I do worry for the man. I mean as soon as TLSC is released it will be become the subject of ridicule across the internet and that's going to be hurtful to the guy, who's put a lot of time and effort into making it. Of course Penders must be pretty thick skinned to continue with the project despite all of the negative reception, but surely its terrible sales will be the last nail in the coffin. No one wants him to succeed because his work is awful, and that must be hard to live with. Maybe it's his will to prove us wrong that keeps him going? I don't think we'll ever understand what goes through his mind.
So according to what I'm reading on SSMB, even the shit title he came up for his comic wasn't even his own idea, read: This Paul dude joined SSMB but hasn't posted yet, so keep an eye on our sister topic. Also Ken Penders is now sending out DMCA copywrite notices on youtube videos with his movie pitch video.
I wonder. Can "The party that has claimed this video does not own the copyright to its content" be used in a dispute?
A quick check of Penders' forums, and all posts and threads made by Agnew have been deleted and replaced with asterisks. Why Penders is upset about this, I have no idea. Agnew's totally justified in his anger if Penders is jacking his ideas without credit. Ken can dish it but can't take it, it seems; but that's not news.
Now would be a good time to get a copy of that video saved to disk, everyone. Penders isn't going to get that piece of shit hidden so easily.
Yeah, like KKM said, Paul himself blanked the posts, not Ken. And to be clear here, it isn't that Paul necessarily thinks it was stolen (he doesn't say one way or the other on that). To quote him: "He's definitely within the right to name his series whatever he wants, but… how hard is it to run names through an Internet search to make sure no-one else is doing the same thing?" He's tried to discuss this (and other things) with Ken, but Ken's been ignoring him, despite Ken having the free time to have arguments with non-fans. Out of respect for Paul, who's a genuinely cool and funny guy from what I've seen from him, I won't link his stuff without permission, but his reasons for being upset were a bit more complicated than just "Ken may have taken a name from him".
Whoa wait Penders is claiming DMCA on that shitty "pilot?" Are you fucking serious??? Please tell me WHAT about that video he owns outside of a shot of his kids playing Sonic ( at least I think those are his). Even then, the character on the TV is a trademarked/patented/I don't know OWNED IP that he hasn't the slightest rights to, and the followup shot is just Sonic flying off on Marty McFly's badly drawn hoverboard. Oh, HOW ORIGINAL. This reminds me of when indie developers started taking down video critiques of their games, such as famously Gary's Incident. While the content was a critique and not an upload of content, its quite clear the reasoning behind the DMCA takedown was out of spite, resentment embarrassment or a mix of everything. I wonder if he'll finally shut up when nobody buys his shitty books. Edit: also regarding Paul, causing a fan discomfort or treating one in an unequal manner from the rest of your public, and in general treating your fans like shit is inexcuseable. I'm surprised this guy still HAS fans considering how he treats them! Do we have any records of Penders saying anything POSITIVE to his potential consumers? Anything regarding their input or even saying a "thank you!" To a compliment someone gave him? Anything like that? No? Does he even treat people he's openly asking to give him money in exchange for goods with any level of decency or respect? They're his FUCKING MARKET. What part of his lobotomized half brain makes him think he'll make ANY profitable sales off of all this bad press? Not only is this guy a bad artist and writer but he's evidently an equally as bad buisnessman. It's one thing to treat your competitors like subhumans, and quite another to do so to your FANS.
He's abusing the DMCA because there's no effective punishment for doing so falsely, and the "infringer" has next to no comeback. It's the easy way to censor anything you don't like. That's what you get with such a badly written law.
Hope someone has it backed up, since he needs to learn the harsh reality of the online world: once it's up, it's up for good. That, and your work is awful and you should be ashamed of it. This is what you wanted, now you get to feel everyone's backlash.
I'm no editor but what does any of that say? The colour usage is all wrong. The grey/blue on grey/blue at the top, the pink on white at the bottom. It's also incredibly busy. Where am I supposed to be looking? We've even got a pink "thing" standing in front of a background with pink shades to it, making it even more difficult to look at. I don't usually bother with anything related to Ken Penders but this is just beyond belief. Why would anyone be happy with this mess?
No. Really? Like, really? The man continues to suprise me. Each time I think "No, it can't get worse than this," yet time and time again he has surpassed my expectations. It looks like he cut out bits of different drawings and glued it onto a space background. I mean, at this point he has to be a troll. I cannot wait for this train wreck. When it comes out it may just be the trigger that breaks my sobriety.
Okay, I am now convinced. This guy's seriously trying to rival the likes of Tommy Wiseau, Uwe Boll and Ed Wood! He really wants to become their match.
Of all the things to wake up to.... eeergh. That is pretty much what happened. I mean, we've seen, what, at least five such drawings in some form or another elsewhere before this cover? The Spectre and Not-Knuckles drawings in particular stand out as such. Also, there is no freakin' way Penders will ever convince me that Lara's swimsuit is anything but sex appeal. I *am* a woman, and let me tell you, some swimsuits just aren't made for actual use. And, he's expecting me to buy that this is practical for DIVING FROM A CLIFF and then racing? Lets see what two seconds on Google gives me for--aha! http://delveplanet.com/womens-swimsuits-scuba-diving/ Notice something? Except for the first three (which only bare the back), these suits keep most of the body covered. But, Neon--I hear you say--these are for SCUBA diving! Totally different. Yes, you're right (that's sadly the first thing Google finds if you just search for "Diving Swimwear"). However, that does prove one point. Penders did not even begin to research this. Now, for a more accurate search, let's go straight to the name that people lean towards (perhaps stereotypically so) for "sports swimsuit," Speedo. And, on Speedo's official website, under their women's racing suits (ITS A SWIMMING RACE AFTER ALL), we get: http://www.speedousa.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=3131432 Yeeeep. All one-piece suits. Some of them even cover the upper leg. Certainly nothing like what Lara's wearing on that hideous cover. BUT! Let's not just take Speedo's word for it! Here's another, completely random store I found through Google: http://www.tyr.com/shop/womens/swimwear/competition-swimsuits.html (Just the competition suits. It's a race!) Yep. Still all somewhat conservative one-piece suits. I'm sure that the backs are more exposed, but that's not the point here. The point is the suit on the cover looks nothing like any of these suits, which are all DESIGNED for practical, sporting use. Those pouches on Penders' design? I highly doubt they'd stay still. That means they'd be smacking against her hips pretty continuously. Which, at best, is highly annoying when you're trying to compete. At worst, it would hurt and bruise and slow her down. There was zero practical thought or research put into that suit. It's sex appeal, plain and simple. Which kinda skeeves me out that he's put that on the COVER of what he plans to be the first volume of a series. It paints the character (and story) in a certain light of the average customer. And "strong female character" is not what comes to mind.
