openbound is one of the more hated parts of homestuck, eating up most of an act and grinding the pacing to a halt to introduce 10 characters who will almost never show up again in an elaborate parody of tumblr culture. it's weird, maybe pointless, and pretty offensive at times. i've always really liked it!
there's a lot to say about openbound's themes and how they connect with the rest of homestuck (its more pessimistic take on the internet compared to the rest of the comic, its depiction of the dancestors as dysfunctional eternal teenagers, the details it adds to the casual cruelty of the dream bubbles and paradox space as a whole) and the way it sketches out a connected set of characters with just enough details to get your mind running, but what i want to talk about most is the experiential aspects!
to me, it adds so much texture to this part of homestuck, and the pacing of the comic as a whole to dedicate so much time to the dancestors' sidestory, in a similar way as the intermission or hivebent. it doesn't lend itself to a "well paced" story, sure, but it's very memorable! some of my fondest memories of my original time with the comic are of spending a day with this section, playing through the walkarounds on my dad's computer or reading through transcripts of them on my ipad, trying to familiarize myself with the characters, see everything the games had to offer, and understand what they added to the story. i know it sounds like cope but i really do enjoy homestuck's 'bumps in the road' like openbound, they make it more fun to read in the long run and more fun to think about! i love how distinct things like openbound make different parts of the comic feel, and i love how any readthrough of homestuck is going to have to spend a serious amount of time in this unique spot, it's like going through a place on a road trip.
all that said there are some obviously bad or at least thorny parts of openbound. mituna and especially damara are pretty offensive, some parts of the elaborate tumblr parody have aged pretty badly (like whenever they bring up otherkin lol), and kankri's just straight-up not very fun to read and i think making him the first new guy you meet may have been a horrible mistake. (that said i'm not sure who else would've been better...)
what are your thoughts?
