Difference between revisions of "428: Starwatching"

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
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(Explanation: Reworked the first paragraph to flow better, ended up working in the second paragraph as well.)
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==Explanation==
 
==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Edit for accuracy and grammar. Add other references for making fun of the word blog in comics}}
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{{incomplete|Edit for content/grammar/spelling. The explanation itself fairly well encompasses the matters in the comic that may need explaining.}}
It's night and [[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] lie down on the earth while looking into the sky. Cueball tells a story. Cueball says all dead bloggers are in the sky watching them, and above them all there is the master blogger, Cory Doctorow. The story is interrupted when Cueball goes on to say that the {{w|Tag cloud}} opens, and {{w|Cory Doctorow}} speaks. Megan interrupts, telling Cueball that he needs to "get out more or less. I cant decide".
 
  
Cueball is referencing the movie {{w|The Lion King}}. The first two panels reference a scene where the protagonist, Simba, remembers how his father, Mufasa, explained the night sky by saying, 'the great kings of the past are up there'. The last panel is from a scene near the climax of the movie, where a the spirit of Mufasa appears to Simba in the clouds, and speaks to him.  
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[[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] are {{w|stargazing}}. Cueball references the movie {{w|The Lion King}}. The first two panels reference a scene where the protagonist, Simba, remembers how his father, Mufasa, explained the night sky by saying, 'the great kings of the past are up there'. The last panel is from a scene near the climax of the movie, where a the spirit of Mufasa appears to Simba in the clouds, and speaks to him.
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{{w|Cory Doctorow}} is a famous blogger. [[Randall]] is [[:Category:Comics featuring Cory Doctorow|quite a fan]]. A {{w|tag cloud}} is a list of links on the sidebar of a blog's layout that helps a reader find posts by type. Tags are shown to be larger the more posts have that tag applied to them.
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Megan interrupts Cueball saying that she can't decide if Cueball needs to "get out more or less." If she were to say "get out more" she would be implying that he needs to spend time away from the computer so he stops seeing links between the real world and Cory Doctorow. If she says "get out less" she implies that he might scare normal people if he were to do what he does in front of them.
  
 
In the title text, Randall mentions that he feels that the word {{w|blog}}, a {{w|portmanteau}} and an {{w|Elision}} of 'web log', sounds silly, and has not become any less silly over the years, despite entering common usage. This is a common theme in Randall's writings and comics. For example xkcd's blog is called "[http://blag.xkcd.com/ The blag of the webcomic]", in mockery of the word blog.
 
In the title text, Randall mentions that he feels that the word {{w|blog}}, a {{w|portmanteau}} and an {{w|Elision}} of 'web log', sounds silly, and has not become any less silly over the years, despite entering common usage. This is a common theme in Randall's writings and comics. For example xkcd's blog is called "[http://blag.xkcd.com/ The blag of the webcomic]", in mockery of the word blog.

Revision as of 01:08, 28 July 2014

Starwatching
I always figured the word 'blog' would sound *less* silly as the years went by.
Title text: I always figured the word 'blog' would sound *less* silly as the years went by.

Explanation

Ambox notice.png This explanation may be incomplete or incorrect: Edit for content/grammar/spelling. The explanation itself fairly well encompasses the matters in the comic that may need explaining.
If you can address this issue, please edit the page! Thanks.
Megan and Cueball are stargazing. Cueball references the movie The Lion King. The first two panels reference a scene where the protagonist, Simba, remembers how his father, Mufasa, explained the night sky by saying, 'the great kings of the past are up there'. The last panel is from a scene near the climax of the movie, where a the spirit of Mufasa appears to Simba in the clouds, and speaks to him.

Cory Doctorow is a famous blogger. Randall is quite a fan. A tag cloud is a list of links on the sidebar of a blog's layout that helps a reader find posts by type. Tags are shown to be larger the more posts have that tag applied to them.

Megan interrupts Cueball saying that she can't decide if Cueball needs to "get out more or less." If she were to say "get out more" she would be implying that he needs to spend time away from the computer so he stops seeing links between the real world and Cory Doctorow. If she says "get out less" she implies that he might scare normal people if he were to do what he does in front of them.

In the title text, Randall mentions that he feels that the word blog, a portmanteau and an Elision of 'web log', sounds silly, and has not become any less silly over the years, despite entering common usage. This is a common theme in Randall's writings and comics. For example xkcd's blog is called "The blag of the webcomic", in mockery of the word blog.

Transcript

[Curbar and Megan are lying on the ground stargazing]
Cueball: Just look at those stars.
Cueball: My father once told me that the great bloggers of the past are up there, watching over us.
[Cueball sits up, and then stands up, stretching his arms in the air as if to encompass the whole night sky]
Cueball: High above the blogosphere, a gap opens in the tag clouds. Cory Doctorow's voice booms forth...
Megan: You need to get out either more or less. I can't decide.


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Discussion

An interesting interpretation. I thought Cueball was just referencing The Lion King. 184.41.49.246 00:53, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

My thoughts exactly. "Great kings of the past," "great bloggers of the past"... I don't think there was any intended reference to Christianity. 24.20.112.104 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

I think the word "blog" is more an elision than a portmanteau, since it's not a conflation (e.g. mansplain, muppet, or smog) of two words, here "web" and "log," but rather a shortening (or eliding) of the same. 108.162.219.21 12:55, 21 May 2014 (UTC)

Why is the transcript marked incomplete? Spongebog (talk) 16:26, 26 July 2014 (UTC)

Fixed a typo and grammar for tag cloud. It was a little cumbersome before, but I think I wound up using bigger words. The part about "or less" seems a little clunky also, but not quite sure how to fix it. Vorik111 (talk) 18:22, 29 July 2014 (UTC)

There needs to be a running count somewhere on the wiki of how many times the word blogosphere appears in xkcd and how it tracks over time. If Randall reads the wiki perhaps it will induce a spiteful uptick. AzureArmageddon 07:48, 30 September 2023 (UTC)