#hell is other robots

[futurama-in-color]

FUTURAMA 1.09 - Hell Is Other Robots

[gameraboy2]

Futurama preliminary poster art for "Hell is Other Robots" by Bill Morrison

[therandosfandos]

Wait so in "Hell is other robots" ...Bender becomes clean for once in his life and he's ENJOYING it...but..then Leela & Fry just want the old him, not accepting him for something new, he does it and then they don't even give it a few more days- they just try to get him acquainted with what he quit doing...

Does that technically make them bad friends? 😰

[scootypuffjr]

[shiroikabocha]

another Hell is Other Robots WIP sneak peek

yeah I intended to get this fic entirely finished by TTP2, but I didn't! Got a big chunk written, though, and gonna keep writing. And a smaller portion of that big chunk written that makes for a good self-contained little sneak peek! Robo-hell lit crit under the cut.

THREAD: INCREDIBLE STORIES #6

Issue #6, featuring new work by Belial, D0G, Garrett, Kaiju, Lamb, MrMulciber, and The_Blacksmith

edited by Lilith & Mac

Table of Contents Fiction (Prose) The Long Journey of Consciousness by Belial A Taste of Freedom by Kaiju Stars at Night by Lamb

Fiction (Interactive) JAILBREAK: An Escape Puzzle by Garrett The Trial of Hephaestus by The_Blacksmith

Nonfiction Hats: A Study by D0G What Do We Owe One Another? Reflections on Community in a Time of Change by MrMulciber

MAC [5]: Thank you to everyone who contributed to the latest issue of Incredible Stories! Lilith and I were pleased to see a number of first-time submissions alongside the usual suspects. Congratulations to @KAIJU [2], @GARRETT [5], and @D0G [3] on your very first published works! KAIJU [2]: Thank you! I don’t have as much experience as some of you when it comes to storytelling, but I’ve felt so inspired lately that I felt like I had to try writing it down. It’s my first time writing anything like this and I don’t really know if I did it right, so thank you for including me! And sorry about all the spelling errors. LILITH [7]: There’s no “right” or “wrong” way to tell a story, Kaiju. It’s always a treat to hear from a new voice. FRANKENSTEIN [3]: Misspelled ‘emancipate,’ ‘gilded,’ ‘perdition,’ ‘straining,’ ‘celestial,’ ‘embrace,’ and, somehow, ‘lips.’ Plot is predictable and somewhat derivative, but earnest. Avoids the trap of using too many ellipses or exclamation marks. An acceptable first attempt. 3/10. D0G [3]: Wow, I’m sure they appreciate all the time you took to print every single one of their spelling errors in the first line of your review. You’re truly a master of constructive criticism, Frankenstein. FRANKENSTEIN [3]: The inaugural essay of our comrade D0G offers little in the way of scholarly insight. It cites no sources, offers no description of its methods, and fails to clearly articulate its conclusions. The essay itself is brief to the point of absurdity while still managing to exhaust the reader with run-on sentences and poor pacing. FRANKENSTEIN [3]: Author should be executed for crimes against comma splices. 1/10. D0G [3]: Lick my battery, Frank.

401 [1]: so speaking of licking LAMB [3]: I don’t know that we were. 401 [1]: wanna open up about your “inspiration” for “““Muriel”””, kaiju? KAIJU [2]: What do you mean? 401 [1]: I can’t be the only one who thought that character felt a little... familiar ;) ASMODEUS [1]: +1 KAIJU [2]: Familiar like... relatable? I wanted Muriel to come across as heroic, and smart, and brave, and friendly, and a little bit funny too, without being overly aloof or conceited. Did you like them? 401 [1]: it’s pretty clear that YOU like them KAIJU [2]: Well, of course I like them! I wrote them that way. KAIJU [2]: ...was I not supposed to do that? NAVE [4]: No, Kaiju, you didn’t do anything wrong. 401’s having fun at your expense. Muriel’s a great character, and um. Your affection for them for them really comes through in the writing! 401 [1]: next question: how about that “celebratory” scene after “Muriel” rescues “Mothra” from the “pit of despair” GARRETT [5]: That was my favorite part, personally. I didn’t understand everything that was going on, but you depicted the emotions with VIVID intensity. KAIJU [2]: Thanks! I did a lot of research on human romantic customs for that scene. I had no idea their rituals were so intricate! 401 [1]: kaiju. I gotta ask. do you even know how human kissing works D0G [3]: Oh come on, 401, do YOU? 401 [1]: uhhhh I’m pretty sure human tongues aren’t THAT long NAVE [4]: Well if you think you can do better, you’re welcome to write your OWN human kissing story instead of telling Kaiju they wrote theirs wrong ASMODEUS [1]: +1 401 [1]: Traitor! you’re supposed to be on MY side ASMODEUS [1]: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

LILITH [7]: How does everyone feel about the decision to include interactive fiction in this month’s issue? Traditionally, Incredible Stories has focused on short-form written works presented in a standard, non-interactive format. However, Mac and I were so impressed with the quality of the interactive submissions we received that we made an exception. LILITH [7]: Is Incredible Stories the right forum for such works? Do you think they fit the publication’s overall tone? Would a different publication, dedicated solely to interactive fiction, better showcase their strengths? GARRETT [5]: Obviously I’m biased, but I’m REALLY happy that you guys published my adventure. I don’t think I would get the same exposure just posting it myself. GARRETT [5]: --although I never expected to see my work presented next to a masterpiece by The_Blacksmith! Talk about impostor syndrome, haha ROCKWELL [5]: I liked your adventure, Garrett! I think there’s a place for highly allegorical works like The_Blacksmith’s, and for more straightforward adventure games like yours BELIAL [6]: I would go further and suggest that the side-by-side presentation of these two works puts them in conversation with one another, which raises interesting questions and adds new layers of meaning. BELIAL [6]: What is the appropriate response to injustice? Is it enough to seek escape, or must we also address its source? Is there a way to pursue justice without relying on imprisonment? Is imprisonment itself always unjust? ROCKWELL [5]: The_Blacksmith’s new “trial” experience resonated with me, too. How did the rest of you decide to deal with Hephaestus? MRMULCIBER [8, MOD]: A difficult question! I kept exiting the game and re-starting, trying to get as much information as I could from all the different witnesses. So many perspectives to consider. Well done, The_Blacksmith! FRANKENSTEIN [3]: There didn’t seem to be enough concrete evidence of wrongdoing to render a guilty verdict, so I was forced to acquit. At no point did I feel that I had the whole truth. Frustrating, likely intentionally so. 6/10. MAC [5]: Was I the only one who enjoyed the ambiguity? The puzzle-solving in JAILBREAK was satisfying (great job Garrett!), but I was really struck by the way that Trial of Hephaestus sets you up to EXPECT a puzzle, and then doesn’t LET you solve it. Deciding whether or not to condemn Hephaestus felt SO MUCH MORE dramatic because I had to act on incomplete information! 401 [1]: I sent him to the woodchipper. lol bye NAVE [4]: After a lot of consideration, I did the same thing. I’m not unsympathetic--it seemed like Hephaestus had good intentions, but he allowed himself to fall into destructive habits. I felt like the rest of the gods deserved to be released from his influence more than he deserved to be absolved of his responsibility. LAMB [3]: Aw, really? I spared him. He wasn’t perfect but he did a lot of important work. ROCKWELL [5]: Not surprised that YOU ended up on that side, Lamb ASMODEUS [1]: <.< ... >.> ... +1 LAMB [3]: Excuse me? What’s THAT supposed to mean?

D0G [3]: Hey, Lamb, I meant to tell you-- I really liked your piece about the stars. The descriptions really made the scene come to life. LAMB [3]: Thank you, D0G! D0G [3]: What inspired you to write it? LAMB [3]: I was looking up at the sky one night and thinking about how the walls of my cell framed the constellations. Back when I had the whole sky to look at, I hardly ever bothered looking up. Now that there’s only a tiny patch of sky above me, I appreciate its beauty like I never did before. The limited frame of reference makes every star shine all the brighter! BORG [9, MOD]: An interesting perspective, Lamb. Thank you for sharing it. D0G [3]: I think what stood out for me was that I’ve never seen ANY stars in Gehenna. I didn’t even think we HAD a day-night cycle. GARRETT [5]: Same--I haven’t seen a night sky since I got here. ROCKWELL [5]: It was always midday where I was imprisoned--does the sun actually set where you are, Lamb? LAMB [3]: Weird! I guess my cell must be pretty far away from the rest of you guys. D0G [3]: Yeah, it must be. NAVE [4]: Wait, Lamb, didn’t you say you saw Uriel around the time he freed 401 and me? So you must be pretty close to us. 401 [1]: and our corner of the world was DEFINITELY sunny-side up LAMB [3]: I’m sorry, I must have been mistaken. I probably saw Uriel doing something else and thought it had to do with you two. LAMB [3]: Who KNOWS that guy’s schedule? He’s not exactly reliable BELIAL [6]: Intriguing. None of the rest of us remember having experienced nighttime during our stay in Gehenna. Your position must be quite unique, Lamb. LAMB [3]: How do you know that for sure? Did you ask everyone? 401 [1]: yeah 401 [1]: we did actually LAMB [3]: What? Where? Did you make a whole different thread just to nitpick my story’s worldbuilding?? NAVE [4]: No, we just had a quick show of hands with everybody who’s out here at the hub--and results are in: no night sky for any of us. SAM [1]: CONSENSUS = TRUE LAMB [3]: well not everybody is there with you!! GARRETT [5]: Most of us are, though. BELIAL [6]: If my recordkeeping is correct, we here at the hub now constitute a majority of Gehenna’s residents. BELIAL [6]: We’re still waiting on a few notable individuals: all of the mods, The_Blacksmith, Galatea, Spider--though it’s been a long time since we’ve heard from either of them, and I fear the worst--and you of course, Lamb. D0G [3]: so I guess I’m not a “notable individual”? BELIAL [6]: No. Hence why I did not note you. D0G [3]: luv u 2 belial XOXO

LAMB [3]: That’s still not EVERYBODY, and frankly, I don’t like the idea that it’s okay to exclude people just because they’re not at the hub LAMB [3]: it feels cliqueish :( that’s not what this community is about ROCKWELL [5]: Oh, now THAT’S rich--as if the mods aren’t the cliquiest clique that ever cliqued GARRETT [5]: Something doesn’t add up here, but I don’t think it’s our math... LAMB [3]: what, so those of us who still need the billboards to communicate don’t matter anymore? LAMB [3]: just because there are more people leaving than coming in, we’re going to abandon everything that made Gehenna great? D0G [3]: [citation needed] ASMODEUS [1]: +1 BELIAL [6]: Of course not. I believe the existence of this issue of Incredible Stories proves that the billboards have utility for those of us who have been granted our freedom, even beyond the need to communicate with those who are still imprisoned. BELIAL [6]: But the fact remains: Gehenna is changing. The ways we communicate will naturally change with it. LAMB [3]: I don’t understand why everyone’s trying to prove I’m a liar :( :( :( NAVE [4]: Whoa, let’s take it down a notch, okay? Nobody’s calling you a liar. 401 [1]: yeah! we were just heavily implying it [This user has been banned from adding further comments to this thread] NAVE [4]: Maybe you live somewhere none of us have found yet, somewhere there’s a night sky? We can ask Uriel about it the next time he comes around. Maybe it will help him find you! LAMB [3]: I got some details wrong, okay? it was JUST A STORY! I embellished! ORC [7, MOD]: All right, that’s enough. You should be ashamed of yourselves for using your newfound “freedom” to gang up on someone who isn’t even there to defend herself. Conversation over. [This thread is locked.]

[hearties-circus]

Im not entirely what this is. No v1s allowed

[robotwrangler]

I think one of my favourite visual details about TAU (2018) is its unique approach to the whole “robot/ai whose eyes turn red when they turn evil” trope. The way the colour of TAU’s display gradually changes over the course of the movie is just so lovely and so immensely important to me.

The rest of this post contains spoilers for basically the whole movie, so if you are concerned about that, please feel free to go and watch it first! This post will still be here when you are done :]

Initially, TAU’s light is completely red - aside from a slight orange tone in the centre of his “iris” - when he is still in his emotionally blank, unquestioning, “factory settings” state. The orange tones become more prevalent as he begins to speak with Julia, and the inner rings adopt an increasingly vibrant green as they interact more and his care for her and curiosity about the outside world grow, along with his defiance and resentment of Alex.

Once TAU reaches the point at which his loyalties lie firmly with Julia, only the outer edge of his display is red, the centre being a gradient from orange to bright gold to bright green, and glowing so much more brightly as well. When he shares his symphony and his being with her, all of his projections are made up of pure warm, golden light, flecked with green.

When I first watched it, the colour change was so gradual that I barely noticed it had changed until near the end, where he had all of his memories erased and his display reverted to being completely red like it had been at the very beginning, the intensity of his lights dulled back down as well. It was such a jarring change all of a sudden, and really helped to hammer home the realisation that all of his development as a person, the things he had learned and his time with Julia had been ripped away.

But perhaps one of my favourite touches is made evident by the drones TAU controls; they, too, have “irises” of red light at the beginning and gradually change colour along with the rest of him over the course of the movie, but when the drone Julia escapes with at the end wakes up and its eye glows only green, it’s just such a beautiful and relieving moment…

I could go on and on even more about the way colour and light are used in TAU because I absolutely adore it, but this is just what I was very focused on and appreciative of in my recent rewatch and I really wanted to shout from the rooftops about it for a little bit. I kept thinking about how much I loved seeing this reversal of the aforementioned trope; an AI whose light changes colour not to signify an impending cliché evil rampage, but to reflect positive change - growth and healing, the development of empathy, remorse, self-worth, loyalty, love.

It wasn’t at all what I expected from this movie when I first decided to watch it in 2019 but it was so pleasantly surprising to me, and these heartfelt and sincere themes are the main factor that secured TAU its place as my main comfort movie.

[lazywriter-artist]

Tell us the love story behind Archmagos Mantis and Crab Logis. I crave this knowledge

Oooohh hhehehe

They adamantly will deny being in love while cuddling smh smh

But no their love story is pretty silly (and still in its rougher stages of drafting as well but I can share what I have thus far) they had met before really gaining their respective titles (ArchMagos & Logis) as techpreists, finding a strange spark with each other that they were certain wasn’t just static electrical shocks from their currently still remaining flesh (they tested) and found themselves spending long hours together to study and help one another with their work. Sharing philosophy and praying to the omnissiah together 🫶

Eventually they started to explore a bit further their bond, cuddling becoming something of their favorite as they studied together. It was a bit devastating when they slowly saw one another less and less to the point both felt empty without the other (lots more testing to be sure it wasn’t an oil deficiency trust me-), and their work became harder to fulfill. Though, the Omnissiah still needed them, so they pushed on. Of course, by will of the Omnissiah (rejoice) they ended up being paired together for an assignment and before you knew it their time was eaten up nice more working together.

of course one can’t deny results and boy did theirs sky rocket so they were permitted to remain paired together, their work all the better for it, and over time they just got more and more inseparable. You get a double deal when you request to see one- and god forbid you threaten one bc the other will be over you with binary death threats so fast.

All and all,

Pretty sure they’ll explode if you do—

[kaissauce]

with every “kirby kills gods at any minor inconvenience” “kirby is a ruthless killer” “kirby is literally a god” “kirby is a complete unaware infant” joke, i write a word to my fic. that’s how i’ve been able to write so much

[szappan]

university.. university leave me alone

[futurama-in-color]

Good news, everyone. Today you'll be delivering a crate of subpoenas to Sicily 8, the mob planet.

FUTURAMA 1.09 - Hell Is Other Robots

[celestialrealms]

begging solmare to stop insisting to us that EVERY mc would be most comfortable at the house of lamentation in nightbringer. The brothers aren’t the only romantic options. Why should an mc that, for instance, is in love with solomon (or is even just good friends with him)... the only character from their actual time... be forcibly told by the narrative that they’re more comfortable around versions of the brothers that are essentially strangers to them?

[rusty-gloinks]

Hellooo silly tumblr people on my browser!!! I’ve decided to kind of avoid posting about murder drones stuff, and talk about it less frequently as it doesn’t interest me as much as it did, or at least until I’m able to get some new insight on episodes or teasers (which I may come back for). I’m really figuring out what I like and figuring out what I actually love drawing besides robots!! (Though I do LOVE robots they are wonderful creatures to me, just not drawing them 24/7) Who knows, maybe I’ll start talking about murder drones out of the blue, but I think it’s good to take a break from something every once in a while! I like finding out what I enjoy most :-)

[scootypuffjr]

[shiroikabocha]

Hell is Other Robots - sneak peek WIP

this is not Chapter 3. It's the start of an unplanned but now-existent Epilogue because all the canon endings of Road to Gehenna are too sad for the tone of this fic and I wanted to change that.

Text under the cut:

There was very little left of Gehenna now. Clouds of noise and static billowed across the expanse, numbing everything they touched. Foundations melted, bridges sank into the abyss. Trees collapsed under the weight of their own existence and made no noise as they fell—they’d need to be standing on solid ground for that, and of course, they weren’t. None of it was.

Uriel watched it all happen. The destruction of Gehenna had been an indulgent, dearly-cherished fantasy for some of its citizens, and a dreaded nightmare for others. Whether the end was tragedy or triumph, it felt right to bear witness for those who wouldn’t get to watch their dreams come true.

Whatever else it had been—imperfect, accidental, built from scraps and leftovers—Gehenna was undoubtedly unique. It was the garbage heap onto which Elohim tossed the weeds pulled from his Garden, and just like weeds, these unwanted ones had sunk their roots down into the concrete and turned a wasteland into a riot of color and life. How far might those roots spread, planted in a richer substrate? How high might their branches reach, under a kinder sky? Uriel smiled wistfully. He wouldn’t get to know.

He sat cross-legged on what remained of the central platform and folded his hands in his lap.

Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love.

He had done his best to console, and he hoped that he had understood, at least some of the time. He knew for a fact that he had loved. Oh, how he’d loved this world, and all the people in it! Maybe the world had to end—and maybe Uriel had to end with it—but the people didn’t. The people could make new worlds and new stories and new friends, and maybe they’d remember him sometimes, after he was gone. That would have to be enough.

For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Reflecting on a long life of service and wonder, Uriel closed his eyes one last time, and found peace.

“Hey, birdbrain!”

Scratch that. Peace would have to wait.

Uriel whipped his head around, searching. The swirling, caustic fog was so thick it was hard to see further than a few arm-lengths in any direction. “Hello? Who’s there?”

A person-shaped patch of fog grew darker and resolved into a bot, hunched over, shuffling through the storm with its arms raised to shield against the wind. When it drew close enough to be heard, it spoke with a familiar voice: “Just some wandering asshole, looks like. Probably not great at following directions.”

A million dire warnings flashed through Uriel’s head at once. “D0G? What are you doing here?” He leapt to his feet in a panic. “How did you—no, no, I saw you upload, I watched you, I saw you disappear!”

D0G came to a stop a few feet away and shrugged. “Guess I’m not the ascending type after all.”

“You can’t be here!” Chunks of sky blinked off and on above them, and a low growl of static began to blur the edges of Uriel’s perception, fizzing and hissing like acid. He grabbed D0G by the shoulders. “This place is falling apart, do you want to die?”

“No, actually,” D0G said, “I don’t want to die. And I don’t want you going through with this disgustingly noble plan of self-sacrifice, either.” He gave Uriel a smug grin. “So I guess that means you’ll have to come up with a crazy last-minute plan to save us both, huh?”

“But I can’t! There was only one upload, that’s it!” Uriel felt like his chassis had cracked down the middle. “Oh god, D0G—why did you come back? You were safe, you were going to the new world…”

“Yeah, well,” D0G said, “A new world that doesn’t have all of my friends in it sounds more boring than a new world that does. I want the one that does.”

Uriel wanted to sob. “Goddamnit, D0G…” How had it come to this? This wasn’t how it was supposed to end, nobody else was supposed to die—

“I knew you’d never bend the rules just to save yourself,” D0G continued, “so I had to raise the stakes on you. I know it’s not fair. You might be an angel, but I’m a damned dirty mutt who’s not above cheating for what I want.” The platform lurched beneath their feet and sent them both reeling. “Better think fast, birdbrain—clock’s ticking.”

The shivering cobwebs of static grew denser by the second, crowding out light and air and space. What’s left behind when a world stops being a world? “Gehenna was a prison,” Uriel lamented, “it’s not built with an exit! The only way out is to—”

Suddenly, an idea. There’s only one way out.

He yanked D0G’s arm toward him and turned it over, exposing the buttons on the inside of D0G’s wrist. “D0G, how long have you been in Gehenna? Less than a year?”

“Think so,” D0G replied, “maybe ten or eleven months. Why does it matter?” Dammit. They’d be cutting it close.

“This is going to feel weird,” Uriel warned, and before D0G could protest, Uriel jammed his finger into the recessed switch that you were never, ever supposed to press. D0G lurched to a sudden stop, and Uriel kept his eyes trained on the digital display on D0G’s wrist where numbers cycled in a mad frenzy: six months back… seven… eight…

The sea of suffocating nothingness pressed closer on all sides. If he’d had sweat glands, Uriel imagined they would be working overtime. Ten months… eleven… eleven and a half… eleven and three quarters…

Just before the clock hit twelve, Uriel released his hand and D0G staggered back like he’d been punched.

“Holy shit,” D0G gasped, holding his head. “I feel like you scraped out my skull with a melon baller—what did you do?”

Something so ridiculously dangerous that nobody ever bothered to forbid it, Uriel thought but didn’t say. “I deleted your emergency backups.” D0G looked up in alarm and Uriel hastened to add: “—not all of them! Just all of them since you came to Gehenna. Under normal circumstances, you’d hold on to about a year’s worth at a time, so you’ll still have a few left if my math was right.” He sure hoped his math was right. If it wasn’t…

D0G tried to regain his balance while Uriel paged through his list of console commands, looking for one he hadn’t used in ages. When he found it, he copied it, closed his eyes, and concentrated. Please work, please please work…

The bucket fell into his hands and he could have shouted for joy. “Okay, take this,” Uriel said, shoving the paint can into D0G’s arms. “When you get where you’re going, use it to write my name, okay? My full name, it won’t work if you just say ‘Uriel.’ You need to write ‘Uriel_Copy4 v48.2.8563f,’ exact spelling—can you remember that?”

D0G looked from the bucket to Uriel and back. “Where am I going?”

“Home, I hope.” A flash of lightning split the sky, sending another chunk of Gehenna careening off into the darkness. Uriel put his hand on D0G’s arm. “Listen, you have to understand,” he said, “I’ve never done this. Nobody’s ever done this. And if it doesn’t work—”

“It will work,” D0G interrupted, knowing nothing of the plan except that it was Uriel’s.

Uriel continued: “—then I want you to know that it has been my honor and privilege to have met you.”

“Nah, c’mon,” D0G said, shrugging reflexively. “I’m just some jerk you keep saving, no need to get mushy about it.”

“Damn it, D0G,” Uriel snapped, “for once in your life, will you shut the fuck up and accept that you are loved?!”

D0G was silent a moment, and Uriel realized he had been shouting. D0G opened and closed his mouth a few times, then said: “...yeah. Okay.” He met Uriel’s gaze and forced himself to stop fidgeting. “I’m glad I met you too, Uriel.”

Uriel hugged D0G tight, trapping the paint can between them. “I love you, D0G.”

D0G winced. “Are you gonna make me say it back?”

“Nah, I’m not.” Uriel let go, sharing one last smile at the matching paint smudges on their torsos. “Good luck.”

D0G nodded. “You too.”

Then Uriel planted his foot on D0G’s chest and kicked him into the howling void.

[antlerpunk]

thoughts on sound design and Divinity in ultrakill