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Beyond the Comics:
Probing the Forum
(Over-Compensating satirizes forum interaction)
| What's one of the best ways to collect information about a group of people? Ask them. Before writing this section, I posted a thread on PA's Forum asking users to answer a series of questions. Now, despite most cynical perceptions of the internet, most users obliged sincerely and quickly, for which I'm quite grateful.
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The Questions:
#1. What originally drew you to these forums? Was it the comic itself? If not, what else?
#2. Do you read other web comics? Which? (If you do not read PA, say so)
#3. How did you come up with your username? What about your avatar/signature?
#4. Do you draw web comics?
#5. Do you interact with any other forum users outside of these forums? How? (Gaming clans, RL friends, etc)
#6. Which sections do you typically focus on here? Are there any you avoid altogether?
#7. Do you generally visit the forum more than the main site? How much so?
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The Answers:
The following are summarizations followed by my own interpretation of the 40 answers given at the time of this page's creation:
#1: What originally drew you to these forums? Was it the comic itself? If not, what else?
The majority of answers here suggested the comic itself (Penny Arcade), with a few exceptions. Most of those exceptions involved web comics in some form, whether it be PA's commissioned World of Warcraft comics or the "hullabaloo" surrounding the Squidi scandal (described in detail here). The significance of this is straightforward: that it's a safe to assume that the community engrained within PA's forum still has strong ties to the comic itself.
#2: Do you read other web comics? Which? (If you do not read PA, say so)
VGCats, Cascade Failure, Megatokyo, User Friendly, PVP, Namir Deiter, Real Life, Questionable Content, Ctrl+Alt+Del, PBF, White Ninja, Alpha Shade, Bizarre Uprising, Twelve Dragons, Snafu, Three Panel Soul, Something Positive, AppleGeeks, Order of the Stick, Achewood, even Dilbert (yes, THAT Dilbert)... And that was just the first few responses. Though many of these received more than one mention, the most popular included VG Cats, Ctrl-Alt-Del, PvP Online, and PBF (Perry Bible Fellowship).
Two of these (VG Cats and CAD) are video game oriented. This is understandable given PA's subject matter is derived largely from video games. However, the wide range of suggested titles implies that diverse content, from the absurdist to the classically geeky and satirical, has the capacity to appeal to members of the PA community. Essentially, web comic fans are not exclusive. Rather, the community functions like a television audience. Viewers surf a number of series, narrowing down their choices into a few common favorites. Everyone finds their own strips.
#3: How did you come up with your username? What about your avatar/signature?
Usernames came from a number of different sources, sometimes involving real names, but more often revolving around hyper or fantasy reality. The real names were typically nicknames or names assigned by college networks (initials and last names or birthdates). Beyond that, names were derived from everything from "a magic spell used in the Sega Genesis video game Phantasy Star 4" to references to fantasy literature (and even a drunken misspelling). Avatar images also came from a variety of sources, but were largely taken from video games and comics (with a dash of original artwork). Signatures were often quotes or images that users found particularly entertaining or relevant.
I choose to ask about the username/avatar/signature combinations because these are factors that play a major role in formulating an online identity within the community. Of course, this role is hardly exclusive as users also classify themselves via post content. However, to an invisible audience, these three things provide a first impression (i.e. one will make different assumptions when viewing a thread by user "Analbutt2" versus user "ShakespeareFan").
In PA's case, users seem to largely define themselves via two routes: fandom and fantasy/creativity. In a sense, forum users drape themselves in creative works they love, thus expressing their affection and utilizing it to strive for connectivity with other fans. Other users utilize their imaginations to create an original (yet often sci-fi/fantasy archetypal) image independent of immediate reality. Though still posting in voices that are their own, regular people identify themselves as fantasy knights, dragons, or through their WoW (World of Warcraft) or other RPG characters. Through this, users can strive to identify with one and other through shared interest.
One responder summarized it all quite brilliantly: "The AV and sig are just stuff I like."
#4: Do you draw web comics?
Pretty much all answered "no" to this one. In an age where participatory media is on the rise, this should seem surprising. Then again, we cannot expect everyone who watches a TV show to go out and try to make one, even with YouTube. The situation here is a little more complicated than that, however. Many of the bigger web comics often produce strips based directly on such forum communities (see the top of this page for example). In that regard, this community actually is responsible, via inspiration, for production. Furthermore, their continued perpetuation of content (via avatars, sigs, posts, etc) increases and exponentially expands the web comic universe as a whole. It is often through these fans that new cartoons become noticed, marketed, and distributed. Since you do not typically find web comics in retail stores or non-internet settings outside of conventions, fans must shoulder the burden of keeping their favorite comics afloat.
I have a feeling that many of these people are doing more than they realize. They are vendors of webcomics, dishing them out to a crowded audience of potential consumers. Participation doesn't have to mean direct production.
#5: Do you interact with any other forum users outside of these forums? How? (Gaming clans, RL friends, etc)
Again, there was many a "No" here. However, a few users stated that they interacted in gaming guilds, some referenced PAX (a convention hosted by Penny Arcade), and some others stated that they knew other members IRL (in real life). The gaming is consistent with the connection of the comic with video games. Fans who can fully grasp the humor of Penny Arcade must be familiar with its source material, and therefore gamers are a given. One user also expressed surprise that so few were mentioning PAX, that user highly recommended that people participate.
#6: Which sections do you typically focus on here? Are there any you avoid altogether?
Answers here varied greatly. Also, the means by which this was conducted lended perhaps inaccurate results for such a question. Since the thread was posted in the Help/Advice forum section, it’s logical that many users would be those that focused on that section. However, it was still interesting to see a discrepancy between those who regularly checked specific interest oriented forums (like WoW or The Artist's Corner) and those that avoided them (one user even stated "like the plague"). Sections that appeared more universal included Debate and Discourse and Social Entropy, two more generally chat oriented sections (and thus more universal to the diverse array of PA fans).
#7: Do you generally visit the forum more than the main site? How much so?
Most responses indicated that the forum was the primary source of activity on the site, and thus took most of their attention. However, most people also stated that when the main site did update they actively checked it. This reinforces the conclusion of question #1, that the community is still very much based around the comic.
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