Response dump!
So what is Claire drinking there?
Root beer, the best beer of them all and without that nasty alcohol taste/effect. At least, I can hope so, but our society, and Jeph in particular, is/are obsessed with mind altering substances. I greatly appreciate the local restaurant that puts root beer with it's fermented brethren instead of on the soda list, though.
Man, Momo has had a SERIOUS personality change since then.
Yeah, now she's as snarky and grumpy and non-eel-shooting as the rest of the cast.
Oh, and a note on Hanners and physical contact; she voluntarily jumped into the arms of a fireman once, when her "baser instincts" overcame her inhibitions for a moment. IIRC, she found him "gross and sweaty".
Comic (Googling hannelore firemen brought me right to the ohnorobot transcripts):
I think of that comic every time someone tries to say that she is a pure snowflake who has no possibility of a romantic, physical, or sexual relationship with Marten or anyone else. She'd clearly like to, she just has issues- and issues can be overcome. Likely not in the way shippers hope, but also not to be written off either.
Sure, platonic friendships can exist. But I assume they only survive in an unrealistic parallel universe where all humans are unattractive, sexually inept, and emotionally absent.
This is patently absurd. This person should not be giving interpersonal advice to anyone. I have five people I consider true friends, four of them happen to be female. I am straight, I find each of them attractive, they are all either straight or bi and at least two of them have stated they find me physically attractive... and yet, no romantic tension. We're "just" friends (just in quotes because these friendships mean far too much to me for them to be "just" anything).
That you find them attractive might be pointed to by that columnist as proof that yours is not a completely platonic relationship, on the grounds that you would not have a similar thought process regarding males.
I've had to wrestle with that logic myself regarding my opposite gendered friends, and come to the conclusion that it doesn't have bearing on my relationships as they exist- they are platonic, and there is no indication or inclination that would change. However it still is difficult to reconcile the fact that I am fine with being platonic with the fact that I would also be fine if tomorrow any of most of them asked me out on a date, and would accept that offer at the very least to see how it works out and work out exactly what is different about a romantic relationship from a close friendship aside from the physical stuff and chemical bombs designed to make us perpetuate the species *breathes*.
EDIT: Aw, I got sniped on the comic. That's what happens when I pile too much together.