War machine Rule
War machine Rule
Transcription
I was made as a war machine
war machines... ...and civil robots...
...were made at the same factory
from almost the same parts
NO WONDER they got
a few circuits connected wrong
in my infinitely complex brain
We spend some time on the second line
learning to be our kind
and as we learned, we were getting stronger... tougher... more powertful...
more of our kind
but something felt wrong
All those weapons. Armor. My whole purpose
I thought, I'm not trying hard enough...
I've tried more guns, More Power!
more dirt, grease, and rust...
I felt so disgusted and empty, i was barely able to function.
I hoped some enemy will end it for me
I was lucky to try another path
less danger, more civil look
It felt good for the first time in years
but it was still not enough
took me a while to realize
I was not a WAR MACHINE
I just served as one
but it could've been changed
I knew it would be a ling journey
but it was a journey really worth making
Rebuilding my outer body seemed easy
but took a long time...
It was really hard to get rid of things like rust.
Some things will stay FOREVER
Gun placement left empty space on my head
Wrists are too wide for the same reason
but still...
I was made as a WAR MACHINE
but it never meant I should end up as one
Because no matter how much people say,
HOW DIFFERENT WE ARE
We were made on the same factory
from almost the same parts
I didn't expect the ending to turn out quite like that. I really enjoyed this.
Who is the artist behind this work?
I believe she's on Reddit, here's her profile:
https://www.reddit.com/user/Zhidoscope/
Meanwhile, some bot in the city:
"Ever since I rolled off the assembly line I've had an overwhelming desire to kill and dominate. To see the hope leave my enemy's eyes before I crush them."
Maybe that's what the "Civils can't Fight" banner in the protest is referring to?
Though I think that situation is a bit more problematic and doesn't work as well in the story, since a desire to go to war doesn't lead to a rich full life, it leads to a life cut short. It's not a good thing. War in general isn't a good thing, which I think is part of the reason the message here is so powerful.
Gorgeous for a lot of reasons.
This is a beautiful comic. with a great message.
hell yeah Robots as Trans Allegory
One thing I love about this specific allegory is how it conveys a hunch held in the back of my mind (and probably other transfem people) that masculinity is sort of a defective category for anybody; being an unwavering war machine without thought is not anything to aspire towards, so why even measure any bot by their capacity for violence?
Couldn't agree more. The masculinity standards people are held to in society are very hostile and unfair. People should not be expected to be violent or hold back their emotions just because they are male.