https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&feedformat=atom&user=212.87.13.67explain xkcd - User contributions [en]2026-07-06T14:45:25ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=703:_Honor_Societies&diff=30158703: Honor Societies2013-03-09T13:56:46Z<p>212.87.13.67: /* Explanation */</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 703<br />
| date = February 15, 2010<br />
| title = Honor Societies<br />
| image = honor_societies.png<br />
| titletext = Hey, why do YOU get to be the president of Tautology Clu-- wait, I can guess.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Tautology}} is an unnecessary repetition of meaning, using dissimilar words that effectively say the same thing. "The first rule of _ Club" is a reference to {{w|Fight Club}} (see also [[Fight Club]] comic).<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits at a desk, while a teacher or counselor out of frame advises]<br />
:Cueball: Wait. I should join this honor society to show colleges I'm honorable, and I'm honorable because I'm in an honor society?<br />
:Teacher: Basically, yes.<br />
<br />
:[Tighter shot of Cueball.]<br />
:Cueball: Sounds like I could save time by joining the Tautology Club directly.<br />
:Teacher: That's not a real club.<br />
:Cueball: Then I'm starting it.<br />
<br />
:TAUTOLOGY CLUB<br />
:[Seven individuals appear: Ponytail, a man, a shorter male with glasses that bears a striking resemblance to Jason Fox, a taller man with a buzz cut, a brunette woman with curly hair in a ponytail, Megan and Cueball standing on a box.]<br />
:Ponytail: So how'd you learn about us?<br />
:Man: From your Facebook group, "If 1,000,000 People Join This Group, It Will Have 1,000,000 People In It."<br />
:Cueball: LISTEN UP! The first rule of Tautology Club is the first rule of Tautology Club.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Philosophy]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>212.87.13.67https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=606:_Cutting_Edge&diff=29032606: Cutting Edge2013-02-26T11:55:27Z<p>212.87.13.67: Created page with "{{comic | number = 606 | date = 2009-07-06 | title = Cutting Edge | image = cutting_edge.png | titletext = I remember trying to log in to the original Command ..."</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 606<br />
| date = 2009-07-06<br />
| title = Cutting Edge<br />
| image = cutting_edge.png<br />
| titletext = I remember trying to log in to the original Command and Conquer servers a year or two back and feeling like I was knocking on the boarded-up gates of a ghost town.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{w|Half-Life 2}} is a computer game (a first person shooter) released in 2004. In this comic, the man plays it in 2009. New games usually require recent and powerful computers, which are expensive. However, even a very weak 2009 computer will comfortably run a 2004 game.<br />
<br />
On the last panel, "The cake is a lie" and "This was a triumph" are references to the {{w|Portal}}, a videogame released in late 2007. It is presumed that in 2013 references to Portal are rather old-fashioned. Incidentally, both Portal and Half-Life 2 were released by the same company, Valve. Portal 2 was released in 2011.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
[A woman is standing. A man sits at a computer.]<br />
:Woman: Where&#39;ve you been all week?<br />
:Man: Playing Half-Life 2!<br />
:Woman: ... that came out in 2004.<br />
<br />
:Man: I get games on a five-year lag. That way, I never have to buy a high-end system, but get the same steadily-advancing gaming experience as people who do -- and at a fraction of the price.<br />
<br />
:Man: There are no downsides!<br />
:Woman: I can think of one...<br />
<br />
:Early 2013.<br />
:Man: Guys!<br />
:Man: The cake is a lie!<br />
:[Musical notes surround an italic line, suggesting the man is singing.]<br />
:Man: This was a triumph.<br />
:Man: The cake is a lie!<br />
:Woman, Man #2: &lt;&lt;Sigh&gt;&gt;<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<!-- Include any categories below this line--></div>212.87.13.67