[2014-1-21] Wherein Zach steals jokes from other comics

[Tom]

I can't work out how to edit my last post, because I'm some kind of idiot, but two corrections.

1) The fourth sentence of the third paragraph should read:

You can't copyright a joke, but you can hope that people will be decent enough to credit you if they retell it.

2) XKCD should be written as xkcd on both occasions.

[Kimra]

Dude I didn't even read your post, why would I read the corrections? Also being "Logged In" might help with the editing? Maybe? Just a thought.

[Lethal Interjection]

Dude I didn't even read your post, why would I read the corrections? Also being "Logged In" might help with the editing? Maybe? Just a thought.

Also, how pedantic are you that you still feel the need to edit such stupid things?

[Kimra]

I don't know, considering the time it must have taken to write up that entire slog of words, maybe it's good to value what you've done?

[Tom]

Also, how pedantic are you that you still feel the need to edit such stupid things?

The first was because what I had originally said made literally no sense, the second was only really a joke. In my very limited experience on internet discussions, it tends to be minuscule mistakes like that that get seized on in order to avoid engaging with what actually gets said; it's novel to have the attempt to correct them used in the same way.

Kimra, I'm too lazy to sign up if I can just type Kelly when I want to say something. This actually works fairly well for me, since every third word I type anyway is 'Kelly', and I normally have to go back and delete them all. Also, I like 'slog' as a collective noun for a group words.

Anyway, I'll shut up now I guess, since this obviously isn't really going down well.

[Kimra]

You complimented my vocabulary choice. I like you. I'm still not reading an essay though.

[Hobbes]

You guys are (I am ignorant and should be dragged into the street and shot in the mouth.).

What is with this arguing of semantics and shit.

Also there is no such thing as an original thought.

Lastly, fuck you for semantically forming an argument against that last statement.

[GUTCHUCKER]

[Strawdog]

I like jokes?

[Edminster]

I like jokes?

you are wrong to! and furthermore,

[I dunno maybe william or something.]

If you think that's bad, look at all magic ever. It's all "how did that thing get over there?" Or "how did that thing get swapped with another thing?" Totally unoriginal. And I bet if I knew how they did it, that would turn out to be the same too. Except spoon-bending: that's done by psychic power.

[BrotherAlpha]

They are the same exact thing with "happiness" swapped out for "intelligence." They are the same exact comic.

They are not even close. One is a joke about choosing between happiness and intelligence and the other is about becoming smarter without a second option. The one comic, the person because smart enough to realize the only way to be happy was to chose the green pill. In the other, the person only became smart enough to realize they should have studied. The only similarity is being given a magical boon and realizing you made a mistake. If that's a close enough similarity to be stealing, then most comics steal from ever Wish-Granter story ever made.

[DayumShame]

Let's just put the "Good cop, bad cop, X cop" issue to rest. If anyone took it from anyone, they both took it from Black Books as they did it first back in 2000.

And now you're realizing how stupid this whole debate is.

[Tom]

I'm a giant fan of Black Books, and I love that episode.

I still don't think that this is ridiculous to point out that there is an earlier existing comic, drawn by someone who Zach has worked with, that is basically the same. I REALLY object to this idea that there is no such thing as originality in art/humour, and therefore it doesn't matter if something is copied. If that's the case then why is anyone here? If there is genuinely nothing original in all of this, then what's the point of SMBC at all.

Again, for like the 5th time, I am NOT trying to take Zach to task for this.

Finally, I meant to post this up before, but for anyone who doesn't know what I mean when I talk about these two artists having a working relationship: https://xkcd.com/826/

Let's just put the "Good cop, bad cop, X cop" issue to rest. If anyone took it from anyone, they both took it from Black Books as they did it first back in 2000.

And now you're realizing how stupid this whole debate is.

[Kimra]

Is this still going? It feels like this is all the lcd treads are about.