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Post by Intelligence on Aug 25, 2014 22:06:23 GMT
???If Robot is there, then I hope Shadow is, too. We haven't seen him in a while, anyway.
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Post by thedoctor on Aug 25, 2014 22:23:23 GMT
"Creator Kat--Does this unit have a soul?"
Guys, three pages and not a single Mass Effect joke? And even with the networked/hivemind speculation! Though, given the fact that the robot speaks of itself as "me" and not "we", it doesn't quite fit.
Also, I'm still having trouble taking this seriously; I'm starting to, but the robots have been involved in too many potentially serious situations that went silly for me to do so...
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Post by todd on Aug 25, 2014 22:26:24 GMT
I don't think we need fear the robots harming Paz or any of the other students. "Changes" mentioned that they can't harm the students, and I doubt they'd have been able to change that part of their programming since then. (Violent robot uprisings don't seem to be Tom's style, anyway.) On the other hand, we know how inept the Gunnerkrigg robots are, and they might inadvertently do something that endangers the ship and everyone on board.
As for Kat "playing God", that's no worse than what the Court's doing - though I do think that she went overboard on growing a new robot. All they needed for a new body for Robot was that robot mouse in Chapter Eighteen (who might even have been a better idea than a humanoid body, even if Robot was more used to the latter, since it could easily hide from anyone searching for it). But Kat seems to have been motivated as much by a desire to build a robot for its own sake - which led to the discovery of Jeanne's shrine and Robot doing a lot of proselytizing, as a result. (Of course, it also helped Annie in her investigation of Jeanne; I don't know if the fortunate results outweigh the unfortunate.) Robot's setting up a religion around Kat only began after they began going to the workshop (though there are hints that he was doing some version of that before he was taken apart and stuffed into that closet where Annie found him).
If the incident proves disruptive enough to call for a Court investigation, it could be Kat who'll be facing disciplining from the Court administration this time (though if they figure out that Annie's partly responsible, by freeing Robot from prison - twice - then she'll probably be in trouble as well). Though the damage has been done (unless the Court finds a way to erase that growing religion from the robots' memory.
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Post by chrisjenl on Aug 25, 2014 23:09:05 GMT
I dont understand this move of the 13x robots.
They ware always very secretive. No one must know of their existence. And now they came out at a party and don't do it before it or wait till Kat is alone of with a lot less amount of persons around.
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Post by effulgentether on Aug 25, 2014 23:17:37 GMT
There was someone on tumblr who made an interesting point: last chapter we had a forest citizen who wished to become human, and now we have a parallel in the form of robots wanting to become human as well. I don't know if that individual robot is speaking for himself or for all of them (since theyre networked) but it's still and interesting observation.
I wish we could know what happened between the last chapter and now (I wish we could have seen more of Kat trying to synthesize the bird wing cause I find the arc interesting) though im glad we've got this page. Im curious to know the consequences of this little act. It's the first time I think that the robots and main characters have interacted in front of the school, and I'm sure there's a reason for that--perhaps the robots no longer wish to remain so hidden.
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Post by sapientcoffee on Aug 25, 2014 23:37:08 GMT
Hello, hi, allow me to come out of hiding in order to talk about why this is actually not that far off. Several plot spoilers for the book under the cut, since I know a lot of people haven't actually read it. The entire motive of Frankenstein's monster in the actual book was, ''You were my God and I was your Adam and you abandoned me,' or 'You should have granted me salvation but you didn't and now it's too late.' Basically, 'the creature' as he is most often called in the narrative, or 'Adam' as he calls himself, is actually perfectly sentient and was not inherently cruel. He even taught himself how to read, which is how he discovers his origins, since he doesn't remember the beginning of his life and Victor was long gone by the time he started to form memories. He makes attempts to integrate himself into human civilization, and each time, though he extends kindness and even at one point saves someone from drowning, he is savagely beaten because of his unnatural appearance. Considering his size and strength, if his telling of the events is to be believed, then it speaks a lot about him that instead of fighting back, he ran away. He knew he would accidentally kill them if he defended himself. So in his eyes (and I agree with him) Victor, his 'God,' should have taken responsibility for 'the Adam of his labors.' He blamed Victor for not having sheltered him from the cruelty and intolerance of the world (having abandoned him to Hell instead of giving him- Eden? Heaven? You decide) and for having created him and then basically leaving him for dead on a different continent like a bitch-ass pansy. (Victor is totally a bitch-ass pansy.) But instead of asking for Victor to take him in now, because the creature bitterly hates him, he asks for a female equivalent to himself so that he will no longer be completely alone, and in compromise they would go to live in the jungles of South America, never to interfere with human civilization again. But uh, the creature reveals himself to Victor and asks this after killing Victor's younger brother and letting an innocent friend of the family hang for it. Victor didn't even know the creature was still alive before then. Because he ran away from his own creation like a bitch-ass pansy. But that's beside the point. The creature basically goes on to say that if Victor doesn't do this for him, doesn't create an Eve, then Victor better watch out 'on his wedding night.' And Victor even begins to make his 'Eve,' but he becomes too terrified at the idea of a race of monsters propagating because of him that he destroys her before finishing. So the creature kills Victor's childhood friend and Victor's bride on their wedding night (and since Victor assumed the creature meant he was going to kill him, not his fiancee, this is particularly devestating). Victor's father dies of grief. In Victor's pursuit for revenge, the creature purposefully leads him through the most treacherous possible terrain while making sure never to quite lose him. Eventually, said terrain kills Victor. So basically, when his creator didn't do what he wanted, the creature made more than good on his threat.  So yeah. While the creature and the robots are asking their creators for different things, and the creature both has a pretty fair point and gets much more violent than I assume the robots will because this isn't that kind of webcomic, the overarching theme is certainly still there: artificial lifeforms trying to strong-arm their creators into doing more for them. Heh heh. Strong-arm. Arm. God figures. Okay, I'll stop derailing + see myself out. You know who's awesome? I bet you've already guessed it's you since you are, as stated, awesome. Yeah, we all hated Victor and how he treated his creation. That bitch-ass pansy. Here, I think, that having been created by Diego, some (all?) are glad that Kat has appeared, for whatever they want the next stage to be. I dunno if they called Diego, "Father" with any overtones of godhood, but he did create them, while Kat is the Angel who could help them achieve the next step. I'm so curious to see where this goes! There was someone on tumblr who made an interesting point: last chapter we had a forest citizen who wished to become human, and now we have a parallel in the form of robots wanting to become human as well. Hmm, I'm not sold on the idea that they want to be human. Robot seems to want them to be able to be born and to die, but lots of things do that that aren't human. (I may also have a slight prejudice against "x wants to be just like us" storylines.) Time will tell. |
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Post by effulgentether on Aug 25, 2014 23:40:17 GMT
I wonder if Annie will try to shut off the robots like she did when they kidnapped Robot. Does she still need her blinkered stone to do that, and if she did, could she be able to touch all the robots?
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Post by keef on Aug 25, 2014 23:47:52 GMT
I wonder if Annie will try to shut off the robots like she did when they kidnapped Robot. Does she still need her blinkered stone to do that, and if she did, could she be able to touch all the robots? The sailorbots probably don't have a button like that. |
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Post by Brother_Spartacus on Aug 25, 2014 23:55:24 GMT
5.) How many paperclips to they get out of one of those Seraph models, anyways? 246. Definitely 246. nope, 113 |
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Post by warrl on Aug 26, 2014 0:42:18 GMT
I can think of a lot of reasons why Kat would effectively decline and the robots would accept it. However, one that fits reasonably well in a comic page or two and allows for interesting graphics... none so far.
"Ah, the flesh parts need a different sort of energy source entirely or they stop functioning and rapidly decay. I can't synthesize the complete energy-source system in flesh yet, and the flesh-machine interfaces tend to be a bit unstable. Also, I don't have enough functional flesh synthesized yet, and it would take a while. Really, nothing can even start to happen until after the cruise is over. Plus, humans can't maintain focus on one thing indefinitely like robots can, and right now I'm not working on that, I'm on a date with my girlfriend. So shove off and come talk to me tomorrow after lunch."
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Post by Brother_Spartacus on Aug 26, 2014 1:21:28 GMT
I can think of a lot of reasons why Kat would effectively decline and the robots would accept it. However, one that fits reasonably well in a comic page or two and allows for interesting graphics... none so far. "Ah, the flesh parts need a different sort of energy source entirely or they stop functioning and rapidly decay. I can't synthesize the complete energy-source system in flesh yet, and the flesh-machine interfaces tend to be a bit unstable. Also, I don't have enough functional flesh synthesized yet, and it would take a while. Really, nothing can even start to happen until after the cruise is over. Plus, humans can't maintain focus on one thing indefinitely like robots can, and right now I'm not working on that, I'm on a date with my girlfriend. So shove off and come talk to me tomorrow after lunch." Yeah, she'll keep her cool. Kool Kat.  |
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Post by thedoomblahsong on Aug 26, 2014 5:47:44 GMT
A couple of interesting thoughts to ponder: ... 4.) Is the storm just there to set "a dramatically appropriate" atmosphere or will that play a more active role (for example, trying to do complex surgery/robotics at sea, or making Zimmy so seasick she loses control)? If it does set Zimmy off somehow, what will her brand of craziness do with regard to this whole robot development? ... Oh man I already forgot about the storm. I don't think the robots are causing it, I think it started happening independently. Maybe that's why the Robots felt it was a -- www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEOpr2jai9c-- dramatically appropriate moment to crash the party <.< >.> O.o |
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Post by philman on Aug 26, 2014 7:29:22 GMT
There was someone on tumblr who made an interesting point: last chapter we had a forest citizen who wished to become human, and now we have a parallel in the form of robots wanting to become human as well. I don't know if that individual robot is speaking for himself or for all of them (since theyre networked) but it's still and interesting observation. I wish we could know what happened between the last chapter and now (I wish we could have seen more of Kat trying to synthesize the bird wing cause I find the arc interesting) though im glad we've got this page. Im curious to know the consequences of this little act. It's the first time I think that the robots and main characters have interacted in front of the school, and I'm sure there's a reason for that--perhaps the robots no longer wish to remain so hidden. There have been a lot of recurring themes the last few chapters, especially of loss (Annie thinking she's losing Kat as her friend, the loss of their friend Mort, the fairy losing her friend rabbit) Could this be another chapter about loss? Losing Paz? |
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Post by zimmyzims on Aug 26, 2014 8:41:46 GMT
Somebody gathered reasons why Jack's experience of Zimmy indeed should make him frightened by her presence. One of these reasons was that when Jack got to Zimmingham and became spider-Jack, Zimmy just didn't care, so she would appear to Jack as someone who can do huge harm to everybody and couldn't care less. However, this is not exactly true, because Jack's experience with the spiders ended by Zimmy insistingly going to save him in Zimmingham. So, evidently, she did care enough to correct the situation and save Jack. |
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kralex
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Post by kralex on Aug 26, 2014 9:16:50 GMT
I wanna be a REAL boy! Came here to post that. Too slow, as usual. I wonder if it's coincidence that Kat's shirt is blue. Now all she needs is a wand and funny hat. Edit: inb4partyhat |
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Post by agasa on Aug 26, 2014 9:58:57 GMT
Artificial limb with a feather hat!
Aside from that, I find the last two panels extremely, extremely creepy (especially if the robots have a rough speech synthesis module, much like the Lindseycommunicator).
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Post by hnau on Aug 26, 2014 11:20:17 GMT
It will probably become very uncreepy soon, like:
"Cool! I so wanted to bring my workshop, but luggage was restricted to 1 suitcase per student. Thank you so much! We will start interface tests as soon as the storm is over."
or:
"You know, there's a rather long waiting list already. Come to my workshop next week and I'll add you to the list. Don't forget your Hardware Maintenance Manual."
or:
Ship wobbles. Vat crashes. Robot chorus: "It was worth it!"
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2014 12:29:39 GMT
Somebody gathered reasons why Jack's experience of Zimmy indeed should make him frightened by her presence. One of these reasons was that when Jack got to Zimmingham and became spider-Jack, Zimmy just didn't care, so she would appear to Jack as someone who can do huge harm to everybody and couldn't care less. However, this is not exactly true, because Jack's experience with the spiders ended by Zimmy insistingly going to save him in Zimmingham. So, evidently, she did care enough to correct the situation and save Jack. That was me, and though Zimmy did crush the whitelegs eventually, it took several nightmarish months of brainwashing to accomplish, when she could have done the same thing in ten seconds at the end of "Power Station". Jack is afraid of being in the wrong place at the wrong time again, and that's a serious, justified fear. What Zimmy is, what can very easily happen to the people around her... Would you want to be on the same boat as her? Also, a link. |
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Post by arf on Aug 26, 2014 14:28:23 GMT
The robots are usually an object of ridicule. Except when they're not. When you realise they are trying very hard to exceed their limitations, as happened in Skywatcher.
'Make me flesh' could be a request to uplift. If so, it's an aspiration to treat seriously.
Still find this page is sounding creepily like the new Doctor Who episode (heck: I can just about cast the characters!).
(And I've now got visions of 'The flesh bots of Gunnerkrigg' stuck in my head. Oooh!)
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Post by deerinheadlights on Aug 26, 2014 14:57:48 GMT
So... I guess I'm the only one who thinks this is just a hallucination caused by Zimmy and that the next page will be Paz being like 'Who are you talking to' and then gasping and seeing some mice she killed for experiments tormenting her?? Haha for some reason I didn't even consider that what was happening was actually happening.
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Post by Neon_Knight on Aug 26, 2014 15:21:35 GMT
Zimmy is in the ship. From there on, anything can happen.
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Post by nero on Aug 26, 2014 16:48:47 GMT
It does look like a nightmare Kat could have. It just doesn't make sense why the robots would rush Kat. Or it could be a flash from the future as Zimmy has that and flashes from the past.
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freeman
Full Member
That 70's Coyote!
Posts: 242
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Post by freeman on Aug 26, 2014 17:13:47 GMT
It does look like a nightmare Kat could have. It just doesn't make sense why the robots would rush Kat. Or it could be a flash from the future as Zimmy has that and flashes from the past. I'm sorry I don't have any concrete evidence, but somehow just the pacing of this episode doesn't feel like a dream episode. There should be some obvious hints, people acting out of place, time skips between events, less coherence. This is just too plain and ordinary, that is before the robots showed up. It has Zimmy in it, and Jack with a girlfriend who looks like Zimmy and now the robots with the proto wing and no adults around that are kind of dreamlike elements, but overall the narration is just wrong for it I think. Lindsay jumping, or Zimmy's "you wouldn't understand" -moment, or annie trying to escape Jack would be more appropriate for Annie's dream plus Annie has definitely been the Narrator in this chapter. In particular, the foreshadowy treatment of Zimmy, Gamma and Jack would not make sense if Kat was to wake up soon and Tom has not thrown that sort of red herrings before. |
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Post by fwip on Aug 26, 2014 17:35:30 GMT
The robots are usually an object of ridicule. Except when they're not. When you realise they are trying very hard to exceed their limitations, as happened in Skywatcher. 'Make me flesh' could be a request to uplift. If so, it's an aspiration to treat seriously. Still find this page is sounding creepily like the new Doctor Who episode (heck: I can just about cast the characters!). (And I've now got visions of 'The flesh bots of Gunnerkrigg' stuck in my head. Oooh!) I'd don't see how the casts fit. At all. I mean, who's recovering from a regeneration-esque event? The only parallel I can think of is the reverse cyborg thing. |
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Post by lordofpotatoes on Aug 26, 2014 20:31:45 GMT
What if this page is misleading? WOuldn't surprise me, but I'm not betting on that horse either so...
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Post by goldenknots on Aug 26, 2014 21:24:18 GMT
I dont understand this move of the 13x robots. They ware always very secretive. No one must know of their existence. And now they came out at a party and don't do it before it or wait till Kat is alone of with a lot less amount of persons around. There's only one S13, "our" Robot. The others are Seraph models, as he was when Annie reassembled him. It's a question, for me, if he is still a Seraph, having changed bodies so many times. |
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Post by ohthatone on Aug 26, 2014 21:50:48 GMT
I wonder if the ship is a kind of mobile ether collecting station and this whole cruise is some ploy of the Court to make Kat take a big step in her research (which I think someone else suggested this might be a Court plot, but I can't find it). the Donlans have already proven themselves capable of fusing their tech with ether.
Annnnd they didn't want to risk her saying no, so they disguised the whole thing as a vacation for the kids.
eh, may be a bit too out there.
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Post by todd on Aug 26, 2014 22:24:44 GMT
If this chapter was all a Zimmy-dream, it would most likely be set in her nightmare town (or at most, in a decaying ship on a sea of the dead), and the only people on board other than herself and Gamma would be Nobodies. I certainly can't imagine Zimmy showing enough interest in the other students at Gunnerkrigg to have such elements as Kat's relationship with Paz or the religion the robots are building around Kat appear in her hallucinations.
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Post by keef on Aug 26, 2014 22:28:11 GMT
I wonder if the ship is a kind of mobile ether collecting station Good pointIn here somewhere... Never. Not even that wild, although all the teachers except the headmaster seem to be decent people, and that includes Lindsey. On the other hand, Lindsey isn't really on board the ship... |
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Post by fish on Aug 26, 2014 22:41:59 GMT
If this chapter was all a Zimmy-dream, it would most likely be set in her nightmare town (or at most, in a decaying ship on a sea of the dead), and the only people on board other than herself and Gamma would be Nobodies. I certainly can't imagine Zimmy showing enough interest in the other students at Gunnerkrigg to have such elements as Kat's relationship with Paz or the religion the robots are building around Kat appear in her hallucinations. I agree. We don't know their full scale yet but Zimmy's powers are not random. We can't just assume "anything goes" as soon as Zimmy appears and attribute every surprising developement to her hallucinations. |
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