Appreciation

[jwhouk]

In consideration of the hard times the author of another long-tenured webcomic is currently going through, I have to say the following:

Paul - you absolutely ROCK.

You have consistently put out a quality comic with a story that draws you in, a storyline that is compelling and funny at the same time, and characters who are complete and relate-able - even if they're mythical or too cute for their own good.

You occasionally have to put up with idiots who only see M's boobs and not the intriguing character she's become since her query about being a naive girl all those years ago. That's understandable; your art has improved and become so incredibly detailed since those days of old that there are very few who could even THINK to try to top your artistic nature.

You do all this while providing for a wife and family in a city where sometimes it's questionable why sane people would live in a place where it gets SO #### COLD in the winter and the traffic can get more mystifying that reading glyph on the side of an airplane taking off from MSP International.

Sometimes it's not adequate to just throw money at the artist sometimes. Sometimes, we just need to let you know how much we enjoy what you put out on a five-times-a-week basis.

So, thanks again for nearly a dozen great years - and may you have a dozen more.

[stjen]

>> What He said...

'Nuff said.

[Mark N]

So say we all!!!

[Atomic]

Absolutely! And is Monica naive and a pushover? No. Hell no!

[Dave]

Hear, hear!

Wapsi is something very special indeed.

[MerchManDan]

So say we all!!!

So! Say! We ALL!!

[Jabberwonky]

I echo and certainly endorse all of the compliments given to Paul here.
Wapsi Square has become something important in my life. Probably more important than it should be, even I will admit, but being stuck on a smallish piece of pseudo-American soil just north of Baghdad, my priorities are a little skewed. Wapsi is the high point in my day and I'm glad that the time shift puts the updates where I can pop onto the site and check while I'm at work and not have to wait up late at night for it.
Because I would.
The characters have become friends of mine, I care about them and how they are doing. I miss the ones that have moved on and hope that they have a nice life 'outside of the panels'. (IMHO Water Fight's picket fence in the background was a hint that Owen and Lakshmi were moving on to a happy life. Later, again in my mind, Echos confirms it. Good luck and God speed you two)
One of the things that stands out the most in my run with this comic is the death of Shelly #1, here. Despite some peoples very vocal dislike of Shelly, she is my favorite of all the gang. (there are too many instances where she voices the insecurities of my own relationships) At the time 'Done Here' one was published I would stop by my hooch to quickly read WS and then go pick up my lunch to take back to where I worked. Reading that one, that day, I had to skip lunch to compose myself to go back to work. I was that invested in Shelly. I was one of the longest and most worrisome weekends of my life. I knew that Paul wouldn't kill off a character as 'main' as Shelly is. Would he?
Of course he didn't, through a wonderful turn of plot, but it was an emotional time for me.
But I had never, and haven't since, gone through the emotions that I did that weekend for a fictional character. No book, no movie, no other graphic medium. I have been moved to tears by some, but never the level of emotion that did.
Thank you Paul for making them that real.

[Wapsi]

Thanks so much you guys!

[davids4250]

I strongly agree with all the thoughts expressed above, especially Jabberwonky's.
Wapsi Square is one of the best stories I have ever read or seen, in any form. The characters are totally believable and very human - even the supes - and that makes it easy to identify with them. WS draws you in like very few stories do. Thank you Paul, so very much!

[Dave11]

So say we all!!!

So! Say! We ALL!!