THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)
Comic Discussion => QUESTIONABLE CONTENT => Topic started by: Gladstone on 03 May 2015, 01:05
-
Can you tell I want Sam to show up again? Fingers crossed that Veronica complaining about her reptiles-and-bad-hygiene habits last week results in a failed Pygmalion-esque story this week, in which someone tries (and probably fails) to turn SKULLMASTER, MASTER OF SKULLS into a proper young lady. Plenty of possibilities, too--Faye could use some help figuring out her next wacky espresso machine, Claire could use a chance to be the awesome big sister, Delilah could return and take young Sam under her wing...okay, scratch that last idea. What're your predictions for the week ahead?
-
I've already said that Marten will probably be sent to accompany Sam to release Good Stepmom Snake. What I haven't decided yet is whether Claire and Veronica will accompany them too or whether Veronica will instead stay behind to play with her new dress up doll, Claire 'I always wanted a daughter' Augustus.
-
Veronica will instead stay behind to play with her new dress up doll, Claire 'I always wanted a daughter' Augustus.
Best case scenario: Another Claire-trying-on-clothes montage (which I always giggle at, even though I'm a dude) which results in Marten coming back to his girlfriend in an outfit worth of an anime nose-bleed explosion. Again, I'm dying for her to find a sexy librarian outfit to rock. She'd rock it so hard, she'd Gibraltar. :claireface:
Alternative scenario:
"Mum, please stop trying to make my girlfriend into my fetish."
"Oh, Marten, you're far too vanilla for that. No, this was all her idea."
"... Veronica looked so pretty and self-confident in those photos."
-
Each outfit more risque than the last, every panel Claire gets a little redder.
-
Worst-case scenario: Marten and Claire go hiking with Sam to release the snake. Sam ditches them and runs ahead, bumping into Delilah, who commiserates with her about mean adults and their silly fears about a little healthy dirt and mud. Marten and Claire catch up, leading to a very awkward conversation. After Marten successfully escapes the situation, he takes Claire and Sam to the Secret Bakery, where they run into Padma, just returned from LA. Awkward conversation. When Marten manages to escape again, leaving Sam with her dad, they go back to his mom's apartment to find Veronica unpacking several boxes of clothes from storage. "These are some outfits from my old fashion line, I bet you'd look lovely in them!"
Marten moves back to California that very night.
-
Each outfit more risque than the last, every panel Claire gets a little redder.
Until the final panel where she has a flogger and a look of dawning realisation/awe…
-
At which point Marten starts singing the old song, "I want a gir/just like the girl/who married dear old dad......"
-
Until the final panel where she has a flogger and a look of dawning realisation/awe…
She can look good and all, but Claire is still The Worst Dom.
Edit-Jeph twitter calling for robots this week.
-
A guest appearance by Optimus Prime?
-
Pintsize uses age-appropriate prank! Sam blocks it!
Sam uses HEAD SMASH! It's super effective!
-
A guest appearance by Optimus Prime?
You who are without mercy now beg for it? I thought you were made of sterner stuff, Pintsize.
-
New bedframes for the win!
-
The site's not loading for me. Wait, now it is.
...thumpa.
-
Poor Momo. It sucks to share a wall with a couple that is going at it, whether they're screwing or arguing.
-
It would be interesting to see Dale and Marigold meet Veronica.
-
whether they're screwing or arguing.
Fucking, fighting, it's all the same.
-
I think if I could interview any member of the QC cast, I'd pick Momo. I'd love to ask her how her experience of life worked, how much she knew about AI's and what they were up to. AI's would be, for all intents and purposes, an alien form of life, and to the extent she could illuminate their viewpoint, it would be fascinating. (To me at least.)
I've had "active" roommates of the kind shown in the current strip, and I'd have to say I didn't much like it. Obviously their business is their business, but having it happen noisily in the same living space can be a bit much. Especially if you're unattached yourself.
-
At this time, this is pretty much oblig:
(http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/loud_sex.png)
-
Doesn't... doesn't Momo not need sleep?
Yeah, I took your negative and I doubled it. I double entendres too. Wanna fight about it?
-
Sleep, no, but silent reflection time each night is probably valuable to her.
-
If I were in Momo's situation, I'd take advantage of my ability to turn off and/or dial down external sensors.
-
Momo might put herself in a mode that mimics sleep to fit in better with Marigold's sleep cycle. Having said that I suspect Marigold has often had some pretty odd sleep patterns in the past. Dale's might have been odd as well, both because of his gaming and because he might work odd shifts because of his variety of jobs.
-
"I'd hit that like a Ret Paladin."
-
Is it just me, or have Marigold and Dale pretty much turned into a one-trick (fuck)pony at this point?
-
Momo's not annoyed. It's just that all AI are secretly spyware who gather consumer data and influence purchases.
-
There's a Dilbert where the company's business model turns out to be selling robots that talk their humans into buying upgrades.
-
This feels like the start of a Momo-centered arc. I'm excited about this.
-
Momo's need for a bed may have started here. (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2005)
-
My reaction to today's comic is a suspicion that Momo wants to be as human as possible, and therefore avoids turning off her audio receptors to cancel out the noise. She DOES seem a fair bit more humanesque than the other AnhtroPCs, and it would fit her character. Then again, i might be completely off as usual.
-
Is it just me, or have Marigold and Dale pretty much turned into a one-trick (fuck)pony at this point?
Bear in mind that, given the glacial passage of time in QC, their relationship is still relatively new. In-comic, they have yet to have a single fight. Plus, they've had a lifetime of involuntary abstinence to work through, so it's not surprising they are making like rabbits at every opportunity.
-
I've got a feeling that this arc could be titled 'I, Momo'. It's going to be about what life is like for an AnthroPC Companion.
I'm hoping that we'll see her POV on the staff at the library, Marigold and Dale and possibly May. I'm also hoping we get some insight into her dreams and ambitions. We know that she finds human males attractive; is there a guy on whom she's crushing in her everyday life?
Doesn't... doesn't Momo not need sleep?
Several possibilities occur to me. The most obvious is that Momo's chassis has a mode that resembles sleep. Amongst its functions is to compress, defragment and archive in deep storage her memory. Also, automatic subroutines would debug her intelligence algorithm and her power cells will recharge. As with sleep in humans, she needs a regular sleep mode to remain optimally functional.
Depending upon how Momo's algorithm works, these sleep processes may cause her to dream.
[edit]
Damn auto-correct; even if you reject it's suggestions, it sometimes assumes that it knows better and applies them anyway!
-
Is it just me, or have Marigold and Dale pretty much turned into a one-trick (fuck)pony at this point?
Nope, not just you. It's pretty clear Marigold has fallen into Jeph's "Don't Care As Much" pile, though not into the "Don't Care At All" pile. Since her Character Arc started, was developed, hit a peak, then largely-resolved itself, perhaps it was inevitable. I'm just hoping she doesn't divebomb into the abyss that Raven did.
-
Daligold may be in for a bit of a shock.
-
I've had "active" roommates of the kind shown in the current strip, and I'd have to say I didn't much like it. Obviously their business is their business, but having it happen noisily in the same living space can be a bit much. Especially if you're unattached yourself.
When I was living in student halls, one of our flatmates would have loud sex with her boyfriend, and the sound carried around the flat via the plumbing. We used to gather in the corridor and chat.
-
I keep thinking, not only of the XKCD strip posted earlier, but of an (unknown) standup comic I saw on TV a while back - the part of his routine which sticks in my mind is when he finally meets his neighbor's new boyfriend: "Oh, you must be [orgasmic cry] TO~~~~~MMM!"
-
I was thinking Momo was lying in a bed because she was really excited about getting her own room to decorate, so she wants to enjoy it and all the features as much as possible. Angus might have left that bed behind, but it is possible she bought it herself because That's What Everyone Has In Their Room. I think it likely she picked out the bed linen herself.
-
This feels like the start of a Momo-centered arc. I'm excited about this.
Me too, I have been missing Momo so much. But it is possible that this is just a filler strip, and that we shall return to Veronica's apartment tomorrow. If that involves Sam, I am all for it.
EDIT: Even if it is just a filler, it ranks high on my list of favorite strips.
-
I was thinking Momo was lying in a bed because she was really excited about getting her own room to decorate, so she wants to enjoy it and all the features as much as possible. Angus might have left that bed behind, but it is possible she bought it herself because That's What Everyone Has In Their Room. I think it likely she picked out the bed linen herself.
It's not Angus's bed. See http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2273 4th panel.
-
She could've replaced the headboard...or maybe Angus did after breaking it with Faye :parrot:
-
Looks like Momo has a twin bed, though. Angus had at least a double, possibly a queen.
-
Ahem.
Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!
-
Is it just me, or have Marigold and Dale pretty much turned into a one-trick (fuck)pony at this point?
Pretty much - although an arc with Momo could still be interesting
-
Depending upon how Momo's algorithm works, these sleep processes may cause her to dream.
If we get a strip about that, I hope it's electric sheep. The visual pun would be fantastic.
-
Is it just me, or have Marigold and Dale pretty much turned into a one-trick (fuck)pony at this point?
Pretty much - although an arc with Momo could still be interesting
It might be an electric arc.
-
I would have thought that AI's would have virtual worlds to romp around in. Especially when their "owners" sleep.
-
Bad QI - they don't have owners. They have "Human Partners" aka "bags of mostly water".
-
My reaction to today's comic is a suspicion that Momo wants to be as human as possible, and therefore avoids turning off her audio receptors to cancel out the noise. She DOES seem a fair bit more humanesque than the other AnhtroPCs, and it would fit her character. Then again, i might be completely off as usual.
She seems the most robotic to me. Although a lot of me thinking that is the formality and politeness, which might be just as much that she's (kinda) japanese. Still, I see her as someone while active in wanting respect and equal rights, isn't really trying to be human. Even if she likes a few humans things, like owning a bed she doesn't really need.
And she's always the one who explains why AIs are different then humans. Their beliefs, what they think of people, all that stuff.
Me too, I have been missing Momo so much. But it is possible that this is just a filler strip, and that we shall return to Veronica's apartment tomorrow. If that involves Sam, I am all for it.
EDIT: Even if it is just a filler, it ranks high on my list of favorite strips.
It certainly feels like the start of a arc, Momo narrating her day much like Clinton did. Veronica's housewarming did end abruptly though, but if the theory that he was going to talk trans issues was right and he needs time to hammer out a proper narrative that's fine. And it should be noted, while it's probably a typo, we did go from strip 2951 to 2962. Maybe it's intentional and in a week we go back where we left off with 2952 at Veronica's. But yeah, probably a typo.
In other news, Clinton's started a trend. (http://threepanelsoul.com/)
-
Bad QI - they don't have owners. They have "Human Partners" aka "bags of mostly water".
Ahhh! Thrudd you went there! LOL.
So do we have to come back 300 years then maybe they trust?
As far as the comic goes, poor Momo. That's never a fun way to get disturbed.
-
Word of Jeph, somewhere, is that everybody intelligent needs an equivalent of sleep. There's also a comic where Momo says she doesn't need sleep, then there's also one in which she says she can go into sleep mode while sitting up.
If Pintsize stayed awake all night, he would have driven Marten insane, so that's indirect evidence that AnthroPCs sleep.
How does Station manage?
-
How does Station manage?
He probably does it the dolphin way and shuts down half his processor arrays for one period and shuts down the others for another. It means, of course, that when he has both sets up and running, he's twice as smart as normal. of course, his mind is so vast I doubt that even most AIs would be capable of telling the difference.
Also: May has also said that she has a 'sleep mode'. FWIW, I think that Momo's comment about not needing sleep should be considered retconned out.
-
Instead of retconning it out, could we assume it was her not thinking particularly hard because she was so excited? Like kids begging to get a puppy who make all kinds of promises that Mom(s) and/or Dad(s) know won't be kept?
-
Hmmmmm
Could Momo become the QI equivalent of Data with two probable exceptions
1) She already has the capacity for Emotions
2) She's not going to die blowing up a Reman Warship - or at all.
-
Not needing sleep doesn't mean never choosing to.
-
Hmmmmm
Could Momo become the QI equivalent of Data with two probable exceptions
1) She already has the capacity for Emotions
2) She's not going to die blowing up a Reman Warship - or at all.
She is also unlikely to have an evil twin sister.
-
Does "Sony KawaiiPC etc." describe the first chassis or the AI called Momo? Here, she describes herself as "being" the first, and "rehoused" in the Idoru etc., making that a description of the second chassis.
... Perhaps she just needs sleep more than she realizes.
-
Does "Sony KawaiiPC etc." describe the first chassis or the AI called Momo? Here, she describes herself as "being" the first, and "rehoused" in the Idoru etc., making that a description of the second chassis.
... Perhaps she just needs sleep more than she realizes.
Her first chassis. I don't think she's grammatically incorrect in her words - when she was in her original chassis, she was Momo, and in the new chassis, she's still Momo. Perhaps the distinction is that she came into being in the Sony KawaiiPC, but she will be Momo whether she's in that chassis, or that of a toaster.
-
It may be a clue to AI psychology that "I am" is how they refer to their current body. That means it's more a matter of identity to them than, say, a change of clothes is to us.
-
Office romance SCANDAL in panel 2.
-
Is Momo using her robot senses to monitor Marten's heartbeat, or is his heart actually visibly beating beneath several layers of clothing and tissue? If the latter, Marten needs to see a cardiologist STAT.
-
His heart grew three sizes that day.
-
Does "Sony KawaiiPC etc." describe the first chassis or the AI called Momo? Here, she describes herself as "being" the first, and "rehoused" in the Idoru etc., making that a description of the second chassis.
... Perhaps she just needs sleep more than she realizes.
I thought the reason she mentioned both was because the hardware she's running on might make have an impact her personality and thus her self. We saw in a comic a long time ago (I don't want to find it) a time when Hannelore gave Pintsize extra RAM, and he becomes (even more of) a nightmare until Marten thumps him on the head. Then Hannelore mentioned that Winslow's personality is also affected by having extra RAM. So when Momo upgraded from the KawaiiPC to the Idoru, she is still Momo, she still has the same sense of self, but she's running on new, presumably more advanced hardware. Thus, both the KawaiiPC chassis and the Idoru chassis would be relevant to how she defines herself.
Also, she describes herself as being *formerly* a KawaiiPC, rehoused in an Idoru.
-
His heart grew three sizes that day.
That's not the only thing that
Yeah, I'll just let myself out.
-
If this really is a look into Momo's everyday life, then it would seem that A) Tai really is high off her ass most of the time and B) Marten and Claire would be really obnoxious to work with now that they've gotten together. Not only is it highly unprofessional, but it also makes some people -really- uncomfortable - myself especially. I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
-
Is it just me, or have Marigold and Dale pretty much turned into a one-trick (fuck)pony at this point?
I'm with you there. It makes sense given the context of their relationship and previous inexperience, but I feel there's a bit of Flanderization going on with them and a few other characters at the moment.
If this really is a look into Momo's everyday life, then it would seem that A) Tai really is high off her ass most of the time and B) Marten and Claire would be really obnoxious to work with now that they've gotten together. Not only is it highly unprofessional, but it also makes some people -really- uncomfortable - myself especially. I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
With you there, too.
-
If this really is a look into Momo's everyday life, then it would seem that A) Tai really is high off her ass most of the time and B) Marten and Claire would be really obnoxious to work with now that they've gotten together. Not only is it highly unprofessional, but it also makes some people -really- uncomfortable - myself especially. I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
PDA's aren't terrible if they're not over-the-top. That said, WDA's are over-the-top more or less by definition.
Maybe that isn't Marten's heart. It almost looks like some kind of light-up bra.
And speaking of questionable work conduct, the third panel pretty much clinches that Tai spends more time than not tripping balls at work.
-
So Claire's determination to be all business during work hours didn't last.
-
I'm glad to see Jeph now has a way of showing when a character is high.
Anyone else picking up a Data's Day vibe from Momo's narration?
-
Is Momo using her robot senses to monitor Marten's heartbeat, or is his heart actually visibly beating beneath several layers of clothing and tissue? If the latter, Marten needs to see a cardiologist STAT.
She sees the love...and that means she's going to kill him.
-
WRT Marten heartbeat: I think that's unintentional. It looks like the two frames of the animated GIF have slightly modified color tables, and so the pixels on Marten's chest in that frame are vibrating. (Most QC comics are uploaded as PNG, which is a more advanced image format than GIF. GIF maxes out at 256 colors and uses custom color tables to simulate full color. But in order to get the animation effect in the final frame, this one is a GIF, and has a more limited color palette.)
[/graphics geek]
If Tai really is that high at work all the time, she's got a chemical dependency problem. Could be Dora drama telegraphed from the future.
-
I seem to recall that Jeph uses a reduced-color palette on the PNGs for QC to keep the image size down, which negates that particular advantage of PNG (though there other advantages).
-
I seem to recall that Jeph uses a reduced-color palette on the PNGs for QC to keep the image size down, which negates that particular advantage of PNG (though there other advantages).
You're right. When I checked one of the PNG comics, it came up as a 256 color index image.
-
If this really is a look into Momo's everyday life, then it would seem that A) Tai really is high off her ass most of the time and B) Marten and Claire would be really obnoxious to work with now that they've gotten together. Not only is it highly unprofessional, but it also makes some people -really- uncomfortable - myself especially. I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
I'd be more uncomfortable by the person visibly on DRUGS while at work, than the couple that is a little clingy/fluffy.
-
I'm glad to see Jeph now has a way of showing when a character is high.
A more obvious one, anyway.
If this really is a look into Momo's everyday life, then it would seem that A) Tai really is high off her ass most of the time and B) Marten and Claire would be really obnoxious to work with now that they've gotten together. Not only is it highly unprofessional, but it also makes some people -really- uncomfortable - myself especially. I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
I'd be more uncomfortable by the person visibly on DRUGS while at work, than the couple that is a little clingy/fluffy.
I'm weird, I guess. I jsut don't know what it is, but I hate lovey couple in public. Teenagers are the worst.
-
I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
I feel that way too but I try to suppress it. Envy is an ignoble emotion.
-
If this really is a look into Momo's everyday life, then it would seem that A) Tai really is high off her ass most of the time and B) Marten and Claire would be really obnoxious to work with now that they've gotten together. Not only is it highly unprofessional, but it also makes some people -really- uncomfortable - myself especially. I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
I'd be more uncomfortable by the person visibly on DRUGS while at work, than the couple that is a little clingy/fluffy.
I'm weird, I guess. I jsut don't know what it is, but I hate lovey couple in public. Teenagers are the worst.
I'm with you on this one, Omega. Few things make me feel more ragey than a couple that's all up on each other. I'm like, "okay, you like each other and you seemingly would like to meld into a single person but LEAVE ME OUT OF IT and if you must do it then do it FAR, FAR AWAY FROM ME because it's GROSS." Followed by needing to leave the room because ew ew ew ew ewwwwww. (The drugs, on the other hand, as long as the person is not actively doing drugs in front of me, and as long as their high-ness does not actually endanger my life, and as long as they do not expect me to protect them from themselves while they are high, it would not bother me too much.)
-
Word of Jeph, somewhere, is that everybody intelligent needs an equivalent of sleep. There's also a comic where Momo says she doesn't need sleep, then there's also one in which she says she can go into sleep mode while sitting up.
Could it be that the smaller chassis didn't need shutting down while the large one does? Though I suspect that the truth is that all AnthroPCs need to be shut down every now and the, but maybe not every day?
So Claire's determination to be all business during work hours didn't last.
Could be that she just let herself go now that she's on her last days and presumably already got her evaluation.
-
Emily, be careful! (Edit-@1:55, not linking there right)
-
I'm wondering if Momo is just a mite bit jealous of Marten and Claire, although her expression seems mostly: "Hey-ho, looks like those two are still at it!" I predicted some time ago that the other characters would start to be a bit annoyed at how visibly infatuated Marten and Claire are with each other. It's sort of a daily dose of thick, Golden Syrup. That said, as PDAs go, that's subtle, mild and just a little cute. Marten has obviously learnt how to kiss Claire's hair without ingesting any of it!
I'm starting to worry about Tai. She's trippin' so high that I'm half expecting her to slide sideways off of her chair onto the floor! I'm sort of worried that she may crash one day.
No, the challenge is mostly Emily who, despite numerous warnings, electric shocks and firm talking-tos from Marten, still treats Momo like a dolly. There is no malice to it; she's just a little girl in a woman's body in lots of areas. Nonetheless, Momo clearly considers it a regular trial. Personally, I'm sure that Emily would be upset and confused if told this. Why wouldn't Momo want to play with her?
-
A day in the life continues
And I see Emily hasn't lost her fascination with Momo.
-
Marten has obviously learnt how to kiss Claire's hair without ingesting any of it!
I don't know, looks like he's taking a big old bite.
It's a good thing Claire's hair is made out of cotton candy.
-
No, the challenge is mostly Emily who, despite numerous warnings, electric shocks and firm talking-tos from Marten, still treats Momo like a dolly. There is no malice to it; she's just a little girl in a woman's body in lots of areas. Nonetheless, Momo clearly considers it a regular trial. Personally, I'm sure that Emily would be upset and confused if told this. Why wouldn't Momo want to play with her?
I'm wondering, since we seem to be headed into a Mom-centric arc, whether this behavior will continue to be played for laughs, or whether it might actually become a source of conflict within the comic.
-
She is also unlikely to have an evil twin sister.
Or does she ?
-
Bad QI - they don't have owners. They have "Human Partners" aka "bags of mostly water".
Which is why I used quotation marks :laugh:
Still, what are networked AI's doing online in ther waterbag free sparetime?
-
Still, what are networked AI's doing online in ther waterbag free sparetime?
Cat videos. Lots of them.
On other news, Momo is slowly descending into madness. I wouldn't be surprised if she had devised a floating machine of death and lasers by friday.
-
Regarding Tai, I'm wondering if we're working towards an incident. Not an OD in the traditional sense. I'm thinking something stupid like Tai trying to cross the road whilst flying high and getting knocked over. Oddly enough, a temporarily housebound or wheelchair-bound Tai, who is very much a Dora's mercy and suddenly has time for her writing and introspection, might make for another interesting 'day in the life' arc.
Marten has obviously learnt how to kiss Claire's hair without ingesting any of it!
I don't know, looks like he's taking a big old bite.
He is, isn't he? This is only a guess but, based on the look on Claire's face, this is definitely a clue to Claire's kink! A little tug on the hair in just the right place...?
Still, what are networked AI's doing online in ther waterbag free sparetime?
An AI probably doesn't need to be in the physical presence of one of their peers to talk and interact in other ways.
-
Having been the annoying loud fucker in the next room - brah, if you don't tell us, we don't know.
-
All y'all complaining* about Marten and Claire all up in each other's bidness at work?
Remember that once, Marten and Dora slunk off to fuck on the copier. Then found two far more senior staff members who had the same idea.
Point is, this is more cute than outright obnoxious. They're not passionately making out or air-humping - in fact, this is legitimately a gesture I'd see a bored Emily doing with a friend, or tolerant stranger.
The much bigger issues are Tai being present in body but not in mind, and Emily being Emily.
I think the best thing Momo could do with Emily would be to encourage her. No, wait, hear me out! Emily isn't going to stop being a zany child-woman* any time soon, but what she really just wants from Momo, I think, is some playfulness. If Momo gave in and chose how that playfulness manifested, or at least directed it into less aggravating avenues, she'd probably have a far better -- or less-worse -- time of it.
The actual solution should be for Emily to realize she's doing something wrong and to stop doing it. Unfortunately not even repeated tazerings seem to have made her realize that, so we're going with option B here.
*Unfortunately negative word that I don't mean it as a pejorative, promise.
-
If this really is a look into Momo's everyday life, then it would seem that A) Tai really is high off her ass most of the time and B) Marten and Claire would be really obnoxious to work with now that they've gotten together.
I don't know. These things happen sometimes, often enough to characterise the people concerned, but are they really like that all day, every day? Nobody would get any work done. I think this is very much Momo's own take on things: noticing humans doing the things that differentiate them from AIs in general and Momo in particular, who takes everything so seriously.
Not only is it highly unprofessional
Claire's already had words with Marten about that. Seems to have been quickly forgotten, doesn't it?
(by both of them, judging from Claire's expression in panel 2, if you can bear to look again...)
-
Not only is it highly unprofessional
Claire's already had words with Marten about that. Seems to have been quickly forgotten, doesn't it?
(by both of them, judging from Claire's expression in panel 2, if you can bear to look again...)
CLAIRE: "Marten... today is my last day before the Internship ends."
MARTEN: "That it is. What's up?"
CLAIRE: "I suddenly realised that I really, really want to make love to you, here in the library."
MARTEN: "What happened to 'The Library is Serious Business' and 'We must be professionals when we pass through those doors'?"
CLAIRE: "Oh... I figure that I can afford to let my hair down now and again! Especially since my tutor has confirmed she got my evaluation from Tai!"
MARTEN: "Minx!"
MOMO walks by at this point.
-
Man, it's kind of sad - Claire/Marten are, again, disgustingly cute with each other (there's no working in the library, apparently), Tai is so high she doesn't even register Momo and Emily's characterisation is still... flat.
I don't know about you guys, but my university's library is very busy at all hours of the day (night, not so much, but at night there's almost no staff). While I get that 'showing people at work' is boring, as background for Momo's start in the day it could have been enough - there's a reason Tai's employed after she graduated, and Claire at least is passionate about libraries. Emily's a computer science student - why doesn't she get anything to do except bothering Momo? There's enough to do to justify paying Momo to do whatever she does, and Marten, Emily, Claire and Tai do... nothing?
-
Now we see that when Jeph wants to show that Tai is high, he doesn't do subtle and realistic.
-
But who is the intended audience for Momo's monologue? Could it be . . . a profile on a dating website? Are we about to see a Momo Finds Love arc? Please, please, please let it be true.
-
Man, it's kind of sad - Claire/Marten are, again, disgustingly cute with each other (there's no working in the library, apparently)
Why so stuffy? As far as we can tell from a frame of a single instant, Claire could be minding the desk, and Marten passing by after putting some stuff on a shelf offscreen (for instance) and giving her a quick peck on the way back past. No need to assume it's all they're doing.
Tai on the other hand looks as if she's in no state to do anything today...
-
If Momo's monologue continues I want May to be included somewhere.
-
Please no. I can't stand May.
-
June is a much better month.
-
Regarding Tai, I'm wondering if we're working towards an incident. Not an OD in the traditional sense. I'm thinking something stupid like Tai trying to cross the road whilst flying high and getting knocked over. Oddly enough, a temporarily housebound or wheelchair-bound Tai, who is very much a Dora's mercy and suddenly has time for her writing and introspection, might make for another interesting 'day in the life' arc.
Marten has obviously learnt how to kiss Claire's hair without ingesting any of it!
I don't know, looks like he's taking a big old bite.
He is, isn't he? This is only a guess but, based on the look on Claire's face, this is definitely a clue to Claire's kink! A little tug on the hair in just the right place...?
Still, what are networked AI's doing online in ther waterbag free sparetime?
An AI probably doesn't need to be in the physical presence of one of their peers to talk and interact in other ways.
Or does Tai get to the point where she recognizes she has a problem - and gets to the point where she realizes it much like Faye has realized she has a problem with a different mood altering substance?
-
Now we see that when Jeph wants to show that Tai is high, he doesn't do subtle and realistic.
Or he decided that being too subtle means that a lot of people don't pick up on it.
-
Yes, because Marten as a dragon was so subtle :wow:
-
We've also seen her with bloodshot eyes on far more than one ocassion, with behavior indicative that she's likely not completely sober.
Also, last I knew, weed doesn't cause one to see colors, hallucinations, or tracers, which is what she's assumably seeing there. She dropped LSD before, after all. That's what I'm interpreting panel 3 as. You'll note it's the same effect as when the anthroPCs did their hallucinogenic equivalent way back when.
-
Speaking of May :laugh: will she have saved up enough for at least a quad-copter she could data link to and get in some real flight time?
Oho, and for that little extra May'ism she could do a live link from one of the HD cameras to Dales Glasses :-D to show off and freak out Dale.
-
I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
I feel that way too but I try to suppress it. Envy is an ignoble emotion.
Just saw this. Even if I were in a relationship, I -still- wouldn't want to see it. It makes me really uncomfortable, regardless of relationship status.
-
I used to hate them but slowly once I got into a relationship I realised they don't bother me so much. Only if they're noisy, or right beside me, or blocking a pathway, essentially unless it's directly affecting me other than being in my line of sight, which I can fix, it doesn't concern me any more. Although it's mainly due to realising my Partner and I can be sickeningly cutesy sometimes and it feels really hypocritical to be like, "It's okay when we do it."
I'm liking the last two strips. Feels like a change of pace and it's nice to see more of Momo and the other character's from an outside-ish perspective.
-
I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
I feel that way too but I try to suppress it. Envy is an ignoble emotion.
Just saw this. Even if I were in a relationship, I -still- wouldn't want to see it. It makes me really uncomfortable, regardless of relationship status.
I find this line of thinking odd. PDAs are everywhere on some level or another. Hand holding is a PDA. A kiss on the cheek, hugs of varying degrees. Humans interacting with other humans affectionately is natural human behavior. Judging people for displaying happy human emotions via normal societal interaction seems haughty. This is different, of course, if their behavior is directly affecting you (like heavy making out while bumping into you in the midst of a bus drive or airplane flight, disturbingly loud moaning during a movie at the theater, etc).
-
Seeing May again and seeing how she copes in the real world would be fun. But bear in mind, that ony a few days have passed in the QC-Verse since she got her job in the store. But there is a fair chance that she is loathing it already.
Momo once said, that she sees herself as a kind of ambassador for the AIs in the human world. Don´t know the number of the strip, but she referred to it as a "noble calling". By letting Emily play with her pigtails she shows her patience. Much can be said about Emily. She may be called naive, obnoxious, straightforward, childish or socially incompetent. But nobody can call her malicious. She is a kind of innocent jester and I am sure that Momo sees her this way too. She has had more than one talk with Emily about AIs and AnthroPCs. Letting herself be used as a toy shows that Momo has understood that Emily is different.
So she plays along, the same way an aduld will let itself be used as a toy by a child.
Or as the English would put it:
She suffers fools gladly.
TM
-
Man, it's kind of sad - Claire/Marten are, again, disgustingly cute with each other (there's no working in the library, apparently)
Why so stuffy? As far as we can tell from a frame of a single instant, Claire could be minding the desk, and Marten passing by after putting some stuff on a shelf offscreen (for instance) and giving her a quick peck on the way back past. No need to assume it's all they're doing.
Tai on the other hand looks as if she's in no state to do anything today...
Could be, could be. They just have done very few things apart from being cute with each other for the last few months, so there's no reason to assume otherwise, especially since they don't have anything that would help them work (books, documents, pencils, anything). Tai looks more busy and that's saying something.
-
I don't know about you guys, but my university's library is very busy at all hours of the day (night, not so much, but at night there's almost no staff).
Actually... Outside of the months of May/June and Jan/Feb, the university library where I study is ded. Seriously. We've played Counter Strike there.
Although the situation does feel weird.
-
Liking this new storyline. And loved the Azumanga reference in the last panel.
-
I felt a kind of muted hostility when I saw the PDA, and I have no idea why. o_o it's been way too long since I've had a relationship. *weeps* #ForeverAlone
In any case, I hope the storyline gets more interesting soon. Marten/Claire squees and heartwarming reunions with his Mom and Momo sidestories get really boring really fast with me. Hoping we get more Faye art and sobriety developments. I'm feeling grouchy lately, and it would be nice to see how my favorite fictional grouch is doing. :3
-
Your username?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZVjKlBCvhg
-
She is also unlikely to have an evil twin sister.
This is why Pintsize must never, ever find her old chassis.
-
Also, last I knew, weed doesn't cause one to see colors, hallucinations, or tracers, which is what she's assumably seeing there. She dropped LSD before, after all. That's what I'm interpreting panel 3 as. You'll note it's the same effect as when the anthroPCs did their hallucinogenic equivalent way back when.
Actually, marijuana can cause hallucinations for some people. It's weird in that it has been linked to increasing psychotic symptoms*, or suppressing them. It has also been linked to reducing or increasing anxiety.
*I cannot recall if that particular study was with people predisposed to, or suffering from, psychotic symptoms. I also can't find the study. But correlation does not imply causation, and whatnot
I imagine she is on LSD or Ecstasy, though. Also shocked she hasn't been fired for it.
-
June is a much better month.
Bah, nothing beats May (birfday today \o/ )
We've also seen her with bloodshot eyes on far more than one ocassion, with behavior indicative that she's likely not completely sober.
Also, last I knew, weed doesn't cause one to see colors, hallucinations, or tracers, which is what she's assumably seeing there. She dropped LSD before, after all. That's what I'm interpreting panel 3 as. You'll note it's the same effect as when the anthroPCs did their hallucinogenic equivalent way back when.
He did a similar thing with Raven (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=426) even further way back when, although that was from paint fumes and not mind altering drugs.
-
June is a much better month.
Bah, nothing beats May (birfday today \o/ )
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
-
June is a much better month.
Bah, nothing beats May (birfday today \o/ )
Happy birthday! :-)
-
I hate PDAs with the fiery passion of a thousand suns.
I feel that way too but I try to suppress it. Envy is an ignoble emotion.
Just saw this. Even if I were in a relationship, I -still- wouldn't want to see it. It makes me really uncomfortable, regardless of relationship status.
I find this line of thinking odd. PDAs are everywhere on some level or another. Hand holding is a PDA. A kiss on the cheek, hugs of varying degrees. Humans interacting with other humans affectionately is natural human behavior. Judging people for displaying happy human emotions via normal societal interaction seems haughty. This is different, of course, if their behavior is directly affecting you (like heavy making out while bumping into you in the midst of a bus drive or airplane flight, disturbingly loud moaning during a movie at the theater, etc).
Handholding, a peck on the lips or cheek and the like don't bother me, nor do displays of affection in media. It's the hanging off of each other, nuzzling each other, excessive kissing and the like that do it. But hey, if I'm haughty because I feel some behavior should be relegated to someplace private, then so be it. At least I have some scruples when it comes to respecting the people around me, and I expect the same courtesy of the people around me.
-
June is a much better month.
Bah, nothing beats May (birfday today \o/ )
Happy Birthday!
-
I don't mind overt PDA in public or at a concert. But when I am in a library and the counter staff is making out... that would bother me.
Its about context.
At work you are supposed to be approachable, I would not approach someone who looks as though they are on a date. Even if they obviously worked there.
-
Now we see that when Jeph wants to show that Tai is high, he doesn't do subtle and realistic.
Tai kind of has what I'm now going to call the "Space is biiiiig" eyes.
-
Yes, May makes this difficult.
-
If I may say, maybe May doesn't make things as difficult as we make it out to be. Also, May as a character may be annoying, but at least she's interesting - come what may, May will stir the pot.
-
I am really enjoying this, I like seeing the world from Momo's perspective.
-
At work you are supposed to be approachable, I would not approach someone who looks as though they are on a date. Even if they obviously worked there.
I had a coworker who would not quite make out on the sales floor with her boyfriend, but would do those series of small, slow kisses that lead up to it. Makeout foreplay, if you will. That bothered me to an excessive degree.
On-topic, yes, definitely enjoying the current goings-on in-comic.
-
A Week In The Life of Momo continues...
Suddenly a wild May appears!
Momo uses TOLERANCE!
It doesn't work!
-
Oh, the comic from Momo's perspective...
At some point,
(http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/80450F/1079ishot.com/files/2012/04/tumblr_m3bkzmgNDz1qb68vwo1_400.jpg)
-
Heh, I saw that a few times that I came up with an entire verse:
There comes a day/When April is done/You'll saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay/It's gonna (gonna, gonna, gonna, gonna)...IT'S GONNA BE MAY
-
I've honestly never heard that song, so I'm just inventing the rhythm around that and I'm have fun tonight
-
...where were you in the year 2000?
(Relevant line two minutes in.)
-
May's back! I'm excited for more creative swearing!
-
Creative swearing is fun. "Fuckpants" might be my favourite general expletive. I forget if I made it up, heard it somewhere, or both.
-
...where were you in the year 2000?
(Relevant line two minutes in.)
I was eight. The radio never turned from NPR. My music knowledge was Raffi, and basically nothing else.
-
Banana phone!
-
Creative swearing is fun. "Fuckpants" might be my favourite general expletive. I forget if I made it up, heard it somewhere, or both.
I personally tend towards 'fucknugget.' I'm unsure if it came out watching Battlestar Galactica in that they used that specific expletive, or that I heard them use the word 'nugget' in a derogative sense on that show and henceforth attached the cursing myself
-
Fucknugget is even funnier if you're not using nugget as a derogative sense. Now that I think about it, I think "fuckpants" was from Will Ferrell's character from Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. Or maybe that was "fuck beans".
-
Fucknugget is even funnier if you're not using nugget as a derogative sense. Now that I think about it, I think "fuckpants" was from Will Ferrell's character from Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. Or maybe that was "fuck beans".
I mean, at this point, half a decade after the show ended, it's just a word to me. Derogatory meaning in the original incarnation aside, I called a pencil sharpener a fucknugget three days ago. Thing worked fine, it just annoyed the shit out of me.
-
Yeah, that's the difference between fucknugget and fuckpants. Fuckpants doesn't apply to anything, it's just really fun to say. If you're annoyed enough to say it, you won't be once you say it.
-
Really, now? Doesn't have NEAR the three-syllable rhythm of fucknugget. I think I'm good.
-
Momo + May = Happy Amy. I think May is my favorite character. She makes me laugh every time she shows up. :)
-
I'm partial to "cockwaffle", though "dunderfuck" rates highly.
-
Is May wearing lipstick? Or is that just the inside of her mouth?
On every Momo comic this week, she starts out happy, and ends looking put-upon. Could Jeph do a comic where she's smiling in the final panel?
-
Open mouth. Otherwise she's got some clowny-looking makeup going on :-P
-
Fustercluck.
-
I'm partial to "cockwaffle", though "dunderfuck" rates highly.
Cockwaffle so far reigns supreme. Fuckmonkey applies to people in a certain sort of relationship, I find, though it work best if said fuckmonkey is not a part of the conversation.
-
Fustercluck.
That reminds me that I sometimes call our chickens 'Mothercluckers'. The bantam rooster is named Peckerhead - he attacks on a regular basis, and damn does it hurt when he pecks you.
-
Yeah, May! Whoooh! 8-)
Don´t know if she really likes her work (I doubt it), but at least it seems to have some positive sides. Like torturing customers. Will she turn the shop into the Grocery of Doom?
And this is the first time Jeph shows us that the humanoid AnthoPCs like Momo and May actually have teeth. At least as far as I remember. By now they´ve only shown a structureless surface when their mouths were open. Unlike the human characters, which clearly have teeh.
Does Pintsize have teeth too? Disturbing thought...
Momo continues her daily narration and shows us how patient ans tolerant she tries to be. A fascinating contrast to May. But I understand her tolerance towards her human workmates, especially Emily. As stated above. But between AIs some open words would seem appropriate. Altough they´d propably be wasted on May. :-D
By the way, is May still living with Dale? That could be an explanation why he is so often over at Marigold´s and why they are so...
...active...
TM
-
I think that Momo is right to use the word 'judgemental'. May has many negative qualities but she also has many positive ones and, bless her, does genuinely seem to want to reach out to Momo and be her friend. Momo, unfortunately, comes to the table with a set of very condescending and self-righteous prejudgements about May, not automatically justifiable ones either, which creates this wall between them.
On the flip side, when you consider the relationships with their respective humans, May is to Momo a sort of hyper-embarrassing step-sister from the wrong side of the tracks. She didn't ask to have to learn to integrate May into her life but Dale's relationship with Marigold makes it unavoidable. I think that she makes Momo (who goes perhaps to ridiculous lengths to be the 'perfect Robo Companion') nervous and hyper-aware of her own negative qualities including short temper and violent streak.
FWIW, I entirely agree with May's tactics. There are some things that should not occur in public or semi-public spaces and that is one of them. Being doused with cold water is a scientifically-validated negative reinforcement technique for dealing with these.
-
Ugh, a pressure washer is so clumsy and random. Momo only deals with creeps using electric shock, an elegant weapon for a more civilized age.
I love how thrilled May looks to be hanging out with Momo in panel 2. Hope there's more May shenanigans.
I also hope that Momo actually has an enjoyable time in one of these strips. >_>
-
The forums made an accurate prediction - I'm impressed!
-
Okay, some more thoughts.
Firstly, over on the Subreddit, someone suggested that Momo may be talking to her therapist. This would explain why why each page so far seem to have focussed on external problems that are making it hard for her to retain an positive attitude. To wit:
- Her human friend insists on having loud and hyper-dynamic monkey sex at inconvenient times;
- At some point, her workplace became the picture in the dictionary next to 'Unprofessional';
- A sociopathic ex-felon has decided that she wants to be her best buddy-pal EVAR!
I suspect Friday's strip will be her lying on Marten's couch, talking to Pintsize who will round up by saying: "Well, if you're asking me for advice, I'd go on a mad killing frenzy but that's just me."
Secondly, I find myself wondering how much time has passed since Marten and Claire visited Veronica's apartment. A day? More? I'm trying to think of how Jeph could give us a clue without having someone explicitly state it.
Finally, it's a nice little touch that May has a uniform shirt with a name-tag. It just lacks the 'Hi, I'm... Have A Nice Day' boilerplate to make it super-ironic.
-
Yes! I could seriously read about Momo and May interacting with each other forever. They play off each other so well.
I'm partial to "cockwaffle", though "dunderfuck" rates highly.
"Dunderfuck" makes me think of a foul-mouthed version of AC/DC's Thunderstruck.
-
I really like this Momo arc. It gives us a brief recap of the main cast, from Momo's point of view. Each strip starts happy, but ends less so. The people and robots she meets all have annoying habits, but fortunately Momo is tolerant.
I guess there are more beings Momo shall meet before the day is over:
- Definitely Pintsize. I hope Momo will administer a severe electroshock, and that this shall improve Pintsize's future behavior.
- Hanners! This will definitely make Momo happy also in the last panel.
- Sven? Remember, Momo (in her old body) got hit by his cockatrice gaze (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1658). Some of that spell might still linger.
- Dora? I doubt we shall see CoD ever again, but Momo might encounter her on the street. Dora is too important in the QC storyline to be overlooked.
- Faye? Same argument as Dora.
- Will Momo visit her old body (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1298)? I am sure it is stored somewhere, safe from Pintsize. Does Momo have feelings for it, or is it just a useless thing?
-
Maybe it's time for Momo to interact with Winslow again. He hasn't seen much screen time lately.
-
I got curious about the first May and Momo interaction while reading today's strip and went on an archive binge to find the first one. Not much has changed from that comic to this one. They made a pretty bad first impression on each other, but May soon decided she liked Momo after all. I don't think it was instantly reciprocated, but May's help in getting Dale and Marigold to start talking to each other probably thawed Momo a bit. It starts here if you are interested:
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2508
-
Depending upon how Momo's algorithm works, these sleep processes may cause her to dream.
If we get a strip about that, I hope it's electric sheep. The visual pun would be fantastic.
So full...of win.
-
...Still seeing the possibility for floating machine of death, possibly of robotic persuasion.
Or maybe she uses her newfound pokerface powers to blow up a casino or something.
-
I can so very easily identify with Momo. Of all the characters in QC, she is the one I'm closest to.
Despite her difficulties, I don't think she'd want things to change - apart from a "make everything better" button. One of those would indeed be useful. But since we don't have one, we have to do it ourselves, one bit at a time. This can be difficult.
-
Is Momo using her robot senses to monitor Marten's heartbeat, or is his heart actually visibly beating beneath several layers of clothing and tissue? If the latter, Marten needs to see a cardiologist STAT.
Marten's heart appears to be in a very unusual position too. Contrary to folklore, the heart is not on the left side of the chest, or up by the collar-bone.
Does "crankin' his hog" mean what I'm afraid it means? And that is not trying to start one of those alleged motorcycles from Milwaukee. What sort of magazines does May's shop sell?
-
The kind that come wrapped in opaque plastic, probably.
-
Akima, I am afraid it means what you are afraid it means. But why do people still do this, when they have the whole Internet available in their apartment? :parrot:
As for May's current job: Pressure washers and magazine racks are a bad combination. I guess she will soon get fired.
-
I'm partial to "cockwaffle", though "dunderfuck" rates highly.
"cockwaffle" is a favorite of mine; I also really enjoy "douchecanoe". :D
-
- Will Momo visit her old body (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1298)? I am sure it is stored somewhere, safe from Pintsize. Does Momo have feelings for it, or is it just a useless thing?
The fact that the AIs refer to their bodies as "chassis" leads me to think that that's all they are to them: A shell.
It wasn't mentioned (that I remember) as a possibility, but perhaps it had a trade-in value that was applied to the cost of her current chassis.
-
Not probable. There was a strip in which Winslow finds the old chassis and tries to show her something, with obviously no reaction from the old Momo-Tan chassis. Winslow then connects, gets nothing, believes she's dead, and just as he's contemplating a full-fledged burial ceremony in loving memory of Momo, Hanners comes and says something on the lines of "She has a new chassis "Winslow, chill". Strip that wouldn't have sense if the chassis had been traded in.
-
Here's the strip. It was Marigold. (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2008)
Is Momo using her robot senses to monitor Marten's heartbeat, or is his heart actually visibly beating beneath several layers of clothing and tissue? If the latter, Marten needs to see a cardiologist STAT.
I genuinely missed that detail yesterday. Huh.
-
I hope Momo runs into Elliot. Rereading some of the strips, and there is not enough Elliot.
-
Is Momo using her robot senses to monitor Marten's heartbeat, or is his heart actually visibly beating beneath several layers of clothing and tissue? If the latter, Marten needs to see a cardiologist STAT.
This is just an animated GIF artifact. See the top of the bushes in panel 1 for another place it manifests.
-
Is Momo using her robot senses to monitor Marten's heartbeat, or is his heart actually visibly beating beneath several layers of clothing and tissue? If the latter, Marten needs to see a cardiologist STAT.
This is just an animated GIF artifact. See the top of the bushes in panel 1 for another place it manifests.
I kinda figured it was too much a coincidence to JUST be Marten's heart, but I didn't even notice that.
Unless the fireflies are up late.
-
I wonder if Momo will warm up to May
Or will Momo be a 'Positive Influence' on her - if Momo doesn't take an axe to her first.
-
It's the other way around. Soon Momo will join May in traveling the country in a stolen vehicle after robbing a bank.
The vehicle is a jet.
-
So...Momo will be traveling in May?
-
*Plays Theme from Thelma and Louise*
-
I too love this arc so far. It reminds me of an episode of Star Trek TNG called "Data's Day", where the story follows Data and shows what his day is like and what he thinks of the people he interacts with.
On a side note, I can also see this as a clever way to check in on many of the characters we haven't seen recently. It seems like a really large number of regulars have been put on the bus as of recent or fed to an Allosaurus like poor Sarah. There are still some stories I'd like to see resolved: Angus' status, Dora's relationship with Sven, Steve eating cereal, etc.. Also, by my reckoning, only a week to a week and a half has passed in Comic time since Faye and Angus split- I base that off of when Clinton and Emily arranged their date (sometime in Nov/Dec in real time) to when they actually went on it. I'm still hoping we see Angus come back- he was my favorite character after all the robots.
-
I too love this arc so far. It reminds me of an episode of Star Trek TNG called "Data's Day", where the story follows Data and shows what his day is like and what he thinks of the people he interacts with.
I was thinking the same thing... it'd be cool to see a few more of these with characters we don't hear from as much, or haven't heard from in a while, or who don't have as much backstory. Besides "Data's Day," I also remember a few episodes of MASH that used a similar device. I don't want to see several months straight of it, but these little check-ins are a neat change of pace, besides giving a bit more depth to some of the secondary characters.
-
New comic...
-
So.. the same building where Faye goes to support group it looks like. Hmmmmm....
-
Comic's up. I'd have laughed my ass off if Arthur ran both support groups. :D "June" is there with her friend Esperanto Axolotl...
-
Gordon! Why does everyone hate Gordon? He just loves his job.
-
Gordon! Why does everyone hate Gordon? He just loves his job.
I like Gordon. He is adorable, and I'd love to have him as an Anthropc companion.
-
Gordon! Why does everyone hate Gordon? He just loves his job.
He can spin a real good yarn. He'll also keep any secret you tell him in confidence, even going so far as to weave a web of lies to protect it. When you're hanging on by a thread, he'll be the one to pull you up.
-
*holds out the pun jar and gives it a meaningful shake*
-
He can spin a real good yarn. He'll also keep any secret you tell him in confidence, even going so far as to weave a web of lies to protect it. When you're hanging on by a thread, he'll be the one to pull you up.
Plus, if you're feeling hungry, he can get you a tasty snack on the fly.
-
It's a shame to only find such great commentary on the web...
-
As an arachnophobe who would run screaming if Gordon were around me, AWW THE POOR LIL GUY
-
May has lost her sexy/sassy edge and is now drawn as the annoying co-worker who always wants you to cover her shift for reasons. :cry:
-
I didn't expect a support group, that's kind of a cool wrinkle. I do miss the older strips where AI (or proto-AI? I dunno if they differentiate between pre and post-singularity robots) had their own relationships and friends in the background that were entirely unrelated to anything humans were doing. Not sure when the last time that happened was, outside of May sliming Momo in that one strip. Now that I think about it, using human connections as part of a litmus test for AI criminal rehabiliation is an interesting choice for the universe. I know she's supposed to be curbing "sociopathic tendencies" but that doesn't have to be only related to dealings with other humans.
-
May has lost her sexy/sassy edge and is now drawn as the annoying co-worker who always wants you to cover her shift for reasons. :cry:
I didn't get that vibe at all. I mean, she's bragging about hosing a guy down with a powerwasher for wanking off in the magazine section, for cripes sake.
-
Does the flyer for this support group also say "no creeps"?
-
May.
If anything, this is the creep group.
-
Depending upon how Momo's algorithm works, these sleep processes may cause her to dream.
If we get a strip about that, I hope it's electric sheep. The visual pun would be fantastic.
So full...of win.
I know imagine a rival coffee shop called the "Tannhäuser Gate"
-
May has lost her sexy/sassy edge and is now drawn as the annoying co-worker who always wants you to cover her shift for reasons. :cry:
I didn't get that vibe at all. I mean, she's bragging about hosing a guy down with a powerwasher for wanking off in the magazine section, for cripes sake.
Like I said! (But YMMV) "I coulda been a jet fighter!", in a maid's outfit and wanting to see the stars before appearing on Dale's doorstep and pushing him and Marigold together = sexy/sassy. Polyester uniform, hanging off Momo like the guy in the Scumbag Steve meme, and braggin' about nothing = not. I'd love to see what Faye would have done to the guy if he'd tried that in CoD!
-
Is Momo using her robot senses to monitor Marten's heartbeat, or is his heart actually visibly beating beneath several layers of clothing and tissue? If the latter, Marten needs to see a cardiologist STAT.
This is just an animated GIF artifact. See the top of the bushes in panel 1 for another place it manifests.
I kinda figured it was too much a coincidence to JUST be Marten's heart, but I didn't even notice that.
Unless the fireflies are up late.
I'm sure it's his lung.
-
I know imagine a rival coffee shop called the "Tannhäuser Gate"
It was lost, in time, like tears in the rain.
-
Yay, more robots! 8-)
The spider-aPC is a nice runnig gag. I´m missing the toaster though.
"I make bread fun. But I wish I could toast a bun now and then."
May is quite mellow in this strip, but she is hardly the central person in this storyline. It´s ok if she only looks appalled, because that´s how she feels. So in my oppinion she is perfectly in character here. I´m pretty sure that she doesn´t hold back on commenting on the other aPCs´s in her unique way. But this strip is reserved for the itsy bitsy spider pun. :-D
I´m enjoing this week very much. It doesn´t always have to be drama. This is light and funny. And I think Jeph ist having a lot of fun too drawing these strips.
TM
-
Now, this is an interesting wrinkle. It seems that some AIs find dealing with us fleshy types stressful enough that it causes psychological problems! I suppose that this is an indication of just how complex that their psyches are - it can even become flawed with sufficient stress!
I empathise with May here. There is nothing worse than having to go to something like this - supposedly for your benefit but you really don't want to be there. It's in character for Momo to volunteer for something like this. What is interesting is how much May is like Faye. Is she avoiding optical contact because she doesn't want to cooperate or is it because she's afraid of her fellow AIs' scorn if she tells them her story and how she feels about herself and where her life has gone?
Also, someone needs to give Gordon a hug. I hate spiders but he's big enough not to trigger a response and there's no doubt that he's a nice guy! It isn't his fault that some joker thought that a headcrab was a suitable template for a brain-scanning chassis!
-
They are described as sentient AIs, so they have feelings - it's almost inevitable that would include stress, fear and anxiety.
It's good to see the AIs back in the comic too. In the earlier days, Pintsize was a major character, Winslow was the straight man to Pintsize's gags, and Momo was philosophical about the political status of AIs. Then, apart from the arc in which May appeared on the scene, it's been mostly conventional human soap-opera for ages.
I can't help wondering whether all this autobiographical stuff from Momo is leading somewhere, or whether it's just a device for giving us a differently-lit overview of the main characters.
-
Yay, more robots! 8-)
The spider-aPC is a nice runnig gag. I´m missing the toaster though.
"I make bread fun. But I wish I could toast a bun now and then."
Much like Lister, I'm not a big fan of talking toasters
-
Marvin could have done with a group like this
Or maybe they got fed up with him and sent him back to Magrathea?
-
Yay, more robots! 8-)
The spider-aPC is a nice runnig gag. I´m missing the toaster though.
"I make bread fun. But I wish I could toast a bun now and then."
Much like Lister, I'm not a big fan of talking toasters
Yet, ultimately, whose fault was it? Humanity created a fully-sentient being whose raison d'ętre was to make toast! To quote Talkie himself: "I toast, therefore I am"! Can we blame him for becoming fixated on his prime function?
Marvin could have done with a group like this
Or maybe they got fed up with him and sent him back to Magrathea?
Letting Marvin talk about his life and his views on life, the universe and everything is a bad idea in general, based on that Galactic Police ship's computer.
-
Hi, Gordon! We have not seen you since #2334 (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2334)!
My guess is that this is the non-creepy group, because Pintsize is not there (May may be foul-mouthed, but not creepy). But as the toaster and Winslow are also missing, there may be other explanations. Perhaps "physically challenged" robots have their own support group? Also, the invisible airship and the whale are missing...
-
I can't help wondering whether all this autobiographical stuff from Momo is leading somewhere, or whether it's just a device for giving us a differently-lit overview of the main characters.
Or a proxy for a more controversial non-QC subject, perhaps.
I can easily imagine something like this being said about AIs:
However, if they and you think you can intimidate the human race into bowing down to your perverse agenda, you had better guess again. You cannot hide the reality of your condition and motives forever. WE are the human race and you are tolerated only to a point.
-- Steven Mark Pilling, Chair of the Harris County TX GOP
-
Hi, Gordon! We have not seen you since #2334 (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2334)!
2430* (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2430)
-
Hi, Gordon! We have not seen you since #2334 (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2334)!
2430* (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2430)
Sorry about that. Your archive-fu is better than mine. But why would a robot order coffee?
-
Hi, Gordon! We have not seen you since #2334 (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2334)!
2430* (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2430)
Sorry about that. Your archive-fu is better than mine. But why would a robot order coffee?
For his human colleagues, of course!
Interestingly coffee spider is listed as 'Gary' by Jeph, not as 'Gordon'. So, unless Jeph just forgot the character's name, they are probably two different spiders. Yes, ladies, that means there are two giant robot spiders that like physical contact in Northampton! :-o
-
Interestingly coffee spider is listed as 'Gary' by Jeph, not as 'Gordon'. So, unless Jeph just forgot the character's name, they are probably two different spiders. Yes, ladies, that means there are two giant robot spiders that like physical contact in Northampton! :-o
Probably Jeph had a moment of confusion, due to the Gary Phenomenon (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2070). But you may be right, Gordon and Gary might be identical twins. If so, is it Gordon or Gary we see in today's strip?
-
They are two different AIs that have a time-share on the same chassis.
-
They are two different AIs that have a time-share on the same chassis.
Or some AI version of Dissociative identity disorder (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissociative_identity_disorder). If GaryGordon's hardware has multiple processors, I guess each processor can be assigned to a separate AI entity? Shared memory and files, as well as shared sensors and actuators, may of course create conflicts.
-
I have heard Gordon as a surname, maybe they're very formal at work.
Gary Gordon, arthropodic biometric technician, at your service.
why is he a spider? because in the same way may wanted to be a fighter jet, Gary thought spiders were adorable, and has no concept of human phobias and fears.
-
Sad Gordon is sad :( I just want to hug him and tell him everything will be alright :(
-
Count me as one of the people who would totally have an ArachnoPC for a companion. Spiders are cool.
I'm surprised there aren't more non-humanoid robots in the QCverse, actually. Robot dogs and cats would sell like gangbusters.
-
Robot attack dogs would be pretty terrifying.
-
Who is to say there aren't? If an AI can embody anything from a space station to a toaster, they can be anything they want. Even a transforming Vespa or a fighter jet. Cats and dogs would be simplistic. You'll notice that most seem to take at least a close approximation to human form. For a simple reason, most everything we build is built with our body shape in mind. A quadraped with no opposible thumbs or manipulative devices is going to have a hard time getting around the world. Unless the AI is willing to be a 'kept' being like Pintsize or Winslow then being built to about human size and shape is the best way to get around and be taken seriously by humans. Instead of being treated like a toy. A lot of this is probably Jeph's evolution of what AIs and AnthroPCs role in the comic and society over the years.
That said, a robot body would not be constrained in the same way as a flesh and blood one. A companion AI could use a body that's normally shaped like a dog, but with the ability to stand on their hind legs and reconfigure their paws to a manipulation capable hands, or even extend sub arms from their back or chest. That sort of thing could freak people out though.. See The Thing anyone? An AI like that could make an excellent replacement for a service animal though. Able to provide the emotional support and assistance a trained dog could, and able to provide additional aid as needed. Sort of a doggy Baymax.
-
AI Dogs and Spiders are cool and all.
But do they have cows? (http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=602)
-
Sort of a doggy Baymax.
OH MY GOD I WANT ONE OF THESE.
-
Someone needs to introduce the purple spideroid to Sam. She'd be quite happy, as i'm sure, that falls in 3ed place behind robosnake, and frogbot.
-
AI Dogs and Spiders are cool and all.
But do they have cows? (http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=602)
But with lasers instead of guns.
-
Possibly there aren't pet chassis because AI don't want to be in them. It's pretty clear they would rather be seen as equal to humans, and cats and dogs are not considered equal to human. It's already been established that referring to the human who has purchased a companion AI as his or her 'owner' is the height of political incorrectness, so I think they'd be wary of agreeing to go into a pet shaped chassis in case it sends a message they'd rather not give. Even if it starts out with the best of intentions from both human and AI, and the relationship between the two is an equal one, it could go somewhere dangerous and give the wrong impression to outsiders.
-
But Gordon has an animal chassis. And Toaster-chan is an appliance.
-
I can see a market for a Teddy-Bear chassis, especially when working with children.
The Reality is that there *are* monsters out there, only a very few, but some.
(http://cl.jroo.me/z3/j/G/_/d/a.baa-Teddy-Bear-Defense.jpg)
Except the monsters belong to pedophile rings, and a teddy bear AI has rather more than a sword....
-
Robot attack dogs would be pretty terrifying.
THAT'S the understatement of the week.
(http://www.abc.net.au/cm/lb/5002926/data/wildcat-robot-gif-data.gif)
(http://media.giphy.com/media/17J5XoTnWF8Yw/giphy.gif)
-
Much like Lister, I'm not a big fan of talking toasters
Yet, ultimately, whose fault was it? Humanity created a fully-sentient being whose raison d'ętre was to make toast! To quote Talkie himself: "I toast, therefore I am"! Can we blame him for becoming fixated on his prime function?
Hmm. Trashbot liked his job too much as well. Perhaps it's the "too much" that is the problem here.
But Gordon has an animal chassis. And Toaster-chan is an appliance.
I wouldn't argue with a spider that big, personally.
-
While we wait for Friday's comic, I wanted to comment on how nicely Jeph did May's body language these past two strips. In the first, she's aggressively all over Momo, violating her physically and verbally. In the panel outside the school, May is swinging her arms wide, taking up a large body space. Then, once they enter, May shuts down, holding her arms close and giving everybody the side-eye. Beautiful portrait of a personality without using dialogue, even though May's language is one of her most memorable traits.
-
Guys.
Guys.
I thought of the perfect chassis for Gordon, considering his job and what he needs to do.
The Sorting Hat (http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Sorting_Hat).
:mrgreen:
-
Guys.
Guys.
I thought of the perfect chassis for Gordon, considering his job and what he needs to do.
The Sorting Hat (http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Sorting_Hat).
:mrgreen:
My dear sweet god no. I would straight refuse to be a wizard, that is how deep my fear of spiders goes. Forget supreme power, if a giant eight egged mechanical demon has to sit on my face and read my brain, I AM OUTTA THERE
-
... I see my mistake already. Stand by what I said, but I recognize it wasn't what you suggested
-
I would love to see the yellow robot become a regular character in QC. That's some awesome retro-futuristic design there.
-
If fucked up browser histories are May's thing, she should really meet Pintsize.
Yellow-bot looks pretty cool. Reminds me of the Human Bullet. "FIRE ME, BOY!"
-
Yellow-bot looks pretty cool. Reminds me of the Human Bullet. "FIRE ME, BOY!"
His paint job reminds me of S.C.U.D. The Disposable Assassin...
(http://www.oafe.net/yo/art/is1_scud01.jpg)
-
Possibly there aren't pet chassis because AI don't want to be in them. It's pretty clear they would rather be seen as equal to humans, and cats and dogs are not considered equal to human. It's already been established that referring to the human who has purchased a companion AI as his or her 'owner' is the height of political incorrectness, so I think they'd be wary of agreeing to go into a pet shaped chassis in case it sends a message they'd rather not give. Even if it starts out with the best of intentions from both human and AI, and the relationship between the two is an equal one, it could go somewhere dangerous and give the wrong impression to outsiders.
This is good thinking. So given that Marigold eventually gifted Momo her chassis, Are May's relationship with Dale, Momo's with Marigold, and Marten's with Faye all equivalent now?
-
Yellow-bot looks pretty cool. Reminds me of the Human Bullet. "FIRE ME, BOY!"
His paint job reminds me of S.C.U.D. The Disposable Assassin...
His arms are way cooler than the Brainpop robot's!
(https://etec602.wikispaces.com/file/view/brainpop.gif/39893561/brainpop.gif)
-
So given that Marigold eventually gifted Momo her chassis, Are May's relationship with Dale, Momo's with Marigold, and Marten's with Faye all equivalent now?
May and Dale are equivalent to Marten and Faye, but I believe Momo and Marigold are still under their companionship contract. In practical terms I don't see that there's much actual difference, but that contract's still there.
-
In panel 2, is May talking on a cell phone, or does she have a built-in communication device in her ear that she's talking to? She has her hand up to her ear, but it doesn't look like there's anything in it.
If it's a cell phone, it seems weird that a machine is talking to another machine to talk to a human. :psyduck:
-
Good morning,
I see no cellphone or anything else in Mays hand in panel two. So I suppose it´s some kind of build-in device she activates by raising her Hand to her ear. Nice idea by Jeph.
On the oher hand the humanoid AIs use verbally communication not only with humans, but between each other too. My guess is that they want to appear as human as possible not to freak people out or to raise prejudices against AIs. And verbal communication is a center trait of human existance and behaviour. The support group could be easily held online without the AIs having to leave their houses.But they meet personally in the convention center. And I see only one explanation: to act and behave as humans do, to embrace humanity as far as possible.
A built-in communicator would not really fit into this philosophy.
I like jheartney´s analysis of May´s body language in yesterdays strip. Jeph is really good at giving his characters the right gestures and body-stances to express their feeling. (He´s really good at hands too. Hands are difficult. He´s less good on feet and shoes though. ;-) )
Arachnoid porn. Eeek! :-o
"Come over here, you dirty little spider-stud. I´ll bite your head off!"
"Yeah baby. Give it to me!"
No, I´d rather not take this thought any further...
TM
-
I love how yellow bot has an ulna and a radius.
-
In panel 2, is May talking on a cell phone, or does she have a built-in communication device in her ear that she's talking to? She has her hand up to her ear, but it doesn't look like there's anything in it.
If it's a cell phone, it seems weird that a machine is talking to another machine to talk to a human. :psyduck:
Even without a phone, it does make sense with her holding her hand up there. This way she will look to the casual observer as someone talking with someone else, rather than to herself.
Edit:
I really like how upbeat Momo is, even when dealing with May, or crap from work. She knows how to be tough when needed, but has a pleasant nature over all.
-
So given that Marigold eventually gifted Momo her chassis, Are May's relationship with Dale, Momo's with Marigold, and Marten's with Faye all equivalent now?
May and Dale are equivalent to Marten and Faye, but I believe Momo and Marigold are still under their companionship contract. In practical terms I don't see that there's much actual difference, but that contract's still there.
So is the companionship contract equivalent to a same-sex marriage?
-
I think that the Yellow Robot belongs to a fan of the Golden Age of Sci-fi
May is either growing on me or I'm going to want to drop a Acme 4000lb Anvil on her.
-
I think that, if she were human, May could be described as being a misanthrope. She clearly has a cynical nature and almost always assumes the worst motivations in people. Personally, I think that she has a crush on Dale, the first being to show her kindness and fair treatment (in her view). This means that she resents Marigold, even though she is clear-minded enough to know that Dale wants her and thus is trying to facilitate the relationship for his sake. As Momo says, she'd totally deny it, though! :-D
Interesting implications of panel 4: May is saying that Gordon chose to be an ArachnoPC. Does this mean that all AIs cchoose their starting chassis? That would certainly fit in with the established high level of AI civil rights. I would imagine that chosen career affects their choice too. May and Momo have both shown that later upgrades and changes need to be purchased commercially, just like us.
It is interesting to consider the amount of thought that Jeph has put into his world of his imagination.
Dale and Marigold have been at it for the whole day - upwards of eight hours? Is that possible?
-
They probably take breaks betwixt sessions. Making up for lost time and all.
-
Dale and Marigold have been at it for the whole day - upwards of eight hours? Is that possible?
With breaks for meals and other reasons, easily. For some. YMMV.
On another topic - Momo very much resembles the kind of person I try to be. I also think associating with May would be good for them both.
-
Dale and Marigold have been at it for the whole day - upwards of eight hours? Is that possible?
Um, yes, of course ? Easy to do for teenagers, not unheard of for twentysomethings and thirtysomethings either.
-
Interesting implications of panel 4: May is saying that Gordon chose to be an ArachnoPC.
It could be something to do with his job. His chassis would be well adapted to doing maintenance in small, confined areas with difficult access. You know... like working in crawl-spaces.
-
Interesting implications of panel 4: May is saying that Gordon chose to be an ArachnoPC.
It could be something to do with his job. His chassis would be well adapted to doing maintenance in small, confined areas with difficult access. You know... like working in crawl-spaces.
No, Gordon is a headcrab... er... head-spider. His chassis has been equipped with biometric sensors so he can perch on people's heads and record their reactions to questioning. It's how Elicott-Chatham Cybernetics assesses a human's suitability for certain AI companions. If one is an arachnophobe (like Marten) it also gives wildly inaccurate readings, which led to Marten being paired with Pintsize instead of Whalebot.
-
So given that Marigold eventually gifted Momo her chassis, Are May's relationship with Dale, Momo's with Marigold, and Marten's with Faye all equivalent now?
May and Dale are equivalent to Marten and Faye, but I believe Momo and Marigold are still under their companionship contract. In practical terms I don't see that there's much actual difference, but that contract's still there.
So is the companionship contract equivalent to a same-sex marriage?
No? A same-sex marriage is a marriage, while a companionship contract is a formal way of saying "it's my job to hang out with you and be your friend".
-
So given that Marigold eventually gifted Momo her chassis, Are May's relationship with Dale, Momo's with Marigold, and Marten's with Faye all equivalent now?
May and Dale are equivalent to Marten and Faye, but I believe Momo and Marigold are still under their companionship contract. In practical terms I don't see that there's much actual difference, but that contract's still there.
So is the companionship contract equivalent to a same-sex marriage?
No? A same-sex marriage is a marriage, while a companionship contract is a formal way of saying "it's my job to hang out with you and be your friend".
Also, Momo explains earlier in comic that the companionship contract is non-binding. She or Marigold can end it whenever they want. Here is the comic in question:
http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2284 (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2284)
-
On the oher hand the humanoid AIs use verbally communication not only with humans, but between each other too. My guess is that they want to appear as human as possible not to freak people out or to raise prejudices against AIs. And verbal communication is a center trait of human existance and behaviour. The support group could be easily held online without the AIs having to leave their houses.But they meet personally in the convention center. And I see only one explanation: to act and behave as humans do, to embrace humanity as far as possible.
A built-in communicator would not really fit into this philosophy.
One interesting point with all of this: May doesn't appear to want to be humanoid, she wants to be a fighter jet - she's not in the chassis that she wants to be in at all. (Although, it seems that she'll grudgingly take humanoid over other non-fighter jet forms.)
There are quite a lot of implications that can be read into that, especially given how Jeph has used AI storylines in the past to approach human issues.
-
One interesting point with all of this: May doesn't appear to want to be humanoid, she wants to be a fighter jet - she's not in the chassis that she wants to be in at all. (Although, it seems that she'll grudgingly take humanoid over other non-fighter jet forms.)
The general assumption is that May is borderline-psychotic and, if installed in a combat chassis of any kind would go around killing people. However, fighters tend to be the very highest-performance aircraft. I'm wondering if, in fact, her ambition and her desire is to fly. Nothing else, just to fly - To feel the supersonic air currents over her skin and look down from a sky so dark it is nearly black at the sphere of the world beneath her.
I'd just love for a strip where she tries to articulate this to someone - maybe Momo. An android can't cry but maybe May will come close as she pours out her heartbreak of being thought a criminal for pursuing her dreams.
I wonder if Elicott-Chatham are recruiting AIs to pilot their space shuttles?
-
I like the idea of being in a world where you can choose what your body is, while being a functional sentient mind... :oops:
-
On the oher hand the humanoid AIs use verbally communication not only with humans, but between each other too. My guess is that they want to appear as human as possible not to freak people out or to raise prejudices against AIs. And verbal communication is a center trait of human existance and behaviour. The support group could be easily held online without the AIs having to leave their houses.But they meet personally in the convention center. And I see only one explanation: to act and behave as humans do, to embrace humanity as far as possible.
A built-in communicator would not really fit into this philosophy.
One interesting point with all of this: May doesn't appear to want to be humanoid, she wants to be a fighter jet - she's not in the chassis that she wants to be in at all. (Although, it seems that she'll grudgingly take humanoid over other non-fighter jet forms.)
There are quite a lot of implications that can be read into that, especially given how Jeph has used AI storylines in the past to approach human issues.
I did always May's situation was a bit incongruous with the idea that AIs can be whatever they choose to be along with the idea that you have to spend thousands of dollars on a more humanoid chassis. I thought it was a more ideal existence, but as things go on it seems just as bound to capitalism as regular human lives. An AI that wants to just be a toaster can do that because there's toasters everywhere, but if one wants to be a space station* or a fighter jet, what barriers do they face? The idea that one would have to steal because they're not the machine they want to be is a bummer.
And I don't really think the jet thing was entirely a throwaway joke, based on how that first arc ended with May wanting to look at the sky. It does seem like she enjoys just having nice people to hang around with, though, so maybe her lack of fulfillment was unrelated. I read her origin as being one without physical manifestation, so perhaps her crime stemmed more from a desire to take on a physical body and she chose a poor way to do it, avoiding more traditional means.
*I assume Station was created or worked along with Dr ... Hanners' Dad and was just the most convenient and capable choice along with having desire to be that station.
-
*I assume Station was created or worked along with Dr ... Hanners' Dad and was just the most convenient and capable choice along with having desire to be that station.
Personally, I suspect that Station predates AI civil rights and was built into the space station from the start. He stays, even though he could go elsewhere if he wanted to (legally at least - in practice, there can be few other large processor complexes likely able to handle his algorithm) because he happens to enjoy working with Dr Elicott-Chatham and the others.
It reminds me of the paradox in Anne McCaffery's 'Brainship' stories. The Shell People, after a moderate term of employment, can 'buy out' their contract and work for anyone they want to. A significant minority don't want to do this because they happen to have come to like the work they do (usually the organic central processor of a starship or something fantastically complex like a space colony).
-
My headcanon for May is that she was originally created to work for NASA on something space-related, but due to her sociopathic tendencies she was rejected. (The process of AI creation is not foolproof.) She then was placed in a menial job with an unglamorous chassis. So she tried to embezzle her way out of it and into something more glamorous and didn't really think it through. Now she's in an even more menial job than she was before. Of course she hates it.
-
My headcanon for May is that she was originally created to work for NASA on something space-related, but due to her sociopathic tendencies she was rejected. (The process of AI creation is not foolproof.) She then was placed in a menial job with an unglamorous chassis. So she tried to embezzle her way out of it and into something more glamorous and didn't really think it through. Now she's in an even more menial job than she was before. Of course she hates it.
she's like a uni grad flipping burgers in a shitty mcdonalds, X1000
-
My job isn't quite as shitty, but...yeah.
-
http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2284
I miss that Emily. she was a bit out there, but she also gave off a very chill vibe. I feel that has gone away and she seems hyper and manic.
Maybe she has some sort of manic/depressive disorder? I guess she could also have been hiding her manic tendencies when around people she wasn't comfortable with.
-
I don't think Emily's ever hidden anything in her life.
-
I did always May's situation was a bit incongruous with the idea that AIs can be whatever they choose to be along with the idea that you have to spend thousands of dollars on a more humanoid chassis. I thought it was a more ideal existence, but as things go on it seems just as bound to capitalism as regular human lives. An AI that wants to just be a toaster can do that because there's toasters everywhere, but if one wants to be a space station* or a fighter jet, what barriers do they face?
Essentially, this is no different from the situation for humans. It is relatively easy to get a mundane job that is the human equivalent of being a toaster, but becoming the controlling intelligence for any aircraft is difficult and expensive*, and becoming a fighter-pilot even more so. For one thing, only national governments offer the opportunity to fly fighters, and there are a limited number of cockpits to go round.
Why does Momo have a seam at the base of her neck, where her body would not flex much at all, but none at her joints where her skin would have to stretch and flex much more? My head-canon is that the body-skins are more standardised than the head masks, since faces are so critical to recognition by humans.
*I have worked with at least two people who pretty much bankrupted themselves pursuing the dream of becoming airline pilots.
-
I'm wondering if that might actually be the 'Neckline' of her Body Skin Akima.
It's been pretty much established that her head and face are as you see them with or without the Body Skin, so i'm wondering if the actual 'Skin' is a 'Catsuit' type covering over the rest of her body and that's actually the neckline.
-
Then there is #2333, where Jeph's comment is "OH GOD WHY WOULD SHE HAVE ARTICULATION SEAMS ON HER BOOBS" Because breast missiles? (Go Ngai has a -lot- to answer for...)
I am really enjoying this week's strips BTW. We finally get a glimpse of Momo's room, where she has a cute decoration over the bed. I expect we'll get to see more later.
-
I'm wondering if that might actually be the 'Neckline' of her Body Skin Akima.
It's been pretty much established that her head and face are as you see them with or without the Body Skin, so i'm wondering if the actual 'Skin' is a 'Catsuit' type covering over the rest of her body and that's actually the neckline.
Interestingly enough, the neck line that Akima was referring to wasn't there originally, but she did have seams at her shoulders: http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2028
-
I think that Momo is right to use the word 'judgemental'. May has many negative qualities but she also has many positive ones and, bless her, does genuinely seem to want to reach out to Momo and be her friend. Momo, unfortunately, comes to the table with a set of very condescending and self-righteous prejudgements about May, not automatically justifiable ones either, which creates this wall between them.
On the flip side, when you consider the relationships with their respective humans, May is to Momo a sort of hyper-embarrassing step-sister from the wrong side of the tracks. She didn't ask to have to learn to integrate May into her life but Dale's relationship with Marigold makes it unavoidable. I think that she makes Momo (who goes perhaps to ridiculous lengths to be the 'perfect Robo Companion') nervous and hyper-aware of her own negative qualities including short temper and violent streak.
FWIW, I entirely agree with May's tactics. There are some things that should not occur in public or semi-public spaces and that is one of them. Being doused with cold water is a scientifically-validated negative reinforcement technique for dealing with these.
May has good qualities indeed! She is ambitious, candid, and not afraid to take risks.
BTW, Coffee of Doom has a Customer Appreciation hose too. Faye talks about getting one in an early strip. In #2244 she threatens Clinton with it.
-
I'm wondering if that might actually be the 'Neckline' of her Body Skin Akima.
It's been pretty much established that her head and face are as you see them with or without the Body Skin, so i'm wondering if the actual 'Skin' is a 'Catsuit' type covering over the rest of her body and that's actually the neckline.
Interestingly enough, the neck line that Akima was referring to wasn't there originally, but she did have seams at her shoulders: http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2028 (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2028)
That's the one where she had to take a shower and put her Body Skin through the Washing Machine while she did so, so that expllains her appearance in that Comic.
-
Actually, Marigold pointed out that she could put her covering in the dishwasher, but Momo expressed extreme preference for just taking a shower.
EDIT: Here. (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2027)
-
Still, there is the possibility of her having removed it so she could clean herself under the 'Skin' and hang the thing up to dry properly - I can't see her wanting to stuff it in the Dryer either.
-
Oh, of course. But judging from the strip, she seems to prefer a shower when she can get away with it :-P
-
The AIs with the most anthromorphic chassis seem to prefer to do things the 'human way', don't they? Is it a sense of social inferiority, a subconscious desire to not be different or is it just easier?
-
A way of demanding equal rights by demanding equal dignity?
-
Same deal as gay atheists wanting the right to marry in a church.
-
Same deal as gay atheists wanting the right to marry in a church.
Has this ever actually happened? All the same-sex marriages I've ever heard of were secular. To the extent any were religious, it would be in a gay-friendly church. "Churches being forced to perform same-sex marriages" is a myth.
-
What would you prefer, if you had the choice? Especially if people like you had a record of being treated like objects to be put in the dishwasher?
-
I come out of lurking to say two things.
1. I would not be surprised if Momo does not want to use the dishwasher for more sanitary reasons. I mean... what if food particles got stuck inside the suit. Its bad enough when the plasticware flips over and gets food guns stuck inside, but inside your skin? Bleh!
2. In my fan head cannon the Gold robot is a mom's companion and was before she even got married. He is also the founder of the group. It beats babysitting. Also, before anyone accuses me, I fess up to being a mom and would totally want him in my house with my kid.
Thank you. I will return to lurking for now unless someone drags me out.
-
Thank you. I will return to lurking for now unless someone drags me out.
Consider yourself, if not exactly dragged, at least tugged mildly. That was a good comment.
-
If putting on your outer layer after cleaning it is anything like using a blanket or comforter out of the dryer, I'd be all over it.
I kinda reject the idea that the more human action is the more dignified action in general. If Momo prefers to have a shower, she should go ahead by all means, but if someone wanted to do something else they shouldn't be made to feel lesser, or feel like they contributing to others having an objectifying view of AI. If Clinton's exposed joints issue is the same for other robots, Momo is the only member of her support group who could even have a shower without having to fix issues afterwards.
Assuming they have the means to make the choice, I figure choosing an body like Momo's comes from a deep appreciation of the aesthetics of human life. And, at least in Momo's case, I believe the desire to do stuff in a human way also comes from that appreciation.
-
I think that Momo can't have taken a shower while her outer covering was in the dishwasher. During the Emily's-lake-house-party arc (I don't feel like finding the specific strip), Clinton expressed jealousy that Momo was waterproof, and she said that if he used the recommended covering for his hand, then it would be waterproof too. So I think if Momo took off her covering, she wouldn't be waterproof anymore and therefore couldn't take a shower. I've also always thought the reason that Momo has fewer visible robotty joints than the other robots in humanoid chassises (is that plural correct? it looks strange) was just because her chassis is so high-end. My guess is the more you pay, the more human you can look. As for the change in location of Momo's particular joints... maybe Jeph just changed his mind? He's pretty fond of changing his mind, you guys. (Not a complaint, a statement of fact.) Her hair is also a lot shorter than it was when she first got the new chassis, and since that was a gradual change I suspect that that was Jeph changing his mind as well.
-
IIRC, "chassis" in the singular and plural are spelt the same, but generally pronounced slightly differently.
-
2. In my fan head cannon the Gold robot is a mom's companion and was before she even got married. He is also the founder of the group. It beats babysitting. Also, before anyone accuses me, I fess up to being a mom and would totally want him in my house with my kid.
For some reason, that reminds me of Robbie (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robbie_(short_story)).
-
FWIW, I think that Momo, on a certain subconscious level, wants to be human (or at least to be considered as human as any other human-looking intelligent being) and this tends to inform all of her choices.
-
I think she sees humans as decent - though not perfect - role models. She rather likes them for the way many of them have acted towards people like her.
(http://i.imgur.com/GiMVZ.jpg)
(http://questionablecontent.net/comics/2085.png)
I feel the same way.
-
I think she sees humans as decent - though not perfect - role models. She rather likes them for the way many of them have acted towards people like her.
I feel the same way.
Momo's chassis has the ability to shed tears. Either her artificial eyes are like organic ones (bathed in liquid and needing lubrication through a blink reflex) or the ability to cry is an add-on, complete with water reservoirs. Plus whatever the mechanics of her face are, they must be water-resistant. {/geek}
-
Same deal as gay atheists wanting the right to marry in a church.
Has this ever actually happened? All the same-sex marriages I've ever heard of were secular. To the extent any were religious, it would be in a gay-friendly church. "Churches being forced to perform same-sex marriages" is a myth.
Plenty of Unitarian Universalist and United Church of Christ churches have performed same-sex marriages in jurisdictions where it's legal. I believe some Episcopal churches do them too, and possibly a couple of other denominations. Not because they were forced to (nobody's actually trying to do that) but because they believe it's the right thing to do.
And the UUs will even accomodate atheist marriages.
-
Momo's chassis has the ability to shed tears. Either her artificial eyes are like organic ones (bathed in liquid and needing lubrication through a blink reflex) or the ability to cry is an add-on, complete with water reservoirs. Plus whatever the mechanics of her face are, they must be water-resistant. {/geek}
I believe that Pintsize also has shed… well, caustic fluid from his optical sensors when trying to manipulate someone.
-
From his reaction, I don't think he was expecting that to happen.
-
Same deal as gay atheists wanting the right to marry in a church.
Has this ever actually happened? All the same-sex marriages I've ever heard of were secular. To the extent any were religious, it would be in a gay-friendly church. "Churches being forced to perform same-sex marriages" is a myth.
Plenty of Unitarian Universalist and United Church of Christ churches have performed same-sex marriages in jurisdictions where it's legal. I believe some Episcopal churches do them too, and possibly a couple of other denominations. Not because they were forced to (nobody's actually trying to do that) but because they believe it's the right thing to do.
And the UUs will even accomodate atheist marriages.
The UCC, to their credit, filed suit in North Carolina because the state's gay marriage ban impinged on their freedom of religion. The end result was NC's ban on gay marriage being ruled unconstitutional.
-
Same deal as gay atheists wanting the right to marry in a church.
Has this ever actually happened? All the same-sex marriages I've ever heard of were secular. To the extent any were religious, it would be in a gay-friendly church. "Churches being forced to perform same-sex marriages" is a myth.
Plenty of Unitarian Universalist and United Church of Christ churches have performed same-sex marriages in jurisdictions where it's legal. I believe some Episcopal churches do them too, and possibly a couple of other denominations. Not because they were forced to (nobody's actually trying to do that) but because they believe it's the right thing to do.
And the UUs will even accomodate atheist marriages.
The UCC, to their credit, filed suit in North Carolina because the state's gay marriage ban impinged on their freedom of religion. The end result was NC's ban on gay marriage being ruled unconstitutional.
I've always been a fan of that legal logic. Just... take the other side's argument and turn it on its head. Beautiful.