So in the comic, we’ve basically covered how robotic clones of people are not the people themselves, right? I mean, with Sulla and Al especially, but also just in general when they talked about why people were afraid of robots, and how Brendan made it sound like he had seen a million Al clone robots approach his door.

So answer me this…

What makes the Al we’re following the real Al? Shouldn’t he be treated as an entirely different person, just with the same memories? I mean, I suppose that with the real Al being dead, then it means this robotic clone is Al.

But on a technical sense, I can’t really understand how the Al we’re following in the blue/future timeline is any more of the same Al as the past as any of the other clones Brendan tried to make, including Sulla.

Does that make sense to anyone else? I mean it seems to me that just because he’s incredibly similar, he’s being treated AS Al, when we’ve covered so many parts in the story that shows why a robotic clone is not the original.

(who’d have the clearance to be able to go undetected into brendan’s home, with all that security around?
that knife surely must have been pilfered by someone who Had Access.
even if not, a review of security footage should be able to spot any potential pilferers)

august 2001
10.2.2001
2002 << skritch appears
june 21 2002

assuming “the future” started the day Al died, al was indeed presented to us with his “Mr. Walter” mustache.
so, some thing had impelled al to substantially trim down his ‘prodigious’ facial hair, before his death in 2005.

concurrently, al seemed disappointed (and possibly “surprised,” in a sense) his bed was empty.
in looking back, an idea came to me, that this note which (ostensibly) was left on one of the pillows of his (“their”?) bed by brendan was that ‘straw that broke the camel’s back’ — that “taxing event” which made al succumb and (perhaps) die

a more “gentle-in-intent” note likely would have had al’s name writ in cursive, or at least not in All Caps.
da?
(bonus points would have been given if it was Alastair that was written on the face of that taped note.)
why *tape* a note on a pillow?
why not on the door?
sure allie was not that blind or oblivious, that he was incapable of having his attention gotten, for some trivial matter, through any other way?

oh.
i’m referencing the start of the story (which i have to return to, in order to get an estimate on when brendan made his Observation — though, not necessarily, when the skritches were actually present on al).

There are, and I get the feeling Brendan has already tried every single one of them

it is true that a lot of things remain “open to interpretation,” in this story.

unfortunately, it is not within my capabilities to imagine what else might be going on, besides self-harming/side effect of his Disease, that’d compel al not to just give brendan a straight answer and instead attempt leaving in a huff

someone else, several months ago, nominated “self-harm” as the source of the scars, given the context of al’s struggles; some of us concurred and ran with that theory

al never felt the need to explain these marks (that were obviously in plain view, for at least that year and a half), which also (by default) implies al didn’t want to discuss yet another of his many fuschia-elephants-in-the-living-room issues.

great.
now i have to go back in the story to determine when this started happening.
:-D
not that it’s a problem or anything..
..i get to work out my “sleuthing eye.”

Brendan. BRENDAN.