Doesn't seem to be up yet (atleast, it doesn't work for me.) Looking forward to this. Something to ease the wait for Epitahp One and non-comic/real-life Felicia.

the Groosalugg | June 04, 19:43 CET

That was really lovely. I liked the nod to the other Dr Horrible comment, too.

jamesthegill | June 04, 19:45 CET

So sad that hmmurmple isn't a tag.

The One True b!X | June 04, 19:47 CET

"Why do I even bother, sickly pigeon?" ^_^

I also liked seeing Hammer and Horrible in the background of that one frame.

InevitableTraitor | June 04, 19:48 CET

It's a Horrible world out there.

Simon | June 04, 19:49 CET

"...And if you didn't think Penny dying was tragic enough, wait until you hear THIS story!!"

But seriously, that was a sweet little backstory for her.

[ edited by The Operative on 2009-06-04 19:50 ]

The Operative | June 04, 19:50 CET

Anyone else having trouble accessing the story? My POV: The myspace page still has issue 22 up, and the story link goes to a black page. Refreshing in all kinds of ways doesn't help.

wiesengrund | June 04, 19:53 CET

You tried Ctrl+F5?

Simon | June 04, 19:54 CET

I think there's more than one server, and they aren't yet in sync.

The One True b!X | June 04, 19:54 CET

You tried Ctrl+F5?

Yeah, that's what I meant by "Refreshing in all kinds of ways doesn't help". :)

But it's probably what b!X said. Funny thing is: My roommate is sitting next to me, going in over the same WLAN and he can see it.

wiesengrund | June 04, 19:56 CET

I can see it but it looks like one color hasn't loaded, or something, and I can't read the text and it's all pixely.

Rachelkachel | June 04, 19:59 CET

Bittersweet last shot, that's for sure.

josswhedonaddict | June 04, 20:02 CET

Sometimes a comic can hurt like a very very sad song on the radio.

Sunfire | June 04, 20:05 CET

Apparently now it's down (back to #22), and the direct link leads to an empty page... but I was able to read it a few minutes ago. Very cute story! Sad, though, but... the cursing was hilarious.

Laz | June 04, 20:12 CET

Maybe Dr. Horrible can invent some kind of a thing to turn back time so she won't be dead anymore and wouldn't have yet met Hammer?

Yeah, okay, just all emotional right now. Didn't really think that one through. lol

josswhedonaddict | June 04, 20:12 CET

I'm having the same black box problem.

wonderflonium | June 04, 20:14 CET

Yes, because the content is being served from two different servers, and they are not in sync. So even people who saw it before might encounter a blank the next time they try.

The One True b!X | June 04, 20:19 CET

Very bitter-sweet story. Loved it.
"sickly pigeon" made me smile. I <3 Penny.
Also loved the "Reading is sexy" on her kitchen.

Cool to see the Dr. Horrible and Capt Hammer fight in the background again, just like in Moist story (though it was more part of the story in the Moist comic...).

maxsummers | June 04, 20:36 CET

wiesengrund: Anyone else having trouble accessing the story? My POV: The myspace page still has issue 22 up, and the story link goes to a black page. Refreshing in all kinds of ways doesn't help.

That's still my POV. Still can't seem to get to it, any tips?

the Groosalugg | June 04, 21:22 CET

Oh wow, that was beautiful. And really sad. How are these sweet adorable people so lonely and sad? *sob*

embers | June 04, 21:31 CET

I can't get to it either. :( It's only showing up through Issue 22 when I look at it. Something is askew with the interwebs.

Emmie | June 04, 21:37 CET

Is it the link? If you use the main URL instead does it work?

Oh, that sends me to a page with no May issue, nevermind.

[ edited by Sunfire on 2009-06-04 21:43 ]

Sunfire | June 04, 21:42 CET

There are no tips. As I said, the site serves the necessary content from two distinct servers, and they haven't sync'd up. One server has it, the other doesn't. So some people see it, and some people don't. Well, okay, one tip. Unfortuntely, it's: Wait.

The One True b!X | June 04, 21:42 CET

As I said, the site serves the necessary content from two distinct servers, and they haven't sync'd up. One server has it, the other doesn't. So some people see it, and some people don't. Well, okay, one tip. Unfortuntely, it's: Wait.

Ok. If I had any knowledge about the workings of the Internet I might have gotten that from your previous post. Unfortunately I don't really. So thanks for the second post. It's not really what I wanted to hear, but atleast I can understand it. Just will have to wait, I guess, good to read it's good.

the Groosalugg | June 04, 22:05 CET

I got the black box thing too.
Guess I'll just have to do the waiting thing..

Shep | June 04, 23:00 CET

This is an awfully long time for them not to be syncing up, though.

The One True b!X | June 04, 23:02 CET

I'm not a huge fan of the art style. Cool story though.

SteppeMerc | June 04, 23:07 CET

I've been thinking something else is wonky, due to the time lag and also the fact that the site has done weird stuff in the past. I don't really understand the site very well though.

Sunfire | June 04, 23:07 CET

it's gone now. too bad. I got to read it before it vamoosed. it was lovely. and hilarious. and heartbreaking. encore!

daylight | June 04, 23:22 CET

*twiddles thumbs* This waiting thing is hard!

yellowcrayon | June 04, 23:35 CET

Yeah doesn't load for me either. On the upside, there's gonna be a Joss Whedon written, Jo Chen illustrated Buffy comic next issue. (direct link cos the site was giving me the wrong image)

discombob | June 04, 23:56 CET

Yep not working here either... how weird. You'd think the servers would be sync'd by now.

BrownCoat_Tabz | June 05, 00:16 CET

Okay, I wasn't going to do this, but since it's been this long with a problem, start here, and then increment up the number at the end for each next page.

The One True b!X | June 05, 00:21 CET

b!X, I just get a little box with an x in it where the picture should be.

Come to think of it, that happens alot. I just got a new computer with Vista, anyone know why that happens?

[ edited by Shep on 2009-06-05 00:28 ]

Shep | June 05, 00:28 CET

Thanks for the link, b!X.
That was sweet and sad.

jcs | June 05, 00:32 CET

Shep, there's something funky about the jpg(s) that some browsers choke on. Camino on my Mac does the same, basically. But my Firefox and Safari do fine.

ETA that the jpgs are CMYK instead of RGB, and some browsers choke on that.

[ edited by The One True b!X on 2009-06-05 00:36 ]

The One True b!X | June 05, 00:34 CET

I liked this very much, and I want to start a band called "Sickly Pigeon."

Or rather, I want someone to start a band called "Sickly Pigeon."

QuoterGal | June 05, 00:39 CET

The comic can also be accessed through a google cache.

zoinkers | June 05, 01:21 CET

YAY! So cute and heart wrenching, with the "sickly pigeon" and the Birthday Popsicle and the dead parents and the secret swearing. I miss Penny. :(

kungfubear | June 05, 01:30 CET

Wait, if I read all that correctly, does this mean everything that happens to Penny in Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is right after her birthday?! I am cry. :(

kungfubear | June 05, 01:34 CET

I read it once through earlier but since then the site hasn't worked for me.

Here's the Google cache.

Sunfire | June 05, 01:42 CET

Thanks for the cache. That just made her death so much more depressing.

hitnrun017 | June 05, 01:56 CET

And the subtext becomes text! Text with colorful pictures! And a surprise twist: They're Caring (Jazz) Hands. Thank you, Zack Whedon and Jim Rugg for this love letter to a Knight of Good!

Pointy | June 05, 03:09 CET

Of course, this particular Knight of Good sacrifices any and all self-interested happiness. I mean, there's really nothing illegitimate or selfish in keeping one's birthday cake for oneself, especially given everything else Penny does.

Hammer and Horrible might have killed her, but apparently she sacrificed her self long before that.

The One True b!X | June 05, 03:20 CET

I too am unable to view this, but I'm at least glad Dr. Horrible's returned to the headlines lately. I just recorded a song about him yesterday, and was slightly afraid that it was embarrassingly old hat. I am now assuaged.

...aaaaand yep, that's passed. And now I'm mostly annoyed that once again the internet Gods are intent on keeping me out of the Horrible loop. :(

edit: yay the direct JPG link works

[ edited by frostcircus on 2009-06-05 04:23 ]

frostcircus | June 05, 04:23 CET

*sniffle*

Thanks for posting the workaround, Bix! Reading that just makes me so much more sad about her death. Part of me keeps hoping that atheist Joss has tricked us all into thinking Dr. Horrible was a tragedy, when it was actually just the first chapter of a modern gospel story in which Penny will ultimately return from the dead to teach folks about true faith, hope and heroism. I'm even willing to fanwank myself to the point of believing that the blue, crimson and gold birds that adorn her blouse in one scene are meant to foreshadow her future rise from the dead like a phoenix. Yeah, I know it was probably really just a nice shirt that Shawna found somewhere. *sigh*

BrewBunny | June 05, 04:46 CET

"Like to keep the Mexicans out?"

The Caring Hands shirt is a little bit creepy.

hacksaway | June 05, 05:12 CET

I second the call for a hmmurmple tag. Poor Penny - I have such dating empathy.

curlymynci | June 05, 08:13 CET

I like that their superhero-filled world is a little more colored in (basically a more hammy version of the Marvel Universe, although mutants haven't been mentioned, so maybe it's more DC with it's random, many-multi-crazy-origin heroes and villains). I like that Penny doesn't pay attention to the celebrity worship of superheroes because they apparently don't help fix the smaller, practical stuff, they're only about the big saves.

Nice little 8-pager about Penny. This and the Hammer one were very good (Moist's tale didn't do much for me), though Hammer's because it was funny. Penny's had humor for sure, but was more like the musical in mixing the pathos with the light-heartedness.

I like the art a lot. A few of those panels really capture Felicia's expressions too (not her height though--Penny looks very tiny and younger, like teenage-young).

Dr. Horrible is a good example of a film nicely benefitting from comic book extensions/prequels. They're well-written (so many comic book cash-ins are painfully badly written), they don't take away from or contradict anything that happened within the film/series, while enriching and adding to the experience (sorta like most of the short films in The AniMatrix, though too bad the sequels kinda dropped the ball for that franchise).

Folks have mentioned a potential resurrection or undo of Penny's death. While I don't see it happening, I'm not sure how I'd feel about it. On the one hand, usually not a fan of resurrections (especially with how overdone they are in superhero settings), but on the other hand I bet Joss and his bros could write a rockin' resurrection song. Joss is an X-Men fan though and Penny is a red head...and bears more than a passing resemblance to Famke Jensen (played Jean Grey/Phoenix in the films). If they were gonna do it, I'd hope they'd wait for future installments, don't do it right away in the second Dr. Horrible. Angel came back too soon in Buffy Season 3, Cordelia in Angel Season 4, Spike in Angel Season 5, and there're other examples...make us really miss these characters, don't be so hasty in returning them to the crowd.

[ edited by Kris on 2009-06-05 09:31 ]

Kris | June 05, 09:25 CET

Thanks, Bix, for the workaround. I wasn't getting in either. I need to go cry now. And re-read. And then sniffle.

XanFan32 | June 05, 12:37 CET

@Kris - It could be worse. Heroes likes to kill characters, only to have them come back to life in the next episode. Sometimes, they're resurrected within the same hour of television they clearly died in! :)

kungfubear | June 05, 12:41 CET

That was a lovely bittersweet story *sniffs*

Thanks for the workaround link b!x

The Do That Girl | June 05, 14:36 CET

"Heroes likes to kill characters, only to have them come back to life in the next episode. Sometimes, they're resurrected within the same hour of television they clearly died in!"

Except, obviously, when Nathan is killed and they somehow forget his daughter has blood that can resurrect the dead (as was done in season 2 with HRG, in fact) in favour of doing some ludicrous 'let's have Sylar replace Nathan rather than kill the guy while we have the chance' storyline.

Can't beat Heroes for continuity of plot devices. ;)

The Highlander | June 05, 14:43 CET

Cute, although I think "Jamaican Cakes" would be a much funnier and cleverer name for a cake store (but I get that there really is a place in LA called "Jamaica's Cakes", so whatevs).

AlanD | June 05, 18:24 CET

Thank you very much bix for the work around. It was a lovely story and I'm glad I got to read it.

*sigh*

korkster | June 05, 21:41 CET

Lovely. And so many nice little details. Poor poor Penny.

Garim | June 06, 14:07 CET

It seems be viewable now so I've added the link to the sidebar on the front page for those who were unable to see it.

Simon | June 06, 16:18 CET

Disgruntled postal robot - tee hee.

m'cookies actual | June 06, 17:38 CET

I can't see it. :(

Do you need to have a MySpace account?

Rikardo | June 06, 21:40 CET

No, Rickardo. I'm not sure why you wouldn't be able to see it, at this point. There was a link earlier in the thread directly to a JPEG version though.

ETA: I forgot, there is the issue some browsers have that b!X mentioned upthread. Could be your problem.

[ edited by Sunfire on 2009-06-07 03:54 ]

Sunfire | June 07, 03:52 CET

The colors are wonky and I cannot read any of the dialog. :(


Edit: No problem, it works on my son's computer. :D

[ edited by mouse on 2009-06-07 22:18 ]

mouse | June 07, 22:16 CET

It's all fine for me now.

And what a sweet but also very sad tale.

mgmn | June 08, 09:49 CET

Mouse, I'm having the same problem with the jpegs, and this is using both Firefox and Safari. Same result either way.

Edit: having read it by other means, gotta say... that really is pretty bittersweet. Also somewhat barbed; her catastrophic date is pretty much a geek, right? Drooling over superheroes and all. Also clueless to the problems of the world, totally focused on Penny's body rather than on what she's saying... remind you of anyone you know?

Geeks oughta haul their weight in the good fight, too...

[ edited by ManEnoughToAdmitIt on 2009-06-08 22:47 ]

ManEnoughToAdmitIt | June 08, 22:40 CET

Oo, I loved that.

It had a sort of Ghost World-y feel to it.

Progressive_Stupidity | June 12, 21:12 CET

Thanks b!xfor the work around - I finally got to read it!
(I still can't make the direct link work on my Mac w/Firefox.)

I figure when next we see Penny she'll be all "Bride of Horrible."

BreathesStory | June 15, 04:33 CET

Well, finally read it. This shit has me depressed. In a good way.

UnpluggedCrazy | June 15, 16:35 CET