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The strip.

66 (13.1%)

Jeph's health.

110 (21.9%)

MY health.

60 (11.9%)

YOUR health.

31 (6.2%)

Family and friends (though not necessarily in that order).

86 (17.1%)

This forum.

20 (4%)

Turkey and all the trimmings.

13 (2.6%)

The interwebs.

47 (9.3%)

Something else.

24 (4.8%)

Spathe Ham!

13 (2.6%)

...must... read... ALL the posts...

33 (6.6%)

Total Members Voted: 173

[Is it cold in here?]

talk to the hand

Wonderful!

Clinton's reaction may have nothing to do with Marten in particular. It's consistent with a life experience of Claire usually getting hostile reactions. He may just expect the worst of anyone who finds out. This could even be subtle artistry where Jeph is communicating the life experience of trans people encountering  hostility without changing his lighthearted tone by showing hostility on screen.

Claire has a supportive family!

I have some thoughts about the meaning of whether someone is "really" "male" or "female" which will go in Discuss, where they belong.

(moderator)
Indigo's experiences are as real as sunrise but since my reading says that "cis" was developed deliberately as a neutral term and it's apparently not being used as an insult in our space, it will be treated as OK.
(/moderator)

[Rainforce]

Sixteen pages.
Sixteen god damn pages.
I read them all.
I must say I haven't expected the whole discussion to last this long, but I guess it's a good thing that all the lurkers including me crawled out from under our rocks and posted mostly useful/noteworthy stuff.
This is pretty much the most "mature" forum I've ever been to. yay : D


Also regarding todays comic, I didn't know Clinton thought that bad of marten. Real surprise there.

[ink slinger]

The fact that Clinton apparently harbours some hatred and/or resentment toward Marten (possibly for Hanners-related reasons, as previously stated in this thread) is very amusing to me, though I'm not entirely sure why.

He might be a bit sore about this...http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1909

Yeah, I got that. I meant that I'm not sure why the idea of Clinton disliking Marten amuses me as much as it does.

Also, ink slinger, somewhere there's an option to disable those warnings if they're getting too annoying.

I think maybe you're thinking I said something that I didn't. I don't recall complaining about warnings (and just checked my last few posts to make sure I'm not losing it).

[Astroasis]

Whew! I'm just relieved that Jeph's FIRMLY putting the whole "sibling rivalry" / "trans-issues" theory to rest. I saw a bunch of people saying, "Oh, this explains this comment" or "Oh, this explains the tension between them" And I... wasn't seeing it. Their relationship seemed like a completely healthy sibling love/hate thing... and the fact that it came across SO normally kind of hinted that Clinton is A-OK with Claire's gender status. I read absolutely no hostility, discomfort or anything of the kind in their interactions - aside from the usual stuff you see in any close siblings.

And I'll say it again, just for good measure - THEY'RE NOT TWINS XD This cannot be said enough.

For what it's worth, I think the only "normal" thing in the world is abnormality. We all have something, somewhere in our psyches or physiques that is... different. We all rage at the world. We all rage at each other. Really, we're all flawed, imperfect creatures and none of us is more imperfect or less normal than any of the rest of us. We all have our... things. Some are external. Some are internal. But we all feel them, in our own ways.

More words. I need to shut up now XD Time for a nap.

[riccostar]

PffffHAHAHA! Look at Marten's hands in the last panel! He's doing the little "I'm so angry I'm gonna put my arms straight down and turn my fists up at the wrists" thing Hannelore does. It's adorable!

Marten is just too cute.  I doubt he actually does anything to get his coffee back either.

[JaneAlice]

PffffHAHAHA! Look at Marten's hands in the last panel! He's doing the little "I'm so angry I'm gonna put my arms straight down and turn my fists up at the wrists" thing Hannelore does. It's adorable!

Marten is just too cute.  I doubt he actually does anything to get his coffee back either.

Not his coffee, he offered to pour clinton some.

Also, Claire is my hero. As is Jeph. No matter how he writes her the simple fact that he was brave enough to do so touches my heart.

[Is it cold in here?]

I admire her courage, and I admire the sound artistic choice of making her a character first with her being a trans person not even close to the first thing mentioned.

[Blackjoker]

On a topic related to the comic and less to the current posting, why does Clinton seem to hate Marten so much?

I think it was touched on a couple pages ago maybe?  Anyway Marten kicked Clinton out of his apartment the first time he met Hanners, daughter of his beloved idol Hannerdad.  I think someone brought up jealousy of his and Hanner's closeness, too.  Throw that on top of his natural protectiveness and you get "oh i guess you're not ALL bad then"

I suppose that makes some sense, still, given that Clinton himself seems to realize that he rather badly overstepped boundaries when he went into Martens apartment etc. Then again I suppose that anger and the like is seldom rational as I have seen in both myself and others many times.

My guess? Probably because Marten threatened him with a sword when Clinton was perving over Hanners.

Yeah...though I get the idea that Clinton would probably do the same...or at least use his might fist of robotics to defend his sister.

[Magdalena]

Just popping in to say I think it's pretty brave of Jeph to include Claire as transgendered into the story and I wish Claire all of the success in the world. (And also tell her that her red hair is super cute

[Border Reiver]

Jeph, if you're reading this, save us from ourselves.

Turkeys, tomorrow as is tradition, then again on Friday - you know, leftovers

[ChaosWolf]

Clinton's reaction may have nothing to do with Marten in particular. It's consistent with a life experience of Claire usually getting hostile reactions. He may just expect the worst of anyone who finds out. This could even be subtle artistry where Jeph is communicating the life experience of trans people encountering  hostility without changing his lighthearted tone by showing hostility on screen.

Claire has a supportive family!

This is the same impression I got from his reaction - they might bicker as siblings do, but outsiders berating them is Not Allowed, and the way he was immediately ready to leap to her defense implies it is something he's had to do before.

[Blackjoker]

Clinton's reaction may have nothing to do with Marten in particular. It's consistent with a life experience of Claire usually getting hostile reactions. He may just expect the worst of anyone who finds out. This could even be subtle artistry where Jeph is communicating the life experience of trans people encountering  hostility without changing his lighthearted tone by showing hostility on screen.

Claire has a supportive family!

This is the same impression I got from his reaction - they might bicker as siblings do, but outsiders berating them is Not Allowed, and the way he was immediately ready to leap to her defense implies it is something he's had to do before.

Agreed, and I think that it's excellent that she has such a supportive family, and it also does a lot to help rehabilitate Clinton as well...still needs to work on his social skills a bit but at least he's a good brother and supportive, hopefully their parents are supportive too. Hmm..on a weird side note, I wonder if any of the tech in the QC verse made transitioning easier, and if so if that might also be part of why Clinton would admire Hannelores father, if only because his work in addition to giving Clinton a hand, also allowed his sister to be who and what she is....eh I'm probably over thinking it.

[Pilchard123]

This forum? Overthink something? That's never happened before! 

[celticgeek]

...eh I'm probably over thinking it.

And your point would be...?

[reicreature]

So how about that comic.
It's pretty awesome.

I do love the expressions in the last panel.

[Catayana]

So how about that comic.
It's pretty awesome.

I do love the expressions in the last panel.

It is well drawn!
I wonder if Claire told her brother that she'd told Marten as a way to give him someone to talk to about this stuff..

[JaneAlice]

Claire's expression in the 2nd panel was great

[percivaltercy]

The comic is awesome.
Jeph is a hero that got this thread to be on 17 pages, and by Friday it would easily be 25 if he kept the script around Claire, and maybe Clinton. A helping of butts-disease around the primo-slurping-noise-real-state wouldn't hurt either.
But I dread the turkeys...

[Tova]

It amuses me to recall how Claire, when introduced, was criticised and even somewhat disliked by some forum-goers for being too tightly wound. On the basis of not-very-many strips.

At least one person got quite wound up about it, in fact. Something I think that I tried to humourously point out at the time.

But hey, people have come round. Initial impressions can be funny things, though.

[StevenC]

Oh yeah right, there was a comic that goes along this forum.
Uhh, I liked how Marten does the hands thing. Shows how much being friends with Hanners rubbed off on him.

[reicreature]

It is well drawn!
I wonder if Claire told her brother that she'd told Marten as a way to give him someone to talk to about this stuff..

Ooh, that's an interesting thought! It might also be kind of a way of letting Clinton (and herself) relax a little to know that in this one group they have an ally in the know who can help smooth things out...and also be there to field any questions or prevent future awkwardness.
Martin knows his group of friends well,  far better than Claire or Clinton do, and would then be able to predict potential reactions within the new group better than they could.
I imagine it would also be a relief to not have the big secret so much a secret.

[chaostheory]

So how about that comic.
It's pretty awesome.

That it is..... although, am I alone in thinking that introducing a drunken Faye into a kitchen with knives and Clinton insulting Marten would be a recipie for hilarity?

[Schmorgluck]

I'd rather say disaster, but someone would tell (rightfully) that there's no reason it can't be both.

[jwhouk]

The Return of the OMGTurkeys! What are YOU thankful for?

The strip.     58 (13.4%)
Jeph's health.     94 (21.8%)  <=== See, Jeph? We still cares about ya.
MY health.     52 (12%)
YOUR health.     24 (5.6%)
Family and friends (though not necessarily in that order).     76 (17.6%)
This forum.     18 (4.2%)
Turkey and all the trimmings.     12 (2.8%)
The interwebs.     43 (10%)
Something else.     19 (4.4%)
Spathe Ham!     9 (2.1%)
...must... read... ALL the posts...     27 (6.3%)  <=== Are you KIDDING? I don't think even HANNELORE would do that...

Total Members Voted: 167

[riccostar]

After rereading today's comic I wonder why Clinton reacted the way he did to the news.  Was it Clinton's opinion of Marten or did they have a bad experience in the past with people who have found out that information?

This is definitely my first experience with animosity in this area and I don't think that this subforum is really the place for it... I know that this is an extremely personal subject but maybe disagreements would be better suited in discuss? Or maybe left off the internet in general...

[TheEvilDog]

Welcome to the ForumCo Emergency Forum Bunker presentation.
Using the latest in interwebbing coding and 10 minutes of research, ForumCo have developed the latest in awesome defensive bunkers. Designed to survive the worst barrages of trolls, bad posts and forum meltdowns, the ForumCo Emergency Bunker is situated deep in the deepest parts of the forum.
Constructed around the ultimate in wooden pillars (for the environmentally friendly ), the bunker has its own water supply, food, tv, dvd collection and three bathrooms. All under flickering fluorescent lights!
Capable of comfortably holding 100 people in comfortable comfort for 1 year, the ForumCo----
Wait....if 100 people can live comfortable for 1 year, than 1 person could be comfortable for 100 years..... SCREW YOU GUYS! YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN!!! MWAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
(You can leave your entry fees to the presentation at the door as you leave. KTHXBYE)

[celticgeek]

Wait!  You're not going to let me in, even with my two bottles of Laphroaig?

[percivaltercy]

New user here, first post, hi all! I more or less specifically registered to reply to this.

Welcome!
If Pintsize really runs for presidency, I say he must wear the hat and the subtle beard!!!!!

[PintsizeForPresident]

New user here, first post, hi all! I more or less specifically registered to reply to this.

Welcome!
If Pintsize really runs for presidency, I say he must wear the hat and the subtle beard!!!!!

Why thank you! I was actually thinking of Pintsize in cheerleader skirt and pom-poms. It's from a filler comic from a while back with Faye, Marten and Hannelore in sports outfits. I've seen it this afternoon when I was re-reading some of the strips, but I cannot find it anymore. Maybe some kind soul can point me to it?

[reicreature]

It's not a question of rights. It's a very simple rule: Don't be a dick. I have every right to call you Ape, Meat, Eukaryote, Bag of Water, or Heap of Protons. And I hope you'll agree that all these designations are true in certain contexts. But I won't (except here, and only as an example), because I respect the fact that you are a person.

Yes, this...So much.

Also welcome!


I have to dissent a little, I think Momo would be a better president. Pintsize would be an excellent Vice-President though.

[chaostheory]

Mind you, the source is Wikipedia, but Wikipedia claims that an XY female does not have ovaries, and therefore cannot produce eggs. (And, also, the various female hormones wouldn't be produced, so puberty would essentially not happen, but apparently if HRT is used, menstruation and even pregnancy via embryo transfer are possible.)

Also, Wikipedia claims that XX males are sterile, too.

Wikipedia is suckier than usual on this topic, I gets my info from medical journal articles in university libraries mostly on this kinda thing.

Back to the comic though... I am kinda wondering if Claire was prompted to tell Marten to some extent by drunk Fayes make-out comment. Not suggesting that Claire is into Marten, just that some of her motivation was thinking about some situations where it'd be useful to have that information out there already. Not like Faye has form for being a catalyst or anything  . Right, thats quite enough of psychoanalysing a comic character.

[reicreature]

I think she was actually beginning to tell him before Faye interrupted.

[JaneAlice]

I think she was actually beginning to tell him before Faye interrupted.

I also got that vibe. I love how she told him, it's basically how I have told everyone.

[PintsizeForPresident]

It's not a question of rights. It's a very simple rule: Don't be a dick. I have every right to call you Ape, Meat, Eukaryote, Bag of Water, or Heap of Protons. And I hope you'll agree that all these designations are true in certain contexts. But I won't (except here, and only as an example), because I respect the fact that you are a person.

Yes, this...So much.

Also welcome!


I have to dissent a little, I think Momo would be a better president. Pintsize would be an excellent Vice-President though.

Thanks! And you are probably right, but ask yourself: would Momo be as much fun?

[reicreature]

I also got that vibe. I love how she told him, it's basically how I have told everyone.

It's how three of my friends told me!

[Tormuse]

Regarding the comic, I think it's a bit ironic that Clinton is expressing an expectation of Marten acting like a dick, when he himself is acting like a dick to Marten. 

[Tormuse]

I also got that vibe. I love how she told him, it's basically how I have told everyone.

It's how three of my friends told me!

I have one trans friend who I corresponded with before she transitioned and she broke the news to me by saying, "I changed my name today."

EDIT:  This wasn't supposed to be a double post;  I expected six people to post in between them. 

[jwhouk]

18 pages. Not bad.

"People should try to be nice to each other. And don't be a ####."

I think that's what the boss would say (in-between signing books and downing Percocets).

[Schmorgluck]

Wheaton's Law can never repeated too much.

[JaneAlice]

18 pages. Not bad.

"People should try to be nice to each other. And don't be a ####."

I think that's what the boss would say (in-between signing books and downing Percocets).

That's right Jeph... YOU SIGN MY BOOK! Can't wait to get it, now I just need the first 2

[bhtooefr]

Karen: Interestingly, Jeph's actually touched on AnthroPC gender.

http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=339
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=346
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=347

So, looks like AnthroPCs don't have a sex per se (edit: the chassis could - in the case of Momo, it could be argued that it does), but they have a configurable gender as part of the AI, and can have something that serves as sexual activity (and appears to be non-gender-specific).

[Just Karen]

Karen: Interestingly, Jeph's actually touched on AnthroPC gender.

http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=339
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=346
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=347

So, looks like AnthroPCs don't have a sex per se (edit: the chassis could - in the case of Momo, it could be argued that it does), but they have a configurable gender as part of the AI, and can have something that serves as sexual activity (and appears to be non-gender-specific).

I would argue that Momo's chassis has a sex.  Pintsize's doesn't.  But if Momo was switched to a male chassis and didn't have the gender switch flipped in the software, would you (plural you, open to anyone) call Momo he or she?

[ChaosWolf]

But if Momo was switched to a male chassis and didn't have the gender switch flipped in the software, would you call Momo he or she?

I would call the manufacturer and tell them there was a shipping error and they sent the wrong chassis model.

Robots are much easier to "correct" than organics.

[bhtooefr]

I would argue that Momo's chassis has a sex.  Pintsize's doesn't.  But if Momo was switched to a male chassis and didn't have the gender switch flipped in the software, would you (plural you, open to anyone) call Momo he or she?

I'd say that a male-chassis Momo, while the gender switch was set to female (BTW, ChaosWolf, for the sake of the experiment, let's say that Momo chose the male chassis, and also chose to keep the gender switch set to female, so as to not weasel out of classifying this) would be something along the lines of a female cross-dressing as male (given the ease (even if it's expensive) of switching chassis, it's almost as easy as a human changing clothes) in human terms?

And, something I edited into my previous post, then saw replies, so I removed it:

Another thing I realized, but this goes into an earlier discussion on these forums about the timeline of robots getting equal rights versus the timeline of the story... if you combine the more recent assertion that AIs become partners with their humans (not in that way!) via a contract, and that robots have equal rights, with Marten's statement in #347, things start to get odd - the robot's partner can set a gender for the robot upon entering the contract at the very least? That would indicate a gender change, as the AI isn't created for the human specifically on first boot of the AnthroPC, the AI is paired with the human and installed in the chassis. (And, it's implied that it's a setting (similar to Pintsize's language settings that changed personality significantly), meaning it could be changed at will by the owner (and I do mean owner in this instance), at least on pre-AI rights software.)

(IIRC, the way that the forums resolved the dichotomy between Jeph's handling of the human/robot relationship before and after Momo was either, AIs got equal rights not long before Momo was introduced (making it a VERY recent event in the QC verse, likely less than a year (QC time) ago), or that many AIs, Pintsize and probably Winslow included, didn't actually care about equal rights (IIRC that was actually discussed in-comic, too, that Pintsize and Winslow didn't want the responsibility).)

[Is it cold in here?]

So how about that comic.
It's pretty awesome.

I do love the expressions in the last panel.

I've long thought Jeph excels at facial expressions.

Oh, when you suggested Pintsize for Vice-President, was the pun deliberate?

[jwhouk]

For those of you new to the forums and the strip: every year on Thanksgiving since 2004, Jeph has used photos of turkeys to "celebrate" the holiday - and poke fun at fans of the strip who go over the top with their opinions on the strip.

(The whole list, put together by Mustang6172 who had more time to do it, is here: The Great Turkey Thread)

498 and 1804 are particularly interesting, as they are in proximity to the two "biggest" moments in strip history (The Talk and The Breakup).

(Fixed some of the links, the coding got a little screwy at the end - Method)

TYVM.

[celticgeek]

Why thank you! I was actually thinking of Pintsize in cheerleader skirt and pom-poms. It's from a filler comic from a while back with Faye, Marten and Hannelore in sports outfits. I've seen it this afternoon when I was re-reading some of the strips, but I cannot find it anymore. Maybe some kind soul can point me to it?

Northampton Bonercats

[Bev]

Is anyone else finding that this comic is pretty much thier life this week? I mean, I read it daily anyway but it's pretty much the only thing on my mind, every day now. Also, I wonder if it was well timed, or just a coincidence that it happened around Transgender day of rememberance (a yearly event that remembers all those trans people murdered over the last year, 264 in this years case).

[celticgeek]

jeph jacques ‏@jephjacques

“@IsilD: @jephjacques Did you intentionally time this story arc to coincide with the Trans Day of Remembrance?” nope, serendipity

[de_la_Nae]

I have an actual question or two about the comic, after looking through some of these older linked strips.

Now characters change. Sometimes it's due to developmental progression, sometimes it's due to a storyteller changing their mind over what they're looking to do with that character, or discovering what works better for that character, etc.

Hannelore's mannerisms are somewhat different from her early appearances. Obviously some of that can be chalked up to having yay-friends, but she also sometimes freaks for a moment a lot quicker. I want to say there was a mention of changing dosages of her meds way back in the day, but I don't know. Do I have the right of it, or am I inserting something that wasn't there?

Also need more Winslow, but that's neither here nor there.