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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2020 18:36:47 GMT
A development in a novel need not be about characters. It can be about any motif you pick as the author, particularly about a word in as many of its meanings and applications as you can think of (words like "trammel" invite this, for instance). GkC has done it before: e.g. "Divine" (obvious), "Quicksilver" (referring to Renard's / the body-swapping power's alchemical sign, but also to My Little Tofana's "spirit form", and by association to her scheme in the chapter), possibly "Thread", but I find that one more nebulous (Ariadne's thread glossed in Ch. 2, the "thread" of synthetic flesh served on an experimental platter, lips weaved together figuratively, a motivic reference to "Ties" as another chapter about human bonds; other meanings?)
This chapter might end up mirroring Meetings and Re-Meetings, which also featured three important confrontations shortly after one another, and one that gets pseudo-foreshadowed to emphasize the twist. Chapter 75: The Awakening. All the robots get to work without issue, Proto-Boxbot says "Helloooooooo!", chapter icon, bonus page.
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Post by autumnn on Feb 19, 2020 19:28:07 GMT
"OK. I want Robot Barbie, J, Camera Guy, and...uh...whatever the hell that thing is." That's obviously Mecha-Squidward. |
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Post by pyradonis on Feb 19, 2020 21:51:11 GMT
Is she a bit conflicted about what she is doing here? She probably is, but that very conversation about life and death is also the reason she is so set on what she is doing right now. The rest of the Court can deactivate a robot and think nothing of it. But to her it's a form of murder. She's trying to save them. Personally I think once she's explained the situation, the golems will want to help her. Those robots are their children, or their descendants at least, and I doubt they would like what is happening to them. Or they won't think anything of it, because, after all, "It's good to be useful." |
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Post by migrantworker on Feb 19, 2020 22:19:52 GMT
Arthur and Juliette seem to approve. I first read their glances as “concerned”, but on second look Juliette’s mouth is neutral/slightly upturned so maybe you’re right! I read their glances as Arthur being grateful and proud of Juliette's work, who in turn appreciates the recognition of her efforts. It's a really touching scene, actually. |
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Post by basser on Feb 20, 2020 1:28:29 GMT
Ok but so that shield is obviously the work of Kat's parents though, right? At the very least it's Anja's magic being replicated and repurposed by the Court. Is that why Kat's turning to Ye Olde Bot Brigade for help instead of her technomancer parents?
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Post by madjack on Feb 20, 2020 4:02:02 GMT
The bonus page will just be proto-boxbot still sitting in storage. ...and seen from Kat's screen, a red "REJECTED" superimposed on his image, Ouch that's harsh, even for boxbot. |
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Post by Sky Schemer on Feb 20, 2020 4:40:28 GMT
"OK. I want Robot Barbie, J, Camera Guy, and...uh...whatever the hell that thing is." That's obviously Mecha-Squidward. Originally I was going to call it Toucan Sam, but decided that was too regional. |
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Post by Gotolei on Feb 20, 2020 6:42:44 GMT
Ok but so that shield is obviously the work of Kat's parents though, right? At the very least it's Anja's magic being replicated and repurposed by the Court. Is that why Kat's turning to Ye Olde Bot Brigade for help instead of her technomancer parents? For what it's worth, Anja was "extremely angry" that her shield magic/tech/whateveryouwannacallit was being used without her knowledge or permission. And she'd probably be the best bet for someone who'd understand the inner workings of it. But on the other hand, Anja still works for the Court, and while the circumstances surrounding the implementation of the shield may be questionable, it'd be pretty hard to argue that the deployment of it didn't/isn't directly helping the Court to some degree. Dunno if Annie's brought up that Loup claims that he can pop it like a bubble and it only stopped him because he wasn't expecting it, but she doesn't exactly seem to be in much of a forthcoming mood lately so from the Court's point of view it's probably an impassible barrier to anything not on its whitelist. So Anja would probably be hesitant to help with restoring the robots if that meant making the shield weaker or punching unexpected holes into it. (If there was a way to power the shield through other means that didn't pull from essential resources/supply though, then restoring the bots for their capabilities for reconstruction, transport etc would probably be worthwhile. But I imagine the Court would be the one taking the initiative on that effort if the possibility was there, and it's been seven months of in-comic time so) My gaze is continually drawn back to Kat's hair. I know this has been discussed at length [...] I don't know if the pun was intended or not but I can't not notice it every time I read it |
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Post by basser on Feb 20, 2020 7:57:33 GMT
Hmm well the bubble must be a recent-ish development, within the last few decades at most, so probably no one is willing to try screwing around with it until they're certain they've got viable secondary defenses lined up.
Since I super dig all the retrocausal nonsense I'ma go ahead and posit the theory that Future Kat is behind the bubble code, and thus the reason the Court hasn't made much progress with it is because you can't out-hack the Robot God.
Also just had the thought to wonder if one of the ultimate goals of the Court is in fact to create a Robot God, or maybe just any god. If you're looking to amass power and you've discovered the world is retrocausal based on the whims of random people, and that some of those people can wind up becoming powerful gods, maybe it would make sense to set up a "school" and start recruiting all the magic kids you could find, just in case one of em happens to transcend the mortal plane.
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Post by pyradonis on Feb 20, 2020 10:54:50 GMT
Oh yes, just thinking of this now: Arthur, the only known robot to have been part of the barrier and having gotten his mind back is present. Did anyone bother to ask him what the robots would prefer?
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Post by saardvark on Feb 20, 2020 14:04:05 GMT
Hmm well the bubble must be a recent-ish development, within the last few decades at most, so probably no one is willing to try screwing around with it until they're certain they've got viable secondary defenses lined up. Since I super dig all the retrocausal nonsense I'ma go ahead and posit the theory that Future Kat is behind the bubble code, and thus the reason the Court hasn't made much progress with it is because you can't out-hack the Robot God. Also just had the thought to wonder if one of the ultimate goals of the Court is in fact to create a Robot God, or maybe just any god. If you're looking to amass power and you've discovered the world is retrocausal based on the whims of random people, and that some of those people can wind up becoming powerful gods, maybe it would make sense to set up a "school" and start recruiting all the magic kids you could find, just in case one of em happens to transcend the mortal plane. Seems unlikely future Kat would design the purple spang bubble shield, considering the inconvenience (Court losing most of its robots), pain (Juliette losing Arthur), and dubious morality from her point of view (Court commandeering/enslaving robot brains for single purpose of Court protection)... UNLESS future Kat decides these inequities are a absolutely necessary as a sufficient driver to ignite now-Kat's determination to launch onto her current course (freeing Arthur, making his new body, rescuing some robot brains and whatever she's up to presently...). The Court may well want to make a counter-God to the chaotic uncertainty of Coyote and now Loup... so I think youre on to something there.... and Coyote would agree with you! |
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Post by todd on Feb 20, 2020 23:59:24 GMT
I think it's worth remembering, again, that the source of the statement that the Court is "man's attempt to become God" is Coyote, rather than anyone in the Court itself. We don't know that that's how the Court perceives its goals. I suspect that it's more a case of Coyote knowing things about the ether (cf the "Coyote's Secret" chapter) that the Court doesn't know - so he'd see their attempts to manipulate the ether as seeking to achieve godlike powers. And that the Court is trying to do it simply because they want to fit the ether into their scientific view of the world, without realizing the side-effects of their efforts.
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Post by Runningflame on Feb 22, 2020 1:52:22 GMT
Hmm well the bubble must be a recent-ish development, within the last few decades at most, so probably no one is willing to try screwing around with it until they're certain they've got viable secondary defenses lined up. Since I super dig all the retrocausal nonsense I'ma go ahead and posit the theory that Future Kat is behind the bubble code, and thus the reason the Court hasn't made much progress with it is because you can't out-hack the Robot God. Also just had the thought to wonder if one of the ultimate goals of the Court is in fact to create a Robot God, or maybe just any god. If you're looking to amass power and you've discovered the world is retrocausal based on the whims of random people, and that some of those people can wind up becoming powerful gods, maybe it would make sense to set up a "school" and start recruiting all the magic kids you could find, just in case one of em happens to transcend the mortal plane. Seems unlikely future Kat would design the purple spang bubble shield, considering the inconvenience (Court losing most of its robots), pain (Juliette losing Arthur), and dubious morality from her point of view (Court commandeering/enslaving robot brains for single purpose of Court protection)... UNLESS future Kat decides these inequities are a absolutely necessary as a sufficient driver to ignite now-Kat's determination to launch onto her current course (freeing Arthur, making his new body, rescuing some robot brains and whatever she's up to presently...). After future Kat frees the robots from the shield, she will ask them how they feel about what they've been through. They will gaze at her with loving green eyes and all together reply: "It was worth it." |
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Post by atteSmythe on Feb 22, 2020 4:32:19 GMT
I admit, I’m a bit confused at how the robots went into this unexpected, unrecoverable trance (as though in response to some ancient code), while at the same time using tech derived from Anja’s spell from just about 15 years ago
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