Homestuck

inkblot

I read all of Act I, completely forgot how the Sylladex works, and lost track of where I was when I got to Act II.

So...what's Homestuck, does it get better after Act I and should I get into it before it stops updating?

ClockworkUniverse

Don't worry about the sylladex. It doesn't really matter.

Homestuck is...a thing. Definitely a thing.

Bob

Porn for tropers.

^So that's where that comes from.

ninjaclown

I don't read it, not because it's bad, but because I simply DO NOT have the time to read every page. It's physically impossible, it broke my archive threshold.

snowbull

The Sylladex is probably the least important thing to happen in act I, even though I swear 60% of the screentime was spent on it.

Yeah, the slow pace and absurd maximillism of Act I decreases a lot afterward, though I don't know whether you'd like it.

ClockworkUniverse

^I think Andrew Hussie was expecting to make it important, but then didn't.

snowbull

And the absurd level of detail for the alchemy system that is mostly left untouched. There are punch cards and codes, do I really need to know the specifics?

ClockworkUniverse

Well, the alchemy system was at least kinda important back when the readers were actually deciding the characters' actions.

Khwarizmi

Actually, I think "a thing" is an Ozbournism, not a Homestuckism.

Homestuck is a story about a bunch of kids playing a video game that transports them to another world.  I would certainly say it got better over time.  The story gets progressively more and more complex and absurd as it goes along, as well as considerably more dramatic, though it retains a sense of humour throughout.

If you're having trouble getting into it, I'd recommend reading Problem Sleuth first, as it's both a more accessible introduction to Andrew Hussie's style and a highly entertaining story in its own right.  The tone is very different from that of Homestuck, but the actual writing style is similar and it contains some similar elements such as the same sense of humour, the same massive fight scenes and the same tendency towards the chaotic and farcical.  It also contains some conceptual similarities, such as time travel and unusual worldbuilding, though to a lesser extent than in Homestuck.  If you dislike those elements, it's very unlikely that Homestuck will be your cup of tea.

I know some people can't stand MSPA.  I enjoy it for the humour (which mainly consists of parody, absurdist humour and running gags), the entertaining characters, the unusual worldbuilding and the often-unpredictable nature of the plots.  I like the way Hussie will cheerfully parody just about everything from hipsters to quantum physics to film noir to Insane Clown Posse, and the way he toys with you as a reader, messing with your expectations.  So that's the appeal, to my mind.  Up to you whether that sounds enjoyable or not.

ClockworkUniverse

Actually, I think "a thing" is an Ozbournism, not a Homestuckism.

I wasn't trying to make a Homestuckism; I just had difficulty describing Homestuck, so I went for the funny route.

glennmagusharvey

I thought MS Paint Adventures was a sprite comic using videogame sprites.

What does it have to do with Homestuck?

Khwarizmi

^^ Sorry, that was @Bob, who I thought was saying "a thing" came from Homestuck, though I may have misunderstood.

^ No, MS Paint Adventures is a series of comics drawn in MS Paint (actually, mostly Photoshop) by Andrew Hussie.  The longest and best of these comics are Problem Sleuth (a parody of film noir, classic adventure games and JRPGs) and Homestuck.

ClockworkUniverse

^^It's not. MS Paint Adventures is the collective term for Homestuck, Problem Sleuth and a few shorter previous works by Andrew Hussie.

^Oh. I missed that. Must've been a ninja-edit.

Bob

Yeah, pretty much. I never knew where it came from, so given the context, I assumed it was a Homestuck thing.

DYRE

^^^^ MS Paint Adventures is the name that refers to the group of webcomics by Andrew Hussie.

Ninja'd

glennmagusharvey

Is there one of them that is a videogame sprite comic?

DYRE

Not as far as I know...

Were you thinking of MS Paint Masterpieces?

ClockworkUniverse

Nope. They're all in the same style. I think you're thinking of MS Paint Masterpieces.

DAMMIT, NINJA DYRE!

Khwarizmi

^^^ Not entirely, though some sprites are used in the later parts of Homestuck.

snowbull

Not as far as I know, though there are game like section of homestuck.

Chagen

You mean...the ridiculously complicated alchemy system and the sylladex aren't important?

ClockworkUniverse

^Well, the alchemy kind of matters because it's how they get cool stuff; the sylladex kind of matters because it's how they carry cool stuff. That's actually all you need to know about both of them right there.

Chagen

The alchemy matters, yeah, but the sylladexes were kinda strange with how they are made.

Still, given the series, I was expecting the stuff like the punchcard codes to be important.

Khwarizmi

There are a few gags that are funnier once you understand the sylladex and how each kid's modus works, but it has little importance as far as the actual plot is concerned.

The punchcards are somewhat important, but you don't have to understand much beyond "punch in codes, receive sweet loot".

glennmagusharvey

Oh yes, you're right, I'm thinking of MS Paint Masterpieces.

Gelzo

"That didn't stop being a thing that happened." has entered my personal lexicon thanks to Homestuck. I got a funny look from my dad once as he tried to parse it. That was fun.

snowbull

The banner ads are the only thing that has been keeping me reading for the past 6 months.

Serial reading sucks.

Central Avenue

Bleh, I made up to the troll arc and then kinda hit a wall. I enjoy the comic in all, but page after page of annoyingly typed chatlogs is kind of a turn-off for me.

ClockworkUniverse

I actually found the troll arc to be the best of the series thus far, though I can understand why it was divisive.

Central Avenue

Oh, I'm enjoying the troll arc. I'm just not enjoying having to do all that reading.

That's why I wish Homestuck came in pill form.

Chagen

The Troll Arc made me quit. 

Mainly because I really didn't like any of the trolls, and the "quirks" of their writing didn't enhance their characters at all. It just made it really, really, REALLY annoying to read pages after pages of them.