I hate tumblr’s idea of ‘problematic’ characters so much.
An example of a problematic character would be a stock character of a marginalized group that’s reduced to a conglomeration of stereotypes that have a harmful effect on people from that group in the real world.
A problematic character is not a developed character with developed flaws and belief systems that people irl happen to be at odds with. It is not a character that interacts with other characters in ways that hurt them within the narrative. That’s what a story is. That’s what creating characters means. Developing a fleshed-out fictional person to serve a function within one’s narrative.
And characters that are solely mouthpieces for the creator’s own moral views and belief systems, regardless of what those views are, are bad characters, and make bad stories.
Sum moar older comishes collecting dust. For kuriiiboh@tumblr. I have a serious soft spot for getting to re-interpret/design armor. Seriously, I have a problem.
By Crom! is Rachel Kahn’s joke-a-panel autobiographical comic featuring life advice and spiritual guidance from Conan the Barbarian. It ran from January 2012 until May 2014, and is collected in two books, The Collected By Crom! and Full Colour Cromulence. You can read the complete archives on WealdComics.com, and grab the books in PDF. There are original comics available in Rachel’s BigCartel store and both comic prints and By Crom! shirts are available in her Society6 store.
Stay tuned to wealdcomics.tumblr.com for news on convention appearances, merch sales and the possibility of a reprint of the two books.
The story of Hot Cheetos is oddly appropriate, given their legendary and often controversial status in the snack world.
Richard Montanez was working as a janitor in 1976 at the CA Frito-Lay factory. One night, one of the production machines broke down, leaving a batch of Cheetos with out any of the cheese flavoring on them. Richard decided rather than waste them, he took some home to his family, and experimented on the popular snack. He tried dousing them in chili powder, and stated “they tasted so good!”. Richard continued experimenting with his home recipe, and shared the creation with his friends, family and coworkers. He eventually got the guts to pitch his idea to corporate, which the CEO welcomed. Richard didn’t even own a tie, so he bought one and checked out a book on marketing from the library to help prepare his presentation. The CEO loved the idea and hence the “Flamin’ Hot” line of products was born. Richard didn’t have a high school diploma and barely spoke English, and now he’s a powerful executive who flies in corporate jets and meets with US presidents. He likes to refer to his “PhD” in life as a “poor hungry and determined” attitude which motivated him to his overnight success. “My disqualifications are the very things that qualified me.”, he says. And thanks to him and his outside the box thinking, we have the most delicious laxative on the planet.
