Editing 506: Theft of the Magi
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | This comic is a satirical play on | + | This comic is a satirical play on O Henry's short story {{w|The Gift of the Magi}}. In O Henry's story, a couple with very little money go to great lengths to purchase gifts for one another. The wife sells her prized possession, her hair, to purchase a fancy chain for her husband's prize possession, a watch; while the husband sells his watch to purchase some fancy hair accessories (clips/combs) for his wife. The story is about selflessness, as each party sold their prize possession to purchase something to enhance the other's prize possession. |
− | In this comic | + | In this comic however, the opposite occurs: [[Black Hat]] stole [[Danish]]'s {{w|Roomba}} (an autonomous robotic vacuum cleaner) and sold it to buy {{w|Left 4 Dead|a new game}} for his {{w|Xbox}}, while Danish stole Black Hat's Xbox and sold it to buy a "dueling harness" for her Roomba, highlighting their mutually destructive selfishness. Although these actions reflect their sociopathic personalities and are at each other's detriment, both are apparently touched by the simultaneity of their selfish actions and the symmetry of the consequences. This is a play on the reaction that readers typically have upon reading the O Henry story: although neither of the characters can actually use their gift, the gifts are touching nevertheless because they are literal symbols of the self-sacrificing love the characters have for each other. |
− | + | The "dueling harness", also mentioned in the title text, is an invention by [[Randall]], which would apparently pit the Roombas against each other like the robots in {{w|Robot Wars (TV series)|Robot Wars}}. | |
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− | The "dueling harness, | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | :[Black Hat is holding up a | + | :[Black Hat is holding up a video game. Danish is holding up a harness.] |
:Black Hat: Hey. I sold your Roomba on Craigslist so I could buy myself ''Left 4 Dead''. | :Black Hat: Hey. I sold your Roomba on Craigslist so I could buy myself ''Left 4 Dead''. | ||
:Danish: But I eBayed your XBox so I could get this dueling harness for my Roomba! | :Danish: But I eBayed your XBox so I could get this dueling harness for my Roomba! | ||
− | :Black | + | :Black Hat: Aww. |
+ | :Danish: Aww. | ||
{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
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[[Category:Comics featuring Danish]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Danish]] | ||
[[Category:Video games]] | [[Category:Video games]] | ||
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