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Steampunk (c.f. Girl Genius)

8 (9%)

Slice-of-Life College Kids (like 'Dumbing of Age')

6 (6.7%)

Non-continuity social and political commentary (like 'Doonsbury' or 'Dilbert')

1 (1.1%)

Mainstream superheroes (Roko as Northampton's answer to the Punisher?)

4 (4.5%)

Period Comedy (Think 'Downton Abbey' or 'Pride and Prejudice' with jokes)

8 (9%)

Cyberpunk (Basically what it is now but darker, grittier and with more augmented humans)

11 (12.4%)

Fighting Fantasy (Marigold the Orc?)

7 (7.9%)

Magical Girl manga (Because we all want to see Claire and Emily with superpowers)

13 (14.6%)

Space Opera (Coffee of Doom as a 'Star Wars'-style spaceport cantina!)

14 (15.7%)

High-concept Sci-Fi ('Alice Grove' universe or something similar?)

7 (7.9%)

Anthropomorphic Animals (because the end of 'My Little Pony' leaves a gap in the market!)

6 (6.7%)

Political drama/comedy with no fantasy elements (think of 'The West Wing')

2 (2.2%)

Other (please specify in the comments)

2 (2.2%)

Total Members Voted: 34

[Elder Sign]

I'm not holding my breath, TBH. We've repeatedly seen hints of this storyline surface, only for Jeph to return to his favourite character(s) du jour.

Seems you called it.  Whatever latent crisis people might have thought was emerging has been promptly subsumed once again beneath the omnipresent tide of Everything Goes Picture-Perfect For Marten And Claire.

Upon further reflection, it's kind of startling to realize that the Marten-Claire relationship (c. #2800 to present, or about 1350 strips to date) has already substantially eclipsed the endurance of the Marten-Dora relationship (c. #564 to #1799, or about 1235 strips).

... A job you like well enough, with colleagues you get along with, with work that stays at work (leaving your evenings and weekends free for hobbies or friends) - this is seriously undervalued in my opinion.

I agree with you. It bothers me that Marten, who has a job, an apartment and pays his bills, is seen as somehow not an adult.

To be fair, this seems to be a persistent problem for pretty much anyone Millennial age or younger with regard to how we're viewed by any older generation(s).

[BenRG]

From the first time I saw today's strip (yesterday on Patreon), I've been wondering if we've been misreading Marten all along. He isn't passive, he's just really good at constructing worst-case scenarios and so he's staying in 'safe' territory where there are no serious risks of failure. I can certainly empathise as that's one of my personal greatest weaknesses. It would certainly explain a lot about him if he wasn't just loathe to change but was genuinely afraid that he'll screw up if he does!

Maybe all Claire really needs is to show belief in him and his dreams and he'll feel better about pursuing them.

[Squishalot]

Wow, I've been reading this for years and only now realised I've never created a forum account.  Hello folks!

I'm surprised that everybody is assuming that Claire wants Marten to pack up and head somewhere else with her job prospects, and hasn't considered a much more obvious alternative:

Claire wants Marten to find another job so that she can get the gig.

[BenRG]

Hello, Squishalot, welcome to the exit ramp from the Lurker Turnpike!

I don't think that people want Marten and Claire to move out but it's just that a lot of readers find it difficult to imagine Claire getting a job within reasonable commuting distance from Northampton. This assumption basically ignores two very plausible narrative possibilities:

• What if Claire fails to get a degree? It's unlikely but it's a valid storyline and her recovering from that blow could lead to an interesting exploration of her relationship with Marten, Clinton, her mother and others in the area;
• Jeph has the power of Author's Fiat; he can easily have a conveniently local job 'turn up' and Claire to stumble backwards onto it. Extra points if it s a bizarre private collection that not only tests her librarian skills but has a very strange set of regular readers. Remember, this is Massachusetts, the occult capital of the colonies! How many AIs are interested in witchcraft and how would that express itself?

Personally, in terms of the central cast moving, my favourite option is for Claire's mother to decide that the house is too big for her so goes apartment hunting. It just turns out that she can easily make the rent on the Reed/Augustus/Faye/Bubbles/Pintsize apartment and it is ideal for her. Meanwhile, the house is all paid up and the main cast can easily meet its relatively modest costs. So, we have a Moving Day and the main cast are suddenly operating out of a much larger building that may have one or two unexpected surprises such as a basement in which Faye and Bubbles can experiment with spare parts.

[JoeCovenant]

... one or two unexpected surprises such as a basement in which Faye and Bubbles can experiment with spare parts.

I'm sure I read that far more "Rule 34-y" than you may have intended!    

[Tyr]

Personally, in terms of the central cast moving, my favourite option is for Claire's mother to decide that the house is too big for her so goes apartment hunting. It just turns out that she can easily make the rent on the Reed/Augustus/Faye/Bubbles/Pintsize apartment and it is ideal for her. Meanwhile, the house is all paid up and the main cast can easily meet its relatively modest costs. So, we have a Moving Day and the main cast are suddenly operating out of a much larger building that may have one or two unexpected surprises such as a basement in which Faye and Bubbles can experiment with spare parts.

This would also provide space for Hanners to have growth when someone else gets a start on her dream home. that is "All of my friends and I live in a mansion together and I become a recluse,  only is sighted in public rarely, possibly only leaving my wing to do laundry."

[pwhodges]

Marten has been irrelevant for a long time.  Pretty much the only time we see him now is from Claire's POV.

This comic stopped being Marten focused a loooooong time ago

Both true; but Jeph said a long time ago that Marten represented at least part of himself, so it would be understandable for him not to want Marten's complete erasure from the active cast.

[Squishalot]

I don't think that people want Marten and Claire to move out but it's just that a lot of readers find it difficult to imagine Claire getting a job within reasonable commuting distance from Northampton.

Ah, I don't think I was precise enough.  I meant that Claire wants Marten's gig (i.e. to be a librarian at Smif).  That way they won't need to move out.

[Perfectly Reasonable]

No, Claire wants Tai's job.
(And Tai's job security is the blackmail material she has -- suppose that goes away?)

[MrNumbers]

MxPx is still together, but they all work day jobs to keep the lights on. And that's an all-too common story.

That's a shame; They do my favourite rendition of Auld Lang Syne

[Zebediah]

Marten is not a librarian. He is a library assistant, which is not the same thing. Claire is way overqualified for Marten’s job.

[Eternal_Newbie]

Orr the shattered strad could be on his workbench becase he is trusted to fix it?

[Inconsequential]

Nice how today's strip makes it clear this isn't going to spiral into a stupid fight or anything.

It's a little weird how seldom you see healthy, interesting relationships in any medium.

Claire's at the edge of a HUGE step in achieving her dreams, and they're facing quite a few unknowns; it seems quite natural that she'd be thinking more about Marten's dreams as well.


Apropos of absolutely nothing, I never noticed before that Claire's and Marten's eyes are blue, but different shades of blue.

[JimC]

What Claire may realise too late is that working on musical instruments is an inherently messy business, creating dust and detritus in some quantity, not to mention paint fumes and other solvents. And the only place you can do this unless you are much richer than (most of) our cast is a table in the front room...

[Is it cold in here?]

Welcome, newly posting person!

[TheEvilDog]

As it has been mentioned, another "Claire manipulates someone" story.

I see this ending in one of three ways;
- In tears.
- In a lesson learned.
- Marten Reed, Instrument Repair.

And frankly, I can't see the last happening.

I don't know, I just can't stand Claire anymore. There's just something about her that sets me on edge. Actually, its not some nebulous something, its her manipulative and controlling nature. The fact that she seems to know whats best for everyone else even though its clearly apparent that Claire barely has any clue about her own life.

[sitnspin]

No, Claire wants Tai's job.
(And Tai's job security is the blackmail material she has -- suppose that goes away?)

Tai spent that blackmail to get Marten a raise. She has her job legitimately as far as I can tell. Once she finishes her graduate studies, who knows?

[tbm275]

No, Claire wants Tai's job.
(And Tai's job security is the blackmail material she has -- suppose that goes away?)

Tai spent that blackmail to get Marten a raise. She has her job legitimately as far as I can tell. Once she finishes her graduate studies, who knows?

There was a comic, Marten asked, Tai has graduated.


Also sheesh I would be Claire too, the best thing in a relationship is helping each other grow and build each other up. Marten needs someone to say hey I know you can do more, you just have to want it.

Sometimes you don't realize what you really can do until you are literally thrown out the nest and realize you can fly.

[pwhodges]

the only place you can do this unless you are much richer than (most of) our cast is a table in the front room...

My wife's niece got an informal paid apprenticeship at a music shop in London, where she learnt to work on guitars, and kept at it for a while (because the customers asked her to) after the main repairman left - until the whole shop folded, and she went off to do something else because she was getting tendinitis.

[andrybak]

I've long felt that Marten is in many ways Jeph's self-insert
[...]
'guitar repair guy' is a bit of a specialist field

About two years ago it just happened, that one million subscriber YouTube channels were rarer than Nobel Prize laureates. I.e. by this measure, one million YouTube subscribers is more prestigious than the Nobel Prize. This may have changed since then, I didn't have a chance to check.

So, combining this with the parallel that BenRG has laid out: How many 'guitar repair guys' are there in the world? How many webcomic artists are there in the world? It's easy to count the former. How would you count webcomic artists? How about only those, who do it full time? Maybe only those with 1000 daily hits on their site? 10000 hits per week?

How would you count webcomic artists, if you wanted to compare this occupation with another?

Oh look, Claire's attempts to manipulate someone's life again.

The word "manipulate" usually has a negative connotation. I've never understood this sentiment. All people affect lives of others around them. People are not isolated from outside influences.

Of course, effect of all people is different. Both in who it covers, and the impact's magnitude. Some affect whole countries, some affect only their family. Some reach into your soul, others you forget the next moment.

Why do people think that Claire's influence is somehow bad?

[Skewbrow]

I guess I'm too long-term of a reader to not immediately think of 1795.

Thank you for making me binge through 250 old strips. It's not like I wouldn't have anything better to do.

[JimC]

... Sven could be vocalist, and it would fulfill him.

AIUI Sven is one of the top songwriters in the country music scene. WTF would he want to play in a little local amateur band?

[alc40]

... Sven could be vocalist, and it would fulfill him.

AIUI Sven is one of the top songwriters in the country music scene. WTF would he want to play in a little local amateur band?

He writes country songs for money, but he didn't say what style the song was that he actually cares about.  Since the people he approached didn't like it, maybe he would be interested in collaborating with Marten's band on something like that.

[andrybak]

I've been wondering if we've been misreading Marten all along. He isn't passive, he's just really good at constructing worst-case scenarios and so he's staying in 'safe' territory where there are no serious risks of failure. I can certainly empathise as that's one of my personal greatest weaknesses. It would certainly explain a lot about him if he wasn't just loathe to change but was genuinely afraid that he'll screw up if he does!

Have you read "Harry Potter and Methods of Rationality"? Being prepared for worst-case scenarios is one of Harry's core goals in this fanfic. Marten, of course, isn't a hyper-deductive-rational-genius, but your observation is interesting nonetheless.

[chris73]

(Finally some Marten!)
The way Claire is acting towards Marten is really setting me off because I find it quite patronizing, I mean a librarian is good but its not up there with being a Doctor, Firefighter, Nurse, EMT, Policeman etc in terms of respect yet she seems to think being content in a job is a negative

Marten has a job he doesn't actively hate and which seems to have some job security and allows him to pay the bills which isn't all that bad in my book,  I mean my mom was a hospital cleaner for 30 years and while I'm sure she didn't like the actual job itself she certainly had many friends there and when she passed they put up a commemorative park bench in her name

Claire on the other hand hasn't graduated and the studying is causing her some massive stress and emotional breakdown yet shes chiding Marten for being content

I also find the physical interaction interesting here in that they start separate then move closer together (once Marten starts agreeing with Claire), subconscious manipulation by Clare?

[TheEvilDog]

Also sheesh I would be Claire too, the best thing in a relationship is helping each other grow and build each other up. Marten needs someone to say hey I know you can do more, you just have to want it.

Sometimes you don't realize what you really can do until you are literally thrown out the nest and realize you can fly.

Therein lies the rub. Yes, helping each other grow in a relationship is a good thing. That's not what with Marten and Claire are doing, not in this instance. Claire is not-so-subtly forcing Marten down a path, that frankly, he's not ready for, that he will never be ready for. Its perhaps time to admit to ourselves that Marten is always going to be passive in the way he lives his life. He didn't change when he crossed the country for a girl who got sick of him. He didn't change when Dora broke up with him. When the chance to develop a relationship with Padma came up. The list goes on. At his core, Marten can't, or won't change. Its not in him.

I think that, along with Claire's attempts to change Marten, will breed a sort of resentment, well in Claire, because Marten is so passive that he can't even hold onto a grudge.

When you're in a relationship, helping each other grow that's healthy, that's normal. But both parties have to want to grow, they want to become more than they were. And that's not going to happen when Claire is trying to force that change and when Marten is, well, Marten.

[MrNumbers]

Therein lies the rub. Yes, helping each other grow in a relationship is a good thing. That's not what with Marten and Claire are doing, not in this instance. Claire is not-so-subtly forcing Marten down a path, that frankly, he's not ready for, that he will never be ready for.

... the path of enrolling in a trade school?

[Penquin47]

Marten's not good at initiating change, with the notable exception of following Vicky from California to New England.  He's pretty good at rolling with it when it comes up, though.  He likes Faye but she's not in a place where she can date him?  That's okay, he'll move on, Dora's cool too, he and Faye are still friends.  Gets laid off from his job as office bitch?  He's got enough saved up he doesn't need a new one immediately but when something comes along he's happy to go get it.  Dora breaks up with him?  A couple days drinking, and then he's working on enjoying what he still has with his friends and his job.  Padma leaves?  Same thing.

Given the nudge from Claire, he'd probably be fine with getting into instrument repair.  He wouldn't have to change everything about his life all at once - it's thoroughly doable to work at the library while he goes to trade school, and then maybe he can work out of Union Robotics? 

[SeattleCrochetWoman]

From the first time I saw today's strip (yesterday on Patreon), I've been wondering if we've been misreading Marten all along. He isn't passive, he's just really good at constructing worst-case scenarios and so he's staying in 'safe' territory where there are no serious risks of failure. I can certainly empathise as that's one of my personal greatest weaknesses. It would certainly explain a lot about him if he wasn't just loathe to change but was genuinely afraid that he'll screw up if he does!

Maybe all Claire really needs is to show belief in him and his dreams and he'll feel better about pursuing them.

Or maybe he’s living his dream life right now.

[cybersmurf]

I wouldn't go as far as calling Claire manipulative. Pushy? Yes.
She is a very driven person - opposed to Marten - and probably doesn't understand how otter people can't be as driven. In my mind, being driven like that, combined with being trans, puts her in a "content is not enough for me. Either I'm happy, or I'll die trying" situation.

Personally, I think Marten is with Claire because she's trying to push him a little. Because he knows he kinda needs it a bit.

Also, there is a lot of possible character development on Claire's side.

[BenRG]

Something tells me that this is something that Marten and Claire have in common: A very clear awareness of just how steep the drop beyond the ledge of their current situation is. Neither of them are comfortable with contemplating it but it affects them in different ways: Martin hangs on even tighter to the current adequate safety line he has in his life whilst Claire throws herself into finding the strongest rope she can and climb to the top.

Meanwhile, I don't know if Pintsize thinks Marten is serious or if it's just in his nature to leap in with a witty comment now and then!

Have you read "Harry Potter and Methods of Rationality"? Being prepared for worst-case scenarios is one of Harry's core goals in this fanfic.

Yeah, didn't like it at all.

Personally, I think Marten is with Claire because she's trying to push him a little. Because he knows he kinda needs it a bit.

Agreed. Marten knows he needs the occasional push; being wild about lots of other aspects of Claire (both physical and personality) helps a lot.

[pwhodges]

My current 26-year marriage has included a few conversations similar to that being illustrated.  They certainly did neither me nor my marriage any harm.  I don't really get why people are piling on Claire so heavily this soon in the process.

[Tova]

Same here, PW. Our lives and our relationship are all the stronger for it. If someone you love can't give you a little push in the direction you deep down want to travel in, who can?

I think that Claire simply rubs some people the wrong way - and this is an old grudge. It's been a long time since comics #2205 - #2208 raised hackles among forumites. The fact that the negative reaction is fresh in my memory is probably an indication of how strongly I admire her sense of knowing precisely what it is she has a passion for.

She's passionate about books and library science, and she has a goal to make a living from that passion. I wouldn't say she is very driven. There are a lot of people like her. Some of them go to much greater extremes to reach their goals than Claire does.

[artag]

AIs seem like the perfect roommates as long as you've got a solid charging supply. No dirty dishes in the sink, scum in the bath or bizarre growths in the fridge. Just sit them a corner with a plug for company like Bubbles does (did ?).

Unless, of course, they're Pintsize .
 

[BenRG]

Of course, there is the personality compatibility issue to deal with. Remember the problems that Dale (and, later, Marigold) had with May and her winning personality? Or there is Melon and her difficulties with observational reality!

No-one is just a plug-in appliance, I'm afraid, not even someone as nice as Bubbles, who had her own issues with socialisation to handle.

[bhtooefr]

...yeah, when I was observing the ambition mismatch, I don't see a relationship-ending scenario here.

Friction? Oh, there'll definitely be friction - that's just a fact of life, and working through it makes things strong.

Them breaking up and Claire being written out of the story? Nah, I don't think that's how it'll go. (Hell, even if they break up, which I don't see happening, you all who want Claire written out probably won't get your wish.)

[Perfectly Reasonable]

The question of Marten's life goals has come up before
in this one and this one.

Also this one and also this one.

[cybersmurf]

Noone gets written out of the comic unless they leave. And by leaving I mean leaving town, or leaving life.

And given the situation, Claire will try everything not to leave town, since she has supportive friends there, and a boyfriend who basically rooted there. So she'd have to die, which probably won't happen, I'd rather see Hanners die in a Friday strip which will be revealed a dream as early as Tuesday.


Don't get me wrong, I can see how people can see Claire as manipulative, but I think Faye and Bubs would've set the record straight off she actually were. I can understand why she would push Marten to follow his passion because "how can you NOT?", but in the end she'll just be disappointed her scheming didn't work out.
I can also see, how people get upset about "someone else trying to tell them how to live their lives", but we only ever see snippets of Marten's and Claire's life amd relationship, so tecunicallywe probably can never really tell.

[Roborat]

I guess I'm too long-term of a reader to not immediately think of 1795.

Wow, I had completely forgotten that one (or more likely, erased it from my memory).  And you triggered a 2 hour archive binge, so thank you for that.

Also, I like how cute Claire looks in the current pages.  Not to sure about her approach here, however.  I am not sure if she is up to something, ie: being Claire; or just letting her enthusiasm get away from her.

[Perfectly Reasonable]

So you guys who think Claire is pushy and manipulative, how do you feel about Penelope?

[TheEvilDog]

Can you really compare the two situations?

Wil:
- Had no job at that time.
- Never actually worked.
- Was living with his parents.

Marten:
- Has a job, admittedly one he lucked into.
- Had previous jobs, admittedly ones he hated.
- Lived on his own, then with roommates.

Penelope:
- Actually called Wil out on his lack of effort.
- Was still supportive.
- Encouraged Wil to look through the job listings there and then.

Claire:
- Went from a hypothetical to actually trying to enrol Marten in a course, without talking about it.
- Knows that Marten will never go against the flow, but still tries to push him against the flow. Even though he's clearly uncomfortable for it.

[Akima]

If you break a fiddle that you've been given to repair, would that be robbery with violins?

[TheEvilDog]

Well if he broke a fiddle, I'm sure Marten could console himself with cello shots.

[Akima]

That pun was viol.

[cesium133]

Let’s not wallow into the tar pit of puns. We wouldn’t want to guitar on our shoes.

[Theinternetsurvivor]

As it has been mentioned, another "Claire manipulates someone" story.

I see this ending in one of three ways;
- In tears.
- In a lesson learned.
- Marten Reed, Instrument Repair.

And frankly, I can't see the last happening.

I don't know, I just can't stand Claire anymore. There's just something about her that sets me on edge. Actually, its not some nebulous something, its her manipulative and controlling nature. The fact that she seems to know whats best for everyone else even though its clearly apparent that Claire barely has any clue about her own life.

I honestly disagree, I see Claire being supportive of Marten to accomplish more objectives in his life, to pursue his goals and not to stay stagnant in his current position, after all as much as we wish to stay in a job we currently have, or keep our current situation as it is to stay in a relatively "safe" life, it won't last forever, we have to move on at some point and try our best to strive for even greater opportunities.

I see their relationship as one of the most mature in the QC storyline so far, and I see a lot of my own current relationship in it as well, my girlfriend is very supportive of me and she always tells me how she sees the potential I have and how I can evolve when it comes to work and a future graduation, we've been together for two years and we've been getting more mature when it comes to our relationship, and thanks to that I've been planning things for the future and hopefully will be able to accomplish them, and she gives me the moral support I need when I'm in difficult times, same thing I do to her, so in that mindset, I see Marten and Claire just looking out for each other and seeing their potential and how much they can accomplish if they strive for it.

Now, a person who thinks it knows best for everyone, would be one who tells the others what to do and what to pursue for, regardless of what that person truly wants, and that's not what Claire is doing, notice how Marten showed his options for a possible future (mostly fixing musical instruments), and she supported him anyway because she knows that will make him happy, a truly manipulative person would try to make his head to do something he don't want to do because it's more "proffitable", I know the difference because I'm currently living with a roommate that tries that on me from time to time and it's very stressful, but hopefully I'll be able to move out of here next year, we'll see.

I apologize for any grammar mistakes in my post, english is not my native language, so feel free to correct me if necessary.

[Is it cold in here?]

The Department of Labor listed musical instrument repair as the lowest stress job.

Maybe Marten could learn about saxophone repair as well, from all the sax and violins on TV.

[cesium133]

Today's trivia question: The most successful musical instrument repairers in the world erhu?

[Gyrre]

Of course Pintsize is a icensed notary public.

[BenRG]

Panels 1 and 2 looked utterly bizarre to me until I realised that Marten and Claire were back-lit, something that I don't think Jeph has tried, at least not in recent history. The change in shadow angles made them look weirdly flat in tone, which just shows the degree to which 'on model' depends on the environment we picture the characters!

I think it's lovely that we're reminded here that Claire is very insecure and is trying to work on this by showing trust in Marten and not needing him to include her in everything. I'm hoping that Marten does catch up with Steve and we find what he has been doing since the last time we saw him (which, IIRC, was when Tortura came to tell him that she was getting married).

Finally, people have often wondered if Pintsize has a job. I'm wondering if Jeph is just kidding in the footer text or if that is Pintsize's job. If it is, I'd laugh if he was by far the most professionally successful person in the apartment!