Midnight's Edge - Ken Penders Interview

[Mike Arcade]

The fine fellows over at Midnight's Edge, along with Somecallmejohnny, interview the long time Archie Sonic and Knuckles Writer Ken Penders! This is also the first scheduled interview he's had on video from what I know as well.

[Akessel92]

I personally have my conclusions of Penders already made. And I feel I cannot make a thought out opinion without my irrational passions boiling over. 

[MoKat]

Yikes! The years haven't been kind to him o.O;

Gotta admit that the Princess Sally mini was a turning point for the series, and I like the darker tone (more like Sat AM than AoStH). I also recall that a lot of the posters on Ken's messageboard were female fans. He may have done a lot for the comic, but he was also a big part of the reason it all went to crap - I think that his lawsuit was the final nail in Archie Sonic's coffin.

[Akessel92]

On 2/26/2020 at 2:29 PM, MoKat said:

Yikes! The years haven't been kind to him o.O;

Gotta admit that the Princess Sally mini was a turning point for the series, and I like the darker tone (more like Sat AM than AoStH). I also recall that a lot of the posters on Ken's messageboard were female fans. He may have done a lot for the comic, but he was also a big part of the reason it all went to crap - I think that his lawsuit was the final nail in Archie Sonic's coffin.

Certainly lead to the beginning of the end

[MoKat]

Can't deny that, but there were things going on at Archie Comics before the lawsuit. I found a pretty good article about the whole situation.

K.P. was notorious for not getting along with other writers:

Quote

His comments about Flynn made him appear as a man with a vendetta, one who was taking his ball and going home.

 

[TheRedStranger]

On 3/6/2020 at 4:09 PM, MoKat said:

Can't deny that, but there were things going on at Archie Comics before the lawsuit. I found a pretty good article about the whole situation.

K.P. was notorious for not getting along with other writers:

 

Speaking from a background in mental health...

Just by the way he talks about himself fixedly and does not interact with the interviewers, he sounds like a guy that could have NPD... But he’d never get that checked out by professional. Many obviously don’t. 

[Wulfsbane]

On 3/19/2020 at 12:59 AM, TheRedStranger said:

Speaking from a background in mental health...

Just by the way he talks about himself fixedly and does not interact with the interviewers, he sounds like a guy that could have NPD... But he’d never get that checked out by professional. Many obviously don’t. 

Why would he? He believes he has done no wrong and is a creative genius that we should all be thanking him everyday

[TheRedStranger]

20 hours ago, Wulfsbane said:

Why would he? He believes he has done no wrong and is a creative genius that we should all be thanking him everyday

And if that is the true case, its textbook NPD. What makes us excellent individuals is our capacity to improve the self through healthy interaction with others and for a higher goal than merely than pleasing the current iteration of our self. Such leads to stagnation, and ironically a decay of who we are. Even the most staunch objectivist knows what he does benefits others, and they too benefit from another. Creative writing and art, in particular, are defined by constant divergence of thought, and takes an external look beyond the self and its tight, narrow interests, unless it be a reactive derivation of already established works (which people could argue that his work seems to be that way). Ultimately, like all exploratory endeavors, creativity is nourished by thoughtful observation outside the self and thus demands growth of the self in its process. It's why art is usually used as vehicle by suffering people, a concept in psychology known as post-traumatic growth.  Narcissism is the antithesis of creative thinking, it demands conformity to the self as an ideal, and thus censors anything that distances itself from that. It can be seen in the works of edgy adolescents who are trying to find their individual place in the  world for example, fan-fictions of empowerment promoting avatars of their narrow interests and cliched echoes of their experiences. Typically, such work boils down to someone creating a form self-apotheosis, which merely proselytizes the readers and viewers to conform to their perceptions and feelings, rather than offering novel conceptual challenge.

If he is truly this way, I deeply pity this man... We all start with our position as the base line in creativity, the self and its ideas are the default. We all have the potential to be like him creatively, stuck with our pet interests, making edgy hedgehogs or escapist mental junk-food. But if we talk at the wall, don't interact, don't heed constructive criticism, or respect out audience; if we do not challenge ourselves with different art styles, writing methods, and explore new ideas with and of others, then we will end up like him. 

I think this is an apt allusion.

 

[Mike Arcade]

 

Parts 2 & 3 of the interview. Had no idea they were uploaded until now. Sorry about that, so if you are curious just watch and discuss.

[MoKat]

I'm kinda surprised that he admitted that Green Knuckles lasting so long was the result of poor planning on his part.

(As for Manak, I didn't like his art very much either :p)