muddle
Original: muddle on Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal
Transcript
Panel 1:
Narration/Question caption: DO YOU THINK IT'S BETTER TO ACCEPT YOUR PLACE IN A WEB OF HUMAN RELATIONS OR TO PURSUE A TRANSCENDENT AUTHENTIC SELFHOOD?
A bald man and a woman with orange hair and round glasses stand facing each other.
Woman: THAT'S A FALSE CHOICE.
Panel 2:
Bald man: YOU THINK YOU CAN DO BOTH?
Woman: I CAN DO NEITHER.
Panel 3:
Woman: MY LIFE PLAN IS TO NEVER MAKE PEACE WITH SOCIETY'S PERCEPTION OF ME NOR COME TO A CONTENTED STATE OF PERSONAL UNDERSTANDING.
Panel 4:
Woman (pointing upward triumphantly): I'M JUST GONNA MUDDLE THROUGH, BABY! I'M GONNA BE AWKWARD, NEVER REFLECT, PLAY VIDEO GAMES NIGHTS AND WEEKENDS, AND RUN OUT THE CLOCK ON THIS FUTURE CORPSE.
Panel 5:
Bald man: MY GOD.
Panel 6:
Narration: THIS IS AN ENTIRELY NEW WAY OF BEING.
Panel 7:
Close-up of the bald man, looking thoughtful, hand to his chin.
Panel 8:
Two silhouetted heads against a black background.
One silhouette: NO NO, EVERYONE DOES IT, THEY JUST DON'T REALIZE.
Votey:
The woman with orange hair and glasses, shown in close-up looking smug/satisfied.
Woman: OUR HOLY SCRIPTURE SHALL BE WHATEVER IS ON TV.
Narration/Question caption: DO YOU THINK IT'S BETTER TO ACCEPT YOUR PLACE IN A WEB OF HUMAN RELATIONS OR TO PURSUE A TRANSCENDENT AUTHENTIC SELFHOOD?
A bald man and a woman with orange hair and round glasses stand facing each other.
Woman: THAT'S A FALSE CHOICE.
Panel 2:
Bald man: YOU THINK YOU CAN DO BOTH?
Woman: I CAN DO NEITHER.
Panel 3:
Woman: MY LIFE PLAN IS TO NEVER MAKE PEACE WITH SOCIETY'S PERCEPTION OF ME NOR COME TO A CONTENTED STATE OF PERSONAL UNDERSTANDING.
Panel 4:
Woman (pointing upward triumphantly): I'M JUST GONNA MUDDLE THROUGH, BABY! I'M GONNA BE AWKWARD, NEVER REFLECT, PLAY VIDEO GAMES NIGHTS AND WEEKENDS, AND RUN OUT THE CLOCK ON THIS FUTURE CORPSE.
Panel 5:
Bald man: MY GOD.
Panel 6:
Narration: THIS IS AN ENTIRELY NEW WAY OF BEING.
Panel 7:
Close-up of the bald man, looking thoughtful, hand to his chin.
Panel 8:
Two silhouetted heads against a black background.
One silhouette: NO NO, EVERYONE DOES IT, THEY JUST DON'T REALIZE.
Votey:
The woman with orange hair and glasses, shown in close-up looking smug/satisfied.
Woman: OUR HOLY SCRIPTURE SHALL BE WHATEVER IS ON TV.
Alt text
An eight-panel comic. A bald man asks a woman with orange hair and round glasses whether it's better to accept your place in a web of human relations or pursue a transcendent authentic selfhood. She says it's a false choice. He asks if she thinks she can do both; she replies, "I can do neither." She explains her life plan is to never make peace with society's perception of her nor reach a contented state of personal understanding. Pointing triumphantly upward, she declares: "I'm just gonna muddle through, baby! I'm gonna be awkward, never reflect, play video games nights and weekends, and run out the clock on this future corpse." The man gasps, "My god." A caption reads, "This is an entirely new way of being," over a close-up of him looking thoughtful. In the final panel, two silhouetted heads in the dark talk, and one says, "No no, everyone does it, they just don't realize." Votey: a close-up of the smug orange-haired woman saying, "Our holy scripture shall be whatever is on TV."
Transcribed by Claude Opus 4.8.