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Faye finds a new job

Hannelore has to play the role of Abyssina when Arthur comes into CoD

Emily and Claire talk boyfriends at work (aka 'filler')

Dora gets some unwelcome news (aka 'something unexpected')

Pintsize's singing dildo is a success! Can a companion Anthro PC legally own a business?

Someone is getting a new dad and it isn't necessarily Marten (aka 'something new')!

[katsmeat]

It's all in the subordinates. If you've got a hyper-competent subordinate who will do your work for you rather than let others suffer because the work hasn't been done, then you never need to work again or even pretend to work. For Tai, that's Momo and Claire (and, to a lesser extent, Marten, although Tai usually needs to persuade him personally to take responsibility for stuff; that isn't really part of his comfort zone).

Though Tai was in charge before any of them were taken on. So unless the library was a complete shambles before she hired Marten, I'd submit she's effective at her job. 

[BenRG]

Though Tai was in charge before any of them were taken on. So unless the library was a complete shambles before she hired Marten, I'd submit she's effective at her job.

If she has to be, yes; she'll do a good job or at least good enough not to bring criticism on her. If she doesn't have to be, she won't be. That's the point I've been making all along.

[Akima]

So... Why does Emily even own a crown?

But I'm impressed by Tai's trolling skills. She knows that Claire is the only one who take librarianing seriously, so she's obviously the one to wind up.

[NilsO]

So... Why does Emily even own a crown?

You can get one for free at Burger King.
Next question: Why would Emily visit Burger King? She only eats peas and banana smoothies...

[cesium133]

Chicken nugget smoothie!

[Zebediah]

So... Why does Emily even own a crown?

Clinton bought it for her.

Because Clinton is an idiot.

[valkygrrl]

Perhaps he was tournament champion and crowned her the queen of love and beauty.

[Method of Madness]

...thus starting Marten's Mutiny.

[jheartney]

As a parent of daughters, I can tell you from experience that fake princess accessories are neither expensive nor hard to procure. It's a bigger problem to deal with all the massive clutter of princess-crap™ once you have it.

[Endellion]

called it

So... Why does Emily even own a crown?

Why wouldn't she? This is Emily we're talking about, she probably has two more spare.

[Emperor Norton]

I'm pretty sure Tai just finished her undergrad degree, I think at some point she mentions her degree being in liberal arts.

I was under the impression that TAs are generally grad students.

[Half Empty Coffee Cup]

Everything is fantastic! And that's quite the face that Claire's making.

[Gladstone]

CLAIRE:
Everything is terrible!
My library adviser sells my boss all her weed.
Everything is terrible!
This is just what I need...

[SubaruStephen]

Throw your hands in the air like you just don't care......anymore, because everything is terrible.

[Aziraphale]

Amelia... it was just a false alarm.

[DSL]

I'll bet she's all mimsy.

[tywren]

Ok Tai, here's what you need to do; slip Claire a pot brownie, and chill her the fuck out. You'll be doing yourself, Claire, the De Beers Diamond Company, and the world at large a huge favor.

[explicit]

Everythinggggg is awesomeeee

[wlewisiii]

Everythinggggg is awesomeeee

Only if your name is Emmet..

[valkygrrl]

Ok Tai, here's what you need to do; slip Claire a pot brownie, and chill her the fuck out. You'll be doing yourself, Claire, the De Beers Diamond Company, and the world at large a huge favor.

Not cool to give someone drugs without them knowing about it.

[MrNumbers]

Ok Tai, here's what you need to do; slip Claire a pot brownie, and chill her the fuck out. You'll be doing yourself, Claire, the De Beers Diamond Company, and the world at large a huge favor.

1: Drugging someone without their knowledge, let alone consent, is so uncool that it's not even funny to joke about.

2: Claire is ultra-super-serious about her career. The way she is acting is not only understandable, but reasonable in the given situation. If anything, the situation would be better resolved with less marijuana, not more.

[Truec]

I'm pretty sure Tai just finished her undergrad degree, I think at some point she mentions her degree being in liberal arts.

I was under the impression that TAs are generally grad students.

I think you're thinking of Gabby, not Tai.

[Emperor Norton]

I'm pretty sure Tai just finished her undergrad degree, I think at some point she mentions her degree being in liberal arts.

I was under the impression that TAs are generally grad students.

I think you're thinking of Gabby, not Tai.

Nope, Tai was a TA to a creative writing class. http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=777

[SubaruStephen]

Wait...

Amelia Borogrove.....kinda witchy looking..

A. BoroGROVE....kinda witchy looking

[BenRG]

In some ways, I'm sorry that we missed the conversation where Claire convinced Tai that this was a serious matter. The look on Tai's face when she realised that this wasn't an elaborate practical joke would probably been funny! Am I sure that Tai really had planned for the note to be 'it'? Yes; the feel of what she says in panel 1suggests that. She's okay doing a proper evaluation if it's so important to Claire but it was additional to her original plans.

Two other thoughts:

• Tai clearly has the same... issues with desktop organisation that I do;
• Claire, you have lived your whole life in a college town and haven't realised that just about everyone does pot, especially the faculty?

Oh - I think that this strip confirms that Claire is a student at Smif.

[Kugai]

Ahh, nice to see that Claire hasn't lost all perspective


Yes, I was being sarcastic

[osaka]

CLAIRE: "What the hell ass balls?"
MARTEN: "STOP STEALING MY LINES".

Now seriously, that's a plot twist if I ever saw one.

[Rghfrgl]

I liked these last few comics a lot.

[BenRG]

I wonder if this will be the prelude to a sequence of comics where Tai makes it her mission to 'loosen up' Claire (something Claire neither wants nor appreciates)? I'm going to lay down my marker that this will include Claire meeting Delilah and there being an argument over her 'using' Marten, which may, in turn, lead to more details about Claire's absentee father. Certainly, if Claire and Tai bond to any degree, I can see Claire telling her that she's trans.

FWIW, Jeph doesn't seem to be following any long-term arcs at the moment. He seems to be satisfied just doing short stories in the universe (the Emilton date, Claire's assessment and so on). Is this a serious change in direction or will we see him going back to longer arcs in the future?

[neurocase]

I'm hardcore with Claire on this one. Maybe it's because Tai has always annoyed me, but her comment in panel four today seems unnecessary. She couldn't just say "Oh, I know her!"? She has to specifically mention that's where she gets her pot?
It just makes her seem all the more useless, and her entire attitude has always seemed to reek of a stereotypical overly-hedonistic pothead. I don't care when people smoke in the privacy of their own homes or whatever, but it seems that 90% of people on the grass can't shut the fuck up about it, and seem to make a point of mentioning it or slipping it into conversation whenever they can. This is what Tai seems to do, and since a while after her introduction, it's all she's been.

Oh, the library hasn't fallen apart while she's been working there? That doesn't mean she's done a good job. It means she's coasted enough and used the people around her enough to get by doing as little as possible to maintain functionality. I mean shit, when the interns first showed up, she openly admitted that she was high as hell, and was going to go watch cartoons. So she's a college student? Boo fucking hoo. That's not an excuse for being completely unprofessional. I honestly want to see her brought down to earth HARD. She won't go the way of Faye; that drama-horse has been beaten to death already. But I want to see her lose her job or Dora because of her habits so that she straightens out. She was likeable at first; those literary puns she made during Marten's interview, and her insistence on meeting Jimbo stand out as positives, but now she's just frustrating, and frankly, I find strips with her, especially ones where it's all 'hurrdurr Tai is high lulz lulz lulz' tiring.

So A+ to Claire. I don't want to see her bullied into "loosening up". She's driven, responsible, and focused, and to people like that, people like Tai can be understandably infuriating.

[Akima]

Amelia... it was just a false alarm.

Awesome album. No regrets, Coyote.

Claire, you have lived your whole life in a college town and haven't realised that just about everyone does pot, especially the faculty?

This, but...

1: Drugging someone without their knowledge, let alone consent, is so uncool that it's not even funny to joke about.

Yeah. It is a criminal offence in many jurisdictions, and anyone who does it belongs in prison too.

[cabbagehut]

Something that I both really like and find a little frustrating about QC is the shifting cast.  I like it because it seems realistic.  You often don't have a core cast of friends in your life that'll do everything with you, and when you live in a college town, people often move away.  People quit jobs to get careers, get married, have kids, relocate for all kinds of reasons, and it's really nice to see that represented, I think.

I find it frustrating because you don't get an "end" to a lot of stories. Part of my mind keeps them as "active" characters, and then I think of QC having this massive cast, when it really doesn't.  It just shifts focus.

To be honest, this is the first time I really noticed that I don't really like reading about most of the main cast (and a number of the side characters, too).  I don't really like Marigold, Claire, Tai, Dale (honestly, it's not a dislike, but that I don't find him to have much of a personality, so I'm just disinterested), Emily, Pintsize, Momo, Dora (not a dislike, just disinterest), Clinton, Veronica, or Angus (I am so, so glad he is gone.  I always thought of him as irredeemably creepy and just could not get on board).  I pretty much only like Marten, Faye, and Hannelore at the moment.

I'm not saying the comic is poorly-written or anything!  In fact, I find a lot of the characterizations to be just fine.  They just aren't my taste.  I don't have any plans to stop reading, because like I said, the cast rotates.  New things could be out there that I like more, and I like the storytelling style.

But back to the main topic at hand: this kind of situation is funny in a comic, but really, really frustrating in real life (thank goodness this isn't real life, then, huh? ).  When you have a superior who can't take it seriously and it creates problems for you elsewhere, it stops being humorous pretty fast.

[ZoeB]

I'll bet she's all mimsy.

Lead singer of the Mome Raths too.

[snubnose]

EVERYTHING IS TERRIBLE

... nice start into the weekend.

[KOK]

FWIW, Jeph doesn't seem to be following any long-term arcs at the moment. He seems to be satisfied just doing short stories in the universe (the Emilton date, Claire's assessment and so on). Is this a serious change in direction or will we see him going back to longer arcs in the future?

Claire's internship ending soon is world shaking, by QC standards.

[Zebediah]

It really is. Northampton's endless summer has been going on for as long as I've been reading QC. Now it looks like we might actually get a change of season.

[tywren]

1: Drugging someone without their knowledge, let alone consent, is so uncool that it's not even funny to joke about.

Yeah. It is a criminal offence in many jurisdictions, and anyone who does it belongs in prison too.

It's not so cut and dry as that. For instance, i put drugs in people's food/drinks on a regular basis as part of my job. When you're dealing with an uncooperative Alzheimer patent, covert medication is a much safer method than restraint, and forced medication, especially if the patient also has Osteoporosis that's left their bones as brittle as a stick of chalk.

Admittedly, that's not the same as giving a collage student drugged brownies, which was a joke (possibly in bad taste).

In closing, i'd like to ask, that when you start making absolute statements such as "anyone who does it belongs in prison too.", you stop, and carefully think it through first.

[anahata]

I'm hardcore with Claire on this one. Maybe it's because Tai has always annoyed me, but her comment in panel four today seems unnecessary. She couldn't just say "Oh, I know her!"? She has to specifically mention that's where she gets her pot?

Because of Claire's reaction? (and perhaps because Tai is a tease and knows Claire will react like that?)
I'm with those who'd like Claire to loosen up a bit. I don't mean she should start smoking pot, but she could be a little more tolerant of those whose lifestyle and values don't exactly match hers. Especially, come to think of it, when she herself is in a position that invites prejudice.

Also I don't believe Tai is totally feckless and irresponsible. I think she's one of those people who's actually very intelligent but doesn't make a big thing of it. Her management decisions are capricious and intuitive but where it really matters I don't see evidence that she's really fouled up. For example she put Marten in charge of showing the interns round while she watched movies on a drug high: it could look like she was plain lazy but Marten, despite being out of his comfort zone, did a good job, no harm came of it and Marten and the interns had a useful opportunity to get to know each other.

tl;dr : there's method in her madness.

[Meilu]

Something that I both really like and find a little frustrating about QC is the shifting cast.  I like it because it seems realistic.  You often don't have a core cast of friends in your life that'll do everything with you, and when you live in a college town, people often move away.  People quit jobs to get careers, get married, have kids, relocate for all kinds of reasons, and it's really nice to see that represented, I think.

I find it frustrating because you don't get an "end" to a lot of stories. Part of my mind keeps them as "active" characters, and then I think of QC having this massive cast, when it really doesn't.  It just shifts focus.

To be honest, this is the first time I really noticed that I don't really like reading about most of the main cast (and a number of the side characters, too).  I don't really like Marigold, Claire, Tai, Dale (honestly, it's not a dislike, but that I don't find him to have much of a personality, so I'm just disinterested), Emily, Pintsize, Momo, Dora (not a dislike, just disinterest), Clinton, Veronica, or Angus (I am so, so glad he is gone.  I always thought of him as irredeemably creepy and just could not get on board).  I pretty much only like Marten, Faye, and Hannelore at the moment.

I'm not saying the comic is poorly-written or anything!  In fact, I find a lot of the characterizations to be just fine.  They just aren't my taste.  I don't have any plans to stop reading, because like I said, the cast rotates.  New things could be out there that I like more, and I like the storytelling style.

But back to the main topic at hand: this kind of situation is funny in a comic, but really, really frustrating in real life (thank goodness this isn't real life, then, huh? ).  When you have a superior who can't take it seriously and it creates problems for you elsewhere, it stops being humorous pretty fast.

I agree. I'd swap a character or two, but on the whole I agree with you. This is a situation for me where I've been reading for so very long (very very near the beginning) that I just don't want to give up.

[Meilu]

I'm hardcore with Claire on this one. Maybe it's because Tai has always annoyed me, but her comment in panel four today seems unnecessary. She couldn't just say "Oh, I know her!"? She has to specifically mention that's where she gets her pot?

Because of Claire's reaction? (and perhaps because Tai is a tease and knows Claire will react like that?)
I'm with those who'd like Claire to loosen up a bit. I don't mean she should start smoking pot, but she could be a little more tolerant of those whose lifestyle and values don't exactly match hers. Especially, come to think of it, when she herself is in a position that invites prejudice.

Also I don't believe Tai is totally feckless and irresponsible. I think she's one of those people who's actually very intelligent but doesn't make a big thing of it. Her management decisions are capricious and intuitive but where it really matters I don't see evidence that she's really fouled up. For example she put Marten in charge of showing the interns round while she watched movies on a drug high: it could look like she was plain lazy but Marten, despite being out of his comfort zone, did a good job, no harm came of it and Marten and the interns had a useful opportunity to get to know each other.

tl;dr : there's method in her madness.

I'm trans, it doesn't have anything to do with tolerating unprofessional behavior. Being trans is not a choice, doing drugs is (unless you're addicted, but there's still an initial choice). I've had bosses like Tai, I don't like it either. There's a time and a place for everything... being drunk or high at work is wrong. Pushing work off on your friends because you are drunk or high is wrong. That's not a "method to the madness" style of management. I'm not uptight, I let loose in appropriate settings... The place of employment isn't ever the right place.

[NilsO]

I don't mind endless summers, but perhaps it is time to move on. Things I would like to see:

• Sam at school, dissecting frogs
• Claire focusing on her studies
• Beautiful fall foliage
• Marten, Hanners, and Amir doing a real concert (OK, they need more band practice and a vocalist first).
• Shakeup at the library: Budget cuts, Tai and Marten getting fired

[Euthemes]

What a small world 

It was a funny week, we needed that. Thank you once more, QC.

[gprimr1]

Claire needs a xanax or something. She is WAY to wound up.

That actually might not be a bad thing that Tai and her teacher have that relationship. It's not like Tai said "Oh I slept with her wife" or "Oh bleep that bleep"

[BenRG]

I don't mind endless summers, but perhaps it is time to move on. Things I would like to see:

• Sam at school, dissecting frogs
• Claire focusing on her studies
• Beautiful fall foliage
• Marten, Hanners, and Amir doing a real concert (OK, they need more band practice and a vocalist first).
• Shakeup at the library: Budget cuts, Tai and Marten getting fired

Claire at Grad School - I think it would be in-character for Claire to be the sort of student who stresses out on her studies almost to the point of a breakdown, especially as this is finals year. I expect at least one incident where Marten has to invoke SO Privilege and lock away her books for her to have a weekend off lest she burn out;

Deathmole Concert - Firstly, I'd love for the way they keep Emily in the centre of the story and more-or-less in her existing social circle is for her to be a keyboards prodigy in the sort of "eccentric and artistic techno-pop keyboardist" way. Secondly, it might be nice for the band to have a small gig at some hipster 'club' where (much to their surprise) they are a modest success (certainly enough to sell a huge stack of their hastly-burnt album CDs). I'd also love for Claire to attempt to dress 'rock chick' and be surprised at the way guys (especially Marten) look at her.

Changes at the library - New Broom Sweeps Clean and generates a tidal wave of complaints from students and faculty alike, leading to the Trustees coming crawling to Marten and Tai on hands and knees offering way more money.

[FayeDouble]

Ok Tai, here's what you need to do; slip Claire a pot brownie, and chill her the fuck out. You'll be doing yourself, Claire, the De Beers Diamond Company, and the world at large a huge favor.

As someone who reacts very, VERY poorly to pot, especially in food form, I can tell you that is a very bad idea. Not everyone just "chills out" in fact some of us totally "freak out" and then Tai would have a scared, crying Claire on her hands who would be totally terrified. I know it's a common drug, and people attitudes have changed for the better as far as legalization goes, but I wish people wouldn't joke about drugging someone with it. It is still a mind-altering substance, and different brains react differently. That being said, even with my not being a user, they should just legalize it since there are tons of people in prison who do not deserve to be - they aren't violent or dangerous!

Also, Tai, seriously? Never give up the name of your source. That's a well-known rule from anyone who's ever been anywhere NEAR that realm of life.

*getting off soapbox*

[chaospersonified]

Also, Tai, seriously? Never give up the name of your source. That's a well-known rule from anyone who's ever been anywhere NEAR that realm of life.

I effing hate this rule. I've been back in my hometown for going on a year now, and I still can't find a person.

As to the effect it can have, it's worse than that for a few reasons.

One, with a pot brownie, or any edible, you can't know how much THC you're ingesting. General rule I've heard is just take a few bites, not the whole thing, which Claire wouldn't know to do, because she thinks it's a normal brownie. I've never had edibles, but that's what I understand to be a thing.

Two, there's the fact that your body feels strange for no apparent reason, and you don't know what's happening, and even if it feels good at first, you're going to start freaking out because it's NOT a normal feeling, it's not emotional anymore, it's affecting your physical abilities. Make a list of things that affect your physical abilities without that being your express intention. That list doesn't include much in the way of good things, does it? Well that's what the unwillingly drugged person would have to go on, because they didn't do anything they knew that could cause this.

[swapna]

Hah. I actually find this funny - Admittedly, not a big fan of Tai's drug use at work, but she's not really in charge of dangerous machinery or something and seems to do a fine job.

And Claire needs to stop getting angry about everything - Tai's a decent lady, has recently been a student and knows how important those evaluations are.
And, to be honest - she should be glad Tai's evaluation of her is 'good job' and not 'would not recommend - insubordinate, destroys library equipment and is unprofessional at work (no, not Claire/Marten, her freak-out at work)'

[Rghfrgl]

I wonder what you do with Emily with internships ending. Claire's spot in the comic is pretty cemented right now and it wouldn't be unreasonable for her to be hired for a proper part time job at the library while she goes back to school anyway, because she loves libraries.

Both of them getting hired seems less reasonable. Emily dating Clinton can keep her in the strip, but she's much more removed from the rest of the cast that way.

[Method of Madness]

She's part of the cast now, though. So if Jeph wants to follow up on her he doesn't need anyone else there to make it worth doing, but it'll probably be more one off strips than anything.

[Neko_Ali]

I wonder what you do with Emily with internships ending. Claire's spot in the comic is pretty cemented right now and it wouldn't be unreasonable for her to be hired for a proper part time job at the library while she goes back to school anyway, because she loves libraries.

Both of them getting hired seems less reasonable. Emily dating Clinton can keep her in the strip, but she's much more removed from the rest of the cast that way.

I hear that Coffee of Doom has a job opening now....


To soon?