Clarifications

And three more today:

The Duplex by Glenn McCoy
Piranha Club by Bud Grace (two days running)
Sally Forth by Francesco Marciuliano and Craig Macintosh

Every once in a while, I get a flood of new readers and a steady trickle of questions and criticism. (This time thanks to MetaFilter.) I get accustomed to and comfortable with my normal gang of intelligent, discerning readers and forget that my genius isn't always readily apparent to the masses. So, here are a few earlier posts that explain what I'm doing here. This one from last April and a more recent Statement of Purpose from August.

To clarify again, I definitely understand the importance of timing to comedy. Funny isn't funny without good timing. However, more often than not, a silent penultimate panel is merely a symbol of comic timing and not the actual thing. There are unlimited ways to create the passage of time within the language of comics. An infinite amount of time can pass in-between panels in the gutter. An infinite amount of time can pass within the same panel in the space between characters and word balloons. You don't need to imitate sitcoms and beer commercials to create a comic pause. As I continue to prove here--daily--the silent penultimate is a lazy cliche. ...

...(pause) with a few exceptions.