as irritating as this guy is, it feels relieving to hear him mention here that the medication doesn't have to improve within the course of the inpatient stay, especially since kim was fearing she might be here a long time, or even forever
Oof. This guy really is by-the-books. He reminds me of a bored professor. He probably smells like plaster. He probably eats unseasoned chicken. What a dry dude.
yeah, this guy reminds me of my current psychiatrist lmao, "I'm your doctor, so you should just trust what I say." a good portrayal of something so frustrating
i like how you can see his fingerprints in the up-close shots, as well as the writing on the papers. kim's dialogue is pretty powerful, too... it's unfortunate that her psychiatrist here likely doesnt care about what shes saying at all. he simply goes back to what he was saying before. he probably would have seen it either way, but at least kim got him to see on the papers that she wasnt skipping group- maybe thatll give her extra points to help her get approved to leave. cant wait to see where the story goes, thank you for the immense time and effort that goes into these.
they are definitely supposed to be intimidating visually in that way but there's just also no way to draw a close-up of the pen without his claws being in your face.
he's always had them, but i used to be more loose about whether i drew certain details on characters at all. there is only one panel in the first scene that he's in where it's visible, and it happens the be the first panel he pulls out the pen and clicks it open for the first time.
i really really like the touch of being able to see his fingerprints up close, i feel like it really highlights the motif of control because it's such a manual detail (in more than one sense of the word-- something pertaining to the hands, something done *by* hand, and the way "manual" as a noun also refers to a handbook, especially apt for a guy with such a by-the-books approach.)
it's also sort of a contrast to the bags under kim's eyes here.. and the symmetry in his feather details indicates the kind of direct control over his presentation that kim hasn't been afforded, not being able to wear her own clothes or properly brush her hair... but it's adherence to a standard "professional" appearance, really just following the rules, and even that, in a sense, is relinquishing control. prescribing whatever treatment he's been taught to, ascribing perceived traits to personality disorders, whatever he understands to fit the bill... he's dressed himself up in a doctor costume to play his role as psychiatrist, haha.
control vs choice is a thought provoking theme for sure
the sheer disinterest at kims struggle from this doctor..... incredible. i think the look on his face just says it all, "i dont really care about this whole thing, but i know better than you & im here to let you know".
also, im definitely getting the vibes that the only reason hes asking her that question is to get some kind of ammunition to shut her down again, regardless of how she answers...
"you can make someone lose control by making they believe they don't have any."
the mental ward for me and my friends gave this constant sense of "i'm not like those people" as well as "but what if i am and i just don't know it yet?" people banging against the doors and howling, pain and aggression... it was all around you, and coming from a sheltered asian family i was left out of the loop as to what mental health institutions would be like.
i don't regret going to the hospital but i do wish that it hasn't been as traumatizing of an experience as it was. i have to wonder if Kim will leave feeling the same way.
really like the intensity of this page. the last frame especially is really nice to look at, and i like the added detail of the fingerprints on Fink's hands!
love the subtle callback to kim intending to use a pen as a weapon when she first got here... also feeling the influence of sugar's discussion about how the "carnivore wing" is something that only makes sense up to a point.
and oof, the way that this ends -- where you can FEEL that he's testing her, to see if switching to outpatient for her therapy is viable. i like the little amount of leeway that he has shown so far with indicating that there is a possibility for freedom after she's shown him the numbers from outside of their sessions.... this whole conversation feels like a solid amalgamation of her own thoughts & the influence and advice from the other characters.
I have to say, I love this doctor’s design
I’ve only had a few interactions with psychiatric doctors, but I have a ton of experience with medical doctors for my chronic illnesses. I feel like his design really captures the way it feels to interact with some of these people; the dry expression, the clinical voice, the almost blank stare when they finally acknowledge you as a person. People in the comments have mentioned that it’s unnerving that you can’t see his mouth move when he talks, but honestly that what it feels like when they’re just talking at you
my mom, my teachers, AND my doctors all have done the same thing: repeating questions because they want a different answer. they want you to say what they want to hear. it's so annoying.
love the continual focus on doc jerkface's talons vs the shots of kim's claw sheaths when she's emoting, since she's talking about staff clipping her claws on this page. it's a great way to emphasize how much power he has over her and increase the sense of tension.
i wonder what makes someone possess critical thinking in a situation like this whether or not they choose to speak out on it. so many people probably go through this entire process and cant comprehend / aren't aware of how incredibly flawed it is, that this isn't set up in their best interest. like thats kind of the point obvs they arent going to tell you its fucked up when you're past the point of questioning your field;s morality but. idk. as a kid i wish i had the skills kim has here (if you can call them skills) she's just very aware of whats going on and not afraid to use her voice either
The way Fink just radiates an air of perceived superiority in the way only psychiatrists can makes me want to punch him in his smug little beak. He's so incredibly sure that he's the smartest one in the room, based solely on the fact he's not the one who attempted and is in the doctor's chair. He enjoys being in charge of the situation, and it brings me back to Lupe and Carmilla talking about control. He's holding all the cards and to him that's what matters, not what Kim's feeling, not what she's saying, not what she's experiencing- just the fact that he holds the keys to the cells and decides who gets out based on his preconceived notion of being better than Kim and by extension every patient in the ward.
Eesh, poor Kim. That feeling of being steamrollered over as you try and explain yourself because someone is like "Don't deviate from the script I've set for you in my head!!"... painful stuff! Fink is the worst.
Fink, clinically as it is, wants to see what has changed in her own perception of why she tried to kill herself. He wants to see her emotional gage talking about something that obviously triggered her emotional response last time. He's deliberately testing to see if she is capable of handling questions that WILL come up from her parents/friends/classmates/etc. He wants to know if she's "rational" about her response.
I find it really interesting that Kim mentions all the ways that she could hurt HERSELF when talking about how being here hasn't made her safe at all, which makes sense given the context of Fink's questioning, but she doesn't mention at all how the STAFF have made her unsafe in multiple scenarios (i.e. LITERALLY DRUGGING A 17 YEAR OLD'S WATER AFTER AN OVERDOSE). It's to be expected, like I said the context of the situation pushes Kim to approach it from the angle of self-control, but throughout the comic there's been an undercurrent of "it's not JUST self-control, it's the staff controlling you as well". I doubt Fink would agree that the staff made Kim unsafe in multiple scenarios, but still.
i know this is probably way too optimistic of an outlook on Fink, but this feels like a way out for Kim. he’s asking “why” again. she can just give the right answer, whatever that means, and it could help her out substantially. maybe i’m reading into it, but i feel like his expression change in panel 10 coupled with a repeated question could be implying he sees something new here.
I think this could actually be a pretty good reading of what FINK'S own justification for it would be! An above comment by mata mentioned that Fink seems to be looking for a specific answer that he wants, and I think your comment outlines the KIND of answer he wants to hear from Kim, to confirm that she's been, for lack of a better word, therapized correctly.
i know this is probably way too optimistic of an outlook on Fink, but this feels like a way out for Kim. he’s asking “why” again. she can just give the right answer, whatever that means, and it could help her out substantially. maybe i’m reading into it, but i feel like his expression change in panel 10 coupled with a repeated question could be implying he sees something new here.
It's like he's an AI with a really simole algorithm, or an NPC following a dialogue script.
that last panel just emanates dread
he's always had them, but i used to be more loose about whether i drew certain details on characters at all. there is only one panel in the first scene that he's in where it's visible, and it happens the be the first panel he pulls out the pen and clicks it open for the first time.
it's also sort of a contrast to the bags under kim's eyes here.. and the symmetry in his feather details indicates the kind of direct control over his presentation that kim hasn't been afforded, not being able to wear her own clothes or properly brush her hair... but it's adherence to a standard "professional" appearance, really just following the rules, and even that, in a sense, is relinquishing control. prescribing whatever treatment he's been taught to, ascribing perceived traits to personality disorders, whatever he understands to fit the bill... he's dressed himself up in a doctor costume to play his role as psychiatrist, haha.
control vs choice is a thought provoking theme for sure
also, im definitely getting the vibes that the only reason hes asking her that question is to get some kind of ammunition to shut her down again, regardless of how she answers...
the mental ward for me and my friends gave this constant sense of "i'm not like those people" as well as "but what if i am and i just don't know it yet?" people banging against the doors and howling, pain and aggression... it was all around you, and coming from a sheltered asian family i was left out of the loop as to what mental health institutions would be like.
i don't regret going to the hospital but i do wish that it hasn't been as traumatizing of an experience as it was. i have to wonder if Kim will leave feeling the same way.
love the subtle callback to kim intending to use a pen as a weapon when she first got here... also feeling the influence of sugar's discussion about how the "carnivore wing" is something that only makes sense up to a point.
and oof, the way that this ends -- where you can FEEL that he's testing her, to see if switching to outpatient for her therapy is viable. i like the little amount of leeway that he has shown so far with indicating that there is a possibility for freedom after she's shown him the numbers from outside of their sessions.... this whole conversation feels like a solid amalgamation of her own thoughts & the influence and advice from the other characters.
I’ve only had a few interactions with psychiatric doctors, but I have a ton of experience with medical doctors for my chronic illnesses. I feel like his design really captures the way it feels to interact with some of these people; the dry expression, the clinical voice, the almost blank stare when they finally acknowledge you as a person. People in the comments have mentioned that it’s unnerving that you can’t see his mouth move when he talks, but honestly that what it feels like when they’re just talking at you