Questionable Content 14: "I Deserve A Fancy Butt Emblem."

[Vinyadan]

So Sven... Call 911, and ask what are the options.

"This situation is way beyond our power, but don't despair: we'll have a hero lead the charge!"
"And who would this guy be?"
"Cable!"
"..."
"He's very adaptable!".

[Wraith]

Or just, y'know, pull her clothes on her, prop her up on the sofa, and walk to the grocery store to ask for her cable? Is that an outrageous idea or am I thinking too hard about this?

Although something that just occurred to me; as an AI, is May now "unconscious" or just paralysed in a de-powered body? Because she's acutely claustrophobic, and it's distinctly possible that she is now locked inside her own immobile head while this gets sorted out.

That's a pretty horrible thing to go through so hopefully Jeph plays this for comedy rather than drama, BUT it does offer a chance to show how Sven has grown lately - he's gotten his rocks off but he can't just dump the girl and go find another, he has to actively participate in her well-being after the sex. I kinda hope he shows how much he's improved, and not just because I enjoy seeing Sven and May making fun of each other on equal terms.

[Cikomyr]

Before calling 911, and subjecting the probably-uninsured May to the robot equivalents of an expensive ambulance ride and a long, tedious, soul-killing stint in the ER waiting room, maybe he can call the bar and see if they know where she left her power cable. Or ask Momo if May has a spare.

If it's too awkward to let May's friends and coworkers wonder why she passed out at Sven's house, he can also get the cable specs from the internet and run to Worst Buy for a spare. If May doesn't want yet another cord to trip over or worry about losing, Sven can keep it at his place. After all, a gentleman always has the essentials onhand for an unexpected overnight guest. Anything less would be inconsiderate.

... Why would the ambulance or ER be involved? This is a robot. They probably have their own emergency services.

[AMX]

... Why would the ambulance or ER be involved? This is a robot. They probably have their own emergency services.

Exactly - "the robot equivalent of..."

[Vinyadan]

In this case, it would be sufficient to call a specialised shop and ask them for superfast delivery. You know, drones, or a dedicated runner. It would be somewhat costly, but nowhere near what I am guessing is the price of an ambulance ride in America (which I think is in the thousands?).

[Cikomyr]

Exactly - "the robot equivalent of..."

The EMT don't bring you to a hospital if they clearly identified the problem and can deal with it. They make a judgement call.

In this case, I'd guess "the robot ran out of batteries" is a sufficiently benign and common issue that either the 911 operator or the Robot EMT would know which appropriate step to take.

The point I am making is that May's situation should not be handled with the casualessness of someone's cellphone being uncharged. "oh, I'll find her a charger when it's convenient" is not an appropriate response when we are dealing with a sentient being.

May is being incapacitated against her will by circumstances. No human being should expect anyone around them to casual about it if it somehow happened to them, so it shouldnt be expected also to happen to robots trapped in similar circumstances.

Maybe there's the equivalent of a 24/7 towing service for robot that provide emergency maintenance services. The 911 operator would know about *that*.

[Vinyadan]

Maybe there's the equivalent of a 24/7 towing service for robot that provide emergency maintenance services. The 911 operator would know about *that*.

Faye probably also should.

[Cikomyr]

Faye probably also should.

While your (and other people in this thread) suggestion is valid, appropriate, and probably less costly..

I.. Don't think it'd a good idea for Sven to call up Fayes to help fix his robotic booty call.

In fact, the less May's personal life, friends, etc.. Involved in the resolution of this problem, the better.

I am not saying there's something shameful or whatnot in what she did. I saying that declaring whatnot about her own life to her own social circle is May's decision and should not be made on her behalf.

[Willie the Duck]

I didn't say that no sitcoms have a villain, just that villains or antagonists aren't necessarily the norm. In MASH, for example, Frank Burns was definitely an antagonist, and I wouldn't argue with anyone who called him a villain. But when he left, his replacement, Charles Winchester definitely wasn't a villain, and was only an antagonist sometimes. But MASH was an exception. Who was the villain in Happy Days? Or Friends? Or I Love Lucy? Or Green Acres? They didn't have a villain.

I literally had how this works with Friends in the text you quoted.

[Wraith]

I.. Don't think it'd a good idea for Sven to call up Faye to help fix his robotic booty call.

I agree; it's likely that Faye wouldn't even answer the 'phone to him, even if he was brave enough to call her and admit his most recent sexual escapades to her.

Marten might be a reasonable candidate. Sven was on reasonably goods terms with him after breaking up with Dora, and he knows that Marten has an AnthroPC so that would be a good place to start asking basic questions about how to look after an AI.

Alternatively, he could just pull Union Robotics' number from Google. If he's lucky he'll be answered by Bubbles who will just tell him the answer to his question and offer to bring him a new charger if he's unable to lug May into the shop by himself (although I would LOVE to see the face on the Uber driver when Sven climbs in and is dragging a literal body behind him... Anyone here ever seen 'Weekend At Bernie's' ? )
On the other hand, if Faye answers she might at least be willing to tolerate a "business call" rather than a personal one straight to her cell phone.

[Kato]

May is being incapacitated against her will by circumstances. No human being should expect anyone around them to casual about it if it somehow happened to them, so it shouldnt be expected also to happen to robots trapped in similar circumstances.

No, it's not the same as a person suddenly falling unconscious. It's also not the same as a phone being without battery.
If a healthy person suddenly loses consciousness its very likely there is a serious problem behind it and not getting help quickly endangers them. May not getting charged as far as we know has no consequences beside her basically being asleep. (also, ai back ups) If someone falls asleep you're not going to call an ambulance, do you? I guess a severe case of narcolepsy is the best comparison I can come up with right now. You might be worried if it happens the first time, but you won't call an 911 the tenth time.
Yes, she should get help quickly but not to the point where Sven needs to go crazy with worry.

[Ibrinar]

Moving a body likely uses more energy than her brain and internet access (though who knows might have a giant power demand.) If that is so then her brain might still be active and she can call for help over the internet. Alternatively a non idiotic design should have an emergency beacon or something if it is possible to run out of power that suddenly. Well a non idiotic design should give warning before that happens.

[John Cribati]

To be technical here, May hasn't fallen asleep- she's done the (closest) equivalent to passing out from hunger.

[Cikomyr]

To be technical here, May hasn't fallen asleep- she's done the (closest) equivalent to passing out from hunger.

That's the thing. She won't get better just by waiting, and she need specialized equipment to get better.

And she is a sentient being whose body autonomy has been removed from her entirely.

[John Cribati]

If May had anything other than her a S***ty Ex-Con Chassis, it's possible she could just be temporarily powering down to reroute power from an emergency fuel cell, and that would make the exhaustion analogy slightly more accurate. But that's. Not likely.

[Vinyadan]

Alternatively, he could just pull Union Robotics' number from Google. If he's lucky he'll be answered by Bubbles who will just tell him the answer to his question and offer to bring him a new charger if he's unable to lug May into the shop by himself (although I would LOVE to see the face on the Uber driver when Sven climbs in and is dragging a literal body behind him... Anyone here ever seen 'Weekend At Bernie's' ? )

There was a strip I think, in which Momo had a fit and Marigold had to lug her around, and she said that police stopped her.

[Max_Killjoy]

I think maybe a bit too much is being put into this.

May needs a recharge, using a special cable, that she left at work.

Sven knows where she works, that was part of their discussion outside the bar (which is evidently nearby, I guess I had not realized that), and knows that she left her charger there, so maybe he could call and ask if he can pick it up for her.

If that doesn't work, does he know Momo at all? She'd be helpful and discrete.

Or they probably sell all sorts of chargers at some specialty store, and can look it up by the model, given the number of AIs that seem to have settled in this city.

The point is, Sven can solve this without panic, without drama, and without getting too caught up in metaphysical or philosophical teeth-gnashing.

[The Glyphstone]

Which means this will naturally result in panic, drama, and metaphysical or philosophical teeth-gnashing of course. Because that's how QC rolls.

[Wraith]

If that doesn't work, does he know Momo at all? She'd be helpful and discrete.

He's knows that Momo is Marigold's friend. He knows that Marigold is the girl who accidentally stole his book, and hangs out at Coffee O' Doom sometimes. I think that's the only interaction that he's had with them, as he's never invited to the apartment parties when they break out.

Or they probably sell all sorts of chargers at some specialty store, and can look it up by the model, given the number of AIs that seem to have settled in this city.

The only problem with this plan is finding out what specific model of chassis May is using. It's not like the her Windows CD-Key information is printed on her butt or anything, and there's a lot of different chassis out there.

In theory he might be able to get it eventually by Googling "cheap blue AI chassis no skin wiry hair"... Or he could just call a robotics repair shop and text a photo of her socket to them in way less time.

The point is, Sven can solve this without panic, without drama, and without getting too caught up in metaphysical or philosophical teeth-gnashing.

That's what I'm liking about Sven so far. He's treated May without any prejudice for being an AI - quite a lot less than most characters, in fact - and yet he's remained completely practical about her hardware limitations. Him calmly asking Siri (or is he typing? Can't tell, but it's funnier when I imagine him using the speaker) what to do is a great reaction for him.

[halfeye]

I think maybe a bit too much is being put into this.

May needs a recharge, using a special cable, that she left at work.

Sven knows where she works, that was part of their discussion outside the bar (which is evidently nearby, I guess I had not realized that), and knows that she left her charger there, so maybe he could call and ask if he can pick it up for her.

If that doesn't work, does he know Momo at all? She'd be helpful and discrete.

Or they probably sell all sorts of chargers at some specialty store, and can look it up by the model, given the number of AIs that seem to have settled in this city.

The point is, Sven can solve this without panic, without drama, and without getting too caught up in metaphysical or philosophical teeth-gnashing.

It's after work. So work will be shut and locked up until morning, and so will most shops.

Why did May collapse so quickly? did she fake it? did she cut out everything except her mind so that would last for hours?

There's a big difference between 20 minutes and five seconds, sitting down would have cut power usage by quite a lot.

[Spojaz]

Why did May collapse so quickly? did she fake it? did she cut out everything except her mind so that would last for hours?

There's a big difference between 20 minutes and five seconds, sitting down would have cut power usage by quite a lot.

May wasn't saying she estimates 20 minutes of power left, she was saying that when the battery claims to have power for 20 minutes, she generally has a lot less time than that.

My devices can relate.

[Willie the Duck]

If that doesn't work, does he know Momo at all? She'd be helpful and discrete.

He's knows that Momo is Marigold's friend. He knows that Marigold is the girl who accidentally stole his book, and hangs out at Coffee O' Doom sometimes. I think that's the only interaction that he's had with them, as he's never invited to the apartment parties when they break out.

Momo has (and Sven does not know about this) had erotic dreams about Sven, and may or may not have some kind of crush on him. So this could be the drama.

Why did May collapse so quickly? did she fake it? did she cut out everything except her mind so that would last for hours?

Well, this is a problem with the comic continuity here (or some other not-yet-explained and separate-issue thing going on, such as her battery and low-charge alarm going wrong). She just now started looking for her charge cord, noticed it was missing, and then dropped... what would have happened if she had had her cord with her, and waited 5 more minutes to look for it? Personally, I'm thinking rule of funny is explaining a lot of it, but yeah, there is some fridge-logic issues.

There's a big difference between 20 minutes and five seconds, sitting down would have cut power usage by quite a lot.

Well that's a good point. Perhaps she was burning a lot more juice getting busy than she realized.

[Yuki Akuma]

The joke is that her battery shows her having more time left than she actually has.

It is a phone battery joke.

[tomandtish]

That's a pretty horrible thing to go through so hopefully Jeph plays this for comedy rather than drama, BUT it does offer a chance to show how Sven has grown lately - he's gotten his rocks off but he can't just dump the girl and go find another, he has to actively participate in her well-being after the sex. I kinda hope he shows how much he's improved, and not just because I enjoy seeing Sven and May making fun of each other on equal terms.

In fairness, while Sven was very casual about sex previously, I don't think we ever saw anything that indicated he would abandon a partner who was in the middle of obvious physical distress. He may have been a jerk when it came to relationships, but nothing ever seemed to indicate he would actually leave someone in a physically dangerous situation.

[Rodin]

He's knows that Momo is Marigold's friend. He knows that Marigold is the girl who accidentally stole his book, and hangs out at Coffee O' Doom sometimes. I think that's the only interaction that he's had with them, as he's never invited to the apartment parties when they break out.

They've met since. How aware of Momo's infatuation Sven was at the time is unclear, but I'm betting he gets that reaction a lot and didn't think anything of it. I don't recall them ever sitting down and having an actual conversation though. It's also not surprising May doesn't remember him from their first meeting, especially since Sven no longer has the goofy topknot. I like the dude, but that thing was a crime against fashion.


Edit: Also, I knew about this because I happened to be re-reading that era of the comic (random button is awesome). I'm actually surprised by how much more likeable May comes off now that I've had time to get to know her. I think I would still wind up killing her if we met in real life, but I can actually see why Momo is friends with her now.

[Max_Killjoy]

Samantha and Momo, discussing inter-species relationships

[Keltest]

Plot twist: somebody in QC was a reasonable freaking human being and didn't do something dumb for the sake of drama.

[Max_Killjoy]

Plot twist: somebody in QC was a reasonable freaking human being and didn't do something dumb for the sake of drama.

Holy crap he did...

Spoiler

Show

...exactly what I suggested.

[Cikomyr]

Yay! Good for Sven for doing the smart and right thing!

I dunnow why, I thought the hour was super late, and figured her workplace would be closed.

[memnarch]

Yay! Good for Sven for doing the smart and right thing!

I dunnow why, I thought the hour was super late, and figured her workplace would be closed.

She's at a gas station right? Those tend to be open late, and sometimes 24hr too.