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[TRENCHES] Thursday, April 19, 2012 - Reincarnation

GethGeth LegionPerseus VeilRegistered User, Moderator, Penny Arcade Staff, Vanilla Staff vanilla
edited April 2012 in The Penny Arcade Hub
Reincarnation


Reincarnation
http://trenchescomic.com/comic/post/reincarnation

A Lucky Break

Anonymous

If I got anything meaningful out of my time in QA, it was that it reminded me of what I didn’t want my life to become.

Stuffed into rows with the other cogs doing mindless work, OT with no end in sight, and being “whored out” to other titles that needed extra peons. Day in and day out, I was sitting there in those drab little rows wanting to run screaming out of the place.

I was a girl from an animation background doing work I felt was beneath me. For someone who thrives on creativity, you could not pick a job further from that.

In a fit of madness and pure desperation, painfully shy little me managed to secure a lunch meetup with the man who was truly my savior. He was a character animator for the title I tested and he ended up being my greatest supporter and mentor to this day.

He helped me get a position doing character animation and has shared with me a wealth of knowledge in the field.

If you know what you want and you fight tooth and nail for it, there are good people out there who will notice.


Geth on
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Posts

  • RMS OceanicRMS Oceanic Registered User regular
    Happy story! :D

    And the first panel of today's comic was pretty great.

  • IncenjucarIncenjucar VChatter Seattle, WARegistered User regular
    Yeah, I'm a fan. Happiness all around.

    Just waiting for that guy that got fired the first time around to come back for revenge.

  • MuddBuddMuddBudd Registered User regular
    Everything about that first panel is great.

    There's no plan, there's no race to be run
    The harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun.
  • AnzekayAnzekay Registered User regular
    That story is great :D Nice to have a happy one, for once.

  • AntimatterAntimatter Devo Was Right Gates of SteelRegistered User regular
    soooo whoever the main character replaced is presumably okay, then

  • KarlKarl Registered User regular
    A happy story from Trenches........I don't know how to respond to this.

  • KoopahTroopahKoopahTroopah The koopas, the troopas. Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
  • SabreMauSabreMau ネトゲしよう 판다리아Registered User regular
    Maybe because she didn't use a fake name.

  • VyolynceVyolynce Registered User regular
    First impression: did the guys just finish 999 before writing this?

    Second impression: wait, didn't he recognize Cora in the lobby?

    i-2RhVtTJ.jpg

    nedhf8b6a4rj.jpgsig.gif
    AC:NH Chris from Glosta SW-5173-3598-2899 DA-4749-1014-4697 @vyolynce@mastodon.social
  • RMS OceanicRMS Oceanic Registered User regular
    Maybe Cora resigned rather than was fired.

  • theResetButtontheResetButton Registered User regular
    So, if we're to take panel four seriously, then he probably has prosopagnosia. Regarding him recognizing Cora earlier, maybe she's left enough of an impression that he recognized other features such as her build or hair color or something and guessed it was her - or they just didn't plan for this at that point.

    Keep honking: I'm also honking.
  • IvarIvar Oslo, NorwayRegistered User regular
    Maybe Cora resigned rather than was fired.

    Or maybe her contract ran out. She may even have worked there on several earlier projects.

  • El SkidEl Skid The frozen white northRegistered User regular
    Cora's also female. Some people....let us say... have a better memory for female names and faces

  • KoopahTroopahKoopahTroopah The koopas, the troopas. Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
    El Skid wrote: »
    Cora's also female. Some people....let us say... have a better memory for female names and faces

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVQT3638TZA

  • jackaljackal Fuck Yes. That is an orderly anal warehouse. Registered User regular
    I think he just has general brain problems that can be repurposed when needed.

  • StormwatcherStormwatcher Blegh BlughRegistered User regular
    Maybe consistency and continuity are not really important, and they'll just do that kind of thing because they're not anally retentive?

    I'm ok with that. I hate the nerd obsession with continuity. Just make them do whatever is good for the plot.

    Steam: Stormwatcher | PSN: Stormwatcher33 | Switch: 5961-4777-3491
    camo_sig2.png
  • AurichAurich ArizonaRegistered User regular
    I got the impression that it was nothing as serious as actual disorders that require links. I think he just has zero interest in any personal aspect of his peons whatsoever. Which plays well with his friendly boss act.

    First panel is good; fourth panel "Rarley's" grinning "I've got the first day jitters!" is awesome.

  • Ori KleinOri Klein Registered User regular
    #1 The signature red letter ("n" was it?) is missing from 'Rarley''s headphones - this may be intended as a slight alteration of the new identity (or just a blatant oversight).

    #2 Credenza obviously recognizes Cora as a previous employee and likely has been contracted several times over in the past (she did know Q for what seemed a long time). He did forget all about Issac (albeit with the help of Booz) just a day after (even just the office interview during which he was, allegedly, sober and, extra allegedly, sane). He probably forgot all about him already just the same. He did not make the impression of one of great care for human resources.

    #3 The story is likely a rare gem. Also, and apologies but it need be said: it was a female who roped the attention of a male. Talent may be collecting its dues, but I'm going to suggest that her gender helped in her little QA2Dev RPG game play-through.

  • PriestPriest Registered User regular
    I do believe, and, quote me if I'm wrong, but when I was younger, we read comics and laughed. That's all we did. We laughed and moved on.

    :)

  • tastydonutstastydonuts Registered User regular
    El Skid wrote: »
    Cora's also female. Some people....let us say... have a better memory for female names and faces

    Yea, I think it's this too.

    “I used to draw, hard to admit that I used to draw...”
  • theResetButtontheResetButton Registered User regular
    Aurich wrote: »
    I got the impression that it was nothing as serious as actual disorders that require links. I think he just has zero interest in any personal aspect of his peons whatsoever. Which plays well with his friendly boss act.

    This probably is actually the case, but I've always thought it an interesting (albeit frustrating) disorder and figured I'd drop some tangential knowledge bombs.

    Keep honking: I'm also honking.
  • GaslightGaslight Registered User regular
    No workums. Go home, for sad times.

  • TaramoorTaramoor Storyteller Registered User regular
    Cora would've had her name on her application. So he can respond to that and act like he remembers her and/or cares.

    Sort of like when your boss will come into your office and ask "What's happening" and then keep talking because he really doesn't care but studies have shown that if you ask an employee about their day they're more likely to work unpaid overtime because they think you care.

  • RehabRehab Registered User regular
    Gaslight wrote: »
    No workums. Go home, for sad times.

    Sometimes you can just immediately tell when a line came from Mr Holkins.

    NNID: Rehab0
  • hardxcore_conservativehardxcore_conservative Registered User regular
    Cora also reapplied under her real name; Credenza wouldn't have to recognize her face.

  • GaslightGaslight Registered User regular
    Rehab wrote: »
    Gaslight wrote: »
    No workums. Go home, for sad times.

    Sometimes you can just immediately tell when a line came from Mr Holkins.

    I was actually sort of thinking Scott for some reason.

  • Fatty McBeardoFatty McBeardo Registered User regular
    Maybe Cora resigned rather than was fired.

    He knows her scent.

  • GaslightGaslight Registered User regular
    Ori Klein wrote: »
    #1 The signature red letter ("n" was it?) is missing from 'Rarley''s headphones - this may be intended as a slight alteration of the new identity (or just a blatant oversight).

    It was in Tuesday's comic. I am thinking oversight.

  • metfanscmetfansc Registered User regular
    In a fit of madness and pure desperation, painfully shy little me managed to secure a lunch meetup with the man who was truly my savior. He was a character animator for the title I tested and he ended up being my greatest supporter and mentor to this day.

    He helped me get a position doing character animation and has shared with me a wealth of knowledge in the field.

    If you know what you want and you fight tooth and nail for it, there are good people out there who will notice.

    Yeah, I'll bet he "shared his wealth of knowledge", I am sorry but you don't happen to get noticed on at lunch in that situation without a whole lot of that "shy girl" working wonders on that poor geek.

  • jackaljackal Fuck Yes. That is an orderly anal warehouse. Registered User regular
    Whatever works.

  • CambiataCambiata Commander Shepard The likes of which even GAWD has never seenRegistered User regular
    So, if we're to take panel four seriously, then he probably has prosopagnosia. Regarding him recognizing Cora earlier, maybe she's left enough of an impression that he recognized other features such as her build or hair color or something and guessed it was her - or they just didn't plan for this at that point.

    She's the only girl working there. Everyone remembers who she is.

    "If you divide the whole world into just enemies and friends, you'll end up destroying everything" --Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind
  • AurichAurich ArizonaRegistered User regular
    Dat prosopagnosia reminds me of some kind of demon spell I fell under when I was just starting a third shift on no sleep once. People's faces made no damn sense. I could only see one eye. It wasn't displaced, and if I looked for it I could find the other one, but I could only see one at a time. Man, I just had no fucking idea. It was kind of terrifying. Brains get up to some weird shit, amirite?

  • JepheryJephery Registered User regular
    Maybe consistency and continuity are not really important, and they'll just do that kind of thing because they're not anally retentive?

    I'm ok with that. I hate the nerd obsession with continuity. Just make them do whatever is good for the plot.

    I'll agree to the extent that a good joke is worth breaking continuity for comically centered entertainment, but for pieces of work centered on a dramatically developing narrative, doing things like "dues ex machina" will break a viewer's suspension of disbelief and remove their motivation for continuing to follow the story or leave them dissatisfied with the resolution if it happens at the end.

    That said, there are terrible ways of using continuity, like putting in references to obscure things that happened in a comic published 20 years ago that almost no one remembers, or making an entire episode to work out some continuity problem that could have just been hand waved away.

    }
    "Orkses never lose a battle. If we win we win, if we die we die fightin so it don't count. If we runs for it we don't die neither, cos we can come back for annuver go, see!".
  • DiannaoChongDiannaoChong Registered User regular
    Did anyone else expect the story's last sentence to be "And I only had to sleep with him"

    steam_sig.png
  • IncenjucarIncenjucar VChatter Seattle, WARegistered User regular
    Ivar wrote: »
    Maybe Cora resigned rather than was fired.

    Or maybe her contract ran out. She may even have worked there on several earlier projects.

    For a lot of game testing gigs, you're officially a "temporary" worker and can only work for a year at a time before they have to lay you off for a period of time. They're happy to hire you for years and years and years after if you'll put up with being a permanently temporary worker.

  • AntimatterAntimatter Devo Was Right Gates of SteelRegistered User regular
    Lotta casual misogyny being thrown around in here.

  • King RiptorKing Riptor Registered User regular
    Antimatter wrote: »
    Lotta casual misogyny being thrown around in here.

    You see when minor inconsequential events don't line up you have to think of a reason for it.

    I have a podcast now. It's about video games and anime!Find it here.
  • GaslightGaslight Registered User regular
    There goes the thread.

  • tapeslingertapeslinger Space Unicorn Slush Ranger Social Justice Rebel ScumRegistered User regular
    edited April 2012
    Ivar wrote: »
    Maybe Cora resigned rather than was fired.

    Or maybe her contract ran out. She may even have worked there on several earlier projects.

    this was my assumption back in the introduction conversations-- it sounded like they were all contract workers who knew each other's quirks and things.

    this comic, my first thought was that Credenza was actually just going along with the name change to be nice/pretend to be oblivious, since he seems to do "bumbling affable boss" pretty well
    but then
    with Credenza it seems like sometimes you just don't know... ha

    tapeslinger on
  • WassermeloneWassermelone Registered User regular
    Ori Klein wrote: »
    Also, and apologies but it need be said: it was a female who roped the attention of a male. Talent may be collecting its dues, but I'm going to suggest that her gender helped in her little QA2Dev RPG game play-through.

    What

    Why did this need to be said? There is nothing about that story that at all implies anything like what you said.

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