beanytuesday
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A Comic About Work and Identity
🕑 Added 2020-11-19 00:20:41 +0000 UTCIs this good? Do people like this? Or is it just some hacky "eat-pray-love for failsons" type of thing? Let me know. People seemed to enjoy the other more personal comics I've made, but I still feel like this one isn't as good as the "comic about making meaningful art", which has a stronger core topic and tighter jokes. This one is a little more slice-of-life, and is so lengthy that I found it hard to cram jokes in as thoroughly as in some previous comics. Still, there are some good ones in there, and I tried some new fun stuff with the art.
There is maybe a little bit of context missing here which might flesh out the comic a bit more, while also revealing my own personal biases and privileges, which is that I grew up fairly lower-upper-middle class; both parents went to Grad school, all siblings attended college, etc. As such, there was always an unspoken expectation among family and family friends that I would do something worthwhile, career-wise. Not high-paying, necessarily, but something that made use of the privileges I had been given, to go to college, receive career advice from well-off acquaintances of my parents, etc. My parents are both very nice, and would never in a million years say that I'm wasting my life-- but about every week since I moved away from home my mother would call or text with some light "suggestions" for job ideas. As the years passed by, she started to get a little more actively worried about what I was doing with my life, talking about how much "potential" I have, (the "positive" way of telling someone they're currently a failure.) I had to get her off my back by telling her about the comics, which, of course, i can also basically never show her because almost every one contains some awful sex joke. (Again, though, love my family.)
A few little references for the sharp-eyed:
-The back patch in page 3 is based on the No Love Deep Web album cover
-The final form on page 8 is a Baki the Grappler reference, referring to the title of "unchained" given to certain members of a maximum security prison who could break out anytime they wanted to, but don't for some reason.
-The background from page 11 is from the iconic "Homeless Guy eats Crap" youtube video
-The "art" on page 13 is the album cover for Blood Visions by Jay Reatard, one of the few musical albums in the official Beany Tuesday canon, and the "romance" frame is of course "The Dud" from the Simpsons. How many did you notice?
Comments
Beany Tuesday
I've thought about it! There would probably be some issues with formatting and the like, but maybe in the future!
I really love your comics, this one is particular struck a chord with me. Have you ever considered creating a book compilation of all your comics? I'd buy that in a heartbeat
Hell yeah baki
Really dig this one. I like that you can handle what is a really anxious topic for a lot of people and still have some good jokes baked in there. Would love to see more stuff like this in the future
i gotta stop letting my debit cards expire
I like this a lot. I like the "AND I LOVE IT" face a lot too.
I joined your Patreon because of this comic. It's a perfectly captured and well explained piece of wisdom without sounding like a "feel-good, get-your-life-together" motivational story designed for "go-getters".
Finding your own meaning in life is an obvious bit of wisdom, but your journey toward internalizing that is still a valuable story to tell. Many people never learn it. I worked a series of shitty jobs well into my mid-20s before getting into a career I actually wanted, and now a few years later I still catch myself comparing my own life to others who have "gone further" than me. Those thoughts keep cropping up until you change your state of mind.
Lauren
This one's really good, I didn't get any kind of hacky feeling from it at all. I think you did a great job using the comic format to tell a compelling personal narrative while slipping in good jokes. It's not often that something makes me laugh while I'm contemplating my own life choices. I'd love to see more stuff like this from you!
billy likes balloons
This is too genuine to come across as "hacky" Work culture in this country is insane. The day I realized lying on your resume and luck gets you waaaay farther in life than going to school for 22 years was the day I stopped giving a shit. Just try to find something you can stomach that pays a living wage. All this work identity stuff is just an insane sickness people give themselfs. No one wants to work.
K Young
great stuff very relatable etc
As a two-time college dropout, this hit close to home.
very nice to read especially as someone unsure about their own future. thanks.
Folks, we love a serious beany comic, don't we? (As a 22-year old about to graduate, this fills me simultaneously with dread and bliss)
