James Cameron
Claire mad
Comments (102)
Somehow I doubt Jeph expected the current arc to generate THIS much strife and dissension.
Believe me, neither did I. Having been thoroughly trounced in the comments I will keep my own council in future. Some very valid points were made and I did reconsider. But as was pointed out I have too much personal baggage along for this ride but I will hold my final opinion until I see how it plays out. Todays comic which is more of the same behavior does not fill me with confidence, but watcha gonna do. I hope to be pleasantly surprised. Also I like the people here. Everyone who disagreed with me stayed polite within reason, a rare thing on the internet today.
I like Claire, I always have. But it wasn't until THIS cartoon I began to understand why people dislike her. Whether or not her anger is warranted or not I feel it's unfair of her to take it all out on Evan. You can see that Evan is genuinely upset and apparently almost in tears so what is Claire's response? "I demand to see the manager." Fuck you Claire, have some fucking compassion. Yes there have been many fuckups to lead us to here, but having been the last link in a chain of fuckups myself I can guarantee you who's going to bear the brunt of this, and it ain't Ol Boaty. While on that subject, Ol' Boaty is an asshole. For the love of God either lay in some Dramamine for your passengers or quit pretending you don't LOVE to watch them puke so you can snark at them when they're feeling at their lowest. Anyone who has ever been seasick can tell you how low that is. Ol' Boaty needs a very up-close and extremely personal encounter with an Architeuthidae.
She didn't demand to "see the manager." Evan offered it to her and she accepted. Also, she's not a customer; she isn't in that kind of power dynamic with Evan. If anything, it's the contrary: Evan is the head of security on an island that Claire can't easily leave. Claire is at Evan's mercy, not the other way around, and I don't see what kind of display of compassion Claire owes her in that circumstance. Claire is a potential hire who was offered a job, was flown out here, is in a foreign country, on an island she can't get off of unless Ol' Boaty (who as you point out has a hate-on for her boyfriend to the point of arguably wishing death on him) decides to oblige, she's been treated with a complete lack of professionalism, and now *the head of security of this compound, who is also manifestly incompetent and emotionally fragile, has invaded the privacy of _her hotel room_ for no good reason, and started by lying about it to her, including raising the notion of the room being bugged.* And in fact the latter, i.e. Evan's own unreasonable behaviour, is the only thing she has actually criticized Evan personally for. Of course she's angry. In her place I'd be scared out of my wits.
At this point, Cubetown might as well be covered wall to wall in red flags. It has so many red flags that the bulk of it's load bearing support superstructure is constructed of red fabric. It has so many red flags the CIA have been planning to overthrow it.
It has so many red flags that there are USAF Opfor pilots slamming down vodka in the bars.
haven;t gotten an email since dec 11 about new posts, i even check if notidcations are on, and they are
I’m disappointed in the lack of Red Flags in the comments. 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
We ran out of red flags a week ago.
This better be a bluff.
Nothing screams "security professional" like a tiny swiss army knife strapped to your bicep :D
Are those snacks she's keeping in her tactical pouches?
Typical of Claire to go from "I need more data" to defcon 1 in the space of a single conversation lol. I can't wait to see the director.
The Director was created at the same event as Yay. But there was only enough feck, gorm, and hap for one
When this posted to the Web, you said, "Claire comes off as more unreasonably angry than I intended." I don't think she's unreasonably angry at all. Having worked with librarians (academic, public, and special) for 20 years, I've seen the malarkey they have to put up with their professional lives. What she's dealing with here is pretty par for the course, really, and she's being quite reasonable to call them out on it.
Can I ask who you're quoting, @Ruth Holloway?
"This fucking Cubetown" should make Claire feel a bit at home. Well, except for if the Director is at ~200 feet. Claire never lived at 6 Atmospheres of pressure.
Sure she has! That's about as much pressure as she puts on herself, 24 / 7
I’m waiting for some big reveal about the Director. Like maybe they’re a character we’ve seen before. Oh man, is it possible the Director is Yelling Bird??
I haven't found Cubetown as bad as some of the places I've known, honestly. Plus, I like quirky. But then again, everyone has their own standards.
I feel like Cubetown would be hilarious/fun to visit, and also terrifying/a nightmare to work for
To visit the Director they'll need to go aboard an AI submersible... Ol' Sinky.
Wait, wait, wait, that's too obvious. (And has been mentioned before, drat it.) I predict the AI submersible will be named: Snoodles.
The dream, rapidly the nightmare.
Claire's anger is valid. I'd be pissed off as all hell if I were in her position.
Has Cubetown just been a side quest for Claire and Martin?
For the others too. Claire and Marten will be imprisoned and the rest of the cast will have to do the Big Damn Heroes bit.
I object to everyone dissing Claire. I find her honesty refreshing.
It does only seem to be a handful of vocal people from my observation so far. I've seen far more comments supporting and/or sympathetic to Claire here.
It would be kind of hilarious if it actually were James Cameron, both because of his notorious irascibility and his also notorious love for the deep sea. The TV show Future Man has an episode set in a fictionalized version of Cameron's home, and it's got the same sort of weird science vibe as this particular setting.
Wait…Roy Wooten has a tv show?!
I'm with Claire here. Maybe it's my time in academia, or the current state of just about everything, but my tolerance for whimsical incompetence is at extremely low ebb.
This is totally leading up to Claire becoming the new Director or something. She'll break them off a piece of Hot Take, and they'll be like "Dang. Claire, you cannot be our Info Science Person. You must become our new Overlord."
I hereby note the use of the pronoun “they” in reference to the Director.
Many of the AI's use "they." It's because they are part outer-facing human gender appearance and part inner-functioning enslaving machines. But, you didn't hear that from me.
I bet it's Dolphin Jack
🐬 “Akshally the fellers call me Ickickickeeeekekrrr down here. Howdy!”
It is time for the putting down of the foot. Basic levels of professionalism for an organization with these resources should be orders of magnitude beyond this. They can't get talent that will reliably use their resources responsibly while behaving like this, and that's a cycle that spins rapidly out of control unless it is corrected before it is too late.
Claire. Claire, no. Do NOT get in a submarine when there's this much ineptitude.
Don’t worry; they repaired all the screen doors so the jellyfish can’t squeeze through anymore.
Wasn't Claire pretty cranky when she started the internship at the library? When she and Martin first met? If so, this is pretty much peak Claire.
Yeah she's not a very likable character.
giant squid giant squid giant squid giant squid
Architeuthis, Architeuthis, oh, oh, oh Architeuthis!
If Claire leaves now Clinton is going to be really really really really really really mad. But he cares for her so he'll get over it after a short stint as a Nemesis.
Eh, Claire's anger seems contrived. Like big whoop. This reflects more on Claire than it does on Cubetown. Does Claire REALLY have such a low tolerance to things like this? Maybe she isn't who they are looking for if that's the case.
I think you're still looking at it from reader perspective not Claire's perspective. For us, ha ha wacky hijinks cute robot lady. For Claire, babbling weirdo in her room.
I expect them to meet the director, and their dogs, and Yay's first words will be, “We did warn you that Cubetown was chaotic.”
"Lightless, crushing ocean depths" - sounds like the Director is an Abyssinian.
I’ve played enough of the video game “Control” to know where this is going and I hope Claire is good with a Chekhov gun.
Fan theory: the Director is Cupressaceae, prior to rising into space.
Probably rather Rhizophoraceae, due to all that salt water. Cupry wasn‘t the only one IIRC
"Do I really get to meet the Director?." " Iä, you R'lyeh do."
Avatar 2 is gonna be great, I'm going opening night
It's already out here in Europe. To judge from the critics, it's a good flick.
Anyone else think Claire is being a bit unnecessarily harsh here?
I think all the little bits of weirdness have been adding up, and this bit finally shoved her over the edge.
Is the Director the whale-form AI that Marten was meant to be partnered with? Or some kind of hyperintelligent giant squid?
Ooooh, plot twist
Have we been making enough Deep One references on this plotline? Maybe Cubetown is where they moved to after the US Navy torpedoed Devil Reef (just off Innsmouth).
And Evan shadowed over them.
Somehow this is going even worse than I expected. Either they're going to end up just back home or Claire is going to end up running Cubetown, perpetually grumpy.
She could fiendishly recommend Clinton 😏
Meet Claire, soon-to-be Ruling Empress of Cubetown.
Well, that escalated quickly. Unless Claire is playing the whole “leverage for negotiating the terms of a job you’re planning to take anyway” game. But that seems uncharacteristic of her.
the D I R E C T O R
Re: D I R E C T O R - ⤴️
I don't completely understand why this, of all the various red flags, is the one that Claire finds unacceptable. I guess the concern is that she wouldn't get privacy and security even in her personal space?
I'm pretty baffled, too. That kind of went from 0-100 out of nowhere?
Just hope he's not doing Avatar, that one sucks. Yeah, I said it.
The last air bender or the James Cameron movies?
If Claire does meet with the director, it would either be a virtual meeting, or a trip in Ol' Subby. Unless the director is an AI with multiple bodies, like Yay.
Ol’ Sinky
Of course she can handle lightless crushing depths, she's worked retail.
Oh no, if they go to meet the Director, Moray's gonna wonder where they've gone...
It’s cool Moray can just flush herself down a drain and come out of the sink in the Director’s office
I still feel bad for Evan.... Curse you for writing characters I become emotionally invested in, Jeph!
I am reminded of the comment I heard many years ago that the F-4 Phantom was proof that if you strapped enough engines to it, you could get a barn door to fly. Clearly, if you throw enough money and AI horsepower at something, you can get Cubetown to.....well, exist, mostly. :)
"Pigs fly just fine, with enough thrust."
I suspect a lot of people are rooting for them going to Cubetown, but at this point just not taking the job would be pretty logical.
Since these stories are likely written in advance pretty sure there was NEVER a chance of them actually staying at Cubetown, and it was all a matter of contriving a way to make sure they wouldn't.
I believe Claire is exhibiting what we call in the business "high dudgeon" in which one is permitted to *flounce*
You have to put skill points into low dudgeon and medium dudgeon first, but it's worth it in the long run.
So wait the sweeping for bugs thing was a cover? For... cleaning her room?
Yes.
This is some uncharacteristic angerery
Director: Elmon K Melon 🥸
Wait, is this where Melon goes to work having bugs dropped on her? Cuz that...fits perfectly. And if she got the job by having a relative as the director.
Gotta admit, I was concerned. Theory 1: they really are this dysfunctional Theory 2: this is all some kind of weird test. Hazing if you will.
I'm not getting a hazing vibe from this group. I think this is just the consequence of huge amounts of resources with little oversight or direction around exceptionally focused and possibly egotistical scientists.
Reintroducing Pintsize at this point would be injecting a modicum of sanity to the place…
SHE MAD
Eesh, why lie about it in the first place? What a terrible decision.
People constantly lie poorly about the most inane shit IRL, and QC has pretty firmly established that (many? most?) AI are just as bad at being functional as humans are. I imagine that they panicked when Claire arrived before they had finished tidying, tried to come up with an impressive-sounding explanation because they wanted to make a good impression, and rolled poorly on their deception check.
Claire: *RANTS INTELLIGENTLY* Director: “So many good points and ideas; when can you start? Claire: “Wait, what?”
Exactly this.
When I said that there was a non-zero chance of an AI with a carcinoform chassis dwelling beneath Cubetown I didn't expect it to be the director.
They have a CUNNING PLAN you see....
THE <b><i>BRINY DEEP</i></b>
Claire IS pretty salty at the moment
I think Claire's instincts here are spot on. Get out while the getting's good.
glad youre okay jeph, also OH SHE MAD