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Belated Christmas strip Thursday, December 27, 2001 • read strip Viewing 114 comments:

Philippe is guilt waiting to happen :(

Thuuugs!

Here comes a broken rib!

I don't like this strip anymore.

I can understand Lyle doing this, but Teodor! It's almost unforgivable.

I wish Ray would bust in and straighten them out.

I wish that too, but Téodor is clearly ten kinds of wasted here. This is also happening before the New Year's Resolutions strip, where he decides to take Philippe under his wing. (I think it's in the paid archive)


/then again, the characters were basically beta this early on the strip and not yet that fleshed out.

A comment left by cousinted was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by NeoNaoNeo, lux, clembot)

A comment left by tessebatt was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by straw, MrMojoRisin, reburn)

Yes?

I'm dying of suspense! What is it?

Are you dead of suspense yet? Oh... wait.

My guess is that tessebatt was wondering why NeoNaoNeo and Lux (and, eventually, clembot) lamed cousinted.

I don't even remember laming this.. Reading over the comment, I don't know why I would have. o_O

It is terrible, but it's REAL. If you were young (unless you went to private school and/or had no close relatives of comparable age) you've been a part of this scenario, punching or punched. Judging by the tone, I have to imagine Onstad was giving and not taking. There's too much guilt.

Oh man, going to private school does not rule out getting punched in the guts. Some of the older kids in our school organised the "Corridor of Death". Big kids, lining both sides of a hallway and small, fast younger kids trying to run through without getting kicked, shoved and/or having their heads cracking on the cement floor (the sound of which is terribly fucked up).

Yeah, I don't know why I added that. I never went to private school. I have no idea what goes on there.

Religion goes on there... sometimes.

This is the saddest thing.

A comment left by twohundredninety was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by wharfrat, NeoNaoNeo, jollysaintpete)

Laming a great reply is the saddest thing

The second saddest thing.
You can't call it the saddest thing without discrediting and insulting the very reply you called great.

so sad...

...awwwww...

A comment left by gethen was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by Nurdbot, NeoNaoNeo, jollysaintpete, aquamuffin)

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damnit, you're right, and you deserve every chubby you got.

we all do things that we regret. i bet teodore sits awake at night and feels crappy about this.

Breaks my heart every time I see it. Why, Onstad? Why?

This puts the tear in my beer every time.

oh god, it's like something straight out of jimmy corrigan. *cries*

Good golly is Jimmy Corrigan sad. It was one of those things where I read it in one sitting and just didn't want to talk to anybody the rest of the day.

That's how I felt about WE3.

I though WE3 had a lovely ending. The bulk of the story is nasty, but I had no idea it could end on a positive note.

I still have not read WE3 and don't ever plan to because the title is just about the dumbest fucking thing I've ever read.

Take it from a non-comic nerd; it's actually pretty excellent. Not the title, but the story itself. It's worth it to look past it.

How is the title pronounced? Is it, as I suspect, "We 3"? Or is it "W E 3"?

If it's the latter I might be able to move past the title.

You'll have to ask a comic nerd. I assume it is the former, though.

It's 'we three', as in 'the three of us'.

Excellent comic from beginning to end. I particularly loved Tinker the cat. She's probably a very accurate portrayal of what would happen if you gave a cat powered armour and weapons.

It's the former, but it's kind of justified by the fact that that's how the animals talk, and it makes sense that that's how they talk. I thought it was a wonderful comic.

I think it's pretty terrible that they are going to make a movie out of it, though. Especially since it'll presumably be marketed as "CUTE ANIMALS STORY! FROM THE DIRECTOR OF KUNG FU PANDA!" And then a bunch of seven-year-olds will go see it and be fucking traumatized .

Sadder than a broken chicken egg.

Philippe should be the first Achewood guest artist.

it's not like lyle hit him that hard, sometimes love is... tough

Philippe even seems to like it. His response is "oh boy." And then he says, "All I got you was . . ." I think the little guy is just happy to have received the attention of his super-friends.

i think that because it was a gift and Philippe is a young man with Manners, he feels he should be thankful. All the confusion the boys have just instilled in Philippe's heart and squishy little head make it even crueller, and thus Kick Ass

that was cruel as fuck.

A comment left by sabacc was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by MrMojoRisin, Vice, rhymesforkids, BillyLK, cailetshadow, whoppin, Wolfslice, Dallovich)

A comment left by benet was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by MrMojoRisin, NeoNaoNeo, Sal, howl, Tibia)

We haven't met Ray, Roast Beef or Pat yet.

Haha I came here to say that this strip is "the saddest thing" too. Good job, all.

Phillipe is such a beautiful tragedy.

A comment left by huber was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by Tinhand, ishuta, lamboyster, Nurdbot, tttt, NeoNaoNeo, Dallovich)

this strip shows the darker side of onstad's humour. While the subject matter is somewhat unfortunate (for philippe), he captures this moment perfectly.
Bonus points for character dev. on Teodor and Phillipe and yes, for being funny as hell

A comment left by deancain29 was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by NeoNaoNeo, autrepoupee, sredni, Danjoebak)

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You should've tried balancing it out a bit. For example:

I cried a bit at this. Then I ate a steak.

i cried a bit.

*rolls over and dies*

Lyle punched a 5 year old. What a BADASS.

Chubbied for avatar/text synergy

There is nothing tougher than hitting someone who can't possibly defend his or her self.

too, too cute

A comment left by cheeks_jd was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by Dezufnocosem, joeynarcotic, lux, TTAGXAMM)

Phillipe has an amazing signature.

Seriously. A five-year-old with perfect cursive writing? Impressive.

I have been here forever.

Oh man, a 5 year old otter has better handwriting than me.

Now all I can do is imagine Phillipe doing cursive in primary school, surrounded by other cute little otters gripping a pen awkwardly with a flipper, tongue poking out the side of his lips... and instead of desks all using their tummies in true Otter-stylee. Oh man... edwell, where are your photoshop skills when I need ya...

no one expects th' ol' punch in th' gut on xmas day ^5

A comment left by robobogle was marked lame too many times and excluded. (marked lame by NeoNaoNeo, rowboat, gethen)

I disagree with the unexpectedness of the Christmas punch. At least for me, it was an off and on family tradition. Never knew which year it was gonna be. I intend to pass that sentiment on to my kids. It keeps you on your toes. Also, tiger punching otters.. that's just the food chain in action, man... its natural.

Aah, christmas.

THIS is why Teodor couldn't get into heaven.

I love how delightfully evil Teodor looks in this strip. He's smiling like his cheeks are beginning to hurt due to all the holiday cheer he's ingested.

I'm glad other people find this strip pas unbearably harsh as I do. I always figured I just wasn't hard enough to deal with Philippe getting hit in the gut for Christmas.

Oh... oh god. Oh, that's so upsetting.

Lyle oughta not done that. Phillippe was just a boy. Mm-Hmm.

i dunno what yall are talking about. child abuse is always funny.

i just cried

Hey thats just how you become a man, my brother would do much worst on holidays. And just look at me now... *starts to cry*

hahaha

So sad.

this makes me want to cry

Lyle you dirty son of a bitch.

Lie Bot, what is the saddest thing? This strip is the saddest thing.

5'd for the almost unbearable sadness of this strip.

This strip makes me too sad.

Bullies rule!

Just looking at his handwriting, god I want to cry again. Philippe really deserves his huugs.

Do you think child abuse is rad?

I still can't get over it.

Onstad has many of these strips, touting the dangers of alcohol, interpersonal relationships, and holidays...

Cut the guys some slack, they're drunk for chrissakes

God bless us all, everyone!


The film "How to weep the weepy weep weep way" is just this comic, on-screen for 120 minutes. If you don't know how to cry by the end of it, you are a tear-ductless Klingon.

Did anyone else notice Téodor doing a hell of good Sean Connery impression in the first frame?

Notice that Mr Bear is not involved in such low shenanigans.

It's true because it's funny. No, wait.

This strip is possibly the definition of bittersweet. In certain modern dictionaries, the word itself follows its definition with a hyperlink to this strip.

It is becoming apparent at this point that without the dirtiest dudes in town this strip may have just basically fizzled out. Don't be tryin' to play like you disagree!

Oh dear, poor little Philippe... ;( I hope Teodore and Lyle's guilt are more painful than their punches to Philippe!

This is the saddest thing.

Really , it is so !

hahahaha

what a good comic!

This is wrong.

I find this strip to be viscerally satisfying for reasons I cannot explain and indeed do not fully understand.

Here I stand; I can do no other. God help me. Amen.

I have a feeling that this strip might be an excellent one to use for screening new friends:

- If you show it to someone and they simply look at you as though you had just sneezed in their grandmother's ear, don't waste any more of your time.

- If you show it to someone and they just laugh and laugh and keep laughing, a diabolical glint in their eye which speaks of a dark past, you may want to excuse yourself to use the restroom but then duck out the window, being sure to slash their tires so as to forestall pursuit.

- If, on the other hand, you show it to someone and they chortle heartily but immediately feel completely terrible about it , well sir, say hello to your Super-Friend!

If you show it someone and they

...the fuck is my problem?

SHIT

i think you are my new Assetbar friend.

Man, if I knew I could make friends just by totally fucking up, I'd be, like, a guy with millions of friends by now.

You totally fucked up? Maybe ju an' me are amigos!

Hee!

Haa!

Hoo!

It just isn't the same without Ray and Roast Beef :(

My eyes have tears in them now.