Editing 1178: Pickup Artists

{{comic
| number    = 1178
| date      = February 25, 2013
| title     = Pickup Artists
| image     = pickup artists.png
| titletext = It sounds like a great way to make friends! Is it near that Friend Zone you keep talking about? I wanna go!
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is deliberately conflating two definitions of the word "pickup" to try and discredit one of them.

A {{w|pickup artist}} is a person who considers himself skilled at "picking up" (seducing) women (theoretically a pickup artist could try to seduce men but this is far less common), through various psychological tactics and tricks. They are commonly looked down upon for incredibly jerkish behavior. Meanwhile the term "{{w|Pick-up game|pickup}}" in "pickup basketball" means informal and spontaneous. In pickup basketball the players are not part of an organized league or team but rather are just people who are available to play at that time and location.

[[Beret Guy]] thinks (or wants to think) that what pickup artists really do is gather spontaneously to practice {{w|art|artistry}}, like the {{w|visual arts}}. This makes the world seem a happier place, especially considering his own disposition for (eccentric) art, and generally ability to always see the best in every situation.

[[Randall]] does not believe that pick-up artists have healthy attitudes towards women and has elaborated on this previously in [[1027: Pickup Artist]] (also featuring [[Hairy]]) and in [[800: Beautiful Dream]].

The title text also shows Beret Guy's belief that the "{{w|friend zone}}" is a physical place. The term "friend zone" refers to to a state in which one party (almost always male) desires a romantic or sexual relationship with someone (almost always female) who only thinks of them as a friend, with the notion that being classified as a friend is blocking them from being considered as a romantic partner. The use of this term has become quite controversial, however, because it implies that the man considers himself entitled to a romantic relationship in which the woman has no interest. References to being in "the friend zone" is almost universally stated as a complaint, and the other party's desires is treated as an obstacle to be overcome, often through manipulation and deception. Randall previously expressed criticism towards trying to just slip into a romantic relationship from the friend zone in [[513: Friends]].

Beret Guy however believes (or chooses to believe) that the term refers to a physical place that's either full of friends, or a place where people go to make friends.  In either case, he thinks such a 'zone' sounds fun. 

==Trivia==

This comic is one of a small set of comics with the same or almost the same title as another comic (the only difference being the use of the plural form of "artist").

==Transcript==
:[Beret Guy is talking with Hairy]
:Beret Guy: What've you been up to lately?
:Hairy: I've been hanging out with some pickup artists. 
:Hairy: I'm learning a ''lot!''
:Beret Guy: Oh, that sounds like fun!

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The world seems like a happier place if you think "pickup artist" is like "pickup basketball player".

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Basketball]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Pickup Artist02]]