She-Geeks discussion

enjoy

Yay! I actually read this last month and it was very, very good. The second volume is coming out this month and I pre-ordered it. So excited! I don't want to say anything about the plot yet, because spoilers, but I'm sure everyone will enjoy this one!

I enjoyed it so much too. It felt very fresh and new, despite the familiar tropes. I was pleasantly surprised.

Okay, I got my copy of the second book and read it right away. I might have to start reading issues now, since I want to read the rest of the story ASAP!

Ha, that's what I did after I read the first volume. Honestly though I think it's better condensed. But I feel that way about a lot of comics.

Anna (Bananas!) wrote: "Ha, that's what I did after I read the first volume. Honestly though I think it's better condensed. But I feel that way about a lot of comics." I usually want to wait for the trade paperbacks because even though they're so short as it is, it's easier for me to follow the story several chapters at a time rather than one chapter once a month. :/ Plus, I don't have much room for a bunch of comic issues hanging around (though I suppose I could get the electronic versions).

When the vote came up I voted for this one. hmms, if I'm in the correct group, hehe. I looked at it to see if I'd be interested. Couple hours later I looked up and realized I'd accidentally read it. Both volume 1 and 2. Or at least the equivalent issues (1-10).

I was quite excited about the opportunity to actually read something interesting at the same time as others. But I messed up.

An interesting concept and series. If we had half stars, I'd probably have rated both the first and second volumes 4.5 stars.

I also prefer reading them all collected in volumes. I didn't this time as, if I recall correctly, the first issue was free for me to read. Then I just gobbled them up, 1-11. Back in December. So . . . not sure what else I can say three months later that wouldn't possibly be spoilery and or wrong. heh.

Haven't read issue 12 yet, and the 13th comes out on the 18th. I read issue 11 because it was out when I was gobbling. I've been holding off, though, on 12 so that there was more than one issue to read when I got around to it. eta: issue 11 was separated out for discussion because that is start of volume 3.

Ok, I apologize up front for this question, but although I have been reading manga for years, and in the past two years have also been reading light novels & graphic novels, I still have not really read any comics at all. So my question is this: if I go into to Barnes & Noble to purchase this title, would it be in the comic section. I am probably going to have a few more questions like this in the coming weeks because I am very, very new to the whole comic genre.

Ash wrote: "Ok, I apologize up front for this question, but although I have been reading manga for years, and in the past two years have also been reading light novels & graphic novels, I still have not really..."

From my experience, all graphic novels and comics are in the same approximate aisle at B&N. So this should be right in that same vicinity. I don't think B&N sells individual comic issues, so the paperback printings of collected issues are considered graphic novels, just like manga and, well, actual graphic novels are considered as such.

Kirsten wrote: "Ash wrote: "Ok, I apologize up front for this question, but although I have been reading manga for years, and in the past two years have also been reading light novels & graphic novels, I still hav..."
re: individual comic issues being sold at B&N

Depends on the specific B&N, but some, maybe all, maybe a only few, have some individual comic issues for sale in the magazine section.

Thank you so much for your help, Kirsten and Lexxi's Cat(I hope I got your name right , & my dogs name is Lexi :) Barnes &Noble is usually the first bookstore that pops in my mind when I think of bookstores un general & there is nothing quite like the smell of books mixed with coffee that you pleasantly experience as soon as you walk in. My personal favorite is actual the public library, and I have noticed they are also shelled that way in the library. Of course I also completely adore my used biokstores, and those stores to me, are where you will see single issues being sold. Like I mentioned in my original question U have been reading msnga fir many years, and for a somewhat shorter amount of time, have been reading a lot of light novels , manwha, and am just now finding myself becoming more and more comfortable with graphic novels in general lately. You two have helped me more than you realize already. Being such a newbie when it comes to come comics, I'm sure will have several more questions. Please do not let me aggaravate either one or both of you with my comic questions. Again. thank you both so very much.

I liked this more than I expected to. I wish Alex had a little more personality, but I have the second volume to look forward to.

I just finished vol.1, but I'm on the fence. They've laid a great foundation and it could go some really interesting places, but it could also get very unpleasant very quickly. I'll probably read vol. 2 at some point.

Joyce -- do read volume two! It gets much more exciting. :)

I have a question -- do you guys think this book (or series, if you've read more than the first volume) fits in the theme of Strong Female Protagonists? I definitely think the second volume does, but it also kinda adds the question: "What can we consider female?" Can a robot have a gender? I know they do cover this question a bit in the series, but I was wondering what the community's thoughts were.

I did enjoy the story immensely and the premise is really intruiging, so I am going to look for volume 2.

Not sure though if I am going to buy this at any time or read again. The artwork is not that good. It is to static in my opinion. Almost as if the artist needs to practise bodies in movement a bit more.

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O and to start the discussion Kirsten proposed:

I do think you can consider the robot a female, because she is sentient. Otherwise you also would have to exclude any book with aliens or anthromorpic characters because they are also not strictly human. and there is just too much sci-fi that can not be included then. (Saga for example)
But saying that I really loved the story, because the artwork did not stop me from reading

Bellagbear wrote: "O and to start the discussion Kirsten proposed:

I do think you can consider the robot a female, because she is sentient. Otherwise you also would have to exclude any book with aliens or anthromorpic characters because they are also not strictly human. and there is just too much sci-fi that can not be included then. (Saga for example)
But saying that I really loved the story, because the artwork did not stop me from reading "

Oh, well human is not a necessary factor in gender (I mean, I have a female cat, a female dog and a male dog. They'd probably all be offended if one were to tell them that they didn't have a gender). My question is about the fact that, though Ada is sentient, she is still a man-made object. Sentience is probably the key, though. Just as my pets would be offended by the idea that they were not gendered, a sentient robot would probably have the same thoughts.

This is really a strongly philosophical question (and one that the writer of the story likely wished for readers to think about!)

ETA: Oh, and through most of this first volume Ada is not sentient. So what do we think of her gender OR her ability to be considered a protagonist in that context?

I would not consider Ada a protagonist in Volume 1. (view spoiler)[She is just an object for most of it, and since this isn't The Brave Little Toaster, an object can't be a main player. I think later volumes could be fair game, however. (hide spoiler)]

Kait wrote: "I would not consider Ada a protagonist in Volume 1."

Wow, I really love the comparison you made there! This was sort of my reasoning, as well.

Kirsten wrote: "Bellagbear wrote: "O and to start the discussion Kirsten proposed:

I do think you can consider the robot a female, because she is sentient. Otherwise you also would have to exclude any book with a..."

true I got a bit mixed up with termonology there I think :P Human / gender wise.

But main point I agree. Sentience is enough to be considered female I think. All is that only because I love those kind of questions in sci-fi.
ALso getting a bit into the existential sociology of late and the idea of sentience is a very interesting one. For many communities around the world it is also normal to consider nature as a kind of being. A sentient robot, still being in the future for u, should also be debated over if it can be considered a being with a mind of its own. We can see it as a man-made future part of the world just as the Western world used to think of nature as a being as well.

I hope this was clear o.O Cause not even sure I follow myself. If not ignore this or I'll try to clarify some more if you are interested. XD.

Lol, when discussions start to get really philosophical I tend to be wary (just because the basic concept of philosophy is people arguing about non-material things that can't be proven). It seems we're all pretty much in agreement on this point, though.

If you're sentient, you have the ability to choose whether you have a gender or not. So that probably wraps it up right there.

On another note, I find it fascinating how extreme the viewpoints on the artwork tend to be. People either really dislike it or really like it (not just in this group, but elsewhere on the internet where I've discussed this book). I find myself in the latter camp -- I have read some graphic novels with truly horrendous artwork. Like they picked up a beginning art student in elementary school to draw the artwork (here's looking at you, Arana, Volume 1: Heart of the Spider, my eternal example). The artwork in Alex + Ada, however, seems to be deliberate in its static nature. Alex is static because he's depressed and in a rut in his life. Ada is static because, well, she's a robot. I am wondering if, as the series progresses, the characters will gain more life-like qualities. I do like the detail in the artwork, though -- so many comics just skimp on detail. Anyway, that's my theory and opinion! :)

I have to admit I found the art a bit juvenile at first, but it grew on me. I enjoyed the subtlety of it.

Sentience never makes sense to me. How would you even achieve that? I do enjoy the idea but it never truly seems possible, for a machine to feel alive.