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More hijinks from Sam and inadvertently gets in the way.

Punchbot falls to pieces over the repairs.

Pintsize arrives for his weekly defrosting.

Jeph moves onto a different storyline.

Steve and Cosette eat a new type of cereal.

Something something humorous and witty comment.

[MrNumbers]

Bubbles getting ready to bone down.

[BenRG]

So, what is everyone expecting for next week? I think that Jeph has wrapped this arc so we'll be seeing something new from Monday.

Somehow the proclamation 'I am the Skull Master' is slightly less worrying when done by a 14 yo girl. When a huge battle bot makes this claim, I might be inclined to take a step back before trying to make fun of it.

Unless said battle droid is your best friend and you know that she has a sassy sense of humour. Then you know that she's getting into the spirit of things.

[TinPenguin]

The child was useful, but now Skull Master has at last found a worthy host. Let the world tremble.

[Nycticoraci]

Again, I have to read bubbles' line in the voice of the great James Earl Jones.

For those (traitors) who don't know this voice by memory, think Darth Vader.

[Technoir]

Absolutely BRILLIANT ending to the week, and a most excellent first panel. Nice use of perspective and motion.

[traroth]

Again, I have to read bubbles' line in the voice of the great James Earl Jones.

For those (traitors) who don't know this voice by memory, think Darth Vader.

The great Thulsa Doom!

[dutchrvl]

Again, I have to read bubbles' line in the voice of the great James Earl Jones.

For those (traitors) who don't know this voice by memory, think Darth Vader.

The great Thulsa Doom!

I love a good Conan reference on a Friday!

Today's comic was really the perfect way to end the week (+ the arc?), it made me laugh out loud. Very curious where Jeph will go back to now. Winslow perhaps?

[traroth]

Pintsize wanting a new body? That's coming soon, imo...

Or maybe PT410x, but that wouldn't be that much interesting.

[Dave H]

Bubbles finally figured out how to deal with Sam's enthusiasm. "If you can't beat them, join them!"

[BenRG]

In her own unique way, of course. "This is me playing a humorous quip. Please note my comedy voice."

[shanejayell]

    That was nice.

[Zebediah]

Does anyone else find it very suspicious that Sam goes to a school that lets her not go if she's having personal development and life experience? Personally, I think she's racing to school to be picked up by a parent so they don't know she didn't go that day. Maybe she's going to get busted when Bubbles gives back the Skullmaster mask to her Dad via Marten. "It's from the day Sam spent at our robot repair shop... No, not a weekend, it was one of her personal development and life experience days...I'll just let myself quietly out while you are screaming at Sam..."

A few notes on this: PVPA, the school Sam attends, is in South Hadley, 12 miles from downtown Northampton. So Sam isn't going to go sprinting back to it. She probably takes the bus in (there's a PVPA bus that stops in downtown Northampton.)

Also, if she did skip school then Jim ought to know about it. Most schools these days notify the parents if their kid doesn't show up - on days my son is out sick I tend to get a robo-call about 10 AM informing me that he's not at school. (Even if I've already called the school to tell them he wouldn't be in.)

And while I don't know much about PVPA's attendance policies.... yeah, I'm not buying Sam's explanation. A progressive school might allow it with parental approval for a specific educational purpose. But just letting a kid cut out of school whenever they feel like it probably violates the law and certainly opens up a legal can of worms if anything happens to the kid when they are supposed to be at school.

Meanwhile, in other news, Bubbles now has her Halloween costume. 

[JoeCovenant]

Just dropping back into this one to say, I am truly disappointed in Faye actually speaking the word "Welp"....

 

[tustin2121]

Just dropping back into this one to say, I am truly disappointed in Faye actually speaking the word "Welp"....

 

She said "howdy" and "whaddaya" two strips ago. I'd imagine those would be the more egregious examples to cry over if you cared enough to cry over her character development laxing language use...

[TheEvilDog]

Does anyone else find it very suspicious that Sam goes to a school that lets her not go if she's having personal development and life experience? Personally, I think she's racing to school to be picked up by a parent so they don't know she didn't go that day. Maybe she's going to get busted when Bubbles gives back the Skullmaster mask to her Dad via Marten. "It's from the day Sam spent at our robot repair shop... No, not a weekend, it was one of her personal development and life experience days...I'll just let myself quietly out while you are screaming at Sam..."

A few notes on this: PVPA, the school Sam attends, is in South Hadley, 12 miles from downtown Northampton. So Sam isn't going to go sprinting back to it. She probably takes the bus in (there's a PVPA bus that stops in downtown Northampton.)

Also, if she did skip school then Jim ought to know about it. Most schools these days notify the parents if their kid doesn't show up - on days my son is out sick I tend to get a robo-call about 10 AM informing me that he's not at school. (Even if I've already called the school to tell them he wouldn't be in.)

And while I don't know much about PVPA's attendance policies.... yeah, I'm not buying Sam's explanation. A progressive school might allow it with parental approval for a specific educational purpose. But just letting a kid cut out of school whenever they feel like it probably violates the law and certainly opens up a legal can of worms if anything happens to the kid when they are supposed to be at school.

Meanwhile, in other news, Bubbles now has her Halloween costume. 

Alternatively, its Saturday and as new small business owners Faye and Bubbles can't afford to take the weekends off completely.

[ChipNoir]

The most obvious thing is that there's 0 permission slip going on here. I've done career-day type situations, and every single time, I needed paperwork: The place in question was contacted to make sure they were okay with it, and they had to sign that I spent the entire time in the company of adults.

Sam is very much in trouble here. But I can see her dad turning this into a good thing: If running off is a bad habit of Sam, Jim can either

A. Hold this over her head: If she ever runs away again, she's not allowed to visit the shop again.
B. Make her work for Fey/Bubbles as 'punishment'. As soon as this becomes work rather than play, Sam's gonna balk and try and avoid it, but at the same time, she's going to want to be around Fey . This is a pretty effective way to teach her responsibility, and how to commit to a long term goal and sense of responsibility and organization. It would also be a good way to mature Fey and Bubbles in their own ways, having the little monster under their wing on a regular schedule. So everyone wings: Jim has some much needed leverage, as well as knowing there's someone outside the home to keep an eye on Sam, Sam gets a bit of consistency and structure, and learns a really useful trade, and Fey/Bubbles both get to mature a little, and bond over looking over an adolescent.

[Zebediah]

Alternatively, its Saturday and as new small business owners Faye and Bubbles can't afford to take the weekends off completely.

No, it's definitely a weekday.

Or are you going to argue with Bubbles?

[TheEvilDog]

......Saturday is a day of the week.....

Hey, look over there! A distraction!

[Is it cold in here?]

Perhaps there can be only one Skullmaster.

Sam and Bubbles then have to fight for the honor?

[TheEvilDog]

Hmmm, combat AI in a military grade chassis with strength and stamina beyond that of an ordinary human....

Versus

A tweenage girl.

Well, the anime and manga industry tells us that Sam is going to win after a long and drawn out battle that spans over 100 chapters.

[BenRG]

Hmmm, combat AI in a military grade chassis with strength and stamina beyond that of an ordinary human....

Versus

A tweenage girl.

Well, the anime and manga industry tells us that Sam is going to win after a long and drawn out battle that spans over 100 chapters.

Or almost immediately after she realises she only has to call on the power of 'true love'.

[OldGoat]

It is well within Bubbles's abilities to fashion herself a Skullmaster head.  And it is almost Halloween.

[Akima]

Sam's Skullmaster head/mask probably wouldn't fit Bubbles anyway. It might stretch, of course, if it were made of rubber, but then it would look all distorted.

[zioninavision]

There are many tidbits from Jeph today that maybe will be discussed in next week's thread!  This is just one of them and feels pertinent to this week too.

Vampire, Weakened‏ @jephjacques 8h8 hours ago


It finally happened, I finally had to make a spreadsheet to keep track of my cast.
TBH it was smaller than I thought. Which still means 33 characters I’d consider “significant,” of which I consider 13 to be basically retired or absent, with several more effectively so

It reminds me about Angus; i do wonder about his eventual return/visit! 

[Thrudd]

Cattle truck? You mean the sack-trolley?

sack barrow in (at least SE)  brit.

Also called a "dolly" in much of the Mid-West.

Named after the First Lady Dolly Madison, who used one to rescue precious art works and such from the burning White House, back when the Canadians torched it.  (This probably isn't true.)

Nah, the white house only got smoke damage since it was up on a hill downwind of the burning capitol.
Mind you fair is fair since they burnned down Canada's Capitol when they invaded earlier that year. Just glad we didn't keep Detriot. Imagine the mess that would have been latter on.

[shanejayell]

I DO suspect Sam is truant, which may be followed up.

*imagines her Dad talking to Veronica about it*

"I'm really impressed about how well you did with Marten. Any suggestions?"

Veronica remembers toddler Marten getting into her sex toy collection.

"I don't think my parenting style would work here..."

[BenRG]

It reminds me about Angus; i do wonder about his eventual return/visit!

I'm certain that Angus is either on the 'retired' list or isn't on the list at all.

[OldGoat]

I'm certain that Angus is either on the 'retired' list or isn't on the list at all.

He's still on the cast page, all of whom appear to be, with the exception of an allosaurus snack, eligible for resurrection.

[TheEvilDog]

Results from the poll!

More hijinks from Sam and inadvertently gets in the way.- 16 (45.7%)
Punchbot falls to pieces over the repairs.- 0 (0%)
Pintsize arrives for his weekly defrosting.- 3 (8.6%)
Jeph moves onto a different storyline.- 5 (14.3%)
Steve and Cosette eat a new type of cereal.- 7 (20%)
Something something humorous and witty comment.- 4 (11.4%)

Well, Sam did inadvertently open up a new line of business for Union Robotics...so we were half right...

[JoeCovenant]

Just dropping back into this one to say, I am truly disappointed in Faye actually speaking the word "Welp"....

 

She said "howdy" and "whaddaya" two strips ago. I'd imagine those would be the more egregious examples to cry over if you cared enough to cry over her character development laxing language use...

Nah.
Howdy is a perfectly cromulent word as and of itself.
Whaddaya is simple contraction and portmanteau-ing. (Much as "Howdy" is)

Welp is anathema.
It's the equivalent of actually saying "lol"
In fact, it's worse, as there is no basis for "welp" to exist - lol is at least functional as an acronym.

As far as "Character Development" goes... That's why I'm crying.
For Faye, it's a step backwards.
It's akin to *hipster-dom* - latching on to a meme which I have found ludicrous from day one.
(Had it been Marigold, I would have understood the usage, 'in context' as it were, but still disliked it!    )

[TheEvilDog]

It might surprise you to learn that "welp" is over 70 years old, have been used as a synonym for the interjection "Well". But it first came up in a scholarly article from 1946, "Thoughts on 'Yep' and 'Nope'", by Dwight Bolinger.

Welp is a word we've been using for decades, even if we're not actually hearing it as we're spelling it. Its only with the rise of social media that we're seeing more usage of it.

[JoeCovenant]

It might surprise you to learn that "welp" is over 70 years old, have been used as a synonym for the interjection "Well". But it first came up in a scholarly article from 1946, "Thoughts on 'Yep' and 'Nope'", by Dwight Bolinger.

Welp is a word we've been using for decades, even if we're not actually hearing it as we're spelling it. Its only with the rise of social media that we're seeing more usage of it.

Is this an American thing?

[TheEvilDog]

No, its a language thing, as they are wont to do.

[JoeCovenant]

No, its a language thing, as they are wont to do.

Okay then, let's be pedants...
Allow me to rephrase.

Is this an 'American Language' thing?
"Welp" is not in any dictionary I own...
(Actually.. I do have a MASSIVE 'Websters' in my loft... so that last sentence might not be entirely correct.)

(Although... Miriam-Webster online does NOT contain "welp"...

Ahh... the link..
"Dwight L. Bolinger  - American Speech"

So, 'Yep'... seems it IS an American thing.
The entire premise for the "unfinished p" certainly does not occur in Scottish speech.
(Considering that Scots *Yes* is AYE which hardly lends itself to a 'unfinished' plosive of any kind.)
I also doubt is gets much shrift in 'Classic' English as sibilants tend to be well pronounced - again, no P at the end of yes.

Far be it for me to cast nasturtiums on an entire country's mode of speech.. but it reads like an excuse for lazily slurring one's words than anything else.
An "unfinished p" because one closes one's mouth at the end of a word???
Nah.

[TheEvilDog]

Well if you want to be a pedant.
I meant that languages are constantly evolving.
But if you really want to read something, try this.

[Stoutfellow]

The entire premise for the "unfinished p" certainly does not occur in Scottish speech.
(Considering that Scots *Yes* is AYE which hardly lends itself to a 'unfinished' plosive of any kind.)

Heh. "Ayup" is often used as a marker of New England speech.

[Thrudd]

And Eh finds it's roots in AYE but has blossomed and spread to cover all sorts of situational meanings.

• to elicit confirmation for one’s statement
• to elicit acknowledgment
• to confirm a shared sentiment
• to confirm compliance
• expression of disbelief
• to elicit repetition; "I beg you pardon?"; "what?"
• to check that the listener is following
• metalinguistic commentary to express a link with Canada or rural Canada (faking it)

[pwhodges]

Ay-up comes from the East Midlands or North-East of England; and I've said yep for ages. 

Welp, which I first saw in QC in fact, has recently become quite widespread.  Given the speed which things spread via the Internet these days, it is probably misleading to think of it as purely American now, though it may have originated there.  Welp is mentioned along with yep and nope in this article from 1946, so it's not as new as most people seem to be thinking.  It's also listed here.

[JoeCovenant]

Well if you want to be a pedant.
I meant that languages are constantly evolving.
But if you really want to read something, try this.

Like I said...
It's an American thing.

[Gyrre]

Just dropping back into this one to say, I am truly disappointed in Faye actually speaking the word "Welp"....

 

She said "howdy" and "whaddaya" two strips ago. I'd imagine those would be the more egregious examples to cry over if you cared enough to cry over her character development laxing language use...

Phoenetic spelling of her Georgian accent.

BTW, howdy and ya'll are both words in the dictionary, even though both are shortened forms of phrases ('how do you do' and 'you all' respectively).

[Dave H]

BTW, howdy and ya'll are both words in the dictionary, even though both are shortened forms of phrases ('how do you do' and 'you all' respectively).

I'm still trying to figure out where "you'uns" comes from. Where I grew up (Appalachian foothills of southeastern Ohio) it was the plural of "you," as in "Are you'uns coming over for supper this Sunday?"

[Tova]

[cesium133]

BTW, howdy and ya'll are both words in the dictionary, even though both are shortened forms of phrases ('how do you do' and 'you all' respectively).

I'm still trying to figure out where "you'uns" comes from. Where I grew up (Appalachian foothills of southeastern Ohio) it was the plural of "you," as in "Are you'uns coming over for supper this Sunday?"

In Pittsburgh they compress it even farther to "yinz." It's disgusting. Almost as bad as when they say they're going to drink a can of someone's father.

[jwhouk]

Let's not forget "aina", dere hey?


(Oh wait, I forgot, cesium133 is over in Madison, he probably has yet to hear a Cudahy accent...)

[OldGoat]

I'm still trying to figure out where "you'uns" comes from. Where I grew up (Appalachian foothills of southeastern Ohio) it was the plural of "you," as in "Are you'uns coming over for supper this Sunday?"

Probably "you ones," probably evolved from "young'uns" (young ones). 

I recently got gibed for sounding like a TV network newscaster (Pacific Northwest accent).

[Dave H]

I had a newspaper reporter from Dallas tell me I sounded like I was from Chicago, but I think that's because I worked most of my life up to that point in the Midwest. When I'm really tired I sound like a hillbilly.

[Zebediah]

I have a very muddled accent. Born in Charlotte NC to parents from Pittsburgh, and now living in Massachusetts.

My wife's accent is even weirder. Born in Michigan to parents from the Appalachian mountains (her father is from northwestern North Carolina and her mother is from West Virginia), grew up in DC and NC, lived in France for almost four years (and speaks French with a Strasbourg accent), and has tried to eliminate all traces of Southern accents from her voice to further her career in academia.

Now, imagine what exposure to these varied linguistic inputs has done to our son. He can slide from a Boston accent to an Appalachian accent in mid-sentence. 

[retrosteve]

Comic!

Also, a robot using a fax machine!

A sentient robot using a fax machine

More likely, a sentient robot with a _built-in_ fax machine.

[dutchrvl]

... has tried to eliminate all traces of Southern accents from her voice to further her career in academia.

You mean because the Southern accents are (unfortunately) by many associated with lower intelligence/not taken seriously? Otherwise I fail to see how a Southern accent would impact her academic career. Just curious, as during my own academic career I've heard so many different accents I can barely recognize any anymore.   

[Zebediah]

Yeah, Southern accents, and particularly the Southern Appalachian accent, are associated in a lot of minds with lack of intelligence or education. Unfortunate, but that's the way it is - if you want people to see you as an educated person you have to lose that accent. It wasn't so much an issue when she was at Duke University, but there is no way Harvard would ever have hired her if she spoke with her mother's accent.