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Comic Discussion => QUESTIONABLE CONTENT => Topic started by: BenRG on 25 Sep 2016, 10:47

Title: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 25 Sep 2016, 10:47
Guest poll today from Sullivan (https://forums.questionablecontent.net/index.php?action=profile;u=88928), who didn't know if they'd be able to make it on time to post it themselves.

Me? Definitely #5. Breaking into Juicy's apartment and making sure that she is clean at last is the sort of revenge that Hannelore would allow herself to have whilst being nearly an undetectable crime!

What about this week's strips? I'm sticking by my prediction last week. We're going to be seeing the fighting arena anew through Faye and Bubbles's suddenly-altered perspectives. It's funny how a slight change of mind can make things that, previously, you were okay with suddenly seem sinister and evil!

Possible twist - Detective Lilac is from the same production batch as Bubbles and the two of them react to each other like long-lost sisters would (in other words, fake cheer and an awkward sense of unease).
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Detachable Felix on 25 Sep 2016, 13:32
Hanners wouldn't need to pick a lock to bust Bubbles/Faye out of jail. Who needs a lockpick when you have an orbital bombardment app?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: jheartney on 25 Sep 2016, 13:35
I was always a bit surprised the fighting rink wasn't seen as sinister and evil from the get-go.

On a second look, I'm wondering if we're not reading more villainy into Detective Lilac and Corpse Witch than is there. Lilac leaned on Faye, but it seemed to be more about recruiting an (inside) eye on the place for skulduggery than about being the precursor to a big bust. Similarly, CW could be seen as just reminding Bubbles that her wonderful world could come crashing down just about anytime if bad luck strikes; it would have to be stressful to be running an illegal enterprise, and Bubbles ought to know the whole thing is a bit precarious.

 BTW, I think Lilac and CW are better candidates for ex-sorority sisters than Lilac and Bubbles; not only are they both the same color, they have a similar kind of off-putting personality. Lilac may be watching CW because she knows her personally, and knows the sort of stuff CW might pull.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 25 Sep 2016, 14:44
After last week's discussion, I think it would be fair to say that we (the forumites) have a whole spectrum of opinions on Detective Lilac.

For mine, she's just doing her job. I wouldn't even describe her personality as "off-putting". We haven't really seen it yet. We've only seen the "bad cop" persona she wears when she has to deal with the types she encounters when investigating an illegal betting ring. Maybe her real personality is the same, but maybe it's not.

As for CW, I actually think her behaviour is better described as "manipulative" than "just reminiding," but time perhaps will tell.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Akima on 25 Sep 2016, 16:08
Hanners wouldn't need to pick a lock to bust Bubbles/Faye out of jail. Who needs a lockpick when you have an orbital bombardment app?
Bond-villain parents mean you never have to say you're sorry.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 25 Sep 2016, 16:25
Hanners wouldn't need to pick a lock to bust Bubbles/Faye out of jail. Who needs a lockpick when you have an orbital bombardment app?

Then she and Bubbles could go underground and start their own 'Heroes For Hire' group

The H Team?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: brasca on 25 Sep 2016, 17:03
Guest poll today from Sullivan (https://forums.questionablecontent.net/index.php?action=profile;u=88928), who didn't know if they'd be able to make it on time to post it themselves.

Me? Definitely #5. Breaking into Juicy's apartment and making sure that she is clean at last is the sort of revenge that Hannelore would allow herself to have whilst being nearly an undetectable crime!

Undetectable?  That dog of hers is likely to be quite noisy.  And I seriously don't see how an obnoxious, but not malicious person who made the mistake of leaving behind her underwear in a washer that Hannelore didn't check before using should be the targeted for breaking and entering and vandalism.  One of the reasons I like Hannelore is that she has resources that mostf people don't have, but she prefers to live a normal life instead of getting her Mommy and Daddy to cover for her whenever she faces the same kinds of difficulties that we do. 
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: TheEvilDog on 25 Sep 2016, 19:07
Hanners wouldn't need to pick a lock to bust Bubbles/Faye out of jail. Who needs a lockpick when you have an orbital bombardment app?

Then she and Bubbles could go underground and start their own 'Heroes For Hire' group

The H Team?

"In 2016, a group of sarcastic friends were sent to prison by a civilian court for a crime they didn't really commit. This group promptly escaped via pizza deliver app from a minimum security garden to the Northampton coffee shop just down the street. Today, still forgotten by the government, they survive as drinkers of coffee and broken dreamers. If you have a problem, if no one else wants to help, and if you are unlucky enough to find them, maybe you can hang out with the H-Team."
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 25 Sep 2016, 19:14
I was always a bit surprised the fighting rink wasn't seen as sinister and evil from the get-go.
Because Punchbot is so happy!
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 25 Sep 2016, 19:24
Could Bubbles have been any more non-committal or spoken in any smaller font?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: brasca on 25 Sep 2016, 19:29
That expression Bubbles gives in the 4th panel makes me think that Bubbles doesn't know if something bad is going on, but is going to find out before she makes the next big decision. 
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 25 Sep 2016, 20:15
I don't know either, but CW may have experienced an unexplained chill, wherever she is.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: TheEvilDog on 25 Sep 2016, 20:23
Given the context of what Faye is saying, I suspect that Bubbles in panel 4 is more looking back in the general direction of CW's office. Faye is freaking out, be it the threat of being arresting or the realisation that her job is doing something far worse than she suspected.

Which makes sense to a degree. Where does the repair stock come from? Its heavy and presumably specialised machinery and presumably a license is needed for some of those materials. Given that you can't just go to a mechanic to get repairs (as evidenced by May and her problem), as well as CW's comment about taking the cost out of Faye's wages, one can then infer that CW is getting her resources from less than legal sources. Now, it could be stuff "that had fallen off the back of a truck" or mis-labelled, but given the severity of the comments from the cop and CW, and bear in mind this is just a theory, CW is getting some of the fighters to steal the materials. If they get caught, they can be cut loose and let to go down by themselves and it does explain why she's kept Bubbles at arms length, Bubbles was probably the only one who could do proper repairs on the fighters.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: DSL on 25 Sep 2016, 20:32
Hanners wouldn't need to pick a lock to bust Bubbles/Faye out of jail. Who needs a lockpick when you have an orbital bombardment app?

Or just cause all the locks to release ...
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: SomeCanadianWeirdo on 25 Sep 2016, 21:00
Which makes sense to a degree. Where does the repair stock come from? Its heavy and presumably specialised machinery and presumably a license is needed for some of those materials. Given that you can't just go to a mechanic to get repairs (as evidenced by May and her problem), as well as CW's comment about taking the cost out of Faye's wages, one can then infer that CW is getting her resources from less than legal sources.

May's problems come from having an out of production chassis, which the government won't pay to fix or replace, and not having enough income to pay for repairs. 
http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3169
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: TheEvilDog on 25 Sep 2016, 21:06
Which makes sense to a degree. Where does the repair stock come from? Its heavy and presumably specialised machinery and presumably a license is needed for some of those materials. Given that you can't just go to a mechanic to get repairs (as evidenced by May and her problem), as well as CW's comment about taking the cost out of Faye's wages, one can then infer that CW is getting her resources from less than legal sources.

May's problems come from having an out of production chassis, which the government won't pay to fix or replace, and not having enough income to pay for repairs. 
http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3169

Spoilsport
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: JohnTheWysard on 25 Sep 2016, 21:27
Bubbles doesn't hold grudges.

"Don't get mad. GET EVEN."
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 25 Sep 2016, 21:49
"I have no enemies. No living ones anyway."

Bubbles looks thoughtful but Faye doesn't get a "Hmm".

EDIT: Not that I believe it, not from what we've seen of Corpse Witch, but here's an alternate way to read her conversation with Bubbles. Dashes instead of quotation marks signal paraphrasing here.

CW: -We're under investigation-
Bubbles: -Meh. Not my problem.-
CW: -Well, actually, it is a problem for all of us.  Everyone here is guilty of something legally.-
Bubbles: -Don't threaten me.-
CW: -Of course that wasn't a threat. It's an explanation of why my anxiety would also be justified on your behalf.-

Bubbles of course, as we have seen, tends not to assume the best of others. Bubbles apparently heard
CW: -If I go down I'll make damn sure you go down with me and lose everything.-
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: sitnspin on 25 Sep 2016, 22:19
That would be easier to buy if we hadn't seen her be incredibly manipulative in the past. I've seen no evidence that CW is actually concerned about anyone other than herself.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 25 Sep 2016, 22:27
Maybe it's the lack of sleep talking, but both of these dorks seem like they need a hug.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 25 Sep 2016, 22:50
That would be easier to buy if we hadn't seen her be incredibly manipulative in the past. I've seen no evidence that CW is actually concerned about anyone other than herself.

Did it sound like I was trying to sell it?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 25 Sep 2016, 23:15
Looking at the strip as a whole today, I just think that Jeph used a small type font for Bubbles today; possibly a typo of sorts but it makes the reader feel that she's soft-spoken today.

It's pretty obvious that Faye is freaked out. Like most people who are freaked out, she's talking to get her stress off her mind and perhaps isn't paying as much attention to what Bubbles says as she should.

That expression Bubbles gives in the 4th panel makes me think that Bubbles doesn't know if something bad is going on, but is going to find out before she makes the next big decision. 

I actually think slightly different. I think that Bubbles is agreeing with Faye that she does know bad (or at least more overtly criminal) stuff is going on and may have been actively in on it at first when she was at her lowest point and had given up on the world and on herself. Yes, she'd know if someone is being abused and she'd know what to do. I wonder if she's spent the entire time since her conversation with Corpse Witch trying to decide whether she had the courage to do what she feels she ought to do. I'm wondering if Faye's words may have helped her make a decision
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: brasca on 26 Sep 2016, 00:20
Looking at the strip as a whole today, I just think that Jeph used a small type font for Bubbles today; possibly a typo of sorts but it makes the reader feel that she's soft-spoken today.

It's pretty obvious that Faye is freaked out. Like most people who are freaked out, she's talking to get her stress off her mind and perhaps isn't paying as much attention to what Bubbles says as she should.

That expression Bubbles gives in the 4th panel makes me think that Bubbles doesn't know if something bad is going on, but is going to find out before she makes the next big decision. 

I actually think slightly different. I think that Bubbles is agreeing with Faye that she does know bad (or at least more overtly criminal) stuff is going on and may have been actively in on it at first when she was at her lowest point and had given up on the world and on herself. Yes, she'd know if someone is being abused and she'd know what to do. I wonder if she's spent the entire time since her conversation with Corpse Witch trying to decide whether she had the courage to do what she feels she ought to do. I'm wondering if Faye's words may have helped her make a decision

Bubbles may have previously looked the other way on a lot of criminal acts because she was at a low point in her life and didn't care, but I doubt she'd lie to Faye about it.  It seems more likely that there were plenty of suspicious activities that she ignored or didn't investigate so she could remain ignorant, but not anymore. 
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Storel on 26 Sep 2016, 00:23
Faye may think that Bubbles has confirmed that nothing is currently going on, but I think her phrasing was careless enough that Bubbles may be dancing around the question without technically telling an untruth. Note that Faye's question is phrased hypothetically: "...if someone were being taken for a ride here, you'd know, right? And you'd know what to do, right?" Bubbles replies, "Yes," meaning "Yes, I would." But Faye never asked "Is someone being taken for a ride?", though she may think she did, so Bubbles doesn't have to answer that question.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: oeoek on 26 Sep 2016, 01:16
Might detective Lilac or whoever sent her be worried Bubbles is the one being exploited? I would say Bubbles is the most likely candidate for such. Most of the fighting bots we have seen seemed happy enough getting banged up and getting restored. But a ptsd soldier who has gone underground in fighting and betting environment? The film 'The Deer Hunter' leaps to mind.
We know this is not happening here, Bubbles is not fighting (or playing any kind of roulette), but the officials and caretakers left behind don't know that.
The reality -Bubbles in danger of being exploited but not actually being exploited- might even cast a slightly warmer light on CW. Even nasty, manipulative people might do something good in their nasty way. It leaves those benefiting with rather mixed up feelings.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: JimC on 26 Sep 2016, 06:27
Looking at the strip as a whole today, I just think that Jeph used a small type font for Bubbles today;
I'm not convinced the text for Bubbles in 3316 is smaller than in say 3279. I just did a compare and at most its one pixel different for lower case letters, so arguably in the aliasing effects range. I would have thought if extra quiet speech was being hinted at then text in frame 1 would be larger than the others.

What constitutes exploitation for AIs do we think? I've seen it stated (http://www.workplacefairness.org/sc/undocumentedworkers.php) that
Quote
...the most vulnerable and exploited workers in our country, as frequent victims of unpaid wages, dangerous conditions and uncompensated workplace injuries, discrimination, and other labor law violations. Workers who attempt to remedy the abuse routinely face physical and immigration-related threats and retaliation.
If that's a reasonable summary how does it apply? Unsafe working conditions? That's an interesting one. CW made much play of protected cores, and a comparison with the safety of working conditions of professional boxers could be made. Unpaid wages? Uncompensated workplace injuries? We don't know. If the cost of repairs is being deducted from wages that would certainly be valid, but if Faye and Bubbles re doing all repairs without any cost to the fighters that would seem OK. Immigratiopn related threats? CW has certainly been skirting around something analogous to that one in the exchange with Bubbles.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 26 Sep 2016, 06:33
To me, 'exploitation' in this case means using manipulative or coercive means to persuade a Sythetic to do something that they would not normally wish to do or in order to provide work under illegal conditions (for example, uninsured) or for illegal levels of compensation (sub-minimum wage or 'tips only').
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Oenone on 26 Sep 2016, 07:19
I wonder how life insurance, health insurance, and workers comp come into play. Is she using the repairs to keep her fighters indebted to her? Like, you can only fight if you're repairs are certified by Bubbles, and seeing Bubbles costs $$$$$?

I'm thinking about how in Vera Drake, Vera didn't know her friend was charging women for her services as an abortion provider; she thought she was doing it for free. It turned out both Vera AND her clients were being exploited financially.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 26 Sep 2016, 09:46
>perhaps isn't paying as much attention to what Bubbles says as she should.

Bubbles is the sort worthy of close attention for more than one reason.

Maybe Faye didn't ask point blank because she doesn't want to know.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 26 Sep 2016, 13:49
I think, for various reasons, Bubbles actually trusts Faye far more than she does CW at this stage.  I hope that Faye does actually realise this and doesn't do anything to damage that trust as she has earned it from Bubbles.

It would be sad to see this friendship go down the toilet as her friendship with Dora very nearly did with her previous alcoholism.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 26 Sep 2016, 15:08
Especially since Bubbles has to work so hard to trust anyone.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Perfectly Reasonable on 26 Sep 2016, 17:36
That wrench Bubbles is holding -- is that something you'd need for work on an AI chassis? For a tune-up on a locomotive, maybe. But it would make one helluva club...
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Thrudd on 26 Sep 2016, 19:13
What is it and this fascination with burritos anyways.  :psyduck:
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 26 Sep 2016, 19:42
They are delicious.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Detachable Felix on 26 Sep 2016, 20:10
I agree with Tova, burritos are pretty great.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: brasca on 26 Sep 2016, 20:17
Speaking in code is fun when you have a company or boss who doesn't want you saying stuff on social media.  It's like being in a Scorcese film.   
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: TheEvilDog on 26 Sep 2016, 20:17
That wrench Bubbles is holding -- is that something you'd need for work on an AI chassis? For a tune-up on a locomotive, maybe. But it would make one helluva club...

Probably more for the equipment they use to repair the chassis. Which makes sense; you can't repair a chassis if the equipment itself is breaking down.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Near Lurker on 26 Sep 2016, 20:38
Are the peaches ripe yet?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Neko_Ali on 26 Sep 2016, 21:06
Are the peaches ripe yet?

No, but after a few hours heavy work in that hoodie I'm pretty sure she will be.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: TheEvilDog on 26 Sep 2016, 21:11
Are the peaches ripe yet?

The spotted cuckoo bird is flying backwards... and it is a cold day for pontooning.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 26 Sep 2016, 21:18
Bubbles is a mensch.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 26 Sep 2016, 21:29
Bubbles is a mensch.

I'm going to suspect all short posts to be code phrases now.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Akima on 26 Sep 2016, 21:33
Bubbles is a mensch.
Indeed, and demonstrates her OQ (http://www.defence.gov.au/Adfa/Training/OfficerQualities.asp)s, but then she probably has everything from Sun Tzu onwards in her internal database.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 26 Sep 2016, 22:31
Bubbles is a mensch.

I'm going to suspect all short posts to be code phrases now.

"The code phrases are short".

If you were Bubbles, would you really bet that CW did not have the shop bugged?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Morituri on 26 Sep 2016, 22:54
While we're on the topic of code phrases, I have some good advice for you:

Never, EVER, under any circumstances, read a list of random numbers aloud on a radio channel.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 26 Sep 2016, 22:55
Walpole is blowing bubbles in the South Sea.

Tiberus has deposed Octavian.

Shakka's mother has died. I repeat. Shakka's mother has died. Clear the bull's horns.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Neko_Ali on 26 Sep 2016, 23:08
Shaka, when the walls fell.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 26 Sep 2016, 23:23
>OQs

We have no idea what Bubbles's rank was, do we?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 26 Sep 2016, 23:26
Bubbles can be hard to read sometimes. That said, I'm pretty sure that her primary concern right now is to set things up so that Faye is kept out of this mess. Ideally by making her leave; if she can't do that by distracting her so she's looking in the wrong direction to see anything troubling.

That said, I can't shake the feeling that she's enjoying playing with Faye's head by way of all the secret agent stuff.

I wonder if Bubbles noticed that Faye's primary reason for not walking away was her? :wink:
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: MrNumbers on 26 Sep 2016, 23:34
I just want to make a point to say; Jeph's done a lot to turn Faye around in the last year, hasn't he?

Around this time last year -- almost exactly a year ago, actually -- you had this comic which I'll put behind a spoiler tag so this post doesn't take up too much forum real estate:

(click to show/hide)

And after that, the shift from the Pugnacious Peach being kind of just a generally abusive, shitty person who took her self-inflicted problems out on other people to again becoming a character that again started showing her redeeming traits. Loyalty and kindness. And it's happened so slowly and naturally that it's less of a heel-face turn and more of a heel-face continental drift.

Now, I'm not saying she was irredeemable or entirely unlikable or unrelatable in the 2900 strips. She wasn't. Actually, a bigger problem was that she was completely relatable, but not to the kind of people you'd want to relate her too -- to the people in our lives we didn't want to keep around or didn't want to continue to be. Think how much easier it's gotten to like her after the time skip. Now that she's out of the coffee shop.

So yeah. That's a thing that happened this year.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 27 Sep 2016, 02:19
Is it just me or does Bubbles look more like someone in armor in these last few strips? No one else has brought it up, so I figured I'd ask.

[It's 4:18AM, why am I still awake?]
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Welu on 27 Sep 2016, 05:00
Oh, the forests of Timber sure has changed!
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Case on 27 Sep 2016, 05:13
Shaka, when the walls fell.

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/darmok_and_jalad.png

Wiiiiiiiiiiiink!

(... so much for my self-imposed forum-hiatus)
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: hedgie on 27 Sep 2016, 06:49
Is it just me or does Bubbles look more like someone in armor in these last few strips? No one else has brought it up, so I figured I'd ask.

[It's 4:18AM, why am I still awake?]

She is.  She never takes it off.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 27 Sep 2016, 11:19
Maybe she looks more armored than usual because we're "hearing" her being reserved even by Bubbles standards, so we know that she's running with warp power to the shields.

I'm certain Bubbles noticed that Faye is staying out of loyalty. Betcha Bubbles still sees the world as divided into "in my unit" and "not in my unit".
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: JimC on 27 Sep 2016, 11:23
Thing is if there's no dirt there's no problem. If there is exploitation and other illegal and immoral stuff going on, then Faye (who took on the job only after being assured there wasn't) and Bubbles have significant ethical problems to deal with as well as interactions with the law.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 27 Sep 2016, 14:21
It would be interesting to actually find out whether she was a grunt, an NCO or an actual Offiver.

I like the fact that Faye is staying loyal to Bubbles.  I don't think she's had a lot of that since she got out of the Service.



Oh

John has a long mustache
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Perfectly Reasonable on 27 Sep 2016, 18:02
"It takes at least twenty minutes to properly appreciate a burrito"

No, really!
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Thrudd on 27 Sep 2016, 18:17
The jam is moldy in the kitchen and the rolling rabbit gathers no moss
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Storel on 27 Sep 2016, 19:01
While we're on the topic of code phrases, I have some good advice for you:

Never, EVER, under any circumstances, read a list of random numbers aloud on a radio channel.

Okay, I'll bite. What happens if you do?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 27 Sep 2016, 19:41
I assume he's referring to numbers stations (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-24910397).
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 27 Sep 2016, 20:35
Elliott is cute, and this is a side of Brun I don't remember seeing before.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 27 Sep 2016, 21:37
And we get our first glimpse of Brun's headcanon.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: brasca on 27 Sep 2016, 21:49
I know this is supposed to be an anime fantasy, but it reminds me of Ralphie imagining that his Christmas essay was the best thing ever written. 
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 27 Sep 2016, 21:54
I assume he's referring to numbers stations (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-24910397).
4 8 15 16 23 42
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 27 Sep 2016, 23:08
Well, we now know what Brun's inner world is like. I wonder what's she's applying for? Barkeep at a new Trump Tower (you know, one of those places where everything is gold-plated, even the beer taps)? From Renee's reaction, I'm thinking that, as a resumé, it's somewhat... padded.

I can tell that Jeph really enjoyed drawing the workings of Brun's inner reality. :lol:
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: bhtooefr on 27 Sep 2016, 23:10
She's applying for unemployment.

This determines how much she'll get: http://www.mass.gov/lwd/unemployment-insur/basic-ui-information/initial-claim/how-your-benefits-are-determined/calculating-benefit-rate.html
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 27 Sep 2016, 23:14
Something tells me that filling out a standardised DHHS form would be something for which Brun would have a natural aptitude. After all, if there is one thing she's good at, it is understanding and communicating things that are true as opposed to not true.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Martin on 27 Sep 2016, 23:35
Nichijou-Reverence?  :-o
Awesome!

(http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/nichijou/images/a/ae/Fey_kingdom_soldiers.png/revision/latest?cb=20160630141835)
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 27 Sep 2016, 23:42
I assume he's referring to numbers stations (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-24910397).
4 8 15 16 23 42

Bingo!
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Jakk Frost on 28 Sep 2016, 02:28
Y'know, they say; "You have to set goals and then strive to reach them, If you want to get ahead in life."

I say (and apparently Brun does too); "I have to set ridiculously unobtainable goals just to be able to get out of bed every morning to get to the mediocre in life."
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Sullivan on 28 Sep 2016, 02:57
The jam is moldy in the kitchen and the rolling rabbit gathers no moss

Prepare for Operation Plan Code Two One Four.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Zebediah on 28 Sep 2016, 03:33
"No! Not Two-One-Four!"
"Are you questioning me?"
"Um - no ma'am."
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Akima on 28 Sep 2016, 03:35
We have no idea what Bubbles's rank was, do we?
None at all. I think she's got the NCO vibe about her, and an obvious keen tactical sense, but there might be issues with placing human soldiers under the command of an AI. Regardless of their talents, I imagine units of AIs would be placed under human officers, much as the officers of the 54th Massachusetts (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/54th_Massachusetts_Infantry_Regiment) all "had" to be white.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Neko_Ali on 28 Sep 2016, 06:18
Something tells me that filling out a standardised DHHS form would be something for which Brun would have a natural aptitude. After all, if there is one thing she's good at, it is understanding and communicating things that are true as opposed to not true.

Eh, the trouble is that Brun takes a brutally honest stance on things she does. It's likely that what she put down is 100% true to the best of her knowledge. That's not how the government operates, especially social services. Since they are chronically and tragically underfunded, trying to get help is more like a dance where your partner is doing their best to make sure you fall on your face without being to obvious about it. It's dancing around with enough truth so they can't call you on facts and deny your claim while at the same time jumping through the hoops and avoiding pitfalls they throw in your way to reduce your assistance, deny it completely or get you so frustrated you give up.

I don't blame the workers at these places most of the time. It's a difficult, stressful job being caught between helping people who are in desperate circumstances and your employers who want to keep slashing  your budget. It's just that the system is stacked against you. And I've found being 100% honest tends to make it easy to get disqualified from personal experience.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 28 Sep 2016, 13:03
Is it just me or does Bubbles look more like someone in armor in these last few strips? No one else has brought it up, so I figured I'd ask.

[It's 4:18AM, why am I still awake?]

She is.  She never takes it off.
Right, I know that. I just meant in regards to proportions of her head compared to her body, we can tell that a bit easier now visually. Especially in that panel where we see her with her torso fully facing toward the viewer in the lower left panel of #3316 Morning Calisthenics (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3316). As well as the upper right  panel of the same page, and the first two panels of the next page.

Her proportions have been changing a little over time (and there's nothing wrong with that). Take a look at 3059 Welcome Giant Friend (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3059), #3174 She Has Many Talents (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3174), and  #3247 Game of Thrones (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3247) to see how she's changed over time.

edited to add some comparison pages.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 28 Sep 2016, 14:40
Ohm manipadme Brunnnnnnnnnnn  :-D


Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Perfectly Reasonable on 28 Sep 2016, 16:41
ALL MY WOODEN CUBES
.
.
.
and the forum would not accept my password. Which I had NOT forgotten. It assumed I had, and kept offering to retrieve it for me. So I biffed it soundly about the ears restarted Linux and then it behaved.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Pogopotamus on 28 Sep 2016, 20:20
Re Brun there are (maybe) two guys interested in her now. She seems politely, passively OK with getting attention, but doesn't seem all that interested in actively engaging either ones interest. Is this really how functional but autistic people are with the opposite sex?     
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Storel on 28 Sep 2016, 21:09
Interestingly, Bubbles's hair has been looking increasingly natural over time. Originally it looked more like a helmet than anything else. Now, it looks quite a bit like real hair. I guess she's getting better at styling it.

Although I have to say, if her hair were green her current style would remind me strongly of the Little Green Sprout (https://www.popscreen.com/prod/MTIzMTc0OTMy/JOLLY-GREEN-GIANT-LITTLE-SPROUT-ANIMATION-CEL+-RARE-eBay) (the Jolly Green Giant's (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Giant) little sidekick).
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 28 Sep 2016, 22:42
Is it just me or have Bubbles's eyes gotten more expressive over time?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: brasca on 28 Sep 2016, 22:44
In theory Renee and Claire would get along, but since the former is pushing Elliot towards and the latter is pushing Clinton towards the same girl there is bound to be conflict.   
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 28 Sep 2016, 22:45
They seem to be a matched pair.

The matchmaker being Renee by the look of it.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 28 Sep 2016, 23:19
Poor Brun! This whole thing about casual and targeted social interaction just passes her by, doesn't it? Meanwhile, the real joke in this strip is Eliot, a 7-foot, 250lb bouncer, is perceptibly terrified to be in this situation. The secondary joke is that Brun is completely ignorant of this.

Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure that Renee is getting an illegal level of enjoyment from Eliot's demonstration of 'flop-sweat'.

Y'know, I hesitate to think of Brun's puzzled reaction if someone were to actually ask her out on a date! :-P
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 29 Sep 2016, 03:41
Re Brun there are (maybe) two guys interested in her now. She seems politely, passively OK with getting attention, but doesn't seem all that interested in actively engaging either ones interest. Is this really how functional but autistic people are with the opposite sex?     

It depends on the person (both the person with autism and the person showing interest in them).

Autism is more of a case-by-case sort of thing. Sometimes it's even a day-by-day thing, as we have both good days and bad days (where the hallmarks are much more pronounced).

The only 'broad strokes' are that there will probably be some level of social awkwardness in some form or another.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: gopher on 29 Sep 2016, 05:12
I've tried, but U just don't care about the interaction of several tertiary characters.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: pwhodges on 29 Sep 2016, 05:19
When we see this much of them, are they tertiary characters any longer?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Neko_Ali on 29 Sep 2016, 05:59
Well, as I've said before, Brun seems to go for the most direct and literal interpretation of a situation and ignores others. Or doesn't notice them. From the first time we met her, she she seemed to not understand or be upset that someone came into her bar and only wanted water. Or here where she had to have it pointed out that Elliot was just trying to make excuses to get to know her better. Which makes the fact that she picked up on why Clinton was upset when they met all the more interesting. Apparently she saw right through the junk he was  clouding the issue with right away, and true to form pointed out the obvious to her.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 29 Sep 2016, 07:04
Meanwhile, the real joke in this strip is Eliot, a 7-foot, 250lb bouncer, is perceptibly terrified to be in this situation.
He's a full foot-and-a-half taller than me and he only weighs 20 lbs more!?
I know I'm stocky and barrel-chested (and ~20 lbs overweight), but wow! (ϾôϿ)

I wonder if we have the same lung capacity?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 29 Sep 2016, 14:32
When we see this much of them, are they tertiary characters any longer?

My own guess is is that Jeph is diversifying his Character Base in order to tell different kinds of stories using different types of characters.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 29 Sep 2016, 15:15
QC has had an ensemble cast for a very long time now. It's been discussed in these very forums many times. Is this really so hard to come to terms with?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 29 Sep 2016, 15:30
Not really.  I think the thing that some are having 'Issues' with is the fact that Jeph is moving what were once essentially background characters into the foreground and lessening the interaction of the 'Original Core Cast Characters'.

Remember folks, we have had shifts before, the departure of Raven, Amir, Nat, Sara and Angus.  The falling into the background of characters such as Steve, Sven, Wil, Penelope and others as Jeph moves the stories forward or feels the need to change/chop or delete characters that have, to a certain extent, served their purpose or he feels need to go to make room for newer characters and storylines.

Marten and Faye are, to a large extent, the Main Core Characters of the Comic, along with Dora, Pintsize and others who have come into the picture while others have moved back into secondary roles but are seen as part of the Core of the Comic as time moves on.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Pogopotamus on 29 Sep 2016, 19:17
Meanwhile, the real joke in this strip is Eliot, a 7-foot, 250lb bouncer, is perceptibly terrified to be in this situation.
He's a full foot-and-a-half taller than me and he only weighs 20 lbs more!?
I know I'm stocky and barrel-chested (and ~20 lbs overweight), but wow! (ϾôϿ)

I wonder if we have the same lung capacity?

People who have no reference point for large people often throw would absurd hypothetical height weight stats. Given his build if he was 250 lbs he'd be about 6'2" to 6'4". If he was 7 feet tall with that build he'd be about the same as Shaq who is 350lbs.  Based on his relative height vs the other characters he's about 6'5" or 6'6" and 250 - 265 lbs. Essentially the size of a medium sized linebacker.     
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 29 Sep 2016, 19:49
I don't think seven feet is unreasonable, considering he was a full head above the guy who punched Clinton, and that guy was already a bit taller than Emily who probably pushes six feet herself. I'd say probably about 6'10" and 295/208cm and 134kg.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 29 Sep 2016, 19:50
Ugh. I can relate to Brun. I've been in that situation with something much more emotionally charged. It's a huge cognitive effort to keep a memory from escaping a locked room.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: TheEvilDog on 29 Sep 2016, 20:07
Ugh. I can relate to Brun. I've been in that situation with something much more emotionally charged. It's a huge cognitive effort to keep a memory from escaping a locked room.

Eh, I just try to forget about it. Usually works.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Carl-E on 29 Sep 2016, 20:35
"... I hate those". 


Me too, Brun.  Meeee tooooooooo....
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Clubman8 on 29 Sep 2016, 20:37
Did the font of the speech bubbles change in the latest comic or is my sight going?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 29 Sep 2016, 20:50
It did! I don't care for it.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Storel on 29 Sep 2016, 21:30
Yes, it looks like a different font. It's okay -- seems a little more readable to me. But I'm overdue for bifocals and have a small screen, so your mileage may vary.

Edit: Just noticed Jeph's comment under the latest strip: "Renee tries, really she does." Yes, she's very trying.  :claireface:
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: TheEvilDog on 29 Sep 2016, 21:54
Edit: Just noticed Jeph's comment under the latest strip: "Renee tries, really she does." Yes, she's very trying.  :claireface:

She's certainly trying my patience! Doohohohoho!

And apparently I have turned into Waldorf and Statler
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: brasca on 29 Sep 2016, 22:33
Yes, it looks like a different font. It's okay -- seems a little more readable to me. But I'm overdue for bifocals and have a small screen, so your mileage may vary.

Edit: Just noticed Jeph's comment under the latest strip: "Renee tries, really she does." Yes, she's very trying.  :claireface:

To be fair this is one of the times where she's actually not doing anything irritating. 

Did the font of the speech bubbles change in the latest comic or is my sight going?

I noticed that too, but as long as they keep AI speech bubbles in squares instead of bubbles I'm fine with it. 
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 29 Sep 2016, 23:25
Another of the mysteries of the world that Brun doesn't really 'get'. Society insists that telling untruth is wrong. Then it suddenly informs you that this rule is conditional and that you should actually act in a way that is effectively a lie if the truth will 'hurt' someone.

I do like how Jeph is characterising Brun. In many ways, she's trying to feel her way through an entirely unfamiliar environment and set of experiences. I also wonder if she has learned to distrust her impressions of other people unless she can get independent verification just because she has such problems reading body language and other non-verbal cues (and sometimes, even verbal statements can be deceptive for her).

Finally, is Renee's last sentence in panel 4 a typo or sarcasm? Shouldn't it be: "I'm really not a good friend."?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: anahata on 29 Sep 2016, 23:40
Finally, is Renee's last sentence in panel 4 a typo or sarcasm? Shouldn't it be: "I'm really not a good friend."?

I read it as sarcasm, and perhaps ill advised with Brun who tends to take things literally.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: oddtail on 30 Sep 2016, 01:53
I'm struggling to understand Brun's thought process in assuming that a big person would be afraid of fewer things.

In my experience, most things in the modern Western world that one might be afraid of have diddly-squat to do with how strong or physically capable one is. Heck, that even includes many physical threats. And why would someone bigger be less afraid of Brun specifically? Does she think of herself as a source of immediate physical danger?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 30 Sep 2016, 02:12
I'm struggling to understand Brun's thought process in assuming that a big person would be afraid of fewer things.

Brun's personal reality seems to have been founded entirely on binging on animé. Bearing this in mind, the whole idea of a bear-like giant of a man being nervous and anything but loudly bluff and outgoing would seem like a breach of the laws of characterisation to her. It is possible that one of the biggest journeys Brun has to make is to realise that you cannot learn everything you need to know about the world from the TV.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: jheartney on 30 Sep 2016, 02:41
Does she think of herself as a source of immediate physical danger?
Only when holding a harpoon.

Brun's best course would be to let Elliot know that Renee spilled the beans, so she knows he's a bouncer, and she's fine with it. No point attempting some hamfisted subterfuge.

Of course that would make for a less fun comic.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: JimC on 30 Sep 2016, 02:54
I'm struggling to understand Brun's thought process in assuming that a big person would be afraid of fewer things.
Brun works in the bar trade. She'll know that an impressive physical presence can defuse a lot of problems. Its by no means unknown for bars and shops to have a raised floor on the staff side just so the staff look a bit bigger than they are (there are other good reasons too I hasten to add). Also likely, working in the trade, she'll have a far less negative view of bouncers than the general public.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: hedgie on 30 Sep 2016, 03:23
I think that there is only one bouncer that I have met in my entire life that I have hated, and that had nothing to do with his occupation and more that the guy is just a prick.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Milayna on 30 Sep 2016, 03:52
I'm struggling to understand Brun's thought process in assuming that a big person would be afraid of fewer things.

Brun's personal reality seems to have been founded entirely on binging on animé. Bearing this in mind, the whole idea of a bear-like giant of a man being nervous and anything but loudly bluff and outgoing would seem like a breach of the laws of characterisation to her. It is possible that one of the biggest journeys Brun has to make is to realise that you cannot learn everything you need to know about the world from the TV.
You sound like you're suggesting something ridiculous like that anime isn't real.

References aside, relationships, especially, are portrayed...literally everywhere. Practically every damn story, no matter the medium (and especially in anime and videogames) is a (hetero) love story wrapped up in some plot like overthrowing the empire or something. You can go whole days, hell even weeks without seeing anyone pass the bechdel test irl. Given the prevalence and popularity of "information" about the subject it would make sense to use it as a baseline for understanding - even if there's individual variance in specifics in real life, people would at least recognize and respond to the tropes, and it could go from there. It isn't illogical to think that media that is supposed to be a reflection on life could be useful as a guide to life.

Of course yeah it really doesn't work that way, it turns out that fantasy relationships are...well fantasy, and the way it ACTUALLY works is something else entirely unrelated. (I don't know what that is, though. People are weird and the things they do are often nonsense. Elliot's purpose last comic completely missed me, too, until Renee explained it.)
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: swapna on 30 Sep 2016, 09:36
I'm struggling to understand Brun's thought process in assuming that a big person would be afraid of fewer things.
Brun works in the bar trade. She'll know that an impressive physical presence can defuse a lot of problems. Its by no means unknown for bars and shops to have a raised floor on the staff side just so the staff look a bit bigger than they are (there are other good reasons too I hasten to add). Also likely, working in the trade, she'll have a far less negative view of bouncers than the general public.

Bouncers have a negative reputation? That is news to me, to be honest. I've mostly ever seen them calm situations down by exchanging a few words or just having a impressive presence. It's not as if they're above the law or have special rights such as cops; they're just civilians and have the same rights as the rest, so they can only act violent in self-defence or in the defence of others. Having training means that they'll be aware not to use excessive force, and if they do - they're in even deeper trouble than someone who didn't.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: BenRG on 30 Sep 2016, 10:08
A lot depends on both the area and the reputability of the establishment. Some rougher clubs in rougher areas have 'bouncers' that are just this side of being thugs with the assumed license to dish out violence to anyone they feel like excluding or who dare to talk back to them. This usually works on a dishonour system where the victim is unlikely to go to the police because simply going to the bar in question would make it more likely that they would be the ones arrested. Besides which, the other door staff will back up each other's stories, no matter how implausible.

Licensing and strict laws on use force in self-defence has limited that problem in more recent years but there are still 'bouncers' who are also UFC fighters and simply seem to enjoy having an excuse to inflict injury on others and thus look for and take every means to provoke trouble.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 30 Sep 2016, 10:08
I'd think it's because people don't get their impressions of bouncers from experience, but rather from movies/shows where at best they're taking bribes but often beating up patrons at the slightest provocation.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Thrudd on 30 Sep 2016, 10:17
Did the font of the speech bubbles change in the latest comic or is my sight going?
Yes - but the followup question to ask now is "where is it going?".
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Neko_Ali on 30 Sep 2016, 10:18
Well, generally bouncers are seen as large, dour, intimidating individuals who are known to get physical and violent as part of their job. Some of that is true of course. Bars and clubs to tend to hire large and imposing people, who often do put on a serious look when on the job. But the idea behind all of that is to not get into fights or have to physically throw someone out. Less of a bad reputation and more of a scary one. It doesn't help that media often shows bouncers as big tough thugs in shows and movies.

Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 30 Sep 2016, 11:03
Meanwhile, the real joke in this strip is Eliot, a 7-foot, 250lb bouncer, is perceptibly terrified to be in this situation.
He's a full foot-and-a-half taller than me and he only weighs 20 lbs more!?
I know I'm stocky and barrel-chested (and ~20 lbs overweight), but wow! (ϾôϿ)

I wonder if we have the same lung capacity?

People who have no reference point for large people often throw would absurd hypothetical height weight stats. Given his build if he was 250 lbs he'd be about 6'2" to 6'4". If he was 7 feet tall with that build he'd be about the same as Shaq who is 350lbs.  Based on his relative height vs the other characters he's about 6'5" or 6'6" and 250 - 265 lbs. Essentially the size of a medium sized linebacker.   

Then the answer to my lung capacity question is either 'yes' or 'probably'.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Gyrre on 30 Sep 2016, 11:14
I'm struggling to understand Brun's thought process in assuming that a big person would be afraid of fewer things.

In my experience, most things in the modern Western world that one might be afraid of have diddly-squat to do with how strong or physically capable one is. Heck, that even includes many physical threats. And why would someone bigger be less afraid of Brun specifically? Does she think of herself as a source of immediate physical danger?

Part of it could be as BenRg suggested with the anime thing. But another part of it could be how she perceives her own self.

Of course, that could just be my own personal bias. I still occasionally have to remind myself that I'm considered 'physically imposing' by some people. (Which is just really weird to me since I've always just been 'short' in my head).
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: hedgie on 30 Sep 2016, 12:52
Well, generally bouncers are seen as large, dour, intimidating individuals who are known to get physical and violent as part of their job. Some of that is true of course. Bars and clubs to tend to hire large and imposing people, who often do put on a serious look when on the job. But the idea behind all of that is to not get into fights or have to physically throw someone out. Less of a bad reputation and more of a scary one. It doesn't help that media often shows bouncers as big tough thugs in shows and movies.

I tend to get mistaken for security at my local 'cos I'm big, and my entire wardrobe is black.  The scariest bouncer I have ever met, though was tiny… like weighed 98 lbs tiny.  He also pointed out that everyone has knees and insteps. 
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 30 Sep 2016, 15:07
Being underestimated probably doesn't hurt.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 30 Sep 2016, 15:41
Sometimes Renee, there is such a thing as too much exposition.

Especially for Brun.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 30 Sep 2016, 19:21
Quote from: Bubbles
assent to her demands

The moment Faye assents to a demand such as wearing a wire or snapping photos or copying documents, from that moment on she is Corpse Witch's enemy, and the enemy of the shadowy "big fish".

Bubbles will protect Faye to her last breath (don't take that too literally). Bubbles can't be everywhere.

Bubbles may have given The Pugnacious Peach lethally poor advice.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: jheartney on 01 Oct 2016, 15:10
Quote from: Bubbles
assent to her demands
Bubbles may have given The Pugnacious Peach lethally poor advice.

If a moment comes that Faye has to choose between wearing a wire and immediate criminal charges, she is utterly screwed. (Bubbles realizes this.) Faye's only hope to avoid prison is an immunity deal in exchange for wearing the wire. And however badass Corpse Witch is, she's a tiny flea compared to the U.S. government. So if I had to pick one or the other to make into an enemy, it'd be Corpse Witch in a heartbeat.

Bubbles' advice was sound. Especially the part about "Quit now and walk away from the whole problem." Barring that, wear the wire if Lilac comes back with credible charges.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Clubman8 on 01 Oct 2016, 15:45
Did the font of the speech bubbles change in the latest comic or is my sight going?
Yes - but the followup question to ask now is "where is it going?".
Off into the wild blue yonder, never to return again...lest I get laser eye surgery someday.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 01 Oct 2016, 17:15
Quote from: Bubbles
assent to her demands
Bubbles may have given The Pugnacious Peach lethally poor advice.

If a moment comes that Faye has to choose between wearing a wire and immediate criminal charges, she is utterly screwed. (Bubbles realizes this.) Faye's only hope to avoid prison is an immunity deal in exchange for wearing the wire. And however badass Corpse Witch is, she's a tiny flea compared to the U.S. government. So if I had to pick one or the other to make into an enemy, it'd be Corpse Witch in a heartbeat.

Bubbles' advice was sound. Especially the part about "Quit now and walk away from the whole problem." Barring that, wear the wire if Lilac comes back with credible charges.

Yes, I think Bubbles deserves a bit more credit than she was given there.

It's not for nothing that they developed a code phrase. If Faye is made to wear a wire, Bubbles will be the first to know.

I also think that Lilac should be given enough credit to recognise that if she does this, it will be done without the knowledge of any of CW's cronies. I don't think they are aware of the first meeting yet. Unless Lilac is an amateur.

Bubbles' strategy does involve risk, but short of walking away, no low-risk strategy exists.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Is it cold in here? on 01 Oct 2016, 19:25
I wonder what Bubbles has for a strategic plan.

Hmm.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Storel on 01 Oct 2016, 22:26
What does it say about me that I've never been a regular in any bar that had -- or needed -- a bouncer?

(Other than that I haven't been a regular in very many bars?)
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Tova on 02 Oct 2016, 00:03
I dunno - that they are unobtrusive in the bars you went to, maybe. :)
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Mr. Skawronska on 02 Oct 2016, 00:49
What does it say about me that I've never been a regular in any bar that had -- or needed -- a bouncer?

(Other than that I haven't been a regular in very many bars?)

This is unlikely.  At many upscale bars (not "frat boy" type bars or dives), the bouncer is usually a "host" and somewhat well dressed.  Or an "usher".  "Bouncer" is really a low class term in certain security circles.

If you were in a place that "didn't have" a bouncer, chances are you just didn't notice them or recognize them for what they were.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Neko_Ali on 02 Oct 2016, 07:24
Or you have been to very small bars, or bars in larger establishments like hotels. Most of my personal experience with bouncers has been at clubs, checking IDs and watching out for trouble makers. When I do go to bars it tends to be smaller ones like the one Brun worked at, or it's in a restaurant or something. They tend not to have dedicated security people. Either the bartender/owner handles it if need be, or it's part of whatever business they are located inside of.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Storel on 02 Oct 2016, 15:34
The only bar at which I was ever really a regular was an open-mic piano bar. Any customer who wanted to sing could ask the piano player for a turn and sing a couple of songs -- anything the piano player knew how to play, and she knew a lot of songs. I went there frequently enough for long enough that I'm positive they didn't have a bouncer, security guard, host or whatever. I don't remember ever even seeing a fight there. Perhaps a bar like that attracts a different sort of clientele than most bars.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: JimC on 03 Oct 2016, 00:41
It depends where you are I think. Here in the UK I think by and large you only have security staff where there's some kind of restricted entry at the door. Which is, admittedly, all 'later than pub hours' clubs as well as anything that's ticketed or has membership. Otherwise IME there's only going to be security staff if the clientele is particularly problematic.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Undrneath on 03 Oct 2016, 04:24
In my experience bouncers are there more to control non-regular patrons to protect the regulars.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Akima on 03 Oct 2016, 05:02
A lot depends on both the area and the reputability of the establishment. Some rougher clubs in rougher areas have 'bouncers' that are just this side of being thugs with the assumed license to dish out violence to anyone they feel like excluding or who dare to talk back to them.
This, but personally I would avoid any establishment that had obvious bouncers, on the principle that they would not be there if they were not needed.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: themacnut on 03 Oct 2016, 08:54
If a moment comes that Faye has to choose between wearing a wire and immediate criminal charges, she is utterly screwed. (Bubbles realizes this.) Faye's only hope to avoid prison is an immunity deal in exchange for wearing the wire. And however badass Corpse Witch is, she's a tiny flea compared to the U.S. government. So if I had to pick one or the other to make into an enemy, it'd be Corpse Witch in a heartbeat.

On the other hand, the US Government is unlikely to execute Faye over whatever charges may be filed, while Corpse Witch may be willing to resort to murder to protect her enterprise. And if she's particularly vindictive, Faye's friends and family may be in lethal danger as well.

You can rebuild your life once your prison sentence ends. Once your life is taken, you've lost everything.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 03 Oct 2016, 09:27
To quote Brooke Shields, "if you're killed, you lose a very important part of your life".
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: hedgie on 03 Oct 2016, 11:47
In my experience bouncers are there more to control non-regular patrons to protect the regulars.

In my experience, it was usually the regulars who "took care of things". 
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Morituri on 15 Oct 2016, 16:42
Never, EVER, under any circumstances, read a list of random numbers aloud on a radio channel.
Okay, I'll bite. What happens if you do?

I think the FCC/FBI/Police combined response in the US averages under 20 minutes in most metropolitan areas.  Most NATO countries will respond in a similar way. You'll wind up at the local police station talking to a bunch of federal officials with cheap shoes and expensive sunglasses.  If you're out in central Utah or something it make take them a couple of hours to get to you - or at least, to get to the place where you sent the message from and start tracking you.

The working presumption is that you're transmitting some kind of 'control' message for terrorists and/or spies.  The location of the radio receiving your broadcast is completely untraceable, so this reads as "somebody is about to attack and we don't know where."  And if it turns out that you're not actually doing that, you're still going to be found guilty of sending coded messages on a public channel, which carries some disproportionate criminal penalties.

Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Method of Madness on 15 Oct 2016, 21:30
I'm trying to find information about this but can't. Where'd you find this out?
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 16 Oct 2016, 12:48
I'm trying to find information about this but can't. Where'd you find this out?


Numbers Station (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers_station)
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Morituri on 16 Oct 2016, 12:51
I knew someone who started reading a long list of temperatures (from different minutes during a test of a motor) to one of his mechanic friends and promptly got arrested.  Then I found out about the wonderful world of Numbers Stations and FCC emergency response vans.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Thrudd on 16 Oct 2016, 20:06
Good ole USA security - up to date and pushing the envelope for 1950
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Kugai on 17 Oct 2016, 13:54
Sometimes, the old ways can be more reliable  It's why such things as Numbers Stations sitll exist and operate even in today's high tech digital world.
Title: Re: WCDT Strips 3316-3320 (26th - 30th September 2016)
Post by: Morituri on 17 Oct 2016, 15:26
personally I would avoid any establishment that had obvious bouncers, on the principle that they would not be there if they were not needed.

I think it would be more accurate to say they would not be obvious if their obviousness was not needed.  If people aren't being troublesome, the bouncer can just blend in.  Unless the place has a serious problem and needs someone to 'loom' and be obviously the bouncer, anyway.  Nobody but the regulars - and regulars who've been there when there's trouble, which ought to be a small minority even of the regulars - would even know which of the staff has ever responded to troublemaking clientele.  Most of the time, you can bet on the bouncer being  the  'doorman' - the cashier who asks people to pay their cover charge at the door, checks hand stamps or reservations, and so on.  But sometimes it's somebody who spends their time bussing tables or maybe just a guy who's always seated at the corner table and looks like a customer.