The Winner Of The Mix March Madness 2012 Webcomics Tournament is… Child’s Play?

Glenn Hauman

Glenn is VP of Production at ComicMix. He has written Star Trek and X-Men stories and worked for DC Comics, Simon & Schuster, Random House, arrogant/MGMS and Apple Comics. He's also what happens when a Young Turk of publishing gets old.

You may also like...

53 Responses

  1. MechaGai says:

    Classy.

    Also, I definitely have a comic to recommend for the NSFW battle. Can’t wait for that.

  2. hataroni says:

    Make that $300. @palleus is matching Thunt’s $50. So am I. Who’s with us?

  3. The Bear says:

    Not the better comic won. The comic with the most overzealous fanboys with no lives won. Such polls are utterly ridiculous and only show the problems society has. That the winnings are donated to charity doesn’t change this simple fact.

    All fanboys must die.

    • Todd says:

      I’m sorry about your butthurt.

    • Vang says:

      Yeah, it’s sad that even now the mean spirited fans have to spit at Goblins. But I wouldn’t blame all the fanboys. Just the ones who have to resort to sleazy tactics to ensure their current favorite wins an extra $50 bucks for a contest that isn’t about the prize money but creating awareness.

    • Anonymous says:

      Awww!

    • memyself says:

      Not all fanboys. It looks like a lot of people voted Gunnerkrigg just so that Goblins would lose. Though on the flipside, some have said they voted Goblins, even appealing to websites for help, just to spite that lady who complained about rape.

      We’re just as bad as eachother, it seems.

    • Mina says:

      I’m sorry that you feel that way. Taste is subjective, and everyone has their own idea of what’s best. To me, GKC was the superior comic and that’s why I voted for it. I think saying this webcomic poll somehow shows overall problems in society is a bit over dramatic. The important thing here is that a charity got a nice little boost, authors have gained more readers, and readers have found new webcomics to follow. It’s an all around good thing.

  4. Dent says:

    Everyone knows Garfield Minus Garfield should have won this. I’m spamming Tom and Thunt until they recognize true talent.

  5. sigh says:

    I have to say, as someone who has not read ANY of the top four competitors besides OOTS, I was very shocked at how rude and snobby the Homestuck fans were, and I think they spilled over into Gunnerkrigg’s humble fanbase just to make sure Goblins didn’t win. If I were the creator of HS, I would be embarrassed. And what was up with all that rape stuff? That had to have colored the voting results in a very biased way. And really, guys, the art in Gunnerkrigg is (in my opinion) better than Goblins, but it’s still not AMAZINGLY good, like in Abominable Charles Christopher or Romantically Apocalyptic. So yes, this was just a popularity contest, not about which webcomics are really “the best.” At least the final two were very gracious and nice to all their competitors, and the whopping $200 went to charity! Congrats Gunnerkrigg.

    • Thomas says:

      Wow, that’s a pretty sweeping generalisation of a fandom there. As a Homestuck (and OotS) fan myself, I think it’s rather unfair to say that, I think it’s especially unfair to blame it on one particular fandom. Every fandom, particularly large fandoms, has people in it that are a minority and completely misrepresent them as a whole because they’re more vocal about it. I voted for Gunnerkrigg not because Andrew Hussie told me to but because I geniunely like it more than Goblins which I could never get into, and I’m pretty sure that’s why most people voted for GKC, not because they were bitter Homestuck fans. I have nothing against Goblins either, it’s just not my cup of tea.

    • FuzzyZergling says:

      As a Homestuck fan who also voted for Goblins, enjoys OotS and is aware of GKC, your comment about only reading one of the four makes me a sad Zergling.
      (Was that a rude/snobby thing to say? If it was, sorry.)

    • R says:

      Yeah, it’s definitely solely because of those vile, evil Homestuck fans that Goblins didn’t win.

  6. Kathryn says:

    Make that 400 donated so far! :-)

  7. Kilyle says:

    I wasn’t following the contest except as updates on the Goblins commentary. Seeing Goblins pitted against several of my other favorites made for a thrilling finale. I’m impressed (though not surprised) that Goblins went toe-to-toe with some of the best, including the ethereal majesty of Gunnerkrigg’s art and the nuances of its storyline. Placing second in a smaller contest may be a shame, but second out of hundreds is still a great honor.

    I’m also grateful to see the creators prove their fans right by rising above the petty bickering on the benches and shining forth their integrity right to the end.

  8. Heh says:

    well at least the goblins are making lemonade out of sour lemons. We matched Thunt’s own winnings and donated to Child’s Play. Good on ya team Goblins. That my friends, is a community that still cares about their creator. I’m donating, once my check arrives, in Honor of Goblins so potential 450!

    • Gust says:

      Yeah, it was very nice of Tom from Gunnerkrigg to firstly offer his prize money to Child’s Play C:

      • Mina says:

        Agreed. Tom is a real class act and I think he handled himself through the iffy parts in this competition in a way no one could find fault with. Offering to donate the money is especially thoughtful when you consider he just made the leap of leaving his job to work on his art full time! I’ve also made a matching donation ($100) to a children’s charity as a result of the example set here.

    • Gust says:

      Yeah, it was very kind of Tom from Gunnerkrigg to offer his prize money to Child’s Play and start that trend rolling C:

      • Heh says:

        Tom just didn’t want the dirty money won in a dirty way. Honestly, for a guy who just quit his job, do you seriously think he still would have done that in light of the controversy? Doubtful.

        • fic says:

          hahahahahahaha “dirty money.” like the goblins fans weren’t cheating their way into votes as well? stop trying to invalidate an author’s good deeds because you’re sore that you lost.

          • Heh says:

            Ain’t sore. Just sayin. His dismay came after he learned of all the crap going on. Either way, Good fight. I don’t support Tom or his “fans” but thats just my opinion. Prove me wrong by taking his “Good” example and donating after the fact. In the end, The fans make the comic what it is. And if the fans are like you, then I want nothing to do with Tom or his fans.

          • Mia says:

            at Heh

            It’s neither fair nor very accurate to consider a very small amount of commenters in a general comics blog to represent whole fanbases.

            The fans misbehaving here (not just Gunnerkrigg Court fans, but of other comics as well), were either trolls parading as fans or, very unfortunately, a Vocal Minority.

            I can only speak for Gunnerkrigg and Homestuck, as those are the only fanbases that I’m the slightest bit familiar with, but Gunnerkrigg fans are a calm, polite bunch that mostly keeps to itself, and with Homestuck, they’re more enthusiastic, but they are hundreds of thousands of different people (it’s a huge fanbase, it’s what I’m getting at), so it’s not surprising that what is in reality a very small percentage of them still turns out to be thousands which give people who aren’t fans of the comic the wrong impression of the fandom by being so pushy and sometimes aggressive.

          • Heh says:

            To Mia

            Thanks for that thought Mia but in light of everything, I cannot say I can support Tom. It only takes a few bad apples to spoil the Barrel. I’m sure in time, that even spoiled apples turn into wine but for now, I cannot support what I’ve seen from GKC’s so called fans. And if that community is that great… well… Take this quote as you will.

            We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people.
            Martin Luther King, Jr.

          • Aaron says:

            To Heh:

            I was a fan of both GKC and Goblins before this contest. The fans on both sites are extremely nice thoughtful people. I do not recognize the tone of the people spewing bile on this page at all. If you go to the forums of both sites, you will find the people there are seriously distressed over what people were doing over here in their name.

            I honestly think the people here were trolls having fun trying to provoke reactions out of people, not true fans of the comic. You are doing yourself a disservice if you ignore either of these two comics due to what the “fans” did on this site.

          • R says:

            Really? Bringing in Martin Luther King Jr? Putting being rude about a webcomic on the same level as lynching and bombing homes is kind of disrespectful. I don’t have a civic responsibility to stamp out mean-spirited words. Only the death threats sent to that woman came close to harming anyone, and those weren’t the fault of the GKC fans anyway.

        • jardine says:

          Honestly, using the reactions of fans to judge one of the two comics (or its writer) is highly hypocritical. As someone who is part of neither fanbase, and was introduced to both comics through this contest, I’d say that equal aspects of both sides behaved like children.

          GKC had an influx of 4channers and dudes with particular hatred for Goblins.

          Goblins’ fanbase acted inanely over-defensive about legit criticism and used the actions of some weird misandrist as an underhanded strawman tactic for getting votes.

          If the bad aspects of a fanbase are enough to put you off a comic, then you should be dropping both.

      • Just another Reader says:

        i see what you did there – contest over, they can’t take away the votes, so back to personal attacks. Very classy indeed.

        • Heh says:

          And who exactly did I attack? it was an observation of reading the old forum. Tom didn’t ask for any of this crap but his fans are the ones that took it that way. Did Thunt do anything to call for an attack on his character by one person that started this downhill rumble? no. He did not. So either way, it’s all the fans fault. Don’t get me wrong, Goblins fans are at fault for some of this too by reacting, but they did not start, nor wanted to bring this up. I’d also like to point out, this entire post was brought to 4chan and other social media websites that caused her entire harassment while the actual goblin fans did their best to stay out of it. And now that it’s over, I read back on what happened, I can safely say I want nothing to do with Tom or his fan base. All the comments I’ve read were about Thunt. not the comic. And by that right alone I make the assumption of what GKC fans are like. And if this is what you do, then I want no part of it. But it’s not like anyone really cares what someone has to say on these forums. You won. Good for you. Pat yourself on the back and go have a frosty and have a good life.

  9. Robert says:

    i can proudly say that as a follower of both comics long before this competition i am indeed the winner :p long live Tarol and Thomas and long live Goblins and Gunnerkrigg Court

  10. Otherwise says:

    I can honestly say that I’m satisfied with the contest, at least as far as I’m concerned solely because I saw an old favorite do well and got introduced to a great comic I’d never heard of before. Trolls will be trolls, the bad stuff will blow over, and Gunnerkrigg has a new fan.

  11. Blastinburn says:

    I am most upset about the results not because my favorite comic didn’t win (I do enjoy and follow both actually), but because of the whole Goblins misunderstanding at this time, there were alternative agendas and we cannot know who would have actually won. Despite this, the authors found a great way to solve the problem by donating the prizes, so it didn’t matter who won anymore.

  12. Blastinburn says:

    I am most upset about the results not because my favorite comic didn’t win (I do enjoy and follow both actually), but because of the whole Goblins misunderstanding at this time, there were alternative agendas and we cannot know who would have actually won otherwise. Despite this, the authors found a great way to solve the problem by donating the prizes, so it didn’t matter who won anymore.

    • Blastinburn says:

      Sorry about the double comment, chrome got hung up so I reloaded, though apparently the first comment wen’t through.

  13. biba says:

    oop looks like the better comic won after all c: hooray for female characters without broken backs!

    • Just another Reader says:

      There is no objective definition of “better” in this case. The contest is won by the comics with the most fans that are willing to vote.
      But I can assure you that I will not suddenly start enjoying Goblins any less, or GC any more just because of the results of this contest. In fact, I’m fairly certain that no one will change their views on which comics is more enjoyable to them based solely on these results.

      But I digress. Congrats to GC for winning. Now I’m waiting for today’s Goblins update :)

    • Yeah says:

      Ah, tell me again, wait age have your main female chars? Also: how many other grown up females have we seen in your comic? And all i have seen: you live in a boobles world. (Not that I would want to see some, it is a comic about children!) Whereas the other comic is about an established world (D&D, although with houserules) and how ‘most’ of the (mostly male) players see it. The only reasonable person in the comic that treats women with some respect iiiiis: Forgath the Dwarf (male) played by a female… in my eyes this mocks the whole male D&D players, or at least is meant as a humourous side-stab at ‘us’ male D&D players.

  14. fc says:

    Congrats to both comics, I think despite everything the outcome was generally good, I found new comics, and I’m sure others did too, and money was donated to charity. The ugliness of certain posters was nothing new on the big bad web, in case the trollers feel like they were anything special.

  15. Garlyn says:

    Really it is like the BCS taking all the sports and trying to vote for one winner. You can’t really compare Basketball champions against the football champions.

    They are different forms of comics. I loved the first part of GKC with the robot and the shadow, but I loved it in a totally different way than I love Goblins and Senor Vorpal declaring his dodge. Both very early parts of each comic.

    They’re both excellent, and different.

  16. Why can’t people just mark things as abuse or spam and not throw gasoline on the fire? ;-;

    • Robin Burgess says:

      Human psychology, sadly. Often, when someone feels that a group they are part of has been insulted, it feels like they’ve been insulted personally.

      And some people tend to assume the worst from people, which is rather foolish and comes off as judgemental. Or fall easily prey to false generalizations. Or some other form of falacious thinking. All of which are infuriating. And there was sooo much of this.

      • yyusukeuramishi says:

        Love it. But I gotta ask you since you seem objective to this,

        Did the Human Nature of this turn out for the better? I mean, Child’s Play got so much in donations but in your opinion do you think this was directly caused because of the strife that was happening on these forum?

  17. mist42nz says:

    Cool comics.
    Winners all round.

    Thanks for the great comics people.

  18. Violet says:

    Does this mean the flame war is finally over? :D

  19. Rodtheworm says:

    Well, what I take away from this is that, if this Gunnerkrigg Court webcomic that I’ve never heard of has slightly more people ready to vote for it than my current favourite, I should probably go read it! :p

  20. kezhound says:

    Congrats to Tom, Thunt and Child’s Play! …even if some of your fans are crazy and mean.

  21. Cygnus says:

    Would anyone mind giving me a rational argument as to why Goblins is better than Gunnerkrigg Court? So far all I’ve seen is irrational hating and bashing, and since when I tried Goblins, I wasn’t able to get into it, I’d love to know if there was something major I was missing.

    My first impressions of Goblins was; a bunch of normal adventurers, and one guy that traded all his interesting stats for the ability to run and jump and kick ass. That might be a bit oversimplified, but that’s the overall gist I got from it. Now I admit, I didn’t get too far into it, but I kinda feel that a series should grip you from the very beginning, neh?

    So that’s my first impression. Now could someone please counter me with a rational argument as to why it is not, in fact, like this/why I should read it?

    • DiesHorribly says:

      Goblins is much more than what you described. Unfortunately, someone who has never played a role playing game, be it with dice or role playing video games, will miss a great deal. To any role player, it’s common sense that a goblin will fight you to the death upon simply seeing you. Why? Because they are evil. That’s what a role player will think and will then feel justified in killing them. This comic questions that weak role playing logic. From the goblins point of view, we learn that the reason a goblin attacks you on sight is because you, the player, will do the same. You see, in ‘Goblins’, adventurers are player characters while the goblins are simply denizens of the world the players have imagined. For you, the player, it’s all in the name of fun. If your character dies you can simply make a new character. Dies Horribly, a goblin, encounters the new characters of the players that attacked his camp near the beginning of the comic and just barely escapes alive. There are many rpg tropes addressed in this comic and some deep questions regarding morality, prejudices and what have you. It can also be hilarious at times, too, which doesn’t hurt. I’m sure that if you gave it another chance, and maybe studied some rpg tropes on tvtropes first, then you’d have a much easier time getting into the comic. If you still don’t like it, that’s fine. BTW I read both Goblins and GC and love them both. I voted for Goblins because I love it more, though <3

  1. April 10, 2012

    […] I’d like to offer a huge congratulations to Gunnerkrigg Court and its fans for winning the ComicMix tournament. The comic deserves it for being a breath of fresh air in the genre and the fans deserve it for being a fantastic group of fun folks that I’ve really enjoyed getting to know. If you haven’t read it yet, here’s the article about the results. […]

  2. April 16, 2012

    […] Gunnerkrigg Court wins march mix madness Original Source: ComicMix […]