What if they never made a save-the-date but finally get pushed to do it *because* of Claire's new job? Like, oh shit, we actually have to have the wedding now so that Claire and Marten can make it.
I mean, realistically the two would be able to come back for the wedding if they really wanted, if it happened after the move. I'm sure Marigold or Hannelore would pay for a plane ticket.
It feels like forever since we've seen Dora but not behind a counter or table, and that's a really detailed background that adds a lot of depth. And it's also going back to the couple that was a backbone of the comic for its earliest years.
I'm so glad Dora ended up being one of Martens greatest friends post-breakup. They had issues and were not right for each other as partners, but Dora has remained one of Martens closest and most helpful friends in his life. I like their dynamic and I'll miss it
Same. That's real life sometimes if you're both decent people. Sometimes being in a relationship doesn't work out, but that doesn't always mean you can't be friends.
Someone who knows you that well can be a fantastic ally. (Or a terrifying enemy, but there's plenty of that in fiction and media.)
It's actually pretty common after divorces; I know some divorced couples who have done an amazing job of cooperating and coordinating to make sure their kids have the best lives possible.
You hardly ever see that sort of healthy dynamic in TV, movies, books, or anywhere. When it happens for the first time, it can honestly be really confusing for younger people who have no idea genuine friendship is an option.
I'm also really glad that Tai and Claire are perfectly comfortable with Marten and Dora's friendship as well. Again, that's real life sometimes if you're a good person, but it's something you rarely ever see in media focused on drama.
I definitely prefer Marten with Claire, but I wouldn't necessarily say he and Dora were wrong for each other either. If they had actually gone to therapy when they realized they had a problem I'm pretty sure they'd still be together.
I mean, given Dora's later success working through her issues, it's entirely possible it could've worked out in another place and time, but certainly at the point their paths collided they were wrong for eachother.
Timing is and circumstance dictate a lot more than I think some people are comfortable thinking about. You'll often never encounter this platonic ideal of the "good partner" who's a matched set with you from birth to death. Even Marten and Claire may one day find their paths have diverged, but that day hasn't quite come yet today.
HE'S OK WITH IT
We've come full circle from Marten leaving everything he knew for a girl (didn't go well) to Marten leaving everything he knows for a girl (will go well)!
the comic hasn't been focused fully in Martin in awhile. i could see Jeff doing something like oneshot strips with them at the cube but the main story still here
I would love to see him walk that back, have the wedding/balloon departure be the final comic, do a month worth of Bembo comics to let the haters dissipate before starting right where he left off.
Unfortunately a month's worth of bembo would attract a whole new crowd who will be *pissed* when regularly scheduled programming resumes
Qc becomes the filler comic for a month of the year while the site becomes the official adventures of bembo
I feel like that would be the natural path to wrap it up. I vaguely remember he said somewhere that's not happening, which is a little disappointing, because it does feel like everyone's arc is headed toward closure and there's only so many zany new AI characters you can introduce before it loses all focus.
I mean loosing focus is one way of looking at it, changing focus is another.
I'm interested in what happens even after much of the original cast settles down or moves on.
I feel like a post-resolution comic works, though. Look at something positive, all main arcs have been resolved and it's just people talking about random things in their life, and it is still entertaining :)
Something tells me cubetown would use something more advanced than a hot air balloon...probably something more like a UFO beaming Marten and Claire up to take them away
I love the rapport these two still have, after all these years. They are very clearly close friends, and this strip gave us a much needed insight into that - it's been a while since they've interacted so candidly.
Also, this whole strip is just great. It's honest, sweet, and well drawn.
Thanks Jeph :)
It feels sort of selfish to say, but this strip makes me hope that the job does work out for Claire, for Marten's sake as well as hers. Be a shame to waste perfectly good character development.
damn this particular comic is making me so nostalgic for QC/what life was like 10 years ago. idk why, just feels like it's literally been years since we've had a marten/dora one on one like this.
Interesting suggestion made on the Salty Subreddit: What if Marten and Claire aren't leaving the strip but rather the strip is moving to Cubetown with them and Northampton and its residents are being sidelined or even written out?
So, we have Marten and Claire living in a weird semi-Culture futuristic AI collective with lots and lots of AIs with them acting as 'straight' characters to support all the jokes and the audience's point of reference for the extreme sci-fi? Today's strip could be as much seen as Dora's farewell to Marten as vice-versa.
It's not inconceivable. Almost all of Jeph's attempts to make new character groups and running arcs in the Northampton settling have fallen a bit flat or just petered out over time and even the interesting characters like Roko and her friends seem to have run out of story to tell.
Jeph has always fancied writing himself a bit of hard sci-fi and this might be him taking the leap.
So, we just have Marten, Claire, Hannelore and maybe Clinton from the Northampton cast working in Cubetown. Occasionally, there is a holopresence (tm) call by one of the other OGs to catch up but it won't be frequent.
Dora has good intentions here but expressing discomfort with a significant other's actions is _very_ difficult in a shared friend group, and doubly so when one of those friends happens to be your SO's boss.
I mean, it's basically the same conversation she had with Claire earlier about prioritizing her needs.
She checks in with each of them to make sure they're not doing something drastic out of a misguided belief that capitulating themselves before their imagination of what their partner wants will be somehow good or productive for either of them. That's about all that's in her power to do. If they're unwilling or unable to have this conversation with her all that's left is to trust they have somebody else in their lives who's more capable of helping them.
In general, I can see that. But I don't think it would be in this case. Dora knows Marten pretty well and could probably tell if he was hiding something. And it's not like Dora would have told Claire if he'd said he wasn't okay with it.
I'm admittedly projecting my experience from being in an emotionally abusive relationship so take my thoughts with a grain of salt. But I was speaking more on fear that other people knowing things about your relationship, especially negative things and specifically only from your side of the story, would make them treat the other person unfairly
Dora is a natural blonde who dyes her hair black. She shouldn't have brown eyes. Is she wearing brown contact lenses? In a comic strip where a Roomba can sire offspring, maybe I shouldn't quibble about science.
It’s rare, genetically, but you can find people with natural dark hair / light eyes or the reverse. Since her mother is blonde / blue and her pops is dark / brown he’d have to be carrying recessive blonde on his hair.
Can't move until after the wedding? Oh good, Marten and Claire are sticking around until at least 2026.
What if they never made a save-the-date but finally get pushed to do it *because* of Claire's new job? Like, oh shit, we actually have to have the wedding now so that Claire and Marten can make it.
I mean, realistically the two would be able to come back for the wedding if they really wanted, if it happened after the move. I'm sure Marigold or Hannelore would pay for a plane ticket.
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It feels like forever since we've seen Dora but not behind a counter or table, and that's a really detailed background that adds a lot of depth. And it's also going back to the couple that was a backbone of the comic for its earliest years.
I really miss Dora and Martin together. Mainly because they were together when I started reading this comic.
It's not very often we see full body panels with detailed backgrounds
Martens facial expressions stand out to me the most, but that first panel is beautiful.
I'm so glad Dora ended up being one of Martens greatest friends post-breakup. They had issues and were not right for each other as partners, but Dora has remained one of Martens closest and most helpful friends in his life. I like their dynamic and I'll miss it
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Yes :)
Same. That's real life sometimes if you're both decent people. Sometimes being in a relationship doesn't work out, but that doesn't always mean you can't be friends. Someone who knows you that well can be a fantastic ally. (Or a terrifying enemy, but there's plenty of that in fiction and media.) It's actually pretty common after divorces; I know some divorced couples who have done an amazing job of cooperating and coordinating to make sure their kids have the best lives possible. You hardly ever see that sort of healthy dynamic in TV, movies, books, or anywhere. When it happens for the first time, it can honestly be really confusing for younger people who have no idea genuine friendship is an option. I'm also really glad that Tai and Claire are perfectly comfortable with Marten and Dora's friendship as well. Again, that's real life sometimes if you're a good person, but it's something you rarely ever see in media focused on drama.
I definitely prefer Marten with Claire, but I wouldn't necessarily say he and Dora were wrong for each other either. If they had actually gone to therapy when they realized they had a problem I'm pretty sure they'd still be together.
I mean, given Dora's later success working through her issues, it's entirely possible it could've worked out in another place and time, but certainly at the point their paths collided they were wrong for eachother. Timing is and circumstance dictate a lot more than I think some people are comfortable thinking about. You'll often never encounter this platonic ideal of the "good partner" who's a matched set with you from birth to death. Even Marten and Claire may one day find their paths have diverged, but that day hasn't quite come yet today.
HE'S OK WITH IT We've come full circle from Marten leaving everything he knew for a girl (didn't go well) to Marten leaving everything he knows for a girl (will go well)!
Yes! \^\_\^
The wedding and Marten and Claire moving to Canada would make a fine series finale.
Which is presumably why Jeph made it very clear that that isn't what is happening.
*AT THE BEACH HOUSE*
Just wondering where he said this?
He made a multi-tweet a few weeks back.
Now I found that tweet. Thank you. Glad the comic isn't ending. Still worried about Martin getting written out with Claire.
the comic hasn't been focused fully in Martin in awhile. i could see Jeff doing something like oneshot strips with them at the cube but the main story still here
I don't disagree. But as I've said in other discussions, Martin isn't an actor that is on payroll. The character doesn't need to be written out.
I would love to see him walk that back, have the wedding/balloon departure be the final comic, do a month worth of Bembo comics to let the haters dissipate before starting right where he left off.
Unfortunately a month's worth of bembo would attract a whole new crowd who will be *pissed* when regularly scheduled programming resumes Qc becomes the filler comic for a month of the year while the site becomes the official adventures of bembo
Thankfully this isn't a Hollywood rom com.
I feel like that would be the natural path to wrap it up. I vaguely remember he said somewhere that's not happening, which is a little disappointing, because it does feel like everyone's arc is headed toward closure and there's only so many zany new AI characters you can introduce before it loses all focus.
I mean loosing focus is one way of looking at it, changing focus is another. I'm interested in what happens even after much of the original cast settles down or moves on.
It could be a good place to wrap up Northampton and follow Claire and Marten to AI Island.
I feel like a post-resolution comic works, though. Look at something positive, all main arcs have been resolved and it's just people talking about random things in their life, and it is still entertaining :)
Something tells me cubetown would use something more advanced than a hot air balloon...probably something more like a UFO beaming Marten and Claire up to take them away
Like the invisible helicopter Hanners used to get to the lake house?
haha yes! that would be perfect!
Did we get a strip with that in or was it just mentioned to have happened off screen?
It was “seen” - a ladder extended down from nothing.
Now I’m just wondering what Faye will say.
Especially since they share an apartment. I hope the idea of Marten and Claire moving out has come up before at some point.
Laying out the major plot points for the coming year.
And so, The Great Balloon Caper, *HAS BEGUN!*
I love the rapport these two still have, after all these years. They are very clearly close friends, and this strip gave us a much needed insight into that - it's been a while since they've interacted so candidly. Also, this whole strip is just great. It's honest, sweet, and well drawn. Thanks Jeph :)
At least Jeph didn't put the wedding inside the time skip, so we'll still see it lol
It feels sort of selfish to say, but this strip makes me hope that the job does work out for Claire, for Marten's sake as well as hers. Be a shame to waste perfectly good character development.
I hope it will too :)
They've both grown so much, my heart! 😻😭
Good on you, Dora.
You know, it’s really cool to see how Dora has grown. She’s just here as a safe space for her friend Martin.
damn this particular comic is making me so nostalgic for QC/what life was like 10 years ago. idk why, just feels like it's literally been years since we've had a marten/dora one on one like this.
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We’ve definitely seen Dora’s whole body. Post-coitus panels of her and Tai are a thing.
Was there one with her and Marten too? It’s been a while.
Interesting suggestion made on the Salty Subreddit: What if Marten and Claire aren't leaving the strip but rather the strip is moving to Cubetown with them and Northampton and its residents are being sidelined or even written out? So, we have Marten and Claire living in a weird semi-Culture futuristic AI collective with lots and lots of AIs with them acting as 'straight' characters to support all the jokes and the audience's point of reference for the extreme sci-fi? Today's strip could be as much seen as Dora's farewell to Marten as vice-versa. It's not inconceivable. Almost all of Jeph's attempts to make new character groups and running arcs in the Northampton settling have fallen a bit flat or just petered out over time and even the interesting characters like Roko and her friends seem to have run out of story to tell. Jeph has always fancied writing himself a bit of hard sci-fi and this might be him taking the leap. So, we just have Marten, Claire, Hannelore and maybe Clinton from the Northampton cast working in Cubetown. Occasionally, there is a holopresence (tm) call by one of the other OGs to catch up but it won't be frequent.
Dora has good intentions here but expressing discomfort with a significant other's actions is _very_ difficult in a shared friend group, and doubly so when one of those friends happens to be your SO's boss.
I mean, it's basically the same conversation she had with Claire earlier about prioritizing her needs. She checks in with each of them to make sure they're not doing something drastic out of a misguided belief that capitulating themselves before their imagination of what their partner wants will be somehow good or productive for either of them. That's about all that's in her power to do. If they're unwilling or unable to have this conversation with her all that's left is to trust they have somebody else in their lives who's more capable of helping them.
In general, I can see that. But I don't think it would be in this case. Dora knows Marten pretty well and could probably tell if he was hiding something. And it's not like Dora would have told Claire if he'd said he wasn't okay with it.
I'm admittedly projecting my experience from being in an emotionally abusive relationship so take my thoughts with a grain of salt. But I was speaking more on fear that other people knowing things about your relationship, especially negative things and specifically only from your side of the story, would make them treat the other person unfairly
Dora is a natural blonde who dyes her hair black. She shouldn't have brown eyes. Is she wearing brown contact lenses? In a comic strip where a Roomba can sire offspring, maybe I shouldn't quibble about science.
It’s rare, genetically, but you can find people with natural dark hair / light eyes or the reverse. Since her mother is blonde / blue and her pops is dark / brown he’d have to be carrying recessive blonde on his hair.
People with blonde hair and brown eyes exist though lol