historical stories to fit with contemporary ideas about ourselves and to give us some form of foundation for our prejudices, motivations and identity. Good examples are the Arthurian legends, Gladiator, Braveheart, The Patriot, Robin Hood, The stories about Christopher Columbus, The 300, and The Woman King.
