2588: Party Quadrants
| Party Quadrants |
 Title text: Single-elimination might provide more drama, but I think we can all agree that a comprehensive numerical scoring system will let us better judge the party's winner. |
Explanation
In this comic there is a graph divided into quadrants to visualize the range of possibilities of fun for Randall and for guests at parties hosted by Randall. The top and bottom halves are labeled as "fun for guests" with "no" in the top quadrant and "yes" in the bottom quadrant. The left and right halves labeled as "fun for me", i.e. fun for the host Randall, with "no" in the left quadrant and "yes" in the right quadrant.
In the bottom right quadrant (which indicates fun for everyone), are two separately outlined but largely overlapping regions, like a Venn diagram. One is the appropriate zone for a party (in general) and the other other applies to Randall's own birthday party. They are both vaguely ellipsoid and both enclose a reasonable to nearly maximal amount of fun in both dimensions. The range for the birthday party is skewed towards being marginally more for Randall's enjoyment, but is still firmly in the bottom right quadrant, showing the party planner still gives consideration for the guests to feel welcome and happy.
Omitting the extreme edges may indicate that there are no points there because it's impossible to completely please everybody, or it may be a warning that a party should not be such extreme fun that it gets out of hand nor let the balance of fun stray too far from equal. There are no specific points labeled in this quadrant.
The top right quadrant is meant to represent ideas that Randall and precisely nobody else would find fun. He gives an example, reportedly his latest idea for a party, is in the upper right quadrant, labeled "Sporcle geography tournament with snacks! Live-updating scoreboard, no distracting music". From a cursory glance of this label it should be evident to Randall's fans and associates why he would enjoy this party, and evident to everyone why this would be extremely boring to the vast majority of people who aren't Randall.
The elements of Randall's "fun" party include:
| Element | Comment | |
|---|---|---|
| Sporcle | Sporcle is a trivia website. This alone would not be weird or boring, trivia games are a lot of fun for some people, while others get bored by their "trivial" nature and would rather spend time talking, dancing, etc. | |
| Geography trivia | Randall is a geography geek (as evidenced by his fascination with map projections). Needless to say, many people are not, so a geography trivia quiz would be one of the worst types for many people. | |
| Tournament | Many people might prefer not to have competition at the party, especially considering the host might be a little too invested in the outcome. The title text further elaborates on this, debating possible scoring options. | |
| Snacks | At least there would be snacks, which is another common element of parties. It's hard to imagine why people would object to snacks, so this is perhaps the only item that would be enjoyable both for Randall and his guests. But they only move the party down slightly in the graph, not enough to get this party into the "fun for guests" quadrant. | |
| Live-updating scoreboard | To a software geek, this would be something that would be fascinating, both to develop and watch in action. To most people, not so much - particularly if said scoreboard was developed while the party was taking place (In that case, the guests may not even get around to playing the trivia game). | |
| No distracting music | Randall tries to bill this as a positive, that the music won't distract people trying to focus on Sporcle. Indeed, even a well-planned party that considers the interests of all guests would require appropriate music (some people prefer a quiet gathering over a loud party). That said, music on the whole is something people enjoy, so excluding it would make this party even less enjoyable for potential guests.
} In the caption, it is mentioned that for some reason, Randall keeps "accidentally" planning parties in the top right quadrant (fun for him, not for guests). Presumably, he is so caught up in what he considers entertaining that he doesn't take into account the interest level of the guests. This is regardless of which party-context, and well outside either of the appropriate zones. This diagram though indicates that he know this is the case, but maybe he is first able to place the point on the diagram after the party, when he realizes that his guest leaves early (again) out of boredom. The title text elaborates on the Sporcle trivia game night that Randall has planned in the upper right quadrant. It makes mention of a comprehensive, and perhaps overly complicated, scoring system to determine who is the party's winner. That he's talking about "winning the party" suggests he is fundamentally misunderstanding the point of parties -- they're supposed to be fun for everyone attending, not (exclusively) a competition. See the previous comic 2587: For the Sake of Simplicity, which seems to be a bit related to what Randall thinks is fun, whereas other might not. Transcript
 Add comment  Create topic (use sparingly)  Refresh DiscussionI added a first draft. I'm sure someone can make it better. I can't be the only person who thinks I'd like to go to that party. Angel (talk) 23:44, 2 March 2022 (UTC)
Competitions are not uncommon at parties. E.g. "pin the tail on the donkey". Barmar (talk) 00:01, 3 March 2022 (UTC)
Am I missing something important? For the other 3 quadrants, why are there no examples of party games that may be enjoyed/not enjoyed. Eg; Squid Game (not enjoyed by anyone), TenPin Bowling (probably enjoyed by everyone). Beechmere (talk) 02:09, 3 March 2022 (UTC)Beechmere
The statement "while music would be considered fun for most people" should be removed or a [citation needed] added. People have no concept of appropriate volume and have different taste in music, making it no fun, or alternatingly fun, for most attendees. Parties are much more fun when you can actually hear and understand the people around you.
The snacks are probably why the Sporcle geometry party isn't further up on the graph. But they're not enough by themselves to move the party into the "fun for guests" half. Barmar (talk) 18:07, 3 March 2022 (UTC) I am puzzled by Randall's guest list. If he is inviting random people off the street, why is he inviting random people off the street? If he enjoys geography trivia, why doesn't he know people who enjoy geography trivia? Clearly there is something more deeply wrong with his party organizing than simply having non-conventional tastes. This should be discussed. A Zorn's lemma themed party is great fun if you invite the right people.172.70.175.146 21:30, 4 March 2022 (UTC)
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