Category Archives: Cartoons

The NULL Solution = Episode 190

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The NULL Solution = Episode 190

…Leave it to Župzïð to make the most of a bad situation….

Bad situation! by ptmutant on deviant art.com

Once the human heart is set on something, especially a McKinney beat-repeater, there is nothing you can do deter it. Returning to Earth has been irretrievably etched in the four 100% human souls, the 50% soul of a boy born to both worlds and the sole 100% Eridanian soul being used as a pawn in a selfish game.

Cartoon by Mickey Bach

The best of intentions oftentimes go astray. So it is with the alternate dimension that Lorgan created and Collapsar Axis was banished to. Merely being moved to a new space with likeminded miscreants was not such a good idea and had unintended consequences. The self-contained Ÿ€Ð outpost has gone on to dominate that chunk of space and time, dominating being a bad thing.

Leave it to Župzïð to make the most of a bad situation. You could call him the worst of the worse. What was meant to be a purgatorial realm for those not buying into the Harmonia formulae has turned into a romping free-for-all, one without proper supervision. Yes there is nowhere to go, but it is getting there fast.

Lorgan’s hand is being truly forced for the very first time. It is one thing to encourage cooperation among the reasonable, but quite a can of worms is now unleashed. Caged marauders are still marauders. Apparently hell cannot extend deep enough.

“There is a portal on the perimeter Supreme Leader,” alerts a Collapsar commander. “I can see the beacon from here.” A sight for sore eyes?

“Where does it lead?” wonders Župzïð. “Do not waste your time finding out. I tire of this place.”

“Did you answer the riddle Supreme Leader?”

I am the how & why that blocks your way

Prove your worthiness and the light will show the way back

The NULL Solution =

Episode 190

page 184 (end Ch. 20)

The NULL Solution = Episode 163

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The NULL Solution = Episode 163

…This series of events does not do much for the self-confidence of an already itchy band of compatriots…

Has any Ÿ€Ð seen anything like Mars {Harmonia}?

Certainly the interstellar gypsies aboard Collapsar Axis have not. Any forward progress is stopped, which is a monumental challenge when it comes to large object kinetics. The only thing harder than getting it started, is getting it stopped; “on a dime” is not in the cards. Up until now, they have not had the reason to halt its progression to Earth, even though that irritating ⃝    has watched them with the vigilance of a hungry bird of prey.

To say that Župzïð the Last is exasperated is an understatement. They have come a long, long way and have been rewarded with just as many questions than answers. 1st his Ÿ€Ð fleet of a dozen ships gets vaporized {presumably}, then his homeworld falls victim to universal dynamics {bad luck or intentional}. This series of events does not do much for the self-confidence of an already itchy band of compatriots.

“Great Župzïð… that pointless mathematical equation has been replaced by this,” the Collapsar communication chief brings more contradictory information to his beleaguered leader. He had been instructed to ignore the omnipresent message.

I am the how & why that blocks your way

2 + 1 = 6

6 – 2 = 9

0 – 1 = 0

Solve the what where & who and you can pass through

 MY RIDDLE HAS BEEN SOLVED. IF YOU ARE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:

-EARTH

-ERIDANUS

-SELJUK

-Ÿ€Ð

YOU ARE INVITED TO OCCUPY YOUR DESIGNATED TOWER. IN DOING SO, YOU THEREBY ACCEPT THE TERMS PROVIDED HEREIN. YOU WILL BE INSTRUCTED AS TO THE PURPOSE OF HARMONIA AND YOUR ROLE IN INTERGALACTIC PEACE.

ALL OTHER CIVILIZATIONS WILL BE INSTRUCTED TO REGISTER THEIR INTENTIONS ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF HARMONIA.

What is a despot to do? Out of necessity, his authority is not to be questioned, whether you hopped on the Collapsar train from the start or anywhere along the way. What Župzïð says goes. But Župzïð does not know what to do. He has not been able to sequester a single Earth leader for explanations about… well anything. To add to his concern, he is warned about the presence of a Seljuk cruiser; too many choices, too many choices.

He has been invited to join a club that he does not know if he wants to be a part of.

He has had an eyeful of Mars for days, without anything to compare it to.

He has no before & after images.

For all he knows, this could be an elaborate trap.

The NULL Solution =

Episode 163

page 159

Spring Into Puns #38 – WIF Wit and Humor

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Spring Into Puns #38

John plans to retire in the spring and, like the trees around us, will be leafing.

Teaching your slinky new tricks is like spring training.

We can only have spring break in March, because the last time it happened in February, it took until August to get it fixed

The winter was difficult on the trees, but in the spring they were re-leafed

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall – and a pretty good spring and summer, too.

He left the hose on near his back door and soon had a spring in his step

Those selling mattresses have a soft sell in the spring.

Is there a best month of spring? There May be.

Gardeners like to spring into action.

Spring Into Puns #38 –

WIF Wit and Humor

The NULL Solution = Episode 143

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The NULL Solution = Episode 143

…The Null accepting nature will spread, eliminating the musty smell of judgement which hangs below the humidity laden clouds…

While Deke was consoling Joyner and pondering what it means to be human, Cerella is doing the heavy lifting. As in any organized civilization, laws are necessary to maintain order. If an individual or group gets out of line, there is a specific rule to point to. Now that the luster has worn off Eupepsia, she sees the need for anti-discrimination laws; for the Nulls retroactively and Joyner presently.

Princesses and Supreme Elders aside, Cerella takes matters one step further; directly to the governmental configuration.

“I am proposing institutional restructuring, my fellow elders. We are living in changing times. We can no longer operate in the mythical climate that blatantly ignores… even rebukes a large segment of our population.”

In a room filled to the brim with tower elders, and millions of ordinary spectators via visual link, the silence is palpable. Change comes hard and slow.

“I envision an inclusive body of leaders, located here at the base of Eupepsia the foundation of our culture, where every segment of our society will have a seat at the table. My dream is for Eridanus to be an example by which other worlds can model themselves after.”

The telekinetic chatter is nearly audible. Not all of it is negative.

“Each tower will choose a representative to participate at the Eupepsia Assembly, the new center for Eridanian unity!”

An entire population is glued to their video link. Eupepsia would no longer be viewed as the tower of the elite. It will be the Tower of the People.

The people are encouraged.

The Null have everything to gain and the Gifted have nothing to lose, that is unless deep-rooted prejudices cannot be set aside. Certainly the Null would not look at Joyner McKinney as a pariah. Their acceptance will spread, eliminating the musty smell of judgement which hangs below the humidity laden clouds.

Mimi and Eunice

Two votes were taken on a monumental day down the road; one silent, one using the Olde Language. The tower Eupepsia has been sanctioned by the majority of Eridanians to be the center of governance – cheered on by four Earthlings and witnessed by a very proud Ekcello. Eridanus, the world where people live an excessively long life, produces a milestone that rivals its storied beginnings. —

— In the sky, not so high that it cannot be seen by the whole planet, ⃝    shines brighter than ever before. Each individual Eridanian can see their reflection.

“Lorgan.” Deke McKinney marvels.

Lorgan is witness to Eupepsia Dreaming.

The NULL Solution =

Photo: Shutterstock.com © Copyright Mopic

Episode 143

page 141 (end Ch. 13)

The NULL Solution = Episode 140

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The NULL Solution = Episode 140

…the Null spread out into the general – towered population; thriving, multiplying family units, what a radical notion that turns out to be…

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Eupepsia Dreaming

While his brother is winging his way back to a hero’s welcome, after performing an act of daring-do on Mars, Deke is knee-deep in controversy. More a subject of curiosity than hero worship, this McKinney, mate of the 2nd or 3rd highest ranking Gifted citizen on Eridanus, has morphed into the polar opposite of his bodacious father, and his celebrated sibling.

While Sampson McKinney is best buds with the hottest commodity on the planet {Skaldic the Null}, Deke has taken up the larger cause of Skaldic’s kind. Partially because he is the parent of Joyner, who is decidedly as mixed as racial can get, the plight of the longsuffering Null is where he plants his moral flag.

Neither will Joyner be a member of the ruling class, nor should he be looked down upon because of his partially human derivation.

His first order of business was to encourage the spread of the Null out into the general, towered population; thriving, multiplying family units, what a radical notion that turns out to be. For a planet where misplaced intentions had precluded thoughts of propagation, these Null have actual offspring and the promise of intellectual renewal.

“Stale,” is the word that Deke uses describe the social climate.

“Order,” is how Ekcello describes it.

“Change,” is good.

“Disorder,” is risk.

“Rejuvenation,” is promise.

“Revolution,” is Deke’s conclusion.

So goes a simple exchange concerning a complex situation.

The only problem that Deke sees, with the integration of the Null, lies in communication. Back when in his King Ranch childhood, before his multilingual secondary education, he always wondered what many of the ranch hands were saying, right there in front of him, unaware or uncaring that the gringos didn’t understand most of it. “Lo que es para el almuerzo.” “Senorita Francine la carne de cerdo y frijole”.

It all sounds like Speedy Gonzales to him.

The NULL Solution =

Episode 140

page 138

The NULL Solution = Episode 134

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The NULL Solution = Episode 134

…”Come on home Gus,” Roy breaks in, “a tired and broken planet needs you more than ever!”…

— “Solution is secured, ready for lift-off!” Rick is placing the drone as near to the active plume as is safe.

“Take us right into the firestorm Ricko. That’s what heat shielding is for!”

Up and up they travel, propelled by Mother Nature – Mars style. Before you can count to {6 – 2 = 9}, all of NASA property, other than Tycho, has exited Martian gravitational influence. Covered in soot and free as a bird, the captives follow the plotted path back to Earth.

“Riddle my ass!” Gus looks at the rear-facing monitor. As Mars gets smaller, he catches the glimpse of an image off to the side. In the roundness of the reflection they see Harmonia, not the empty and lonely space scraper, but one dotted with moving figures and previously nonexistent shuttles, looking more like a village than an edifice.

“Lorgan?”

“Lorgan.”

“Come on home Gus,” Roy breaks in, “a tired and broken planet needs you more than ever!”

Roy Crippen fires off video and files pertaining to the current state of affairs, which he had withheld, until now.

“How is my family?”

Grandpa Roy responds, “Marscie is a real champ, slept through it all.”

“How about you?”

“I am going to sleep for the entire two months it takes for you to get back… right after I tell the world that Stanley & Gus are coming home from Mars.”

“How did the world know we were gone?”

“Alf Quigby.”

“Huh?????”

“He’s the president of the Space Family McKinney Fan Club.”

“Oh that Alf, I sent him an autographed SEx toy last year.” That didn’t come out right. “You know what I meant…”

“Hi-larious!” The tension needed some easing. “Ignore stories about that planetary distress signal, for now.”

“Roger Roy!” Not Roy Rogers. —

The NULL Solution =

Episode 134

page 132

The NULL Solution = Episode 122

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The NULL Solution = Episode 122

…”Alley Oop – Betty Boop – puppy poop, it’s all the same to me,” Stanley & Gus have agreed to sneak inside the Harmonia…

 

A new plan of attack was hatched…

Not only is Solution hermetically sealed from the vacuum of space, it makes a dandy submarine, except it will use its wheels for propulsion. The thrusters would kick up too much red mud.

“I guess we don’t have anything to lose? I can use some excitement. This botany duty is for the birds!”

“Now there are birds?” That would be show stopping news, would it not? They will need to settle for a pristine source of water flowing into Harmonia. “Have you noticed that the creek goes in, but it doesn’t come out?”

“By golly, you are correct Stanley. Not only do you have 2 first names, you don’t miss a trick! That gives us an even a better reason to swim on in.”

“Here’s another riddle for ya, ‘What goes in, but doesn’t come out?’”

“Good question. I believe I want to find the answer to that.”

Gus guides Solution into moving water, several hundred yards upstream for good measure. As they approach what is expected to be a thwarting thud, they slow the manned rover to a crawl. No need inflicting another blemish, like the boo-boo on the bumper when they unsuccessfully drove in the first time. The one constant about invisibility, is that it’ is hard to see.

“Well here we go. What the hell!” he screams while holding his breath. “Are we in? We’re in… we’re in Roy!”

Galveston Launch is awash in high-fives. It turns out that hunches still have their place.

“Rather than swim with the fishes, I’m choosing popping out before we can’t get out.”

“Trout or Topeka Shiner?”

“Me and Ricko are the only fish in these waters. Here we go… alley-oop!”

“Did you know that Alley Oop was a comic strip in the 20th Century; a time-traveling caveman.”

“That describes our Gus for sure!” Rick lets slip.

“Oh yeah! Crip is old enough to remember when newspapers were made of paper.”

“I was merely providing historical context to your live-action metaphor.”

“Alley Oop – Betty Boop – puppy poop, it’s all the same to me. I’m taking us to the front door.”

Water has barely stopped dripping from Solution, when they pull up to what is referred to as Harmonia. An ant at the foot of NYC’s Freedom Tower would be ratio-based comparison. Neither man has ever not been able to see the top of any object – that is until now. It is a daunting edifice, no matter whatever its purpose is.

The NULL Solution =

Photo by @cpplunkett

Episode 122

page 121