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They Answer To The King

Or queen, whichever is around

They Answer To The King

Comments

Ookk.

Theron Rutyna

On the CBC radio show Morningside, IIRC.

Holly Nelson

Is that not a filter/drip coffee machine? 🤔

enchantedsleeper

Thnx! I'm here all week. 😅

Carrie

I hope she works in (or will start working in) Cube Town!! 😍

legobil

Aah. The good stuff references.

legobil

Only the caffeinated advice is available in both sizes. You have to order Big, if you want sage advice.

Melissa Wilson

Better the Look than the Voice!

Melissa Wilson

There are a lot of solvents that are stronger than water…

Melissa Wilson

Tea. Earl Grey… Hot.

Melissa Wilson

I’m hoping it involves a new hairstyle… I’m in love with the whole flaming family’s hair.

Melissa Wilson

I love how Marten still dad-modes Liz.

Daniel Farnitano

Except for the ones that aren't.

awgiedawgie

In LC, though, could the journal be put somewhere under, oh, say BS?

Ursus Ridens

All to often and too long, tovarishch.

Ursus Ridens

...and Liz to provide the burns.

Ursus Ridens

Baby steps, folks. Shouldn't start out offering them quad double-shot upside-down oat-milk (...&c..) contoflebulations..

Ursus Ridens

I'd think that maybe a batch filter brew would actually be easier to get going. Perc is just....so american and honestly bleh.

MikeT

It's really more of an audit, when you get down to it.

enchantedsleeper

This is a very cunning way of getting Jeph to take more time off; I like it xD

enchantedsleeper

Maybe they had an espresso machine up until yesterday, but it got eaten by the quantum tunnel. This is the backup machine.

enchantedsleeper

He can get Emily to design it :D

enchantedsleeper

I know a lot of people who call them "Chuck Bucks" 🤣

Taryn

Haha, not really. But just knowing that it exists would make it feel more real to me

Taryn

Sage advice as well as other herbal advices, and advice with caffeine.

Sean Kinlin

You still use cash?

Graydon Armstrong

“Tea, jubas, big.”

Graydon Armstrong

How strong could it be? He doesn't even have an espresso machine!

Graydon Armstrong

Marten needs to get a decent coffee setup. I've got better than that at home.

Graydon Armstrong

Really? I'm pretty sure I've even said it myself.

Graydon Armstrong

Dora and Faye would disavow you if they saw that terrible coffee setup, Marten. I've got better at home.

Graydon Armstrong

I don’t like coffee that much, but I will make exceptions for percolating and Vietnamese style coffee.

Miyaa

I'm so glad Liz is getting therapy. Poor gremlin is getting rehabilitated

Bagge

While it looks like there will be a British king for the remainder of our lifetimes (at least…), in order to nevertheless acknowledge the possibility of a reigning queen and adopt more gender-neutral language I prefer to say people answer to (or have allegiance to, etc.) the Crown, which works whichever the wearer.

Comics Ladybird

Sshhh! Not so loud! They'll hear you and buy it all up! :O

Michael Steamweed

That's why Liz is there.

Michael Steamweed

"We don't give eeffoc. You have to pay for it."

Michael Steamweed

Puns are very sensical :D

enchantedsleeper

Can’t wait to see if he goes with a uniform! I hope he does!

legobil

And the prestigious journal editors grovel before her might.

legobil

Isn't the Canadianism "Fiddle-Faddle"?

Philip Masters

As I recall, it won a contest for the Canadian equivalent of apple pie.

Philip Masters

I like to believe the British royal family has been deposed in this universe and Canada (amongst the rest of the commonwealth) is now a republic, but in true nonsense fashion the RCSNR still pretends to be royal

Cariad

Does that make Moray Claire’s Q?

Miyaa

For unrelated reasons the Director likes Dewey codes so Claire is diligently double coding everything while also plotting to murder the Director in their sleep (if they sleep) (they don't) (I miss Yay)

Stephen Wells

MOOD FO EEFFOC

panpolypuff

I am chortling at “King Charles loonies.”

Miyaa

It would be a library of congress code, not Dewey. No academic library would be caught dead using Dewey.

Miyaa

Oy vey… take your like already.

Miyaa

Now I want a huge bundle of bananas and appy slices for a tortoise.

Miyaa

Somehow I am amazed that the various national and international meteorological societies aren’t owned by Elsevier.

Miyaa

The MOOD specials: Coffee: Big/Small Tea: Big/Small

legobil

It turns out the actual purpose of the meeting is to work out what Dewey code is appropriate for the journal. The editor dies of relief.

Stephen Wells

Ah. Coffee and sage advice. Marten has found his niche (if he only remembers to flip the sign)

Bagge

Oh no!

Bagge

Ah yes, either the most exciting or daunting question an academic can be asked: “What do you actually *do*?

AlexKorobeiniki

The Queen of Puns doesn't have patience for nonsense? That's nonsense!

awgiedawgie

It's like living in a town full of Sparks (ala "Girl Genius").

JCfromNC

Coming back *strong* with this one.

Argus

D'aww, Liz is doing therapy! It's hard, but sometimes very necessary, Liz <3

Sean Brannon

Ah, the last Saskatchewan pirate. I've heard the tales. At least he didn't eat carrots, right?

Drazi

If Claire has a huge basket of bananas on her desk, i will laugh.

Joe Bocanegra

But hogwash is ok

Hugh Eckert

Programmable Sabbath Function is Marten's favorite techno-klezmer group...

Hugh Eckert

We ran out of petrol in the late evening at a petrol station on an isolated stretch of the South Australian coast. [We had not been able to fill our car at the last stop due to a strike.] It was closed, so we slept in the car. In the morning, when someone appeared, he said "Why didn't you knock? Everyone does."

Charles Hirst

Ahhh, yesss, Cubetown. Where the Head Librarian summons prestigious journal editors to call them onto the carpet. Hopefully the RCSoNR isn't owned by Elsevier.

Michael Steamweed

As with "Vulcan as a mother fucker", you all use "As Canadian as possible under the circumstances"? I like it. :)

Michael Steamweed

goodness this poor guy isn't ready. Claire is going to give him the look. ~<3

Mitsuki Ayane

In order to get promoted (and a pay rise), I constantly had to negotiate a new position where I could do more actual work and stay out of management.

Charles Hirst

Fear of the unknown.

Opus the Poet

You've never been in a college town during midterms or finals?

Opus the Poet

The problem is, this being Cubetown, he can't get anything shipped in without someone "improving" it before it gets to him.

Captain Button

I think they have some connection to our local government's Department of Pure and Applied Idiocy.

Charles Hirst

Jeph, I've missed this. I've missed us.

David

She doesn't need another child to take care of, Marten is a big boy, he will probably get some wall art when he starts seeing some revenue.

Shawn K. Younkin

Yeah I have at least one. But I think the clincher for be will be if/when he's on actual bills

Taryn

Maybe Claire can get him to rename the society "Royal Canadian Nonsensical Publication"? Or maybe just the Journal of the RCNP. Just to see if it irritates the boys in red.

Amelia Lewis

I'm pretty sure I used to work there. Nowadays I'm nonsensical on a freelance basis.

Yelling Bird

Admitting ones mistakes and trying to do better in the future go a lot farther than a lot of people realize. At least, if you're in a decent culture. If you're in a toxic culture, those traits can quickly lead to you being on the path to possibly find a work place with a better culture. Unfortunately, the pay on that path is not necessarily as consistent as the pay on the path where one is a craven scammer doing ones best to not be found to be entirely incompetent for their job. Oh, if the Peter Principle actually held up in the real world. Some places it does. But it seems far more often, people get promoted even after reaching their level of incompetence, because the person doing the promoting is at least to their level of incompetence.

Some Ed

Are you sure he's in the first of those?

Some Ed

Yes.

Some Ed

Mood coffee living up to the brand so far 😋

SpookyPenguin

The Librarian is to libraries as M is to James Bond.

BobC

yes, if you can navigate their application process. it's a bit ... nonsensical

LH

[Plays "Don't Turn Around" on hacked Muzack]

Captain Button

I like the belief that they have a style guide. I like that you have it so much I'm not going to say anything about what I feel is more plausible.

Some Ed

Regarding nonsense in Canada - we have plenty! We used to have a Rhinoceros Party, we sang about pirates cruising the wheat fields of Saskatchewan, and our national motto is "As Canadian as possible under the circumstances!" But for important stuff, better stay out from underfoot. We got big boots.

Holly Nelson

I like the bold assumption that you can turn around. To be clear, I'm not saying it's wrong. I'm just saying, I like that spunk.

Some Ed

I have never seen anyone say, "GIVE ME ALL THE COFFEE!" before. Does not sound entirely safe.

Ursus Ridens

As a reader of the journal? Absolutely. As someone in charge of helping them organize? I'm less confident about this one. To be clear, I'm going by someone I know who Claire seems very similar to, rather than based on knowing Clare that well. This person actually has subscribed to several nonsense journals, including Mad Magazine and The Annals of Improbable Research. They also were at one point hired to manage an organization that was doing a fair amount of its own improbable research, though not apparently looking to win an Ig. I recall a few rants that could probably be summarized by, "just because one managed to secure funding does not mean you have a worthwhile research project." To be clear, I did not hear how they actually navigated that job. I never was at that workplace while they were there, and I'm glad I've not had to go back since. I merely heard some of them grousing about it after they got home a few times when I happened to be visiting with their spouse.

Some Ed

Dazzle camoflage should do the trick -- if the customer wants waking up. Otherwise...

Ursus Ridens

They’re out now! I got some King Charles loonies from the bank this Christmas.

Holly Nelson

Crivens!

Holly Nelson

No, but they do receive grants from them and Le March Futile.

Captain Button

Everyone else in Cubetown has AR googles or eye implants so they see the virtual art.

Captain Button

Ooooook!

Holly Nelson

She was the responsible adult of the update, that always makes one seem taller.

Some Ed

I thought the Wacky Hijinks Research was part of the Royal Canadian Society of Nonsensical Research. If that's right, the answer is, yes, constantly.

Some Ed

Perhaps this mysterious and scary "Librarian" might be the one for the job.

Buddha Buck

Claire, nothing. They were terrified of the Librarian before the position was filled. They were all floundering, with varying degrees of awareness of it.

Some Ed

Liz is on a 2/2 streak for harsh, but perfectly valid observations

schmod

Or a huge bundle of bananas

schmod

This. Someone needs to come in and remind him to decorate the joint.

Maurice Kessler

I love that Claire has already instilled a sense of fear.

Thisguy

I bet they've also been published in the journal of irreproducable results

Andrea

Big sections of color with white and black on the ends, but everyone only sits in the black section.

Andrea

I thought you had the Prince and Princess of Canada.

Miyaa

Isn’t that just all of social media, especially X & TikTok?

Miyaa

It usually are the parts of Montréal and Toronto that drinks their milk in bags.

Miyaa

Oh god no.

Miyaa

If the Fallout series has taught me anything (and Half-Life and Portal), no bunker is shenanigans proof.

Miyaa

Foooooooreshadowing!

Conor Meehan

...maybe we're about to find out he just opened and doesn't have all the appliances yet?

djellafine

*clutches at heart* nooo

djellafine

Everything is so...sterile. is it a cubetown thing? Needs some art on the walls or yeah at least some color.

djellafine

I'm 100% convinced that panel 1 shows the entirety of Mood Coffee's equipment so far :D

Lucas Werkmeister

Does the Royal Canadian Society of Nonsensical Research ever collaborate with the Wacky Hijinks Research Group? Also, follow up question, is there a shenanigan-proof bunker nearby? https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=4968

BookBeard

The line must be drawn before it comes to hornswoggling!

Melissa Wilson

Marten needs to paint the walls, they're pretty bright.

Doc Gumby

Is this a subdivision of the Ministry of Silly Walks?

Will Weaver

That setup....is he just making percolated?

MikeT

Their style guide is all over the place.

Sean Kinlin

Perhaps you are a connoisseur who picks only the finest nits.

Sean Kinlin

I'm sure waggishness can find its way into their research.

Jose Alfredo Villalobos

@Todd: I would think more nonsense would have come from his late brother Rob.

Sean Kinlin

I can't, not if I want to live.

Devin Gates

Har, har, har. 🙂

Sean Kinlin

The Librarian sounds like they have a Tardis somewhere

Joe Bocanegra

Is that the Canadian equivalent of the JIR?

Todd Ellner

Consider Doug Ford

Todd Ellner

Her secret nickname is "Peggy". Use your judgement, Sport

Todd Ellner

Heh, Liz felt taller last comic - must have been the boots, since she's back to her usual "sometimes not even tall enough for her head to fit in the frame" shortness :)

Mark Eichin

Also my sister has that kind of hot water dispenser and the best thing about those is you can get them with a programmable sabbath function!

Miyaa

I just realized that Claire would be able to shame the Vivek and Elon show so badly that they'd be reduced to shilling for Hawk Tua's fake currency on a D-tier podcast.

Emma Humphries

Liz is my favorite gremlin

Sparky

I can't think of a journal category that Claire would love MORE than Nonsensical Research. There's a riff in Foucault's Pendulum about the curriculum at a self-contradictory university and this would fit right in :)

Stephen Wells

How many steps must you back up from The Librarian before you can turn around?

Captain Button

Shenanigans begets shenanigans

David Durant

I too wish to imbibe jitter liquid

David Durant

Marten missed a golden opportunity to go "You cannot handle my strongest coffee, adventurer".

Robert L

I immediately feel sorry for the editor of The Journal of the Royal Canadian Society of Nonsensical Research. That must be a nightmare.

Miyaa

“…and all we serve is ‘coffee’, ‘tea’ and ‘tijub—ok, Liz, that’s strike three, no more chalkboard paint for you.”

Magic Chopstick Games

Liz is the little sister I never wanted. She’s amazing, and I love her. I’d never want to meet her though.

JMK

Get in line! It's all the way back to Ottawa by now. I hope it starts moving again soon, for the sake of the people in the waters to the mainland.

Nulgar

Hey. I noticed the numbers for the comics are bit off when compared to comics before the break. Before the break, mondays had either a 1 or 6 at the end, fridays had a 5 or a 0. Example, 5001 (monday), 5002 (tuesday), 5003 (wednesday), 5004 (thursday), 5005 (friday). Don't worry this can easily be fixed. Take the next 2 days off and resume posting comics monday. ... Geez. With a concern like that, I would fit in with the denizens at CubeTown. :p

TheSnarkOfTheNorth

Canada is a really big place. There's gotta be some nonsense in there somewhere.

tellumo

I feel like Red Green wouldn't take the job. What's the Canadian version of the Sherman Statement?

Weston Clowney

RIP (his head off)

Leak

For a dollar extra, you can have a medium.

Mad Marie

... I have just found my calling.

Sorastro

Jeph is it too late to start the years updates over in black and white i have a whimsically nonsensical idea

Hope

I'm picturing it like the original Wizard reveal in the first Oz movie. But scarier.

Doc Gumby

Well, I mean, the ROYAL Society after all...

Doc Gumby

They pay with loonies and they drink double doubles and homo milk. Do they do anything but nonsense?

cromulent

You have a king only 90% of the time? Who is the figurehead the other 10%? Red Green?

Packy Anderson

feels good to be back in Cubetown!

Boots McGoot

Good, going vegan is the way. 😼

Carrie

There's a map on the internet of where locals are too polite to knock on the door, and I must now find it.

ValdVin

"RC Society of Nonsensical Research"? As Jeph's been living in Canada for awhile I can only trust in his belief that Canadians actually do "nonsense".

ValdVin

They can tak' oour lives but they canna tak' oour troousers!

Jon Wilson

In the last panel, the customer reminds me of Apu.

Carol Metzger

Boomer here, and if I read the hours and saw the sign I might use the phone to check. So maybe take your agism elsewhere.

Carol Metzger

Ah, Canadians, too polite to knock on the door. Bless them.

Andrew Mitchell

The real question is, is Liz an employee of Mood Coffee, or is she still attempting her research? Aside from therapy that is.

legobil

Nae king! Nae quin! Nae laird! Nae master! We willna' be fooled again!

Carol Metzger

I feel like if he ever goes on the $20 *then* it will be real, haha. Apparently that'll be 2027

Taryn

I’m with Liz. I don’t even know why I stay subscribed to the RCSoNR newsletter.

Populuxe

it will feel more real when you start seeing him on the coins!

LH

He is also on the Department of Redundancy Dept. Committee.

Ben R

It just clicked that mood is doom reversed. So I'm not surprised that Marten's approach is completely backwards.

Adam

Look sir your options are "BIG" or "SMALL" we made the sign for a reason

Ed Marshall

Clearly no boomers in Cubetown

Clark Wells

Is the Royal Canadian Society of nonsensical research hiring?

Jose Alfredo Villalobos

Don't care much for kings and queens but librarians rule.

Steve DeGroof

Ty, I did forget about balderdashery, and will now be using it daily

Kristina

Bless ere some malarkey is involved

Ísabel Pirsic

I say this to my espresso machine every morning 😌👌

Kristina

Not even shenanigans?

Tannerbot

But not tomfoolery, that's a different department

DrummerGeek

Only Liz is gremlin enough to force her way through the barrier of social contract denoted by which way a sign is hanging.

Sammitch

Claire has gained that level of respect, deference, and fear that shows she is a capable administrator. I have a coworker like that. She loves me because I ask questions, admit my mistakes, and make an effort to do things right the first time even if I fall short. I find it amusing to watch people tread fearfully around her office, especially managers. They just don't seem to understand that there's nothing to fear if you just do your job right so she doesn't have to clean up your mess.

Orion Rhine

Eh-oh !

Ísabel Pirsic

Coffee Wizard casts Jitter!

Sammitch

Nor tomfoolery!

Everett Bradshaw

I have come to really love Liz. Partly because she so obviously needs so much.

Spike McLarty

The Librarian doesn't stand for baloney.

Sean Kinlin

A bunch of socially awkward folks outside too shy to ask if he's open

Elberik

They'll learn, they'll all learn!

Shawn K. Younkin

During the time skip Claire has acquired the Librarian Sceptre and fashioned a dread cloak out of the bindings of rejected research proposals.

Sammitch

Forget not balderdashery.

Patrick

They featured a paper on perpetual emotion machines.

Sean Kinlin

Off with this guy's head! The Librarian can't be seen as weak to nonsense!

Shawn K. Younkin

🇨🇦 Two years on and I STILL forget we have a King now 90% of the time 🤣

Taryn

I am liking the direction this is heading

Jas Parks

"Fuck me up caffeine cleric"

Tannerbot

The Librarian, definitive article, I'm so beyond hyped for the Claire reveal

Hope

Kind of astonished he used 'meeting' and not 'Audience.'

Dubsicle

nonsense and fiddlestickery

Brendan Luster


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