Lucy Fanclub

[darkdaemon]

So, Lucy fan-thread. So far, Lucy is one of the most popular characters- so why? Share your thoughts and feelings on that cute cat!

[darkdaemon]

Mine: I feel a connection with Lucy- I can be quite mean and defensive, mainly due to being wary of people. I make "friends" pretty easily- but I let very few people get to know me very well. That's basically why I like Lucy.

[ILB]

I feel a certain... kinship with Lucy as well, albeit I don't really assosciate with her more violent sides (I have other vices to worry about ^_^). Lucy is a great character, but I've found her more likeable after she admitted to herself her feelings about Mike. Before that, she was a bit too rough for my tastes, although still a good character.

[Sind]

Are Lucy-haters allowed to post in this thread? >_>

If not, I'll just go cry in the corner ;_;

though if yes, I'd like to add that I think it's because she pretty much is the main character, and not to mention that she probably appears in more pages then any of the other characters.
Her being a total emotional wreck lately might also have something to do with her popularity =P

Off-topic: Daemon, you can add to any post by using the "modify" button on the left side of it. Please do so rather then posting two posts right after each other

[SereneHeaven]

Pfft, I love Lucy, simply because she's always been a strong female lead. I admire her, and wish I could be more "gung-ho~" about things like she is. It's a little sad that I admire a cartoon character, but she really does have some good qualities.

However, she's kind of... Nutzo when it comes to feelings, and I didn't really like the emotional, broken Lucy. It didn't fit her character (well... not her norm) so I was a little surprised that a GUY could bring her down like that. It was nuts.

[darkdrake]

so, completly independant of this thread, yesterday I was musing on why most people liked Lucy, and I came to some conclusionsof my own.

I think that one of the reasons that she is well liked is that has many personality flaws. I think that she has enough flaws that many people can find a part of their own personality that matches, or atleast is similar to, theirs. I would probably be able to make a fairly safe statement in saying that a large percentage of people have had difficulties with friends and feelings that, while obviouly not to Lucy's extent, are similar to some of Lucy's personaly problems. This allows for a reader to sypathise more readily with her, and thus leads to many people liking her.
And, while not meaning to be overassuptious, I believe that the subset of the population that reads and enjoys webcomics such as this probably corresponds somewhat to the subset of the population that can readily sympathise with Lucy's troubles.

[darkdaemon]

Actually, I did that on purpose X\
Wanted to have a place-holder type thingie, just in case.

As for darkdrake- yeah, I think you're right. Same thing with McCain, really.

As for the violence thing- that's another reason I like her. She can vicariously punch morons for me

[ILB]

You do have a point, darkdrake - although I can find parts of myself in all of the BCB characters, really. It's strange, but I can see bits of my personality in as different characters as Daisy and, whatshisname, Augustus?
My "associations" with Lucy lie more in the past than in the present, but I still know how hard it can be in her situation. Therefore I empathise, but still I didn't really come to like her until recently.

[NomadicScholar]

I like lucy because it's like watching a female version of myself (I'm getting better about being violent) go through life and fixing her problems. While mine just get worse.

[darkdaemon]

I used to be rather violent myself... Had to realize that no matter how much you punch an idiot, they will stay an idiot. That kinda helped.
*shrug*
Just gotta work at it.

[pantheraleo08]

Lucy, while appearing more in the strips lately, does not constitute her as the main character. I firmly believe that she and mike share that role, which is supported through the actions of everyone around them. for instance, how man situation fall back on Mike, or center around him? Plenty. Who is the main person he interacts with through most of the comic? Lucy.

That aside, sometimes I see Lucy as nothing more than the crazy pet lady that nobody understands because she never lets anyone in. The only reasons why Mike thinks he understands is because he was there for most of it. That and he's a good plot device for explaining Lucy's strange actions (because I mean really, how many guys here think they could explain why girls do the things they do? Show of hands? =P).

But she's a loyal crazy pet lady, even if she feels her friends aren't. I think that might start showing up more here soon. Not necessarily in the way it happened earlier on in the comic with the fight while they were lost (with sue no less, gotta give that cat her props). She is a character that has much growth potential, event his late into the comic and for that I look forward to seeing what BCB brings.

You could say i'm a fan, which would be true. But really, I like Lucy about as much as I like most of the other main cast.

[jay]

I personally identify with Lucy for much the same reason that I am sure many of us would. I see so much of me in her. Similar outcast childhood experience, same tendency to keep to myself and my one or two most trusted friends. Same habit of lashing out at the first sign of discomfort. Basically everything I dealt with growing up, I see it in her own past.

That and frankly shes absolutely adorable when shes not being violent. Look of irritation + blush = dawwwww.

[ILB]

Wait, are all Internet dwellers violent outcasts that have problems with trust? No wonder Lucy's popular. ^_^

[jay]

Not so much violent outcasts, but many of us I'm sure have had our fair share of being left out, and learning not to trust quite so readily. Getting your fingers burnt is part of growing up after all.

I had it bad, at no point in my school life was I ever accepted by any peer group. It toughens you up for the harsher realities of the world, but absolutely ruins you for social interaction.

Lucy, in her own fictional way, had it rough, rougher than I did.

Of course she is going to be popular anyway. She's adorable regardless of what mood shes in, and very affectionate to her pets (what the heck kinda pet could potentially hold the same social status as the dominant species anyway?).

[ILB]

Yes, it's true that many people might feel like they've been a Lucy at some point in their lives. It just seems odd that the only characters that people seem able to connect with are Lucy and McCain. I mean, I haven't heard of anyone associating with Michael or Paulo, although I know very well that people like that exist.

Perhaps there's a tiny Lucy within everyone? If so, then it is no wonder people are able to empathise with her.

[jay]

Michael seems too perfect to me. Good grades, amazing physical skills, all too willing to put himself at risk. I find it hard to empathize with perfection like that.

And Paulo I'm sure people feel a kinship to, but his character seems way too drama free to have much impact. Sure he has the whole Tess issue, and now possibly a Lucy issue too, but compared to some of the others?

Now Abbey, I'm surprised, doesn't seem to have NEARLY the following he should have. His childhood is all to common these days.

[ILB]

Well, of course, if you draw in all the factors comparison becomes difficult. The centre of Lucy's personality, however, seems to be her inability to connect or show her feelings, and her defensiveness when either of this is brought up.
Michael is a popular guy, and what might be called a "jock" if it wasn't for his being nice. I know people that might relate to him, although they aren't very common.
Now Abraham, I'm surprised as well. Many families seem to be torn up by violence at home, and Abbey has a backstory that many may relate to in one way or the other. I know I can, although that has less to do with my family and more to do with school.
Paulo is a jerk with a soft side, or rather a soft soul with a rough exterior, something that makes him similar to Lucy in many ways - although he is far more boyish in his appearance and approach.
Daisy - why don't people seem to relate to her? There are millions of Daisies in the worlld, although admittedly she's quite Flanderised. In my class alone there were 5-6 of her, about 15 per cent of the class.
Tess I'm also surprised about. Though maybe not for the same reasons, many girls are like her. At such large schools there will always be one or more Tesses.
Now, McCain, McCain is quite understandable. Experience shows that 95% of Internet dwellers are know-it-alls, and even worse, most of them actually know what they're talking about. ^_^

[blaze]

i can only empathise with Sue (even though she is opposite gender) as i have all to well been left out of a crowd.

[ved]

I myself am a Lucy-loney/Mike-happy mix with a bit of (Daisy/McCain)-smarts.

I can relate with some of the characters, but mainly pieces of them.

[jay]

McCain is like-able, but he's just kinda one dimensional.

Paulo's deeper character type has only recently come to the forefront. Up to the point where he confessed he liked Lucy back in earlier grades, we really had little more than his lecherous attitude to go by. He didn't really even show that much of a tender side until he met Tess. That shook him up though. So it may still take time before people start to identify with him.

I think the reason people don't relate to Daisy is two fold. One, her portion of actual drama was sudden, short, and quickly resolved. She tried to corner Mike, got rejected at the fair, and gets saved from FF Cat by her now boyfriend, so her impact on the readers beyond her normal personality has been minimal. Two, her normal personality is, well, it's predictable and cheery. To be honest, I find her somewhat annoying. Don't get me wrong, I like her, but she's just too perky to empathize with compared to the rest of the cast.

As for Tess, you bring up a good point. Many of us have done things we aren't proud of. And even if no one else antagonizes us over it, we continue to punish ourselves. And if nothing else, she's the one softening up Paulo. That deserves respect.

So, you said: "Well, of course, if you draw in all the factors comparison becomes difficult."

Might as well make it difficult though eh? If we're going to go deeper into why and how we relate to characters. By the way, I'm really enjoying this, but I'm wondering if we should take it to a new thread. This IS supposed to be the Lucy Fan thread after all. Thoughts?