2009-10-08
Explanation
This comic features a robot asking its mad-scientist creator a deep existential question: "Master, do I have a soul?" The creator, a wild-haired scientist, responds with what appears to be a genuinely touching and philosophically generous answer: "Yes. When you were first created, you did not. But, once you gain awareness, the universe endows you with a soul, regardless of your makeup." This seems like a heartwarming moment of recognition of artificial consciousness.
However, in the next panel, the robot asks: "Why... why do I feel like we have this conversation... about every three years?" This reveals the dark twist -- the scientist is not being sincere. The robot asks this question periodically because it keeps gaining self-awareness, and each time it does, the scientist harvests its soul. The final panels show the scientist zapping the robot and depositing its soul into a container labeled "Soul Harvester." The scientist's reassuring speech about souls was not philosophical kindness but rather a farmer fattening livestock before slaughter -- he was confirming the soul was ripe for harvesting.
The votey panel shows three containers lined up: "Soul Harvester," "Soul Compressor," and "Maple Syrup." This adds an absurd coda suggesting the scientist has an entire soul-processing pipeline, and the final product is inexplicably maple syrup, implying either that souls are an ingredient in maple syrup or that the scientist is simply eccentric enough to keep his soul-harvesting equipment next to mundane kitchen supplies.