Once the vast majority of the readers had figured out who George was, it allowed me to have all sorts of fun with Mega Man being unable to figure it out. But sometimes I wonder about the nature of that humor.
Many of my comics, as well as many other webcomics out there, rely on the classic double act, the straight man/funny man combination, as is the case in these comics. Mega Man is the stupid funny man, and George is playing the straight man that more or less feeds him the jokes, or takes advantage of Mega Man's behavior to make a wry observation to the amusement of the reader.
And it's not just these two. Often different characters will inhabit the two roles, with some exceptions. Proto Man is rarely the comic, and Mega Man is rarely the straight man, thought it has been known to happen.
But, sometimes I wonder why these jokes work so well. Is it that the audience enjoys laughing at and feeling superior to the comic? And while the comic can be funny alone, is it better with the straight man? Does the audience need the straight man to relate to? Does the straight man help the audience realize what a normal person should be doing in a situation like that, to help differentiate and accentuate the humor in the comic's behavior?
I probably think too much. Anyway, I'm fairly certain The Simpsons has used the punchline above more than once.
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