Zen Dating

[Credendo]

Oh lord this is going to be the story of my dating life right? Minimalist dating....

Yeah that sounds about right.....

[Wikkit]

I like the art style. You're good at showing a range of styles, Scott.

[Jim Jarrett]

This has always been one of my favorite art styles. Minimalist, but with a very organic, colorful feel. I wish I could draw.

[Greg Stephens]

I wish I could draw.

At the risk of sounding like a slogan: Just do it! Paper and pencil are all it takes and in order to draw well enough to please yourself, the only thing to add is some practice.

[MSUSpar10]

The only thing wrong with minimalist art style is that's it's sometimes difficult to tell what is going on. I sure hope those are supposed to be flowers in the second panel, otherwise we may be treading into something worse than geometric shapes reproducing!

[Craig J. Quack]

Sometimes I wonder about the merits of instant, public feedback. When Scott started his Morning Improv experiment, it was fun to watch each comic develop at its own pace. If something didn't make sense right away, usually all you had to do was wait around for a couple days and he would add enough panels that things would be clearer.

Now, starting with The Parallelogram's Revenge (and, to a lesser extent, Uninformed Bob), people have been jumping in after a panel or two and saying, "I don't get it!" I, for one, think we should let Scott have at least a few days to develop each new comic before chiming in with comments, especially of the "What's going on?" variety.

The reason I say this now is because I think Zen Dating has definite potential -- just the title alone is great -- so I would hate for its growth to be stunted in any way.

[Greg Stephens]

Alternatively, Scott could choose to steer clear of the "Zen Dating" topics for a couple days if he felt the instant feedback was influencing him in a way he didn't like.

[Christopher Lundgren]

I'd imagine that Scott has his concept pretty much worked out in his head already. I doubt that any influence this board has on the strips is really all that major and, for the most part, is probably for the better. Still if it were me, I think I'd resist the temptation to view readers' comments until I'd made some good progress.

Of course I could be wrong. Maybe even he doesn't know where he's going until he gets there. With comics that are so short though, this seems unlikely.

[Scott McCloud]

I usually have a general idea of the approach and have fun working out the "stories" as I go.

I always read the comments posted here, btw. They're enjoyable and enlightening -- and you help me catch typos! Thanks for stopping by.

[Guest]

Wow, do I hate the ads for the LA times. They always feature the most boring behind-the-scenes stuff. The worst ad was the one from last summer that was like a "random facts about popcorn" commercial. No one in the commercial actually paid for their popcorn. OK, I'm done venting.

[matt miller]

When I first saw the new title, and the first few panels, I was sure this was going to be about a new age women, saying stuff like those flowers clash with my feng shui, or your hair style is sending out negative vibes, untill the guy got so annoyed he left(sorry about that run-on sentence). But(don't nag on my grammer) now, after a few more frames it's starting to resemble a korny romance shogun(manga for girls) ,but after seeing his other stuff, i'm sure there's a reason,and I'll end up kicking myself for typing that . keep up the good work scott!!

[alschroeder]

After this, will there be one on Zen Marriage? (I think I know a few couples who have zen marriages....) Or an old man, recollecting back on his life, thinking,
"That was Zen, this is now..."
Sorry. Couldn't resist.---Al

[Greg Stephens]

Wow, do I hate the ads for the LA times. ... The worst ad was the one from last summer that was like a "random facts about popcorn" commercial.

Since that particular spot showed a man dressed as a popcorn kernel about to pop, I always found it extremely derivative of the bit in "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (* But Were Afraid to Ask)" where Woody Allen's dressed up as a human sperm.

For those who don't know, commercial spots advertising the Los Angeles Times' Calendar (entertainment) section have been running in movie theatres in the L.A. County area (perhaps surrounding counties as well) since at least the mid-90s and seem to generally run somewhere between one to two minutes in length. Each one shows some behind-the-scenes aspect of movie-making (bullet-time photography, stuntmen leaping from an exploding building, motion-capture for 3D animation, different type of motion-picture cameras, etc.) and are generally entertaining if seen, say, once or twice. The problem is that you never just see a particular one once or twice, because each one has been running for years. A couple of the older ones seems to have cycled out, but the current crop has been playing for quite some time. As commercials go, they're not bad, but familiarity breeds contempt, not to mention resentment, loathing, boredom, and just general "I'm sick of this!"-edness.

But they're better than that thing I kept seeing in London where the guy would be sitting at the pub and a car chase would happen on the bar in front of him and I don't even remember what that was for but, boy, I sure got sick of that fast.

[Rip Tanion]

Are we going to find out what movie they're going to see, tomorrow?

In keeping with the theme is it a Kung Fu flick, or just you're typical sappy date movie?

Or did they get a sneak preiview for Spiderman?

[Doc Shinryuu]

... a bit odd so far, but that's a good thing. I think it's going to come out all the funnier

[Guest]

I really like the oddness of some of these strips--especially Parallelogram's Revenge and the Flagella one and now Zen Dating. No, I may not understand what's going on immediately, but really, that's a good thing. I'd hate for Scott to start churning out mainstream-oriented cookie-cutter crap that the world doesn't need more of in the name of being understood.

The playful ambiguity of Scott's work is one of the things that draw me to the world of comics, especially online ones. I'm not by any means 'into' comics, but there is a level of Art (with a capital A) in being incomprehensible that I had only previously seen in the comics world in graphic novels I wasn't able to afford. I guess if anything I will commend Scott for taking risks and finding new audiences.

[Guest]

The next panels are a few minutes away. I can't wait to see what he does next!!!!! I just hope he does'nt follow his "death pattern" with this strip !!!

[Rip Tanion]

Are we going to find out what movie they're going to see, tomorrow?

In keeping with the theme is it a Kung Fu flick, or just you're typical sappy date movie?

Or did they get a sneak preiview for Spiderman?

So, our mad genius has thrown us an unexpected plot twist.

OK, this time I'm not guessing what video they're gonna pop into the machine. This time I'm guessing they forgo the video because of the long lines, and play Parcheesi instead.

[Jack Masters]

I'm betting they end up watching Killer Klowns from Outer Space.

[losttoy]

Wow! I really like Zen Dating! It's beautiful, with very disciplined pace. Way to go Scott on this one.

Eagerly waiting for more ...
-David Ano

[Nick Douglas]

I'm loving this, Scott. It's just so cool (for lack of something articulate on my part). Looks like a fun one.

[Chris Wright]

At the risk of sounding like a slogan: Just do it! Paper and pencil are all it takes and in order to draw well enough to please yourself, the only thing to add is some practice.

I can't draw nearly well enough to please myself. Well, actually, I feel a sense of accomplishment at recognizability....

Still, I would like to be able to draw a comic, though that would be a wholly unrealistic goal. I could do it, but I would never be happy with it.

Gareis

[aeron]

it looks like label art for a box of Soy Milk Crackers or yoga batons! scott rocks

[watchitman]

...is really jarring. Not the last panel of the strip but the " Last updated" box. It's horrible, couldn't you put a place holder that is less... ugly? Maybe a sketched version of the next panel?