The bar is Pacific Standard, now closed. But if there's one thing that lives on in this neighborhood, it's the adjacent gym culture. Brooklyn Boulders, SBWC (my former lifting gym), Body Reserve (same, and RIP), a few Crossfits and... a fencing school? Never living here, I spent years crossing the park by bike, foot and subway, walking among the Joshes and the Chads and coming to regard them as my brethren. (They're mostly nerds.)
I've kind of shifted my views on pickup culture - it all sits weird with me now. I know I've already talked about it; in short I think it comes down to class way more than gender, the former of which is hidden, by necessity, in neoliberal feminist discourse. At any rate this was a joke setup for something even more specific to that discourse - that a man's epiphany is more palatable than a woman's wisdom. And that's probably true, but not a subject I give much consideration anymore. It was a joke of its time and place. Story-wise the intention was to give Marigold an understated entrance, and then clear out the room, which the joke does cleanly.
11 thoughts on “#827-828 – yeah man”
Mike
I can't believe I never noticed until now Jane was drinking school lunch orange juice cartons…!
Mattinqq
I they have those in actual bars, that would be absolutely hilarious.
tudza
I did a check on my fitness for fencing again by going to a fitness gym for a couple months. Turns out I haven't forgotten anything and my form is good, but I look like rubbish warming up with a bunch of high school students who are competition fencers. Only thing I did best there was push ups, and that's a hold over from 3 years of kung fu many years ago.
When I took fencing ages ago the exercise was the fencing. At this place, you do a bunch of exercise and then do fencing. Makes sense really.
I got to do fencing sitting down too. Wheel chair fencing is a thing and it's damned fun.
They had Indian clubs. I was impressed. You find kettle bells all over, but never Indian clubs. I still remembered my routine for those.
granulac
Your fitness journey sounds amazing!
Bleh
Legend says they're still carrying that man through the streets of Brooklyn, shouting at the top of their lungs in a state of delirious woke euphoria.
ValdVin
Love the noirish Venetian blind stripes in panel four. All the while, wanting someone to say “I’ll tell you when I’ve had enough!”
joe
Panels 1-4 are some lf my favorite in the series. It is so OP, the silliness, the great scene portrayal, how it shows us jane's inner turmoil from all the previois pages succintly and in a fresh way. I am so glad i got to experience this as it happened.
David
This is one of my favorite pages, SO hilarious and smart and intricate for a throw-away joke the fits seamlessly into a very serious, intense story. That last panel is incredible.
Julia
I'm curious to hear more of Mar's take on class in pickup culture – can anyone point me to that?
Julia
I mean Mer 🙂
r207
She mentions it a bit in her commentary here: http://www.octopuspie.com/2019-05-28/428-white-wi…