443 + 50%...

[jsager1015]

Well, I've been wondering if it was going to be 665 for awhile now... around the time that we hit 600 without Roy getting rezzed, I realized that he'd been dead for almost a third of the strip's length.

443 + 50% = 443 + 221.5 = 664.5, rounded up for fun = Strip #665.

I don't know if it was Mr. Burlew's plan from the get-go, but it's quite a bold undertaking to kill off your primary protagonist in a comic strip and say "I will write half again as many strips as I've written since I've started this thing before I bring him back to life".

And regardless, I don't think it's a coincidence.

Finally, sorry if this math observation was on another thread somewhere and I missed it.

[Cracklord]

It's all a conspiracy...
The truth is out there!

[Forbiddenwar]

Well, I've been wondering if it was going to be 665 for awhile now... around the time that we hit 600 without Roy getting rezzed, I realized that he'd been dead for almost a third of the strip's length.

443 + 50% = 443 + 221.5 = 664.5, rounded up for fun = Strip #665.

I don't know if it was Mr. Burlew's plan from the get-go, but it's quite a bold undertaking to kill off your primary protagonist in a comic strip and say "I will write half again as many strips as I've written since I've started this thing before I bring him back to life".

And regardless, I don't think it's a coincidence.

Finally, sorry if this math observation was on another thread somewhere and I missed it.
it's in the primary 665 thread here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=6366680#post6366680). godot and ceasar have been mentioned as well, as title characters with far less screen time.

[factotum]

Rich has said in some of the book commentaries that the strip tends to overrun, so I seriously doubt that he had it nailed so precisely that he could get Roy back up in exactly 222 strips. Besides, if he COULD do it so precisely, why not use something a bit more evocative, like 666 or 700?

[EyethatBinds]

That's because Roy wields a greatsword, which is your strength times 1.5 in damage, but you round down for that.

[David Demola]

Rich has said in some of the book commentaries that the strip tends to overrun, so I seriously doubt that he had it nailed so precisely that he could get Roy back up in exactly 222 strips. Besides, if he COULD do it so precisely, why not use something a bit more evocative, like 666 or 700?

Because 666 isn't even the number of the beast? It's 616, I'll have you know.

As a sidenote...I hadn't noticed that Roy had been dead for so long! It didn't feel like 1/3 of the plot thus far had gone by without our favorite protagonist at the forefront!

~Dave

[NerfTW]

And regardless, I don't think it's a coincidence.



If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, buddy, it ain't a pony.

[Totally Guy]

I think Haley's aphasia lasted for about 1/3 of the existing strip too.

When it was reforged Roy's sword had been broken for about half of the strip.

That's worrisome because it means that if Durkon was to be transformed into a mountain goat somehow next strip we'd probably not see him again until Strip 1000.:smalltongue:

[Linkavitch]

Nice catch.:smallamused: I prefer to think that all the coincidences in this comic were thought of by Mr. Burlew just to mess with us.

[The Blackbird]

I think Haley's aphasia lasted for about 1/3 of the existing strip too.

When it was reforged Roy's sword had been broken for about half of the strip.

That's worrisome because it means that if Durkon was to be transformed into a mountain goat somehow next strip we'd probably not see him again until Strip 1000.:smalltongue:

I know your joking but still, V was turned into a lizard for only about 10 strips.

[David Argall]

Our writer tends to overdo things like this. He has admitted that Haley should not have had her speech problems nearly as long as she did. Dead Roy seems to be the same problem. An entire book with Roy only returning at the end is an idea that sounds good, until you are about half way thru it and everybody is getting bored with it.

And so we reach the end and can only say "It's about time."

[Holammer]

The human ability to recognize patterns is truly remarkable.
Even if such was the case, why would Rich plan it as such? To herald the coming the dark one that shall bringeth death and pestilence upon the unsuspecting Playgrounders? :smallwink:

[TheYoungKing]

David, I didn't mind Roy in the afterlife and don't think it was "overdone". It allowed a lot to happen, and allowed a lot of character development in the OoTS.

[lothos]

If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, buddy, it ain't a pony.

It could be a pony that's been polymorphed in to a duck.

Or it could be a dreaded ponyduck (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0322.html).

Or it could be a pony inflicted with lycanthropy as a were-duck that quacks at the full moon. Though since ducks don't usually have teeth, it might be hard for a were-duck to infect others with it's condition....

[someonenonotyou]

It could be a pony that's been polymorphed in to a duck.

Or it could be a dreaded ponyduck (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0322.html).

Or it could be a pony inflicted with lycanthropy as a were-duck that quacks at the full moon. Though since ducks don't usually have teeth, it might be hard for a were-duck to infect others with it's condition....

you forgot a pony in duck suit:smallwink:

[Xesirin]

It could be a pony that's been polymorphed in to a duck.

Or it could be a dreaded ponyduck (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0322.html).

Or it could be a pony inflicted with lycanthropy as a were-duck that quacks at the full moon. Though since ducks don't usually have teeth, it might be hard for a were-duck to infect others with it's condition....

Darn it, got stuck reading back comics after that post. :smallannoyed:

I'm lucky, though. I started reading OotS when it was at 589, so for me, Roy hasn't been dead nearly that long. On the other hand, it's not terrible, in my opinion. The amounts of Character development that they went through while he was dead made it worthwhile.

It's like they say, "You can't fry an egg without killing someone...." .......... wait........... I don't think that's correct.............. :smallbiggrin:

[Babale]

@Xesirin: The quote is, "You can't make an omelet without permanently deafening someone." (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0138.html)

[chiasaur11]

The human ability to recognize patterns is truly remarkable.
Even if such was the case, why would Rich plan it as such? To herald the coming the dark one that shall bringeth death and pestilence upon the unsuspecting Playgrounders? :smallwink:

We already have Miko threads.

[Babale]

Actually, Miko threads are a dying breed, thanks in part to the efforts of the MTFA (Miko-Thread Free Association) who have courageously hunted down and imprisoned Miko thread posters.

[werik]

it's in the primary 665 thread here. godot and ceasar have been mentioned as well, as title characters with far less screen time.

I'm still waiting for Godot to show up.


Our writer tends to overdo things like this. He has admitted that Haley should not have had her speech problems nearly as long as she did. Dead Roy seems to be the same problem. An entire book with Roy only returning at the end is an idea that sounds good, until you are about half way thru it and everybody is getting bored with it.

And so we reach the end and can only say "It's about time."

I have to say that Roy is one of my favorite characters in the strip and one of the essential reasons that I love OOTS so much, but I wasn't bothered at all by the fact that he was dead for so long. I think it helped the other members of the Order do their own stuff and work on (and create) their own problems. It helped simplify and complicated the characters in amazing ways. Furthermore, it's a wonderful demonstration of how death even in the OOTS/D&D world can be permanent or at least a major setback. Being a DM, if a character would die I would just tell the party they could get the character resurrected easily in the next town. I feel this book has added a great deal of depth and verisimilitude to the whole process and has changed the way I consider resurrections in my games.

I do understand that it can feel like it drags over the month long process of a story arc as a webcomic, but I think the effect in the strips as a whole and as graphic novels is very well done. By the same token, I was not bothered by Haley's aphasia and felt it was masterfully treated as well.

[chiasaur11]

I'm still waiting for Godot to show up.




It's totally worth it. Godot came one time, like a year late, and to make up for it killed 8 ninja dinosaurs with his bare hands.

[lothos]

Darn it, got stuck reading back comics after that post. :smallannoyed:

Bwaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha !!!!
My evil plan worked.

I only started reading OOTS with strip 536 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0536.html), the Gary Gygax tribute. So I was really confused about Roy being dead when I saw that strip. I didn't have a clue who this guy on the cloud was, or the small sphere of yellow light. I guessed it might be a lantern archon, from when I used to play 1st Edition AD&D, but I wasn't sure if the whole comic strip was people walking about on clouds, waiting for famous people to show up.

It wasn't until I went back and read the previous strips that I realised how long Roy had been dead.