homestuck-in-the-20s

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

About the Hiatus,

To all 0 of you watching:

Blog NOT dead!!!

Came down with carpal tunnel around finals so I have no way to work on this kind of high-wordcount essay style activity. It will return when I heal

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

Connecting my Creative Writing Class to Homestuck,

as I am putting homestuck under collegiate scrutiny.

One thing that strikes me about Homestuck is the... feeling of clarity when it comes to authorial intent. I feel like this is an abstract concept to describe unless you compare it to something that seems to have less of a clear creative identity- the first thing that comes to mind is 13 Reasons Why (TV show, as I hear the book is practically a different genre) , a show which seems to have had a series of misguided creative decisions and no genuine sense of identity behind it.

Homestuck is full of extremely vivid character, which is something that feels quite lacking in a somewhat monotonous media landscape.

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

Task Update

Have decided to pump the breaks on linear progression as to reading of Homestuck, rather I will be posting a series of reflections over the first act and the little bit of act 2 that I've read. I will provide the kind of analysis that comes from letting new information settle a little in the mind. Stay tuned!

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

@the penpaling community

Y'all seen/wanna talk about the penpals segment of the film The Red Violin?

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Rose Lalonde being a Rough Reminder

Among other things, not to put off your projects too long. Alas, Rose, with her handsewn octopus and no-doubt loving, poetic, and eloquent letter- a letter with the emotions of a childhood friend- yet one never seen in the flesh, missed sending poor John his present, not before the fateful 4/13.

Remember to reply to your penpals, pals- they are expecting you.

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Why I'm not interacting with the greater tumblr-space as of yet-

Mostly trauma, I think. I have some kind of deeply-rooted issue around social media.

I think part of it is that so much of the art that comes from the homestuck fandom is deeply interpretive. I want to keep my perspective vanilla as of yet.

Again, I have some kind of issue. When reading the work myself and producing my own content around it, I feel more in control of what I'm ingesting rather than when I see the themes that others present.

The dissociation is part of it, half of me is repulsed with Homestuck, another segment bitterly hating it. I don't wish to be a black powder fan, so I'll keep my distance. Here is my own nook I shan't exit.

Although I'm making these posts with the voice and hypothetical that they might be viewed, this is almost a rhetorical device, even a mnemonic device.

Blowfly girl is quite remarkable, in her manner of anonymity. I would rather emulate that- in a less depraved sort of extreme.

Well, anyway, for the only one out there who cares- This is an aspect of the emotional defect I'm working through and my sort of internal methodology.

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Dave's computer setup is so fucking 2000's otaku

Absolutely outrageous. Looks like something in the apartment of a akihabara-dwelling man who saved his deodorant money for a flatscreen CRT.

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Feel free to ask any questions! (about homestuck)

If you want a specific page to be looked at, send me the homestuck app thingie URL, I'll absolutely give my hot take if I've already read it or when I get to that point. If you have a question or argument to one of my takes, bring it forth! Ur arguments gotta be credible tho, I respect citations.

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Putting a modicum of actual legwork into making sure that my citations are consistent and easy to verify. mlapilled

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Aw, look how cute, John adopting Dave's linguistic style.

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Homestuck act 2, reading day 1

/homestuck/249 When you're trying to fudge your wordcount for an essay yet paradoxically *still* feel like getting an A is somehow in the cards. It won't work.

I had an online friend once who had a very similar texting voice to Rose, I suppose becoming overly occupied in the eldritch and occult does that to ya.

/homestuck/251 I do recall a black and white motif being very prominent throughout work. In another aspect of my studies, Daoism has been a present string. This is a lens I would be very interested in perusing. Also, now that we're stepping into the post-apocolypse mystery portion of the novel, I must say I'm intrigued by the setup.

/homestuck/253 Earmark as the first "game" segment. Someone other than hussie programmed this. Shouts into the void with these questions- 1. What was Hussie's collaboration process like? 2. What was it like to work with him?

Concepts: As a Pagliacci enjoyer, I wonder if the historical operatic/history of clowing perspective could apply to the usage of harlequin to this work. What can we ask of the second-point perspective?

Big theme: Intergeneratonal Junk -John's dad, Serious Business forum. His online friends worry about him too. /homestuck/267

WAYWARD VAGABOND SPOTTING!!!! I remember I was particularly fond of him out of all the tertiary characters. Does the phrase "tertiary character" even apply to this work? /homestuck/271

The setting of a group of barely-teenagers trying to save themselves while witnessing a storm of meteors destroy their planet is Very intense.

Dave is so baby, trying so hard to be like his big brother, trying on a persona he doesn't quite fit with. Very tweens.

This post is done. Tired of reading. See you in a few days when it's weed time. Got as far as /homestuck/325.

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

Homestuck and Intellectual Masturbation

-A series of personal and analytical essays.

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

Ok Buddy Boys- Time For Today's Dose of Homestuck.

For the One of you who is following my blog (<3 ily bestie) I will now commence with the homstuckery. If memory serves, act 2 is a deal longer than 1, so I'll only be working with the material I get to today.

Stay tuned! I'll be writing a run-down of act 2 when I get around to finishing it.

This time, for the document about my immediate thoughts and impressions, I'll edit each time and just keep the document published live.

Welp, let's get rolling! (t)rolling, even.

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

ACT 1 OVERVIEW:

This will be split into sections- Summary , analysis, feelings. Summary- On his 13th birthday, an anxiously anticipated mysterious video game is finally delivered to John Egbert, however the process of playing it isn't so simple. He must contend with the simple struggles of cohabitation with a parent and the odd physics of his universe. With an internet friend, a girl named Rose Lalonde, he begins to play the game Sburb, a game that alters the very universe. Analysis- Hussie begins this adventure with the usage of a fairly basic format, choose-your-own-adventure styled text beneath an image. He quickly subverts expectations of random humor and lack of forethought one might envision from such a topic, especially one exceedingly involved with internet culture and meta humor. There is a childishness to the writing, of course, but keep in mind the protagonists of this story are, as of now, only 13. In many ways, the demographic of Homestuck was young teenagers. In my recollection, the comedic stylings of these characters in many ways ring very true. Hussie is able to establish novel worldbuilding elements cleverly and in a way that feels threaded together with the plot of the story. Hussie's ability to characterize his protagonists through their voice alone is nothing to be scoffed at.

Thematically, everything is in it's very beginning so I don't have much to say on this matter as of now. I know the symbol of an apple, the biting of which starts the game, is something that comes around later. Through the grapevine, I heard this choice was quite controversial. I wonder if the fact that the story begins with such a biblical allusion is taken note of when criticizing the ending.

One thing I did find particularly interesting is Hussie's use of foreshadowing. I know that at least for the beginning of the epic, the choose your own adventure aspect of the work was quite literal with forum participation. The way the story unfolds, it makes me wonder what has been pre-planned from the beginning and what elements are clever reincorporation? This might be something to keep an eye out as the blog progresses.

The inciting incident of Homestuck as a whole, the meteor, appears only on the final page of act I. feelings- I was surprised at how many emotions reading this through caused in me. The amount of time I spent invested in homestuck as a child is unbelievable, but I've compartmentalized so much of my life around media. I felt deeply uncomfortable during some points, but almost cathartic. I found it a rather taxing read- not for the usual of length, density, or convolutedness often attributed to homestuck, in fact I found it rather jaunty- because of the way it gestured towards emotions of my past that I would rather forget. The reason I made this blog is to help me muscle through it. This text will likely continue to be taxing.

This is it for now. See you on the next reading session. Goodbye!

[homestuck-in-the-20s]

Act 1 personal thoughts:

Ugh, first sentence of page 8 and I'm already seeing the way that this impacted my sense of humor.

The Mere Mention of John's Father fills me with a smack of sadness, but I've forgotten why.

Pesterlog blinks, feels the PTSD surge up and down my spine.

^I have a male friendship like this.

^A well laid plan can almost feel like prophecy

/homestuck/77, haunting piano refrain. The feeling evoked in this song, the beginning but my second time, is indeed haunting.

/homestuck/82, the Homestuck clouds are an iconic motif visual style in this webnovel, and we are seeing the sun here for the first time out of many.

/homestuck/89 Harlequin is SUCH an iconic song.

There's a lot of programming humor in this that's going Straight over my head

END OF ACT ONE: I feel like later down the line, the fandom became rather upset about the whole apple symbolism, however it's present even here

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John Egbert :handshake: Katya Zamolodichova

Being fans of the movie Contact

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Immediate impression:

Every frame a painting- the first shot tells you much about a movie.

I am only a few pages in. Hussie immediately defines himself from the presupposition of a comedic choose-your-own-adventure narrative with a tone of internet humor, displaying a world with unusual and vast consideration to it's metaphysical reality.

Not only, it is well planned and has elements of a cleverly-implemented tutorial.

During the Hiatus, within my own life, I turned to philosophy and metaphysics- it simply grew to intrigue me and fill the intellectual void once occupied by the 'stuck.