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Six Million Dollar Man

SilverHawks

Deus Ex

Inspector Gadget

Robocop

Jason X

Star Wars

[MrNumbers]

I'm thinking of it in the sense that Bubbles feels very emotionally vulnerable and Faye is about the only person we've seen that has allowed her to... I mean quite literally come out of her armor, now? The idea of her wanting a purely romantic, asexual relationship with her isn't a stretch to me. And I really have no idea how Faye would feel about it in that case.

I was thinking Bubbles would just... all be about having that hand-holding action, you know? Those sweet sweet late night Netflix cuddles.

The security of having the girlfriend label not because of the 'added benefits', but in the sense of security that it brings in having a concrete term like that brings.

[flondrix]

And they're so cute!!!

The drawing style of the last two panels looks familiar.  Some famous comic artist, pre-webcomic.  Possibly European, maybe "alternative" American, but definately not mainstream.  Any idea who I might be thinking of?

[flondrix]

It really doesn't seem to be likely, as much as Jeph is teasing us about it. Faye's entire history is opposite-sex relationships with carbon-based people despite having a synthetic interested and available for years.

Not entirely...
http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1381

[Tub]

My train of thought waking up today:
Oh, that's a nice friday comic. Perfect to start the last day before a well-deserved weekend.

...

wait. fuck.

Stop messing with my inner clock, jeph!

[anahata]

I always thought Faye was straight and identified as straight, and I didn't take Bubbles for the 'affectionate sort" and...that's the pigeonhole I put them in.

A dog can be very affectionate, and that affection is enjoyed and returned, but... "straight" or otherwise has nothing to do with it.
The friendship between Bubbles and Faye doesn't need to be a particularly physical relationship to be very valuable to both of them. It might turn out that way, but it doesn't have to.

As for Bubbles, her true personality has been buried for years behind psychological and physical armour and she is still feeling her way though a loosening up process.

[Thrillho]

There is a difference between "having affection" and "having feelings" for someone...

but I'm going to paraphrase Renee and Claire:

R: "I love it when girls accidentally flirt with each other."
C: "Its like seeing a unicorn."

I was hoping someone would draw that parallel.

It isn't a parallel, because the interaction between women, even or perhaps especially cis-het women, is inherently flirtatious by most measures but that doesn't set off anyone's gaydar because girls are allowed to have feelings and shit, right?

[Tova]

Seriously though, what is the actual difference between the two events? Why would one event immediately be seen as being caused by something negative and not the other?

[kreedah]

The drawing style of the last two panels looks familiar.  Some famous comic artist, pre-webcomic.  Possibly European, maybe "alternative" American, but definately not mainstream.  Any idea who I might be thinking of?

I'd say it's definitely mainstream, though European: it reminded me of Hergé, the author of Tintin.

[Case]

I see a distinct possibility of my requiring insulin treatment if Jeph continues to write comics like today's. (That being said: D'aaaaaaaw!)

P.S. 'Goodnight moon' <- Snerk!

You had me at "Bubbles in a tuxedo".

If you want to petition Jeph that the next QC-cheesecake please include "Bubbles in a tux", consider my signature as given ...

[foozlesprite]

I'd also like to add that sexuality and romantic inclinations are different and also flexible. You're not locked into a label.

[shanejayell]

Well, no matter how you look at it it's a sweet moment.

[themacnut]

There is a difference between "having affection" and "having feelings" for someone...

but I'm going to paraphrase Renee and Claire:

R: "I love it when girls accidentally flirt with each other."
C: "Its like seeing a unicorn."

I was hoping someone would draw that parallel.

It isn't a parallel, because the interaction between women, even or perhaps especially cis-het women, is inherently flirtatious by most measures but that doesn't set off anyone's gaydar because girls are allowed to have feelings and shit, right?

Actually, in many people's minds that is exactly it, sad as it is to say. Hetero men are generally not "allowed" to show feelings of great affection towards other men, especially other hetero men, without setting off the gaydar. Affection is too often mixed up with sex, especially in men's minds, and IME women can also make that mistake, for example the previous comic with Elliot and Clinton complimenting each other.

[Thrillho]

There is a difference between "having affection" and "having feelings" for someone...

but I'm going to paraphrase Renee and Claire:

R: "I love it when girls accidentally flirt with each other."
C: "Its like seeing a unicorn."

I was hoping someone would draw that parallel.

It isn't a parallel, because the interaction between women, even or perhaps especially cis-het women, is inherently flirtatious by most measures but that doesn't set off anyone's gaydar because girls are allowed to have feelings and shit, right?

Actually, in many people's minds that is exactly it, sad as it is to say. Hetero men are generally not "allowed" to show feelings of great affection towards other men, especially other hetero men, without setting off the gaydar. Affection is too often mixed up with sex, especially in men's minds, and IME women can also make that mistake, for example the previous comic with Elliot and Clinton complimenting each other.

That's exactly my point.

[flondrix]

The drawing style of the last two panels looks familiar.  Some famous comic artist, pre-webcomic.  Possibly European, maybe "alternative" American, but definately not mainstream.  Any idea who I might be thinking of?

I'd say it's definitely mainstream, though European: it reminded me of Hergé, the author of Tintin.

Sorry, I meant "definitely not mainstream American" and I think you hit it on the nose with Tintin.  Thank you.  But the real quesiton is, why?  I know cartoonists homage other artists styles all the time,  but Tintin is not a comic I associate with a scene like this.

[Case]

There is a difference between "having affection" and "having feelings" for someone...

but I'm going to paraphrase Renee and Claire:

R: "I love it when girls accidentally flirt with each other."
C: "Its like seeing a unicorn."

I was hoping someone would draw that parallel.

It isn't a parallel, because the interaction between women, even or perhaps especially cis-het women, is inherently flirtatious by most measures but that doesn't set off anyone's gaydar because girls are allowed to have feelings and shit, right?

Actually, in many people's minds that is exactly it, sad as it is to say. Hetero men are generally not "allowed" to show feelings of great affection towards other men, especially other hetero men, without setting off the gaydar. Affection is too often mixed up with sex, especially in men's minds, and IME women can also make that mistake, for example the previous comic with Elliot and Clinton complimenting each other.

That's exactly my point.

I complimented a young male Indian colleague on his shirt recently, and asked where he bought it - wouldn't look me in the eye afterwards ...  (Didn't think much about it except "Hey, that's a nice shirt! Where'd he get it?")

P.S.: GAAAAAAH! What are doing to me, you bunch of anglophone librul hippies! 

P.P.S.: Looking at you, Welu! (glares daggers)

[flondrix]

I see a distinct possibility of my requiring insulin treatment if Jeph continues to write comics like today's. (That being said: D'aaaaaaaw!)
P.S. 'Goodnight moon' <- Snerk!

If Jeph does not want us shipping his characters, he is gonna have to stop drawing two such gloriously substantial women sharing a bedroom and baring their souls to each other.

You had me at "Bubbles in a tuxedo".

If you want to petition Jeph that the next QC-cheesecake please include "Bubbles in a tux", consider my signature as given ...

Bubbles expanding her wardrobe is even a Thing in the comic now, so it could be canon!

[flondrix]

In another context, I recently came across the Game of Thrones episode title "Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things" and immediately thought of this recent story arc.

Also, the occupancy of the apartment has gotten really ridiculous.  Bubbles should at least have a chair to sit in while she recharges. 

And...Tai has not been aware of any of the Faye-Bubbles dynamic, has she?  Because she will "ship it".

[blt]

Bubbles' battery efficiency must be crazy if she can charge off what looks like a standard phone charger and still move a whole robot around at all.  Let alone for a full day.

[OldGoat]

Bubbles' battery efficiency must be crazy if she can charge off what looks like a standard phone charger and still move a whole robot around at all.  Let alone for a full day.

MilSpec.  Probably only down coming down to a reasonable price on the civilian market.

[Is it cold in here?]

The drawing style of the last two panels looks familiar.  Some famous comic artist, pre-webcomic.  Possibly European, maybe "alternative" American, but definately not mainstream.  Any idea who I might be thinking of?

I'd say it's definitely mainstream, though European: it reminded me of Hergé, the author of Tintin.

Welcome, new person!

Bubbles is essentially guaranteed to be unclear on her feelings. She hasn't been this friendly with a squishy since her squad.

"Romantic, but asexual" -- I can see that happening and it would break the minds of creepy shippers. Remember Dora's definition of love at the restaurant with Marten when they were starting their relationship? If I remember it right it could apply perfectly well to a non-sexual relationship.

[comicalArchitect]

Predictions for tomorrow's strip? My guess is that Faye goes to Marten (or possibly someone else) and has a conversation about if Bubbles has feelings for her and if she reciprocates those feelings.

[TheEvilDog]

Bubbles' battery efficiency must be crazy if she can charge off what looks like a standard phone charger and still move a whole robot around at all.  Let alone for a full day.

Like it was just said, Bubbles is a military spec body, meaning that she would probably have to be able to charge anywhere she could, meaning she probably has a number of different chargers built into her chassis for use with any outlet.

[blt]

MilSpec sounds like a perfectly logical reason, but if we were talking actual milspec it's a wonder they charge at all, don't weigh about 100 lbs, and don't burn the apartment down the process.    And the chargers would only work on European outlets.

[pwhodges]

Nah - they'd work on any outlet, and also when plugged into a lemon.

[OldGoat]

MilSpec sounds like a perfectly logical reason, but if we were talking actual milspec it's a wonder they charge at all, don't weigh about 100 lbs, and don't burn the apartment down the process.    And the chargers would only work on European outlets.

The story is set in the Boston MA US area, so it's assumed Bubs was US military.  Her default connectors will be good ol' US of A standards.

Now, if they deployed her to Brazil it would be a MASH/Catch 22 type screw-up to send her unit out with UK adapters.  That may be one advantage to "sleeping" for eight hours plugged into a USB connector - USB wall warts are easy to find very nearly anywhere and usually pretty cheap.  Why bother lugging a 240v pigtail around?

[Is it cold in here?]

Faye talked to Bubbles about the location of charging stations when she had to start her new life. Maybe she's like an electric car, able to get useful partial charging from a normal home outlet but in general requiring something more industrial.

Put another way, as long as she's asleep anyway, might as well do something useful with the time. It would really be weird if that's the only charging she does.

[Zebediah]

For some reason I thought that Bubbles plugged into a 220V outlet at the fight club. I'll have to do an archive crawl and see if I can find the strip I'm thinking of.

[emeraldphantom]

I always thought Faye was straight and identified as straight, and I didn't take Bubbles for the 'affectionate sort" and...that's the pigeonhole I put them in.

A dog can be very affectionate, and that affection is enjoyed and returned, but... "straight" or otherwise has nothing to do with it.
The friendship between Bubbles and Faye doesn't need to be a particularly physical relationship to be very valuable to both of them. It might turn out that way, but it doesn't have to.

As for Bubbles, her true personality has been buried for years behind psychological and physical armour and she is still feeling her way though a loosening up process.

I don't totally understand why everyone keeps talking about this possibly being a gay thing....... Bubs is an AI......... there is no real gender. If bubbles got a different body SHE could suddenly be a HE.


Literally Bubbles is nothing more than a consciousness in a replaceable robot body.

[Undrneath]

I don't totally understand why everyone keeps talking about this possibly being a gay thing....... Bubs is an AI......... there is no real gender. If bubbles got a different body SHE could suddenly be a HE.


Literally Bubbles is nothing more than a consciousness in a replaceable robot body.

Jeph has long established that AI's have definite gender identities.  And I would assume that a female AI in a male chassis would have the same body dysphoria as a trans person.

[TheBiscuit]

I imagine Bubbles probably meant it in a platonic sense - but only realized how it sounded after she said it...

I would imagine that if that were the case, the two of them would find it easy to laugh off. Not without making Bubbles a little embarrassed, but still. It could be that this is exactly what will happen in the next comic. That said, the fact that they both reacted in that same way to me seems to indicate that it's something they both already had been thinking about. Or maybe trying not to think about.

It really doesn't seem to be likely, as much as Jeph is teasing us about it. Faye's entire history is opposite-sex relationships with carbon-based people despite having a synthetic interested and available for years. Bubbles hasn't shown any sexuality that I can remember. I'm open to getting surprised. It would be the most interesting relationship to explore in the history of the comic.

Who is the willing synthetic in question? I suspect you mean Pintsize, but I don't think he has any serious interest in Faye. I think his sexuality is a lot more complex than could be satisfied with any traditional relationship anyway. He seems to get off on things that humans don't even recognise as... things. Which is very much to be expected from at least some AI, in my view.

As for Bubbles, you're right that she's not displayed much signs of sexual interest, but it could be that she's just very, very private about such things and wouldn't let anyone know. It could also be that she's not used to that kind of feelings and doesn't know how to process them.

[jwhouk]

Predictions for tomorrow's strip? My guess is that Faye goes to Marten (or possibly someone else) and has a conversation about if Bubbles has feelings for her and if she reciprocates those feelings.

...some of us already know what happens tomorrow.

(innocently points to the Patreon button)

[flondrix]

I don't totally understand why everyone keeps talking about this possibly being a gay thing....... Bubs is an AI......... there is no real gender. If bubbles got a different body SHE could suddenly be a HE.

Literally Bubbles is nothing more than a consciousness in a replaceable robot body.

Jeph has long established that AI's have definite gender identities.  And I would assume that a female AI in a male chassis would have the same body dysphoria as a trans person.

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

According to Pintsize (an unreliable narrator if ever there was one), the gender of an Anthro PC is a software configurable option with three possible settings including "undefined."  An AI has the options of finding a chassis that matches its self-identified gender, changing its self-identified gender to match a chassis, or saying to hell with the whole thing.  Unlike a human, an AI could temporarily change gender and/or physical sex for kinky funtimes and then switch back.  (C'mon, you think Pintsize wouldn't at least consider doing this?)  It is canon that AIs have libidos, and will vehemently oppose any attempt to remove them. 

Whether sexual orientation in AIs is an option that can be changed has never been addressed.  Momo self-identifies as female and appears to be "straight" in the sense that she finds Hannelore's fireman porn tittilating and is easily flustered by the presence of Sven; she is embarrassed by this, but has no interest in undoing it.  May clearly has a dirty mind, but so far as I can tell her actual preferences in partners have not been made known.  Pintsize plays the part of an unabashed anything-that-moves sort of guy, yet was freaked out to find that the PC he had engaged in remote sex with had his gender set to "male".  He later claimed it was the misunderstanding that had him upset, but I wonder if that was rationalization.  (Pintsize is amply capable of all the same vices and failings of humans.)  Jeremy and Seven are a "conventional" heterosexual couple who frequently burn out USB cables.  Bubbles blushes at the idea of burning out USB cables in a manner that (to me) would appear to indicate that she is not immune to the appeal of doing so.

[fayelovesbubbles]

Well. They both blushed.

I think the feelings are mutual.

[USS Martenclaire]

Well. They both blushed.

I think the feelings are mutual.

Honestly, who has a username centred around character shipping....

[flondrix]

Bubbles' battery efficiency must be crazy if she can charge off what looks like a standard phone charger and still move a whole robot around at all.  Let alone for a full day.

Like it was just said, Bubbles is a military spec body, meaning that she would probably have to be able to charge anywhere she could, meaning she probably has a number of different chargers built into her chassis for use with any outlet.

Looking at the scenes where Bubbles is plugged in in Faye's bedroom, I think that the cord is not a phone charger, but more akin to the removable cords on hotpots and electric kettles.  I'll bet it supplies her with 120VAC at several amps, which powers an internal charger circuit as EvilDog describes.  Still slow charging for a machine that can do the things she can do, but at least it would allow her to draw a kilowatt instead of a few watts.

Placing the charging port in her neck when she stands over 6 feet tall and most outlets are near the floor sounds like a stupid design decision, but I have heard of worse ones.

[fayelovesbubbles]

Well. They both blushed.

I think the feelings are mutual.

Honestly, who has a username centred around character shipping....

This guy!

[Kugai]

Either Jeph is about to take the Comic in an interesting direction as he did when he brought Claire into the mix, or he's Trolling us for shits and giggles.

Time will tell.

[Neko_Ali]

I don't totally understand why everyone keeps talking about this possibly being a gay thing....... Bubs is an AI......... there is no real gender. If bubbles got a different body SHE could suddenly be a HE.

Literally Bubbles is nothing more than a consciousness in a replaceable robot body.

Jeph has long established that AI's have definite gender identities.  And I would assume that a female AI in a male chassis would have the same body dysphoria as a trans person.

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

I am honestly not sure how valid the points of these are in the comic today either. That one is very old, and Jeph's thoughts on AI and gender theory have evolved since then. He's never said anything that contradicts that comic. But it's also never been referenced again, and all of the AIs in the comic have a very solid gender identity that has not changed since their introduction.

[Zebediah]

Either Jeph is about to take the Comic in an interesting direction as he did when he brought Claire into the mix, or he's Trolling us for shits and giggles.

Could be both. He trolled Marten+Claire for a long time before he finally broke down and let it happen.

[Celly]

Why can't flesh and steel have love

besides grievous bodily harm, i mean

[Undrneath]

Jeph has long established that AI's have definite gender identities.  And I would assume that a female AI in a male chassis would have the same body dysphoria as a trans person.

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

According to Pintsize (an unreliable narrator if ever there was one), 

The way I understood that comic was gender identity was factory set in one of the three options listed. But it has been years since then and Jeph seems to have redefined how AIs are brought into existence.

[Is it cold in here?]

I don't totally understand why everyone keeps talking about this possibly being a gay thing....... Bubs is an AI......... there is no real gender. If bubbles got a different body SHE could suddenly be a HE.


Literally Bubbles is nothing more than a consciousness in a replaceable robot body.

Welcome, new person!

We do know that every time an AI in QC changes bodies they keep the same gender presentation. It would fit the facts if they have an innate gender identity the way carbon-based people do.

[DSL]

Worth considering, is it not, that the person writing the current strips is, owing to life experiences and other things contriubting to maturity, not quite the same person who wrote the linked strip? -- it's an argument I've been wanting to make occasionally on this forum and the forum related to another long-running (now re-running) webcomic that shares considerable fandom overlap with this one.

[flondrix]

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

I am honestly not sure how valid the points of these are in the comic today either. That one is very old, and Jeph's thoughts on AI and gender theory have evolved since then. He's never said anything that contradicts that comic. But it's also never been referenced again, and all of the AIs in the comic have a very solid gender identity that has not changed since their introduction.

One caveat:  He said that gender was a software setting, but he did not say that the AI itself could reset it.  It is possible that changing the setting may require that the AI shut down, have someone else change the setting, and reboot.  This would require a level of trust equivalent to the trust Bubbles placed in corpsewitch (how did she get that name, BTW?  I remember Faye calling her that, but was it really her name?) and would not be done lightly.

[TheEvilDog]

Comic's up and I definitely think that Jeph is taking a not-so-subtle dig at shipping and how people misconstrue interactions. 

[Tova]

Even I am starting to wonder whether Bubbles might be in denial at this point.

[MrNumbers]

I would appreciate a diagram, as drawn by Pintsize in MSPaint

[fayelovesbubbles]

Even I am starting to wonder whether Bubbles might be in denial at this point.

Bubbles, and quite a few people here on the forum apparently. 

[Tova]

Now let's not get too carried away with ourselves, FayeLovesBubbles. Although I recognise that it's perhaps a bit late for that exhortation. 

[A Duck]

Aand Clinton goes straight back to putting his foot inside his mouth.

I know Bubbles and Faye have a great friendship, but I honestly don't think any of them thinks of it as anything more. In fact, everyone around them pushing them into a romantic relationship could end up making them trying it, failing miserably and them losing the friendship that started it in the first place.

Oh well, if it happens it'll be interesting to finally see a human-AI relationship, at the very least.