Topic: WCDT strips 4016-4020 (3rd to 7th June 2019) (Read 50797 times)

BenRG · « **on:** 02 Jun 2019, 14:15 »

I can't see any other poll is excusable right now.

The way I see it, there are two issues to resolve this week:

Will Momo learn that May had sex with Sven?
If she does, how will she react?

I have to say that I have the feeling that Momo will have a hard time getting past the 'sex with a human' thing and probably will never get around to finding out who May's ONS was. I find myself wondering if Momo will take this as an indication that her attraction to Sven isn't doomed at all and May will wish her well, telling herself that it was a casual thing but not actually being totally sure that this is the case. This uncertainty on May's part will likely pop up again on several occasions further down the line.

War Sparrow · « **Reply #1 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 19:13 »

Comic.

Friendship!

TheEvilDog · « **Reply #2 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 19:26 »

Keep it clean and make heavy use of double entendre.

shanejayell · « **Reply #3 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 20:19 »

I'm really NOT surprised. *lol*

Tova · « **Reply #4 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 20:35 »

I'll be surprised if anyone is surprised.

Edit: Now that we have the comic, we can still kind of do the poll by going through each reaction and note for each one whose character it actually suits a lot more than Momo (in some cases, if they were actually AIs). For example:

"That's why you smell of watermelon, isn't it?" - Bubbles

I immediately thought of a character for all but one of them, but I'll leave the rest as an exercise for the reader.

oddtail · « **Reply #5 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 21:24 »

For some reason the first poll answer I immediately remodelled mentally to be "That's so awful / and divergent", to the tune of "Smells Like Teen Spirit". Dunno, it kinda sounds like the lyrics of a missing verse of the song.

brasca · « **Reply #6 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 21:44 »

Considering how embarassed May was about who she boned it's possible Momo won't know it was Sven for the time being.

OldGoat · « **Reply #7 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 22:29 »

May's smug smirk in panel 4. "I have transgressed, AND I LIKE IT. In fact, I'm itching to brag about it." Will May do a version of Marigold's "I got some booty" dance?

Cornelius · « **Reply #8 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 22:36 »

Well, it is somewhat of a tradition, with our main cast. So, perhaps?

BenRG · « **Reply #9 on:** 02 Jun 2019, 23:21 »

Various posters have already pointed out that Momo and May are very much like late-teenage girls and this strip really confirms that in my mind. Momo's desperation for details (but not too many details - she's a virtuous girl!) and May's smug smile but little blush of embarrassment really do fit ito that framework. Naturally, she couldn't hold it in! She's too excited about this and she wants to tell someone! Not to 'brag' but because this was such a strong experience for her that she needs to share her thoughts and feelings with someone!

FWIW, I'm really worried about Momo. There is an awful lot of pressure built up inside her (psychological and emotional, I mean). I'm really concerned that she may feel impelled by these events to do something... silly.

OldGoat · « **Reply #10 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 07:52 »

Quote from: BenRG on 02 Jun 2019, 23:21

Various posters have already pointed out that Momo and May are very much like late-teenage girls and this strip really confirms that in my mind. Momo's desperation for details (but not too many details - she's a virtuous girl!) and May's smug smile but little blush of embarrassment really do fit ito that framework. Naturally, she couldn't hold it in! She's too excited about this and she wants to tell someone! Not to 'brag' but because this was such a strong experience for her that she needs to share her thoughts and feelings with someone!

FWIW, I'm really worried about Momo. There is an awful lot of pressure built up inside her (psychological and emotional, I mean). I'm really concerned that she may feel impelled by these events to do something... silly.

Momo and Roko are both in desperate need of a Big O (or whatever it is that robots have).

Let's see - Momo and Punkbot. Socially about the same age and, in spite of his radical appearance, he's intelligent, well mannered, and thoughtful. If they meet they'll probably end up fast friends even if not boning partners.

Roko, don't get drunk and have a one night stand with Barry. Don't do it.

traroth · « **Reply #11 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 08:06 »

May is blushing. That's so cute! Who would have thought that could be possible?

oddtail · « **Reply #12 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 08:30 »

Quote from: traroth on 03 Jun 2019, 08:06

May is blushing. That's so cute! Who would have thought that could be possible?

She's done it before, I'm like 95% sure (I saw a comic with her blushing when I was recently rereading QC). I don't remember the exact strip, but I *think* it may have been when she was embarrassed to admit she cares about Dale and considers him a friend? At least I think that's when it was.

JoeCovenant · « **Reply #13 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 08:57 »

Poor Pintsize...

Missing out on all this Anthro-PC action...

(Hang on... what does the C stand for in Anthro-PC?? Doesn;t that answer another little debate going on elsewhere?)

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #14 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 10:07 »

I was thinking about that again recently. Given what we know of people like Bubbles and Momo now, a precise term would be "person with a silicon brain". Something shorter or with a better abbreviation is, I hope, possible.

Of course that only comes up when we're trying to figure out something related to their different implementation. For almost all purposes they're simply people.

hedgie · « **Reply #15 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 10:14 »

This might be one of those "ask them" situations. May is offended by the r-word, and prefers 'android'. Momo seems to be fine with both 'robot' and 'ai'. I'm still under caffeinated, so I can't recall the views of other robo-sapiens in the comic.

DashaBlade · « **Reply #16 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 11:18 »

Quote from: OldGoat on 03 Jun 2019, 07:52

Momo and Roko are both in desperate need of a Big O (or whatever it is that robots have).

A Big 01001111?

Thrillho · « **Reply #17 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 11:29 »

Sometimes I think May irritates me so much because she reminds me of myself

Roborat · « **Reply #18 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 11:47 »

May looks so proud of herself in the last panel.

Tova · « **Reply #19 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 13:50 »

Quote from: JoeCovenant on 03 Jun 2019, 08:57

(Hang on... what does the C stand for in Anthro-PC?? Doesn;t that answer another little debate going on elsewhere?)

No, I don't think the name granted them at the very beginning of QC answers that debate. They may have originally been conceived as merely intelligent computers, but the comic has evolved since then, AIs arguably more than any other aspect of the strip.

Quote from: Is it cold in here? on 03 Jun 2019, 10:07

Of course that only comes up when we're trying to figure out something related to their different implementation. For almost all purposes they're simply people.

Yes, I can't recall a single instance of behaviour that cannot be explained by the simple observation that they are people, an emergent intelligence like us. Even referring to them as "artificial intelligence" does not sit particularly well with me. AIs in QC would, I daresay, bear about as much resemblance to AI in our universe as a drink from a Nutrimatic Drinks Dispenser does to tea.

TheEvilDog · « **Reply #20 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 13:59 »

Obviously the C in Anthro-PC stands for Companion.

Anthro Personal Companions.

Yes, that works. That works fine!

Somebody · « **Reply #21 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 15:02 »

Quote from: OldGoat on 03 Jun 2019, 07:52

Let's see - Momo and Punkbot. Socially about the same age and, in spite of his radical appearance, he's intelligent, well mannered, and thoughtful. If they meet they'll probably end up fast friends even if not boning partners.

https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3854

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #22 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 16:39 »

Quote from: Tova

Yes, I can't recall a single instance of behaviour that cannot be explained by the simple observation that they are people, an emergent intelligence like us.

Same here. I consider it a missed opportunity, though. If synthetics had behavior difficult to explain in our terms, that would be good science fiction.

Tova · « **Reply #23 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 17:08 »

Yes, I agree. This is definitely not a scifi strip. Maybe having AIs fundamentally the same us as suits Jeph's social commentary purposes better. When you look at it that way, every artistic choice represents a missed opportunity to do something different.

zmeiat_joro · « **Reply #24 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 17:14 »

What do you mean? It seems quite obvious to me that Jeph has had his main influences from three or four certain authors that have already had cameos on the comic. And yes, Alice Grove was SF but so is QC. If not as explicitly.

Tova · « **Reply #25 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 17:23 »

Can you outline which aspects of QC make it obviously a science fiction strip? It's a lot more obvious in Alice Grove.

Mr Intrepid · « **Reply #26 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 17:32 »

Now, I've always thought that the AIs were representative of various human characteristics. Which raises the question; was that deliberate, or is that a natural phenomenon of emergent consciousness? We've seen them with very human conditions, from Bubble's PTSD, to Roko's body dysphoria. In May, I think she's becoming more socialized as time progresses. Still has issues with impulse control, doesnt she? Momo seems to have conflicts concerning intimacy, whether Dale/ Marigold or her curiosity/modesty that we see here.

zmeiat_joro · « **Reply #27 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 17:33 »

Tova: I'm sorry, I can not at the moment. Excuse me.

Tova · « **Reply #28 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 17:43 »

No problem. I personally see the fact that AIs are not differentiated from us as evidence that the strip is not science fiction, really. Star Wars is probably more strongly science fiction, and that's long been a matter for some debate.

I'm happy to come back to this discussion another time (in another thread probably).

Penquin47 · « **Reply #29 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 18:37 »

Differentiated or not, the AIs are still science fiction. The singularity happened. Dr. Ellicott-Chatham exists, as does his space station its holographic avatar, along with the cyborg-esque level artificial prosthetics he invented (such as Clinton's hand, which can act autonomously). Spookybot exists.

The science fiction isn't a major theme of this comic, but that doesn't mean it doesn't qualify as science fiction.

badbum61 · « **Reply #30 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 18:50 »

I miss the good ol' days when it was all in-jokes about indie rock, and the one AI character was effectively comedy relief...
*shakes fist at cloud*

Tova · « **Reply #31 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 18:59 »

They do exist, but not as major plot elements that drive the themes of the comic in the way that, for example, Black Mirror does. AIs exist but they are just people. The space station exists, but it's just another workplace. Holographic avatars exist, but just for flavour. Autonomous prosthetics exist, but just for one-off laughs.

If there was a story arc that explored a misunderstanding between AIs and humans due to some fundamental difference between the two intelligences, then that would be science fiction. If there were more exploration of how some of the technology works beyond clever sounding technobabble, that would be science fiction. If the comic explored how society would be different with all this technology (it appears to be much the same as ours, really), then it would be science fiction. I don't think it's any of those things.

I would say it's a slice of life/social commentary comic with science fiction elements.

If it is science fiction, it's not particularly good science fiction, because it fails to take the opportunity that IICIH? described.

TheEvilDog · « **Reply #32 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 19:14 »

Quote from: Penquin47 on 03 Jun 2019, 18:37

Differentiated or not, the AIs are still science fiction. The singularity happened. Dr. Ellicott-Chatham exists, as does his space station its holographic avatar, along with the cyborg-esque level artificial prosthetics he invented (such as Clinton's hand, which can act autonomously). Spookybot exists.

The science fiction isn't a major theme of this comic, but that doesn't mean it doesn't qualify as science fiction.

Its not science fiction. Its become science fact in universe and in ours.

In fact, much of what has been in place in the QC universe already exists. We have cybernetic prosthetics, we've had done for years, its just about perfecting it for human use and to reduce the price. We have artificial intelligence, granted its not walking around in specially designed chassis, but you need only look as far as mobile banking and Google's various upgrades to see that we are creating artificial intelligence.

The only difference between the real world and the QC-verse is that the technology is better implemented in the QC-verse than it is in ours.

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #33 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 20:21 »

Quote from: Tova

I would say it's a slice of life/social commentary comic with science fiction elements.

Tova wrapped that up pretty well.

To me, the science fiction elements are prominent in my favorite story lines. Bubbles's struggles with her memories and their loss, and Station's comfort of little Hannelore, touched me deeply. Both, come to think of it, challenge my assessment because both involve characteristics that meatsacks don't have. Station could be there instantly 24/7 for Hannelore. AFAIK there is no such thing as holding a meatsack's memories hostage.

Gyrre · « **Reply #34 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 21:10 »

And the shoe dropped.

brasca · « **Reply #35 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 22:17 »

Quote from: OldGoat on 03 Jun 2019, 07:52

Momo and Roko are both in desperate need of a Big O (or whatever it is that robots have).

I don’t see how a giant mech will improve their lives especially when they’re friends with Bubbles.

It would appear brasca from yesterday was incorrect. I thought May would be too embarrassed, but apparently she likes sex talk too much to care.

BenRG · « **Reply #36 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 23:03 »

Comic up!

Yeah, this is when it hit the fan between these two. I can quite see there being a period where Momo isn't talking to May and tells everyone that she's not talking to her and that they should tell May that!

Panel 1 was kind of sweet though; it's clear that her little romp with Sven has been an entirely positive experience for May to the point where I think she may start thinking seriously about relationships. I also think that we've got it confirmed that Momo is definitely anthroposexual - attracted to humans and the human form rather than her own species (Pintsize being a good example of the opposite).

I think that it makes sense both in terms of Sven and May that they didn't bother to get as far as 'names'. They clearly found each other interesting enough from their brief conversation without getting to that point!

cybersmurf · « **Reply #37 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 23:08 »

Quote from: Castlerook on 03 Jun 2019, 13:59

Obviously the C in Anthro-PC stands for Companion.

Anthro Personal Companions.

Yes, that works. That works fine!

It's not "AnthroPC"!

oddtail · « **Reply #38 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 23:28 »

OK, I understand the distinction "why QC is not sci-fi, just slice of life with sci-fi elements", but I strongly disagree with that assessment.

I don't think "how prominently does sci-fi feature?" is a good metric for whether something is sci-fi, or whether it is good sci-fi.

QC is sci-fi to me. Yes, it's true it's not JUST sci-fi, but it does explore situations that couldn't be explored quite the same way without the sci-fi elements. Those are often minor or played for laughs, but there's plenty of them. I don't think that's just for flavour, either. Roko's feelings about her new body are an example. Human-AI relationships are an example. Heck, the fact that AI use "QWERTY" as a swear word is an example. There are a *lot* of things that are very peculiar to the comic's setting, in my view.

If you can't *quite* write something the same way without at least some retooling, you enter sci-fi territory. I don't wanna kinkshame anyone, but I think a bread fetish is less common among humans than it would be among AI (and the story has gone into how AI perceive smell differently than humans on multiple occasions - from how AI buy stuff in coffee shops to Bubbles talking to Faye about how she shees the world).

I don't think sci-fi needs to be the exclusive, or even main, focus for a story to count as sci-fi. Don't many great sci-fi stories parallel real-life anxieties and questions anyway?

Yes, you could technically adapt the stories to a setting that doesn't include AIs and robots. But by that metric, Dresden Files is not actual fantasy because with a bit of tweaking, it could be rewritten as a straight noir story. Witcher is not actual fantasy because elves and dwarves are very clear stand-ins for real-life minorities in more than one way, and could be replaced with ethnic groups with no trouble.

Here's another way to look at this. Stanisław Lem is pretty much universally considered the greatest science fiction writer in Poland. And he wasn't shy about exploring issues of technology in-depth. But he also wrote "Dzienniki Gwiazdowe" ("Star Diaries", I think? Not sure what the English edition's title, if any, was), which is a series of absurdist short stories about obstructive bureaucrats and narrow-minded academics, framed through the misadventures of a space pilot. He wrote "Fairy Tales for Robots", which is exactly that. It's a bunch of fairy tales, but the knights and princesses are robots and also there's a metal dragon that lives on the moon. And engineers are basically wizards or scholars - not cool techno-wizards like in some stories, they functionally *are* wizards, with arcane knowledge and funny quirks and magical powers. All stories are framed using the typical fairy-tale conceits (a hero performing three tasks, a journey, saving a princess from a dragon). It could be argued that all those fairy tales could be written without robots with little trouble. That's... kind of the point of the stories. They are reframed as robot stories and that's part of the humour, the weirdness and "these are robots but they behave nothing like robots, but sometimes also they kinda do" IS the exploration of sci-fi themes.

I don't think I've ever heard "Fairy Tales for Robots" described as anything but science fiction. Same with "Dresden Files" and fantasy. In the same vein, I think QC is sci-fi slice-of-life. It's not just decoration, the sci-fi elements lead to unique characters and plot points that wouldn't *quite* be the same with a different coat of paint.

I don't think sci-fi needs to be hard sci-fi and be *all* about technology to count as legitimate, even in-depth sci-fi.

I understand the comparison to Star Wars, but I think SW is different in that it doesn't use the "spaceships and lasers" elements to explore plot points even in minor ways. The first movie *is* essentially a samurai story. I don't mind if someone calls it sci-fi (and thinking about it as compared to QC *has* made me reevaluate WHY I'm so adamant it's "space fantasy" and whether I'm just saying that because I've been conditioned to do so), even if I'm personally on the fence.

For QC, it's much clearer to me that I'm looking at sci-fi. I guess it depends on your personal definition. Then again, I don't think Firefly is "just western in spaaaaace" and Cowboy Bebop is "just a story about a former mob hitman, in spaaaaaace", even though they could be fairly called such.

YMMV.

Scarlet Manuka · « **Reply #39 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 23:29 »

Quote from: Tova on 03 Jun 2019, 13:50

Quote from: JoeCovenant on 03 Jun 2019, 08:57
(Hang on... what does the C stand for in Anthro-PC?? Doesn;t that answer another little debate going on elsewhere?)
No, I don't think the name granted them at the very beginning of QC answers that debate. They may have originally been conceived as merely intelligent computers, but the comic has evolved since then, AIs arguably more than any other aspect of the strip.

If it helps, Pintsize calls himself a "sentient computer" as late as 2217. I think there's a more recent strip where someone expresses disbelief at an AI having forgotten something by saying words along the lines of "you're a computer!", but I haven't found the strip so, importantly, I don't know if it was an AI or a human saying it; Emily has, for instance, called Momo a computer, but it's been established (in the postscript text a couple of strips earlier) that some of the things Emily says are super rude.

Y · « **Reply #40 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 23:37 »

Quote from: BenRG on 03 Jun 2019, 23:03

Yeah, this is when it hit the fan between these two. I can quite see there being a period where Momo isn't talking to May and tells everyone that she's not talking to her and that they should tell May that!

But May didn't know Momo even knows Sven right?

Mr. Doctor · « **Reply #41 on:** 03 Jun 2019, 23:54 »

Not right. I can’t dearch the comic right now but Sven did visit CoD and talked to Momo. Then May went through the usual insults and notice Momo became more and more embarrassed. May even made a comment of Momos lady parts before getting properly tazed by Momo for being an Dickbat.

OldGoat · « **Reply #42 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 00:05 »

Quote from: brasca on 03 Jun 2019, 22:17

Quote from: OldGoat on 03 Jun 2019, 07:52
Momo and Roko are both in desperate need of a Big O (or whatever it is that robots have).

I don’t see how a giant mech will improve their lives especially when they’re friends with Bubbles.

[Pssst! Brasca! "The Big O" means an orgasm. (Or at least it did when I was young and always alert for someone interested in us mutually inflicting some upon each other.)]

Regular orgasms will generally improve pretty much anyone's outlook on life.

oddtail · « **Reply #43 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 00:13 »

Quote from: OldGoat on 04 Jun 2019, 00:05

Quote from: brasca on 03 Jun 2019, 22:17
Quote from: OldGoat on 03 Jun 2019, 07:52
Momo and Roko are both in desperate need of a Big O (or whatever it is that robots have).

I don’t see how a giant mech will improve their lives especially when they’re friends with Bubbles.
[Pssst! Brasca! "The Big O" means an orgasm. (Or at least it did when I was young and always alert for someone interested in us mutually inflicting some upon each other.)]

Regular orgasms will generally improve pretty much anyone's outlook on life.

I figured the "a giant mech?" to be fake confusion for the sake of a joke? EDIT: Unless your response was playing into the joke, it's hard for me to tell.

traroth · « **Reply #44 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 01:46 »

Now, the cat is out of the bag. Momo seems pissed, but doesn't seem to want to tase May right away...

Tempus · « **Reply #45 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 02:36 »

Echoing the earlier comparison of May & Momo to teenagers, this seems like another immature reaction from Momo. May can hardly be considered at fault here - and hopefully she'll realise this and be rational about it.

Mordhaus · « **Reply #46 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 03:16 »

Did she have a crush on sven at some point?

BenRG · « **Reply #47 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 03:21 »

I'm pretty sure that Momo still is crushing on Sven, given that it wasn't that long ago in-universe that May got Momo to overheat by suggesting (in front of Sven) that Momo should hook up with him.

Edit
It was in strips 3097 and 3098. Overall, pretty damning for any "Oh, I forgot about that!" excuse on May's part.

JoeCovenant · « **Reply #48 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 04:27 »

Quote from: cybersmurf on 03 Jun 2019, 23:08

Quote from: Castlerook on 03 Jun 2019, 13:59
Obviously the C in Anthro-PC stands for Companion.

Anthro Personal Companions.

Yes, that works. That works fine!

It's not "AnthroPC"!

But it is, though.

JoeCovenant · « **Reply #49 on:** 04 Jun 2019, 04:30 »

Quote from: OldGoat on 04 Jun 2019, 00:05

Quote from: brasca on 03 Jun 2019, 22:17
Quote from: OldGoat on 03 Jun 2019, 07:52
Momo and Roko are both in desperate need of a Big O (or whatever it is that robots have).

I don’t see how a giant mech will improve their lives especially when they’re friends with Bubbles.
[Pssst! Brasca! "The Big O" means an orgasm. (Or at least it did when I was young and always alert for someone interested in us mutually inflicting some upon each other.)]

Regular orgasms will generally improve pretty much anyone's outlook on life.

Bloody Hell!!!

I thought they were talking about Roy Orbison!!!

THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)

Poll

Just how will Momo react to the awful truth?

Author Topic: WCDT strips 4016-4020 (3rd to 7th June 2019) (Read 50797 times)

TheEvilDog

TheEvilDog

TheEvilDog